Chapter 6 –
Demons and their Abilities as Described in the Bible
As we have covered, the Bible
teaches that today Christians are in a battle against demons,
the second wave of fallen angels, and their leader, the fallen
angel Satan. We are going to take a look at demons in the Bible,
and the abilities demonstrated by demons, to better understand
what activities demons are engaged in today.
We have covered that most likely demons are the disembodied
spirits of the dead giants (Nephilim) who lived before the
flood, and their paternal descendents. In the Bible demons are
referred to as the spirits of the dead. In the Old Testament God
forbids people to practice communication with spirits of the
dead, or to be familiar with these demons, and such is
associated with magical practices. Demons also are credited as
being intimately involved with the practice of idolatry, which
is also forbidden.
Usually when
people think of demons they think of the concept of “demon
possession”. The term “possession” comes from the KJV
translation of the word “daimonizomai”.
This word is a verb that means, “to be under the power of a
demon” (Thayer’s Lexicon). This word does not necessarily mean
“to have a demon inside of your body”. Most literally this verb
means “to be demoned” or “to be demoning”. Probably the best
English translation would be, “to be demonized”. The concept of
the person being “possessed” does not come from the Greek word
“daimonizomai”
which would better be translated as “demonized”. Rather, the
concept of “possession” comes from the context of the stories
recorded about demons.
Jesus
repeatedly told demons to “come out” of people, and the Bible
records that Jesus “cast out” demons, and these terms are
accurate.
When evening had
come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He
cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick.
Matt 8:16
And Jesus rebuked
him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him.
And when the
unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud
voice, he came out of him.
Matt 1:25-26
When Jesus saw
that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean
spirit, saying to it: "Deaf
and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no
more!" Mark
9:25
There are
several stories about demonized people who seemed to be
completely controlled by demons, which is the traditional view
of “possession”. But on the other hand, there are stories in
which the demonized person seemed to be functioning to some
normal extent, at least some of the time. As such it seems that
there are different levels of demonization that are possible.
There are also stories in which many people were healed by
having demons cast out, but it is not specified how much each of
those people were controlled by demons. Overall the Bible seems
to record some of the worst cases of demonization in the most
detail.
Then they came to the other side of
the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. And when He had come
out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a
man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the
tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because
he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains
had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces;
neither could anyone tame him. And always, night and day, he was
in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting
himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and
worshiped Him. And he cried out with a loud voice and said,
“What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I
implore You by God that You do not torment me.” For He said to
him, “Come out of the man, unclean spirit!” Then He asked him,
“What is your name?” And he answered, saying, “My name is
Legion; for we are many.” Also he begged Him earnestly that He
would not send them out of the country. Now a large herd of
swine was feeding there near the mountains. So all the demons
begged Him, saying, “Send us to the swine, that we may enter
them.” And at once Jesus gave them permission. Then the unclean
spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two
thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into
the sea, and drowned in the sea. So those who fed the swine
fled, and they told it in the city and in the country. And they
went out to see what it was that had happened. Then they came to
Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the
legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind. And they were
afraid. Mark 5:1-15
And when He stepped out on the land,
there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a
long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house
but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down
before Him, and with a loud voice said, “What have I to do with
You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment
me!” For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the
man. For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard,
bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was
driven by the demon into the wilderness. Jesus asked him,
saying, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” because many
demons had entered him. And they begged Him that He would not
command them to go out into the abyss. Now a herd of many swine
was feeding there on the mountain. So they begged Him that He
would permit them to enter them. And He permitted them. Then the
demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd
ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.
When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and
told it in the city and in the country. Then they went out to
see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from
whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus,
clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. They also
who whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes
asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great
fear. And He got into the boat and returned. Now the man from
whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with
Him. But Jesus sent him away, saying, “Return to your own house,
and tell what great things God has done for you.” And he went
his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great
things Jesus had done for him. Luke 8:27-39
In this
story the demonized man seems to be under full control of the
many demons in him. The demons are described to have caused
symptoms of insanity, unusual or supernatural strength,
self-mutilation or self-harm, self-isolation, inability to be
reached by other people who tried to help him, and a seeming
total loss of being capable of being “in his right mind”. The
demons caused him to not wear any clothes, also making him do
some things that would be considered shameful, or degrading, and
abnormal. The demons caused him to live among the tombs,
something which was considered abnormal, but also unclean. The
demons knew who Jesus was, that He was the Son of God, and they seemed afraid of Him.
The number of demons that were in this one man are specified to
have been able to fill a herd of about 2000 pigs. When the
demons entered the pigs, they caused the pigs to all die by
drowning themselves. If demons are the disembodied spirit of the
dead Nephilim, then it is possible or likely that some of them
died by drowning in the Flood. If nothing else, they were
witnesses to the Flood. Taking that into consideration, it seems
like there might have been more than a surface-level meaning to
them causing all of these pigs to drown… like perhaps they were
making a statement, in some bitter reference to their past.
