Demonic Influence

          There is more documentation for the Bible than for all of the other ancient books combined.  That is because it is the Word of God, given that His people may know: His will and power, peace and love, and for our power over the enemy (Satan and his minions); powers and principalities of the air. " For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."[1] 

          I believe in God because He has revealed and proven Himself to me.  He leads and guides me into all truth, by the power of the Holy Spirit, as I learn to yield my will to His. In His truth there is no wavering, and His truth resides within me.  I feel sorry for those who do not possess this same confidence in the Lord.  A biblically literate Christian knows that those who practice witchcraft and other forms of sorcery have several forms of power, and that those forms of power are provided by the demons that control those people, due to their choices. "There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that uses divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch. Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord:"[2].

          What happens when someone calls on those demonic forces to cast a curse, or spell,  against a Holy Spirit filled Christian?  First, we must realize that the Holy Spirit indwells the Christian.  That means that anyone casting that spell or curse is doing so against the dwelling place of the Lord of the universe.  Second, we know that evil spirits (demons, minions of Satan, etc.) are not loyal to anyone or anything except Satan.  They know who the Lord of the universe is, and they fear Him.  They simply do not have the ability to honor or the will to obey Him.  "This is what’s going on when humans boast of having supernatural powers on earth. No matter what they call themselves—witch, sorcerer, medium, warlock or some other fancy title—they have as much power over you as you have over the planet Mars. They simply can’t do anything to harm you on their own. Instead, they are completely dependent on demons to give them the illusion of power. If they chant some “sacred” bit of baloney and at the same time a demon hurls a knife at your head, then naturally you’re going to feel a bit nervous around that person. Your flawed human logic will tell you that whenever two earthly events happen so close together, they must be related. You’ll conclude that the first event caused the second to happen, therefore the spell really worked. No, it didn’t. A human mumbled a bunch of baloney and then a demon threw a knife at your head. These were two separate, unrelated events. The demon simply timed his actions to create the illusion that the human has supernatural powers. Now Satan has an ego that’s bigger than this whole universe, so why on earth would he ever want us to take the glory for the things he has done? Because as long as we think we’ve got magical powers, we’ll never be interested in Jesus."[3]  The Bible tells us about the "Whole Armor of God" which consists of the Helmet of Salvation, the Breast Plate of righteousness, the Shield of Faith, the Belt of Truth, the Sword of the Spirit (which is the Word of God) and the Shoes of the Gospel of Peace.

 

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When we are equipped with the Whole Armor of God, the Satanic and demonic forces cannot prevail against us.  Demonic suggestion, demonic ideology, demonic obsession and demonic influence can all have effects on the life of a Christian; however, a Christian cannot be controlled or possessed by a demon, because he has willingly yielded the possession and control of his life to God.  The Bible tells us that we must put on the full armor of God, in order to be able to stand against the fiery darts of the enemy.  That means it is a conscious decision to use this armor.  The life of a Christian can be made miserable by demonic influence if that Christian does not know about this armor, as his rightful possession. Study of the Word of God is the answer to this lack.  Christians are not pacifists, they are Christian Soldiers; warriors in the army of God. There are instances, such as protection of family, where physical warfare is authorized, however, for the most part, the warfare a Christian is involved in is spiritual.  Just as , when the demons saw Jesus, they said: "We know who you are, the Son Of God", demons can sense or see the Holy Spirit's presence in the Spirit filled Christian.  

          God established Israel, while the rest of the world established itself. Abraham sought after God, and God accepted Abraham. "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance."[5] The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that it's the TRIBAL MENTALITY, like the Native Americans used to have and is so prevalent in the middle east today. "From whence come wars and fighting among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?"[6]  Tribalism doesn't get along with civilization. The Lord and Creator of the universe represents civilization.  We can see, throughout the pages of the Bible, the Lord drawing man from tribalism to life in a civilized and orderly manor. We can see that God took the Hebrew tribe of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and built them into the nation of Israel.  Ethnicity and national origin has nothing to do with it. Culture has everything to do with it.  Tribes, throughout history, have made up gods to suit their perceived needs.  The satanic influences are more than willing to fulfill these needs.  They will do anything they deem necessary, to keep people from getting to know the real God of Heaven. Yes, there really is a conspiracy here.  Those who, for whatever reason, ignore God, substitute false gods, or reject the true God, are therefore open to be subject to those demonic influences. 

          Spirit filled Christians desire to turn over and submit their will and life to Jesus. Paul tells us that it is a constant struggle within us, to overcome the sinful nature we were born with.  “If any man comes to Me and does not have much more love for Me than for his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be My follower." Luke 14:26 NLV[7]   The King James states it this way, "If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple."   Hated, in this verse, means held in relative disregard in comparison with the other.  If we do not place God as first place in our life, where and in what place do we put Him?  He desires to be first, and any other position is not acceptable.  The Lord is Jealous of anything that is placed before Him.[8]

          To sum up, there really is demonic influence in the world. I don't fully understand why God has given Satan dominion over this world, but the Bible tells us Adam and Eve were deceived by the devil, and gave in to it. This gave Satan the right to have influence in the world.  I do know that this life is essentially a test for the next life.  If God had placed us in this world, without the influence of Satan being here, how much of a test would that have been? The Lord gave us "free will" so that we could choose to accept either good or evil.  He also gave us the ability to know the difference.  In His Word, He instructs us to choose good over evil, life over death and Him above all else.  Because He gave us "free will" it is up to each of us to make his own individual decision.  He, Himself said, that there is now only one way be accepted into the kingdom for Heaven. That one and only way is through accepting Jesus (who is the Lord's Christ) as your Lord and Savior.[9] Jesus told us to spread the Good News, of His Salvation, throughout the world, so that everyone who accepts Him will be saved.

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[1] Ephesians 6:12

[2] Deuteronomy 18:10-12

[3] http://924jeremiah.wordpress.com/2013/12/25/responding-to-curses-spells-what-to-do-when-witches-are-out-to-get-you/

[4] I was unable to find the original source of this artwork, in order to give proper credit

[5] Psalm 33:12

[6] James 4:1

[7] New Life Version

[8] Exodus 34:14, Exodus 20:5, Deuteronomy 4:24, Deuteronomy 5:9, among others

[9] John3:16. Romans 10:9-14