Demons and Their Abilities as Described in the Bible. Chapter 6 – Demons and their Abilities as Described in the Bible. As we have covered, the Bible teaches that today Christians are in a battle against demons, the second wave of fallen angels, and their leader, the fallen angel Satan. We are going to take a look at demons in the Bible, and the abilities demonstrated by demons, to better understand what activities demons are engaged in today. In the Bible demons are referred to as the spirits of the dead. In the Old Testament God forbids people to practice communication with spirits of the dead, or to be familiar with these demons, and such is associated with magical practices. Demons also are credited as being intimately involved with the practice of idolatry, which is also forbidden. Usually when people think of demons they think of the concept of “demon possession”. The term “possession” comes from the KJV translation of the word “ daimonizomai”. This word is a verb that means, “to be under the power of a demon” (Thayer’s Lexicon). This word does not necessarily mean “to have a demon inside of your body”. Most literally this verb means “to be demoned” or “to be demoning”. Probably the best English translation would be, “to be demonized”. The concept of the person being “possessed” does not come from the Greek word “ daimonizomai” which would better be translated as “demonized”. Rather, the concept of “possession” comes from the context of the stories recorded about demons. Jesus repeatedly told demons to “come out” of people, and the Bible records that Jesus “cast out” demons, and these terms are accurate. When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon- possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick. And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him. Matt 1: 2. 5- 2. 6When 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!” Mark 9: 2. There are several stories about demonized people who seemed to be completely controlled by demons, which is the traditional view of “possession”. But on the other hand, there are stories in which the demonized person seemed to be functioning to some normal extent, at least some of the time. As such it seems that there are different levels of demonization that are possible. There are also stories in which many people were healed by having demons cast out, but it is not specified how much each of those people were controlled by demons. Overall the Bible seems to record some of the worst cases of demonization in the most detail. Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. And he cried out with a loud voice and said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.” For He said to him, “Come out of the man, unclean spirit!” Then He asked him, “What is your name?” And he answered, saying, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country. Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains. So all the demons begged Him, saying, “Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.” And at once Jesus gave them permission. Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea. So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that had happened. Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon- possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind. Mark 5: 1- 1. 5And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time. An Acceptance & Commitment Therapy metaphor from Russ Harris' book 'The Happiness Trap' Download the full 30MB version here: https://www.dropbox.com/s. Believing your thoughts and having attachment to them are the two poisons of the mind. Poisons that can drive you mad. Thoughts You Shouldn’t Believe. Angelology: Doctrine of Angels, Demons, and Satan. Angels make an appearance on the biblical stage in both the Old and New Testaments. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!” 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. Jesus asked him, saying, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” because many demons had entered him. And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss. Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain. So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them. Demons are disembodied spirits that are at work virtually everywhere in the world today. They are evil in nature, and are obedient to Satan, their ruler. Although many Internet groups that offer peer support are considered helpful to the mentally ill, some experts say Web sites that amplify reports of mind. Angels & Demons is a 2009 American mystery thriller film directed by Ron Howard and written by Akiva Goldsman and David Koepp, based on Dan Brown's novel of the same name. And He permitted them. Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned. When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country. Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. They also who whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. And He got into the boat and returned. Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him. But Jesus sent him away, saying, “Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you.” And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him. Luke 8: 2. 7- 3. 9In this story the demonized man seems to be under full control of the many demons in him. The demons are described to have caused symptoms of insanity, unusual or supernatural strength, self- mutilation or self- harm, self- isolation, inability to be reached by other people who tried to help him, and a seeming total loss of being capable of being “in his right mind”. The demons caused him to live among the tombs, something which was considered abnormal, but also unclean. The demons knew who Jesus was, that He was the Son of God, and they seemed afraid of Him. The number of demons that were in this one man are specified to have been able to fill a herd of about 2. When the demons entered the pigs, they caused the pigs to all die by drowning themselves. If demons are the disembodied spirit of the dead Nephilim, then it is possible or likely that some of them died by drowning in the Flood. If nothing else, they were witnesses to the Flood. Taking that into consideration, it seems like there might have been more than a surface- level meaning to them causing all of these pigs to drown. In another story, a demon had repeatedly tried to drown a boy, and throw him into a fire, in order to kill him. Demons many times seem to have a suicidal bent. Then one of the crowd answered and said, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.” He answered him and said, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.” Then they brought him to Him. And when he saw Him, immediately the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and wallowed, foaming at the mouth. So He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” 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!” Then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so that many said, “He is dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.” Mark 9: 1. In this case a single demon was causing seizures, convulsions, foaming at the mouth, gnashing of teeth, rigidity, and throwing the boy into the water, or into fire, to try to kill him. The spirit also made the boy to be deaf and mute. In this case the demon is of a kind that only comes out by prayer and fasting. In both of these cases of heavy demonization, Jesus commanded the demons to come out and they obeyed. In another case of demonization, in the Old Testament, it becomes clear that demons can enter and leave people repeatedly. This has the effect of the person temporarily acting demonized, and at other times acting normal. But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him. And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.
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