Saturday, May 18, 2024

DEALING WITH DEMONS #5

 Dealing with DEMONS! 

Doctrines of Devils!

                         

DOCTRINES OF DEVILS




     Another realm of demonic activity involves religion. At

first this seems strange to some, even those who may recognize

demonic activity in such things as insanity or affliction. Others

might suppose that the religious activities of demons are limited

to Satanist cults or those who worship idols. But demonic

activity goes even deeper than this - the Bible clearly shows

that demons seek to infiltrate and do their work of seduction

within the realm of Christianity also! Often the greatest

deception is something that appears true, but which is really a

counterfeit of the truth. "Satan himself is transformed into an

angel of light" (2 Cor.11:14).

     Originally the early church, founded upon Jesus Christ, was

ablaze with spiritual power and truth. But the apostles realized

that in time there would come a "falling away" (2 Thess. 2:3;

Acts 20:29,30), an apostasy within Christianity. Furthermore,

this apostasy would not be mere carnality or a lack of interest

it would be seduction by demons!


"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter [later]

times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing

spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy;

having their conscience seared with a hot iron; forbidding to

marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath

created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe

and know the truth" (1 Tim. 4:1-3).


     Even before the first century drew to a close, apostasy was

beginning to find a place. John warned: "Beloved, believe not

every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God" (1

John 4:1). And when Jude wrote, it was needful for him to exhort

people to "earnestly contend for the faith that was once

delivered unto the saints," for the waters of truth were being

muddied by apostasy (Jude 1:3,4).


     Christians believe Christ was born of a woman; that he lived

a sinless life among men; that he died for our sins; that he was

buried; that he rose again the third day; that he ascended into

heaven, according to the scriptures. But it has long been

recognized that prior to the coming of Christ into the world,

there were numerous "mystery religions" which also had saviors -

some who claimed a supernatural birth, died as a sacrifice, and

became ascended masters.

     When church fathers were confronted with these similarities,

they said that demons had set up confusing counterfeits. As time

went on, however, elements of the pagan mysteries were mixed into

Christianity, including the worship of the Great Mother. Thus

were Paul's words fulfilled that people would depart from the

faith, believing counterfeit doctrines of demons and giving heed

to seducing spirits. 


     Religious spirits can take many forms. If Satan cannot lure

people into the bondage of immorality or gross sin, he baits the

hook with something else: some religious extreme that also brings

them into bondage. Deluded, some try to be so holy they torture

their bodies and lock themselves away in seclusion. Others,

though claiming to be Christians, may be driven by a sectarian

spirit to believe they are the only ones right, all others are

wrong, no one understands the Bible but them! It is a fanatical

position, cultic.


     I met a man some years ago who had been in and out of

institutions. On one occasion he had gone into a hotel lobby,

took off his clothes, telling everyone: "I love Jesus"! What kind

of spirits might these have been? Lying spirits? Spirits of

perversion? Yes, and religious!


DIVINATION DEMONS


     Many years ago a couple preachers went into a town to work

for the Lord. A young woman followed them around and openly

identified them as servants of the most high God. Some preachers

might have supposed this woman had a revelation from God! It was

religious information, but it was another spirit. These men -

Paul and Silas by name -- discerned an evil spirit in her, a

spirit of divination.


"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: the same followed Paul and us,

and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high

God, which show unto us the way of salvation. And this she did

many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the

spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of

her. And he came out the same hour" (Acts 16:16-18).


     In the place where this passage mentions a spirit "of

divination," the margin gives the actual Greek: "of Python." The

word is derived from the name of a town, Pytho, the older name

for Delphi. Here, in mythology, people and flocks were prey to a

monster serpent who was later killed by Apollo. The priestess of

Apollo was called a pythoness.

     A spirit named Python certainly zeroes in on its demonic

character. We are reminded of John's words about "that old

serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole

world" (Rev.12:9).


     A reporter for our local newspaper once did a story on

fortune tellers. At the time there were several in the area, the

type that have a sign out in front of their house or shop. He

made the rounds to each of them asking, basically, the same

questions, including one about his wife. It was evident the

information he received was only speculation, for it was not

uniform. And the answers about his wife were all wrong: he was

not married! The newspaper article demonstrated these "fortune

tellers" were only making guesses - for money!

     It is evident that a lot of so-called fortune telling is

fakery. Nevertheless, by a demon of divination, the girl at

Philippi recognized Paul and Silas as men of God. The demonic

powers were strong enough that she "brought her masters much

gain." After the demon was cast out by Paul, her fortune telling

abilities were gone.

