How to Talk to Kids About Witchcraft Without Scaring Them

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A parent sent in this question: "My girls are six and four, and I'm having a hard time even broaching the subject of witchcraft with them. I want them to have a solid biblical understanding of why it's wrong, but I don't know how to bring it up or explain it without scaring them."

I'm so grateful this question came in, because I think witchcraft is an important topic for us to think through, especially as the popularity of Wicca and other forms of occult practice is on the rise here in the West. I also think it's common for parents to have a deep-seated sense of anxiety over talking with their kids about any form of sin or rebellion against God.

My goal is to give you a helpful paradigm you can walk your kids through any time you want to talk with them about a form of sin, a form of rebellion against what God has designed and what God has commanded.

A Paradigm From God's Good Design

The formula I'm going to walk you through is what we walk kids through in our God's Good Design curriculum. In that curriculum, we talk about several different forms of sin, specifically regarding gender and sexuality. It's for little ones, ages four through roughly eight, and we introduce them to the concept of pornography, the concept of same-sex relationships, the concept of gender confusion, and the concept of abuse.

Those sound like really weighty topics, and they are. However, the formula we use in that curriculum makes introducing kids to those topics developmentally appropriate. It actually protects them by preparing them for the day they do encounter that deviation from God's good design. This is the same formula we can use when talking about witchcraft or any other form of sin.

Three Questions for Any Conversation About Sin

Often, when we're thinking about introducing our kids to a concept of sin, we think, "I'm nervous about this. I don't know when I should expose them, or if I should expose them, but they're going to be exposed. How do I talk about this?" And we just think about the thing itself.

But sin is not a thing in and of itself. Sin is a corruption of what God has designed to be good. So the three-step formula we use in God's Good Design starts with that goodness:

1. What is the goodness God has created? We start here, laying a foundation of goodness before anything else.
2. How has sin corrupted this goodness? This is the hard part. It's usually the scariest part for us as adults, because we're thinking, "We're introducing our kids to this corruption of God's good design." But the great thing is that we're not presenting the corruption as the foundation. The foundation is God's goodness. Then we present the corruption, but we don't stop there.
3. How has Jesus redeemed, and how will he one day restore, what sin has corrupted?

This is a great formula because it's the formula we're given in God's Word. I mean, it's not really a formula, but it's how God has presented things in his Word. He starts with the goodness of creation. Then we get to the corruption of sin. Then we get to Jesus's redemption, and we look forward to the future when he perfectly restores everything.

If you can remember those three steps, you can talk with your kids in a developmentally appropriate way about the trickiest of topics.

Why This Is "Bad" for Foundation Worldview

Now, what I just presented is really bad for Foundation Worldview as an organization, because I'm showing you that you don't need me to answer all of these tricky questions. If you just follow those three steps, you can apply them to any tricky conversation you have with kids.

But the goal of the Foundation Worldview Podcast is not to make you dependent on me. It's to equip you with transferable skills you can apply to any and every situation you encounter with the children God has placed in your care.

Even so, if you have a question you think would be helpful for me to answer on a future episode, you can submit it on our podcast page. We literally could not do this podcast without your questions, so thank you to those of you who have submitted them.

Step One: The Goodness God Created

So let's apply these three steps to witchcraft. First, what is the goodness God has created? Not that there's goodness in witchcraft, but witchcraft is a corruption of something good God has created. I would argue that the goodness is this: God designed humans in his image to have a relationship with him.

We see this right from the opening chapter of Genesis. We can take our kids to Genesis 1:27–28 and read it with them:

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." (Genesis 1:27–28, ESV)

We can ask our kids what truths are revealed in these verses. We see that God created humans in his image, that he created us in his image as either male or female, and that he has given us the command to be fruitful and multiply and to have dominion and authority over the rest of creation.

As God's image bearers, we represent him here on earth. We exercise a small bit of authority and loving care over the rest of creation. That's the goodness: God designed us in his image, and he has given us a responsibility on this earth.

Step Two: How Sin Corrupted That Goodness

The second question is, how has sin corrupted this goodness? What we want to cover with our kids broadly first is that, because of sin, humans often aren't content to exercise dominion and care over what God has given us. Instead, we want to take God's place. We're not content just to represent him here on earth. We actually want to usurp him.

A passage we can take our kids to that helps them see this is Genesis 3:1–7:

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?" And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'" But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. (Genesis 3:1–7, ESV)

We can take our kids to this passage and ask, "What did Eve choose to do?" Rather than obey God and trust him, rather than be content with representing God in the authority he had given her in the garden, she wanted to be like God. She wanted to usurp God.

Then we can talk with our kids about how we do the same thing every time we rebel against God's commands, whether we're grumbling, talking badly about someone, or disobeying someone in authority over us. Every time we rebel against one of God's commands, we think we are better than God, and we're trying to take his place in our lives.

We want to help our kids see that this is what all sin is. It's rebellion against God. It's seeking to usurp him, refusing to be content with what he's given us, and trying to take his place.

