Who is the Holy Spirit and What does He Do?

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

Many Christians can relate easily to Jesus because He is human, as well as God—and also being called the ‘Son’ is easily grasped on an emotional level. But the Holy Spirit, not to mention the Holy ‘Ghost’ (due to cold, paranormal connotations for some), seems to be less understood.

But once we are saved (through the regeneration of the Holy Spirit), what happens between our salvation and the time of our death? That is a long time…and the Holy Spirit is indispensable for the living of the Christian life. It is imperative that we understand what He does during our stay on earth. And certainly one of the greatest gifts of the New Covenant is the full indwelling of the Holy Spirit in all believers—I say ‘full’ because, in order to be saved in the OT, they had to have some measure of the Holy Spirit.

In our discussion of the Trinity, we talked about the full deity and personality of the Holy Spirit. What I want to focus on in this segment is what He does. I am going to put His work under four headings: empowerment, purifying, reveals, and unifies.

1. Empowerment: The great Cappadocian Father, Basil (330-379) stated that the Holy Spirit was ‘Christ’s inseparable companion.’ When Mary wondered aloud as to how she might get pregnant the Lord said: 35And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be borne will be called holy—the Son of God. (Luke 2:35) His virginal conception is accomplished through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit empowered Jesus throughout His entire ministry and life.

As we shall see, from womb to tomb, the Holy Spirit was indeed Jesus’ constant companion. During the ‘hidden years’ we may assume that the Holy Spirit was with Jesus always. From the same psalm in which we have the terrible cry of dereliction, which Jesus screamed from the cross are these words, “Yet you are he who took me from the womb;
you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts.
10 On you was I cast from my birth,
and from my mother’s womb you have been my God.” (Ps 22) We see a continuity of intimacy with God (through the Holy Spirit) throughout His life.
When Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit came upon Him in the form of a dove, and then Mark tells us that the Spirit ‘drove’ Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted. But the Spirit did not leave Him alone during this trial. And when He had defeated Satan, Luke says that He came out from this ordeal in the power of the Spirit and began His public ministry. (4:14)
Indeed, at Jesus’ first sermon He quoted from Isaiah 61: 1The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;a
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound” 

So, a defining trait of the coming Messiah, as foretold by Isaiah, would be that He was anointed by the Holy Spirit. We are told in the gospels that He drove demons out by the Spirit of God, revealing that the Kingdom had arrived. Finally, when Jesus rose from the dead we are told that the Spirit played a significant part in this as well.(Rom.1:4) And in His discourse in John 14-17, the coming of the Holy Spirit in His fullness was to be viewed as a gift. Jesus was the original Paraclete but He would send another, and He told His disciple (and us) that it was to our advantage that He leave, in order for the Holy Spirit to come in fullness—which occurred at Pentecost. I once had a case in which there was a mighty rushing of wind which shook the house but it was an unholy mimicry of Pentecost in my view.

If Jesus’ life was empowered by the Holy Spirit, then how much more does our life need to be empowered by Him! As Jesus said in John 15, without Him we can do nothing—nothing to please God that is.

“but be filled with the Spirit”, (Eph.5:18) This present participle indicates that though we receive the Holy Spirit definitely at conversion, there is an absolute need to continually keep being ‘filled with the Holy Spirit’ to be empowered to bear fruit.

We need to remember that the Holy Spirit is a Person (who can be grieved or pleased). That He empowers us does not mean that He is a celestial battery from which we gather energy—He is intensely Personal because he is the third Person of the Trinity. We commune with Him existentially (moment by moment).

Christ has baptized us by the Spirit into the Body of Christ in which we celebrate the diversity of Spirit given gifts because we need each other.(1 Cor. 12:13) And we too have access to the power of God in our lives and ministries. Through the Spirit and the work of Christ we have power over the demonic and Satan himself. God Himself dwells within believers! Do you consciously rely upon the Holy Spirit?

2. Second, the Holy Spirit purifies us. He makes us increasingly holy. Surely it is very significant that His name is the HOLY Spirit! He Himself is utterly morally pure, as well as being transcendent or set apart.

But if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.(John 16:8-11)

In John 3:3-6 (Eph. 1-2) the Spirit awakens dead sinners to see their need of a Savior. He regenerates them and gives us the ability and desire to believe and repent. Without the work of the Holy Spirit applying the work of Christ, there would be no believers. But after initially purifying us through faith, He continues His role of sanctifier by changing us from one degree of glory to the next. (2 Cor. 3:18) Becoming more Jesus-like is the Spirit’s goal in our lives.

Over a period of time we should see change in our character. The fruit of the Spirit should become increasingly evident in our lives—an observable love which testifies to the Holy Spirit within. Problems with anger and bitterness should gradually be broken.

It is important that we pray before we make decisions, even for ministry opportunities or we may get there and a sense a deadness. Suppose you are in a situation in which you have made a commitment but something else important comes  up and you are confused as to what to do. Instead of stressing out, say something like: ‘Father, I know that you have some resolution to this problem. Please reveal it to me.’ And wait to see what happens. It is easy to get stressed out and this one single bit of advice could change your life. Discerning the Spirit is a habit that takes trial and error for us to learn over time. I have made quick decisions which I wished later I had prayed more about. Is there anything in your life that needs purifying? We will all be ‘under construction’ until the Holy Spirit brings us home—He is the seal and guarantee of our glorification.

3. Thirdly, the work of the Holy Spirit is to reveal. “knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”(2 Pet.1:21) Peter is saying that the OT prophets were guided by the Holy Spirit to reveal God’s mind and purposes to us. Many Christians are canonically challenged: meaning that they do not read the OT much. But every major doctrine in the NT finds its origin and foundation in OT, and probably within first 3 chapters of Genesis—and then expounded in more detail as OT progressed. I think we grieve the Holy Spirit when we do not read these books which is said to have been written by men ‘carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

Regarding the revealing of God in NT Jesus says: 12“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. (John 16:12-14)

This is sometimes misapplied by Christians because clearly the primary meaning of this text is Jesus preparing His apostles for their foundational role in the church as being agents of revelation. Meaning that the primary focus of this text is the prediction of the coming NT—God’s written revelation.
So, to be empowered by the Holy Spirit we need to be men and women of the Word because the Holy Spirit speaks to us primarily to us through His Word.

When it comes to personal guidance by the Holy Spirit there are two opposite errors to avoid. The first is to be too subjective: ‘The Holy Spirit told me to do this, and He told me to do that.” There is a strong over-reliance on feelings to the neglect of the brain God gave us, and His Word (along with counsel of other people) I have seen the craziest things said and done all in the name of what people felt God had told them to do. It is interesting in the council of Acts 15 that there was a lot of discussion first, before coming to a conclusion: and they said that it ‘seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us.” The Holy Spirit usually does not bypass the brain in guiding us in specific situations.

The other error is to be too rational—relying too much on the brain to the neglect of the feelings/emotions and the internal testimony of the Holy Spirit. Often after spending time in the Word and praying for a matter, and then waiting on God, a solution will come that ‘feels right’ and from the Lord. It is difficult to express this in words, but if we pray and wait upon the Lord, and not flip out when problems arise, then He will guide us. But this often comes in the form of advice from godly friends. Again, if you find yourself in a mess of a situation, then pray: ”Lord,  I believe that You have a good solution to this.” And wait to see what happens—perhaps some new factor will arise or God will make it clear though His providence.

4. The Holy Spirit works to bring unity to believers. In the High Priestly prayer in John 17 Jesus actually says that the loving unity of believers is the final apologetic: an observable, costly love from Christians (especially to other believers) will testify to the truth of our faith. The world often separates over differences, but the diversity in the Body is God ordained and we need each other. God gives different passions and gifts to us as individuals, all within the unity of the Body.

Some evangelical leaders are compromising on the gospel by allying with Roman Catholics (whose view of salvation is seriously wrong) or rejecting penal substitution. The point is that in seeking unity, it must not be done at the expense of truth and the holiness and purity of the Holy Spirit. On the other hand, we have to set aside non-essential differences in order to give glory to God through the unity of believers. Some folks will call anyone ‘heretic’ who does not believe in every jot and tittle of their belief system. We have to rely on common sense and the leading of the Holy Spirit to know when to say ‘when’. Certain issues are non-negotiable and God the Holy Spirit does not want us to waffle on those in an attempt to have a shallow unity. Grace and truth, holiness and love—we need both to be bold and effective witnesses and to please the Holy Spirit.

Of all the Persons of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit is the most intimate with believers because He actually indwells us (and through Him, the Trinity). It should be our passion to walk moment by moment, keeping in step with the Spirit.

Mark Hunnemann is the author of Seeing Ghosts Through God's Eyes: A Worldview Analysis of Earthbound Spirits. It's also available in eBook format.

