How do I deal with traditional beliefs and practices?
Dear Jeffrey
I have begun a journey where I truly desire to know God for myself, not just through what others have taught me, but through personal revelation and understanding. However, I am currently wrestling with some spiritual issues that I hope you can help me gain clarity on, especially as they relate to certain teachings and practices in my community. The society I live in is an environment where spiritual warfare, deliverance, and traditional beliefs are very present.
Struggles with Ancestral Curses, Witchcraft, and Delayed Marriage
One of my greatest desires is to get married, settle, and have a family while I’m still young enough to raise my children. But I’ve observed a pattern in my family—many women either marry late or not at all. I’ve also heard stories that reinforce this pattern. Because of this, I’ve taken the matter to God in prayer, believing He can bring clarity and a breakthrough.
However, in seeking answers, I’ve encountered many teachings that have confused me:
Some teachings say that ancestral sins or generational curses can affect descendants, leading to struggles such as delayed marriage, poverty, stagnation, or even unexplained sickness. (One can consult doctors for years and do all kinds of tests, but continue to be told we do not see anything.) And it is said that no matter how much you pray, if this is not dealt with, it can shorten God's hand upon your life.
I’ve heard claims that witchcraft or rituals done by family members can spiritually “marry” someone to evil spirits, especially for personal gain, like wealth from dark sources.
I’ve attended deliverance services where people convulse, cry out, and “manifest demons.” These experiences appear very real, and the explanations given are often that relatives used witchcraft to block our progress.
Some ministers teach that struggles like late marriage or other marital problems are caused by spirit spouses, avenging spirits, or spiritual covenants made by family members.
We are taught that to overcome, we must fast, pray, and continually declare God's Word until victory comes.
Another common teaching I’ve encountered concerns paying a sacrifice—that to break certain strongholds, one must give a monetary sacrifice to a minister or the church. This is presented as an act of faith or an exchange in the spiritual realm.
While many other ministers say this is manipulation or even theft, I honestly don’t know what to believe anymore. I’m not sure whether such giving is truly biblical or just a means of financial exploitation.
At the same time, I’ve read some of your responses that suggest that believers should not seek deliverance in the traditional sense and that demons may no longer function as they did before Christ. This has raised deeper questions for me:
- Are we being deceived?
- If witchcraft is said to be “not real,” what exactly does that mean?
- Are we denying that people can use evil powers to harm others? Are we saying there is no warfare in prayer?
- How do we reconcile this with scriptures discussing evil attacks and deliverance?
- What is the real source of struggles like mine, if not curses or witchcraft? (We are taught that denying that there is warfare is the sign that you are under attack.)
- Why do people experience dreams of spiritual attack and wake up with physical signs?
These are the thoughts I wrestle with, and I’m asking for clarity through the Word. I want to know what is true and how to walk in freedom and victory, according to God’s Word, not based on fear or confusion.
Helping a Loved One Who Mixes Faith with Traditional Practices
As I grow in my understanding of God, I’m also challenged by the beliefs of a loved one I live with. He believes in praying to God but also uses salt, water, plants, animal fat, and other items to ward off evil spirits. He believes these are just tools, especially because he feels that prayer alone has not worked for him. He believes that if something has been done to him by engaging a witch doctor, the only way for him to gain victory is to engage some tangible source of power. Unfortunately, he also says the same things to me: "See, you have been praying for years, but what has happened? It means you need to engage in something that can actually fight this shameful bondage you are in."
I want to help him understand that mixing faith in God with traditional spiritual practices is not biblical. But how do I do this with love and wisdom, without condemning him or pushing him away? He genuinely believes that he is doing what’s necessary to survive spiritual attacks.
I want to be a true disciple of Christ, and the same for my family. I want to walk in truth, know God’s principles, and apply them in every area of life, especially to overcoming spiritual oppression, helping others, and living a victorious Christian life.
Please help me understand:
- What is happening in my life and community from a biblical perspective?
- What are the spiritual principles I should know and live by?
- How can I walk in the freedom Jesus paid for—without fear, confusion, or deception?
- Can I love those relatives who are said to be responsible for our problems? I want to love like the Word instructs us, but if they are the ones responsible for bringing harm, as we are taught, what should we do?
Thank you.
Answer:
Idolatry and witchcraft are the products of men's imaginations. Some people strongly believe in these things, but the belief doesn't make them real. "For the customs of the peoples are delusion; because it is wood cut from the forest, the work of the hands of a craftsman with a cutting tool. They decorate it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers so that it will not totter. Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field are they, and they cannot speak; they must be carried, because they cannot walk! Do not fear them, for they can do no harm, nor can they do any good" (Jeremiah 10:3-5). The very words used to describe witchcraft refer to the use of deception and trickery. See "Is Witchcraft Real?" for details.
People want power over others. Often, all it takes is for someone to claim it without evidence, and people will believe it, especially if something odd happens. People want explanations, and a claim of witchcraft is a quick answer that doesn't require digging into the facts. This is the same process magicians use to stun audiences, except that they readily admit that sleight-of-hand is involved.
Thus, I start with the truth. God says that witchcraft is fakery. I don't have to fear men and their claims. If harm comes, I look for a true answer and don't grab for mysterious claims that can't be verified. In other words, if I lose my job, I will look at the reasons why my employer no longer needs my services. I don't decide it is because Aunt Melba says she cursed me. Aunt Melba doesn't control my life.
Sometimes, a person claims to have pronounced a curse. They then wait for something bad to happen, which always does because life is full of good and bad events. They then claim that their curse caused the bad event. Really? Where is the evidence? I agree something bad happened, but why should I assume it is because someone wished me bad luck?
You asked, "How do we reconcile this with scriptures discussing evil attacks and deliverance?" What passages are you referring to?
When people claim to have suffered spiritual attacks and wake up with physical signs, what evidence is presented to prove that they were not self-inflicted or done by someone else while they were sleeping? Why grasp for the mysterious when the obvious hasn't been ruled out?