In another story, a demon had repeatedly tried to drown a boy,
and throw him into a fire, in order to kill him. Demons many
times seem to have a suicidal bent.
Then one of the crowd answered and
said, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. And
wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the
mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your
disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.” He
answered him and said, “O faithless generation, how long shall I
be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.”
Then they brought him to Him. And when he saw Him, immediately
the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and
wallowed, foaming at the mouth. So He asked his father, “How
long has this been happening to him?”
And he said,
“From childhood. And often he has thrown him both into the fire
and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything,
have compassion on us and help us.” Jesus said to him, “If you
can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”
Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with
tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” When Jesus saw that
the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit,
saying to it, “Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of
him and enter him no more!” Then the spirit cried out, convulsed
him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so
that many said, “He is dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and
lifted him up, and he arose. And when He had come into the
house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast
it out?” So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing
but prayer and fasting.”
Mark 9:17-29
In this case a single demon was causing seizures, convulsions,
foaming at the mouth, gnashing of teeth, rigidity, and throwing
the boy into the water, or into fire, to try to kill him. The
spirit also made the boy to be deaf and mute. In this case the
demon is of a kind that only comes out by prayer and fasting. In
both of these cases of heavy demonization, Jesus commanded the
demons to come out and they obeyed.
In another case of demonization, in the Old Testament, it
becomes clear that demons can enter and leave people repeatedly.
This has the effect of the person temporarily acting demonized,
and at other times acting normal.
But the Spirit of
the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD
troubled him. And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an
evil spirit from God troubleth thee. Let our lord now command
thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man, who is a
cunning player on an harp: and it shall come to pass, when the
evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his
hand, and thou shalt be well. And Saul said unto his servants,
Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me.
Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen
a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, that is cunning in playing, and
a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters,
and a comely person, and the LORD is with him. Wherefore Saul
sent messengers unto Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son,
which is with the sheep. And Jesse took an ass laden with bread,
and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son
unto Saul. And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he
loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer. And Saul sent
to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for
he hath found favour in my sight. And it came to pass, when the
evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and
played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and
the evil spirit departed from him.
1 Sam 16:14-23
In this case of Saul, God allowed an evil spirit to go ahead and
trouble Saul. Sometimes the demon would trouble Saul, and other
times it would depart from him. This shows that demons can come
and leave repeatedly, in some situations. Saul was still able to
speak, and function even though he was demonized. Though
demonized, Saul was able to speak with his servants, send out
messengers to bring David, and was not mute, deaf, or completely
overcome to the point the demon spoke through him, like in some
cases of demonization in the New Testament.
And so this shows that a person can have a problem with
demonization that is of a lighter level, in which the demon does
not have full control, or the demon is only present and active
some of the time. When the demon is not present the demonized
person may act normally, or even have partial-control while the
demon is present and active. This kind of case is what is more
commonly referred to today as the concept of “demonic
oppression”. Though just as spiritually serious, this is a
lighter level of demonic control than in the concept of “demonic
possession”.
There are
many cases mentioned in the Bible in which details are not
supplied as to the level of demonization the person was
experiencing.
And his fame went
throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people
that were taken with diverse diseases and torments, and those
which were demonized, and those which were lunatick, and those
that had the palsy; and he healed them.
Matt 4:24
When the
evening was come, they brought unto him many that were
demonized: and he cast out the spirits with [his] word, and
healed all that were sick:
Matt 8:16
And at even, when
the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased,
and them that were demonized. And all the city was gathered
together at the door. And he healed many that were sick of
diverse diseases, and cast out many demons; and suffered not the
demons to speak, because they knew him.
Mark 1:32-34
It is
possible to understand from these verses that many people were
demonized, and it was common. It can also be gathered from Mark
1 that in many cases the demons were in enough control to be
able to speak through the demonized person. It was also obvious
that the people of that village had an idea of who in the
village was demonized, as they brought those particular people
to Jesus for healing. Same as in the case of the Legion of
demons, it seems that many of the demons also did identify Jesus
as the Son of God publicly, which is why Jesus did not permit
the demons to speak. This is likely because it was more damaging
than helpful, and even confusing to the Gospel message, for a
known demonized person to be declaring Jesus Christ to be the
Son of God. It might have thrown some doubt into people’s minds
about Jesus as to which side He was on, that the demons knew
Him.
Also, demons also seemed to be able to identify Christians who
were servants of God, and those people who were not.
"It
happened that as we were going to the place of prayer, a
slave-girl having a spirit of divination met us, who was
bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling. This
girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, "These men are
servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be
saved." She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so
troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, "In the
name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!" At that
moment the spirit left her. When the owners of the slave girl
realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized
Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the
authorities." Acts
16:16-19
In this case the demon did not cause deafness, or muteness, or
self-harm to the girl who was demonized, but rather worked
magical practices through her of telling fortunes. (Note that there
is nothing here that verifies that this demon could predict the
future, or that the fortune-telling of this girl was any
different in vagueness and accuracy than fortune-tellers today.)
