Can I ask God to deliver a message to a loved one who has died?

Abraham solemnly reminded the rich man of his past and that of Lazarus, and adds beside this that at death a great gulf has been fixed between the saved and the lost, so it is impossible for any cross over from one side to the other. All the prayers for the dead that man's "religion" can devise are useless. At death there is no doubt as to a man's final destiny: it has been decided.

We hear Abraham saying: "Between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us that would come from thence." These solemn words remind one of Rev. 22:11: "He that is unjust, let him be unjust still; and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still; and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still; and he that is holy, let him be holy still." Great transformations take place here below; through faith in the Gospel men are continually passing "from death to life" (John 5:24); but when the border-line is passed, every man's condition is fixed for evermore. Modern theologians, however, would have a good deal of comfort to offer such an one as the rich man. Some would tell him that God, as the great universal Father, will ultimately have all His creatures in a state of salvation, some reaching His glory by way of the cross, others by way of purgatorial fires; another school of interpreters would flatly contradict this, and say that after the judgement of the great white throne the lost will be extinguished, blotted out of existence entirely; others again would offer to pray for the rich man "in Church," assuring him that there is great efficacy in prayers for the dead. But none of these modern lies were known either to Abraham or to the lost soul to whom he was speaking. Not a ray of hope can be discovered in Abraham's reply to the sufferer's appeal.

In the story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16), the Lord draws aside the curtain and teaches us the condition of those who have died. Lazarus was in the place of supreme blessedness, and he was not permitted to go and communicate with the five brethren of the rich man, and the rich man was in the place of misery and could not go; hence we conclude, and rightly, that the spirits of dead men do not communicate with the living.

Now, it may be that, on reading the foregoing quotation, the reader feels disposed to ask what possible application it can have to professing Christians? We ask, in reply, Are there any Christians who are in the habit of going to the performances of wizards, magicians and necromancers? Are there any who take part in table-turning, spirit-rapping, mesmerism, or clairvoyance? If so, the passage which we have just quoted bears, very pointedly and solemnly, upon all such. We most surely believe that all these things which we have named are of the devil. This may sound harsh and severe; but we cannot help that. We are thoroughly persuaded that when people lend themselves to the awful business of bringing up, in any way, the spirits of the departed, they are simply putting themselves into the hands of the devil to be deceived and deluded by his lies. What, we may ask, do those who hold in their hands a perfect revelation from God, want of table-turning and spirit-rapping? Surely nothing. And, if not content with that precious word, they turn to the spirits of departed friends or others, what can they expect but that God will judicially give them over to be blinded and deceived by wicked spirits who come up and personate the departed, and tell all manner of lies?

We cannot attempt go fully into this subject here. We have no time, for anything of the sort. We merely felt it to be our solemn duty to warn the reader about having anything whatever to do with consulting departed spirits. We believe it to be most dangerous work. We do not enter upon the question as to whether souls can come back to this world; no doubt, God could permit them to come if He saw fit; but this we leave. The great point for us to keep ever before our hearts is the perfect sufficiency of divine revelation, what do we want of departed spirits? The rich man imagined that if Lazarus were to go back to earth and speak to his five brethren, it would have a great effect. "I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house; for I have five brethren; that he may testify to them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham says to him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham; but if one went to them from the dead, they will repent. And he said to him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead." (Luke 16:27-31.)

Verse 11 adds to this the evil of conjuring spells, that is, hypnotism, and also the wickedness of one acting as a medium, which means one who is a go-between, bringing messages from an evil spirit to another person. A spiritist is similar, that is, one having contract with evil spirits. One who calls up the dead is one who claims to actually bring a dead person in contact with a living person. This is deception, for it is actually a familiar spirit who impersonates the dead person. The witch of Endor was asked by King Saul to bring up Samuel (1 Sam.28:11), but when the woman saw Samuel she was terrified (v.12), for she was accustomed to the deceit of a familiar spirit. But God intervened in this one case to make a striking exception.

The enemy gathers together: Saul “was afraid, and his heart greatly trembled. And Saul inquired of Jehovah; but Jehovah did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets” (vv. 5-6). This position was more miserable than when Israel had followed enchantments and strange gods! At least these had given the appearance of answering Israel — an illusion no doubt, but an illusion which for the moment had raised their flagging spirits. Now: nothing but silence. The house that was swept had no statue, no ephod, and no teraphim (Hosea 3:4). What to do? Whom to consult? Whom to lean on? What uncertainty for Saul! Judgment is at the door: how can it be evaded? Oh! in this darkness where he is floundering, if even a feeble ray of light would show him a way out! Nothing is more wretched than his condition. He is aware of his inevitable fate and in his great anguish is seeking a means to escape it. Now Saul takes account of the horror of his condition. Death would be better, but death offers no shelter from the judgment which he sees steadily advancing toward him from afar and which he knows to be without pity.

