It is written:
2 Corinthians 2:11-lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.
In the years that I have worked and ministered in Eastern Kentucky, I have been richly blessed to be able to share the Gospel with friends from various backgrounds. Some of them have come from the background of Satanism. Through the process, I have been shocked to learn of some of the things which Satanists do to try and destroy churches by actively cursing them, working against them, and attempting to infiltrate them. This should not be surprising since Jesus Himself warned us that this would be something which Satan and his followers attempt to do (as we studied in our recent lesson on the Tares And The Wheat).
Here, I will share some of what I have learned and experienced. No confidences will be violated, and it is my hope that these lessons will help to open the eyes of my fellow Christians to what is indeed a growing attack of the enemy upon the spread of the Gospel. No doubt, some will be skeptical of these things and may have questions. That is fine and understandable since we as Christians are to “test all things; hold fast to that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Others may meet these things with an unhealthy amount of skepticism, and that is unfortunate.
Make no mistake: what Satan and his forces want more than anything is to convince you that they do not exist and that they are not working against you as you tell people the Good News of Jesus. Yet they are working against you, studying you to try and find weaknesses to exploit. I have seen examples of this kind of unbelief among followers of Christ. Preachers have told me that Satan is not working in the world, and that
Some years ago, I was made aware of a group of occultists who live and often assemble between Hazard and Jackson, Kentucky. The person I worked with had intimate knowledge of this group, who had taken it upon themselves to try and fight against churches. The gentleman explained to me that part of their “work” included performing ceremonies of some kind on children. When I explained that I would not stand by and allow such to continue, he quickly “backed off” telling me that he had made up all of these things we had discussed over the last several months. I did not know what to think and counseled him to turn his life to the Lord Jesus. He had told me that he did not believe Jesus could love him because he had sold his soul to the devil. This was a lie of Satan (2 Peter 3:9)!
Later, I was told about a woman that a friend of mine knew who was involved in Satanism in our area, but who wanted out. Her Satanist group was planning on using her for politics in Eastern Kentucky in some way in the next few years, but she was tired of being involved in this group. When my friend suggested she contact me, she said: “We know all about Mark Tabata and that church. We have been working for years to destroy it. He even talked with one of our members!” To my shock, my friend then gave me the name of the person that I had worked with (mentioned above). I had not told hardly anyone about that encounter, and never revealed his name to anyone.
Soon after that, I worked with a young man in our area who is involved in witchcraft. He had known about the aforementioned group, telling me that he had known some who were members. They had formed in the nineties and had given themselves the name “the Hunters.” He explained to me that it was their “responsibility” to hunt churches in Eastern Kentucky, and to destroy them from within.
Perhaps the most shocking example of this kind of Satanism, however, springs from an encounter which sprang from a person I converted in jail. She had been a practicing witch for years (she was still a very young lady), and had never heard any of the evidences of Christianity. After a six hour Bible study, she was baptized into Christ (Acts 2:38). The next day, I was taking her a Bible and a copy of my book on reincarnation. A gentleman was being released that day, and he asked me if I had written the book (on reincarnation). I said, “Why yeah.” He then proceeded to give praise to a demon named Baphomet, calling him “lord.” I told him, “No, Jesus is Lord.” We arranged for a Bible study the next day at a local restaurant, and he added me on Facebook. The next day, I found him on my Facebook page, cussing out Christians that I know. I told him that was rude and inappropriate, and that he should use own Facebook page if he wanted to use language like that.
Well, shortly after that, another young friend of mine that I had baptized into Christ was approached by this person. He began summoning Satan to attack my young Christian friend, and my friend responded by praying for him and encouraging him to contact me. The Satanist gentleman then got on the cellphone of the person whose home they were meeting, and texted his coven. He gave them my name, phone number, and address. He told them that our church helps people with food boxes, and they should use this to lure me out somewhere. When asked what he wanted them to do, the Satanist responded: “I wanted him dead. I want his family dead. I want his house burned to the ground.”
(The Satanist was not aware that the gentleman whose phone he was texting from was someone else I had baptized into Christ. He shared all the messages with me).
Yet what I found truly disturbing was that months earlier, the Satanist had infiltrated a church of people I know, convincing them that he was a Christian. While there, he asked lots of questions about me and our church in Couchtown, before being incarcerated and meeting me on that day.
I reached out to the Satanist and his coven, encouraging them to meet with me for Bible study. His gods are real; but they are no match for Jesus Christ. They can be saved if they will simply turn to Jesus Christ in obedience to His plan of salvation for sinners (1 Corinthians 15:1-8; Acts 2:38; Romans 6:3-4). Indeed, this is something which we MUST remember as Christians: He Who is in us is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). The fear of many Christians is that we are not strong enough to confront and work with Satanists. This is not true! Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ (Romans 8:37-39), and in Christ we have the power of the Almighty God working in us, for us, and with us (Isaiah 41:10; Ephesians 3:20-21)!
These are some of the experiences I have had with Satanists in our area, and I share them with you to help prepare you for the reality of this dimension of spiritual warfare of which you may not have been aware.
May we as God’s people be ever vigilant, and always making it our goal to share the good love of Jesus with the lost.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen.
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