Often, especially in the Charismatic and pentecostal circles, worship is confused with magic. By magic, we do do not mean slight-of-hand or baffling tricks as performed by Houdini, but rather an attempt to manipulate a deity or spirit and its power through incantation or invocation of the spirit's name. Note that the name of God was hallowed, and great care was taken lest one presume to use the Name apart from the will of God (John 15:43). To use God's name without a submissive relationship to his will could be disastrous (Acts 8:9-24; 19:13-20). The attitude of worship acknowledges and submits to the transcendent power of God, his will and program. Magic, however has an acquisitive attitude which tries to manipulate or control the power and the deity from which it comes. Magic may look like worship, and worship may be misunderstood for magic, but they have different presuppositions. Though Simon the magician was baptized, and though he saw the miraculous power of God at the hands of the Apostles, he mistook the salvation event at Samaria as an opportunity for power. Wishing to buy the power, he offered them money saying, "Give me also this power, that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit" (Acts 8:19). Instead of power he received Peter's stern curse and rebuke.
In Ephesus the seven sons of Sceva presumed that Paul was casting out devils by a new magical name, the mane of the Lord Jesus. So they tried their new found power-word in an exorcism, "I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims" (Acts 19:13). The evil spirit corrected their faulty assumption in its response, "Jesus I know, Paul I know; but who are you?" (19:15) To speak in the name of Jesus one must be in a submissive, obedient relationship with the Lord Jesus which they did not have! The words of Jesus himself give clarity of true values: "Do not rejoice at this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven" (Luke 10:20).
Yes, there is power in the worship and service of God, but God remains the Lord of power. Do we worship the person of God or the power? As the Bride of Christ, we love the Bridegroom, not his money or clout. Imagine if the bride married just to eat the wedding cake or to get the groom's credit card. Because God is a God of power, power is available in his worship, and the temptation is always there to reduce worship and prayer to the mere exercise of acquisition of power. This is magic.
Magic is a manipulation of spirit or divinity to make it do what one wants. This is forbidden to Christians; we must always fearfully respect the name of Jesus. In all of our exercise of faith, we must submit to the sovereignty of God: he will do what he thinks best regardless of our best attempts and formulas to get him to act. God is not waiting on us to do a certain thing so that he can finally move and act but he does call us to participate with him in prayer and action because he desires a relationship.
Source: A Pendulum Swing between Prosperity and Suffering: What is the Role of Faith? (Essay) By: Dr. James Shelton
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