     Only God himself knows all things. "Known unto God are all

his works from the beginning of the world" (Acts 15:18). No demon

knows the future as God does (Isaiah 48:5). However, having been

around for a long time, certainly demons know much about the past

and present. If anyone knew the past and present about any one

person or thing, certainly some things about the future could be

accurately predicted.

     To what extent demons might predict a certain disaster or

accident in a person's life and then cause it to happen, we

cannot say. Fine details about all these things are not impor-

tant anyhow. A Christian with just a minimal knowledge of the

gospel should easily see that all such things are not of God and

should be shunned.


CONSULTING FAMILIAR SPIRITS


     People who suppose they have contacted their dead loved ones

through a medium, when fakery is not involved, have communed with

a spirit that impersonates the dead loved one. The Bible calls

this consulting a "familiar spirit." Such a spirit, if familiar

with the one who died, could certainly mimic the dead person and

reveal certain things the dead person might say. But such is

demonic deception.


"And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have

familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter:

should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the

dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not

according to this word, it is because there is no light in them"

(Isaiah 8:19,20).


     From ancient times, people who have practiced the black

arts, such as sorcery, have used drugs to conjure up evil

spirits. Interestingly, a word translated sorcery in the Bible

(Rev.9:21), is "pharmakeia," from which we get the word "phar-

macy.


REINCARNATION?


     There are countries where people will not kill a cow or

small insects - lest one of their loved ones may have been

reincarnated into the animal! I once had a woman tell me she

could remember when she was the Queen of Sheba - centuries ago!

     Do some people have a spirit within them that recalls a

former life? If it is true that demons are in people today who

were in other people in past centuries, certainly that spirit

could feed information to the mind about names, places, and

events which occurred long ago.

     The Old Testament repeatedly condemned demonic practices.


"There shall not be found among you anyone ... that useth

divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or

a witch, or a charmer, or a necromancer" (Deuteronomy 18:10-12).


"You shall not allow a witch to live" (Exodus 22:18). "A man also

or woman that hath a familiar spirit or that is a wizard, shall

surely be put to death" (Lev. 20:27).


     Having obeyed these laws, king Saul destroyed many witches

in Israel. But, ironically, in his desperate closing days, he

disguised himself and went to a woman who had a familiar spirit

for advice. The whole incident was bad news for him and death

soon followed. We read that "Saul died for his transgression

which he committed against the Lord" - because he kept not the

word of the Lord - "and also for asking counsel of one that had a

familiar spirit, to inquire of it" (1 Chron.10:13). This was a

fulfillment of Leviticus 20:6: "And the soul that turneth after

such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go whoring

after them, I will ... cut him off from among his people."


     Most of us would quickly discount the idea of a witch flying

on a broom as blatant superstition, a mere tale told at

Halloween. But in countries and among tribes where demons are

actually worshipped, strange things do happen. A respected

missionary - whose integrity and honesty I would not question -

tells of seeing a witch come flying over him one evening. She

fell in the road just ahead and, with demonic screams, said:

"Don't touch me; stay away from me!" Apparently the demons knew

him to be a man of God!


HAUNTED HOUSES?


     Would you think me a rank fanatic if I tell you some houses

may actually be haunted?

     Over the centuries and from all parts of the world, stories

have been compiled about haunted houses - strange noises, the

sound of closing doors, windows rattling, chandeliers swinging,

etc. The type of papers sold at checkout counters often

sensationalize such stories. In many cases there is a plausible,

natural explanation if all the facts are known. Some have been

pranks, hoaxes, or imaginary. But what about those cases for

which there is no explanation, and there are indeed supernatural

powers at work? The very nature of such things fits well with the

working of deceptive demonic spirits.

     I met a couple once who purchased a large old two-story

home. At night they would hear strange knockings on the wall, the

sound of running footsteps down the hall, and even an occasional

scream. Every time they would investigate, there was no one

there. They later learned that the house had been used for

spiritualist meetings. Once they realized this, they went through

all the rooms of the house and in the name of Jesus commanded

every one of those demons to leave! They had no more trouble.


     For many years stories have circulated that the White House

is haunted. Harry Truman said that more than once he had been

awakened at night by someone - or something - knocking on his

bedroom door. When he opened it, nobody was there. In his diary

he wrote that the maids and butlers swear Abraham Lincoln had

appeared on several occasions, and that even Mrs.Coolidge saw

him. During Franklin Roosevelt's time, a maid was frightened out

of her wits, claiming she had seen Abraham Lincoln sitting on his

bed putting on his shoes. Mrs.Roosevelt, whose sitting room had

been Lincoln's bedroom, admitted that working at her desk late

some nights, she would have the feeling that "someone" was there

in the room behind her, so that she would turn around and look.

