In deliverance ministry, one of the main questions that always comes up when it comes to casting out demons is "Can a Christian have a demon?"
Christians having demons happens to be one of the most controversial issues in the body of Christ with strong opinions on both side of the argument. To address this controversy; 3 things need to be understood regarding this issue of Christians having demons.
Where in the Bible does it say a Christian can or cannot have a demon?
What happens when a person becomes a Christian or gets saved?
What does it mean to be "demon possessed"?
Where in the Bible does it say a Christian can or cannot have a demon?
To begin, the New Testament does not have any scriptures that explicitly say that a Christian can or cannot have a demon so there can be an argument from both sides of the issue. There are many scriptures that are used or are taken out of context to say that Christians cannot have demons. To go into debating these scriptures would be beyond the scope of this blog and arguing these scriptures typically does not lead anywhere because people who believe Christians can't have demons from a scriptural standpoint usually come into the argument not real open to seeking the truth but defending the position they already hold.
To compare apples to apples, we must look at accounts of deliverance beyond the Gospels because in Gospel accounts, Jesus is still in his physical body which is not how we relate to Him today as Christians after Calvary and Pentecost. In the Book of Acts, there are a few accounts of demons being driven out which is after the day of Pentecost which is how we would experience evangelism today. One of the main issues in the argument about Christians having or not having demons is we insert how the modern day Western Church does evangelism. Generally speaking, our model is to get unsaved people to say a "sinners prayer" and ask them to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. We then have them go through a ceremonial water baptism. They may then receive the filling of the Holy Spirit subsequent to their salvation experience if at all depending on denominational theology. There is almost no mention of the need for deliverance for these new converts which creates a dilemma.
1st century evangelism looked very different. In Acts 8, Phillip is preaching the gospel message (preaching Christ). It said the crowd heard what Phillip was preaching because of the signs that were being performed as many evil spirits were cast out screaming as they left their victims and sick people were being healed. In verse 12, it says that the people believed Phillips message of Good News concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ and as a result many men and women were baptized. John and Peter then were sent down that the people would receive the filling of the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands. As you can see from this account that early church evangelism included these elements:
Gospel proclaimed in word & people believed
Gospel demonstrated in power (deliverance from demons & healing of the sick)
Water baptism
Receiving of Holy Spirit
This biblical model of evangelism was how it was practiced for the first few hundred years and much deliverance was done either before water baptism or in water baptism. The early church model mindset was outside of Christ, everyone is in spiritual darkness and needs to be set free from demons into a new life in Christ. Deliverance was how God separated people from spiritual darkness (demons). This "full gospel" method is still practiced today in many parts of the body of Christ and has been referred to as the "catch and clean method" by some modern day Evangelists. One example is Carlos Annacondia who was a widely recognized Evangelist of the Argentine revival in the 1980's. Their method was to proclaim the gospel message to get people saved "catch them", then they would send them immediately to deliverance tents to "clean them" and set them free from demons. Casting demons out of these new converts was what set them free to live a new life in Christ. Jesus taught his disciples to proclaim the message of the "good news" of the kingdom, heal the sick, and cast out demons. They were not to only have a message in word but also in demonstrated in power. This is shown in what Jesus said in Matthew 10: 7-8 "As you go, proclaim the kingdom of heaven is at hand (gospel message), heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. Jesus also commanded his followers in Mark 16:15-17 to, "go into the all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation and said these signs will accompany all that believe: in My name (Jesus) they will cast out demons" Casting out demons was to accompany the proclamation of the gospel. This was Jesus' plan for evangelism that has never changed.
Wherever this "full gospel" is proclaimed and demonstrated you will find much freedom for people to be set free in a new Christian life and they will testify to being set free from demons. There is evidence and countless testimonies of this all over the earth. If Christians can't have demons, why do so many believers struggle with addictions, unresolved childhood issues, and mental health issues at basically the same rate that unbelievers do? Maybe demons are not being challenged and are allowed to remain because of the modified Gospel that we preach that suits man made interests and not Gods.
In my opinion and many others who operate in deliverance ministry, the biggest enemy of deliverance ministry and the theology that Christians can't have demons comes from Bible Colleges and Seminaries. Dr. Ed Murphy, in his book The Handbook for Spiritual Warfare, states, "a theology of Satan and demons that is both true and useful for ministry cannot be developed by theologians studying their Hebrew and Greek Bibles while sitting in their air-conditioned offices apart from some personal experience." Many well meaning pastors, teachers, missionaries, and counselors have been taught that Christians cannot have demons and they believe that until they have a personal experience with Christians having demons which makes them question what they have been taught and many times makes them change their theology. I was taught the same thing in Bible College and I believed it until I had several demons come out of me in 2009 and I had been a Born Again Christian for over 10 years. If theologically speaking; Christians cannot have demons, why did I and why are countless Christians throughout the world having experiences of being delivered from demons? Why are they being thrown to the ground, screaming, vomiting, or having demons speak through them in a different voice? What do you make of these people claiming that they now experience a new level of freedom, peace, and a changed life? Quite possibly they are experiencing deliverance from demons as a Christian. To maintain a theology that Christians cannot have demons that does not weigh out experientially must be challenged.