Explaining Witchcraft to Your Kids

This is where we can get into explaining witchcraft. We can say something like this:

"One of the ways humans try to take God's place is by practicing something called witchcraft. Witchcraft is trying to do things that only God should do. Things like telling the future. Things like changing events that should be outside of human control. Things like punishing others by putting a curse on them. Or things like controlling nature."

We can explain that God is the only one who truly knows the future. God is the only one who truly has control over all events. God is the only one who is qualified to give true, just punishments in the end. And God is the only one who can control nature. Then we can say, "But sometimes humans try to practice witchcraft and do these things."

Then we can explain to our kids that this type of rebellion against God is especially dangerous. It not only involves us trying to take God's place, which is sin against God, but it also involves contacting the spiritual realm of darkness. It involves contacting Satan and his demons.

A passage of Scripture that highlights this, but isn't really scary, especially for little ones, is Ephesians 6:10–12:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:10–12, ESV)

We can ask our kids, "Who does this passage say is our enemy?" It's the devil. It's the rulers and authorities and cosmic powers over this present darkness, the spiritual forces of evil. If we truly love God, we should not be trying to take God's place, and we should not be trying to communicate with God's enemy, Satan and his demons. It's very dangerous.

Step Three: How Jesus Redeems and Will Restore

So we've gone through the first two steps. The goodness God has created is that he designed us in his image to represent him here on earth. Sin has corrupted this goodness: rather than being content with the authority God has given us, we try to usurp God's authority, and one of the ways this is done is through witchcraft.

Now the third question: how has Jesus redeemed, and how will he one day restore, what sin has corrupted?

The first way is that Jesus has redeemed us and made us new. We want to take our kids right to Ezekiel 36. This is a passage I just love that describes God making us new:

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. (Ezekiel 36:26–27, ESV)

We can talk with our kids about how God has given his children a new heart, a heart that actually desires to obey God, not a heart that primarily desires to usurp him. As his new creations, we are going to battle our flesh. We are going to battle that old nature and the desire to take God's place. But by God's grace, those who have been made new in Christ have new hearts, and we actually have a desire to obey God.

Then we can tell our kids that when Jesus returns one day, just as Revelation 21 describes, he is going to make heaven and earth new. He's going to wipe away every tear, and there will be no sin or death anymore. So one day, there will be no witchcraft anymore.

Have Nothing to Do With It

But in this present time, we can tell our kids that as Christians, we are to have nothing to do with witchcraft. We can take them to Ephesians 5:11–13:

Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible. (Ephesians 5:11–13, ESV)

Ephesians 5 isn't only talking about witchcraft. It's also talking about things like lust and any form of idolatry. So this passage doesn't apply only to witchcraft, but it does apply to it. We are not to take part in witchcraft, because it is part of the unfruitful works of darkness. We're going to have nothing to do with it.

We Do Not Need to Fear

Then we want to help our kids see that when we say no to this, when we flee from darkness, we are not to fear it. As God's children, we do not need to fear the spiritual forces of evil, because Jesus has overcome them.

A great passage to take our kids to is Colossians 1:13–14:

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13–14, ESV)

We can talk with our kids about how Jesus has transferred us from the domain of darkness to the kingdom of light. He's forgiven us. We are part of God's kingdom, so we do not need to fear.

We can also take them to 1 John 4:2–4:

By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. (1 John 4:2–4, ESV)

We can explain to our kids that for Christians, the Holy Spirit lives in us, and the Holy Spirit is greater than the spiritual forces of darkness in this world.

Finally, we can take our kids to Ephesians 6 and explain that God has not only redeemed us so that we have the hope of eternity with him, he has also provided us with his armor:

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:13–17, ESV)

We can talk through with our kids what the different pieces of armor are that God has given us, and how this armor is given so that we can take our stand against the devil's schemes.

Bringing It Into Everyday Life

To the parent who sent in this question: I believe you said your kids are four and six. Your four-year-old might not understand all of this as you go through it, but I think it's a really good introduction.

Then, anytime you see witchcraft in the media, or you're walking by a store downtown and see crystals or dream catchers or things like that, you can talk it through: "Oh, this is a part of witchcraft. This is what we talked about, the corruption of sin, where people are trying to take God's place." Then bring it back: "But how has Jesus redeemed us? Jesus has given us a new heart so that we can actually desire him rather than desire to take his place." And talk about how one day Jesus will return and make heaven and earth new.

Anytime we're introducing a new area of sin to our children, this paradigm makes it so much easier to talk with them, because it's rooted in God's design and in what he has presented in Scripture:

1. What is the goodness God has created?
2. How has sin corrupted this goodness?
3. How has Jesus redeemed, and how will he one day restore, what sin has corrupted?

Going Deeper With God's Good Design

If you're interested in going deeper, not into the topic of witchcraft, but into this concept of understanding God's design and presenting things with this three-question formula, I highly recommend our God's Good Design curriculum. It's for children ages four through eight. However, when we were filming it, one of the people on my team said, "Man, everybody in the church needs to go through this," because we lay out, step by step, what God's good design is for us as humans.

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My prayer for you is that, no matter the situation in which you and the children God has placed in your care find yourselves, you would trust that God is working all things together for your good by using all things to conform you more into the image of his Son.