Amelia Church of Christ - Christian Church in Amelia, OH near Cincinnati in Clermont County

Welcome to the second message in our short, two week series called Angels and Demons. In this series, we are opening the Bible to see what God has told us about the spirit world. What does the Bible say about angels and demons?

Last week, we explored the truth about angels. If you missed that message, you need to check it out on our website. We debunked a ton of very popular beliefs about angels.

This week, we’re talking about demons. Like I said last Sunday, for some of you, this series is going to freak you out. If last week kind of made you uncomfortable, then this week is going to really freak you out…at first. But actually, there is no need to be freaked out. There is no need to feel uneasy or afraid. And we’re going to see that as go through our teaching time today.

In his book called Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis wrote, “There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about demons. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them.”

Some of you just don’t believe in demons. It sounds like a mythical fairy tale.

Others of you, not only believe in demons, but you are way too interested in them. Maybe bordering on obsessed.

Either way is a trap that we can’t allow ourselves to fall into. Satan would be equally pleased with either one.

The Bible teaches the literal existence of spiritual beings called demons. We’re going to see a lot of that Scriptural evidence today.

But just because demons are real doesn’t mean that we can allow them to dominate our thinking or bring a spirit of fear into our lives. My goal today is not to freak you out. It’s not to scare you. In fact, my goal is just the opposite. I want you to see the truth about demons from the Word of God. And I want you to see the truth of Jesus’ victory over Satan and his demons.

Let’s open the Bible and dive in. First of all, we need to see that the spiritual beings called demons have a leader. They have a boss…a king. His name is Satan or the devil. What exactly does the Bible say about him? Who is Satan?

Satan is probably a fallen angel. I use the word “probably” because this is the best explanation of who Satan is. And the Bible does give hints at this, but it never definitively says that this is who Satan is.

But there seems to be enough evidence to believe this to be the truth. At one time, Satan was one of God’s angels. He was created as good, but through his God-given freewill choice, he chose to rebel against God. He chose evil.

In 2 Thessalonians, the Bible says, “But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. (2 Thessalonians 3:3, NIV)

The name, “the evil one,” sums up Satan’s fallen nature. At one time, he was good. He was created as one of God’s holy angels. But through his own choice, he has become the very embodiment of evil.

Another very important truth that we need to know is that, not only is Satan completely evil, but he is also extremely powerful. In fact, the Bible says that he rules over much of this world.

In John 14, Jesus said, “I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.” (John 14:30-31, NIV)

By calling Satan, “the prince of this world,” Jesus acknowledged that Satan has been given power and authority in our world. His time is limited and his authority doesn’t supersede God’s authority. That’s what Jesus meant when he said that Satan has no hold on Him. Satan cannot compete with the power of Jesus. But we still need to know that Satan is very powerful and very dangerous, and his power has been unleashed in our world.

Many times, though, we don’t recognize Satan’s power when we see it. That’s because he is incredibly deceptive.

Satan is a liar to his core. In John 8, Jesus said, “He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44b, NIV)

This is what makes Satan so potent, so dangerous. He is so slick, so deceptive. Most of the time, his work goes unrecognized because he is such an accomplished liar and deceiver.

In 2 Corinthians 11, the Bible says, “…Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. (2 Corinthians 11:14b, NIV)

Satan is such an experienced liar that he can even make evil appear to be good. He masquerades as an angel of light and he makes his evil work appear good.

This is why Revelation 12 calls him, “that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray.” (Revelation 12:9b, NIV)

He leads the whole world astray because of his ability to deceive. To make himself unnoticed. To make evil look so enticingly good.

And Satan is not alone in his mission to deceive humanity. He has a group of powerful followers called demons.

In Matthew 12, Satan is called, “…Beelzebub, the prince of demons… (Matthew 12:24b, NIV)

Satan is the leader of these spiritual beings called demons. So let’s talk about them. Who are demons?