Shortly after my deliverance from demons in 2009, God released me into the ministry of deliverance and I began to pray for people. Since 2010, I have never prayed for deliverance for anyone who was not a Christian as deliverance is the "children's bread" which means its for God's people. To speak frankly, most people who claim a Christian cannot have a demon are people who have never had a demon come out of them and/or cast a demon out of someone else. It would be similar to being a movie critic but never have actually seen the movie for themselves and only going on what was told to them. They have a theology of deliverance from demons but they lack experience in it. People will say you can't make a theology from experience but you can't make one from a lack of experience either. A theology that is true will have an experience as evidence that the doctrine is true. An example would be if you believe the gifts of the Holy Spirit are for today, then there must people experiencing the manifestations of these gifts. The experience validates the theology.
What happens when a person becomes a Christian or gets saved?
Another claim made that Christians cannot have demons is "a demonic spirit cannot be in the same place as the Holy Spirit." which means to them that once a person becomes a Christian and receives the indwelling of the Holy Spirit a demonic spirit cannot be inside of a Christian. They claim the scripture 1 Cor 6:19 "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?" This scripture is not saying that a Christian cannot have a demon inside them but it is used as scriptural proof as an argument that Christians can't have demons. The temple of God had 3 areas, the Outer Court, the Holy Place, and the Most Holy Place (or Holy of Holies). The outer court is where Jesus drove out the money changers as common (unclean) people were free to be in the outer court. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit and we need to understand that a person is made up of 3 parts to understand how demons can affect a Christian.
MAN IS 3 PART BEING (SPIRIT-SOUL-BODY)
When a person confesses Jesus Christ as Lord a miracle happens, the person is forgiven and saved from the penalty of sin which is eternal death. The spirit of a person is made new (made to come alive). The spirit is made perfect and is ready for heaven (2 Cor 5:17). The spirit is where the Holy Spirit dwells and demons do not reside in the spirit of a person. Ex. when a person dies, the spirit of that person leaves the body and demons do not go with the spirit to be in the presence of Jesus (realm of eternity) but they will look for a new body to occupy. Many times they will transfer down the ancestral line.
When we get saved the soul is not made new automatically. The soul is sanctified and renewed in process. The soul is comprised of- thinking, intellect, emotions, personality, decision making abilities, processing, and imagination. An example of this would be childhood pain which is unhealed. Just because someone becomes a Christian does not automatically make the emotional pain and distorted thinking of unresolved childhood issues disappear. In Ephesians 4:26-27 it says "be angry but sin not. do not let the sun go down upon your anger, for anger gives a foot hold to the devil." This scripture says that when you don't deal with sin in an appropriate amount of time you can come under the devils power. I have prayed for countless people to be delivered of demonic spirits of anger, hatred, self hatred, unforgiveness, bitterness, rejection, and rage. They all had one thing in common, they hadn't dealt with being hurt by someone and had held unto a sinful attitude of anger, hatred, unforgiveness which opened them up and gave a right for a demon(s) to come in. Deliverance is just part of sanctification process to bring healing and wholeness to a persons soul.
In Luke 8:35 there was a man was found in his right mind after Jesus cast demons out of him meaning he was not in his right mind prior, the demons had affected and tormented his mind which is a part of the soul. Many people today have tormenting thoughts in their mind and need deliverance from a demon that is the source of these negative thoughts. An example of this is suicide. I have prayed for many people to be set free from a spirit of suicide that they can't break free from. In 2 Tim 1:7 it states that “God has not given us a spirit of fear” meaning fear can be a spirit. Spirits of fear can affect the fight or flight part of the body and mind which brings torment of fear. People will be tormented by fear when there is no stimulus of fear present. Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is many times driven by a spirit of fear that entered during a traumatic experience and people are tormented by it which is why they cant move on from the feelings of the traumatic experience.
The body is also not made new at salvation. The body is comprised of cells, limbs, internal parts and organs, etc. We will get a new glorified body when Jesus returns but until then we live in a body vulnerable to sickness/disease and sin.
Ex. In Luke 13:11 Jesus said a woman was crippled by a spirit for 18 years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. In verse 16, Jesus said that this woman was a daughter of Abraham whom “Satan had bound for for 18 yrs”. There was a spirit of infirmity that was creating her inability to stand up straight. I prayed for a woman who had a witchcraft spirit years ago and when it left I had a word from Holy Spirit that a spirit of infirmity was also in this woman. I commanded it to go and afterwards she told me she was healed of autoimmune disease that the doctors could not find a cure for.
