Demons are the fallen but unrestrained angels that followed Satan. The view consistently propounded in Scripture is that demons are fallen angels that followed Satan. When the angel Lucifer rebelled against G.o.d, he persuaded a mult.i.tude of lower angels to do the same. As a result, they were expelled from heaven. They are now in conflict with G.o.d and His holy angels. Revelation 12:7-9 speaks of this rebellion: And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down-that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
This pa.s.sage refers to Lucifer, as the "ruler of the demons" (Matt. 12:24 NASB), and his followers collectively as "the dragon and his angels." They will all eventually be condemned to "the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matt. 25:41).
What Are Demons Like?
Demons are personal beings. Demons are personal beings having emotions, a will, and the ability to think, speak, make decisions, and take action.
Demons have emotions. They are fearful of Jesus and his followers (Luke 8:31) and become angry and violent (Mark 9:20, 26). They are also powerful beings and can inflict physical and psychological disabilities on those who have been possessed ( Mark 9:17-18; Luke 8:27-28).
The book of Acts relates an unusual incident that reveals much about the nature of demons. Seven brothers tried to conduct an exorcism, and they were surprised when the demon refused to come out of the man: "One day the evil spirit answered them, "Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?" Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all" (Acts 19:15-16). These men had no authority because they did not know Jesus personally; they were merely using his name because they had observed Christian believers casting out demons. The New Testament indicates that Christians have the power to pray for people who are demon possessed and see them set free as a result (Acts 8:6-7; 16:16-18).
Demons can think and make intellectual decisions. Demons know who Christians are, as the account of the seven brothers shows. Demons are able to make decisions. The fallen angels "abandoned their own home" (Jude 6). They made a willful decision to sin (2 Peter 2:4). They are intelligent: "A man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, "What do YOU want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are-the Holy One of G.o.d!"" (Mark 1:23-24).
Demons do not have physical bodies. Even though they are personal beings, demons do not have physical bodies. There is no indication in Scripture that demons can take a material or tangible form. In Greek the word for ghost is also the word for spirit. These beings are spiritual and independent of matter unless they inhabit a person. After His resurrection Jesus told His disciples, "Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have" (Luke 24:39).
Demons can inhabit other creatures" bodies. Perhaps in part because they are incorporeal, demons seem to have a strong desire to inhabit, or possess, people or animals (see Mark 5:11-13) to achieve their ruler"s ends. The Concise Evangelical Dictionary of Theology describes demon possession this way: The majority of references to demonic activity in the NT occur in the Synoptic Gospels and deal with confrontations between Jesus and the demon possessed. The record of Jesus" encounters with demons includes (1) physical or mental affliction-nakedness, mental anguish, and masochism (Mt. 8:28-33; Mk. 5:1-10; Lk. 8:26-39), inability to speak (Mt. 9:32; 12:22; Mk. 9:17), blindness (Mt. 12:22), and lunacy (Mt. 4:24; 17:15). (2) The demon recognizing and fearing Jesus (Mk. 11:24; 5:7; Lk. 4:34; 8:28). (3) Jesus" power over the demons is demonstrated, usually by their exorcism through the power of the word (Mt. 4:24; 8:16; Mk. 7:30) or by Jesus" permission for them to depart (Mt. 8:32; Mk. 5:13; Lk. 8:32).3 Merrill F. Unger offers a lengthy discussion of demon possession, but the following summary in The Moody Handbook of Theology describes some of its characteristics: Demon possession evidences itself by a change in moral character and spiritual disposition. Frequently a different voice, a different educational level, or even a foreign language will reflect a difference in the affected person"s personality. The demons speaking through the man immediately recognized who Christ was (Mk. 1:23-24), which meant he had supernatural knowledge and intellectual power. Another symptom of demon possession was exhibited by the man in the country of the Gerasenes with his supernatural physical strength and ability to break shackles and chains (Mk. 5:3-4).4 Demons believe in G.o.d and in judgment for sin. Demons know that G.o.d exists. They know who G.o.d the Father is, they fully understand who Jesus is, and they are aware that the Holy Spirit is active in this world. "You believe that there is one G.o.d. Good! Even the demons believe that-and shudder" (James 2:19). They are terribly afraid of Jesus because they recognize His authority as G.o.d and their creator (Col. 1:16) and His ability to do whatever He pleases to them.