An Open Letter to Christian Paranormal Investigators (with signatures)

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An Open Letter to Christian Paranormal Investigators (with signatures)

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

Preface:

This is a humble and heartfelt plea to Christian Paranormal Investigators from Mark Hunnemann (who initiated and drafted this communication) and Laura Maxwell (Former Spiritualist) and Dana Emanuel (Former Ghost Hunter) who support this statement and added invaluable insights, as well as the 60 signatures at the bottom.

31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (1 Cor. 10:31)
“Be holy, for I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:16
“If I profess with loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the Truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not professing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. Where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battle front besides, is mere flight and disgrace, if he flinches at that point.” (attributed to Martin Luther).

In our day, ‘that little point’ is our obedience to the inerrant Word of God in response to the onslaught of the pagan/occult worldview and techniques which have infiltrated the church. As Dr. Peter Jones has clearly shown (The Other Worldview, etc), the pagan worldview is THE dominant enemy of the biblical worldview today, and as such, it is that ‘little point where the devil is most fiercely attacking’. The question is: will we be faithful, loyal soldiers for Christ, in OUR generation, or will we flee due to accommodating it—or worse, practicing it ourselves (i.e. through occult methods)? Fascination with the paranormal has mushroomed and has demonized the spiritual landscape of America and Europe. And if we don’t respond quickly and appropriately, then our children and grandchildren will not be ready for the difficult days ahead.

Today, the Church and the world are being besieged; indeed there is an unprecedented disaster unfolding before our very eyes, and sadly, it involves Christians in the paranormal community. Hence, this letter is lovingly addressed to you.

Many of us (see signatures below) are former paranormal investigators, and all of three of us are actively involved in helping people with demonic issues, so this is not ‘ivory tower reflections’. We see it as our timely duty to write this declaration in light of the current lapses into occultic beliefs and practices amongst our fellow believers, and in the world at large. We offer this in a spirit of humility and love, with the hopes that it will stir further dialogue and change. We are all sinners, saved by grace—faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross, plus nothing (Ephesians 2:8-10; Romans 3-4). This is not us vs. them/you—it is all of US together. With a similar motivation that caused Martin Luther King, Jr. to write his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” to fellow Christians, we offer this letter of our beliefs and concerns to you, our dearest brothers and sisters in Christ.

With tears, we must insist that Christians engaged in paranormal investigating are especially surrendering at this ‘one little point’, by the adoption of occultic beliefs and practices, which are opposed to the Lordship of Christ over the full spectrum of life (1 Cor. 10:31), and the clear teaching of God’s Word, which has absolute authority over us, and demands implicit obedience. The use of occultic/pagan techniques in virtually all paranormal investigations is distressing to God, and to us. Indeed, the solicitation of EVP’s (or other electronic equivalents) has become the backbone of investigations.

“The end justifies the means” ..."We are trying to help people" is an unbiblical form of ethical reasoning that has infiltrated the paranormal community, as a former investigator, Dana Emanuel, has affirmed from her own experience. You can never truly help someone by disobeying God. Instead you will hurt them and yourselves. God’s curses/discipline is still in place just as His blessings are. (See Acts 5; 1 Cor. 10-11; Heb. 12)

God’s Truth and the work of Christ’s church both insist that truth demands loving confrontation of both evil and error. What good is it for you to profess Christ ever so loudly, and yet surrender at this point where the devil is attacking? What good is it for you to affirm the full inerrancy of the bible, and a host of other biblical teaching, if you are not living under the Lordship of Christ over the full spectrum of your lives, especially when it comes to the occult, and how we interact with the spirit realm? It is this lack of obedience to Christ in a crucial area which we are lovingly confronting, and asking you to repent of.

Highlighted points:

The singular honor and dignity of the Lord Jesus Christ, and His all-sufficient and perfect atonement, is our focus and passion. Certain beliefs and practices in the paranormal community, either implicitly or explicitly, deny the perfection of the Person and Work of Christ.

1. When Laura Maxwell realized she was deceived some years ago, by a group of Christians who all believed in, the now popular global Christian trend, that they were receiving revelation from alleged 'holy angels,' she left that group and sought a deliverance minister. She repented and had demons cast out of her! Even after her many years in healing and deliverance ministry, she, too, had been deceived but sought help! She shared this in a radio interview on angels we did together last year. Nobody is above being deceived!

2. Occult practices are so thoroughly and consistentlke an explicit command in the NT to abolish them. Instead, the NT continues to express God’s unchanging, implacable hatred of all occult beliefs/techniques. (E.g. see Acts and Revelation) The best book on biblical ethics (law and gospel, law and grace, and the place of OT moral law in the NT, etc, is John Frame’s book “The Doctrine of the Christian Life”, P&R).

3. The clients don’t need validation of something they already know is true; they need deliverance/conversion. If you are truly called by God, then you may consider deliverance as a vocation.

4. TESTING THE SPIRITS in Jesus's name, along with praying for protection, will often be ineffective because God does not listen to us if we are engaged in heinous sins or cherish sin in our hearts (Psalm 66:18).

5. Basing beliefs primarily on non-biblical books (e.g. Enoch) has become common, but it must be avoided, as it detracts from the sufficiency of Scripture, and has led to much unedifying speculation. For example, some take issue with our claim that all alleged ghosts are demons, and they frequently base their beliefs on extra-biblical texts, myths, folklore, and their own experience...none of which are infallible. Actually, they are all very fallible...

Dana Emanuel used to be the team leader of a highly proficient paranormal investigation team, and experienced severe oppression as a result, as are many of you. She is a vital part of drafting this letter, and here is the link to her testimony and articles, which we HIGHLY RECOMMEND.www.xposingtheenemy.com

To view dozens of articles by Mark Hunnemann on the paranormal, which we don’t have time to elaborate on, click on.....http://archive.aweber.com/paraworld

Many excellent articles and interviews by Laura Maxwell, a former Spiritualist and daughter of a Medium, and according to Mark and others, one of the worlds’s leading experts on all things
supernatural. https://ourspiritualquest.com/

We know that you like we, ache and agonize over the spiritually hostile situations many people today are experiencing. Further, we know that many of you have given so much of your heart, time, energy, and finances to help folks in distress. We know many of you personally and we love you, and are in awe of your desire to help people. That is not the issue. The issue is this: are the means by which you are attempting to help people honoring or dishonoring to God?

There are no morally neutral acts. 1 Cor. 10:31 is crucial to our view of this situation. 31 “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. “ (1 Cor. 10:31) Scripture has all the divine Words we need for every situation we face, including helping spiritually oppressed people. Every thought, word, and deed is either done to God’s glory or to the glory of an idol. So, how can we help people in spiritually hostile situations in a way that brings glory to God and not to an idol?

Sadly, we know that you are not glorifying God with your actions, regardless of your motives. How can we be certain of that? God’s Word is clear…very clear, as we shall see. Because God’s Word is certain, it is possible to be certain and not arrogant. We despise and despair of any self-righteous judgementalism; but we speak the truth in love, with a collective broken heart.

Wanting to help people cannot be the sole judge of whether an action is morally right: our actions have to conform to God’s Word and glorify Him. (1 Cor. 10:31) Whether it makes us feel good certainly cannot be the determining factor of an action’s propriety in God’s eyes. Due to distressing life circumstances, some of you find your purpose or significance in helping others with paranormal problems, and that makes it all the more difficult for you to imagine life without it. It is all you have that gives your life meaning, and so you cling to it. However, as new creations in Christ (Gal: 2:20), you have to realize that such thinking is idolatrous. (See Jer. 2:13) Christ, and Christ alone, can give us security and significance.

Perhaps the greatest need in the church today is a keener grasp of God’s burning holiness; a deficient understanding of God’s holiness has led to moral laxness and deficient views of both law and grace. God Himself is our ultimate ethical Norm; and He is unchanging. (Malachi 3:6) We meet the Incarnate Word as we read His Inscripturated Word (bible); both are equally, The Word.

Often we hear: “I’ve been involved in investigating for 20, 30, and 40 years…” However, longevity in the paranormal field does not make one wiser, as many assume, because the longer you are immersed in darkness, the more your mind will be affected with a spirit of demonic delusion, confusion and obsession; and your conscience will be increasingly defiled until it is seared. (As Dana points out, it happened to her, even though she was loathe to admit it at the time).

Countless ex-investigators have confessed that they had become obsessed with the thrill of ‘the hunt’ or the collection/review of data. Obsession is often a sign of demonic oppression, or a step in that direction. There are many rationalizations and objections that folks raise against what we are saying, and we can’t address them all, but the issue is: will you have a soft, humble, teachable heart before God and bow before His absolute, sovereign authority?
Proverbs 1:7

If you read nothing else in this open letter, please read this text which was breathed out of God’s own holy Mouth (2 Timothy 3:16-17) The entire text comprises an indivisible unit in the Hebrew bible.