As in other cases in which
the demons knew who Jesus was, in this case the demon knew the
truth, that the Christians were working for God to lead people
to salvation. But in this case, the girl is the only one who is
specified to have been speaking, not the demon. The demon seems
to have communicated this information to the girl, and was
influencing her to advertise the information. Nothing indicates
that the girl was afflicted to the extent of the cases of those
who were heavily demonized. She does not seem to have been under
total control of the demon, but was influenced by the demon, so
this seems more a case of “demonic oppression”. In this type of
“demonic oppression” she seemed to have a symbiotic relationship
with the demon by choice, in order to receive information from
the demon. This is a clear case of what the Old Testament refers
to in magical practices:
“A man also or woman that hath a
familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to
death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood [shall be]
upon them.” Lev 20:27
“When thou art come into the
land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to
do after the abominations of those nations. There shall not be
found among you [any one] that maketh his son or his daughter to
pass through the fire, [or] that useth divination, [or] an
observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer,
or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a
necromancer. For all that do these things [are] an
abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the
LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.”
Deut 18:9-12
According to the Strong’s Concordance, the word for “familiar
spirit” means “ghost, spirit of a dead one, necromancy, one who
evokes a dead one, one with a familiar spirit”. If one considers
that demons are actually the spirits of the dead giants
(Nephilim), then it makes a lot of sense that it is demons who
are being referenced to here as the “ghost, spirit of a dead
one”. And it is forbidden for God’s people to “evoke the spirit
of a dead one”, or to have anything to do with a demon, let
alone to become familiar, gain familiarity, with one. The term
here for “wizard” is “one who has a familiar spirit” and
“necromancer”. The term “necromancer” is also used, and all of
these are synonymous terms, which all refer to having a
relationship with a demon. This is what the fortune-telling girl
in Acts was doing, she had a relationship with a familiar demon
spirit, and that demon gave her information that made her seem
to have magical knowledge.
It is important to note how Christians handled the situation. In
the Old Testament God said that any Israelites that had a
familiar spirit, a relationship with a demon that seemed
magical, were to be stoned. But in the New Testament, Paul
simply cast the demon out of the girl who had been irritating
them by following them around. This would have freed her to
consider what it meant that “These
men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the
way to be saved”
without any demonic influence on her
mind.
And she also had
to consider that Paul, who believed the Gospel that he was
preaching, had power with him; power that was stronger than the
demonic power she was familiar with, enough to force the demon
to leave her. This slave-girl seemed to have gotten into this
relationship with a demon in order to gain the supernatural
power of the information it revealed to her, so she could tell
people’s fortunes. But she came face-to-face with a greater
supernatural power, the power of God found in those who accepted
the Gospel, which was more powerful than the demon she had
known. Hopefully this helped her to rethink what she had been
doing, the Gospel she had heard Paul preaching, and look to God
as the greatest power, though the Bible does not specify. But
casting the demon out of her definitely gave her back the
ability to think things through without a demon influencing her
decisions. While she was saying, “These
men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the
way to be saved”, she herself didn’t seem to really
believe it, but was saying this under the influence of the
demon. The demon knew this was true, and influenced her to say
this, but she was in a much better position to choose to believe
it herself once the demon was no longer present to influence
her.
There is another case in which a demonized man, who seemed to be
at the “possession” level, had a demon which knew who Jesus
Christ was, and who Paul was. The demon seemed to know who was a
Christian and actually had the authority to cast him out of the
man, and who was not a Christian and did not have the authority
that Jesus Christ gives to all believers in Him.
Then
certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call
over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus,
saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. And
there were seven sons of [one] Sceva, a Jew, [and] chief of the
priests, which did so. And the evil spirit answered and said,
Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? And the man
in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them,
and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house
naked and wounded.
Acts 19:13-16
In this case the
demon was aware of who was a Christian with the authority to cast
him out, and who was not. In this case the demon seemed to cause
the demonized man to have such great strength that he overcame 7
men and they fled out of the house naked and wounded. Like in
the case of Legion, in which the demonized man broke chains he
was bound with, in this case also the demonized man had great
strength. But in this case, the demonized man seemed to only
have 1 demon, and not thousands of them. This indicates that
what demons can do in affecting a demonized person is not
dependent on their numbers, but rather that what demons are,
inherently allows them to have certain abilities and ways that
they can affect a person.
Another thing that
demons seem to cause is symptoms of paranoia.
Jesus
said, "Did
not Moses give you the law, and [yet] none of you keepeth the
law? Why go ye about to kill me?" "The
people answered and said, Thou hast a demon: who goeth about to
kill thee?"