2 Peter 2 tells us that demons are “…the angels that sinned…” (2 Peter 2:4b, KJV)

Demons are also fallen angels…angels who followed Satan’s lead in their rebellion against God. And now, instead of pledging their allegiance to God, they faithfully follow Satan and his evil desires.

Like Satan, demons are very slick, deceptive beings. In 1 Timothy, the Bible says, “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.” (1 Timothy 4:1, NIV)

Deception is the most powerful tool that Satan and his demons have. So we’re going to spend some time exposing their lies and exploring the truth.

Here’s the truth…the mission of Satan and his demons is to hurt God. There is a seething hatred for God that is coursing through their veins. All they want to do is inflict pain on God. They want to hurt him. It is their ultimate goal.

But there is really only one way that they can hurt an omnipotent God: attack the ones he loves. Truthfully, the only way they can hurt God is by hurting us.

These attacks can come in so many different ways that it is impossible to talk about them all. So let’s just talk about a few.

Some of these attacks come by deceiving people about occultic practices.

A lot of Christians don’t believe that witchcraft and the occult are real. It sounds like something out of The Dark Ages. But we need to realize that this stuff is real, and this stuff can have deadly consequences.

It’s estimated that 40% of high school students in our country are involved in the occult, to one level or another. That may mean using a Ouija board, or listening to Satanic music, all the way up to the extreme of offering animal sacrifices. It’s happening more than we could ever imagine.

New Age, occultic philosophy is everywhere. Doctors and psychiatrists are now prescribing hypnosis as a means of healing. People are hanging crystals from their rear view mirrors so that the aura of the crystal will positively impact their life. People believe the universe is governed by karma. Reincarnation has become a mainstream religious belief. All of this is New Age, occultic philosophy.

You might believe that the occult has never touched your life. Have you ever consulted your horoscope? How about at a slumber party when you were a kid…did you ever play light as a feather, stiff as a board? Ever played with a Ouija board?

I know what some of you are thinking. This all a bunch of hocus pocus nonsense. That’s exactly what Satan wants you to believe.

I told you last week that, for a while, I struggled to believe in angels. I also struggled to believe that the occult is real. I mean, how dangerous can a Ouija board be? It’s made by Parker Bros., for crying out loud! Séances, contacting the dead, all this stuff is a bunch of smoke and mirrors. It’s not real.

Let me tell you why my perspective has changed. First of all, I believe the Bible is the Word of God and many of these practices are strictly forbidden in the Bible. God wouldn’t go out of his way to forbid something that is harmless.

Second, I’ve experienced a lot of very intense stuff in my ministry. I told you last week that I have an angel story. I also have several demon stories. I’ve experienced spiritual warfare in an up close and personal way. I could tell you stories of things that I have experienced that would make your hair stand up on end, but I won’t go into that much detail.

I heard another pastor say that he doesn’t tell his demon stories because it brings out all the wackos that see a demon behind every bush. I’m with him.

I don’t believe every single thing that happens is a result of demonic power. But at the same time, you can’t write off this stuff as mythical mumbo jumbo. It’s real and it’s dangerous.

But more than the occult, Satan and his demons want to attack you through various circumstances in your life.

Jesus called Satan “the prince of this world,” meaning that he has power in this world. Satan has the power to make stuff happen. He has the power to cause things. He can cause events to happen. He can cause physical illness to occur. Satan has a great amount of power in our world. Now, he cannot create. Only God can create. But Satan can manipulate God’s creation.

You ever feel like something happens at the worst possible time? Sometimes that is a well-timed Satanic attack. Again, it’s not wise to view everything through the lens of demonic activity, but sometimes when you feel like you’re under the gun…you are. Satan is very intelligent. He knows where to hit you and he knows when to hit you.

But ultimately, Satan’s greatest attack against us is his deception. He wants to lead us away from the truth.

He does this by attacking the truth of the Bible and by false teaching. But largely, he does it through temptation.