9 “When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. 10 There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, [e]anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer 11 or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, 12 for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord. And because of these abominations the Lord your God is driving them out before you. 13 You shall be blameless before the Lord your God, 14 for these nations, which you are about to dispossess, listen to fortune-tellers and to diviners. But as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do this.
15 “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to Him you shall listen— 16 just as you desired of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’ 17 And the Lord said to me, ‘They are right in what they have spoken. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him.19 And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him. 20 But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name that I have not commanded him to speak, or[f]who speaks in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die.’ 21 And if you say in your heart, ‘How may we know the word that the Lord has not spoken?’— 22 when a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the word does not come to pass or come true, that is a word that the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously. You need not be afraid of him. (Deut. 18:9-25, ESV, emphasis added)
6 “If a person turns to mediums and necromancers, whoring after them, I will set my face against that person and will cut him off from among his people.7 Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God. (Lev.20:6-7)

God wants you to listen to HIS voice (the Good Shepherd), and not the voice of demons! “Whoring after them...” reveals the true nature of what you are doing in God’s eyes: spiritual adultery.

20 “No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. 22 Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?” (1 Cor.10: 20-21)

By communicating with the spirit realm (realm of Satan/demonic), you are participating/communing with demons; and are provoking the Lord to jealousy, and bringing unspeakable harm upon yourselves, which grieves us deeply. Your actions are affecting your children and grandchildren; your future offspring!! Generational curses are in the bible, and we have dealt with them time and again in deliverance. Some of you are suffering in various ways because of your unwitting involvement with demons.

We'd like to ask you a question: are any parts of these texts (especially verses 9-14) unclear to you? Indeed, God’s Word is so clear that it leaves us without excuse.

To make it even plainer, let us put it in the form of a syllogism, which is common in ethical literature.
Major premise: Attempting to speak to the dead is an abominable sin (10-11)
Minor premise: Investigators attempt to speak to the dead (often electronically)
Conclusion: Therefore, Investigators are committing an abominable sin.

This syllogism is both valid and sound; the conclusion follows irresistibly from the premises, and they (the premises) are true.

It doesn’t just say that the communicating with the spirit realm is abominable but that those who do it become an abomination in His sight. That is frightening, is it not?

In light of the manifest clarity of this text, why do Christian 'investigators' still attempt to speak to the dead, or use psychics/mediums? There is no excuse. None. 

However, here are several reasons why we did, until our eyes were opened.

First, we say with utmost gentleness, many of us have been drawn to seeking the paranormal due the traumatic death of a loved one. Our heart goes out to you if that happened to you, but you must resist this temptation because it will not help you, and will only compound your pain—the devil is so cruel, and often takes advantage of us when we are most emotionally broken. The strongest believers can emotionally unravel in the face of tragic loss, and some of us deal with this agony on a daily basis. Perhaps you cling to this practice as it is the only thing that gives your life meaning.

The second reason is that perhaps your conscience allows you to investigate; it doesn’t bother you, so you assume it must be okay. However, the bible doesn’t see our conscience as being infallible; it is subordinate to scripture. It is not uncommon for us to mute the voice of conscience by habitual sin.

From personal experience, we know that it is possible to sink into devastating sin (of all different kinds), and the voice of conscience becomes increasingly dim—but we cannot remain in that situation indefinitely because “He who perseveres to the end will be saved.” (Matt.10:22) Sometimes our conscience says that something is right when the bible says it is wrong, and vice versa. (E.g.Rom.14-15) We must seek to inform/educate our conscience with the content of Scripture, or it can lead us astray, as the following text shows.

“Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,2 through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared.”, (1 Timothy 4:1-2, ESV)

Third, many people think that Old Testament laws, like the text in Deut.18, are no longer binding under the New Covenant, and that the New Covenant gives them new freedom to contact the spirit realm.

False teachers in the church are promoting this antinomianism. We don’t have the time to adequately defend what should not need defending; namely, our comprehensive obedience to all of God’s Word.

However, God is the author of both covenants, and the covenant documents of each continue to be normative for God’s people. Jesus indicates in Matthew 5:17ff and Paul in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 that the Old Testament moral law (civil and ceremonial law has been fulfilled in Christ, but they are still normative in what they teach us) is a guide unto righteous living for New Covenant believers. In Paul’s text he is referring mostly to the Old Testament, and its abiding validity as a source for training us in godly living.

If the OT law cannot justify or save us, is it then obsolete for Christians? Do we just throw the law out? Quite otherwise. 17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 5:17-19) we can see how very clear Jesus is on this point.

We are still obligated to obey God in the New Covenant. Indeed, we are told over and over that our love for Christ is expressed through obedience to the law/commandments. (Exodus 20:6; Deut.11:27; Daniel 9:4; John 15:4, 14; 1 Cor. 7:19; Rev.12:17 ECT,) The law commands us to love, and that love commands us to keep God’s commandments. Law requires love, and love requires law. A reckless disregard for God’s law could be a sign of an unregenerate heart. The “law of love” has no content without love of the law. Some will ‘cherry pick’ the few theologians who will support their attempts to circumvent OT moral law and indeed to circumvent the prohibition of communicating with spirits.

Occult practices are so thoroughly and consistently condemned in the OT that it would take an explicit command in the NT to abolish them. Instead, the NT continues to express God’s unchanging, implacable hatred of all occult beliefs/techniques. (E.g. see Acts and Revelation)

We say this with all humility, but if you have no qualms whatsoever about communicating with the spirit realm, then you are either: 1) abysmally ignorant of scripture, or 2) you are not a true, regenerate Christian.3) Although you are a born again Christian, you are being disobedient and grieving the Holy Spirit. Thus, this is an exceedingly serious matter.

Let us return to Deut. 18:

The entire section quoted above comprises a unity in the Hebrew text: the first half is devoted to illegitimate means of seeking spiritual guidance, which includes the abominable practices of seeking to communicate with the dead, and the use of psychics and mediums. In other words, seeking wisdom apart from God via occult methods. The second half of chapter 18 is devoted to the legitimate means of seeking God’s wisdom via His prophets. Indeed, there is a Messianic prophecy of The coming Prophet, which is quoted about Jesus three times in the New Testament (John 1:21; Acts 3:22-24; 7:37).

Hence, if you reject Deut. 18:9-14 and its prohibitions against communicating with the spirit realm, then to be consistent, you would have to throw out the Messianic prophecy of Jesus as The coming Prophet, because this text is a tight unit. Or if you object that you are not seeking illicit wisdom from the spirit realm, but confirmation of their presence, then we say that the method is as evil as the motive: contacting the spirit realm is absolutely forbidden in itself. Do not consult mediums/psychics or attempt communication with the dead. Period. God tells us what will help people or hurt them; not our misguided attempts to help people by engaging in syncretism (mixing beliefs/practices); the bane of God’s church since its inception.

Moses, who was educated in the Magick of his day in Egypt, was contrasting how we are to find divine guidance, and God’s abhorrence of pagan/occutlic rituals. (See also Lev.19:26; 1 Samuel 28; 2 Kings 17:17; Isaiah 2:6; 21:6; Micah 5:12; Rev.21-22 and all of the major prophets).

As Dana says in her testimony, it was easy for her to soft-peddle these verses by thinking that she was doing the right thing and God would understand; that the culture had changed drastically since then, and possibly God Himself had changed His mind. But then she realized that God does not change—He is immutable (Malachi 3:6) That God’s Truth is unchanged and unchanging caused Dana’s change of heart. May it change your heart as well; and ours too, as we all struggle with idolatry.

Specific Points:

1. It is out of love that we call our brothers and sisters to repent of beliefs and practices which God sees as spiritual adultery. Over and over in the Major Prophets, God exposes His heart regarding His holy and infinitely intense jealous hatred of paganism and occultic activities, and how much it tears at His heart. How can you read Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel and not be affected by the constant barrage of God’s intense, jealous rage over occult practices, such as you are doing?

Entire reigns of kings in the historical books were summarized as good or bad, depending on how they dealt with the occult. In one sense, Josiah was the greatest Old Testament king, and his zeal for God was manifested in how thoroughly he rid the nation of all occult practices. “”4 Moreover, Josiah put away the mediums and the necromancers and the household gods and the idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might establish the words of the law that were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord. 25 Before him there was no king like him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses, nor did any like him arise after him.”(2 Kings 23:24-25) Notice the close connection between Josiah’s unprecedented love for God, love for His law, and his putting away mediums and necromancers.

2. We lovingly challenge paranormal investigators to see their primary identity as children of the Living God and part of His Church-the Body of Christ, and not primarily as members of the paranormal community. (Romans 12; 1 Cor. 12; Eph.5; Gal. 3-4) He wants us to transform culture and not be conformed to it (Romans 12:1-2)-to be salt and light. Further, we believe that it is the paranormal community itself which is accelerating this individual and corporate disobedience due to it being a plausibility structure; shared beliefs and passions make it easier to rationalize disobedience to God’s clear commands, and to believe things which are actually implausible. Two of the attributes of scripture are its sufficiency and clarity, and your lack of perceiving the clear truth is deeply concerning to us. The more deeply you become involved, the more of a deluding darkness takes hold of the reasoning process, where things that should be clear, aren’t; a dark veil has descended, and you begin to blame God for the distressing circumstances that your actions have brought about—God’s discipline and/or demonic oppression.

