"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."
Ephesians 6:11
I finished a letter earlier today to a friend in Colorado...
Ephesians 6:11
I finished a letter earlier today to a friend in Colorado...
...and right now I feel led to write some of what I shared in this letter to them.
They had asked me some questions about demons and demon possession. I do not wish to delve into "demonology" too deeply because it is, for me, a dark subject. There is so much misunderstanding about this area, and many tend to go to one extreme or the other - either denying the existence of demons and instead looking to human explanations for answers to certain behaviors (especially looking to Psychology) - and on the other extreme, to see the devil and his demons behind everything bad that happens.
Here is a portion of the letter I sent to this friend:
They had asked me some questions about demons and demon possession. I do not wish to delve into "demonology" too deeply because it is, for me, a dark subject. There is so much misunderstanding about this area, and many tend to go to one extreme or the other - either denying the existence of demons and instead looking to human explanations for answers to certain behaviors (especially looking to Psychology) - and on the other extreme, to see the devil and his demons behind everything bad that happens.
Here is a portion of the letter I sent to this friend:
| "Although many people have trouble with this (subject) including many Christians, I believe that there was a time in my life when I was demon possessed, and many more times, when I was demon oppressed. "It was shortly after I became a Christian, maybe a few months or up to a year later (I'm not exactly sure), but I was reading Mark's gospel, chapter 9. This chapter contains the story of the demon possessed boy. Well, to make a long story short, after I read this, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart and said, 'David, this was you. Your life is patterned here.' "Well, a lot of inner clarity, as well as a great deal of spiritual freedom, came that day. Of course there is more, but it would take pages to explain everything. And I am not saying this to minimize what had happened, or to blame the devil. Later on in adulthood, I did do evil and chose to, even though I know that I was demonically driven. "But I do believe that demonic possession, and many more times demonic oppression, does exist. These things are real. Jesus encountered it and overpowered it. The apostles also encountered so much of this. It's all throughout the gospels as well as the book of Acts. "Yet I would always be cautious before labelling anyone, or anything, as a case of demon possession. I think many people go overboard discussing this subject or blaming the devil. This ends up doing more harm than good. But Satan is real, and he does destroy lives and influence others to carry out his evil works. The good news, however, is that Jesus Christ is far more powerful and He is the true Victor. Amen! "I think that Jesus demonstrated His power over these devils to reveal who He is. He showed us that He has power over all evil, be it sin or Satan. And the Lord Jesus has opened for us a whole realm of existence that the human race is generally not aware of, the reality of the spirit world." |
The above was a portion of today's letter and I believe I have a biblical, reasonable, and proper view of these things, although I know I still have a lot to learn. I feel my views are balanced.
I would encourage Christians to read their Bible and explore those portions of Scripture where the Lord Jesus, and later on the early church, handled "demonic" situations. I believe the Holy Spirit is a fully capable Teacher of the word, and He will instruct and guide each believer into all Truth and into what is correct.
D.B.
I would encourage Christians to read their Bible and explore those portions of Scripture where the Lord Jesus, and later on the early church, handled "demonic" situations. I believe the Holy Spirit is a fully capable Teacher of the word, and He will instruct and guide each believer into all Truth and into what is correct.
D.B.