All demons are evil, but some are evidently more evil than others (Matt. 12:45). They are also aware that they will eventually be judged and punished: "They shouted, "Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?"" (Matt. 8:29; see also Matthew 25:41).
Can Christians Be Demon Possessed?
WE HAVE OBSERVED THAT demons can inhabit human beings and other creatures. So the question arises whether they can possess or inhabit Christians. Charles Ryrie offers this succinct answer: A demon residing in a person, exerting direct control and influence over that person, with certain derangement of mind and/or body. Demon possession is to be distinguished from demon influence or demon activity in relation to a person. The work of the demon in the latter is from the outside; in demon possession it is from within. By this definition a Christian cannot be possessed by a demon since he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit.5 Many Christians are confused by the suggestion that there might be demon possession or at least demonic activity in their lives. There is in fact no record in the New Testament of demons being cast out from believers, only from nonbelievers. When Christians believe that demons can possess, or have possessed, them, this can be terrifying and destructive psychologically. The experiences of dealing with so-called possessed Christians reported by demonologists simply do not conform with Scripture. Such "deliverances" may be psychologically suggested or hypnotically produced.
It is also possible that the person being prayed for, while professing to be a Christian, really is not. Many people attend church, grow up in Christian homes, and even display Christian conduct, but are not truly followers of Jesus. If these people have opened themselves up to the occult or demonic activity, possession is possible. When people permit Satan to come in and take residence in their lives, they become servants of his. Likewise, when we become Christians, we become servants of Jesus Christ. When a Christian feels overwhelmed because of demonic activity in his or her life, it means there is sin that has to be dealt with. Sin is the source of the trouble. We must distinguish between sin and demons.
The bottom line is that it is risky to interpret the Scriptures on the basis of experience. To do so is unsatisfactory, unwise, and on occasion even dangerous. Experiences may vary, but the truth of the Word of G.o.d, when rightly understood, is constant.
Even though Christians cannot be possessed, external demonic activity is possible because demons are at the disposal of Satan and he will try to do anything he can to discourage Christians or tempt them to compromise their faith. If a Christian yields to temptation and falls into sin, the enemy will do all he can to promote this behavior to become a habit.
Satan can exert influence through temptation and deceitful strategies, but he cannot direct a Christians thoughts. If any Christians have unconfessed sin in their lives, it is important that they obey the Holy Spirit within them and repent, confess their sin, and receive G.o.ds forgiveness. Often Satan will provoke these people to self-condemnation even though in G.o.d"s sight the sins have already been forgiven. But this is not possession-this is Satan and his demons seizing a moment of weakness. They want to do all they can to ruin a person"s faith and testimony.
Demons know they cannot possess true Christians because Jesus Christ dwells in believers and has reclaimed them from Satan"s territory. "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins" (Col. 1:13-14). Demons try to influence, tempt, and deceive Christians, but they can succeed only if a person is not in a right relationship with G.o.d.
