2003-01-10
Good Morning Treasured Readers,
The Holy Spirit leads me to a very controversial subject today, that of demon possession. I suppose it was not as controversial in Christ’s time as it is today. My own idea about that has to do with the fact that there were some diseases, particularly mental disorders, that are diagnosable and even treatable in this day that weren’t in our Lord’s time on earth. However, the bottom line is that now, as then, there are still, in my humble opinion, examples of demon possession. Real prayerful discernment must be used in identifying them. We can’t go off the deep end in either direction, identifying it as the cause of all aberrant behavior or refusing to believe it can exist. We have been examining the use of God’s word in battling with Satan for the last several messages and continue to do so here. Today, let’s look at an example of Christ dealing with a demon in LK 4: 33-36. Jesus was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum on the Sabbath. Those He was teaching were amazed at the authority with which He taught. “In the synagogue was a man who had the spirit of an evil demon in him; he screamed out in a loud voice, ‘Ah! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Are you here to destroy us? I know who You are: You are God’s holy Messenger!’ Jesus ordered the spirit, ‘Be quiet an come out of the man!’ The demon threw the man down in front of them and went out of him without doing him any harm. The people were all amazed and said to one another, ‘What kind of words are these ? With authority and power this Man gives orders to the evil spirits, and they come out!’” Can we see any similarities between this story and that of Christ’s temptation in the wilderness [MT 4: 1-11]? I think we can. In both cases, Christ ordered the evil one to get away, and it had to comply.
The power that Christ is using here is the same power that God used to raise Him from death to life, the very same power that we have been given to do battle with evil [EPH 1: 18-20]. We need to understand what that power is. The story of Christ’s encounter with some Pharisees after driving a demon from a blind/mute man that restored the latter’s sight and speech, in MT 12: 22-32, lends us better understanding. In (24) the Pharisees claim, “He drives out demons only because their ruler Beelzebul gives him power to do so.” The absurdity of this claim that Christ is demon-empowered is seen in the fact that Satan’s aim to have his demons possess a person would be thwarted if a demon-empowered being sent them out of the person. Satan wouldn’t be working against himself. Christ takes this opportunity to share godly wisdom in (25-26) by responding, “Any country that divides itself into groups which fight each other will not last very long. And any town or family that divides itself into groups which fight against each other will fall apart. So if one group is fighting another in Satan’s kingdom, this means that it is already divided into groups and will soon fall apart!”
With the authority that God gives Him, Christ goes on to ask the Pharisees what gives them the power to drive out demons. What Pharisee exorcists do proves that their claim that Beelzebul gave Christ permission is wrong (27). Since they claimed that their exorcists could drive out demons, the claims they made that Christ was demon-empowered would have also applied to these exorcists-something the Pharisees would never have admitted! Christ’s air-tight response is completed with (28) where He says, “No, it is not Beelzebul, but God’s Sprit, Who gives Me the power to drive out demons, which proves that the Kingdom of God has already come upon you.” This last assertion on Christ’s part was His revelation to the Pharisees that the Spirit-filled Messiah, prophesied in IS 11: 2, 42:1, and 61: 1-3, had come among them, and they didn’t even know it! Christ wanted these stubborn Pharisees to understand that they were skirting with an unforgivable offense, sin against the Holy Spirit. That is why He said in (30-32), “Anyone who is not for Me is really against Me; anyone who does not help Me gather is really scattering. For this reason I tell you: people can be forgiven any sin and any evil thing they say, but whoever says evil things against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who says something against the Son of Man can be forgiven; but whoever says something against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven now or ever.”
The question of why go into all of this might occur at this juncture, so I’ll answer it. When we understand these stories from the Scriptures and the famous axioms like “a house divided against itself can’t stand,” that come out of them, then we are able to use Scripture to correctly assess a situation involving evil and use it to come against Satan in the name of Jesus Christ. We have all encountered people that we believe might be evil. With a thorough knowledge and belief in the Scriptures, we can test what we know about these people against the what we learn from God’s word to best know how to deal with them. Therein lies a powerful sword to use in spiritual warfare, one which when used accurately brings victory in Christ’s name rightfully claimed on the grounds of the cross.
PRAYER: O Lord, the issue of demon possession and exorcism is very controversial in this day and age. And yet, You have told us in places like 2 TIM 3: 16-17 that, “all Scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed.” Since the stories of Christ and the apostles getting rid of demons are included in the Scriptures, then You must feel they are important for us to understand. We are not to misuse this information and make a mockery of what You teach us, as some people have. The application of Scripture in spiritual warfare is to be done accurately, as is the learning of it. We understand this is the reason why You inspired John to end the book of Revelation with the words of REV 22: 18-19, “I, John, solemnly warn everyone who hears the prophetic words of this book: if anyone adds anything to them, God will add to his punishment the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes anything away from the prophetic words of this book, God will take away from him his share of the fruit of the tree of life and of the Holy City, which are described in this book.” In today’s world, Dearest Abba, it is difficult for many of us to relate to the issues of demon possession and exorcism. However, we must remember what You told us through Paul in EPH 6: 12, “For we are not fighting against human beings but against the wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers of this dark age.” There is no doubt that human aberrant behavior is sometimes caused by mental illness, but we must be aware of the forces that cause that illness. No one knows for sure, but demonic possession is certainly one of the possible causes. Modern medicine can explain the biological changes and treat the effects of a mental disorder with modern therapies. But it can’t deny or prove that such evil forces exist. We thank You, Dear Lord, for what You reveal to us through Scripture and rest on Your wisdom over our own in these matters [PR 3: 5-6]. Today and always, we humbly confess our sin and offer You our adoration, worship, loyalty, diligence, glory, honor, trust, obedience, thanks, and praise. In Christ’s name, amen.
There is one more passage that deals with this subject that bears discussion. MT 12: 43-45, the story of the return of the evil spirit, will be the subject of tomorrow’s message. No matter how difficult and controversial a subject may be, we can turn to our Father in heaven for His wisdom about it. Despite the fact that Christ lived 2000 + years ago on earth, He has the wisdom, as does the Holy Spirit, to advise us on today’s issues. His wisdom is God’s wisdom, and that is the wisdom that is so much higher and wider than ours, wisdom that applies at any time in history [IS 55: 8-9]. God understands that our human perception is limited, and He makes allowances for that by never giving us less knowledge that what we need. His grace is truly sufficient for our every need [2 COR 12: 9]. There is no condition placed by Him on the love He has for each of us. We are His children whom He is eager to bless. As we do battle with the devil and his followers, we must never forget this precious truth. Peter and I send each of you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn