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Has essential oils hit like a storm in your church?
Does the Bible Say anything About Essential Oils? Here are 15 Great References!
Charles Page [03/05/2016 11:59 PM]
does anyone market oils through a MLM?
Troy Day [03/06/2016 7:11 AM]
More Importantly What Does the Bible Say About Essential Oils?
Oils in the Bible – What does the Bible say about Essential Oils and Anointing Oils? There are numerous references throughout scripture regarding anointing oils to be used for ceremonial purposes. These anointing oils often resemble the modern essential oils that are familiar today. For example, Exodus 30:23-25 describes the “holy anointing oil” as such:
“Take the finest spices: of liquid myrrh 500 shekels, and of sweet-smelling cinnamon half as much, that is, 250, and 250 of aromatic cane, and 500 of cassia, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and a hint of olive oil. And you shall make of these a sacred anointing oil blended as by the perfumer; it shall be a holy anointing oil.”
Though essential oils have become a somewhat modern phenomenon, it seems the tradition of using naturally derived aromatic oils have a long history in Christianity. Having been used in religious sacraments for millenniums, perhaps the health benefits of these anointing oils were known long before their contemporary popularity! Discover the best Bible verses about oils in the collection of scripture below!
Essential Oils and the Occult: What Christians Need to Know –
The Occult Connection
While there are very modern methods for extracting essential oils (also called “volatile oils”), ancient people have been using aromatic oils from plants for thousands of years. The Egyptians, Chinese, Indians, Persians, Greco-Romans, and nearly every other ancient culture used aromatic oils in various ways—mostly for medicinal or ritualistic purposes.
Most ancient cultures also didn’t place a sharp distinction between the natural and the supernatural the way we do today.The physical properties of a substance and spiritual forces regularly co-mingled in the ancient pagan mind.
In fact, our words “pharmacy” and “pharmaceutical” come from the Greek term φαρμακεία (pharmakeia), which means sorcery orenchantment. For most ancient people, the making and use of medicines or potions was believed to be spiritual practice, not just a medical one.
Even modern cultists use essential oils because of the spiritual properties they are believed to contain. Some modern Wiccans, for instance, speak of certain essential oils having “sacred energies” or magical properties. Some use essential oils in spell crafting, the invocations of spirits, anointed sacred objects, or the practice of prophecy. Some link specific oils to certain astrological signs.
Given these connections to paganism, what is a mature Christian response to using essential oils? Should we use them at all? What do Christians need to know about Essential Oils and the occult?
Oils and Idols: What Paul Would Say
Consider the apostle Paul’s teachings to the Corinthians Christians about eating food sacrificed to idols. There was a dispute in the ancient church about whether they should buy meat in the marketplace that had been used in a pagan sacrifices. If ever believers had a reason to get superstitious and leery of something associated with pagan religion, this would be it.
But Paul doesn’t give those beliefs the time of day: “we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do” (1 Corinthians 8:8), Paul says. No matter how cultists misuse God’s good gifts, the meat belongs to our Creator. Paul concludes, therefore, “Eat anything sold in the meat market without raising questions of conscience, for, ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it’” (10:25-26).
Paul does not belabor the cultic connection at all. If a slab of meat is being offered to Aphrodite or Apollo in the morning and gracing a Christian’s dining room table that night, Paul doesn’t lose any sleep over this. Why? Because even if these so called “gods” are out there, for the Christian, “there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist” (8:6).
Of course, he warns them not to go into the temples and participate in the pagan sacrifices themselves (10:14-22), but his primary concern is how believers should treat each other regarding this issue—those with stronger consciences should not tempt the weak (8:9-13; 10:27-29).
He isn’t concerned that the meat is somehow spiritually “tainted” or that the Christians are somehow inadvertently involved in pagan religion because they eat meat. He is primarily concerned about Christians treating each other with love, not using their freedom to put a stumbling block before others whose consciences might be weak in this area.
I believe we can say the same about essential oils and the occult. Do cultists use certain blends of oils for their physiological effects? Sure. Do they believe essential oils have certain supernatural properties? Yes. Does that mean Christians shouldn’t use them? Of course not. God is the one who gave those essential oils their properties.
3 Principles for Christians to Keep in Mind about Essential Oils and the Occult:
1. Research how a company describes their essential oils.
While there’s nothing wrong with using essential oils because we believe they have legitimate God-given beneficial properties, there are several companies out there that capitalize on pagan mumbo-jumbo to sell their products.