John
7:20-21
In this case Jesus
said openly that people were trying to kill him, and the people
around him responded by saying he "had a demon". If a man walked
around today saying people were trying to kill him, were out to
get him, a normal response would be for people to say he was
"paranoid" or "crazy". What few people would think to say to him
is "you have a demon". Yet in the days of Jesus, it seems that
paranoia was synonymous with having a demon. Other than seeming
paranoid to some people, Jesus was also obviously functioning
normally in other ways. This shows that people back then
understood that a person who was demonized did not necessarily
have to be under the full control of a demon, but just could be
partially under the influence of one. That is how, even though
Jesus seemed generally fine, a single paranoid-seeming comment
led them to say he had a demon. People back then were aware that
demonization was not always a case of a demon having full-blown
control over a person. So the Bible teaches there are various
levels of demonization possible, and also that paranoia can be
caused by demons.
This is along the same lines as demons causing insanity, and
Jesus was also accused of being insane and having a demon.
"Many of
them were saying, "He has a demon and is insane. Why do you
listen to Him?" (John
10:20)
As some people thought Jesus was insane, they thought he had a
demon.
This is like the
man demonized by "Legion", whose behavior while demonized was
insane. But again there is a varying degree of levels here.
Jesus was obviously functioning like a normal sane person, yet
because of some things he said or did he was thought to be
insane and therefore have a demon. But in the case of Legion,
the man was obviously totally completely insane to a maximum
degree. So the Bible teaches that a demon can cause a little
insanity or a lot of insanity, and it can vary with the level of
demonization.
In either case,
the way to solve the problem is to cast the demon out, as the
man with the “Legion” of demons greatly changed after Jesus cast
the demons out of him.
"Then they
went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the
man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet
of Jesus, clothed, and in
his right mind:
and they were afraid. Then those who had seen what happened told
the others how the demonized man had been healed."
After the demons had left the man, he was healed to again be in
his "right mind". And the same solution is found in cases of
physical affects of a demon,
"Jesus was
driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man
who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed.”
Luke 11:14-15
The Bible
describes many variations that are possible with Demonization:
1. A person can be under total control of a demon
(“possession”), or only influenced by a demon (“oppression”)
2. A demon can come in or leave a demonized person at will (like
Saul).
3. Those influenced by a demon (“oppressed”) can find this to be
more involuntary and tormenting (like Saul, or the case of
Legion) or this can be a more voluntary symbiotic relationship
(like the slave-girl in Acts, or in other cases of familiar
spirits, necromancy, wizardry, any relationship with these
“dead” spirits.)
4. A demon can cause a demonized person to physically
experience:
muteness,
deafness, seizures, various ailments, and cause great strength.
5. A demon can cause a demonized person to mentally experience:
insanity, being out of their right mind, paranoia, self-harming
behavior, suicidal behavior, self-degrading behavior, and
self-isolation.
6. A demon can somehow tell
if the Holy Spirit is present, knowing those who are Christian
believers with the authority to cast them out, and knowing who
Jesus Christ is. A demon can share this information with the
demonized person.
7. A demon can also share other information with a demonized
person, someone who is choosing to have a magical relationship
with the demon, to tell fortunes and the like.
How does
Demonization work?
A human being is composed of several parts: a body, a spirit
which gives life to their body, and their soul which is thought
to be made of the heart, the will, and the mind. Jesus spoke of
some of these parts in Mark 12:30,
And thou shalt
love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all
thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy
strength: this [is] the first commandment.
These are the
parts of person which can actively love God, with which a person
has a choice to love God with, or not. The soul is usually
thought to be composed of the “mind, will, and emotions”, which
correspond in this verse to the “mind, strength, and heart”,
respectively.
When people think of “demon possession” they often assume that
it is the body of the person that the demon enters, and is cast
out of. However, this really doesn’t make much sense. A demon is
an immortal disembodied spirit. If a demon could directly enter
a body, then why don’t they enter dead bodies and bring them
back to life, possessing them? As much evil as they do, it seems
the reason that demons don’t possess dead bodies is because they
can’t. And in this it is obvious that it is not the body of a
person that is being possessed by the demon in the first place,
as the demon cannot enter unless the person is alive.
As we covered in a previous chapter, God made Adam’s body, then
breathed the spirit (breath of life) into Adam, and only once
Adam had both a body and a spirit did he become a “living soul”.
(Gen 2:7) A person already has a spirit, and a demon is a
spirit. In the spiritual realm it seems like a demon spirit
could no more enter a human’s spirit than one solid object could
enter another solid object. Like two balls on a pool table, it
seems 2 spirits would collide and bounce off each other, each
having their defined solidity and separateness. And so if
spirits remain separately defined in the spiritual realm, then a
demon cannot enter a person’s spirit. And a demon spirit does
not enter the body directly, as demons cannot enter into dead
bodies. Therefore one possibility remains, which is that the
demon must actually enter in and go out of the “living soul” of
a person. Far more than just a body, God considers people to
primarily be living souls, as “man became a living soul”. And so
it is the living soul of a person that the demon comes in or
goes out of, which is the person’s mind, will (or strength) and
emotions (or heart).
And fear
not them which kill the body,
but are not able to kill the
soul:
but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and
body in hell.
