The Demonic and Demon Possession

Demon possession is defined, explained, and evaluated in terms of Biblical teaching. The scope and impact of demonic activity is explored as it relates to the world in general and to Christians specifically.

I. Understanding demon-possesion

1. What does "demon possession" really mean?

Demon possession can be defined as that condition in which a fallen angel exercises such control over an individual that the individual is unable or unwilling to resist.

The term "possession" is a bit misleading in that it connotes ownership. Dr. Terry Wise rightly notes that demons cannot "own" a human being in the sense of actual possession. God as Creator owns creation and everything in it (Psalm 24:1-2).¹ The key issue in properly defining demon possession boils down to what level of control is exercised over the individual. My definition emphasizes control that an individual is unable or unwilling to resist. Anything less than this would not be classified as possession but as influence, oppression, or warfare.

2. Are there various levels of demonization?

I believe demonization, a term defining demonic influence of all kinds on a human, can be loosely categorized into levels. I say "loosely" simply because the Bible defines no clear levels of demonization. Since the Bible is our only source of objective truth, then any work in this area would be subjective and experiential. Any "levels" defined are simply categorizations which help us classify and discuss demonization as it occurs both in Scripture and in our experiences.

Nevertheless, many outstanding Bible scholars who love the Lord Jesus Christ have wrestled in this area. Dr. Merril F. Unger in his book proposed three levels: demon influence, demon obsession, and demon invasion.² I basically agree with these levels although I find it hard sometimes to distinguish between influence and obsession. Because we have no firm definitions from Scripture, one cannot be dogmatic. Dr. Ed Murphy suggests two categories: the kingdom of Christ, and the kingdom of Satan.³ Dr. Murphy stresses that all unbelievers are in a demonic state as indicated in passages such as:

As for you [speaking of believers], you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you [as unbelievers] followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient [unbelievers]. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. (Eph. 2:1-3, NIV)

The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, (Matt. 13:38, NIV)

We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him. We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. (1 John 5:18-19, NIV)

While it may be simplistic to categorize it this way, Dr. Murphy makes a good point that all unbelievers are demonized, being under the control of the evil one to some degree. This categorization, however, does not address the issue of demonization of Christians. It is clearly possible for a Christian to be harassed by demons as is demonstrated in Acts 16 concerning the Apostle Paul and Silas:

Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners 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. (Acts 16:16-18, NIV)

Many academic books on this subject do not really address levels of demonization. Perhaps this is such a subjective area that scholarly work would be relegated to analysis of experiential data only. It might be helpful in providing a categorization based on generally observed phenomena today. But without a standard on which to base the analysis, any such analysis would, in the end, be inconclusive.

3. Can a Christian be demon-possessed?

Refer to the WordTruth.Com article by this name:

Can a Christian be demon-possessed?

4. Does the exorcism of a demon always result in conversions to Christianity?

Conversion of unbelievers does not always follow power encounters. Where there are many examples of miraculous power encounters leading people to faith in Christ (Mat 12:13-21, John 2:23,John 9:36, John 11:45), there are also examples where it produced false belief, false hope, or even hardened hearts:

But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him. (John 12:37, NIV)

Consider these other accounts:

After Jesus miraculously drove out demons from two demon possessed men in the Gadarenes area, the people of the accompanying town rejected Him: "Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region" (Matt. 8:34 NIV).

Likewise, the Pharisees, who saw many demons being driven out and people turning to Christ in response, failed to believe in their Messiah: "While they were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was brought to Jesus. And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, 'Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.' But the Pharisees said, 'It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons'" (Matt. 9:32-34 NIV).

As the Apostles spread the good news and performed many miracles and drove out demons, some would respond by faith in Christ and others would not such as in Acts 16:16-24. Paul drove an evil spirit from a slave girl. When her owners realized she could not make them any money without the evil spirit, they incited the whole town against Paul.

Clearly, conversion may accompany a power encounter but it does not always produce converts. People still have the choice to believe or reject the gospel. In fact, power encounters not accompanied by the proclamation of the word of God would seem to have little benefit and greatly compromised motives on the part of the one conducting them. Our goal should be to set the captives free and glorify God, not ourselves.

II. Demonic Activity

1. Can Satan put thoughts in your mind?

Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel. So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, "Go and count the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan. Then report back to me so that I may know how many there are." (1 Chron. 21:1-2, NIV)

In 1 Chronicles 21:1-2, King David is said to have been incited by Satan to take a census in opposition to God's will. Apparently, Satan goaded David with pride in his "own" accomplishments such that he wanted to take a census to measure the extent of his greatness. Perhaps Satan goaded David in response to David's own stumbling into self-pride. Either way, the message is clear that Satan introduced a wicked idea into David's mind.

Similarly, Judas Iscariot is said to have been prompted by Satan to betray Jesus (John 13:2). With all the other disciples and Jesus Himself in the room with him, Judas must have gotten this prompting in his mind. Otherwise, Satan would have had to expose himself or his plan to the others.

A third example is Acts 5 where Peter confronts Ananias over his inability to be truthful about his gift to the Church. Satan is said to have filled his heart with selfish motives (Acts 5:3) tempting him successfully to lie.