The written descriptions of many essential oils are, in my opinion, pretty laughable. Companies might describe how their oils “energize your life force,” or help you practice “forgiveness and obtain deep spiritual awareness,” or enhance your body’s “harmonic magnetic energy field,” or improve the process of “dreaming and visualization,” or give you a deeper connection to your “mystical self.”
Some of these essential oil descriptions read like a thesaurus mated with the Wiccan Book of Shadows, and their offspring was wrapped in a thin blanket of fortune cookie papers.
After reading such spiritual malarky, you may decide, like me, that these essential oil companies aren’t worth your money. They are either using neo-pagan gibberish on the pseudo-spiritual masses to make a buck, or they actually believe their own superstitious drivel.
2. If using essential oils goes against your conscience, don’t use them—but recognize this as a position of weakness.
Some Christians, perhaps because they dabbled in neo-paganism in the past, may choose to avoid using essential oils because it has too many bad associations in their minds. If this is the case for you, then the answer is simple: don’t use oils. It is never wise to get into a habit of offending your conscience. “For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23).
That said, just as in the case of meat sacrificed to idols, the apostle Paul unapologetically calls such consciences uninformed, weak, and defiled (1 Corinthians 8:7). Please, do not mistake your spiritual concerns about essential oils and the occult as somehow more enlightened or informed, when in fact, it is the exact opposite.
3. Use essential oils to the glory of God.
Paul’s conclusion to the meat-sacrificed-to-idols dispute is this: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). What does this imply for us?
First, it means we might sometimes give up our freedoms in order to build up others and not cause them to stumble (1 Corinthians 10:23-24, 32-33)—and this may include not using essential oils around those who truly can’t get past their pagan associations.
Personally, I’ve never actually met anyone whose conscience is weak in the area of essential oils and the occult. But perhaps you have met such people. Perhaps you are one of these people. If so, while we might be at odds on this issue, let’s agree together to “pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding” (Romans 14:19), and I’ll promise to put the essential oil diffuser away if you come over to my house.
Second, it means we should partake of the Lord’s good gifts with thankfulness (1 Corinthians 10:30)—and this includes, if you want, essential oils and their amazing benefits. Don’t let the misuse of oils (either in the ancient past or in the present) dissuade you from using them. “For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer” (1 Timothy 4:4-5).
Essential Oils and the Occult Conclusion
I hope I answered any concerns for the Christian community about essential oils and the occult. Feel free to leave comments and questions below on this topic.
Varnel Watson
3 Principles for Christians to Keep in Mind about Essential Oils and the Occult:
1. Research how a company describes their essential oils.
While there’s nothing wrong with using essential oils because we believe they have legitimate God-given beneficial properties, there are several companies out there that capitalize on pagan mumbo-jumbo to sell their products.
The written descriptions of many essential oils are, in my opinion, pretty laughable. Companies might describe how their oils “energize your life force,” or help you practice “forgiveness and obtain deep spiritual awareness,” or enhance your body’s “harmonic magnetic energy field,” or improve the process of “dreaming and visualization,” or give you a deeper connection to your “mystical self.”
Some of these essential oil descriptions read like a thesaurus mated with the Wiccan Book of Shadows, and their offspring was wrapped in a thin blanket of fortune cookie papers.
After reading such spiritual malarky, you may decide, like me, that these essential oil companies aren’t worth your money. They are either using neo-pagan gibberish on the pseudo-spiritual masses to make a buck, or they actually believe their own superstitious drivel.
2. If using essential oils goes against your conscience, don’t use them—but recognize this as a position of weakness.
Some Christians, perhaps because they dabbled in neo-paganism in the past, may choose to avoid using essential oils because it has too many bad associations in their minds. If this is the case for you, then the answer is simple: don’t use oils. It is never wise to get into a habit of offending your conscience. “For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23).
That said, just as in the case of meat sacrificed to idols, the apostle Paul unapologetically calls such consciences uninformed, weak, and defiled (1 Corinthians 8:7). Please, do not mistake your spiritual concerns about essential oils and the occult as somehow more enlightened or informed, when in fact, it is the exact opposite.
3. Use essential oils to the glory of God.
Paul’s conclusion to the meat-sacrificed-to-idols dispute is this: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). What does this imply for us?