Praying for protection, or for discerning spirits in Jesus’ Name, before/during an investigation will often be ineffective because God does not listen to us if we are engaged in heinous sins or cherish sin in our hearts (Psalm 66:18) Why do you pray to Michael for assistance, or other angels, when neither Jesus nor the apostles ever did? Why pray to an arch-angel when God, the Holy Spirit, is infinitely stronger and present with us always? It’s one thing to pray to God for HIM to send His holy angels, but angels do not want us to pray TO them, which is a form of worship. And your requests for discernment will be blocked as well because of grieving the Holy Spirit, who gives discernment.

Does it concern you, as it does us, that so many investigators are themselves plagued with demonic activity, and are suffering in a multitude of ways? This is the deep, dark secret of the paranormal community.

3. Specifically, we call our brothers and sisters to stop all attempts to communicate with the deceased (e.g. EVP’s, Ghost box, Ovulus, etc.); to not view oneself as a medium/psychic, nor use mediums/psychics in investigations. It is disturbing to see the unabashed use of ‘Christian Mediums’, when that should be seen as an unholy oxymoron. You are utterly deceived if you believe God has gifted and called you as a medium; He has not. He does not speak out of both sides of His Mouth. He doesn’t condemn mediumship and then call one to it. It is a common error for folks to mistake their human spirit/passions for the voice of the Holy Spirit. But the Holy Spirit works in tandem with the Word. And the relativism of truth has crept into many Christians approach to the moral absolutes of the bible.

Investigators are increasingly using parapsychological categories in place of biblical categories; being conformed to the world by the allure of false science instead of being transforming agents of culture (Rom. 12:1-2) Many investigators affirm the dangers inherent in Ouija Board use, but they fail to see that there is no qualitative difference between soliciting EVP’s (or other electronic means) and a Ouija session.

Not all Ouija sessions are frivolous; some are serious and sincere attempts to communicate with the spirit realm, (just as you are doing), yet we know the horror stories associated with them. Many cases we are called to are rooted in playing with Ouija boards and the like. And those of us in deliverance ministries often have to come in after investigations have stirred up the hornet’s nest due to the use of occultic techniques.

Both Ouija and EVP’s address any spirits there to make their presence known. Both are explicit attempts to communicate with the dead, which is clearly forbidden and condemned throughout the bible. The means of communicating with the spirit realm are mushrooming, but they are equally heinous in God’s eyes. The veneer of science behind these methods must not be seen as excusing them, much less sanctioning them. It is whitewashing wickedness.

It is our experience from studying all the relevant biblical texts, that every attempt to support notions common in the paranormal community, always commit one or more exegetical/hermeneutical fallacies. Indeed, the texts appealed to usually undermine the very beliefs being defended by Christians in the paranormal community. (E.g. Mark 6)

In paranormal seminars what is often called "phenomenology'', is the tendency to identify entities in your investigations by your five senses and intuition...which is naive'. If Satan can appear as an angel of Light (2 Cor. 11:14) then it would be a snap for him/demons to appear as anything. (And we have seen some really bizarre manifestations.) In light of this biblical fact, why do Christian investigators continually attempt to identify entities based on appearance, sound of voice, smells, or some kind of intuition? Why believe the voice of a demon? If they are anything, demons are masters of deception, who were there 100 years ago and can mimic all the findings of the historical research. Thus, they have been successful countless times in misguiding investigators into thinking that they have discovered the alleged ‘deceased human’ who is causing the problems. Failure to take into account the reality of demons has led many Christians to embrace shameful beliefs and to view the phenomena/data through distorted lenses.

There are gradations of sin (and hell, Romans 2:5) and occultic sins are especially heinous in God’s eyes. (John 19:11; Lev. 4:2, 13; 5:17; Numbers 15:30; Ezekiel 8:6, 13, 15; Matt. 5:19; 23:23; Deuteronomy 18—all the Major Prophets). And to engage in them is to jeopardize one’s eternal destiny. How can you continue doing what you know God hates? “He who perseveres (in obedience) to the end, will be saved.” Since it is the HOLY Spirit who gives us assurance of salvation, it is impossible to have genuine assurance of salvation when engaged in such unholy activities. Hebrews 12:14 We fear that many, who profess Christ, don’t possess Christ. “Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord…” Matthew 7:21-18 ... without holiness no one will see the Lord.

Have you ever stopped to ask if your spiritual authority is being compromised as a result of your grievous sin? And we know from painful experience that investigating the paranormal causes demonic oppression, whether you realize it or not. So, when you go to help someone, you are likely bringing demons with you, which unwittingly infest them further. And without a doubt, your occultic techniques make it worse for the client by opening new demonic doors, or making old ones ‘wider.’

Many of you are hesitant to even mention demons to your clients because it might ‘scare them.’ But is that wise since the bible says that there are only two entities in the spirit realm: good and bad angels (demons/unclean spirits/elemental spirits are all synonyms)? Laura responded the same way in her first few years as a Christian, scared she'd frighten people, until she felt God urged her to tell the truth or otherwise she’d be lying to them!

Have you ever stopped to ask if your spiritual authority is being compromised as a result of your grievous sin? And we know from painful experience that investigating the paranormal causes demonic oppression, whether you realize it or not. So, when you go to help someone, you are likely bringing demons with you, which unwittingly infest them further. And without a doubt, your occultic techniques make it worse for the client by opening new demonic doors, or making old ones ‘wider.’

Many of you are hesitant to even mention demons to your clients because it might ‘scare them.’ But is that wise since the bible says that there are only two entities in the spirit realm: good and bad angels (demons/unclean spirits/elemental spirits are all synonyms)? Laura responded the same way in her first few years as a Christian, scared she'd frighten people, until she felt God urged her to tell the truth or otherwise she’d be lying to them!

The bible mentions demons and Satan. It's the truth. They'll be more scared if they die without knowing the truth or knowing Christ as Savior... Laura was grateful when a Christian told her that the spirits she spoke with were demons. As soon as she believed this, she was desperate to be free of them, scared or not!

If you don’t tell them the truth about demons, you are in a sense allowing them to continue to believe a lie; you are lying to them.

And by appealing to earthbound spirits, poltergeists, and residual energy (a book is forthcoming showing how vacuous this notion is), you are telling the client there is peace, when there is no peace. False prophets were condemned in the OT for saying that. It also destroys biblical hope.

Hence, we see no positive purpose behind paranormal investigating, as it is practiced today. The clients don’t need validation of something they already know is true; they need deliverance/conversion. If you are truly called by God, then you may consider
deliverance as a vocation. In light of 1 Cor. 10:31, we can see no redeeming value nor any hope of paranormal investigating bringing glory to God. Indeed, it dishonors God’s holy Name, when we are called to “hallow His Name”.

We affirm that all genuine paranormal activity is demonic activity, as neither holy angels nor the Holy Spirit will act mischievously, and angels are our servants. (Hebrews 1:14). And humans immediately go to heaven or hell after they die. (Heb. 9:27)The perfection of the atonement is at stake regarding the demonic notion of ‘earthbound spirits.’, and it is one of Satan’s most effective lies.
If your ultimate authority is the Roman Catholic Church, and the teachings of its well known exorcists, then we gently but firmly state that their view of justification is a false gospel (Gal. 1), and no human authority must be placed on par with God’s Word. Purgatory is a direct assault on the singular honor and dignity of the Person and Work of Christ and His finished work on the cross.

Conclusion: There is much more we had wanted to say, but from the depths of our hearts we beg of you to listen carefully to what we have said, even if it initially upsets you. In summary, even if you persist in believing in earthbound spirits, the bible clearly says to not attempt communication with the dead. Neither Jesus nor the early church communicated with earthbound spirits (Moses and Elijah weren’t earthbound), and they didn’t conduct paranormal investigations or assist deceased spirits in “crossing over”, because our thrice-holy, omnipotent God and Judge Reigns over every atom in the cosmos, especially our souls! (Eph. 1:11)

We are called to imitate Christ, and Jesus Himself is the Light—let us point them to Him. Our Savior didn’t have a ministry to the dead, and neither did the apostles. They weren't involved in paranormal investigations. So, why should you? Certainly this would have been part of the Great Commission if it were true! Focusing your time and energy on paranormal investigating and assisting souls to ‘cross over,’ is not part of the Great Commission. Thus, we feel you have been distracted from that explicit calling to all believers.