It is said that when Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands was the

guest of the Roosevelts, she was awakened by a knock at her door.

Opening it, she saw the spirit of Lincoln standing there - and

promptly fainted.


     Old abandoned towns are sometimes called ghost towns,

"ghost" being but another word for spirit. The common

superstition is that these are spirits of people who have

died--especially those who were murdered and who vengefully haunt

the area. But according to the Bible, if there are indeed spirits

haunting an area, it is not the spirits of dead people. It is

demon spirits.

     Isaiah predicted that among the ruins of ancient Babylon,

"their houses shall be full of doleful creatures ... and satyrs

[demons] shall dance there" (Isaiah 13:21). A "satyr" in ancient

mythology was a woodland god resembling a goat. And though the

Hebrew word translated "satyrs" is translated "goat" - an

ordinary goat - it is also translated "devils" (Lev.17:7; 2

Chron.11:15). In the Isaiah reference it hardly seems an ordinary

goat is intended, and so, there is justification for the

translators using the word satyrs - goat-like demons. This point

is further confirmed in the Book of Revelation which describes

the ruins of Babylon in these words: "Babylon ... is become the

habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit" (Rev.

18:2).


AMONG THE TOMBS


     The insane man at Gadara, driven by demons, had his dwelling

among the tombs (Matt.8:28). Isaiah described people who

practiced abominable rites as those "which remain among the

graves, and lodge in the monuments" (Isaiah 65:4). Concerning a

desolate waste land, a burial place of many slain, Isaiah said:

"...demons haunt the spot" (Isaiah 34:12, Moffatt translation).

     A woman once told me that before her conversion, she was

afraid to walk past a cemetery, that she would see spirits among

the tombstones. We are reminded of the words of the woman at

Endor to Saul: "I saw gods [spirits] ascending out of the earth"

(1 Sam.28:13). With these references before us, it is now

understandable why those who decorate for Halloween, or build

spook houses for parties at this time, often feature things that

pertain to death, skeletons, or tombstones.

     Late one night, two policemen stopped by a cafe for coffee.

Off to herself in a corner was a girl who had just spilled the

strawberry soda she was drinking on her white dress. It was

nearing closing time, and because of the lateness of the hour,

the officers asked if they could drive her home. She accepted and

gave them a house address.

     On the way there, as they pulled up to a stop sign near a

cemetery, the girl fled from the car and disappeared into the

darkness of the cemetery. Puzzled by this irregular behavior,

they drove on to the address and explained to her parents what

had happened. The parents showed them a photo of their daughter

which the officers easily identified. But they were shocked when

the parents explained their daughter had been murdered a year

before and was buried in the very cemetery where they stopped!

The whole thing was so bizarre, an investigation was conducted

and the grave opened. The body of the dead girl was indeed in the

casket, clothed in a white dress, and on the dress, the stain of

strawberry soda!


     I don't vouch for this story. There are multiplied thousands

of such stories - about eerie encounters, ghostly apparitions,

mysterious and unexplained phenomena. Not all of these stories

are true - of course. But should we assume the other extreme:

that all are untrue? Which incidents actually happened, or which

did not, is not the point here. Nor is it necessary or fruitful

to dwell on these things any further, except to state our basic

premise: these are often areas of demonic activity and demonic

deception. To the discerning Christian, this should be apparent.


WHAT DO DEMONS LOOK LIKE?


     The reader will notice that the basic points in this book

are backed up with scripture. But as Paul - not always having a

direct quotation from Jesus on a particular point - gave his

opinion (1 Cor.7:6,12,25), so we acknowledge that the following

descriptions of demons are not based on direct scriptural

evidence. This information has been gleaned, rather, from

experiences of saved and unsaved people, from missionaries

(especially those in countries given over to witchcraft), from

tribal people who worship spirits, and from people who have been

involved in the occult.


     Apparently demons are of various sizes - from very small to

very large. Their dispositions range from the subdued and silly,

to the ferocious and violent. Appearing in a grotesque human

shape, a demon may have a square chin, a pointed chin, or no chin

at all. Eyes may be bulging, squint eyes, cat-like eyes, or eyes

like a serpent. Ears may be as long as the head or stand out from

the head.

     Demons may have a stub nose, large pug nose, or very crooked

nose. They may appear to have animal teeth or large protruding

teeth, a beast-like mouth, and whiskers on the chin. Their bodies

are just as ugly and out of shape as their faces. Where no hair

appears, their bodies are scaly. It has been said that the worst

looking man on earth is better looking than the best looking

demon in its actual degraded form. Yet demons have been known to

temporarily appear as a beautiful woman, a little boy or girl, or

as an angel of light.

