Demons are spirit beings without a body
but seek a body to live in. Demons are fallen angels who joined Satan in his
rebellion against God and are now evil spirits under the control of Satan. They
help Satan tempt people to sin and have great destructive powers. They are
called:
1. Unclean
spirits: This is the spirit of impurity. Demons are usually unclean. 25
times in the Scripture, demons are called “unclean spirits.”
In Zechariah 13:2-3 God said, “It
shall be in that day that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land,
and they shall no longer be remembered. I will also cause the prophets and the
unclean spirit to depart from the land.”
In Matthew 12:43-44 Jesus said, “When an
unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest,
and finds none.”
In Mark 1:23-24 the Bible says, “And
there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried
out, 24 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of
Nazareth? Art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One
of God.”
Mark 1:26 says, “And when the unclean spirit
had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him.”
Mark 3:30 says, “Because they said, "He has an
unclean spirit.”
Mark 5:2 says, “And when He had come out of the
boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean
spirit.”
In Mark 5:8 the Scriptures say, for
Jesus said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!"
Mark 7:25-26 says, “For a
woman whose young daughter had an unclean spirit heard about Him, and she
came and fell at His feet.”
Mark 9:25-26 says, “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!"
Luke 8:29 says, “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.”
Luke 9:42 says, “And as he was still coming, the
demon threw him down and convulsed him. Then Jesus rebuked the unclean
spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to his father.”
In Luke 11:24 Jesus said, “When an
unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest;
and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.”
In Matthew 10:1 the Bible says, “And
when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean
spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds
of disease.”
Acts 5:16 says, “Also a multitude gathered from
the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented
by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.”
Acts 8:7 says, ‘For unclean spirits, crying
with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed; and many who were
paralyzed and lame were healed.”
In Revelations 16:13 the Bible says, “And I
saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the
dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false
prophet.”
2. Foul
spirits: “Foul” means disgusting, dirty, extremely unpleasant, evil.
Mark 9:25 says, “When Jesus saw that the people
came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou
dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into
him.”
In Revelations 18:2 the Bible says, “And
he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, "Babylon the great is fallen,
is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul
spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird!”
3. Evil
spirits: This causes ill will in its victim.
In Acts 19:15-17, the evil spirit
answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are
you?" 16 Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them,
overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that
house naked and wounded.”
In Judges 9:23 the Bible says, “Then
God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and
the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech.”
Mark 1:26 says that the
evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shrill
scream.
In Luke 4:33 the Bible says, “In
the synagogue there was a man possessed by a demon, an evil spirit. He
cried out at the top of his voice.”
4. Distressing
spirits: 1 Samuel 16:14-15 says, “But the Spirit of the LORD departed from
Saul, and a distressing spirit from the LORD troubled him.”
5. Devils:
Mark 6:13 says, “And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that
were sick, and healed them.”
Matthew 8:16 says, “When
evening was come, they brought unto Him [Jesus] many that were possessed with devils:
and He cast out the spirits with His Word, and healed all that were sick.”
6. Spirit
of jealousy. This causes feelings of jealousy in its victim. Numbers 5:14
says, “And the spirit of jealousy come upon him, and he be jealous of
his wife, and she be defiled: or if the spirit of jealousy come upon him, and
he be jealous of his wife, and she be not defiled.”
7. Lying
or deceiving spirits. In 1 Kings 22:22-23 the LORD said unto him, “Wherewith?
And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth
of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go
forth, and do so. 23 Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit
in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil
concerning thee.”
8. Perverse,
distortion, or dizziness spirits: Isaiah 19:14 says, “The LORD hath mingled a perverse
spirit in the midst thereof: and they have caused Egypt to err in every
work thereof, as a drunken man staggereth in his vomit.”
9. Spirit
of deep sleep: Isaiah 29:10 says, “For the LORD hath poured out upon you the
spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your
rulers, the seers hath He covered.”
10 Spirit
of heaviness: This is the spirit of fainting or despair.
Isaiah 61:3 says, “To appoint unto them that mourn
in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the
garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.”
11. The spirit of harlotry: This is the spirit of whoredom or
prostitution.
In Hosea 4:12 God said, “My
people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth unto them: for
the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them to err, and they have gone a whoring
from under their God.”
12. Mute or dumb spirit: This spirit robs its victim of the ability to
speak probably by ceasing or distorting the vocal cord.
Mark 9:17 says, “And one of the multitude answered
and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit.”
13. Deaf spirit: This spirit robs its victim the ability to hear
probably by affecting the ear drum(s).
Mark 9:25 says, “When Jesus saw that the people
came running together, He rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb
and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.”
14. Sprit of infirmity: This spirit causes sickness.
Luke 13:11 says, “And, behold, there was a woman
which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together,
and could in no wise lift up herself.”
15. Spirit of divination: This spirit helps its victim to predict the
future.
Acts 16:16 says, “And it came to pass, as we went
to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met
us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:”
16. Spirit of deception or seducing spirits: Seducing spirits deceive.
1 Timothy 4:1 says, “Now
the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from
the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;”
17. Spirit of fear: This is the spirit of timidity. 2 Timothy 1:7 says,
“For
God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and
of a sound mind.”
18. Spirit of error: This is the spirit of falsehood.
1 John 4:6 says, “We are of God: he that knoweth
God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit
of truth, and the spirit of error.”
19. The angels of Satan: “And the great dragon was cast out, that
old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he
was cast out into the earth, and HIS ANGELS were cast out with him” (Rev.
12:9).
A possessed person could become
refreshed and well just by the playing of praise or worship songs. Praise and
worship bring down the presence of God because He indwells the praises of His
people. And no demon can survive in His presence.
In 1 Samuel 16:23 it is written, “When
the evil spirits from the Lord 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.”
Why are the demons so keen to afflict
man? Demons are
determined to afflict man because of their hatred for God and because of God’s
love for you. The devil cannot get at God, so he tries to get at you whom God
loves.
In John 3:16 Jesus said, “For
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
1 John 3:1-3 says, “Behold
what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called
children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know
Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed
what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him,
for we shall see Him as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies
himself, just as He is pure.”
Watch out for the next edition of Good News from the Pulpit!
- Your friend, I. I. MADUBUNYI (Senior Pastor)
Promise from God: “This day have I
rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you” (Josh. 5:9).
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