Demons Today
Where Are They?
As we bridge this series from earlier this week, we are going to move from looking at angels in the world today to demons in the world today. I know throughout these past few weeks, there has been a big emphasis on whether or not we overestimate or underestimate angels and demons, but I have to say that this subject today might be the most applicable to this idea. There is so much evil and unrighteousness in this world that many people could have a demon staring them right in the face and wouldn’t believe it’s demonic activity. On the contrary, with so much evil in the world, it’s easy to label everything bad as demonic activity as well. Didn’t get the job you wanted? Demons. Car broke down? Scheme’s of the enemy. The wrong person is in office? Clearly a work of Satan. Everywhere we find evil in this world, it is difficult to not overestimate or underestimate what these beings are actually capable of, especially in this day and age. As a citizen of America, it is easy for me to look at our society and culture today and see just how far we have fallen away from God and His holy ways.
Furthermore, if this is the state of the U.S., I would be erroneous if I didn’t think that demonic activity at least played a minor role in all of this. So how should we view demons today? How can we live our lives knowing that demonic activity may be happening all around us at any given point? On this exact topic, Dr. John MacArthur lists 5 affirmations that we can take with us from Scripture about demons in the world today. He notes, ‘We affirm the historical reality of Satan and demons; We affirm the that the Bible admonishes Christians to expect Satan and demons to operate now as they did in the OT and the NT; We affirm that the Bible teaches that, in living out the Christian life, one will experience real spiritual battle with Satan and his army of demons; We affirm that Scripture alone, independent of personal experience or clinical data, will truthfully determine the reality of demonic experiences; We affirm that instructions in the NT Epistles on how to conduct spiritual warfare were not limited to the first century.’ Some of these points we have hit on in our previous posts so we don’t need to go into too much detail on them, but others we are going to take a closer look at to see clearly where we stand on demonic activity today.
Their Goal
To start, let’s make sure we first and foremost remember what the goal of demons is by breaking down this fourth affirmation. As we mentioned about a week ago, the goal of demons is to oppose and destroy the good works of our Lord. 2 Corinthians 4:4 shows this in great light, “4…the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” Anything good and holy from our Lord, Satan despises. This is why as mankind and the image bearers of God Himself, we are one of the primary targets of demons. So if demons oppose the gospel and can’t destroy it, what good work will they go after next? Mankind itself. This is why one of the top areas I truly believe that we must be on the lookout for demonic influence is our own churches. If demons can’t stop the gospel, they’ll do their best to stop others from teaching it. Look at what 1 Peter 5:8-9 says, “8 Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.” This sober spirit is sadly not common anymore in the American Church. We see teachings being taught that aren’t the slightest bit biblical, services being held that don’t teach an ounce of God’s Word, and worship being produced that doesn’t honor or glorify God in any way. Yes, I believe demons work in the world today in politics and huge areas of power, however, the biggest area of concern I have of demonic activity isn’t in the White House, it’s in God’s house. The goals of these creatures makes this all too reasonable for them to want to attack The House of God, far more than anything else.
How To Respond Today
Let’s also take a look at this fifth affirmation. We see Dr. MacArthur mention that spiritual warfare is not limited to the first century but we should expect it even today. Look at what Ephesians 6:10-11 states, “10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.” With this command being written in the Epistles, we can see that demonic activity was not just around in the Old Testament in an attempt to stop the gospel, but it is alive in the New Testament and even today. Right before the armor of God is described and broken down, Paul notes what this armor is for, and this armor is to defend ourselves against the schemes of the devil. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the best way to defend ourselves against demonic activity is to know our Bibles. If demons oppose the gospel and attack mankind by attempting to distort the truth of scripture, then knowing what scripture really says is our best advocate.
Listen to what Richard Mayhue says about the condition of America in this regard. “In Scripture, Satan and demons prominently involved themselves with spiritual darkness, deception, and death. They thrive in these kinds of environments. The United States has rapidly accelerated toward these conditions over the last decades, as witnessed by increases in false religion and idolatry, sexual immorality and perversions, drug use, occultic activity, interest in Satanism, godlessness, shamelessness over sin, lawlessness, devaluation of human life, and societal attempts to suppress biblical truth.” Demons are indeed active today, and their goal is the same today as it was hundreds of years ago, to destroy and oppose God’s good works. And one of the clearest areas this is seen is in the churches in our own backyard. While I hope and pray that we are on alert for any and all demonic influence in this country, I want to especially ask you to be praying for your church. In a day and age where our identity is no longer in Christ and the U.S. can no longer be considered a Christian Nation, we must be praying for our churches. Know your Bibles, pray for your churches, and don’t be caught off guard.
Sources
[1] “Access Your Bible from Anywhere.” BibleGateway.Com: A Searchable Online Bible in over 150 Versions and 50 Languages., www.biblegateway.com/. Accessed 2023.
[2] MacArthur, John & Mayhue, Richard. A Systemic Summary of Bible Truth: Biblical Doctrine. Wheaton, Crossway, 2017
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