In Luke 11:14 there was a boy who had a mute spirit. A demonic spirit was cast out and the boy spoke. If we were to make it modern day, when this boy believed in Jesus unto salvation would that spirit leave him automatically and he would be able to speak? Or would he be a Christian who had a demonic spirit that needed to be cast out? Another example is alcoholism and many times a demonic spirit is in the body that needs to be driven out so the person can be free from the obsession to get drunk.
Question is, what was creating these mental and physical ailments in the body and the soul?
If a Christian cannot have a demon that would mean that all demons automatically flee when someone becomes a Christian. If this is the case, there would be no need to do deliverance and we would just have to get people saved. Anyone who has experience in deliverance ministry will know this is not the case as demons do not automatically flee just because a person becomes a Christian. The first part of salvation is justification which is when God forgives us of sin (getting saved) but this just the beginning and not crossing the finish line. People can still have demons in their body and soul that need to be driven out. Deliverance is just part of the sanctification process which is ongoing until we get a new body at glorification. Believing that Christians can't have demons is mainly a Western Church mindset but many places in the non Western world know that demons need to be driven out when people are converted or they will just carry over into a new Christian life and harass and torment believers. Because deliverance has been removed from much of the body of Christ many Christians have demons in their body and soul that they need deliverance from.
What does it means to be possessed by a demon?
The Bible talks about people being "demon possessed" but what does that actually mean?The Greek word that is translated “demon possessed” is daimonizomai. A more accurate meaning of this Greek word would to be "demonized" which means to be in the grip of, to have a demon, to be under the influence or under the power of a demon. When people think of being "demon possessed" their minds can go to movies where people are completely overtaken by demons and they are no longer in control of themselves.
The word 'possession' is a poor translation because it has an implication of ownership as in "its my house and I own it". To be "demonized" does not mean to be owned by demons or the devil. Jesus owns us as He “purchased us with His blood” 1 Cor 6:19-20 and we belong to Him. We are His possession and do not belong to demons. Here is an example: If there is a robber in your house, is he in the house? Yes, he is but does that mean that he is the owner of the house? No, it doesn't as the homeowner is rightful owner. This is a picture of what it means to have a demon. Its inside of you but it does not own you. Its like a trespasser that needs to be kicked out. Demons are trespassers in believers that need to be driven out.
Christians can have most of their life in order but still be struggling with an addiction, a mental health issue(s), sickness/disease in their body, or certain patterns of sin. Wherever sin and disease can go in a person so can a demon. We would say that a demon has control or influence over that area of a person's life. They don't have complete control of someone's life but certain areas are under the power of a demon(s). Whatever area of a person’s life has not come under Lordship and control of Holy Spirit can be influenced by a demon.
A turning point in my life is when I went through deliverance from demons in 2009. I had been saved and filled with the Holy Spirit for many years so I was definitely a Christian. I was totally addicted to pornography and masturbation since I was 12 years old. I had done everything possible to try to get free from these behaviors but always went back to them despite going to support groups, praying, reading scripture, having an accountability partner, etc. It was not until I went through deliverance and many demons came out of me that I finally got free . As they came out of me I was thrown to the floor convulsing and I let out a guttural scream as they left my body. As I laid face down on the floor I was thinking to myself, "what in the world just happened to me?" Being delivered from demons was definitely not on my radar since I had been told that Christians could not have demons. I was set free from the temptation and fantasies in my mind that had plagued me for decades. I then went to Phoenix, AZ and went through a deliverance weekend. They prayed for me to break a generational curse of alcoholism and a demon spoke through me and said "Nooo, we have been here so long!" as it left me. The curse of alcoholism was broken and the spirit left me screaming just like in Mark 1 & Acts 8 accounts where it says the spirits left screaming. Deliverance completely changed my life as I encountered Jesus the Deliverer!
Lastly, the late Derek Prince who was a pioneer in deliverance ministry in America was criticized harshly by the church for casting demons out of Christians and his response to the criticism was, "well, what should I do, leave them in them?" How many Christians today are bound by addictions, mental and emotional torment, childhood wounding, mental health issues, sickness, and other life controlling problems that they can't find freedom from no matter what they have done to address these issues? Quite possibly, the problem they are dealing with is demons that need to be driven out but they were told Christians can't have demons.
In Christ,
Pastor Rafe Ronning
If you are in need of deliverance, I invite you to Truth & Freedom Church on Friday Nights at 6:30pm or go to our website and schedule a private prayer session at www.truthandfreedomchurch.com
We are located at:
Truth & Freedom Church
3300 University Ave SE
Mpls, MN 55414
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