Superstition and the Bible
Sometimes unbelievers like to suggest that belief in the Bible is belief in superstition. But that is not so. Superstitious beliefs have never been advanced by the Scriptures themselves. In fact, quite to the contrary, the Bible tells us to reject superstition. For example, it says “But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good.” (1 Thess. 5:21). Superstitions, such as astrology, witchcraft, sorcery and the like are condemned and labeled as false and worthless.
Now, it is true that in history some who claimed to believe the Bible have not “examined everything carefully” and have held on to their superstitions. A good example of this would be the religious hierarchy in Rome during the middle ages. These religious leaders retained some of the superstitions of the pagans and hindered men, believers in God themselves like Copernicus and Galileo - but their superstitious dogma had nothing to do with what the Scriptures actually taught. In fact, the very thing that drove Galileo was his intense desire to understand better the workings of God’s universe - he and Copernicus were believed themselves seeking to better understand a universe created by God. The threatenings of the religious leaders of their day has nothing to do with obeying God.
The origin of superstition is man and his own imagination - not God and not the Scriptures. The Bible places a premium on truth - it says that the truth will make us free.
By Jon W. Qiuinn
The Front Page
From Expository Files 20.11; November 2013
