Healing (Page 11)

Demonic Oppression or Possession

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sword-of-the-spirit

Matthew 12:43-45: “Jesus said, when the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”

Demons want to and can possess people. It is apparent from Scripture that evil spirits want to possess bodies through which they can carry out their wicked activities.

Bible scholars have categorized two levels of demonic impact upon people:

  • Demonic oppression: mild to severe harassment by one or more evil spirits as a result of the opening of some of the gateways to satanic influence.
  • Demonic possession: The condition in which one or more evil spirits actually inhabit the body of a person, taking control of it at will and expressing his (or their) evil personality through the faculties of that human body.
  • Matthew 12:43-45, as quoted previously a classic description of demonic possession: note especially the phrase “they enter in and dwell there.

Now consider some of the other Scriptures that describe such possession: