Does It Matter Where the Power Comes From?

I just read an article that came out in CHRISTIANITY TODAY about what they call "Fake Pastors" in Ghana. In the article a fetish priest (occult practitioner) claims that over a thousand pastors have come to him seeking spiritural power from the gods he serves. Another woman is quoted as saying she doesn't care where the power comes from as long as it can help her with her problems. From my own experience, these are very common problems in Ghana and in many African countries.

A few years ago a Ghanaian pastor friend asked me to teach in his church. I sought God to know what I could share in only one session that might be a significant help to the people. My basic thesis was that as believers in Jesus Christ, we needed to seek God and His power alone. If we earnestly sought God and He for whatever reason did not see fit to grant our request, it would be better not to get our request. I talked about how God was all-wise, trustworthy, and always had our ultimate good at heart. I showed how Satan gives his gifts only with very serious and very destructive strings attached. I really wanted to make the point, so I told them (truthfully) that if my own precious child was sick and God did not see fit to heal that child, it would be better for the child to die than to seek power from occult sources. (I was not speaking against the use of medical intervention; I was speaking against seeking spiritual power from spirits other than God's Spirit.) I could tell the people were shocked. They had never considered such an idea before. I could tell the pastor was shocked. Apologetic. Embarrassed. In Ghanaian culture, getting what you want is of the ultimate importance. How you get it is not considered important. It's a huge mistake. My messsage did not impress the crowd that day, but I still stand by it. It was the right message.

Working as a modern-day abolitionist, I see occult power tied to death, child sacrifice, ritual abuse and slavery on a regular basis. I have come to understand that the gods worshiped in the shrines of African Traditional Religion do have some power. They can and sometimes do grant healing. It is ALWAYS, however, a conditional healing. It lasts only as long as the subject continues to live as a slave to the fetish. Those gods can and do help infertile women get pregnant. That child is claimed by the gods as their own, is obligated to serve the gods for life, and may be controlled mentally and physically by those spirit owners. For those like me who value freedom, it is definitely not worth it. Heal my child by making him a life slave of Satan? No, thank you.

My only hope is that these chains can be broken by Jesus Christ, the great Liberator, to whom all power in heaven and on earth has been given. I have seen that happen over and over again. When the power comes from Him, it is freeing, because the Scripture says that if Jesus makes us free, we will be free indeed. Oh, yes. It DOES matterr where the power comes from.