Transcript A Biblical look at ghosts, spirits, poltergeists, ghouls

A Biblical look at ghosts,
spirits, poltergeists, ghouls,
phantoms, haunting, and
exorcism
Focus
• Definitions of what • What the Bible says:
– about the death state
are:
– about the soul
– ghosts
– about the devil
– spirits
– about demons
– about the Holy Ghost
– poltergeists
– about angels
– ghouls
– About fairy’s & sprites
– phantoms
– about phantoms
– about exorcism
– hauntings
• Conclusions as we go
– exorcisms
along
Definitions
•
Ghosts – the soul
of a dead person
• Spirits - A
supernatural
being, as:
a. An angel or a
demon.
b. A fairy or sprite.
•
•
Poltergeists
– A ghost that
manifests itself
by noises,
rappings, and
the creation of
disorder.
Ghouls - An evil spirit
or demon believed to
plunder graves and
feed on corpses
Definitions
•
Phantoms
a. Something
apparently seen,
heard, or sensed,
but having no
physical reality
b. An image that
appears only in the
mind; an illusion.
•
Hauntings
A visit from a ghost or
other supernatural
being.
• Exorcisms - the rite of
driving out the Devil
and his demons from
possessed persons or
buildings
The Death State
Man is unconscious, knows
nothing, and is as though he had
never lived
• Ecclesiastes 9:5-10
• Psalms 6:4-5; Psalm 146:3-4
• Isaiah 38:18-19
The Death State
His body corrupts
• Psalm 49:9-14
• Psalm 30:9
• Psalm 88:10-12
• John 11:39
What the Bible says
about the Soul
• Joshua 10:28 - “ the king
destroyed … and all the souls
that were therein;”
• Judges 16:16 – “soul was vexed
unto death;”
• Job 7:15 – “My soul chooseth …
death rather than my life”
• Ezekiel 18:20 – “the soul that
sinneth it shall die”
What the Bible says
about demons
• Only found in NT - Gk “daimon”
Matt 12:22
Possessed with
a devil / demon
Blind + Dumb
Mark 5:1-5
A man with an
unclean spirit
Insanity /
Schizophrenia
Mark 9:17-27
Hath a dumb
spirit
Epilepsy
Luke 13:11-17
Spirit of infirmity Arthritis
Matt 17:15-18
A demon
Lunatic
What the Bible says
about the Devil
• The Devil is not a monster tempting
man to rebel against God
• The Devil is Sin manifest in
individuals and organisations
• The subject of the Devil & Satan is
regularly dealt with from our
platforms
• James 1:13-15
• God punishes man with death for his
sin, where is the righteousness of
God, if he punishes innocent men?
The Holy Ghost / Spirit
•
•
•
•
Holy = Set apart, special
Spirit = the power or energy of God
Acts 1:8 – God’s Special power
Luke 24:49 – Power promised to
Apostles
• Acts 2:4 – Power given to Apostles
• 2 Peter 1:20-21- Inspiration
What the Bible says
about visits from angels
Hebrews 13:2
“Be not forgetful to entertain
strangers: for thereby some
have entertained angels
unawares.”
- Cp. Abraham - Genesis 18
What the Bible says
about fairy’s & sprites
“tiny beings in human form, depicted
as clever, mischievous, and
possessing magical powers”
Part of mythology
•
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•
Deuteronomy 18:
10 There shall not be found among you any one that
maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire,
or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an
enchanter, or a witch,
11 Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a
wizard, or a necromancer.
12 For all that do these things are an abomination unto
the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD
thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
Conclusions
• Dead people don’t know anything, they are
not in heaven or hell, they are in the dust of
the earth
• The Soul is not something separate from
the body
• Ghosts are not the souls of dead people
• The Holy Ghost is a Bible description of the
Power of God, not evidence that Ghosts are
spirit beings
• You could be visited by an angel but not by
a demon, fairy or sprite as these are part of
mythology
So what are Ghosts?
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I'm operating under the assumption that what we call "ghosts" are a true
phenomena
My personal theories about ghosts:Residual psychic energy left behind due to great psychological trauma
or stress a person may have suffered during their lifetime or final
moment.
A "window in time." Perhaps what people see sometimes is a replay of
events that took place in the past, a loop in time as it were. Theoretically
it is possible.
Additional dimensions TIME is the 4th GRAVITY is the 5th dimension
ELECTRICITY is the 6th dimension, MAGNETISM is the 7th dimension.
.. 13 dimensions in string theory which we hardly know exist, let alone
understand
Seeing visions of angels. The Bible teaches that they are working
amongst us.
I'm not saying any one of these theories is correct, it may be a
combination of all these or perhaps a completely different one.