In 1 Thessalonians 3, Paul calls Satan, “the tempter.” (1 Thessalonians 3:5b, NIV)

Satan and his demons have the power to tempt you and me. They have the power to subconsciously plant sinful ideas in our minds. They have the power to alter circumstances in our lives to ratchet up the temptation that we’re facing.

Satan knows where you are weak. He doesn’t tempt you in the same way that he tempts me. You and I have different weaknesses. Satan knows what they are, and you can bet that he will exploit them.

Remember, the ultimate mission of Satan and his demons is to hurt God…and nothing hurts God more than when we fail to obey His will for our lives. Nothing breaks the heart of God like seeing His children stray from the good path that He has marked out for them. Satan and his demons will never stop trying to drag you away from the will of God and into sin.

This is why the Bible tells us to, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” (1 Peter 5:8-9, NIV)

Everyday of your life, you are a marked man or a marked woman. There is a bull’s-eye on you. We call it spiritual warfare. Satan and his minions want to take you down, because ultimately, it’s the only way that they can hurt God. You are of little consequence to them. They want to take you down so they can inflict maximum pain on your Heavenly Father. This fight is intense. This fight is real. But this fight has been fixed.

Jesus has destroyed the devil. The Bible says, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” (1 John 3:8b, NIV)

The very reason that Jesus came to earth was to fully and finally destroy Satan. He came to meet and defeat the devil. And the Bible tells us how he accomplished his mission.

Colossians 2:15 says, “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Colossians 2:15, NIV)

The “powers and authorities” in this verse refer to Satan and his legion of demons. The Bible says that Jesus publicly defeated them, but he did it through the most unlikely way. He defeated demons by dying. The cross was the tool that God used to ultimately defeat Satan.

In Revelation 12, there is a passage that tells about this great battle between Michael the archangel and all of his angels and Satan and all of his demons. The battle was intense, but eventually Satan and his demons were thrown out of heaven.

A lot of people know the story of this battle. But not many people realize exactly when this battle occurred. For a lot of you, I’m getting ready to absolutely blow your mind.

Here’s the story from Revelation 12. Starting in verse 7, “And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.

The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:

“Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.

They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!

But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short." (Revelation 12:7-12, NIV)

This was an epic battle that really happened. But when did it happen? A lot of us have been taught that this battle happened in some land before time, long before the world began. That’s when Satan and his demons were defeated. That’s when they were thrown out of heaven.

But let me show you something you’ve probably never noticed before. Listen to verses 10-11 again.

“For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb…” (Revelation 12:10b-11a, NIV)

Revelation 12 tells us that the power of Satan was overcome by the blood of the Lamb. This battle that brought the defeat of Satan happened in 33 A.D. when Jesus died on the cross.

When Jesus was crucified, there was so much more going on than just a man hanging on the cross. When the Son of God was dying, there was an unbelievable battle raging in heaven. This was the apex of the war between God and Satan. The devil viewed it as his chance for victory. He thought the death of Jesus meant that God’s mission on earth had failed, so he decided to take the battle all the way to the top. This was his chance. The battle raged. The fight was intense. But ultimately, Satan and his demons were defeated by the very thing that they thought would give them victory…the blood of Jesus Christ.

You should never look at the cross of Christ the same way ever again. The crucifixion of Jesus is not only the payment for our sin. It not only the source of forgiveness and grace. It is the moment in time when Satan was fully and finally defeated.

Yes, we are engaged in a fight. Yes, Satan and his demons will throw some suckerpunches. They will hit below the belt. They will win a battle here and there. But they’ve lost the war.

Our job now is to run up the score. The outcome of the game is guaranteed. We will win. But now, we get a chance to run up the score. Satan will lose, but our goal is to make him lose by the widest possible margin.

Listen to this incredible verse from Romans. “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” (Romans 16:20a, NIV)

Some of you are scared of demons. The thought of Satan, the though of demonic activity, it just freaks you out. Listen to this verse again.

