Insight on demon possession

[Beowulf]

Why would they have possessions in Biblical times and not now? Maybe they call it some kind of disease like schizophrenia. The Bible is given to us to learn from, it taught us the powers of Satan, why would it be gone in todays world?

I think the people back then were much more "spiritually aligned" than people are today. As mentioned previously, belief. These were people under the law of Moses, these were God's chosen. I believe they were much closer to God in their normal lives, He was their priority, in a lot of respects they were much more focused on God than we are today.

As far as the field of medicine or the sciences in general is concerned I feel as we gained more knowledge we centered more on ourselves, our technology, leaving God behind.

As far as morality our society embraces "preference over principle" which is the opposite of bibical society such as the Jews were back then.

Yes, I think the nail has been hit on the head in this thread.. Belief in Satan has changed and so have his tactics.

 

[brinley45cal]

I dunno... I'd think that demonic possession is more common than we think. It's just that there is a great deal of deception to our Western minds to the spiritual realities because our society closes its eyes and denies its existance... To the modern mindset, demons don't make sense, so we deny them... whether or not they actually exist (which I believe they do...).

However, speaking as a Canadian, a nation that is becoming known as "tolerant" to demonic influence, Satanism, Witchcraft, idolatry, and the like, under the guise of other things, of course... There are a lot of New Age people around, and many people are becoming "spiritual" in the sense that they play around with the spiritual realm.

I'd say demonic possession and oppression is very much alive and present here in North America. It's just that we have put our hands over our eyes, like children playing peek-a-boo, and shouted out "You can't see me!"

I agree with you i think it happens more than we know.People just dont want to see it or belive it.Good post.

 

[Theophorus]

An interesting and scarry book to read is "Hostage to the Devil" by Malachi Martin. It details the backgrounds and exorcisms of 5 different people. The exorcisms are Catholic, but the theology isn't neccessarily so. (I found it to be more orthodox than anything else )

What was scary was not the strange manifestations of demons, but rather the details of how they deceived their victims. I would read it, or maybe not, for that reason alone.

 

[Ave Maria]

I have a couple of questions. Can a person be demon possessed and not know it? Also, can a Christian be demon possessed? What are the general symptoms of demon possession? Just curious!

 

[mustang_94]

I have a couple of questions. Can a person be demon possessed and not know it? Also, can a Christian be demon possessed? What are the general symptoms of demon possession? Just curious!

Holly, I don't believe that people can be demon Possessed without being aware of it. Many people are Oppressed without realizing it. And No Holy Spirit baptised christian can ever be possessed. But they can certainly be Oppressed by demonic forces. Think of it as maybe having weaker spirits clinging to the mind, tormenting the person with fear, etc. There are some excellent books that could help a person to understand. Look for books by Francis McNutt as well as others. McNutt is excellent. We use to go to the same church and I was in counseling under his ministery. Hope this helps.

 

[mlindsay]

Thanks for the topic. I desire to grow in my relationship with Jesus. I heard a message on CSN, which stated that a Christian can not be demon possessed, which I believe to be biblically true. Does anyone have any scripture to validate it? Thank you and May God Bless all the saints.

 

[Ave Maria]

Holly, I don't believe that people can be demon Possessed without being aware of it. Many people are Oppressed without realizing it. And No Holy Spirit baptised christian can ever be possessed. But they can certainly be Oppressed by demonic forces. Think of it as maybe having weaker spirits clinging to the mind, tormenting the person with fear, etc. There are some excellent books that could help a person to understand. Look for books by Francis McNutt as well as others. McNutt is excellent. We use to go to the same church and I was in counseling under his ministery. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the info mustang. I appreciate it!

 

[mustang_94]

Lindsey, here are 2 scripture ref. 2 Cor: 1:22 Eph: 4:30 Key word - Sealed

 

[Asaph]

For whatever it's worth (2 cents I hope ) here's my two cents.

Of course demon possession is still a fact in this day and age, and if you are a Christian your mere presence can cause a whole host of manifestations, but it doesn't necessarily mean it will cause it. I have seen it with my own two eyes. I do think however that it is easy to mistake someone just getting in the flesh with things spiritual.

That being said, I do not think it is possible for a Saint to be demon possessed. God does not co-habitate with demons. It is very possible for a Saint to be oppressed though.

Mustang, hang in there man. I too have seen strange things both good and bad. I definately prefer the good! Definately!

Asaph

 

[Ave Maria]

I think that although demon possession is possible and does exist, it is really quite rare. Well, at least it seems rare in the Western World.

 

[brinley45cal]

I have a couple of questions. Can a person be demon possessed and not know it? Also, can a Christian be demon possessed? What are the general symptoms of demon possession? Just curious!

I belive they can be possessed without knowing it.I dont think christians can,influenced yes,but not possesed.

 

[Ave Maria]

I belive they can be possessed without knowing it.I dont think christians can,influenced yes,but not possesed.

Ah ok. Thanks for the input brinley. What do you believe are the general symptoms of demonic possession?

 

[bluejeans]

There are people who are demon possessed it appears who claim they are
christians. It seems like some of the baby christians who still are weak have
more of a tendency towards it. They still have alot of old baggage still left,and
they are more vulnerable. satan had demons controling them in their past lives
and many of them are not aware that Satan can still use them to pull the rug
out from under them in times of weakness. I know a few people that are supose
to be christians who still gamble,gossip,and fight with people using dirty words
ect.... They get so angry they appear to be possessed sometimes.
When you have the gift of discernment you can often tell when evil is lurking
around real strongly.

 

[getreal52]

What do you believe are the general symptoms of demonic possession?

I'm not sure about actual posession, but symptoms of demonization are apparent.

