Magic powers in the Bible

Many enemies of Judaism and Christianity consider the Bible as a book of magic. Consequently, since magic has been widely thought of either as charlatanism or as the work of the devil, they dismiss the entire book.

What, then, is the difference between magic and unadulterated faith in God or pure spirituality? Where do the miracles have their origin? Where does the power for miracles reside? Is it in the soul and spirit of man or in God?  Is every man a magician in the making? Through the following quotations from the Bible, which of course are not the only accounts of magic therein, one may discern the truth.

“And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ‘When Pharaoh says to you, “Prove yourselves by working a miracle”, then you shall say to Aaron, “Take your rod and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it may become a serpent”.’ So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did as the Lord commanded: Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent.

 Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers; and they also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same by their enchantments. For every man cast down his rod, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods.” (Ex. 7: 8-12)

This is a demonstration of magic powers before Pharaoh. Moses and Aaron transformed a rod into a serpent. But Pharaoh’s wise men and sorcerers did the same thing! If Moses and Aaron’s magic powers were greater than those of the sorcerers, they should demonstrate it by performing a greater miracle. And so they did. Aaron’s rod (serpent) swallowed up the rods of the sorcerers!

Most Christians believe that in this demonstration of miraculous powers we actually have a contest between God and Satan. I firmly believe...

In quest of Biblical Truth

When I seriously started searching for God, trying to find enlightenment, strength, meaning and purpose in my life, the Bible was the first book I turned to, with great awe and expectation. This was natural for me, a nominal Greek Orthodox up until that time, as in my school I had been taught that the Bible, both the Old and the New Testament, was the foundation of Christianity.

Hungry for spiritual food as I was, I threw myself into studying “the Word of God” diligently. However, I was soon to realize that a systematic inquiry into the Bible wasn’t going to be an easy task. Particularly the study of the Old Testament proved rather difficult. Quite often I lost patience in the process, as I had to search through lengthy historical accounts and ceremonial descriptions before finding some spiritual “germs” here and there, which nourished my soul and lifted up my spirit. 

There were even instances when I dared to murmur, “NO! This cannot be the Word of God”,...