Matt 10:28
According to the
Bible, a person is not primarily a body which happens to have a
living soul, but rather a person is primarily a living soul
which happens to have a body. Understanding that God considers a
man to primarily be a living soul, it makes sense, and there is
no contradiction when the Bible speaks of demons being in a man
or coming out of a man. This is because Biblically a man (male
or female) is primarily a “living soul”, and this “living soul”
is the person who the demon is going in or out of.
A demon enters into the mind, heart, or will of a person (a
living soul) and through the mind, thoughts, heart, emotions,
and will of a person, the demon is able to act out the symptoms
of demonization. When it comes to communication with a familiar
spirit, the demon interacts directly with the person’s mind and
thoughts, from the inside of the mind. When it comes to
insanity, the demon causes insanity from in the person’s mind.
This is easier to understand than what the demon does in causing
physical ailments. When it comes to more bodily symptoms,
somehow the demon uses a person’s will, from the inside of the
will, to affect the body. Somehow in taking over the will of a
person, a demon can cause supernatural ailments like deafness,
muteness, seizures, or great strength. Deafness, muteness and
seizures do not seem to be quite as supernatural as great
strength. It’s easier to understand a demon might be able to
cause someone to not talk, or to have a seizure simply by a
manipulation of the person’s sheer willpower. It is more
difficult to understand how a demon can cause great strength
through manipulation of a person’s sheer willpower. However, the
human body is capable of feats of great strength if a person has
an adrenaline rush. A demon causing great strength may stem from
the demon manipulating a person’s willpower, thoughts, and
emotions, to affect the person’s body to have a large adrenaline
rush, allowing great strength for a time.
Here is an excerpt
from "How Can Adrenaline Help You Lift a 3,500 Pound Car?" by
Josh Clark of
HowStuffWorks.com:
"In 2006 in Tucson, Ariz.,
Tim Boyle watched as a Chevrolet
Camaro hit
18-year-old Kyle Holtrust. The car pinned
Holtrust, still alive, underneath. Boyle ran to the scene of the
accident and lifted the Camaro off the teenager, while the
driver of the car pulled him to safety.
In 1982, in Lawrenceville, Ga.,
Angela Cavallo lifted a 1964 Chevrolet
Impala from her son,
Tony, after it fell off the jacks that had held it up while he
worked underneath the car. Mrs. Cavallo lifted the car high
enough and long enough for two neighbors to replace the jacks
and pull Tony from beneath the car.
Marie "Bootsy" Payton was cutting her lawn in High Island, Texas,
when her riding mower got away from her. Payton's young
granddaughter, Evie, tried to stop the mower, but was knocked
underneath the still-running machine. Payton reached the mower
and easily tossed it off her granddaughter, limiting Evie's
injuries to four severed toes. Curious, Payton later tried to
lift the mower again and found she couldn't move it.
What accounts for feats of superhuman strength like these? Are
they glimpses into the lives of superheroes' alter egos? Or are
all of us imbued with amazing strength?
Although well-documented when they do occur, feats of hysterical
strength --
unnatural and amazing strength tapped during high-stress
situations -- are not recognized by medical science. This is
largely due to the problem of gathering evidence: Instances like
these come about without warning, and to reproduce these
situations in a clinical setting would be unethical and
dangerous. But we are aware of the effects of adrenaline, a
hormone shown to increase strength to amazing degrees for short
periods of time."
Through
manipulating the mind, emotions, and will of a person so that
they have a large adrenaline rush, a demon might be able to
cause the demonized person to break chains, or be able to fight
against 7 men and prevail.
It also might be difficult to understand how a demon could cause
deafness, using the mind, will, or emotions of a person. But
something which fits this description still exists, and might be
what is referred to today as “psychogenic deafness”.
“Hearing
loss or impairment caused by a mental or emotional disorder or
trauma and having no evidence of an organic cause.” – American
Heritage Medical Dictionary
Altogether it is conceivable that demons work through the mind,
will, and emotions of a demonized person to be able to produce
bodily ailments, as well as the mental or psychological ailments
like insanity, paranoia, and associated insane behavior.
Then there is a
demonized person who has the sort of relationship that may fit
the description of having a familiar spirit, wizardry,
fortune-telling, necromancy and other magical practices.
How does a demon cause a demonized person to seem to have
magical, or psychic, powers?
"When an evil spirit comes out
of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not
find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When
it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order.
Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than
itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition
of that man is worse than the first."
Luke
11:24-26
Also Jesus
says in, "When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes
through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it
says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it
finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then
it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than
itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition
of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with
this wicked generation." Matt
12:43-45
One thing we can learn from these verses is that demons can
communicate with each other while outside of a person. This is
seen in that 1 demon can communicate with 7 more demons while
outside of any person, and convince them to come back with him
to the person it left.