“The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” (Romans 16:20a, NIV)

Does this sound like someone you should be scared of? The Bible promises that God will crush Satan. But did you catch this part? God will crush Satan under YOUR feet! God will use you and me to fully and finally crush the devil!

This doesn’t mean that we don’t recognize the fact that Satan is incredibly powerful. Much, much more powerful than us. But while we have a healthy respect for his power, we do not need to fear him. God will use us to crush him!

Every time you turn away from temptation and toward the will of God, God is using you to crush Satan. Every time you minister to someone who is being attacked by Satan, God is using you to crush him. Every time you sacrificially give your money to God’s church, God is using you to crush Satan. Every time you serve in the church, and I don’t care where that service occurs…from working in the nursery to mowing the grass to repairing the building to being onstage…every time you serve God’s church, God is using you to crush Satan. Every time you invite someone to church where they can experience the life-changing gospel of Christ, God is using you to crush Satan.

This should radically transform the way we view everything we do in our walk with God. Every time we obey the will of God, God is using us to deliver a crushing blow to Satan.

So, instead of being afraid…instead of playing defense…why don’t we go on offense?

I was reading another pastor’s blog and he told the story of a conversation his dad had with him when he was a kid. His dad told him, “Now boy, don’t you ever go looking for trouble, but if someone starts something with you, here’s what I want you to do. The moment you realize a fight is unavoidable, you make sure you throw the first punch.”

That is a great strategy when it comes to the spiritual fight that we’re in. Like I said earlier, you are a marked man or a marked woman. You get out of bed with a bull’s-eye on your chest.

Here’s what this pastor wrote on his blog. “Why should I wait around to get sucker punched? Why not drop kick the devil in the teeth before he knows what hits him? Why not get the first lick in every single morning?

Lately I’ve been waking up, going straight to the shower, and quoting the Word of God out loud. I’m not going to spend the first part of my day playing defense, I’m going on the attack.

You’re in for a fight every day of your life. Come out swinging. And go for broke. After all, the fight is fixed.”

One more Scripture. 1 John 4:4 reminds us, “…greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” (1 John 4:4b, KJV)

If you are a disciple of Jesus, you have the Spirit of God in you. Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. You don’t have any reason to be afraid! You don’t have any reason to duck and cover and play defense. Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. God, who placed his Spirit in you, wants to crush Satan underneath your feet!

Les Christie uses this story to make the point. A vacationing family drives along, windows rolled down, enjoying the warm breeze of the sunny day. All of a sudden, a big black bee darts in the window and starts buzzing around inside the car. The little girl riding in the car seat in the back is highly allergic to bee stings. If she is stung, she could die within an hour.

“Daddy,” she screams, “It’s a bee! It’s going to sting me!”

Her daddy whips the car over to the side of the road and it screeches to a halt. He reaches into the backseat to try and catch the bee. It flies to the front and bumps against the windshield, where the father traps it in his fist.

Holding it in his closed hand, the father winces as he waits for the inevitable sting.

The bee stung the father’s hand and, in pain, he lets go of the bee. The bee is loose in the car again. The little girl panics. “Daddy, it’s going to sting me!”

But her daddy gently says, “No honey, it’s not going to sting you now. Look at my hand.”

There, in her daddy’s hand, was the bee’s stinger.

Jesus, our crucified and risen Savior, is saying the same thing to us. “Look at my hand.”

That nail pierced hand shows us that he took the sting. The sting of death, the sting of sin, the sting of deceit, the sting of feeling worthless and hopeless…Jesus has the stinger in his hand. He has reduced Satan to a big black bee that has lost its stinger. He may look and sound scary, but all he can do is buzz.

That is the victory that Jesus won for you and me on the cross. Some of you have never asked Jesus to be your Savior. You’ve never crowned him the King of your life. But you can today. You can come and be forgiven by the one who took the sting, so you wouldn’t have to.

Mike Edmisten

Tags: Angels & Demons, demons, spiritual warfare