Dodging the Demonic Bullet Part II

After reading over my first post about this topic it was clear that I needed to expound upon a few things just a little bit more.  I haven't bothered to really organize my thoughts much.  I'll just ruminate as the spirit carries me, so to speak.

The first misconception that needs to be rectified is the old mistake of 'seeing a demon behind every bush.'  This is a phrase that preachers use a lot as a warning.  It means that not everything in this world that goes wrong or is evil is instigated by demonic forces.  Sometimes we screw things up ourselves badly enough without any help from the devil and his imps.  And many times the things that we see as bad in the world are nothing more than manifestations of sin's effects upon creation.  More on that another time.  Finally, some events that we see as bad from our perspective are not that at all.  God will at times allow events to occur that He intends for good, and that are, in the big scheme of things, according to His plan.  That, too, involves some pretty detailed theological explanation to understand.  Suffice it to say this: sometimes bad things are incited by demonic forces and sometimes they are not.

A minor point needs to be clarified here.  Rarely does Satan himself ever attack someone or control events.  He is not omnipotent, omniscient, or omnipresent.  Only God is that.  Satan is a single spiritual entity, created by God, and limited by his created nature.  However, he is much more powerful than we are.  The Bible gives pretty clear information about the nature of Satan's kingdom.  For one thing, we know that he has an army of evil demons at his command and they have divisions of authority, such as over geographical areas or particular sins (lust, greed, bitterness, etc.)  The goal of this evil empire is to stifle, and destroy if possible, the works of God and the church.  Additionally, the demons seek to destroy as many human lives as possible before they get an opportunity to meet Christ.

Another important point is that demons cannot possess or involuntarily control a true believer in Christ.  They can influence a Christian to ungodly behavior only if the believer permits.  Demonic possession of nonbelievers is possible.  There is little doubt that Satan's forces can and do influence people in varying degrees.  But actual demon possession?  Unfortunately, it is real; fortunately it is rare.  The Bible teaches very clearly that anyone who is not a follower of the living God is already owned and controlled by Satan, so, in that sense, all unsaved people are possessions of the devil.  The good news for the Christian is that demons cannot force you to do anything you don't allow.  See Dodging the Demonic Bullet Part I for verses about spiritual warfare.

All of that is very interesting but the crux of this essay is to try and clarify for us those times when we are experiencing actual spiritual attack.  A thorough treatment of the subject is way beyond the parameters of this work and there are many good books that address the matter in much more detail.  I will only try to offer some general guidelines, based on Scripture and my own personal experiences, that may help throw up the red flag if you encounter similar circumstances.  I will list off some broad points, in no particular order, that may help.

1.  If you have recently made a spiritual decision in favor of the things of God, and then soon after, start having a greater than normal level of troubles, that is a very good sign that your trials and tribulations may be instigated by dark forces.  Not a guarantee, but be alert.

2.  If any problem or situation seems to be preventing you from regularly participating in godly activities, there is a pretty good chance that unclean spiritual forces are behind it.  I am not saying your boss is a devil because he won't give you time off to attend the special activity at church.  But if something in your life is regularly barring you from going to church, reading your Bible, praying, or any of the other spiritual disciplines, then there's a fair chance it is either demon-instigated or the dark ones are taking advantage of it and magnifying its intensity.

3.  If you are struggling over a particular sin in your life and just can't seem to get away from the temptations that lead you to that sinful behavior, then you are probably experiencing spiritual warfare.  The devils hate it when we try to live pure lives before God, and they will certainly redouble their efforts to tempt you if you are trying to get the victory over a bad habit or sin.  For example, if lust is your problem and you decide to be more pure in thought, just get ready -- you will probably be bombarded with situations to fall into lust.  Warning: Though the demons will fight harder in these instances, we sometimes fail to depend completely on the Lord's grace and power when striving for purity.  Often, what we mistake as spiritual attack is our own spiritual weakness.

4.  If  during a certain period of time there seems to be a freaky, almost eerie, spate of troubles, trials, and tribulations -- you know, a "when it rains, it pours" type of thing -- then start looking at your life differently.  You may be experiencing spiritual attack.  I know, I know, we all have times in our lives when one thing after another happens that makes us wonder if God has it in for us.  And sometimes it has nothing to do with demons.  Maybe God is trying to get our attention.  He has been known to do that, you know.  But I am talking about a short time frame when your world just seems to be falling down around your shoulders and you feel yourself reaching the end of your rope.  The truth is, if it is spiritual attack, this may be your preparation for something big.  So it may not be demons at all.  But realize the possibility that evil forces are always at work to try and prevent you from fulfilling God's plan for your life.

5.  Should you have a disagreement, argument, or falling out with another believer and it then suddenly begins to spiral out of control, then you can be pretty darn sure that demonic forces are at work.  They like nothing better than to sever the unity of the body of Christ.  Disagreements and even arguments are not necessarily evil in nature, but failure to handle them properly can bring ungodly results.  Another way to know that spiritual warfare may be happening in a situation such as this is when forgiveness is not offered or, when offered, is spurned.  (I'm still talking about between believers here.)  The Bible gives us very clear guidelines on how to deal with friction between believers.  If these are followed then the risk of dark spiritual intervention is minimized.

6.  Sometimes the church as a group comes under attack, but usually only when that church is a godly one, with godly leaders.  The church that neglects the simple, whole gospel of Jesus Christ rarely comes under spiritual attack.  How can we know if our church is under attack by the forces of darkness?  In my experience it is usually obvious, at least to the more spiritually sensitive members of the congregation.  Instances of spiritual attack on the church have included pastors falling to sexual temptation (a really big problem these days), splits about menial things (the color of the carpet), the introduction of heretical teachings (happens more than you know), or even unusual -- maybe even supernatural -- occurrences within the lives of church members.   Once again, the devil and his foul imps cannot destroy the church of Jesus Christ unless the people, having drifted away from the guidance of the Holy Spirit, allow it.

The spiritual world most definitely exists, and it consists of good and evil camps.  This is clearly taught in God's Word and is supported by historical, orthodox Christian doctrine.  To not believe this is to deny the veracity of Scripture.  A denial of its existence plays right into the hands of the prince of liars and puts the denier directly into the hands of evil forces who will use him or her to fulfill hell's plans.  If you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ then you are Satan's enemy.  The good news is that we have already won the war; it's just the intervening battles that we have to endure. 

Ephesians 6:10-13 (ESV)
¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.