Demonization is different from posession. With demonic posession the demon takes over a person's free will and lives through that person with total control. I really do not believe demonic posession is prevelant in the society of the United States, but that is just my opinion.

What I do believe is extremely prevelant is demonization - that is to say that people still excercise their own free will, but they have allowed Satan to achieve such a strong foothold in their life that they cannot defeat him without the help of other Christians through Christ.

I firmly believe that many false teachings people believe today are the result of demonization, as well as many other non-Christian sinful behaviors that people justify to themselves through the distortion of God's Word.

It could be the hardening of a person's heart to where they resent correction.

It could be pride in one's own line of thinking.

It could be the idea of relativism as if there is a scale of sinfulness according to our society.

It could be most any sinful behavior, but the bottom line is we have to have help from Christ and other Christians in order to defeat it.

I pray every day that people who claim to be Christians open their eyes to the teachings of God and stop acting as if they can make God say what they want Him to say - that's just not the way it works ...

 

[Bevlina]

There are people who are demon possessed it appears who claim they are
christians. It seems like some of the baby christians who still are weak have
more of a tendency towards it. They still have alot of old baggage still left,and
they are more vulnerable. satan had demons controling them in their past lives
and many of them are not aware that Satan can still use them to pull the rug
out from under them in times of weakness. I know a few people that are supose
to be christians who still gamble,gossip,and fight with people using dirty words
ect.... They get so angry they appear to be possessed sometimes.
When you have the gift of discernment you can often tell when evil is lurking
around real strongly.

So true! We also sense an oddness about these people before anything actually manifests in them. Yet, they can appear as harmless and good hearted as anyone! I watch the for the Fruit of The Spirit in people - and believe me - it's very hard to find it in some of the most avid church goers!
Some can use enticing words and praise too!

 

[Saint2be27]

I have a couple of questions. Can a person be demon possessed and not know it? Also, can a Christian be demon possessed? What are the general symptoms of demon possession? Just curious!

Warning....may be a bit disturbing to some:

I don't know if the demon possessed person would know it. I can tell you of some symtoms I have seen working as an EMT on ambulance.

One the person was literally not in their right mind. It was like looking at a dead person, literately...with the fixed/glazed eyes and all. This lady was on mental medication and her family had not heard from her in a few weeks. The police responded as a courtesy welfare check and she was uncontrollable. They literately had to hogtie the woman with her hands and feet tied behind her back to get her out of the house safely. She was literately barking and not speaking any kind of known language, she even had foam out of her mouth. The police report stated "she was acting like a rabid dog. At the point I came in contact with this lady, she was in a catatonic state, with the glazed look. Their was something about her eyes that cannot be explained. It was a definite spiritual battle between her spirit and mine (and the cop that was assisting-also a Christian).

The second one, was not as extreme but just as real. Again it was something about the eyes, God was allowing me to see danger with this person. A person I grew up knowing as a neighbor. I had never had any reason to use caution with him. This time I had this spiritual warning on him, my children were with me and I immediately left. Two months later, he was accused and convicted of child rape that he had committed on that day I had this warning about him.

 

[Ave Maria]

Warning....may be a bit disturbing to some:

I don't know if the demon possessed person would know it. I can tell you of some symtoms I have seen working as an EMT on ambulance.

One the person was literally not in their right mind. It was like looking at a dead person, literately...with the fixed/glazed eyes and all. This lady was on mental medication and her family had not heard from her in a few weeks. The police responded as a courtesy welfare check and she was uncontrollable. They literately had to hogtie the woman with her hands and feet tied behind her back to get her out of the house safely. She was literately barking and not speaking any kind of known language, she even had foam out of her mouth. The police report stated "she was acting like a rabid dog. At the point I came in contact with this lady, she was in a catatonic state, with the glazed look. Their was something about her eyes that cannot be explained. It was a definite spiritual battle between her spirit and mine (and the cop that was assisting-also a Christian).

The second one, was not as extreme but just as real. Again it was something about the eyes, God was allowing me to see danger with this person. A person I grew up knowing as a neighbor. I had never had any reason to use caution with him. This time I had this spiritual warning on him, my children were with me and I immediately left. Two months later, he was accused and convicted of child rape that he had committed on that day I had this warning about him.

Wow! That's just scary! I think that the gift of discerning of spirits, which is what you seem to have, would be such an awesome gift to have! Isn't God awesome! Praise Him for protecting you!

 

[brinley45cal]

Ah ok. Thanks for the input brinley. What do you believe are the general symptoms of demonic possession?

Your very welcome.As far as symptoms go,that could be a quit a few things.Some people are said to have foamed at the mouth,voice changes,Some folks will do something and not remember what they have done afterward.Personality changes like one minute they will act fine and the next they just go off and do something thats not like there regular character,Like when i was young one of my cousins was just plain evil one minute he would just be sitting down being quiet and the next he would be up trying to be violent.Once he was just sitting in the car with his mom and dad the next thing his mom knows he jumps in her lap and nearly bit her finger off.But thats just to name a few things.

 

[Ave Maria]

Your very welcome.As far as symptoms go,that could be a quit a few things.Some people are said to have foamed at the mouth,voice changes,Some folks will do something and not remember what they have done afterward.Personality changes like one minute they will act fine and the next they just go off and do something thats not like there regular character,Like when i was young one of my cousins was just plain evil one minute he would just be sitting down being quiet and the next he would be up trying to be violent.Once he was just sitting in the car with his mom and dad the next thing his mom knows he jumps in her lap and nearly bit her finger off.But thats just to name a few things.

Yikes! Sounds pretty scary! I hope and pray I never meet someone like that!

 

[Saint2be27]

Yikes! Sounds pretty scary! I hope and pray I never meet someone like that!

Holly, remember God will only allow what you can handle...and he offers protection, strength and comfort.

Praise God alright!!!