“For You have forsaken Your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled with eastern ways.” (Is. 2:6)
Since my early Christian Walk, I have been very sensitive to the influence of eastern religions in our culture, probably because I needed deliverance from it. I came to the Lord as a young man experimenting with drugs and new ideas. As a new believer, I had friends who were delving into eastern religions, and I wanted to bring to them the truth. The problem, however, was that the enemy still had some influence over my thoughts. I understand now that I needed cleansing in the spirit of my mind. Through instruction, prayer, and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, I was gradually set free.
Because of the things I suffered in those early days, I became increasingly sensitive to the anti-Christian nature of these eastern religious ideas. What surprised me then was that other Christians around me, even some of my leaders, were not. One of them at the time was reading a popular book which appeared to be about our potential as humans to achieve great things, but its real message was that this power was already in us and we only needed to realize it; we did not need a “Teacher” to enable us to fly. The idea that we can achieve great things is not wrong, but the spirit in which we do it is critical. We can do things in love, or we can do them through human pride. Without Christ setting us free from our old nature, we will always do things from selfish motives.
When I went back to Toronto to visit the group that had nurtured me in the first year of my new life in Christ, the leader took me to see the original Star Wars movie. It was supposed to be about the battle between good and evil, but I quickly saw its underlying message of eastern mysticism. The lead character was learning to rely on “The Force” to defeat evil. We can say that this is like our dependence on the Holy Spirit, but actually it was about “martial arts”, which are an expression of Buddhism. There is no life force outside of God, but not all created life is in subjection to God. The mystery of the ages is that God is bringing all things back into submission to Christ. “Having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him.” (Eph. 1:9,10).
Not all things are as they appear. There is a great deal of interaction between the natural world and the spiritual world that we do not realize by observation. We only know it by spiritual discernment. What practisers of eastern mysticism do not realize is that coming into union with a “mystical force” is coming under the influence of a spirit being. These spirits were created by God, but they took what is His and submitted it to Lucifer in the Fall. I have seen the evidence of this while praying for deliverance over people. One of the strongest expressions of this was when we prayed for a new believer who had trained to work as a professional kick boxer. During the prayer session, he manifested the motions of a serpent. Christ was able to bring him freedom, hallelujah! Our culture has tried to de-spiritualize practices like karate and yoga, but does that really remove the influence of the spirit behind them? Maybe I am over-cautious, but I would rather do without something than to unwittingly come under the influence of something evil.
One common area that Christians come under the influence of eastern mysticism is in matters of health. The claims of alternative medicines are often based on personal testimonies, and sometimes even supported by scientific evidence. Even if something works, however, does that make it right? For me, the issue is always, “What is the spirit behind this?” If the practice involves bringing the body in line with some “life force” of the universe, it is rooted in eastern mysticism. Examples of this are acupuncture and reflexology. Sometimes they speak of it as coming into balance with the yin and the yang, which is the basis of Chinese superstitions. The spirit behind the yin and the yang is divination.
In the home I grew up in, there was a divination ball. I do not remember where it came from, but I remember that in my ignorance I tried it to see if it worked. I wish I could say that this happened before I received salvation, but I cannot. It could be that I was drawn to it because there was already a stronghold in my mind, I do not know. But one thing I know is that shortly after doing this, I was shown by the Lord that I was under the influence of a divination spirit. The conviction was so strong that I immediately began to fast and pray for deliverance. By the second or third day, I was free!
Even as I write this message, I know that many will disagree with me. As a pastor I was able to help some people cleanse themselves from these influences, but I also witnessed a family leave the church because of it. Knowing that these things can be controversial does not stop me from sharing its truth. When God spoke through Isaiah about the nation practicing eastern ways, they did not repent, and the result was further moral decline and eventually they were deported to Babylon. There are consequences to submitting to these influences. At the very least, they will limit the grace of God in our lives. “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword” (Isa. 1:19,20).
I fear that the open door the church has given to the enemy in this area may have resulted in an increase in false doctrines. We cannot ignore the spiritual principle that “a little leaven leavens the whole lump” (1Cor. 5:6). Instead, we should “cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” (2Cor. 7:1).
Highway in the Wilderness 