“Seek me a woman that has a spirit of Python, that I may go to her and inquire of her” (v. 7). Christendom in our day is no different, about to be “spewed out” of the Lord's mouth. It is calling up spirits and indulging herself with satanic illusions, for at one and the same time there is frightening reality and shameful illusion in these practices. The reality is that a demon puts itself at the disposal of the Pythoness; the illusion is that she is able to call up the dead. The demon only clothes itself with a shadowy appearance, for Jesus holds the keys of death and of Hades and no power but His own is able to open its doors. Satan himself cannot call up the dead. Those who have not believed and who have died are and remain “the spirits in prison.” God alone by making an exception can permit Samuel to come forth from the realm of the invisible and appear.

The Lord Jesus, risen from the dead and glorified, says, "I have the keys of death and hades", and we believe this fact excludes all possibility of the dead communicating with the living; for it surely means that He is Master of death and the world beyond. His Lordship may not be acknowledged by all in this life, but none can refuse it in the life beyond, all there are subject, willingly or unwilling, to His dominion. Then if this be true, none can return who have passed through the portals of death except as He permits it, certainly they cannot obey the call of a godless medium. We know all about Samuel and the witch of Endor; this case does not help the Spiritists, but condemns them. There God intervened specially, that the apostate Saul might hear his doom. It was not the power of the medium that brought him up; she expected her familiar spirit to come, impersonating Samuel, and was terrified when Samuel himself appeared. And the Lord slew Saul for his great sin.

Not for a single moment will He ever surrender them. He is Lord of the dead as well as of the living (Rom. 14:9). The believing dead are described in Scripture as "present with the Lord" (2 Cor. 5:8), and it is not within the power of evil persons called mediums to disturb their repose for the sake of a fee. The unbelieving dead are "spirits in prison," and no one can get past Christ in order to communicate with them.

The question is, Are the spirits with which communication is established, the spirits of departed men and women? They are not. I think I can show that clearly from Scripture. My first Scripture proof is Revelation 1:17-18. It may not seem, at first, to have any connection with this subject, but I think I shall be able to prove to you that it has. The Lord Jesus appears here in His glory and greatness to His servant, the apostle John. John says, in verse 17, "And when I saw Him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid His right hand upon me, saying to me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that lives, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death" (Rev. 1:17-18). "AND HAVE THE KEYS OF HADES AND OF DEATH." What does that convey to your mind? It ought to convey this, that the Lord — the risen Lord — is Master of the life beyond death. He has the keys, and none can pass from that world to this apart from His permission. He is Master. No medium is master of the spirits of the departed, nor can any come in answer to their call. The Lord has control there, His "Lordship" is not acknowledged by many who live in this life. There is not a single soul amongst all the millions that have passed to the life beyond, whether to the regions of darkness or light, that does not acknowledge His Lordship. He is Master; He has the keys. Let that great fact sink into your minds. There is immense comfort in it to those who are in Christ. It will settle our thoughts, I believe, in regard to this matter at once if only we see its significance. In Old Testament times God closed the door against any attempt to communicate with the dead, naming such attempts amongst the abominations of the idolatrous nations of Canaan. The keys of that door are now in the hands of the Lord Jesus — the risen Man. has He thrown that door open, permitting now as a sacred duty that which was formerly an abomination? The question carries its own answer.

Do the Dead Communicate with the Living?

I turn now to the question, "Do the dead ever communicate with the living" There is one instance of this given in the Old Testament Scriptures. It is the notorious case of King Saul and the witch of Endor. You may read the story in 1 Samuel 28. Notice, First, that God refused to speak to the King because of his persistent disobedience to His will. It was a God-abandoned man who sought out the poor medium of Endor. Second, the woman expected one of her familiar spirits to appear; instead, to her astonishment and terror, Samuel himself appeared, permitted of God for special reasons. Third, Samuel complains of being disquieted, by being called up. Some of you mourn your beloved dead, whom you believe are with Christ. Supposing it were possible for you to communicate with them, which it is not, would you care to disquiet them? Fourth, Samuel appeared merely to pronounce upon Saul the solemn doom that was to come upon him; and, finally, in Chronicles 10 we read that because of this crowning crime of a disobedient life, God slew him. "So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the Lord … and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, and enquired not of the Lord; therefore He slew him." Study that story and tell me if there is any encouragement in it for you to visit a medium?