Ask the Pastor 31a

How do we know when we're under the attack of Satan/demons?

This is a question asked by a reader which goes on to read, “this world is full of evil, i.e. drugs, alcohol, bad things etc.”. This is an excellent question because many times things that we may think are of the devil are really nothing more than our yielding to the temptations of the flesh. The nature of man is dead in trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1) and therefore, by nature, mankind will do a lot of evil things as we read in Romans 1:21-32; 3:9-20. It is certainly true that the devil is behind this tendency to do evil as he is the great tempter. But to know when it is the result of direct demon activity can be difficult. Usually when a person is possessed or even influenced by a demon, they know it, they know that something extra is going on beside their own sin nature. Studies have been done that prove that many people who are being treated for psychosomatic problems are actually suffering from a spiritual problem including demons. When confronted with a situation where we have reason to think there is demonic activity or involvement, we can speak to the person concerning the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, invariably this will cause a response. At that moment we may command the unclean spirit to come out and go to the abyss all done in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 8:26-33). Again, it is important that we know Jesus Christ personally as our Lord and have maturity in the things of God and in the Word of God before attempting anything like this. Satan and his demons are real but greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world (I John 4:4).

Have questions about the Bible? Send them to Dr. Greg Koehn at gak4850@gmail.com and read the answer here in this article.