Tag Archives: Bible

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An “Angel of Light”

Glowing White Ball by Sirus183 on DeviantArt

An “Angel of Light”

James R. Aist

And suddenly an angel of the Lord approached him, and a light shone in the prison. (Acts 12:7)

I was 19 years old, a college student and very naive and ignorant concerning spiritual matters and the Word of God. In my frame of reference at that time, anything supernatural was assumed to be of God.

Now, please keep in mind that I was fully conscious and aware during the entire supernatural encounter I am about to share with you. One Sunday afternoon, I was alone in my apartment praying earnestly to God for His guidance concerning a major life decision that I was about to make: should I pursue marriage with my girlfriend of two months or just move on when she returned to finish her college degree elsewhere? I wanted very much to continue pursuing this relationship and marry her. While I was standing at the kitchen stove cooking a snack and praying passionately to God about this, I suddenly felt an invisible force pulling on me, weakly at first, but then stronger and stronger until I could no longer resist it. Then, my entire body fell limp, and my upper torso was held upright (i.e., levitated). I was literally pulled down the hallway to the other end of the apartment by this force, with my lower legs and feet dragging along the floor. When I arrived at the doorway to my bedroom, the force released me, and I slumped to the floor sitting upright, still unable to move of my own accord. Then, I saw, out of the corner of my eye, a bright, round, white light about the size of a volleyball. This light was situated at the juncture of the wall and the ceiling. Next, my gaze was turned fully toward the light, and a voice from the light spoke clearly into my mind. It said, “She believes in God. It’s OK to marry her. When trouble comes, I will take care of it.” Finally, my strength slowly returned to me, and I was able to stand and walk.

Believing that this strange and bizarre response to my prayer was of God, I acted on the message I was given and eventually married my girlfriend. The marriage seemed to be going well for a while, but, gradually, trouble began to creep in, and it became clear, eventually, that it was necessary to dissolve our marriage.

Not long after the divorce was finalized, I met a Christian woman, and soon we were married. One night, in a vision, God called me to become a student of the Bible, and we have enjoyed many, many years of faithful marriage during which time we have, together, grown greatly in the knowledge and admonition of the Lord.

In retrospect, I have been able to more reliably understand the message given to me by the “angel of light.” Yes, it was a message from God in answer to my prayer. In that message, God did not instruct me to marry my girlfriend. He simply said that it was OK for me to do it (After all, she believed in God, and I really did want to marry her). Then He went on to prophesy that a) there would be serious trouble in the marriage, and b) He would take care of the trouble. And, here’s how God took care of the trouble: first, in His written word, He provided me biblical grounds to divorce my first wife; and, second, He gave me a godly, Christian woman to replace her. And this is how I know, in retrospect, that the encounter with the angel of light was from God and not from Satan: only God would take care of the “trouble” in such a way!

To read more of my articles on biblical topics, click (HERE)

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A Rhema Word for a Worried Boy

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A Rhema Word for a Worried Boy

James R. Aist

“Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:27)

Among evangelical Christians, it is widely agreed that God speaks to us today primarily through His written word, the Bible. Many of us have experienced Bible verses seeming to come alive and commanding our attention in order for us to receive knowledge or wisdom from God to deal appropriately with a circumstance or decision in life that has us confused, worried or perplexed. This is one example of what Pentecostal Theology commonly refers to as “Rhema.” These Rhema can also take the form of visions, voices, dreams or even changing circumstances. This article is about a Rhema I received from God when I was only about nine years old, and it was just what I needed at the time. (For a sound, biblical teaching by Watchman Nee on the Rhema word, see text pages 51-59 at this link: https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/bfa-media/ebooks/TGC-eng.pdf).

Some of you will be able to remember the early years of the atomic age, when American citizens were living under a constant threat of annihilation by atomic war that no one could stop if it ever got started. This very real threat made a deep and terrifying impression on me when I was growing up. Every other threat I had heard about could be dealt with, at least to some extent, by the medical profession, law enforcement, the military or, when all else failed, by my daddy. But, there was no one to protect me from being vaporized by an atomic bomb, should one come my way!

