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Go to the source! Discover what the Bible says about …
These pages are designed to aid study or investigation for Christian discipleship through individual Bible study, Cell groups, Home groups, or meeting one to one. The questions could be used alone allowing each person to use their own Bible.
Introduction
Demons or Evil Spirits have a wide range of powers over people and objects. Their origin is not clear from the Bible, but the Bible is clear about their existence and power. The terms ‘demon’ and ‘evil spirit’ are used interchangeably. They are part of Satan’s army.
Bible Zone
- Demonic Control - A person’s behaviour can be controlled by a spirit.
- Control over body - a persons health can be controlled by a demon.
- Drive out demons - Jesus gives authority over demons to His disciples.
- Demons can return - Jesus warns that demons can return.
- Demon’s time - demon’s know their ultimate end.
- Lake of fire - us the ultimate end - the lake of fire.
An evil spirit or demon can control a person’s behaviour. Consider this passage in Luke 4 - (Note how the terms demon and evil spirit are equated.)
- How did the evil spirit control the possessed man?
- What authority did Jesus have over the evil spirit?
Luke 4:33-35 33 Once when he was in the synagogue, a man possessed by a demon—an evil* spirit—began shouting at Jesus,34 "Go away! Why are you interfering with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!"
35 Jesus cut him short. "Be quiet! Come out of the man," he ordered. At that, the demon threw the man to the floor as the crowd watched; then it came out of him without hurting him further.
The evil spirits can control the body causing medical conditions. Matthew 17.
- What medical condition is mentioned here?
- How did Jesus go about resolving the issue?
- What prevented the disciples from casting out the demon?
Matthew 17:14-20 14 At the foot of the mountain, a large crowd was waiting for them. A man came and knelt before Jesus and said,15 "Lord, have mercy on my son. He has seizures and suffers terribly. He often falls into the fire or into the water.16 So I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn't heal him."
17 Jesus said, "You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me."18 Then Jesus rebuked the demon in the boy, and it left him. From that moment the boy was well.
19 Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, "Why couldn't we cast out that demon?"
20 "You don't have enough faith," Jesus told them. "I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.*"
To some Jesus gave the authority to drive out demons - Mark 3.
- Why were the Apostles chosen?
- What were they given authority to do?
- Why might authority be an issue in driving out demons?
Mark 3:13-15 Afterward Jesus went up on a mountain and called out the ones he wanted to go with him. And they came to him.14 Then he appointed twelve of them and called them his apostles.* They were to accompany him, and he would send them out to preach,15 giving them authority to cast out demons.
Once a demon has gone, that is not necessarily the end of the story. Jesus gives the following warning in Matthew 12.
- What is the evil spirit’s desire?
- Why was the evil spirit able to return to the person?
- What could have filled the person preventing the re-entry of the evil-spirits?
Matthew 12:43-45 "When an evil* spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, seeking rest but finding none.44 Then it says, 'I will return to the person I came from.' So it returns and finds its former home empty, swept, and in order.45 Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before. That will be the experience of this evil generation."
Demons know their ultimate end. In Matthew 8 Jesus encounters two men with demons. The demons use the men to speak to Jesus about their end.
- What places of habitation for spirits are mentioned?
- What authority to the demons recognise?
- What do the demons say about their final end?
- What do they beg of Jesus?, Why?
Matthew 8:28-32 When Jesus arrived on the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gadarenes,* two men who were possessed by demons met him. They lived in a cemetery and were so violent that no one could go through that area.
29 They began screaming at him, "Why are you interfering with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torture us before God's appointed time?"
30 There happened to be a large herd of pigs feeding in the distance.31 So the demons begged, "If you cast us out, send us into that herd of pigs."
32 "All right, go!" Jesus commanded them. So the demons came out of the men and entered the pigs, and the whole herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned in the water.
Matthew 25 Jesus describes the end prepared for the devil and the demons, his angels.
- What end does Jesus declare awaits them?
Matthew 25:41 "Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, 'Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.*
DEMONS & EVIL SPIRITS