Each of these passages is clear. Satan and his band of fallen angels can indeed introduce thoughts into our minds. While this is troubling without a firm grasp of your identity in Christ, Scripture does not present the demonic with abilities in regard to reading your thoughts. God alone is said to know the inner thoughts of man (Jer 17:9-10; John 2:24-25).

2. Why do evil thoughts occur in the mind of a Christian?

Just as the operations of a ship are controlled by the Captain, the operations of the body are controlled by the mind. No single place could be more important in the spiritual battles that take place. Behavior follows belief as a general rule. A devilish strategy that works all too well is to change, sway, or frustrate the beliefs of an individual in order to control him. If those in the darkness can capture the mind of an unbeliever, they can keep him from receiving the truth of God. Likewise, if those in the darkness can sway or influence the mind of a believer, they can interfere with his growth to maturity and frustrate his productivity in the kingdom of God.

Deception, then, is a strategy of Satan for all people. The New Testament is replete with warnings to believers about the deceptive practices of the forces of darkness. We are warned:

By our Lord Jesus Christ:

At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect--if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time. (Matt. 24:23-25, NIV)

By the Apostle John:

Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. (2 John 1:7-8, NIV)

By the Apostle Paul:

The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. (Col. 4:1, NIV)

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. (Eph. 6:12-15, NIV)

By the Apostle Peter:

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. (1 Pet. 5:8-9, NIV)

By Jude:

Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints. For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. (Jude 1:3-4, NIV)

The battle for truth rages both outside and inside the Church. Satan and his demonic forces will question whether God really stated the truth we have learned (the Jesus Seminar is a perfect example of this), whether God really meant what He said (the practice of Scripture twisting by the cults), whether God will fulfill His promises (the "health and wealth" gospel must have arisen with this deception), and whether God even exists. By attacking both the truth and the Truth-giver, Satan causes uncertainty, division, fear, and even hatred among people. He started it in the Garden of Eden with Eve and has continued ever since. The result is people who never enter the Kingdom of Heaven and believers who never enjoy a fruitful, joy-filled life in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Our response to the lies and trickery of Satan is to fill our minds with the Word of God. The believer is exhorted to:

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. (2 Tim. 2:15, NIV)

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. (Col. 3:2-3, NIV)
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Rom. 12:2, NIV)

When confronted by Satan's lies and Scripture twisting, Jesus responded each time with Scripture: "It is written..." (Matt. 4:4,7,10, NIV). For a believer to defend himself, he must have learned Scripture in order to remember and apply it correctly. This is why Scripture memorization and meditation on it are so important to a believer. Through a well-founded knowledge of God's word, we can be successful in resisting the devil (James 4:7), in thwarting Satan's plans for deception (Eph. 4:13-15), and successful in life as we carry out God's plans for us (Josh. 1:8).

3. How can Satan gain a foothold into our minds?

First of all, the forces of darkness are astute observers of human nature. They know our weaknesses. By observing our own lives, they can zero in on our specific strengths and weaknesses. At this point, they can begin to introduce deceptions and temptations which will strike at our weakest points. Being quite long-lived (eternal angelic creatures), they have the advantage of time. This allows their deceptions to be so subtle as to be nearly undetectable.

For instance, an individual may have been raised by an overly strict father. Satan can use this to influence the individual's perception of our Heavenly Father: "God is angry and vengeful. Look at all the people He ordered His people to kill. God is just like your dad..." An individual who has committed a sin can be overcome by guilt. Satan can compound that guilt with lies such as, "God will never love you now!" or "How can you think you are a Christian after having done that?" In each of these cases, Satan gains a footfold in our mind that can have disastrous consequences if left unchecked.

Temptations to sin can be engineered by Satan as well. One with a strong sexual drive can be easily tempted with pornography. One with low self-esteem can be tempted to commit suicide. One with a hot temper can be tempted to murder another. His temptations are subtle, usually, but sometimes quite blatant. They are designed to appeal to our weaknesses. Once the temptation is evident, the lies commence: "No one will know...", "Everybody does it...", "You have no choice..." or even "It's the right thing to do..." This is the critical juncture -- either flee the temptation, fight the lie with the truth of God's word, or fail. If the temptation is actually considered by an individual, then failure is all but assured. During an attempt at decision-making, the weak sinful nature is like putty in the hands of the demonic forces and the world system under their control. So the best defense is a hasty retreat:

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. (1 Cor. 10:13-14, NIV)

Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. (2 Tim. 2:2, NIV)

The believer is strong when he recognizes his weakness and trusts in the strength and power of God. We must believe the truth of God's Word and use it against deception. We must be alert to temptations and flee from them for we are weak with our sinful natures. The Holy Spirit will certainly help us overcome deceptions and temptations so long as we submit to His commands and leadership in our lives.

End Notes

Wise, Terry Dr. Spiritual Warfare. Trinity Theological Seminary Course. Cassette 3.
Unger, Merril F. Dr. What Demons Can Do To Saints. Moody Press: Chicago. Copyright 1977. p.90.
Murphy, Ed Dr. The Handbook of Spiritual Warfare. Thomas Nelson Publishers. Copyright 1992. p. 47.

Next article: "The Demonic and Demon-Possession - Spiritual Strongholds"