Can a Christian be possessed by evil spirits? Can a believer be influenced by demons to say and act anyhow? Is there a difference between an evil spirit's possession and being demonized?
We will find answers to all these questions and more as we look in the Bible to study what it has to say about the Christian and evil spirits' possession.
Before we go further, I will like to point out that the word “Christian” in this study is not in any way referring to “mere” churchgoers. The kind you see in churches every Sunday morning or 31st night of every December.
By a “Christian” here, we are talking about someone who has put his faith in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour from sin and destruction. Such a fellow is properly called a “believer” or a “saint” biblically.
1Co 1:2 Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours
That he is called a saint biblically doesn’t mean he no longer sins. It simply means that God on the account of Jesus has forgiven him of his sins and will no longer punish him for them.
Knowing this, let us go further to answering the question, can a Christian be possessed by an evil spirit?
To get the right answer to that question, we will have to first understand what it means to be possessed by an evil spirit and what happens when a man becomes a Christian.
Demonic or evil spirits possession has to do with evil spirits entering the spirit, soul and body of a man to live, thereby taking complete ownership of that man. His thoughts, words, emotions and actions.
An example of such possession is found in Luke 8:26-36
Luk 8:26 And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee.
Luk 8:27 And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs.
Luk 8:28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not.
Luk 8:29 (For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.)
Luk 8:30 And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him.
Luk 8:31 And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep.
Luk 8:32 And there was there an herd of many swine feeding on the mountain: and they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them. And he suffered them.
Luk 8:33 Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked.
Luk 8:34 When they that fed them saw what was done, they fled, and went and told it in the city and in the country.
Luk 8:35 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.
Luk 8:36 They also which saw it told them by what means he that was possessed of the devils was healed.
When a man has evil spirits living within him just like in the above example, he is said to be demonic. So to say that a person is demonic is the same as saying he is possessed by an evil spirit.
Having known what demon possession is all about, let us see what happens when a man becomes a Christian (remember the earlier definition we gave as to who a Christian in this context is)
According to the Bible, when a man becomes a Christian, that is, believes and accepts the sacrifice of Jesus for himself personally, something supernatural happens to him.
The first is that he is SEALED with the Holy Spirit of God
Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
Eph 4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
The sealing there has to do with God placing the Holy Spirit, His mark of ownership (a kind of His signature) on us believers. By that seal, He blocked our spirit, soul and body from unauthorized access. That means the Christian is “out of bound” to every other being except his true owner - God - who by the blood of Jesus paid to have us. The Christian is His prized possession today.
1Co 6:19 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?
1Co 6:20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
God lives inside of the believer today. He doesn’t just visit him. He lives in him 24/7.
Now, can God live in a man 24/7 and still share the same space with an evil spirit? Is it possible for the Holy Spirit and a demon to live in a believer at the same time?
The Bible gives us a very clear answer to that. See the scriptures below.
2Co 6:15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
2Co 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Not only did Paul take time to highlight the impossibility of a demon having fellowship (sharing the same space) with the Spirit of God in a man, but he also took time to point out what most people often miss in the latter part of that verse 16 of 2 Corinthians chapter 6.
2Co 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
He said “for God has said” and he starts telling you what God has said by Himself concerning the body of the man in Christ - the Christian.
God has said……”I will dwell in them” not “we (God and a demon) will dwell in them.”
“I will walk in them” not “we (God and evil spirits) will walk in them”
Paul used singular pronouns when talking about the reality of what God said in that verse. It wasn’t by accident. It was to communicate to you that there can only be the Holy Spirit of God in a Christian and nothing else.
The believer is fully sealed, secured, inhabited and possessed by the Holy Spirit of God. There is no vacancy in him for evil spirits to dwell. No vacancy at all.
If the Christian cannot be possessed by an evil spirit, what about Peter the disciple of Jesus? What happened to him?
Mat 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
Mat 16:17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 16:21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.
Mat 16:22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
Mat 16:23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.
You need to understand that at the time that the Matthew 16 event happened, the Holy Spirit was not yet living in any man. He only visited and used men to perform a particular function and afterwards left. At His departure, another spirit could possibly come in and fill that space and as well leave with time.
But the moment Jesus was glorified (resurrected from the dead), the Holy Spirit ceased to be a regular visitor and started living within all those who received Jesus as their Lord and Saviour.
This was part of the New Covenant blessings Jesus promised His disciples including Peter before His death. Every one of them looked forward to that day when the Holy Spirit will dwell in men never to leave again.
Joh 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
Joh 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
Prior to the resurrection, He was with them but was never in them. However, since the day He was given, He is in us to stay forever.
Can the Christian be demonized?
Yes, he can.
To be “demonized” here simply means to be influenced or attacked by demons from the outside of a man. It happens when one has willingly or ignorantly yielded to the lies and deceits of the devil through his mind. Something the Bible calls the fiery darts of the wicked.
Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
Once he believes those lies and deceits of the enemy, he can act and say things you wouldn’t expect from someone who is fully inhabited by the Holy Spirit of God. It doesn’t mean the Spirit of God is no longer in him, it simply means he needs to get his mind renewed by the Word in order to be back on track. That’s how it works.
The man in Christ, the believer or Christian, is completely possessed by the Holy Spirit of God. There is no vacancy in him for evil spirits to come in and dwell. Though they can fire darts (lying thoughts) at his mind, he can by the truth of God’s word reject and withstand them.
The Christian is sealed, secured and inhabited ONLY by the Spirit of God. That is what the Bible truly teaches.
I hope this blesses you.
Glory to God!
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