DEMONS

Transcript:

0:00 Intro

We are under the umbrella of Christ's victory and his conquest over Satan and all his allies. 

Today's video is on the topic of Demons. Looking for some answers, Kyle and I went to Trinity Reformed Church to get Pastor van Eyk's thoughts on the subject. This is Faith to Film. 

Demons are supernatural beings. They were created by God as angels and when Satan fell, they joined him in his rebellion against God They are His servants, subservient to Him and they are behind every opposition to God and to what is good in this world. 

0:44 When were demons most prominent? 

Demons were most prominent during the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ and in the apostolic period following his resurrection from the dead. They understood, as we read in the gospels, that Jesus Christ was the Holy One of Israel, who had come to destroy them and to destroy their leader, Satan. As a result, it seemed like this was a last-ditch effort on their part to thwart the purposes of God in their destruction and so they pulled out all stops as we see recorded for us in the gospel and in the new testament scriptures. 

1:20 Are demons still active today? 

I think it is important to note, however, that though we do believe that there is ongoing demonic activity we have no divine commentary by which to ascertain whether an event is actually because of demon activity or demon possession. We know for instance, in the bible, in Mark 9, there's a recording of a story of a boy who continually threw himself into the fire. That was self-torture, but it's clear there, the bible tells us, that that was an instance of an unclean spirit which Jesus then later cast out. With the closing of the new testament scriptures we don't have that ongoing divine commentary by which to determine whether such and such an event is actually demonic activity or whether it could be attributed to something else. 

2:16 Can demons possess a Christian? 

It is popular among some Christians to think that Christians can be possessed by demons. I don't think though, that that is what the scripture would lead us to think. Whenever you see in the scripture someone having a saving encounter with Jesus Christ, what you see is not demon possession, you see demon expulsion. Demon possession is incompatible with the lordship of Christ. That's why Paul can say with such vehemence in Romans 8 that "if God is for us, who can be against us." Even the accusations of our enemy fall to the ground because of the victory and triumph of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is not to say that believers cannot be harassed or tempted or troubled by demons. Undoubtedly, they can be. But we ought to remember that He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world and that we are under the umbrella of Christ's victory and His conquest over Satan and all his allies.