Are psychics real?
Question:
Are psychics real? How about those claiming to have telekinesis and everything related to it? I know that psychic mediums are real, but it is an abomination to the Lord, so we are not allowed to be involved in such things. But what about those psychics? Is it also a sin or did God say anything about it?
Thank you very much.
Answer:
Yes, there are people who claim to be psychics. They fall into two categories: those who purposely set out to deceive others and those who are self-deceived into believing they have special powers of the mind. "But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived" (II Timothy 3:13). There aren't people who have true psychic powers.
Only God has the ability to discern the thoughts of men. In Solomon's prayer to God, he correctly stated, "for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men" (I Kings 8:39). The only person who knows what you are thinking is you. "For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him?" (I Corinthians 2:11). The only way that another person can know your thoughts is when you reveal them. This is how psychics operate. They are very good at picking up clues as to what you are thinking. For example, one method is to start with general statements or questions and gage the reaction of the person to those statements. They then can narrow down the topic until it sounds as if they are reading your mind, but all they are doing is reading your body language. Some people get so wrapped up in what a psychic says that they flat out tell the psychic the correct answer. When it is repeated back to them a short while later in another form, the person is flabbergasted. "How did you know that!" They certainly are not going to say, "Well, dummy, you just told me it, in not so many words, a few moments ago." Instead, they will put it down to their special powers.
Psychics thrive because there are a lot of people who want to believe that such powers exist. In speaking of the apostasy, Paul stated, "The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness" (II Thessalonians 2:9-12). Because people have no love for truth, they are susceptible to lies. But notice that the one deceiving with the power of Satan is using "lying wonders." Only God can perform true miracles. Satan and his followers are limited to trickery.
In Deuteronomy 18:9-12 is a list of condemned practices. The definitions of the Hebrew words for these people are fascinating because they imply falsehoods. For example, the word for "witchcraft" ('anan) means someone who clouds the sight or obscures things; in other words, someone who is practicing deception. The word for a "medium" ('owb) literally means a person who mutters into a bottle (to get that spooky hollow sound). It is the same word used for a ventriloquist, which tells you one of the methods used by these frauds.
A famous psychic, Jeane Dixon, gained fame because she accidentally predicted the date of President John F. Kennedy. I say accidentally because it became popular to publish her predictions and to measure her accuracy -- she never did get another thing right. See "Jeane Dixon and Prophecy" for more information.
No, psychics are not real. They are just well-polished liars using parlor tricks to fool people.
