April 14 - Nº 104 1 Samuel 28:3-25
Samuel died, and all of Israel mourned for him. Meanwhile Saul gathered his troops to fight the invading Philistines. But when he saw the strength of the Philistine army, he was filled with fear. He asked God what he should do, but God didn’t answer him. He didn’t send any special dreams to guide Saul; no prophets came to speak to him; and Saul’s priests were unsuccessful in deciphering what to do. Saul had rejected so many of God’s prior instructions that He now chose to remain silent. Saul wished he could talk to Samuel. As Israel’s prophet and priest, Samuel had always been able to talk to God. Saul wanted Samuel’s advice so much that he decided to contact a medium (spiritist) to help him get in touch with the dead prophet. (In reality most mediums are faking it, pretending to see and speak to the dead. But some are actually able to communicate with evil spirits who are posing as the dead people.) When he had first been crowned, Saul had removed all the mediums from the Promised Land. He knew that this was one of the commandments that God had given to Moses on Mount Sinai (see Deuteronomy 18:9-14). But now, in complete disregard for God’s law, Saul instructed his attendants to find a medium that he could talk to. They told him about a woman who lived in Endor. So, Saul disguised himself and showed up at night with two of his men. When he asked the medium if she would channel a spirit for him, she was suspicious that he might be setting a trap. She feared he would report her to the king and her life would be in danger. But Saul swore that he would not let that happen. Then he asked her to bring Samuel up from the dead to talk with him. When Samuel did show up, the medium screamed! She was shocked! This spirit was different than any she had ever seen before in her occult practice. She turned and yelled at Saul, “You tricked me! You are King Saul!” Saul could not see what she was seeing, so he calmed her down and asked her to describe the spirit. When she did, he knew right away that it really was Samuel! Saul bowed down with his face to the ground, and the prophet’s spirit asked him, “Why are you disturbing me? What do you want?” “I’m in great trouble,” Saul replied. “The Philistines have invaded the land with a huge army, and God won’t talk to me. Please tell me what to do!” Samuel’s spirit responded, “You have made the Lord your enemy. He is now doing what He said He would do. He is ripping the kingdom out of your hands and giving it to David. You refused to obey God. Therefore, by tomorrow you and your sons will be dead, and Israel will be handed over to the Philistines.” Saul was terrified and fell on the ground. He was weak from not eating all day and all night. The medium offered to make him some food so that he could get his strength back. At first, he refused, but his servants convinced him to do what she said. She prepared a big meal, and Saul ate his last supper.
Have you ever looked for spiritual direction from someplace other than the Bible? If so, you were opening your life to Satan’s influence. The spirit world is real, and it is dangerous! That is why God commands us not to mess around with it. God has provided all the wisdom and guidance we need for our lives in His Word.
