Demons: The Army of the Evil One

Last week we talked about what our weapons are for spiritual warfare. When we know who we are and whose we are, we have the confidence to use those weapons to help not only ourselves but others. Again, our weapons are our prayers, praises, Scripture and the name of Jesus. Satan has his weapons too. We will be talking this Sunday and next about exactly what we are fighting against. We are going straight to the ones who use weapons against us. The reason being is the weapons are vast and are difficult to summarize yet they have one thing in common, they are made for the destruction for the ones God loves.

When demons are portrayed in movies , books, and Television, they have a terrifying appearance and you typically know what their goal is almost immediately. When we think of movies that are about demon possession, we think about films like “The Exorcist.” Almost every scene of that movie is visually terrifying to watch. There is no guess work or imagination needed to know what is going on. This film is based on actual events. Truly, the Catholic Church and some other Protestant Churches still performs exorcisms. Yet, in my opinion, the scariest movies are when the evil is hidden just below the surface. I don’t like gore or movies where people are doing evil things. I like a little suspense, a little realism, and movies where I have to guess what is really going on.

I like this movie called “The Devil’s Advocate” staring Keanu Reeves and the ever villainous Al Pacino. Without giving much away, the main takeaway from this film, at least for me, was that the Devil works through our weaknesses, tempts us with things that may not seem so bad at first, and captures us in bonds of sin and fear. Demon Possession is real, but so is demonic luring and temptations.

Pray and Read Acts 19:11-20

Acts 19:11–20 NRSV

God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that when the handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick, their diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them. Then some itinerant Jewish exorcists tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.” Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit said to them in reply, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” Then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered them all, and so overpowered them that they fled out of the house naked and wounded. When this became known to all residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks, everyone was awestruck; and the name of the Lord Jesus was praised. Also many of those who became believers confessed and disclosed their practices. A number of those who practiced magic collected their books and burned them publicly; when the value of these books was calculated, it was found to come to fifty thousand silver coins. So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.

There are some believers who think that healings and exorcisms only happened during the time of the Apostles, basically during the time in which the Book of Acts was written. Yet, no where in the Bible does it say that as children of God we cannot cast out demons and heal those who are suffering. The only condition is that those acts need to be in Christ and a part of God’s holy plan. We must remember there are people called to be doctors and nurses who have knowledge on how to help those in need. There are mental issues where God has called some to be counselors and therapist who are also given knowledge on how to help those in need. But this still does not negate the need for Spiritual deliverance from the forces that mean to cause God’s creation harm.

Some are called to cast out demons and prayerfully offer healing. There are some who can still do these things. But these individuals know two important things. One, they know who Jesus is and knows that Jesus knows them! The Jewish exorcist in the text today, knew that the name of Jesus brings power. So why were these rabbi’s attacked? They spoke the name of Jesus! Not everyone can use the Name of Jesus. They had no authority in Christ. They knew of Christ, but refused to believe that Jesus was who he says he is. They were not believers in Christ, giving themselves over to Christ and being filled with His Holy Spirit. Because of this, the demons had more power then them and could overwhelm them.

The second thing is that they know their enemy. Paul knew the enemy quite well. This story takes place in Ephesus. Think about Paul and his ministry. He proclaimed the name of Christ everywhere he went, even with the very real threat of violence and death. Paul knew Christ, you can read it in his writing that fill up the New Testament that Paul walked and talked with Christ. Last week our text came from his letter to the Ephesian church, those who in this land had thrown away their personal tools of divination. We will talk more about this next week. The things the demon had done to the person possessed and to the Jewish exorcist is some of the tools that the Evil One, whether you call him Lucifer or Satan, uses against God’s creation.

So what do the evil spirits, demons and Satan himself leave us with? Fear, Shame and Pain. Think about verse 16 again. Acts 19:16

Acts 19:16 NRSV

Then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered them all, and so overpowered them that they fled out of the house naked and wounded.

They left the house rather quickly, therefore we can assess that they were scared, right? They left naked. In other examples in the Bible, being naked brought shame. They were left with wounds, that must have been painful. Many times, when we are attacked by Satan, we are left feeling scared about something, like the future or an unresolved issue. Sometimes we experience shame over something that happened in which we may have already sought God’s forgiveness. Side note, shame and conviction are different. Shame leaves us in a state of sadness or angry, and conviction brings us to God for freedom and redemption. Sometimes we feel pain, but this pain may not be physical but emotional, mental, socially anxious, and spiritually drained. If you feel any of these, remember your weapons; prayers, praises, Scripture and Jesus! Put on the whole armor of God. And if you need to talk to me, this is what I am here for.

In our text, the story gets around that only Paul, and in the name of Jesus, can exorcize demons. The church of Ephesus is born, and Paul makes sure to teach them about Spiritual Warfare. These people threw out their tools and books, totally renouncing their way of life. Basically, Ephesus was cleaned out of any demonic presence.

Let’s turn to Luke 11:24-26

Luke 11:24–26 NRSV

“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it wanders through waterless regions looking for a resting place, but not finding any, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ When it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and live there; and the last state of that person is worse than the first.”

Satan will always find ways to attack. The moment you put your weapons away and think, “I am clean! Nothing can hurt me.” You are gravely mistaken. These are the words of Christ as a warning for us. Wouldn’t it be nice if you deep cleaned your house really good one time and then never have to clean it ever again? How realistic is that? Especially if you have kids? Dust still gathers. Life still happens. Mistakes, like spills, still occur. We have to keep cleaning. Luckily, praising God, praying, reading Scripture and calling on the name of Jesus is more fun than sweeping and mopping.

So are you keeping your Spiritual House in order? Are you cleaning out the cobwebs of fear or depression? Are you wiping away the shame of your life prior to knowing Christ? Are you sweeping away all the snares and traps of the Devil? Who is the Lord of your house? Is Jesus Christ truly known by you and does Jesus know who you are? If so, then your name strikes fear in the demons for you possess the power of the Holy Spirit and can speak and act in the beautiful name of Jesus.

In His name and in the name of our Father God and the Holy Spirit. Amen.