Demons are quite aware of their limitations in regard to Christians. "You, dear children, are from G.o.d and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world" (1 John 4:4). In the Puritan cla.s.sic The Christian in Complete Armour, William Gurnall writes, "The devils rule is over those who are in a state of sin and ignorance, not over those who are sometimes sinful or ignorant. Otherwise, he would take hold of saints as well as unregenerate sinners."6 In the book David Wilkerson Speaks Out, the author states: The Bible makes it positively clear that he who is born of G.o.d cannot be ruled or possessed by Satan. Satan cannot possess any person who has been born of G.o.d! Demons cannot enter a bloodwashed child of Christ! Satan comes against me but has no influence, no power, no entrance-has nothing in me. It is blasphemy to believe that Satan can bind and cast out the Christ in the believer. Satan does not have access to the mind of Christ in me. Their is only one way for Satan to gain entrance and that is for a man to cast off his faith and love and turn aside, begging for trouble.7 People who believe that demons can dwell in the true believer do not understand the nature of salvation through Jesus Christ. That a person could be partly inhabited by the Holy Spirit and partly inhabited by demons is inconceivable from a biblical theological perspective. There is no doubt that G.o.d delivers people from various kinds of bondage instantaneously, but for a Christian to attribute foibles to the direct activity of demons is both unbiblical and psychologically harmful. Christians are protected by their heavenly Father, and they need not fear being possessed by Satan or any of his demons.
Demon Possession in Non-Christians.
I HAVE WITNESSED SEVERAL occurrences when people were possessed, and the effects of Satan"s work are tragic. On one occasion a young woman, demon possessed, came to me, sincerely wanting me to pray for her. I could see from her eyes and her behavior that she was deeply troubled. As I and some other Christians who were there with me began to talk and pray, the demonic spirit tried to destroy her. She fell to the floor and began pounding her head on the concrete.
I quickly said, "Put a pillow under her head so she doesn"t injure herself!" When the pillow was under her head, she stopped the pounding. The demon knew he could not hurt her with the pillow there. When the pillow was removed, she began hitting her head against the floor again.
"Leave the pillow there and we will pray for her right there," I said.
It was heartwrenching to see how this woman, with seemingly so much potential, wanted to take her life. She had no idea about the love of G.o.d and His power to deliver her from this horrendous desire. I knew that her main problem was demonic although there may have been a degree of psychological imbalance also.
I asked the woman, "Can you say the name of Jesus Christ, or can you say "the blood of Jesus covers my sins"?" She could not speak these words and only responded with other words and groans.
I instructed my friends that we were going to begin praying for her again. We prayed with all the faith we could find. We quoted Scripture and used the authority that Jesus Christ had given us. Our prayers went along the lines of "In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!"9 There was no immediate response, so we continued, "Satan, come out immediately! You must leave because Jesus is more powerful than you. All of us plead the blood of Jesus Christ over ______, and we demand that all demons leave!"
As we prayed, the evil spirits left the woman. Before our eyes she became normal and gained complete control over the desire to harm herself.
This experience served to remind me that people who are actually possessed have little control over their conduct. They are servants of the evil forces and the devil. The experience also reveals the incredible evil desires that Satan and his demons intend in people"s lives. I am persuaded that we will see more and more demon possession in these times. With the increased interest in demons and paranormal experiences in American society, many are opening themselves up, wittingly or unwittingly, to the spirit world. Demons will take advantage of a persons interest in them. Their ultimate goal is to control a person through possession. It could be that we have as much or more demon possession today as in the times of Jesus-except that these days demons have developed sophisticated ways to control the possessed. Remember: They are subtle and deceptive, just like the one who leads them.
There is a tremendous amount of curiosity today about the occult. Nightly we see 900 psychic hotlines promoted on television; astrology, psychic phenomena, and New Age channelers are commonplace as we approach a new century. People seem to be hungry for a spiritual experience and recklessly enter into any "spiritual" activity without thinking about the consequences. One person I know hired a witch to entertain her guests at a party. This person attends church regularly, has placed her children in a private church school, and is a good citizen of her community-but she had no idea what she was doing. Her choice of entertainment could have brought spiritual disaster to her and her guests. It is a dangerous thing to play occultic games or become involved in demonic forces. It is critical that people understand the seriousness of the power of the enemy.
A Religion of the Last Days.
THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT is a major attempt by Satan to distract searching people from the true G.o.d. This religion has many faces around the world and is infested with demonic activity. Hundreds of New Agers-including popular film celebrities-have moved to the northwestern part of the United States10 to listen to ancient spirits like Ramtha, supposedly a thirty-thousand-year-old warrior who speaks through J. Z. Knight of Yelm, Washington. Two-thousand-year-old Mafu speaks through Penny Torres of Medford, Oregon. Marijo Donais, who lives in Vancouver, Washington, is the channel for forty-thousand-year-old Zanzoona.11 From its first stirrings in the late 1960s, the contemporary New Age movement has become widespread and increasingly intrusive in American culture. On New Year"s Day in 1987, seven thousand people paid five dollars each to gather in the Seattle Kingdome at four o"clock in the morning to pray, meditate, and otherwise "visualize" peace into existence. J. Z. Knight took center stage as she channeled Ramtha on national television. Major bookstores now offer sections on New Age or metaphysics. Moving Books, a Seattle book distributor that specializes in New Age reading, sends out about two thousand t.i.tles each day to bookstores primarily in the United States and Canada.12 A desire for spiritual insight, knowledge about the future, and understanding to dispel their confusion lead people to look into these kinds of "messages" from past ages. According to the Bible, there are no beings called Ramtha, Mafu, and Zanzoona unless they are demons in disguise. The biblical explanation is that these beings are powerful demons that have control of people. The desire for spiritual "high energy" that is manifested in the New Age phenomenon has attracted people to believe that "everything is energy and energy is G.o.d. Ergo, humans are G.o.ds, too."13 The movement has sp.a.w.ned new interest in such arcane activities as fortune-telling, firewalking, mental telepathy, and past-life therapy. The New Age has left its mark on bookstores, radio stations, and movie theaters. It has touched politics, has added phrases to our vocabulary, and has affected the way we think about the environment and how we treat our bodies.14 The New Age religion at its heart is nothing more than sophisticated demonic activity. Ed Murphy writes, The New Age movement is a satanic movement of self-deification diametrically opposed to Christianity. The terrible danger arises from its deceptive packaging. It even has infiltrated the Christian Church, and we need to remind ourselves of those words of 1 John 4:1, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from G.o.d; because many false prophets have gone out into the world."15 It would appear that most human beings have a hunger for a relationship with G.o.d, and Satan knows that. He will create all kinds of religious thinking and spiritual experiences in order to confuse people about the truth. The New Age movement and the current interest in the occult ill.u.s.trate this. Paul informs Timothy, "The spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons" (1 Tim. 4:1). There will be not only demonic deception but also false miracles in the last days. Again, Paul warns, "The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing" (2 Thess. 2:9-10). Satan and his demonic cohorts will do everything they can to keep people from the truth found in Jesus Christ. They will continue to distract and tempt the church of Jesus Christ from reaching those who do not know Him.
How Powerful Is Satan?
THERE is NO QUESTION that Satan is highly intelligent, understands human behavior, knows much about our weaknesses, and has a strategy to persuade people to follow him. The Bible calls him "the prince of this world" (John 12:31; 14:30), and he attempts to influence the nations to do his will. His last-ditch attempt to control this world is described in Revelation 20:7-10. Satan will be permitted by G.o.d to try to deceive the nations to resist Christ"s kingdom. But he will fail and will finally be cast into the "lake of burning sulfur" that is prepared for the devil and his angels.
Satan controls the princ.i.p.alities and powers of the air, and there is good reason to believe that he has an organizational plan to carry out his desires. The account in Daniel 10 about "the prince of Persia" and Michael the archangel, which we observed in the previous chapter, seems to indicate that Satan a.s.signs his demons to different parts of the world. The Bible provides no details as to possible strategies or what types of demons are a.s.signed to the various locations.
