The Spirit of Elijah and Forbidden Ideas

The Spirit of Elijah and Forbidden Ideas

There are some ideas that seem to be forbidden in Christian apologetics.

One forbidden concept is that a dead person’s spirit cannot show up again on Earth. Thus, it is said about the story of Saul appearing to the witch of Endor that what showed up at the witch’s summons was a demon.

However, it was not a demon, it was the spirit of Samuel. The witch was an experienced witch, people recognized her as such, and that is why she was recommended to King Saul. The witch, upon summoning the spirit of Samuel and believing that her familiar spirit would show up masquerading as a human spirit, as was the routine, was terrified because what showed up was the real spirit of Samuel.

Another forbidden idea is that a human spirit cannot indwell another human. In the Bible, there is one recorded case of this happening, as we shall see.

Although they rarely happen, God does allow these unusual spiritual things to happen. He has, is, and will continue to allow and perform things that men cannot understand, imagine or accept.

A different kind of “death”

The Bible mentions only two men who were taken up to Heaven with their bodies: Enoch and Elijah. They did not die a mortal man’s death, but were taken away with their mortal bodies. In the case of Jesus, it was different: Jesus’ body died on the cross, was resurrected in a body that had been transformed and later was taken up to “the clouds” in this transformed body.




Moses died a natural death. He was not taken up, but God Himself buried him.


However, for a specific reason known only to God, his body was required in Heaven:


The devil also had a specific reason to fight against Moses’ body being taken to Heaven.

I am sure that there are many reasons that God wants certain people to go up to Heaven with their mortal bodies, but in searching the Bible the only reason I find is in the transfiguration story.

The Transfiguration


Moses and Elijah appeared to Jesus. The spirits of two dead men appeared to a group of men. This is one of the “forbidden ideas” of Christianity, but God allowed it.

Elijah had been taken up with his mortal body, and Moses was not. He was buried, but later an Archangel came to take his body up. Was his body needed in Heaven so that he could appear along with Elijah to Jesus?

Notice that Jesus’ body also was transformed, even if momentarily.

Other Special “Bodies” in the Bible: Abraham and his Visitors


The Bible tells us that the Lord (and the two angels) appeared to Abraham, but when Abraham looked, all he saw were three men.

And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth. And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetch a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it. And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat. (Genesis 18:6-8)

If the Lord appeared to me, the last thing in my mind would be to get in the kitchen and start cooking! So Abraham was still thinking they were men, and extended the customary hospitality to them, inviting them to rest and have a meal. The “men” accepted, and they ate.

And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way. And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do. (Genesis 18:16-17)

And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the Lord. (Genesis 18:22)

Abraham at some point figured out that one of the men was the Lord, and he stayed with Him, but the two men went on their way to Sodom. The two men were angels:


Lot also saw them as men, and prepared a meal for them:


So they ate again, and not only did they have the ability to eat, but they also had the power to destroy a city:


God is a Spirit, angels are spirits; however, it appears they can inhabit human bodies that function as a normal human body. They can also appear and disappear. We cannot distinguish them from other human beings (this is how we could entertain angels unaware, Heb. 13:12.) Whether these three human bodies were put together specifically for this event or this was done some other way, we don’t know.

Jesus in His Transformed Body


The doors were shut and maybe even locked for fear of the Jews. Jesus in his transformed body came and stood in the middle of them, either walking through the closed door or through the wall or just appearing. This transformed body had the wounds that his previous body had, although we know his previous body was much more battered than just the wounds in his hands and side.


As before, the door was shut and he appeared in the midst of them.



It is implied that Jesus ate breakfast with them, in his new body that could appear and disappear.

The Advent of Jesus Announced by the Prophets



The advent of Jesus was announced by the prophets, saying that God would send a messenger to prepare the way before his advent, as a voice that cries in the wilderness saying to prepare the way of the Lord. The time came for both the messenger and the Messiah to be conceived, and the enemy did not like it a bit.



John the Baptist was to prepare the way of the Lord. He had to come into this world before the Lord. Even before he was conceived, violence started in the Kingdom, for the enemy was opposed to his conception.


The Complete Jewish Bible says it this way: “…the Kingdom of Heaven has been suffering violence, and the violent ones are trying to snatch it away.”

Elizabeth, the mother of John, was an older woman and had been barren. Being of a priestly linage and not being able to have children, she felt cursed. A spiritual force would not let her conceive. Whether it was God’s design, keeping her womb virgin for the time of the advent of John, or it was the enemy’s design, we don’t know. But Jesus did say, “From the days of John the Baptist the Kingdom suffers violence.”


The enemy was fighting the plan of God for redemption, trying to stop the conception of John. As Sarah’s womb was closed until the time that Isaac would come into the world, so Elizabeth’s womb was closed until the time John would come into the world.



The Lord’s Conception


The angel continues:



Elizabeth’s baby, John, leaped for joy when Mary, carrying Jesus in her womb, drew near. It was the spirit of Elijah already in John who recognized the Lord.

And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house. (Luke 1:56)

Mary returned to her house, three months into the pregnancy and starting to show. She was a virgin and conceived supernaturally, by the Holy Spirit. The custom in those days was to stone women who conceived out of marriage. Here was the opportunity the enemy had for violence. The enemy worked in Joseph’s mind and emotions to have Mary stoned. He did not want to do it, but it was the law, and he had to think about the reaction of the people. He did not want to bring the law upon her in public, but in private. God intervened.


Later the violence shows up again when Herod hears about the child, and he wanted to have him killed. God intervenes again.


John Starts His Ministry

As it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight, John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. (Mark 1:2-4, 7, 8)



John knew there was someone coming who was mightier. God also spoke to John revealing who that person was. John knew not only that the person was the Son of God, but also that He was the Lamb of God. This term had significance for the Jews, and John did not hesitate to identify Jesus as such. The spirit of Elijah was in John since his conception, and while still in the womb, John recognized the Messiah who was also in the womb. Later, God confirmed to Jesus who He was, but John already knew Him, because of the spirit of Elijah. Jesus said:


After John the Baptist was beheaded:


The Spirit of Elijah Departs from John

The apostle Norman Parish pointed this out in one of his lectures: when John the Baptist was put in prison by Herod, he was soon beheaded by order of Herod. Since the end of his life was imminent, the spirit of Elijah left him. Only at that time did John have doubts about Jesus being the Lamb of God:

When John’s disciples departed, Jesus spoke to the multitude about John:


The spirit of Elijah dwelled in John from his conception until shortly before his death. It was later that Elijah appeared, along with Moses, at the mount. (Matthew 17:1-3)

Interesting Stories from Guatemala

Apostle/Pastor Norman Parish of Guatemala, speaking at a deliverance minister’s conference, shared with us two stories. Because of the nature of these stories, he said he would not share them any place other than a deliverance minister’s conference.

The first story was about a young man who was a member of his church. He was a farmer, uneducated, and his Spanish vocabulary was very limited. He was very devout and worshiped the Lord.

One day this farmer brought a word for the congregation. When he delivered the word, his countenance and his speech changed, and he used words that were not familiar to him. It was a very solemn moment and every one was astounded when they heard him. Norman Parish explained that an angel had entered the young man to give this word.

Norman Parish reasoned that if demons, who are spirits, can enter human bodies, then angels can enter human bodies when directed by the Lord.

In the second story Pastor Parish and two elders ministered deliverance to a very sick man and commanded the demon to manifest. Something manifested and they tested the spirit. They asked the spirit three questions, and the spirit answered according to the scriptures.

One question was, “How did Jesus come?” The spirit answered “in the flesh”. A demon will not give that answer, Norman said, and if it does, it will say a counterfeit phrase like, “in the blesh” instead. The spirit then said that he was the Angel of Death and that he had been sent by the Lord to prepare the man for leaving his body, because his hour had come.

A Personal Testimony

I was about four years in the Lord and was entering the deliverance ministry. The Lord impressed on me to join a Spanish-speaking church that I did not want to attend.

I spoke to the pastor and his wife about deliverance, and the pastor said that if I wanted to teach deliverance in his church, I had to join the church. I joined the church and was there about two years, but he did not give me opportunity to teach deliverance. Instead I taught the adult Bible class.

There was something fishy going on in that church, and I wanted to leave on several occasions, but the Lord would not let me leave.

Once, during an evening service, a member of that church, a humble man, came to the front with his guitar to sing. He sang to the Lord truly worshiping Him, and I got caught up in the anointing. I had my hands up and my eyes closed, worshiping along with the man.

The ceiling was low, and there was a light fixture above me. My head was back, and I could see the light shining on my eyelids. After a while, the light seemed to become larger and more intense and came into my body through my eyelids. Immediately I felt a pressure in my stomach area, reaching up to my throat. I felt a tremendous urge to open my mouth and scream, but I held myself back because I did not want to disturb the singer. It was very hard to control.

Finally, when he finished, I let it go. I was amazed as I was giving a message in tongues in a very, very loud voice. I had always wished I could give a message in tongues but I never could. This is the only one I have ever had.

I could hear myself, of course, and I realized that the message was not a “feel good” message. In fact, I had the feeling it was a rebuke. The tone of the speech was just that way, which anyone can perceive in any language. When I finished, I opened my eyes which were looking in the direction of the pastor, and he was looking back at me with a terrified look on his face. After he regained his cool, he gave a very short interpretation which had nothing to do with the tone of the message.

I have wondered many times about this event. I have known many Christians whom God used for messages in tongues, but they never commented to me about a light shining in their eyes or an inside pressure to give the message that was hard to control.

Now I believe it was an angel who entered me to give this message. This is why I had such a loud voice. This is why I have not given any other messages in tongues during services. This event was a one-time event.

Final Thoughts

Knowing what the Lord has done, we must be prepared to entertain angels. Could we discern an angel? There are many testimonies of angels helping people who did not realize it was an angel who helped them until the angel disappeared, because the angel looked just like a human.

We also need to remember that an angel can enter a human body, if only momentarily, when ordered by the Lord.

In the case of John the Baptist, we have seen that a human spirit of a deceased man (Elijah) entered one man to empower him (John) for a mission, and after everything was accomplished, the human spirit that was empowering John left. This was done by order of God.

We have also seen that two deceased men’s spirits (Moses and Elijah) appeared to Jesus and the disciples who were with him. Peter, who was so frightened later, was not frightened at this appearance at all.

I knew a woman who lost her only son in a tragic accident. She did not have the strength to take it and was thinking about suicide. Her son appeared to her and told her that he was in Heaven, that he was very happy and to please stop crying for him. She told me this herself, and at the time I did not know what to believe. This lady was very intelligent and stable, and I could not dismiss her story as a hallucination. But I did not want to believe it. I believe it now. We have a compassionate God!

Let us think about this, let us train ourselves to discern, and let us expect marvelous things from the Lord.