Good intentions aside, it didn’t help matters for our public schools to conduct those war drills in which we were instructed to take shelter under our little classroom desks to help us survive an atomic bomb attack! Somehow, we knew full well that such a maneuver would offer us no protection at all, but it surely did serve to remind us, repeatedly, that such an attack was a distinct possibility that no one would be able to escape. Every time I had to participate in that war drill, I just became that much more terrified.

The following encounter with God happened about one year after God had saved me in a revival meeting (click HERE). One day I was especially beset with dread and fear about the threat to me of an atomic bomb attack; we had had another of those drills at school that day, and I was terrified. Somehow, I managed to remember God at that moment, and so I asked God to protect me if I got bombed. Then God spoke into my mind saying something to this effect: “You don’t have to worry, you would not die. If that happens, I will take you to heaven to live with Me.” That is when I knew that I had nothing to fear, and a wave of calming peace came over me that is still with me today.

When God gives you a Rhema word, fear has to go, and it is replaced by the kind of peace that only Jesus gives (John 14:27). To God be the glory!

(To read more of my articles with a biblical theme, click HERE)

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The Faith of Demons Won’t Help You At All!

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The Faith of Demons Won’t Help You At All!

James R. Aist

“You believe in God. Believe also in Me.” – Jesus (John 14:1b)

There seems to be some lingering confusion among some who claim to be Christians about whom one has to believe in to be a genuine, born-again Christian. For example, some say of their conversion experience, “I found God.” Others may confess their Christian faith by saying “I believe in God.” And surely one must believe in God the Father to be saved. But, does belief in only God the Father really fulfill the requirements for salvation recorded to the Bible?

According to Jesus, one must believe not only in God the Father, but also in Jesus, His only begotten Son (John 3:16, John 6:29 and John 14:1b) to fulfill God’s requirements for salvation. But its not that simple, because even the demons believe in God and that Jesus is His Son (James 2:19; Matthew 8:9; Luke 4:41a), and yet they are condemned to hell. What, then, is missing from the faith of demons?

The answer lies in the fact that there are two kinds of “belief”: there is mere mental ascent to the fact that Jesus is the Son of God, and there is mental ascent along with surrender to the lordship of the Son of God. The faith of Demons is the former kind, because Satan is their lord, whereas saving faith – the faith of true believers – is the latter kind, because Jesus is their Lord. Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21), and “You believe in God. Believe also in Me” (John 14:1b). As James pointed out, “So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead” (James 2:17); dead faith is the faith of demons and will not solve your sin problem.

So, if you have not yet surrendered yourself to the lordship of Jesus Christ, then you have the faith of demons, and you need to take care of that right away. Jesus is not your Savior if He is not your Lord!

(To read more of my articles on Bible topics, click HERE.)

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When the “Supernatural” Is Not of God

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When the “Supernatural” Is Not of God

James R. Aist

“Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)

Fore Word

I want to make it clear, right up front, that I am not among those who, in the Last Days, are content to have a form of Godliness but denying the power thereof (2 Timothy 3:1-5). After more than 25 years of affiliation with and participation in Pentecostal/Charismatic churches and denominations, as well as more than 65 years of personal encounters with God (click HERE , HERE and HERE), I have the distinct impression that, often, too little consideration is given to the possibility that a supernatural manifestation may not be of God, but of Satan. The default setting seems to be that if it is supernatural, it must be of God, but that is not a biblical approach at all. The Bible clearly instructs us to test the spirits to see if they are of God or not (click HERE), and to hold onto what is of God. So, in this article, I want to relate some unequivocal examples of when the supernatural was not of God, but of Satan, so that a more balanced and biblical approach to the supernatural might become more commonly practiced be Christians going forward.

Introduction

Let’s begin by defining some relevant terms, shall we? “Natural” refers to things that are of this physical world that God created, often referred to as “nature.” “Supernatural”, on the other hand, refers to things that are above or beyond the natural, or not of this physical world. In this context, “supernatural” would refer to the spiritual realm, and, more specifically, to spirit beings or their activities. From the Bible, we know that spirit beings include God, angels (good and evil), demons and spirits (good and evil). Satan is the ruler of the evil angels, demons and evil spirits. Human beings are also spirit beings, but they have a physical body and a soul as well. God, as the Creator of everything, is ultimately sovereign over all of the physical and spirit beings. Jesus said that God is Spirit; consequently, whatever God does is supernatural. Likewise, whatever any of Satan’s spirit beings do is also supernatural.

