When Jesus saved me and I left the New Age to follow Jesus, I thought that I was done with it. I was shocked to find how many New Age practices have infiltrated the church. The devil is sowing tares amongst the wheat!
Here is a list of 20 New Age practices that all Christians should avoid and rebuke:
Not preaching the Gospel: Stay away from churches that avoid teaching the Gospel that Jesus died to save us from the penalty for our sins. In the new age, there’s no discussion of anything that could offend someone. So no one learns about sin, hell, repentance, Jesus’ work on the cross, or salvation. In the new age, the belief is that everyone is going to heaven. New agers also believe that you go to heaven by “being a good person.“ That is a salvation-by-works belief, which is unbiblical. Tragically, the lack of Gospel teaching sends unsaved new agers straight to hell. People need to realize that we are all sinners, and that we need Jesus as our Savior.
Downplaying or doubting the Bible; adding to the Bible with “special revelation” that contradicts Scripture: The new age says that the Bible is tampered with, and incomplete with missing books. “Special revelation messages” contradict what the Bible says; therefore, they are false. Everything must be compared against the Bible.
Yoga: each pose is bowing to a specific pagan deity. Yoga is not just stretching; it is idolatry.
Music with unbiblical lyrics: We have to compare the worship music lyrics against scripture. We also need to avoid listening to or singing music from new age-infiltrated churches like Bethel, Hillsong, and Elevation. Paying licensing fees to these churches, only encourages their apostate actions, and can cause the congregation to believe unbiblical ideas.
Prophets / speaking a prophetic word over someone: This is psychic work, forbidden by the Bible, and it’s nothing like the old testament prophets. Prophetic messages contradict what the Bible says; therefore, they are false. Everything must be compared against the Bible.
Reiki and energy healing: This is idolatry, using “energy” from unfamiliar spirits and symbols for healing. Beware of anyone who using the word Chakra in the church, as this is a new age belief. –
Giving self-glory instead of God-glory: In the new age, positive affirmations are used to boost confidence. These affirmations do not work, which is proven by the fact that you have to keep saying them repeatedly. The Bible teaches us that our purpose is to glorify God in all we do.
“Believe in yourself”: this New Age slogan glorifies yourself, and says that you need to follow your heart. The Bible says that the heart is deceitful, and anyone who takes an honest inventory of their life, can see that the heart misleads us. Proverbs 3:5-6 says that we must trust God, and not lean upon our own understanding.
Word of Faith / “name it and claim it” : Commanding God, “giving God permission,” “your best life now,” decree and declare, “sowing a seed for prosperity.” In new age, this is called “manifesting” or “law of attraction.”
“Jesus Calling” books: These channeled books appear Christian, because they use Christian terminology and have Bible verses. However, they contain messages supposedly from Jesus, that contradict and twist what Jesus said in the Bible. Since the Bible tells us that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow, it’s impossible for him to contradict himself. New age channeled books also use Christian terminology and Bible verses. There is no difference between New Age channeled books and the Jesus Calling channeled books.
Kenosis and Arianism Heresies : The teaching that Jesus was just a human (Arianism heresy), and not God; and the teaching that Jesus emptied his divinity during his earthly ministry (Kenosis heresy). Pure blasphemy, with new age and occult roots.
“Little gods”: in the New Age, the Bible verse “Be still and know that I am God” is taken out of context. New agers believe that they are in training to become a “little god.”
“Co-creating with God”: The Bible does not say that we are to partner with God. That is a man-made egocentric viewpoint. God does not “need” us – We need God. We are to follow his will, which is clearly outlined in the Bible.
Crystal Idolatry: while the Bible does discuss crystals, this practice of viewing crystals as having “special healing powers” is idolatry. Anything we view as having more power than God is an idol. Anything we focus upon more than God, is an idol. The Bible forbids idolatry and worshipping the creation; we are only to worship the Creator.
Essential Oils Idolatry: While the Bible does discuss olive oil and hyssop, this new practice of viewing essential oils as having “special healing powers” is idolatry. The Bible forbids worshipping the creation; we are only to worship the Creator. There is nothing inherently “wrong” with oil. The serious problem is when we make oil an idol by viewing it above God.
Praying to angels: nowhere in the Bible does anybody call upon an angel. No one is praying to the angels. No one prays to Archangel Michael in the Bible. Paul says that we should not worship angels (Colossians 2:18) and that Satan masquerades as an angel of light 2 Corinthians 11:14). When the apostle John bowed before an angel, the angel told him to stop bowing (Revelation 22:8).
Communicating with angels: nowhere in the Bible, is there any person who initiates a conversation with an angel, nor do people in the Bible ever ask angels for favors. To communicate with angels is unbiblical and spiritually dangerous as Satan masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14). God does send angels according to His will, not ours.
Harry Potter acceptance and tolerance: glorifying witchcraft, influencing children to believe in or practice witchcraft. The Bible says that witchcraft is an abomination to God (Deuteronomy 18:10). Recent studies show that witchcraft is growing fast in popularity. We must not tolerate it.
Astrology and Horoscopes: The tolerance for these idolatrous practices is increasing, as the church adopts worldly behaviors. Everywhere that astrology is mentioned in the Bible, it is associated with pagan idolatry. The 3 magi wisemen were not called “astrologers.” They were following the Messianic prophecies in the Bible, which led them to Jesus. They didn’t look at constellations or use astrological predictions; the magi studied the Biblical prophecies about Jesus.
The Enneagram. This personality test is not from a psychologist nor from a Christian. It was created by a man named Claudio Naranjo, who said that he created the Enneagram test from “automatic writing,“ which is a dangerous occult practice of getting messages from unfamiliar spirits. Even though the Enneagram has been touted as Christian, it has no biblical basis.
New Age practices are similar to alcoholism, they are progressive and people crave more and more intensity. They may start out with something that seems innocent, but it always leads to darker experiences. New age is the devil’s tool to infiltrate the Church. We must become equipped with wisdom and discernment so that we recognize and avoid new age practices.
Doreen Virtue is a former new age teacher who was saved by Jesus in 2017. She is now attending seminary classes, and she helps people to recognize and avoid new age practices.