First, it means we might sometimes give up our freedoms in order to build up others and not cause them to stumble (1 Corinthians 10:23-24, 32-33)—and this may include not using essential oils around those who truly can’t get past their pagan associations.
Personally, I’ve never actually met anyone whose conscience is weak in the area of essential oils and the occult. But perhaps you have met such people. Perhaps you are one of these people. If so, while we might be at odds on this issue, let’s agree together to “pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding” (Romans 14:19), and I’ll promise to put the essential oil diffuser away if you come over to my house.
Second, it means we should partake of the Lord’s good gifts with thankfulness (1 Corinthians 10:30)—and this includes, if you want, essential oils and their amazing benefits. Don’t let the misuse of oils (either in the ancient past or in the present) dissuade you from using them. “For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer” (1 Timothy 4:4-5).
Essential Oils and the Occult Conclusion
I hope I answered any concerns for the Christian community about essential oils and the occult. Feel free to leave comments and questions below on this topic.
Daniel J Hesse
The only essential oil is olive oil! Can you tap your Bible guy and get me a gallon or two?
Casius Leonidas
The line on this is rather thin.
How do people consider the benefits to outweigh the “risks”?
Satanic schemes are sneaky and subtle, much more than basic believers are even aware of.
Even Christians who market these oils will say that “there is a fine line” when it comes to this…
That line is often crossed in our thinking or feelings about how these work…
“23You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial. 24Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others.”
“As for the Gentile believers, they should do what we already told them in a letter: They should abstain from eating food offered to idols, from consuming blood or the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality.”
On a side note.
Should believers also get involved with burning different types of incense?
Incense is in the Bible afterall.
My point is this. If the line is fine, maybe steering wide is better than trying to walk a tightrope.
Varnel Watson
so whats the bottom line on oils? Neil Steven Lawrence Larry Martin Daniel J Hesse Then Bobbi Goff Klein made a point that It’s illegal to have the CBD oil on you or in the car.
Larry Martin
Wasn’t me.
Daniel J Hesse
I wonder how fried eggs taste in CBD oil? I wonder if you get a lift on a pair of over easy yolks.
Varnel Watson
is it illegal to drive on them in TX 🙂
Neil Steven Lawrence
As with anything it all depends on how the user sees the things are dedicated. Whether to the Lord or evil spirits or enjoyment, etc. To me it’s a non-issue and the devil uses these distractions. From your article and from my knowledge the pagan world likes to play the devils games in using these kind of things in their rituals. I am really a protestant when it comes to ritualism. It matters not. But obviously in the Temple worship in the Old Testament the prescriptions of using certain types of oils to create sensation and beautiful smells have benefit.
I would never purchase oil’s that have Pagan or Satanic mumbo-jumbo mixed in their advertising mainly as a testimony and to not support their evil efforts. But just like with music we should never allow the devil to hijack what the Lord has created.
In Africa the medicine-man (Herbalist) is one of the more harmless of what might begin to be termed witchcraft. In my opinion the line should be drawn when you start invoking spirits or the names of ancestors, etc. in the same way with essential oil‘s the names that they are given may determine whether you should use them or not.
People who practice paganism, magic, witchcraft and Satanism use herbs and drugs to weaken them and alter their state of consciousness so as to be more susceptible to the spirit world. The Bible forbids us from doing this.
My doctrine teacher Dr. Hollis Gause used to say, “when the Spirit of God moves your mind is sharpened and your senses become more aware, not deadened.“ pagan worldview is opposite of this. They use Pharmakia to weaken the constitution and allow spirits to take control. Their meditation is one of “emptying”, where as Christian meditation is one of “filling” with the Word of God.
Varnel Watson
– XN Witches can never feel comfortable giving power to someone lower than them!
Neil Steven Lawrence
Troy Day that is why they “maintain a form of godliness but lacked the power there of…“
Varnel Watson
Neil Steven Lawrence Sounds good I posted more under the Spiritual Warfare post about your witch video
Neil Steven Lawrence
Troy Day traveling through the Great Rift Valley back to Eldoret. Bringing our son Joshua back home from for his end of year break. I’ll check it out.
Varnel Watson
it is essential you know
Robert Erwine
why is there never essential oils when you need them ?
Neil Steven Lawrence
Robert Erwine These days we have Amazon!
Varnel Watson
Robert Erwine needs lots of essentials again