We urge you to re-focus your energies on reaching out to the lost and making disciples, while they may still be found, and helping those who are demonically oppressed, by cleansing them and their homes of unclean spirits. God is so gracious and merciful and He can use you to re-direct your focus on reaching the ‘living lost’ and delivering people from demons! If He can use us toward that end, then He can certainly use you!

When Laura Maxwell realized she was deceived some years ago, by a group of Christians who all believed in, the now popular global Christian trend, that they were receiving revelation from alleged 'holy angels,' she left that group and sought a deliverance minister. She repented and had demons cast out of her! Even after her many years in healing and deliverance ministry, she, too, had been deceived but sought help! She shared this in a radio interview on angels we did together last year. Nobody is above being deceived!

Like Laura did, please seek deliverance if it is needed, as we know many of you are oppressed.

Please send any replies to Mark Hunnemann at mhunne@aol.com. He was the primary drafter of this letter. Laura Maxwell and Dana Emanuel gave invaluable support and insights.

P.S. We intend to produce several 5-10 minute videos in the near future which reply to the frequent questions asked and can be viewed on our YouTube channels and blogs.

Love in the Lamb,

Mark A Hunnemann, M.Div. (Author, Deliverance Minister and Former Pastor), http://archive.aweber.com/paraworld

Laura Maxwell B.A. Hons. (Author, TV and Radio guest, Radio host and Former Spiritualist) https://ourspiritualquest.com/

Dana Emanuel (Author, Deliverance Minister and Former Paranormal Investigator) https://xposingtheenemy.com/

The undersigned lovingly call you to ‘put off’ your pagan/occult ways, and re-affirm that Jesus’ Lordship extends over every area of life. Seek the Lord while He may be found, and bow before Jesus as your Savior and Lord.

Signed by: Jerry Blasé, Dan Langenfeld, Lena Bonnick, Garry Keogh, Bonnie Giese, Mary Kirk, Neil Thompson, Sonya Saporito, Tracy Jackson, Larry Thompson. Donald Jones, Philip Ness-Thomas, Christopher Milner, Richard Lohman, Ariel Vega, Sandy Ragland, Christina Steel, Darren Steel, Krystal Clawson, Danny Clawson, Jr., Randy Sims, Melissa May, Sheila Jones, Jonathon Chai, Tammy Dajamette, Deborah McBride, Michael Quillen, Ashley Sidney, Rhonda Anne, Debbie Tucker, Jason Tirre, Connie Williams, Dwayne Follick, Tami Jocasta, Lynda Smith

Miller, Cheri Kharsah, Kara De Jesus, Zita Grant, Tina Storey, Ruth McGuire, David Abreu, Joshua Hopping, Billy Posey, Joe Miroddi, Dana Carrigan, Garry Combs, Rose Queener, Kelly Dello, Liese Sukeforth, Marilyn Chastain Haning, Bre Greer, Jen Wigolo, Aaron Knight, Phillip T Oliver, Billy Vanderbilt, Cynthia Hampton, Pastor Michael Sanders-Biblical Counselor, Hope Glover

A Comprehensive Analysis of Alleged Ghost Texts

By  Mark Hunnemann

I came across an argument recently which I consider representative of many thoughtful and sincere Christians. The argument is that there seems to be some “wiggle” room in the bible for considering ghosts as a biblically admissible category—three texts are given as most important. Later, this brother stated that though he believes ghosts may exist, we must not speak with them because the bible is clear that we mustn’t do that (Deuteronomy 18, Leviticus 19, 20). I appreciate this person’s ability to make a distinction as to ghost’s existence and our communication with them as two, distinct issues.

My purpose in this unusually lengthy blog is to establish the fact that the bible is crystal clear regarding the fate of those in the intermediate state—those who have died before Jesus’ return—and that there is no wiggle room for ghosts. Instead of quoting a couple verses and then listing others for folks to read on their own, I have included most of the texts I deem most pertinent to the state of our souls after death. I trust that you will read them carefully, and feel the cumulative effect. I am of the opinion that “mere” belief in ghosts, even if we won’t attempt communication, is harmful….it certainly is unbiblical.

I will address his interpretation of 1 John 4:1 first, list the pertinent verses, and then address the three verses he considers as most supportive of the notion of ghosts. If you are a sincere seeker of truth regarding ghosts, then I appeal to you to listen and read all the texts and arguments carefully. I put a lot of time in this blog.

“It is simply too easy to resign all paranormal phenomenon into the category of the demonic. Besides, we have no need to “test the spirits and see whether they are from God” (I Jn. 4:1) if all spirits (or spiritual phenomenon) are categorically evil. So while the Bible cautions us about deceiving spirits, it does not go so far as to say that all “encounters” are necessarily of the “deceptive” order. (p. 105 paperback edition; bold mine)

The need for spiritual discernment regarding “spirits” is evidence that there may be some wiggle room as to their nature. If all ghosts are demons, we don’t need discernment. But if, as I believe, there’s a broader range of spiritual possibilities, remaining skeptically agnostic may be a virtue.

Furthermore, some biblical texts appear to challenge the “ghosts are demons” narrative. Here’s what I consider the three most important.

Saul and the Witch of Endor (I Sam. 28) — The “ghost” of Samuel is summoned by a witch and witnessed as “a spirit coming up out of the ground” (vs. 13). The spirit is recognized as the dead prophet who validates himself by prophesying against Saul (vss. 16-19). So what was Samuel? A ghost or a demon?

The Mount of Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-8) — Two dead prophets—Moses and Elijah—appear alongside Jesus in a glorified state. Had they been resurrected? Where did their bodies/souls  previously exist? Where did they return to? Compounding matters is that the prophets “were talking with Jesus” (vs. 4).

Jesus’ post-Resurrection appearance to the disciples in which they mistake Him for “a ghost” (Luke 24:36-39) — It suggests that ghosts were an admissible category within their culture. Jesus does not rebuke them for this belief. In fact, He seems to substantiate it—“a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have” (vs. 39). This implies that ghosts ARE something and not another. (Note, this isn’t the first time the disciples thought Jesus to be a ghost — Matt. 14:22-33).

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error. (1 John 4:1-6)

First, I need to address the author’s interpretation and application of 1 John 4:1….notice that I quote the entire text to preserve context. Many people assume that John has 3 kinds of entities in mind when it comes to discernment (true, demonic, and ghosts) In fact, the author states we would not need discernment if all ghosts were demons. This is simply not true. Read 1 John 4:1-6 carefully and you will not see ghosts anywhere in the context. What John is clearly calling Christians to be is discerning about human teachers within the church.(1b) The spirits and human teachers are inextricably connected in v. 1.(for many false prophets have gone out into the world.. see v 5-6 for same connection of spirits with teachers) John’s point is that some people’s teaching is animated by the Holy Spirit, and others are animated by demonic spirits. THAT is what discernment is needed for. When he says “test the spirits” it is a call for doctrinal orthodoxy, especially a Christological test. Namely, any spirit which denies that Jesus was fully human is demonic in origin (unclean spirit), and any spirit which affirms it is from God. The clarion call for discernment had only two foci in this context….godly human teachers who were guided by the Holy Spirit who taught orthodox views of Christ, and ungodly teachers who were guided by unholy spirits who taught heterodox views of Christ. False teaching regarding Christ was/is rampant and John (the Holy Spirit) commands us to not be spiritually gullible, but discerning. The author’s assertion that discernment was not needed unless ghosts existed is simply not true, and misses the Holy Spirit’s intent for this text. Discerning false teaching regarding the Person and Work of Christ is plenty reason for dogged and determined discernment. Such calls for discernment regarding false teachers is a common motiff from Genesis to Revelation…from Jesus Himself and in virtually all the epistles. V.6  summarized John’s point. ”We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” It is an either/or. Human teachers like John who speak correctly regarding Jesus have the Spirit of truth, but human teachers who speak falsely of Christ are animated by demons—the spirit of error. John does not have ghosts anywhere in his mind in this text. Nowhere! And yet there is an alarming sense of urgency that we be discerning. I honestly don’t understand how one can say this text makes no sense (in its call for discernment) unless it was implying a need for discernment of ghosts. The issue is discernment between teaching from the Holy Spirit, and teaching originating from demonic influence. That is clearly the Holy Spirit’s intent for this text and not just my interpretation.