We also have covered that a demon can choose to leave and return
to a demonized person when it wants to. If a person seems to be
revealing psychic knowledge that they could not have known about
another person, in fortune telling, this may be part of how it
works. The demon may leave the demonized person and talk to
other demons, or even go into the person asking for a psychic
reading, in order to gather information. Then the demon goes
back into the demonized psychic, and relays the information.
Presto, it’s “magic”. But actually, it’s just demons, and this
sort of magic is simply demons doing things demons can do.
Along these lines, it is
important to note that demons are immortal spirits, who have
been around since the flood. It is therefore easy for a demon to
potentially talk to other demons who might have known or
demonized relatives of a person, even dead relatives. It’s also
possible that the same demon who is demonizing a person might
have also demonized their grandparent, etc. In this way demons
can know private or personal information about people who are
dead. And a demon can relay that information to a demonized
person who “talks to the dead”, that in turn may amaze an
audience by relaying information that only a dead relative would
know. But in fact, not only the dead relative, but also a demon
who knew the dead relative, could know this information. In fact
a demonized psychic of this sort is not speaking to the ghost of
a dead relative for information, but rather is
speaking to a demon who has gathered information about the dead
relative.
Besides
impersonating dead relatives, demons also will claim to be
famous people from history, gods, aliens, etc. It may be this is
how idol worship came about: demons claimed to be gods, and
influenced people to depict how they claimed to look in the form
of an idol.
“What am I
saying then? That an idol is anything, or what is offered to
idols is anything? Rather, that the things which the Gentiles
sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not
want you to have fellowship with demons. You cannot drink the
cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the
Lord's table and of the table of demons.”
1 Cor 10:19-21
In any case,
the Bible specifies that people actually worshipped demons when
they worshipped idols. But it may be that demons communicated to
demonized people with familiar spirits, claimed to be gods, and
influenced people to start making idols and worshipping them. It
would make some sense that demons, lacking and missing a body,
might have seen this as a way to have a bodily representation,
by the contrived body of an idol.
Can demons do all the things that fallen angels can do?
Fallen angels
have something along the lines of a spirit body, but demons are
bodiless spirits. Demons used to have mortal physical bodies,
and those mortal bodies died before the Flood.
This seems to be a key difference between what fallen angels can
do and what demons can do. The spirit bodies and potential
physical presence of fallen angels seems to allow for them to do
many things which are described in the Bible, like causing false
dreams and Visions, and even appearing physically as men. But
the Bible never describes demons being able to do these things,
but rather only describes demons working through people or
animals. The Bible does not describe demons causing dreams or
Visions. Though it seems as dreams are a matter of the mind,
that demons may be able to cause dreams. But demons cannot
physically manifest, and only work through a living soul. (A
demon could not move a chair, bend a spoon, cause a mass
sighting of a UFO, or multiple people to see a ghost, sit on
someone putting pressure on their chest, leave Bigfoot tracks on
the ground, etc.) A demon can only have a physical presence by
getting in a living soul and then gaining control over an animal
or person. Then a demon could move a chair, bend a spoon, etc.,
by causing a demonized person or animal's body to manually
physically do such things. A demon can affect a person's body
only from the inside out, working through their mind, will, and
emotions (living soul). So the answer is No, a demon cannot do
all the things that a fallen angel can do. They cannot manifest
physically in a bodily form, and they cannot cause Visions,
though they may be able to cause dreams in a demonized person.
How does a person become demonized?
It is difficult to say with certainty, as some cases are more
voluntary than others. But in cases in which the demonization
seems more involuntary, the Bible does seem to describe what
happens.
Luke 11:20-26, "But
if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of
God has come to you. "When a strong man, fully armed, guards his
own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger
attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the
man trusted and divides up the spoils. He who is not with me is
against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters. When
an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places
seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return
to my house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house swept
clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes seven other
spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there.
And the final condition of that man is worse than the first."
One interesting
thing to note in this passage is that the demon considers the
house to be his, in saying “my house”. There are a couple
different ways to interpret this passage, but let’s define the
strong man as a person who is guarded against demonization. And
let’s say the demon is the attacker, and once a demon has
prevailed, he considers the house to be his. The person has
armor that they depend on to keep them safe, and have to keep a
guard up. But if a demon is stronger than their armor, the demon
might come in and overpower the person, and they become
demonized. Then the demon will try to take away the armor of the
demonized man, and divide up the possessions of the demonized
man. Also, the demon may divide up the task of demonizing the
man, by going and getting 7 more demons to join him in
inhabiting that man.
So how does the
demon overpower the man who is guarded with armor, and get into
his house? The Bible does give some indication of how
demonization begins.
“Be
ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:
neither give place to the devil.”
Eph 4:26-27
The word here for
“give” means to “give or grant” as a voluntary gift. The word
for “place” here means a room (like in a house) or a habited
space. The word here for “neither” has the distinct implication
of “those which are of the same kind or which are part of one
whole”.
What this means is that if you are angry and sin because of it,
or let a new day begin while still angry, then in this you are
also choosing to give space, a room, to the devil, or his
demons. People may not realize it when they do this, but these
actions are all parts of one whole. And in this people give a
room to the devil, and a room could be in a person’s house, and
it could be a demon that works for Satan who goes into that
room, and stays there. This is a description of how demonization
can begin. And this describes that in being angry and sinning,
staying angry, a person actually in this is choosing to open up
the door of their house, forsake their guard and armor, and give
a demon room for entry. And once a demon gets inside,
overpowering the person who has let their guard down, then that
demon will try to take away all their armor, take their
possessions, and will come to consider the house to be their
own, as Jesus described.
Anger is just one example used here of how this happens, but is
it the only thing that could allow a demon entry? Anger (or
wrath) is mentioned as a “work of the flesh”, and it seems
likely that any work of the flesh, in which sin takes place, or
is held on to over time, may also give room to a demon.
Now the works of
the flesh are manifest, which are [these]; Adultery,
fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft,
hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions,
heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such
like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told [you]
in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit
the kingdom of God.
Gal 5:19-21
Mortify
therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication,
uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and
covetousness, which is idolatry:
Col 3:5
And Eph 4 from above continues, Eph 4:28-32
Let him
that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working
with [his] hands the thing which is good, that he may have to
give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed
out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of
edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And
grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto
the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger,
and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all
malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving
one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
So it seems like
there are many sinful things, works of the flesh, which are
listed along with anger, and these also may give demons room.
This may be another meaning of the verse,
“For he
that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but
he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life
everlasting.”
Gal 6:8
If a person is sinning, whether by committing a sin in anger, or
adultery or idolatry etc, or holding onto sinful things inside
like anger, bitterness, hatred, etc. this is what opens a door
up for demons to gain entry, get a room, and oppress someone.
This seems to be true whether the person is not a Christian, or
is a Christian.
It is important to
note that Eph 4 “neither
give place to the devil”
was not directed at the unsaved, but directed at Christians.
Though if this is how demons gain entry, the process would seem
to be the same for everyone, Christian or not. When Jesus spoke
of a strong man guarding his house with armor, this also seems
to be directed at everyone, including Christians. The armor here
may refer to choosing to not sin, though everyone does at times
to some extent.
However, Jesus also said,
“He
who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather
with me, scatters”.
The best protection and
armor against demons getting into your house, is to be with
Jesus Christ and to accept Him as your Lord and Savior. Next,
have on the full armor of God (Eph 6), and be guarding your
house against invasion, and be walking in the Spirit and sowing
to the Spirit, not the flesh.
But the fruit of
the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things
there is no law.
Gal 5:22-23
Put on the whole
armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of
the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but
against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of
the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high
places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye
may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all,
to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with
truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your
feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above
all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to
quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of
God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the
Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and
supplication for all saints; And for me, that utterance may be
given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known
the mystery of the gospel
Eph 6:11-19
A Christian can be oppressed by
demons, though the demonization reaching the level of possession
seems unlikely because a Christian has the armor of God to at
least some extent. And a Christian also has the authority to
cast a demon out, should any break through their guard. Another
guard against demonization in a Christian is to pray daily,
confessing their sins, and asking for forgiveness of sins and
cleansing from all unrighteousness.
This then
is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you,
that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say
that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie,
and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in
the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of
Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that
we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in
us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us
[our] sins, and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness.
If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his
word is not in us. 1 Jn
1:5-10
Additionally, the
Holy Spirit is inside the heart of a born-again Christian (Gal
4:6), and there is a circumcision of the person’s heart by the
Holy Spirit (Rom 2:29). God writes his laws upon the Christian’s
heart, and their mind. (Heb 10:16-17). In this, the heart, and
the mind to some extent, of a born-again Christian are different
and changed from those of an unsaved person. And the peace of
God, a fruit of the Holy Spirit, guards the heart and mind of a
Christian.
And
the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard
your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Phl 4:7
In
all this, it seems all the more difficult for a Christian to
reach a “possession” level of demonization, even though Eph 4
indicates that “oppression” is possible.
A Christian under
demonic oppression has all the authority they need, in the power
of
Jesus Christ, and the power of God through the Holy Spirit of Jesus, to
command a demon to get out and stay out, and refuse to let the
demon influence them any longer. But the Christian person must
choose this by his or her own free will. God does not violate
our free will, and the Christian must choose of their free will
to kick the demon out of their self, and to repent of whatever
sinful work of the flesh opened the door to let the demon get in
their house in the first place.
It is arguable
that most of the demons in a person do automatically flee a
person when or after they become a Christian, without being cast
out, as part of the process of repentance and healing.
“Submit yourselves then to God. Resist the devil and he will
flee from you.” James
4:7
Yet I think stragglers are possible. There may be generational
curses, the result of sins of ancestors going back to the
immediate 3rd or 4th generations (Ex 20:5). These curses can be
broken by Jesus Christ, and demons associated with them may flee
or be cast out. There also may be demons that specialize in
harassing or tempting a person in areas of sin they have strong
problems with, like certain addictions. In this a demon may have
taken over a room in the house, fortifying it, and the battle to
regain the space could be more difficult. This concept of a
fortified area is seen the Biblical term “strong hold”. But
there is hope,
For though we
walk in flesh, we do not war after the flesh: For the weapons of
our warfare [are] not carnal, but mighty through God to the
pulling down of strong holds; Casting down imaginations, and
every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of
God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience
of Christ.
2 Cor 10:3-5
The weapons of our warfare are mighty to pull down strongholds,
and our most prominent weapon is the Word of God, which is the
sword of the Spirit, the Scriptures, the Bible. This is very
fitting with the second meaning of a “strong hold”, which is,
“of the arguments and reasonings by which a disputant endeavours
to fortify his opinion and defend it against his opponent”.
Often the battle with demonic oppression is in the mind, and the
best weapon to use against excuses and false reasoning which
hold onto sin, is with the Word of God. And also we have the
authority Jesus Christ gave believers in Him to cast out demons. Praise
Jesus!
So this cleaning
house can be a gradual process for the new Christian, but also
as the Christian repents of more sin, and asks for forgiveness,
and draws near to God, demons may flee, without having to be
cast out.
Does this mean that any sinful thought, feeling, or action a
person has is caused by a demon?
No, the sinful nature and the flesh, and a person's own heart
and mind, are all potential sources of sinful thoughts,
feelings, desires, and actions. These are plenty enough to put a
person into internal conflict, without any demonization being
involved.
I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust
of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the
Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the
other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
Gal 5:16-17
For we know that the law is
spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing,
I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not
practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will
not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it
is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know
that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to
will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do
not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the
evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will
not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in
me. I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who
wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to
the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring
against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to
the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am!
Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through
Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with
the flesh the law of sin. There is therefore now no condemnation
to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to
the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the
Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of
sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak
through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the
likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in
the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be
fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but
according to the Spirit.
For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the
things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit,
the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death,
but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the
carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the
law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the
flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh but in the
Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone
does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if
Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the
Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of
Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised
Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies
through His Spirit who dwells in you. Therefore, brethren, we
are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the
flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but
if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you
will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these
are sons of God. Rom 7:14-25, 8:1-14
Demonization is more likely to be present where there seems to
be symptoms of demonization, for instance: a loss of a person
being in their "right mind", symptoms of insanity (to a lesser
or greater degree), habitual or repetitive sin like sinful
addictions, or self-perception of a loss of self-control.
And temptations also can come from the flesh and sinful nature,
even in Christians, without a demon being the cause.
Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the
gospel unto you at the first. And my temptation which was in
my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as
an angel of God, [even] as Christ Jesus.
Gal 4:13-14
From whence come wars and
fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts
that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill,
and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye
have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because
ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Ye
adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of
the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a
friend of the world is the enemy of God. Do ye think that the
scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth
to envy? But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God
resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit
yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee
from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.
Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye
double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your
laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift
you up. James 4:1-10
If
indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the
truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former
conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the
deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and
that you put on the new man which was created according to God,
in true righteousness and holiness.
Eph 4:21-24
Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one
receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.
And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all
things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for
an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with
uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I
discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I
have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified...
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man;
but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond
what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the
way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
1 Cor 9:24-27, 10:13
Jesus Christ gives Christians the ability to learn to walk in and
according to the Spirit, in a process of sanctification, and
through His power to overcome our flesh, sinful nature, and
temptations, having been given a new nature in Him.
Ultimately, we
Christians and our bodies belong to God. A demon cannot "own" or
"possess" us, as truly we are owned or possessed by God,
purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ. The Bible says in 1 Cor
6:19-20, "What?
know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost
[which is] in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your
own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in
your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."
Christians are owned by God, and demons will be evicted by the
true owner, Jesus Christ.
The people to be
truly concerned about when it comes to demonization are those
who are not Christians, who do not have the armor of God, nor
the Holy Spirit, and do not have the authority to cast out
demons in Jesus Christ’s name. People today may fair no better
than the demonized people in the New Testament, who Jesus helped
and healed by casting demons out of them. If sin leads to
oppression, once they have reached an “oppressed” level of
demonization, they are more at risk for reaching the “possessed”
level.
Jesus and His
disciples cast out demons many times in the New Testament. Jesus
and His disciples were the Deliverance ministers and exorcists
at that time, helping people who were demonized by casting out
the demons. Jesus said those who believed in Him would also cast
out demons.
"He
said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to
every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved,
but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs
will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out
demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes
with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not
hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people,
and they will get well." Mark
16:16-18
There is no doubt that driving out demons is just as valid a
Christian ministry today as it ever was. It is a needed
ministry, needed by the hurting people who are demonized today. Jesus
wants the church today, the body of Christ, to practice deliverance ministry,
as He did,
and help these people.