If we want Jehovah’s friendship and protection we must break all connections and associations with spiritism in its many forms. That includes disposing of any objects that relate to spiritism. Such objects would only serve to keep us captive in the web of demon influence. The removal or destruction of such objects is an important step toward breaking free of that influence.

83. How does the Bible show the unreasonableness of one’s worshiping anything made by human hands?

⁸³ The Bible shows how unreasonable persons are who look upon things made by human hands as though they could have some superhuman power in them. For example, the inspired prophecy of Isaiah tells of the man who cuts a big tree from the forest, takes part of it to make a fire and to bake some bread and then uses the other part to make an image and “bows down and prays to it and says: ‘Deliver me, for you are my god.’” Jehovah God says of such ones: “They have not come to know, nor do they understand, because their eyes have been besmeared so as not to see, their heart so as to have no insight. And no one recalls to his heart or has knowledge or understanding, saying: ‘The half of it I have burned up in a fire, and upon its coals I have also baked bread; I roast flesh and eat. But the rest of it shall I make into a mere detestable thing? To the dried-out wood of a tree shall I prostrate myself?’ He is feeding on ashes. . . . And he does not deliver his soul, nor does he say: ‘Is there not a falsehood in my right hand?’”​—Isaiah 44:14-20.

84. (a) Can a piece of wood; cloth or string of itself help or hurt us? (b) What can do us real harm?

⁸⁴ Wood is still just wood no matter how much men may work on it. That is why a wooden image can be burned up and destroyed just like any other piece of wood. It cannot protect itself from being destroyed. And the same is true of cloth or string or mud or stone or seeds or anything else that men may use to make some object for spiritistic worship. They can all be destroyed in one way or another. If these things cannot protect themselves, they certainly cannot protect others. But real harm comes in believing in such things and thereby letting deceitful, unclean spirits, the demons, enslave us to things that are false and a sham. God’s Word shows us the way to get free from such falsehood.

85. What did certain Christians in Ephesus do?

⁸⁵ The Bible tells us of persons who had the faith and courage to destroy some spiritistic possessions, even though it was at great cost to them. After describing the witnessing about the true God done by the apostle Paul in the city of Ephesus, the Bible book of Acts states: “Quite a number of those who practiced magical arts brought their books together and burned them up before everybody. And they calculated together the prices of them and found them worth fifty thousand pieces of silver.” (Ac 19:19) Think of what a fortune that was! Yet, having the approval of the Almighty God and being free from demon influence meant much more to them than what that money represented.

86. (a) What were the results of that experience? (b) How has the same been true among many people today?

⁸⁶ Why not look around your home and ask yourself if you are showing the same faith and following this example, removing anything associated with spirit worship? The results of that experience in Ephesus were very encouraging: “Thus in a mighty way the word of Jehovah kept growing and prevailing.” (Acts 19:20) The same has been true today among thousands of persons who have turned from spiritism to the true God and his worship. The power of the truth of God’s Word has moved them to collect together all books, amulets, fetishes, bracelets, “protective” strings, garments and every object related to spiritism and destroy them.

87. What did a woman in southern Africa do, and what was the result?

⁸⁷ As one example, a woman in southern Africa who was a spirit medium accepted the help offered by one of Jehovah’s Witnesses to study the Bible. When they read the Bible account cited earlier describing how honest-hearted persons in the first century destroyed their books on spiritism, the woman asked if she should do the same. The Witness showed how this could bring God’s favor, and they agreed on a date to do this. On arriving, the Witness found the woman ready with all her religious garments and spiritistic objects and some paraffin. They made a fire and burned all the objects. What resulted? The woman gained relief from demon influence and she is now enjoying the grand privilege herself of aiding others to put their trust in the true God.

88. How did a man in the same region break free from the worship of spirits?

⁸⁸ Similarly, a man in the same region had begun to train with a famous medicine man and had made quick progress, becoming the chief assistant to his spiritist teacher. The teacher’s wife, however, began studying the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses. One day this assistant sat in on the study. Scriptures were discussed showing that God prohibits the drinking or taking of blood. (Leviticus 17:10-14; Deuteronomy 12:23, 24; Acts 15:20, 29) This impressed the man deeply. He was about to “graduate” from his course in “medicine” and magic and knew that drinking blood was part of the “graduation” ceremony. What did he decide? He wanted to please the Source of all life, Jehovah, rather than try to get the favor of opposing unseen spirits. So he stopped practicing spiritism immediately, continued studying the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses and now rejoices in his freedom from bondage to selfish unseen spirits.

89. What vital actions must be taken to gain the victory over unseen spirits?

⁸⁹ To break free from such unseen spirits, it is essential not only that you pray for Jehovah God’s help, but that you “persevere in prayer.” (Romans 12:12) God’s Word shows that it is vital not only to stop spiritistic practices but also to clean out any spiritistic objects that would maintain your ties with the worship of unseen spirits.