Satan and Demons

Introduction

One of the most common questions is, "Are there evil spirts in the world?" Another is "Is there a devil, or, who is the devil?" The Bible warns believers about these temptuous evil spirits. Believers are in a spiritual war against Satan and demons. Regardless whether people truly believe in evil spiritual beings, the Bible explains and gives us examples of these evil beings. In fact, the Bible gives us examples when Jesus faced these spirits and how He dealt with them. The Bible describes these evil spirits as fallen angels who followed Lucifer, and their purpose is to thwart the people and will of God.

Demons

The question has been posed, “Do you really believe in demons?” Another one might be, “Is Satan a real being?” “Does he really roam around causing havoc?” The short answer is, “Yes!” In fact, we can see Hollywood’s rendition of them through movies and television. Their portrayal, however, are a lot of times incorrect. The Bible is our true source for any information on Satan and demons. Theologian and professor Wayne Grudem writes, “Demons are evil angels who sinned against God and who now continually work evil in the world. They are the angels whom God did not spare…when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness” (2 Peter 2:4).

One might ask, “How did demons become evil?” When God created everything, He created everything good (Genesis 1:31). The Bible does not tell us exactly when these angels “fell,” or sinned against God, but “sometime between their creation and Satan’s tempting of Eve to sin, these demons ‘did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling’ (Jude 6) and were cast into hell” (Grudem).

Satan

Demons have a leader and his name is Satan. “Satan is the personal name of the head of the demons” (Grudem). Some of the Bible passages where he is mentioned are 1 Chronicles 21:1, Matthew 4:10, Luke 10:18, Matthew 4:1, and Ephesians 2:2. In the gospel of John, Satan is described as being a “murderer from the beginning,” and the “father of lies.” He has many names, in fact, he is also known as the “tempter.” In Matthew 4:1-11, Satan tempted Christ to sin. His main goal is to blind people to the gospel of Christ. In fact, Satan and demons will use any kind of tactics, such as temptation, guilt, envy, and pride, to hinder any work of the gospel.

The good news is that believers in Christ can resist the devil (James 4:7). The Holy Spirit that lives inside believers is stronger than Satan and any demon. Even though Satan and demons have limited power, and cause much havoc in the world, they are not to blame for all the evil in the world. Grudem says, “Much of the sin mentioned in the Bible is not the result of Satan or his demons but instead the result of an individual person’s own actions (James 1:14).”  We are, however, encouraged to be “watchful because the devil prowls like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).”

We must remember that Christ is our hope, and the Holy Spirit that lives inside us is greater than Satan or demons. As 2 Thessalonians 2:8 states, “And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breadth of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.” Judgment is coming for them, but we must remember that we have the hope of Christ.