From here, I want to list the primary texts that clarify the nature of the intermediate state, which are uniformly ghost-less. For sake of space and time, my comments after each will be minimal. Please read ALL the texts,

9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, (2 Peter 2:9) Peter is speaking present tense. ALL of the unrighteous are being punished in hell during the intermediate state. From Adam and Eve onwards, there  have been two streams of humanity—the righteous (those who looked forward to the coming Messiah, or look back to the Messiah who came) and the unrighteous. The seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman. Again, there is no allowance for exceptions regarding the location of all the unrighteous who have died.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.  (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Who is the author of Hebrews referring to as surrounding us? We need to look at the context, especially the preceding chapter. Starting with Abel there is a list of “faith hall of fame”… Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Moses, etc. All of these folks listed in chapter 11 are commended as living by faith and not by sight…waiting for their heavenly home. The astonishing thing is that we are told that this great cloud of witnesses in heaven “surround us”. They are earnestly looking down upon us, perhaps cheering us on as we run our race of faith. These Old Testament believers are currently in heaven….disembodied but glorified spirits worshiping God face-to-face, covered in the righteousness of Christ, who is seated at the right hand of the Father. No exceptions….all the righteous dead from Old Testament times comprise the cloud of witnesses in heaven. In light of all Jesus endured (v.2) is it not noxious in the extreme to think that the perfect atonement made by the perfect Atoner of our sin, let somebody “slip” and become earthbound? The clear picture is that ALL the righteous dead comprise this great cloud of witnesses. They are conscious, and not in some suspended animation or soul-sleep, as some assert.

For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest 19 and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. 20 For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” 21 Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” 22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. (Hebrews 12:18-24)

This astonishing text is often overlooked. As is often the case in Hebrews, the greater glory of the New Covenant is accented in this text. Moses, and all the Jews, were fearful of God’s theophany on the mountain. Speaking to all true Christians, the author says that “we have come (not future tense!!)…to the heavenly Jerusalem.” There is a true, proper mysticism in Christianity. The church militant is united with the church triumphant! In some sense, by virtue of our common union with Christ, we have access to the spiritual realm of heaven where we worship together with angels and deceased believers. Notice that God is called the “judge of ALL” (accent added)..nobody is immune from the Judge of heaven and earth. “The spirits of the righteous made perfect” can only mean all believers now in heaven. Notice they are called spirits…their souls are in heaven…and upon death, their souls were glorified; made perfect and free from all sin. Whether living during the Old Testament era or the New, believers are said to be in assembly in worship in heaven, along with innumerable angels. In 2:12 Jesus is leading the assembly in singing!! This is the glorious hope of all Christians upon death. Nobody will escape from our holy God, who is a consuming fire. (v. 29) I earnestly hope that nobody would think to refer to these “spirits of the righteous made perfect” as ghosts, simply because they are disembodied spirits.

Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing pat the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together2 at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. (Acts 7:54-60)

When the human courts had cast their vote of condemnation, Jesus came to Stephen’s aid. He was one of the first Christians killed (violent death, lots of emotion, unfinished business, before his time, ect…in world’s eyes—criteria set by paranormal community for haunting) But Jesus, King of Kings, became Stephen’s defense attorney. As His son was unfairly condemned and dying, Jesus STOOD UP—He is usually seen as seated at right hand—to tenderly welcome Stephen home. Jesus is our righteousness and He will similarly come to our defense when we die….if we are His children. What “fell asleep” was his body, until resurrected at Second Coming. Stephen’s death is a clear picture of God taking personal interest in everyone’s death, righteous or unrighteous. Can you picture, in light of this text, God just letting some poor soul become earthbound…avoiding any judgment or homecoming? At this point, I hope the cumulative effect of these texts is making its intended mark.

When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. 10 They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been. (Revelation 6:9-11)

Under the altar is where sacrificial blood would pool. John sees the souls of believers under the altar, using Old Testament sacrificial imagery. The white robes signify victory and purity. Martyrs should be seen as symbolic of all believers who are called to be living sacrifices. (Romans 12:1-2) Obviously, these disembodied but glorified spirits are more alive and conscious than they ever were on earth! This is one of the clearest and most compelling pictures of the condition of believers during the intermediate state. Symbolism abounds in Revelation and these are symbolic of ALL believers who have died. Are they literally under an altar, cramped? No! All deceased believers are in heaven and clothed in the righteousness of Christ, and worshipping and enjoying God. Their cry for vengeance would become increasingly answered as the book progresses. Once again, we are walking on holy ground as we peer into heaven, where all deceased believers reside….very much conscious, but no communication seen in any text with those on earth.

“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ 27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house—28 for I have five brothers7—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’

There are many things one could discuss regarding this remarkable parable, but I need to stay focused on what happens to all people when we die. We see both sides of the coin: after his death, Lazarus was taken to heaven (that is where Abraham is now), and the unrighteous rich man was sent to hell after death….that is what Hades means in this context. Putting aside all the other details, this parable clearly displays the reality of the intermediate state. After death and judgment, our souls go either to heaven or hell. The notion of anyone being trapped here is utterly foreign to biblical theology. V.31 intimates that there will be no visitations from heaven by righteous souls to folks on earth.
27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. (Hebrews 9:27-28)

This one verse is so clear it should resolve the issue for the open-minded. Since the bible does not contradict itself, less clear verses should be interpreted in a fashion that does not contradict this crystal clear verse. First, note that all men are “appointed to die”. Clearly the unspoken appointer is the Judge of heaven and earth. This is a strong verb—the sovereign King has appointed your death, down to the exact second. God makes an appointment which no man can cancel. All men must die and will die. Not by fate but by divine appointment. We die once—“hapax”(denying reincarnation)…” meta de touto krisis.” In the Greek it is even clearer…immediately after death we face judgment. Death is a means to an  end—to bring us before the judgment seat of Christ. This text disallows any wiggle room for anybody to remain earthbound and avoiding immediate judgment. We all die once, then we all immediately face judgment.  That is the force of the Greek word rendered “after” (meta).This text strictly denies any option of entrapment. What is usually overlooked in discussions of this verse is the singular honor and dignity of Jesus as well as the perfection of the atonement in the follow up verse. (v.29)…a recurring theme in all these texts. We meet Christ immediately after death, whether believer or unbeliever, there is apodictic certainty that none will remain behind,,,you MUST  appear before Christ’s seat of judgment. Christ shed His infinitely precious blood ONCE, just as we die once. This is a judgment before THE Judgment….a personal reckoning before God immediately after death which ushers us into the intermediate state. Our disembodied souls are sent to either heaven or hell…..until Jesus comes a second time and our private sentences will be made public, and we are reunited with our bodies.

This is a good place to point out the serious implications of believing in ghosts. The atonement is like a multi-faceted gem. Put another way, 10,000 benefits flow from the cross. The bible states that the perfect atonement was a frontal assault on sin, Satan, and death. Death lost its sting. However, if only one person gets trapped here, then that implies imperfection in the atonement or the Atoner, or both. It also takes the certainty out of our glorious hope. If for whatever reason folks can get trapped here, then nobody can die with utter certainty of seeing Jesus upon death.Not only is the notion of ghosts inconsistent with the bible it is hostile to every major doctrine in the bible. It certainly casts a shadow over the perfection of the atonement. That is a serious red flag.

All leave earth upon death.

Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. (Philippians 1:18-26)

Paul states it explicitly…he had the certain hope that when he died, he was going to be with Jesus. ….depart and be with Christ. It was so wonderfully simple for Paul—die and he would be with his beloved Jesus. How clearer can a man be? In this sense Paul was not special. All Christians are to see these verses as their certain hope—their inheritance. Notice it is all so very Christocentric…these verses ooze and dance with Jesus as the center stage in Paul’s life and death. Another verse which should be enough to demolish earthbound spirits. There is simply no way to jive the notion of earthbound spirits with this text. And as we’ll see, less clear texts are to be interpreted by clear verses like this one. The certainty of being with Jesus upon death was grounded in the Person and work of Christ, as seen in the larger context (cf. 2:8-11…ch.3) Clinging to the righteousness of Christ was the basis for Paul’s (and ours) absolute confidence regarding our heavenly home during the intermediate state. All leave earth upon death.

So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. (2 Corinthians 5:6-10)

WE…..WE….(9 times in English bible) Frequently in his letters, Paul would use the first person/plural..we. What was true of the great apostle is true of the garden variety believer, like me/us. No exceptions. First, as in previous text, Paul states that death leads to going home to be with Jesus. Death is an immediate and certain doorway for believers into the beatific vision….seeing the Lord Jesus in His indescribable beauty, which will be the greatest pleasure in heaven. Second, we experience what is called the believer’s judgment prior to entry. I don’t have time to elaborate but this teaches that “each one” (no exceptions) will experience it upon death.

17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18 and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.  (Revelation 1:17-18)

Having the keys to death means that Jesus has authority over it. Once again, His authority and victory over death is inextricably linked to Jesus’ death and resurrection. “I died…am alive forevermore”….As if to say, therefore I have absolute sovereign authority over death. I determine what happens to you when you die, not you. I have the keys, not you, and not Satan. John, perhaps Jesus’ closest friend while on earth, almost died from fright when he saw the ascended Lord Jesus in His holy glory. Then Jesus gently touched Him. I honestly believe that the greatest need of Christians is a renewed understanding of God’s holiness. With God as truly God Almighty, God-dishonoring notions like ghosts would melt away. Our God is too small.

Every person who dies has to face the One who owns death and has authority over it. Nobody can just hang around and not have to deal with the One who owns them by virtue of creating them and has the keys.