We do well not to try to figure out all the possible demonic activity in any given part of the world. Scripture provides only enough information for us to understand that Satan has a plan; we have no specifics. That is for the better because our focus must be on Jesus Christ, not on what the devil might be up to. The early church was consumed with Jesus and with reaching the people who did not know Him; they did not focus on the devil. (The names of Satan and the devil are used only four times in the book of Acts.) Those early Christians were surely aware of the devil"s devices and knew that he could attack them at any given moment. But they were not trying to figure out how to "map" cities (locating the different demonic strongholds in various communities) or to find out the names of the demons involved in a particular place. Rather, they were concerned to bring an effective gospel witness to the lost.
The Spiritual Struggle for Cities.
SOME CITIES IN THE world today are very dark with spiritual oppression. The gospel has not had much effect in those places, and consequently Satan has gained much control. In some of the cities I have visited, there was hardly any Christian witness and I felt the spiritual oppression. However, I have also been in cities where there was very little spiritual oppression because there were dynamic churches and great things happening for G.o.d. Neither Satan nor his demons could do much there.
We must realize that the church is the answer to running demonic forces out of a community. The church consists of born-again Christians who are living in the light. When the church is alive, the darkness over a community begins to go away. Satan and his demonic followers will attempt to hinder the Christian witness, but G.o.d is on the side of the church. In the same way that G.o.d intervened when Daniels answer to prayer was being hindered, He will see Christians through when they are being opposed by the devil today.
David Yonggi Cho of Seoul, Korea, is pastor of the largest church in the history of the world. More than 700,000 people attend Yoido Full Gospel Church. Fifty years ago, Korea was one of the most spiritually bankrupt countries in the world. Now many estimate that more than half its population are born-again Christians. Dr. Cho and many others paid a tremendous price to influence that country for G.o.d. No one would have ever guessed that G.o.d would use this man in the way He has. Cho writes: In 1958, I went to a suburb of Seoul, Korea, to start a church. As soon as I put up a tent for our meetings, the kingdom of darkness challenged me.
"You can"t start a church here!" I was told by the priest of a heathen temple. "We have been here for many years. We have dominion over this area. If you build a church here, we will destroy it. We will hurt you. We can even kill you."
But I was not afraid. I was praying very hard. We kept up our confrontation like two children fighting each other.
Finally, the priest said, "Let"s have a contest. You have been preaching that your G.o.d is the living G.o.d and that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. This is our proposition: "Down there in the town is a woman who has been paralyzed for many years. She gave birth to a small girl and both of them are now dying.
"If you go there and raise her up and make her healthy within one month, we will give you permission to have your church here. Other-wise, you must leave. Are you ready to accept our challenge?"
They were grinning. They knew they had trapped me. I had no place to escape.
But I said, "OK, I"ll accept your challenge. When I raise that woman in the name of Jesus Christ and she is healed, then you should leave this area."
Believing I could never raise her up, they accepted my counter-proposal.
We were now really engaged in spiritual warfare. Physically, you could see the priest of the heathen temple and his followers, but behind them was the kingdom of darkness. As for me, I was not alone. I was incorporated into the Kingdom of the Son of G.o.d, so the Kingdom of G.o.d was behind me.
Every day I was praying almost 21 hours. I did not go home. I stayed in the church with one blanket, and I slept there.
I began going to the home of this woman and her daughter. She was the most miserable human being I ever met. They never cleaned the house and the smell was just awful. So we cleaned the home. We cooked a good meal, and I tried very nicely to preach Jesus Christ to her.
But she was adamant. "No, I will not accept Jesus Christ," she insisted. "I"d rather die in this situation." When I left, the heathen priest came. "Stand against the Christians," he would say. "Don"t accept Christianity. Once you receive Jesus you and your family will be annihilated by our G.o.d."
We were really in a battle over her. I visited in the morning, and they visited in the afternoon. I prayed, and I preached about Jesus Christ, trying to sow some seeds of faith. Then this demon would come and take away all the seeds.
One week pa.s.sed, two weeks pa.s.sed and then three weeks. The 29th day came and still nothing had happened. Oh, I became desperate. They were shouting the victory. They were smiling. They were ready to come and take away our tent church. Though our faith remained strong, our small group of Christians was at a loss as to what to do.
Early in the morning of the 30th day I was fighting and struggling in this spiritual warfare. "Father," I prayed, "If You will not perform a miracle, then the children of G.o.d will get all the shame before these people. So You"ve got to come and do something."
Then I fell into a trance. In my trance, I saw the door of my room open and a big, terrible snake came dancing into the room to the sound of some very eerie oriental music.
The head of the snake was a woman more beautiful than I had ever seen before. But the body was a snake. This woman was beautifully smiling at me and she said, "Let"s live together. Let us not fight each other. I can accommodate you. We can compromise and have a very happy life."
But I said, "You are a snake and a human being. I can never live together with you."
Suddenly, the facial features were changed into a most ugly devil. The snake jumped up on me. I took it by the neck, but it was powerfully pushing itself towards me. I felt so paralyzed that I could not even speak.
The snake seemed ready to bite my head off, so inside my heart I cried, "Lord, save me! Jesus! Jesus!" At the Name of Jesus I saw fear appear in the eyes of the snake. I was given strength to mention the name of Jesus verbally. "Jesus, Jesus!"
The snake lost its power and slumped down on the floor. I put my heel on its head and smashed it. I rolled it up on my arm and took it out of the house where people had gathered from all over town.
"You have been worshipping this snake generation after generation," I said to them as I cast the snake down. "From today, the snake is defeated. You must now believe in Jesus Christ, the son of G.o.d."
When I awoke from the trance, I saw it was around 4:30 a.m. so I hurriedly got dressed and went to conduct our early morning prayer meeting. Dozens of people were there.
Just as we were completing the prayer time, a woman of our church rushed up and said, "Now, pastor, we are finished. They are all marching towards us to destroy the church."
I rushed out to see a crowd led by a slim woman carrying a child in her bosom. As they came nearer, I could hardly believe my eyes. This woman had the identical facial features as the one dying with paralysis. "They must be twins," I thought.
"Pastor, do you recognize me?" she said as she bowed before me.
"You look exactly like that woman who was dying from paralysis," I answered.
"I am that woman," she said.
"At two o"clock last evening you came to our yard. You shouted to me, "Rise up in the name of Jesus Christ." So I rose up. I saw I was completely healed. I took up my child and could push her above my head. She was also healed.
"I began crying and shouting. The power of the Lord came on me. I was shaking and had a warm sensation all over my body. I kicked the door open to meet you, but you were already gone."
I knew I had not gone there last night. I now realized that this was not my own battle, but a corporate battle with Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and the angels of G.o.d. They fought against the kingdom of darkness and won.
The woman went from house to house, giving testimony of what Jesus had done. The whole town turned out and followed her. What a revival we had!
By now the priests had fled. We marched to the heathen temple on the hill. The people burned it down and gave the property to me. Later, we built a memorial church that seated 5,000. The whole area turned to Christ and became our church members. The building still stands.16 There is no question that this experience of Pastor Cho was a battle with demons. Satan"s demons had had control over that city perhaps for centuries, but a man came because he wanted to reach the lost with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Satan attempted to intimidate him and bring fear into his life, but he stood steadfast in prayer. As a result, countless people have been reached and set free from demonic deception and control.
We, too, may be attacked by demons. Paul tells us that we are in a combat "against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" (Eph. 6:12). However, in our personal spiritual battles, we can know that we are not alone. As Christians we have the Holy Spirit that dwells within us, and He will help us every day if we turn to Him. The demons" sophisticated twenty-first-century activity is no match for the eternal Holy Spirit"s power.
FOUR.
Satan"s Plan of Attack.
For two years my friend, whom I"ll call Allan, had felt exhausted. He was the pastor of a large church that had quickly grown to several thousand people. He had spearheaded a major building program, and because he wanted to be sure everything was done right, he worked directly with the contractors. When that was added to all his other responsibilities as the pastor of a thriving church, he became "burned out."