     Some claim they have seen demons in animal form, or part

animal and part human form, some having tails and horns! Others

have seen dog-like devils, large cat-like devils, and bat-like

devils. In the book of Revelation, frog-like demons are mentioned

(Rev.16:13). An Old Testament word translated devils (Lev.17:7; 2

Chron.11:15), has the meaning of "hairy ones," or "satyrs"

(Isaiah 13:21; 34:14) - demonic creatures appearing as part

animal and part human.


     Years ago a man who was my pastor told about being part of a

group who prayed over a demon possessed woman. As the demonic

spirit came out her mouth, it resembled a jelly fish and swiftly

left the church through a back door. Weird? I agree. But I have

no reason to doubt his integrity in relating this incident.

     The idea that demons, being spirits, can be seen on

occasions seems strange to some. Nevertheless, angels, which are

also described as "spirits," have been seen (Heb.1:14; 13:2). The

medium at Endor claimed to see spirits or gods (1 Sam.28:13).

John saw demon spirits (Rev.16:13). Eliphaz saw a spirit and was

terrified: "A spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh

stood up" (Job 4:15).


IDOL WORSHIP


     In the demonic delusion that exists among idolatrous tribes,

a demon may appear in a certain form as a god. An image of this

demon is then carved or made. This idol of wood or stone is not a

demon, of course, but becomes a representative of that spirit, a

worship link. Thus the many Biblical verses against idols and

idolatry are not merely against statues: idol worship is actually

demon worship! As Paul taught: "I say, the things which the

Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and

I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils" (1 Cor.

10:19,20). Other scriptures make this same linkage with idolatry:

"They served their idols ... they sacrificed their sons and their

daughters unto devils ... unto the idols of Canaan" (Psalm

106:35-38). "...sacrifices unto devils" (Lev.17:7; Deut.32:17).



     In such idol worship, meat may be placed before an idol,

and, it is claimed, spirits are sometimes seen coming to eat the

meat, though no disappearance of the food is apparent. Strangely,

some who have eaten such food later claim it had little or no

taste left! Paul devoted an entire chapter to a discussion about

food offered to idols (1 Cor.8).

     


     Most people today would find it silly and superstitious -

the very idea of setting up an idol for worship or good luck. Yet

people dabble in astrology - as though the stars in space had any

bearing on their lives. Some are fearful if they break a mirror -

especially on Friday the 13th. They will not walk under a ladder,

and cringe if a black cat crosses their path! Others may suppose

a rabbit's foot will bring good luck. But why? It didn't save the

rabbit's life!

     The non-Christian Greeks believed that demons were gods who

influenced the affairs of men. Some of their philosophers,

misunderstanding Paul's message, said: "He seemeth to be a setter

forth of strange gods [demons]" (Acts 17:18). The Greek word that

is here translated "gods" is "daimonion," a word commonly

translated devils (Mk.6:13; Lk.4:41; etc.).

     According to the Bible, this Greek idea about demon gods was

not entirely incorrect. Though in this "enlightened age," we

often fix the blame of war and political turmoil on individuals

and groups, the fact is that behind the scenes there are demonic

powers at work. That demons, working through political leaders,

can stir up all kinds of unrest and war, is clearly spelled out

in Revelation: "Unclean spirits ... spirits of devils ... go

forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to

gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty"

(Rev.16:13,14).


     Each nation, large or small, is under the influence of a

strong demonic prince. One of these demonic princes was strong

enough to even delay an angel sent to Daniel. "Fear not, Daniel,"

the angel said, "for from the first day that thou didst set thine

heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy

words were heard, and I am come for thy words. But the prince of

the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days; but, lo,

Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I

remained there with the kings of Persia" (Daniel 10:12,13). And,

on his return trip, the angel said: "Now will I return to fight

with the prince of Persia" (verse 20).


     At this period Daniel was receiving special divine insight

regarding the fall of the Persian kingdom (which was then in

power). Perhaps it was for this reason that this prince of Persia

was especially interested in hindering messages getting through

to Daniel.

     That there was an actual, human prince of Persia is evident.

But it hardly seems that a flesh and blood prince could delay an

angelic message. It is generally agreed by Biblical scholars that

we are here seeing into that realm of demonic activity between

heaven and earth. Paul, mentioning various ranks of demons,

included "principalities" (Eph.6:12); that is, princes - those

who have jurisdiction over a territory or people. In the Daniel

passage, the demonic spirit assigned to Persia was called the

"prince of Persia."


                           ....................



To be continued


No comments:

Post a Comment