One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” 40 But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43)

According to the paranormal community certain circumstances and kinds of death raise the chances of one becoming trapped. This man was experiencing one of the most painful ways to die ever devised by man…he met most, if not all, of the so-called death criteria. But he believes in Jesus at the eleventh hour, and Jesus says to him: ”Today you will die and get trapped here for an indeterminate amount of time….and your residual energy will seep into this ground” Right? Obviously not. Sounds horribly foolish doesn’t it? Jesus tells this dear man, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”  In other words, Jesus was assuring this dying man that he would be in heaven after he died. During the intermediate state this man would be in conscious fellowship with Jesus Christ. Luke was written in part to show that Jesus is the Divine Messiah for all people. What was true for this man is meant to be seen as paradigmatic for all believers….going home.

Before looking at three classic texts used to support the notion that ghosts are an admissible category, it is prudent to list some basic rules of hermeneutics. It should become clear as we proceed, but there is a science to proper interpretation. Errors can be caught at the gate if we are cognizant of these basic rules. Honestly, most Christians are not trained in this area.

Rules for interpretation

1. New Testament interprets Old Testament
2. Scripture interprets scripture…..in non-contradictory fashion
3. Always interpret text in it’s context…immediate and larger (what precedes it, and purpose of book….e.g. what immediately precedes Mark 6 and what is purpose of Mark’s gospel? And the context of the entire bible, which takes hard work)
4. Determine what kind of literary genre text is (e.g. poetry, historical narrative, ect.)
5. Historical narratives are to interpreted by didactic (examples of historical narratives are 1-2 Kings and gospels….note that all texts cited by author are historical narrative)  They record history and often without comment….generally they are descriptive and not prescriptive…unless meaning is made clear. Epistles were written to explain in further detail the meaning of the person and work of Jesus recorded in gospels and its application…and are almost always prescriptive
6. Unclear or bizarre texts are not to be used to formulate doctrine, and should be interpreted by clearer texts.
7. Determine the main intent of Holy Spirit and not what we wish it to mean. Determine what text meant to original audience before seeking personal application.
8. Any interpretation or implication drawn from text that implicitly/explicitly diminishes the singular honor and dignity of Jesus Christ, or casts a shadow over the absolute perfection of the atonement, should be rejected. If interpretation is inconsistent with letter or spirit of other clearer texts it should be rejected.
9. It should be noted that at significant junctures of redemptive history, there is usually an increase of extraordinary, sometimes mysterious, Divine activity. Examples would include Noah, Abraham, Moses, Saul/David, Elijah/Elisha, and Jesus. Care must be taken to ensure that the Holy Spirit’s intent for these texts is sought out, and our own agendas put aside. They are  often extraordinary in nature and not directly applicable to us….e.g..just because Elijah did not die and was carried to heaven in chariot, does not mean we will have same experience!
10.  Any comments made by disciples BEFORE Pentecost must be interpreted with extreme care and caution
11.  Texts should be read theo-centrically. That is, after determining what the meaning was to the original audience, we should first ask: what does this text reveal about the nature of God, and of the Person and work of Jesus in particular?

3 Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him kin Ramah, his own city. And Saul had put the mediums and the necromancers out of the land. 4 The Philistines assembled and came and encamped at Shunem. And Saul gathered all Israel, and they encamped at Gilboa. 5 When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. 6 And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets. 7 Then Saul said to his servants, “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “Behold, there is a medium at En-dor.”
8 So Saul disguised himself and put on other garments and went, he and two men with him. And they came to the woman by night. And he said, “Divine for me by a spirit and bring up for me whomever I shall name to you.” 9 The woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off the mediums and the necromancers from the land. Why then are you laying a trap for my life to bring about my death?” 10 But Saul swore to her by the Lord, “As the Lord lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this thing.” 11 Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” He said, “Bring up Samuel for me.” 12 When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice. And the woman said to Saul, “Why have you deceived me? You are Saul.” 13 The king said to her, “Do not be afraid. What do you see?” And the woman said to Saul, “I see a god coming up out of the earth.” 14 He said to her, “What is his appearance?” And she said, “An old man is coming up, and he is wrapped win a robe.” And Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and paid homage. 15 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” Saul answered, “I am in great distress, for the Philistines are warring against me, and God has turned away from me and answers me no more, either by prophets or by dreams. Therefore I have summoned you to tell me what I shall do.” 16 And Samuel said, “Why then do you ask me, since the Lord has turned from you and become your enemy? 17 The Lord has done to you as he spoke by me, for the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, David. 18 Because you did not obey the voice of the Lord and did not carry out his fierce wrath against Amalek, therefore the Lord has done this thing to you this day. 19 Moreover, the Lord will give Israel also with you into the hand of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me. The Lord will give the army of Israel also into the hand of the Philistines.” 20 Then Saul fell at once full length on the ground, filled with fear because of the words of Samuel. And there was no strength in him, for he had eaten nothing all day and all night. 21 And the woman came to Saul, and when she saw that he was terrified, she said to him, “Behold, your servant has obeyed you. I have taken my life in my hand and have listened to what you have said to me. 22 Now therefore, you also obey your servant. Let me set a morsel of bread before you; and eat, that you may have strength when you go on your way.” 23 He refused and said, “I will not eat.” But his servants, together with the woman, urged him, and he listened to their words. So he arose from the earth and sat on the bed. 24 Now the woman had a fattened calf in the house, and she quickly killed it, and she took flour and kneaded it and baked unleavened bread of it, 25 and she put it before Saul and his servants, and they ate. Then they rose and went away that night.

Before we interpret this text we must ask what the central themes of the books of Samuel are. The essential theme is God exercising His cosmic Kingship by inaugurating a Davidic dynasty and not a Saulide one, and establishing Jerusalem as the place where the Divine King Yahweh will be worshipped. This is a very significant time in the flow of redemptive history as God’s people move away from a period of ruling Judges to a central monarchy, who is to be subject to the Word of God. (see rule #9).

The key themes in Samuel are: the absolute cosmic Kingship of God, His providential guidance, and God’s sovereign will and power. Obedience of God’s deputy (the king) to His revealed Word is of paramount importance. All of this is very significant when looking at this text.

This text is preceded by a narrative of God’s chosen one, David, and is followed by a tragic story of Saul’s rejection and God-ordained death.

All of the rules for interpretation given above must be kept in mind. Above all else, the clear and cumulative evidence of what happens to us when we die (both godly and ungodly) from the multitude of texts above must guide our interpretation of this bizarre and singular text. The New Testament interprets the Old, and didactic interprets historical narrative—and this is a historical narrative.

I am going to make this short, dealing with just the major issue. This is a significant juncture in the flow of the drama of redemption—Israel’s first king is about to be killed. Hence, it is no surprise to me that we have this singularly bizarre incident occuring. In keeping with the theme of the book, the Sovereign King steps in during this séance with a medium (not witch..’ob) and providentially guides its proceedings. Samuel’s soul is dispatched by God to deliver a message of judgment upon king Saul. Samuel is at rest in heaven (why did you disturb me?). God gives him an appearance that all would recognize as the deceased prophet. At this unrepeatable and significant juncture in redemptive history where Israel’s first king is on the verge of death—and the forerunner of the Lord Jesus is about to become king, David—God does something extraordinary. Remember that this is historical narrative and an in-depth commentary is lacking. Thus, drawing doctrine from this would be contrary to several of the hermeneutical rules laid out above. However, just because there was a very brief visit by a glorified soul is no basis for establishing further visitations. Here is a very significant point—Samuel was NOT an earthbound spirit. His rest was “disrupted” and after delivering his message, Samuel went back home to his celestial rest.

The issue at stake is not whether there are disembodied spirits (there are millions in heaven and hell right now). Like Moses and Elijah on the mountain with Jesus, Samuel was sovereignly dispatched during a time of crisis at the beginning of the monarchy stage.

Ghosts are said to be trapped spirits, and usually for a long time. Samuel was not trapped and his visit was measured in minutes. There is nothing in this text which provides ammunition for those looking for a biblical basis for saying that ghosts is an admissible category. In fact, Samuel predicts that” tomorrow” Saul and his sons would join him. Nobody is being trapped or earthbound in this text. Case closed.

Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white. 30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,2 which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”— not knowing what he said. 34 As he was saying these things, ma cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One;3 listen to him!” 36 And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen. (Luke 9:28-36)

Three questions are asked of this text: are Moses and Elijah resurrected?; where did they previously exist? Where did they return to? And a comment was made that their talking with Jesus compounds the matter.

This is the Transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain with Peter, James and John. From the outset, we must point out this is historical narrative, which describes an event, but often without commenting on it….which is somewhat the case in this text. Let me hasten to add that the gospels obviously do contain much teaching from Jesus (or didactic), but they are primarily theological biographies of the Lord Jesus. Events are often compressed and frequently events are described without comment on it…..usually left to reader to see this through Holy Spirit’s anointing and wisdom.

