How do miracles differ from magic? Part 2 in three part series entitled Hocus Pocus. Download free PowerPoint at BibleGuy.org

1. Hocus Pocus Theology
Part II – Miracles or Magic

2. “I believe in miracles, because I believe
in God.”
But not every so called miracle is from
God

3. Christians Can get Caught
up in Hocus Pocus
Theology

4. Magic
n1. the art that, by use of spells, supposedly
invokes supernatural powers to influence
events; sorcery
2. the practice of this art
3. the practice of illusory tricks to entertain
other people; conjuring
4. any mysterious or extraordinary quality or
power the magic of springtime
like magic very quickly

5. Miracle
n1. (Christianity / Ecclesiastical Terms) an event that
is contrary to the established laws of nature and
attributed to a supernatural cause
2. any amazing or wonderful event
3. a person or thing that is a marvelous example of
something the bridge was a miracle of
engineering
4. (Performing Arts / Theatre) short for miracle play
5. (modifier) being or seeming a miracle a miracle
cure

6. Miracle (definition)
“a unique and extraordinary event awakening
wonder (teros), wrought by divine power
(dunamis) accomplishing some practical and
benevolent work (ergon), and authenticating a
messenger and his message as from God
(shmeion).”
Henry C. Thiessen, “An Outline of Lectures in
Systematic Theology”

7. Miracles vs. Magic
• Supernatural – transcends natural law
– Power – comes from God
– Wonder – inspires wonder because they are
supernatural
– Signs – tells us the purpose of the miracle.
Confirm the message and the messenger.
• Supernormal – They are above the normal,
but not outside the realm of nature.

8. What is Your World View?
•Naturalism
•Materialism
•Mechanical view of the
Universe

13. Miracles vs. Magic
Miracles Paranormal Magic
Under God’s Control Under Human Control
Not Available on Command Available on Command
Supernatural Supernormal
Associated with good Associated with Evil
Associated only with truth Associated also with error
Can overpower evil Cannot overpower evil
Affirm Jesus is God in the flesh Denies Jesus is God in the flesh
Prophecies always true Prophecies sometimes false
Never associated with occult
practices
Often associated with occult practice

14. Miracles in Genesis
• Creation
• Creating woman from man
• Enoch’s translation
• Tower of Babel
• Dreams and Prophecy
• Lot’s wife turned to salt
• Sarah’s Conception
• Hagar’s Well

15. Miracles in Exodus
• Burning Bush
• Moses rod
• Moses leprous hand
• Plagues
• Crossing of the Red
Sea
• Manna from heaven
• Healing bitter waters
• Giving of Quail
• Bringing water from a
rock
• Miriam’s leprosy
• Judgment of Korah
• Aaron’s budding rod
• The brazen serpent
healing the people

16. Increased Frequency of Miracles
“God does not shake miracles into Nature at
random as if from a pepper-caster. They come
on great occasions: they are found at the great
ganglions of history-not of political or social
history, but of spiritual history which cannot be
fully known by men.
C. S. Lewis, Miracles

17. Increased Frequency of Miracles
• First Covenant
– Moses
– Joshua
• Prophets
– Elijah
– Elisha
• New Covenant
– Jesus
– Apostles

18. The Burning Bush
Exodus 3:2–6
3 2 And the angel of the LORD appeared to him
in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He
looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet
it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will
turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush
is not burned.” 4 When the LORD saw that he
turned aside to see, God called to him out of
the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here
I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take
your sandals off your feet, for the place on
which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 And
he said, “I am the God of your father, the God
of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was
afraid to look at God.

19. Serpent
Exodus 7:8–12
8 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 9 “When
Pharaoh says to you, ‘Prove yourselves by working a
miracle,’ then you shall say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and
cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a
serpent.’ ” 10 So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and
did just as the LORD commanded. Aaron cast down his
staff before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a
serpent. 11 Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and
the sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did
the same by their secret arts. 12 For each man cast down
his staff, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s staff
swallowed up their staffs.

20. Magicians Defeated
Exodus 8:16–19
The Third Plague: Gnats
16 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Stretch out
your staff and strike the dust of the earth, so that it may
become gnats in all the land of Egypt.’ ” 17 And they did so.
Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust
of the earth, and there were gnats on man and beast. All the
dust of the earth became gnats in all the land of Egypt. 18 The
magicians tried by their secret arts to produce gnats, but they
could not. So there were gnats on man and beast. 19 Then the
magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But
Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to
them, as the LORD had said.

21. Plague Warning Replication God Attacked
Water into Blood
Pharoah was warned and
allowed to watch
Yes Hapi (the God of the Nile)
Frogs
Pharoah warned but was
not with Moses when it
happened
Yes
Heqt (interestingly many
frogs was usually viewed
as a good thing)
Lice No Warning
No. The magicians saw the
lice as an act of God
Kheper (God of beetles
and flies)
Flies
Pharoah warned but not
with Moses when it
happened
No. In fact they didn't
even try
Kheper
Murrain
Pharoah warned and told
when it would happen
Again they didn't try Apis (Sacred Bull)
Boils
Pharoah not warned but
was there when Moses did
it
Magicians could not even
heal themselves
Imhotep (physician God) &
Thoth (Magic and healing)
Hail
Pharoah and servants
warned. Those that
heeded the warning
escaped.
Didn't try. Nut (Sky Goddess)
Locusts
Pharoah warned and his
servants almost cause him
to give in
Didn't try Seth (God of Crops)
Dark No Warning Didn't try Ra (Sun God)
First Born Yes No Pharoah

22. Message of Miracles
• Moses – Message to free God’s covenant
people and bring them into a new covenant
relationship.
• Elijah and Elisha – Message for God’s covenant
people to repent and return to the covenant.
• Jesus and Apostles – Jesus is the promised
Messiah sent to deliver God’s people from Sin
and bring them into a new covenant
relationship.