Allan became discouraged, lost sleep, and felt that he was on an emotional downward spiral. Even though the church was growing and the building was going up, he battled with his confidence and sense of security. He was praying and reading his Bible, but couldn"t get over the despondency. He was exhausted.
Instead of confiding in lifelong friends who would have dropped almost anything to get him some help, Allan withdrew into himself and hid from them. His thoughts were, "I can get through this. I"ve been down before and have pulled through. After the building program is completed, everything will settle down again."
Adding to the pressure was the fact that his next of kin was dying, and Allan became this relative"s guardian and supervisor. This relative was not a Christian.
The hectic schedule opened the door for the enemy to attack my friend. To add to his physical and emotional struggle, a hurting woman disclosed her affection for him. Allan found himself battling conflicting emotions. Even though the incident was minor and brief, he felt confused in his thinking and immediately became convicted about his behavior. He walked away from what could have been an even greater tragedy. He confessed his thoughts to his wife and soon confessed to the church. He soon resigned from his pastorate and sought help to overcome his burnout and to build strengths that would prevent this from happening again. He left his career in the ministry, sought the help he needed, and today is doing well with his family still together.1 This story is certainly not unique. Countless people around the world have had similar experiences. What this middle-aged pastor did not realize is that the enemy of his soul was looking for a way to destroy him. Satan took advantage of my friend"s weariness, discouragement, and vulnerability to tempt him in a way that he had never been tempted. The devil knew that if he could persuade Allan to become involved with another woman, not only would the pastor become deceived and possibly ruined, but a "Christian leader" would fall. A prominent family would become devastated, a church would become disillusioned, and the Christian testimony that a church had worked decades to build would be greatly injured.
Satan takes his time to watch and wait for the opportunity to tempt or attack. He has no concern about a person"s weakened state of mind. He only wants to come in for the kill.
Someone has said, "I don"t mind going to war, I just want to know who my enemy is!" Understanding the enemy"s primary ways of attacking is key to winning the battle. In Ephesians 6:13 Paul tells Christians to put on the whole armor of G.o.d so that when that day of evil comes (and it will come to each of us), we will be able to stand our ground. In other words, we can antic.i.p.ate Satan"s attack and consequently we need to be on constant alert, knowing it could come at any time. However, if we do not believe there is a devil or that he is specifically interested in us, then, like a sniper in war, he can target us and pick us off one at a time.
Fifty-five percent of Americans believe in the existence of Satan, and 82 percent profess to believe in an afterlife that includes both heaven and h.e.l.l. Forty-six percent believe they will spend eternity in heaven, and only 4 percent believe they will go to h.e.l.l for eternity. h.e.l.l is not something very many Americans honestly fear,2 and few people realize that Satan has a personal agenda for them.
Satan"s Goal for Nonbelievers.
THE DEVIL"S PRIMARY GOAL is to keep non-Christians blind to a saving faith in Christ3 and to keep Christians from all that G.o.d intends them to be. The Scripture makes it clear that the enemy of our souls has been defeated by Christ"s victory over sin and death on the cross (1 John 3:8; Heb. 2:14-15). Yet, Satan is fiercer than ever before and has intensified his strategy because he knows his end is near; he understands that his time to work is short. Oswald Chambers said, "It is never wise to underestimate an enemy. We look upon the enemy of our souls as a conquered foe; so he is, but only to G.o.d, not to us."4 This spiritual enemy will do everything in his power to distract, deceive, and destroy those who do not know Christ. He knows that if they become Christians, they will not only be delivered from his clutches but become a threat to him. If Satan needs to bring a temporary pleasure or secret sin into their lives in order to control or deceive them, he will arrange it. Deception is his specialty. Deceit is his character.
My father5 understood the shallow friendships that heavy drinking can bring, and he experienced firsthand the emptiness of alcohol addiction. Night after night, as the manager of two bars, he opened the Ransford c.o.c.ktail Lounge and the Dutch Room in Brainerd, Minnesota.
