Pharaoh's magicians didn't fake it. Exodus 7 says they did the same thing Moses and Aaron did, "by their secret arts." So what does the Bible actually say is happening when magic works?

ABOUT THE EPISODE:
Nelly Van Sickle, pastor at Evergreen Calvary Chapel and creator of @TheDancingToasterPodcast joins Remnant Radio to walk through his "History of Magic" series, a biblical dig into where magic in the Bible actually comes from, starting in the ancient Near East with Egypt and Mesopotamia.

Egypt called its force Heka, something built into the fabric of creation itself, not invoked so much as cooperated with. Mesopotamian mythology named its spirits and negotiated with them directly. If the power on display in Old Testament magic was real, where did it actually come from, and why does Deuteronomy 18 treat some of it as off-limits instead of harmless nonsense? Dr. Michael Heiser used to point out that God doesn't legislate against things that don't exist, and that idea sits underneath this whole conversation: a biblical worldview takes demonology seriously precisely because it takes the supernatural worldview of Scripture seriously.

From there, the conversation turns to names, authority, and who actually gets to use the power of Jesus's name in spiritual warfare (think Sons of Sceva). Nelly also shares how researching the ancient occult reshaped his own theology of the supernatural, moving him from cautious and functionally cessationist toward a more continuationist conviction, wanting to see the gifts of the Spirit practiced rightly.

The occult is surging back into Western culture, and most Christians don't have a framework for it beyond "that's not real" or "don't go near it." This episode is an attempt to give you one. Join us as we trace the history of magic and the authority we have in Christ to stand against it.

0:00 – Introduction
1:19 – Nelly Van Sickle
2:20 – Origins of History of Magic
3:45 – Egyptian Magic in Exodus
8:03 – Mesopotamian Spiritual Worldview
11:47 – Myth of White Magic
16:04 – Naming Spirits and Deities
21:07 – Egypt's Heka System
33:05 – Yahweh's Name and Authority
37:38 – Continuationist Cessationist Testimony
45:36 – Magical Practices and Divination
59:05 – Why Context Matters Today

ABOUT THE GUEST:
@TheDancingToasterPodcast