23. Next Week
Pseudo Miracles

24. Hocus Pocus Miracles
The Magicians of Egypt
Exodus 7:11
11 Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the
sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did
the same by their secret arts.
Exodus 7:22
22 But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their
secret arts. So Pharaoh’s heart remained hardened,
and he would not listen to them, as the LORD had
said.

25. Hocus Pocus Miracles
Witch of Endor
1 Samuel 28:7–14
7 Then Saul said to his servants, “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium,
that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “Behold,
there is a medium at En-dor.” 8 So Saul disguised himself and put on other
garments and went, he and two men with him. And they came to the woman
by night. And he said, “Divine for me by a spirit and bring up for me
whomever I shall name to you.” 9 The woman said to him, “Surely you know
what Saul has done, how he has cut off the mediums and the necromancers
from the land. Why then are you laying a trap for my life to bring about my
death?” 10 But Saul swore to her by the LORD, “As the LORD lives, no
punishment shall come upon you for this thing.” 11 Then the woman said,
“Whom shall I bring up for you?” He said, “Bring up Samuel for me.” 12 When
the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice. And the woman said
to Saul, “Why have you deceived me? You are Saul.” 13 The king said to her,
“Do not be afraid. What do you see?” And the woman said to Saul, “I see a
god coming up out of the earth.” 14 He said to her, “What is his appearance?”
And she said, “An old man is coming up, and he is wrapped in a robe.” And
Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and
paid homage.

26. Hocus Pocus Miracles
Simon the Sorcerer of Samaria
Acts 8:9–11
9 But there was a man named Simon, who had
previously practiced magic in the city and amazed
the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was
somebody great. 10 They all paid attention to him,
from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is
the power of God that is called Great.” 11 And they
paid attention to him because for a long time he
had amazed them with his magic.

27. Hocus Pocus Miracles
Bar-Jesus or “Elymas the Sorcerer”
Acts 13:6–8
6 When they had gone through the whole island as
far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a
Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. 7 He was
with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of
intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul
and sought to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas
the magician (for that is the meaning of his name)
opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away
from the faith.

28. Hocus Pocus Miracles
“Seven sons of Sceva”
Acts 19:13–16 (ESV)
13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook
to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had
evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul
proclaims.” 14 Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named
Sceva were doing this. 15 But the evil spirit answered
them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are
you?” 16 And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped
on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them,
so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

29. The Coming Hocus Pocus
Matthew 24:22–24
22 And if those days had not been cut short, no
human being would be saved. But for the sake
of the elect those days will be cut short. 23 Then
if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’
or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false
christs and false prophets will arise and perform
great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if
possible, even the elect.

30. The Coming Hocus Pocus
2 Thessalonians 2:3, 9-12
3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not
come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of
lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, …
9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan
with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all
wicked deception for those who are perishing, because
they refused to love the truth and so be saved.
11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that
they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be
condemned who did not believe the truth but had
pleasure in unrighteousness.

31. The Coming Hocus Pocus
Revelation 13:11–15
11 Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two
horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercises all
the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the
earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal
wound was healed. 13 It performs great signs, even making fire
come down from heaven to earth in front of people, 14 and by
the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the
beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to
make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword
and yet lived. 15 And it was allowed to give breath to the image
of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak
and might cause those who would not worship the image of
the beast to be slain.

32. The Coming Hocus Pocus
Revelation 16:13–14
13 And I saw, coming out of the mouth of the
dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and
out of the mouth of the false prophet, three
unclean spirits like frogs. 14 For they are demonic
spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the
kings of the whole world, to assemble them for
battle on the great day of God the Almighty.

33. The Coming Hocus Pocus
Revelation 19:20
20 And the beast was captured, and with it the
false prophet who in its presence had done the
signs by which he deceived those who had
received the mark of the beast and those who
worshiped its image. These two were thrown
alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.

34. The Great Magician Will be Judged
Revelation 19:20
20 And the beast was captured, and with it the
false prophet who in its presence had done the
signs by which he deceived those who had
received the mark of the beast and those who
worshiped its image. These two were thrown
alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.

35. The Great Magician Will be Judged
Rev 20:1-3 Then I saw an angel coming down
from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the
bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized
the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the
devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand
years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it
and sealed it over him, so that he might not
deceive the nations any longer, until the
thousand years were ended. After that he must
be released for a little while.

36. The Great Magician Will be Judged
Rev 20:7-8 And when the thousand years are
ended, Satan will be released from his prison
and will come out to deceive the nations that
are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and
Magog, to gather them for battle; their number
is like the sand of the sea.

37. The Great Magician Will be Judged
Rev 20:9 And they marched up over the broad
plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of
the saints and the beloved city, but fire came
down from heaven and consumed them, and
the devil who had deceived them was thrown
into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast
and the false prophet were, and they will be
tormented day and night forever and ever.

38. Purpose of Signs and Wonders
• To authenticate a message
• To authenticate the messenger of the His
message
Don’t trust every Miracle Worker.
God’s purpose is not to entertain. Sign and
Wonders are not about signs and wonders, but
about the message.

39. God’s Greatest Miracles
• Creation
• Incarnation
• Resurrection
• Creation of New Heaven and New Earth
• Redemption through Jesus Christ.