Demons Are Real
“The thief (Satan) comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” ~Jesus
John 10:10
Someone messaged me a while back, telling me how they were praying for me, which I always appreciate. They also said when they read their Bible they wake up in the morning with scratch marks across their body—scratch marks that look like actual claw marks.
Now, first of all, as a Christian, I want to be perfectly clear that neither the enemy nor his demons can touch you (see 1 John 5:18). The reason why they can’t touch you is because you are possessed by Christ, literally and figuratively (see Galatians 2:20, Colossians 3:3, 1 Corinthians 6:19). He will never share your body with any demonic spirit. Can demons pester you? Can they hound you day and night? Absolutely. But touch you? No way.
So I was left with two situations in regard to the message I received:
- This person is not a Christian, but might think that by reading the Bible they are.
- This person is a Christian, but they are mistaken as to where or what these scratches are coming from.
Either way, I’m not the judge of this, only God is. Hindsight is 20/20, so I should have asked them, “Has there ever been a time in your life where you believed Jesus forgave you of your sins?” But I didn’t. Instead, I suggested that they walk throughout their house and verbally bind any demonic force, telling them to “Get out, in the name of Jesus.” Christ gives us this right! He says so in Luke 10:19:
“I have given you authority…to overcome the power of the enemy.”
Although, yes, I should have asked them if they believed in Jesus from the get-go, what I said was still a good thing to say. But so often we assume that people are Christian, yet, they’re really not. Instead of being a Christian, they simply know a bunch of Christian stuff–they could even be really nice people. But anyway.
I also recommended that if they had any open “spiritual windows” in their home, such as pornography, drugs, alcohol (if you’re addicted to it), anything witchcraft, any music with words that glorify hate, greed, or immorality, any activity they do on a regular basis that goes against God’s Spirit (see Galatians 5)—or if they watch stuff on their TV and internet all the time, which is anti-gospel—get rid of it! Stop listening to it, stop doing it, and stop watching it.
I’m not saying shut yourself off from the world, I’m saying pay attention. We are holy, blameless, heaven-ready children of God (see Colossians 1:22, Ephesians 1:5), the enemy hates us even worse than non-believers. Therefore, he hits us harder with the things of this world in an attempt to shipwreck our faith. He can’t destroy our faith, that would be impossible (see Hebrews 7:25, 2 Timothy 2:13). But he sure can get us stuck on a deserted island. Thankfully, even when we are on that island, Christ is there with us.
The apostle Peter said, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). So all of the stuff around us which doesn’t jive with our spiritual perfection invites spiritual forces that have no business being in our midst.
Certain things we allow in our lives, which are not of God, become a dinner-bell for packs of demonic wolves. They love the stuff that God hates. So when we are not conscious of these things, we too become just like a baby antelope with a broken leg on the Serengeti—making ourselves easy pickings to the dark part of the spiritual realm. For Christians, no demon can enter us–because Christ is there–but still, they can make our lives miserable if we allow it.
They can oppress us from the outside and use scare tactics and lies in our minds. This is why Paul said:
“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things” (see Philippians 4:8).
So I didn’t hear anything back from this person who messaged me about the scratches on their body, I thought no more about it. Then, not too long afterwards I received another message from them with actual pictures of this person’s torso, and it was all clawed-up!
Again, knowing what I know now, I should have said, “Are you sure you’ve invited Jesus into your heart as your Savior?” The hairs on my neck stood up as I viewed the pictures. It literally looked as if someone slowly and meticulously scratched this person with long nails. They were “in a row” like fingers, and this happened while they were asleep!
Before I continue, let me make something perfectly clear: I’m not afraid of this by any stretch of the imagination, but when an event like this actually happens…it’s not normal. It’s not your everyday Christian experience! This is a moment when the spiritual world physically interacts with us! It’s jarring!
Something like this smacks you in the face and says, “HEY! LOOK! GET OFF YOUR COUCH! THERE IS A BATTLE GOING ON! PLEASE! DO SOMETHING!”
All throughout the Bible demons have physical power over non-believers, so we can expect the same thing to happen today. In the book of Acts, Chapter 19, there is an account of some people calling on the name of Jesus to cast out a demon, but the demon fights back and says, “I know Jesus, and I know Paul, but I don’t know who you are.” The demon then leapt on them, overpowered them, and the Bible says they “fled out of the house naked and wounded”! (See Acts 19:13-16).
Obviously these weren’t Christians but instead just religious people who never really knew Christ (see Matthew 7:22-23). I say that because Jesus dominated demons in the Bible! He would squint His eyes at them and say, “Shut up!” They always cowered at Him, and they always begged for mercy! (See Luke 10:19, Mark 1:23-25, 4:24, 5:12).
Are you a Christian? If you are, then guess what? Christ lives in you! Yep! If you’ve believed in Jesus for His forgiveness, and accepted it by grace through faith, He is now supernaturally infused with you! You and Him are one! (Ephesians 2:8-9, 1 Corinthians 6:17).
You have the same power of Christ because of your faith in Him! HOW AWESOME IS THAT?! The power of God in YOU?! THIS IS SPECTACULAR NEWS!!!
For the person who sent me the pictures of what this demon had done to them, they have a choice to make: STAND UP TO THE DARKNESS AND KEEP PUSHING FORWARD THROUGH CHRIST, or back down and shrink away in fear. But get this—this is gonna blow your mind:
They said they had stopped reading their Bible because they got busy, but had started reading it again that very night. This is when the scratches on their stomach and sides came back!
This demon does not want them reading God’s Word! DO YOU HEAR ME?! Demonic forces don’t want you reading it either! They do not want you to know the truth of Christ’s power within you! This is why we must fight back! No matter how weak we might think we are, a single flame coming from within us can start an entire wildfire for Christ! Don’t cover up your flame any longer! Put it up high for all the world to see! Your flame is Jesus!
So today, my friends, know this: The forces of hell perk up when you begin to understand who you really are in Christ. Once you are in Him, they can no longer touch you. All they can do is shiver at the very thought of you. Remember, they are weak and you are strong! So look forward, scowl, and fight back!
A prayer for you: Good morning Lord! Today, I want to thank you for my excellent health, my job, my home, my family, and for the life you’ve given me. I appreciate everything you’ve done! Right now, I lift up all who are reading this, directly to you. Help them begin to recognize when the enemy and his little doofuses are causing them problems. Your Word says the entire reason Jesus came to earth was to destroy the work of the devil, and we believe that! You’ve given us that very same power by making your home in us! WE ARE STRONG! WE ARE CONFIDENT! WE ARE WELL-ABLE TO FACE ANYONE OR ANYTHING—through Him! In Jesus’ mighty name I pray, Amen.
This devotional is from 60 Days for Jesus, Volume 1. Get your copy here!