The context and the Holy Spirits main intention for this text is to accent the divine glory of the Lord Jesus. The texts preceding this and the episode with the demoniac coming after it (on the next day intentionally “hooks into” this theme”).

The transfiguration is an illumination from the inside/out of the true divine glory of Jesus which He suppressed during His incarnation. His divine glory shone exceedingly brightly!

Peter, out of fear, makes a foolish comment regarding making a tent for all three….”not knowing what he said”. This is another situation in which a disciple made a dumb comment without Jesus rebuking or correcting them. This will be significant when we look at the text in Mark when Jesus made no comment regarding their fear-laden comment that He was a ghost.

In a rare case in which the Father spoke verbally, He tells the disciples that Jesus is His beloved Son and they/we must listen to Him. Jesus’ ministry supersedes and fulfills all those who preceded Him, like Moses and Elijah.

Speaking of Moses and Elijah, the purpose of their presence was that Moses represented the Law and Elijah the Prophets, and most importantly, Jesus fulfills both. I chose the Lukan text because it tells us what Jesus, Moses, and Elijah were discussing. V.31 says that they were discussing His impending departure (“exodus” in Greek), which would entail His death, resurrection, and ascension. These were the events that all the prophets foretold and every inch of the Old Testament progressively revealed the coming ministry of the Messiah. How marvelous it must have been for Moses and Elijah!

To answer the questions: no, Moses and Elijah were not resurrected—that will occur at the Second Coming when we are reunited with our glorified bodies, such as Jesus’s was on the mountain. As we saw in the many texts above, Moses and Elijah existed in heaven, in the form of glorified souls. Jesus gave them an observable form but it was not yet their glorified bodies. Jesus’ whole ministry was THE most significant juncture in redemptive history. Hence we see unparalleled healings and exorcisms and other extraordinary, singular events—which include this Transfiguration. Jesus sovereignly transported Elijah and Moses for this short but magnificent event. How wonderful it must have been for Moses to see how the sacrificial system pre-figured the once for all sacrifice of The Lamb of God. And how moving it must have been for Elijah as he saw Jesus as The Divine Prophet..prophet, priest and king.

After their brief encounter (like Samuel) they went back home to heaven as the glorified souls we read about above (see Hebrews 11-12). Why does Elijah and Moses speaking with Jesus compound things? In God’s inscrutable wisdom, He included these two primary figures of the Old Testament. I find it unspeakably beautiful that God incarnate would bring these two men here to have a heart to heart about the upcoming events, which all of human/cosmic history hinge. The Creator of Moses and Elijah can certainly give them (as glorified souls) the ability to verbally communicate. Once again, their appearance was measured in minutes and they went back home. They were not earthbound. Their appearance enriched the significance of Jesus’ transfiguration by showing the centrality of Jesus in the Old Testament…and more glorious New Covenant.

To take such a God (and His glory) saturated text—with the Father telling us to listen to Him—and use it as an inference for ghosts is unwise, to put it mildly. We need to look to the epistles to give us the understanding of the status of Moses and Elijah. These are glorified souls engaged in conversation with their Creator and Savior, and were then sent back home. No ghosts. Indeed the notion detracts from the central theme—the glorious divinity of King Jesus. It saddens me that this God besotted text—and surrounding context on both sides- is used to support that which undermines the glory of Jesus by undermining the  perfection of the atonement which they were discussing on that holy mountain. To infer that other spirits could remain with us, is to overlook the singular nature of Jesus and His role in redemptive history as expressed in His transfiguration. It also overlooks the main intent of this passage and breaks several of the rules of hermeneutics.

all ate and were satisfied. 43 And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. 44 And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.
Jesus Walks on the Water

45 Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46 And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. 47 And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land. 48 And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them, 49 but when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and cried out, 50 for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” 51 And he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, 52 for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened. (Mark 6:42-53…emphasis added)

I added this text because many folks are persuaded that this is the most powerful text proving Jesus believed in ghosts because he didn’t correct the disciple’s belief in ghosts. This text is preceded by the miracle of feeding 5,000…it is followed by Jesus landing on shore and healing everyone that came to him. These texts are designed to prove that Jesus is the divine “I AM”, and worthy of our worship and implicit trust. However, as we’ll see, this lesson was lost on the obtuse disciples.

Immediately (v.45) after a sensational, miraculous display of Jesus’ divine power and glory, Jesus made the disciples get into their boat. He went to pray. To condense this, when the disciples saw Jesus they thought He was a ghost (phantasma) Since He did not correct them, it must be that he agreed that ghosts is an admissible category.

Several problems with that argument. First, it is an argument from silence, which is a logical fallacy. You cannot derive doctrine from what Jesus didn’t say, especially in a historical narrative. Speaking of historical narrative, this text needs to be interpreted along the lines mentioned above—through the lenses of the epistles. Thirdly, what was the disciple’s emotional state when they thought this regarding Jesus….who they had just left across the lake, very much alive? We don’t have to guess. It says they were terrified, both by their crisis and Jesus’ appearance.

He did speak to them by telling them to not be afraid. Then He says “ego eimi” which is Greek equivalent of Old Testament Yahweh, I AM….was passing by them. But they totally missed it. In the Mt of Transfiguration, we have a precedent of a disciple saying something foolish without being corrected. What is kindness? Well, when people are terrified kindness and compassion looks like not jumping all over loved ones who just made a mistake. They were terrified…no time for lecture.
Most significantly, we are given a divinely inspired commentary on this whole event in v.52….it says that they didn’t understand the loaves (nor Jesus) because their hearts were hardened. This verse casts a long shadow over everything the disciples said/did in this text…especially regarding ghosts. Instead of operating out of well deserved faith and trust in Jesus, they were sunk in abject terror, unbelief and lack of faith. They (like me) were slow learners, until after Pentecost. Their cry of Jesus being a ghost was prompted by fear and unbelief. Here is the great I AM walking by, and they cling to popular superstition instead of faith in God Almighty. Without beating a dead horse, v. 52 makes it clear that the disciples were operating out of fear and not faith….their hearts were hardened to the lessons they should have learned the miracle done just hours before. Their utterance of Jesus being a ghost (which was absurd anyway since they knew He was alive) was an expression of their hardened heart. As Jesus said, out of the fullness of our hearts, the mouth speaks. In this context Phantasm is best translated as superstitious imagination. Ghosts were a popular notion in their day, as it is in ours, but the bible is our foundation. We must be transformed and not conformed. It was not until 24:25 that we are told that Jesus “opened their minds”….prior to that the disciples were quick to stick their foots in their mouths, and as historical narrative, often commentary is often very brief or lacking altogether.

36 As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. 38 And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” 40 And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41 And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish,2 43 and he took it and ate before them.

44 Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you ware clothed with power from on high.”  (Luke 24:36-49).

First, it is noted in v.37-38 that the disciples were once again overcome with fear and doubt—similar to the commentary in Mark 6:52, where their hearts were said to be hardened. With these emotions flowing from fear and not faith, they thought Jesus was a spirit (pneuma….not a ghost). There were many disembodied spirits in heaven and hell at that time. In fact, Jesus does gently rebuke them for their comments. If Jesus said “Hey, I’m not like those earthbound spirits which are all around us” then we would have a basis for inference regarding ghosts as an admissible category. Contrary to what the author said he does rebuke them. He gently rebukes them for their unbelief/fear, and simply states he is not a spirit.

Jesus had a glorified body and not an appearance like Moses or Elijah, who have to wait for their glorified bodies. Jesus was simply emphasizing that He had a true, physical body (though glorified)…THAT is the main point. He refers to disembodied spirits as a means to an end….to counter the notion that He only appeared to be fully human after the resurrection. It was not until v.49 that we see Jesus foretelling a time when His disciples would be filled with the Spirit and finally understand…and stop making foolish comments.

Jesus took bread and ate it to prove to them that He was not a spirit. His intent was not to give us a ghostology, but address THEIR mistaken belief that He was a spirit. In a simple attempt to comfort them He says that He is not a spirit. Using their own words, Jesus said He was not who they thought He was, a spirit. Nowhere is the modern notion of an earthbound spirit referred to.

Like other historical narratives, we must view this text through the grid of the above didactic texts. It is not that some verses are more inspired/important than others, but there are common sense rules for interpreting the bible properly…which is what we must do if we believe it is the very Word of God.

By the way, while Jesus ministered to countless demoniacs, He never sought out a ghost to help them. Likewise, we never see an earthbound spirit approaching their Creator to help them, as did many demoniacs. The only inference one can take away is that Jesus did not have a ghostology ministry because there are none. If we allow for the admissibility of ghosts, then we open a Pandora’s box from hell.

Mark Hunnemann is the author of Seeing Ghosts Through God's Eyes: A Worldview Analysis of Earthbound Spirits. It's also available in eBook format.