Spiritual Warfare 101Sýnishorn

What Demons Can and Cannot Do

Most people I have met are not sure of what demons really are or what exactly they do. To put it simply I think of them as the soldiers whose allegiance is to the kingdom of darkness. In the New Testament, we read of demons affecting our bodies, minds, and emotions.

Bodies

Here are a few examples of demons affecting our bodies. A woman was bent over because of a demonic presence and healed when the spirit was evicted (Luke 13:10–17). We see this with a man who was blind and mute (Matt. 12:22), and a boy who was seized by the compulsion to throw himself into fire or water (Mark 9:22). According to one study, out of thirty-five miracles performed by Jesus, seven of them involved casting out demons.

Mind

As “the father of lies” (John 8:44), the devil is clearly involved in deception. Paul warned the Corinthians that their minds could be led astray by the enemy (2 Cor. 11:3).

Emotions

The Scriptures also portray wicked spirits as able to cause emotional or psychological torment. For example, King Saul was tormented by a demonic spirit (1 Sam. 16:14, 23), and in His parable of the unforgiving servant, Jesus compared the consequences of unforgiveness to being handed over for torment (Matt. 18:32–35). Torment is a good description of the emotional distress many describe when they find themselves battling demonic voices.