As a boy Dad attended a German Lutheran Sunday school. He married a staunch Catholic. They had my brother, Ray, first and then me. But because of complications during my birth, my mother was dying. As many people do when they come face to lace with death, she prayed, "G.o.d, if you will let me live to raise Tom, I will serve you."
G.o.d heard my mothers prayer and spared her life. A few years later, my parents rented an apartment from a Christian woman.
This landlady had a "no smoking" rule, but my parents-both chain smokers-lied to her and therefore were granted a lease. Often Mom and Dad would sit by the screen window and blow the cigarette smoke out through the window. They knew that if they were caught, they would be kicked out.
One day the landlady invited my mother to a revival meeting at the church she attended. Mother consented to going, and although it was very different from her religious background, she liked what she heard and how she felt. She was invited back a second night, and when the invitation to accept Jesus Christ was given, she went to the front of the church in response. As Mother was kneeling at the altar of that church, she didn"t know how to pray-all she knew was the rosary.
Mother began to pray the rosary and someone said, "Beatrice, you don"t need to pray the rosary, you can talk to Jesus directly." She was amazed that G.o.d could do that for her, and she gave her life to Christ. She knew her life would never be the same. Later that evening, when Dad came home from the bar, Mother told him what had happened to her. He threw a fit: "If you have gotten religion, I don"t want any part of this marriage! I"m packing my bags and leaving!"
Dad went into the other room and began packing. My parents didn"t have many possessions, and I believe there was only five dollars in the house. My mother followed Dad to the front door, pleading, "Waldo, please stay! The boys need a father. Don"t leave me. Please stay for the sake of the boys."
Dad stood there in silence and decided to stay-for a while. The next day, when Mother explained that she felt the Lord had helped her quit smoking, Dad blew cigarette smoke in her face. He was pretty upset.
When Dad went to work at the bar, Mother and the landlady prayed for him. "Lord, please save Waldo, and help him know how much you love him." Mother explained, "He thinks that I have just "got religion." He doesn"t understand that I have found a personal relationship with Christ." The landlady comforted my mother and encouraged her to keep praying.
Early Sunday morning, Dad came home from the bar and couldn"t sleep. He tossed and turned in bed, feeling terribly convicted about his life. Finally he got up and knelt beside the bed. He knew he wanted to pray but didn"t know how. All he could remember was the Lord"s Prayer that he had learned in Sunday school more than twenty years earlier. He hadn"t been in church since then. Dad prayed, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed is your name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one, for Thine is the Kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever!" When dad prayed that prayer, which had been hidden in the back of his memory, he gave his life to Christ as well.
Dad had a miraculous experience and was immediately delivered from alcoholism and chain smoking. He told Mother about his decision to serve Jesus, and you can imagine her joy and excitement that G.o.d had answered her prayers. Dad and Mother began a new life together, this time walking the Christian walk. They became very involved in the local church, and Dad eventually became a deacon. Not long after, they felt they should enter the full-time ministry.
Recently Dad received a fiftieth anniversary pin for ministry in the a.s.semblies of G.o.d. Over the years Dad and Mother pioneered several churches in Minnesota. As an evangelist he held revival meetings in 117 of the 138 churches in that state. Thousands of people have made decisions to follow Christ because of my parents" ministry.
Dad and Mom changed their parenting techniques, too, and instilled in all their children a desire to serve G.o.d. My brother Ray and I have both been in full-time ministry for many years. My sister and her husband are pastors. Several of the grandchildren are in ministry as well. The story of what happened to this barroom alcoholic and his young Catholic wife has touched a mult.i.tude of people. Their decision to serve Christ and to stay together began ripple effect that will go on and on for generations. This is why Satan will do anything he can to keep those without Christ spiritually blind. The enemy knows G.o.d"s potential in a person"s life and will distract people from the truth whenever possible.
Satan"s Goal for Believers.