Whenever we encounter a possible supernatural manifestation, I believe that the first thing we need to determine for ourselves is whether or not it is really a miracle at all. Many manifestations (e.g., random cloud formations appearing like Jesus or a cross, or rust dribbling down a statue) are easily explained by natural phenomena. Other manifestations (e.g., manufactured Words of Knowledge, messages from the “spirit world” or fake healing) may be nothing more than cruel hoaxes perpetrated by humans. Once such natural or manufactured phenomena have been ruled out as the cause, there are two possible sources of a supernatural manifestation: God or Satan.

Now, I assume that we are all familiar with accounts in the Bible of supernatural manifestations that were of Satan, not God. For example, the Bible says that Pharaoh’s magicians turned their rods into snakes (Exodus 7:8-12), and the Gadarene demoniac broke out of heavy chains and shackles using supernatural strength imparted by a legion of demons (Mark 5:1-13). But, to illustrate the point further, I want to give a more detailed account here of a supernatural encounter that I myself have had that was clearly not of God.

 

A Slithering Serpent

Early on in my experience with Pentecostalism, I was an active member of the Full Gospel Businessmen’s Fellowship International (Ithaca, NY, chapter). A much larger chapter in nearby Syracuse, NY, invited me to be their keynote speaker at their next monthly meeting, and I accepted. They wanted me to relate my experiences in researching and publishing, on the Cornell University campus and to the Ithaca area, the facts and truth about homosexuality. Of course this was an inflammatory mission I was on, and the area homosexual activists were all up in arms about it, opposing me with every hateful and devious attack they could think of. The devil hates it when someone sheds light on his nefarious deeds of darkness, doesn’t he?

When the day came for my presentation, there was a sizable crowd of about 150 people who showed up to hear what I had to say. No more than about 10 minutes into my speech, I noticed to my left a woman standing in the aisle near the back of the crowd. As I continued to speak, I saw in the corner of my eye that she had laid down on the floor and was moving through the aisle toward me, head first. When she was about half way to the front, I could see clearly how she was moving along the floor: she was face-down, her body taking the shape of a crawling snake and slithering toward me, all the while lifting her head, wagging her tongue at me and hissing audibly – just like a snake! I knew almost immediately that we were seeing a supernatural manifestation that was demonic in nature, so I continued right along with my speech so as not to allow this demon to disrupt my message. When the serpent lady had reached the edge of the open area where I was standing, a couple of the local men of the chapter came and quietly picked her up off of the floor, escorted her out of the auditorium the same way she came in, and ministered to her out in the foyer. This demonic manifestation was very impressive and creepy, but it didn’t spoil God’s purpose for my being there!

My Point

I want to encourage us all to not be too quick to conclude that anything that is supernatural is of God. False prophets can work signs and wonders too (click HERE). While it slanders God when we are duped by “wolves in Sheep’s clothing” (Matthew 7:15), it is blasphemy of the Holy Spirit to attribute to Satan the miraculous works of God (Matthew 12:22-30). So, we must be very careful to always test any supernatural manifestation before we conclude that it is, or is not, of God (See Addendum, below). Peter and John did not believe the report that Jesus had been raised from the dead until they had direct, physical confirmation themselves, and Thomas withheld his worship of the resurrected Jesus until Jesus gave him the physical confirmation he was holding out for. Perhaps we would be wise to follow the example of these Apostles and require confirmation that supernatural manifestations are really of God, rather than being quick to just assume that they are. I have to believe that if God wants us to know what He is doing, He can and will make it clear to us, if we are willing to inquire, listen, watch and wait.

Addendum

I would be remiss if I didn’t share with you, for what its worth, some of the tests I use to evaluate the authenticity and the source of claimed “supernatural” manifestations. So, here is a “short list” of my tests:

  • Is there a verified, natural explanation available?
  • Is there a verified fleshly motivation to fake a miracle?
  • Do the human instruments of the manifestation appear to be trustworthy and reliable witnesses?
  • Does it involve anything that the Bible expressly prohibits?
  • Is it serving God’s purposes or Satan’s purposes?
  • What are my natural and my spiritual gifts of discernment telling me about it, if anything?

(To read more of my biblically themed articles, click HERE)