The biggest question and push back I get is how a Christian can have a demon living inside them. Many people confuse possession with demonization/oppression. There is a huge difference. Possession means ownership, and a Christian cannot be possessed by a demon. Possession means you lose control and cannot stop what is going on in your body. You are owned by the demons and consumed with evil. This can happen when a demon moves into a non-Christian, but it does not happen with a Christian.

Demonization is not ownership, it is oppression. According to 1 Thessalonians, we are made up of three parts: spirit, soul, and body.

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:23, AMP.

Our spirit is the home of the Holy Spirit. When we get saved, the Holy Spirit comes in and dwells within our spirit. Our soul/body is our mind, will, emotions, and flesh. This is the area the demons can move into and take up residence within if we give them an open door and legal rights to our lives through—personal sin, generational sin, or curses. Below are several scriptures to support the fact that Christians can have demons attached to their lives and have a need for deliverance.

The people Jesus ministered to were Jewish believers who followed the law and God. The followers of God were called “Abraham’s seed” and Jesus ministered deliverance to them.

And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise. Galatians 3:29, AMP.

Jesus healed a daughter of Abraham who was tormented by a spirit of infirmity (demon) for eighteen years.

And there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent double and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, He called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your sickness.” And He laid His hands on her; and immediately she was made erect again and began glorifying God. But the synagogue official indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, began saying to the crowd in response, “There are six days in which work should be done; so, come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” But the Lord answered him and said, “You hypocrites, does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the stall and lead him away to water him? And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound for eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this bond on the Sabbath day?” Luke 13:11–16, AMP.

Jesus preached and cast out demons in the synagogues (churches). The church people were the ones to whom He was casting out demons.

And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out the demons. Mark 1:39.

Satan entered Judas, who was one of the twelve. He spent days with Jesus walking, talking, and learning from Him, and yet Satan entered his heart. The Bible is not clear about what happened to allow Satan to enter his heart, but perhaps greed, stealing, lack of faith, offense, or lies opened the door to the enemy and gave him the legal rights to enter his life. Matthew 26:14-16; Luke 6:16; John 12:3–5; John 13:21.

And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the twelve. Luke 22:3, AMP.

A little boy was thrown into the fire and water by demons trying to destroy him. Demons can even enter children.

And He asked His father, “How long has this been happening to him? And he said, “From childhood. It has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!” Mark 9:21–22, AMP.

Peter declared that Satan had filled the heart of Ananias. He was a Christian, but he had a heart issue that allowed a demon to enter.

But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of land?” Acts 5:3, AMP.

Paul told the believers in Ephesus: “Neither give place to the devil.” This implies that it is possible for a Christian to give place to the devil or his demons.

And do not give the devil an opportunity [to lead you into sin by holding a grudge, or nurturing anger, or harboring resentment, or cultivating bitterness]. Ephesians 4:27, AMP.

The devil oppresses God’s children.

How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with great power; and He went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because God was with Him. Acts 10:38, AMP.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor, He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed. Luke 4:18, AMP.

Satan was using Peter to try to create a stumbling block for Jesus.

But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on things of God, but on things of man.” Matthew 16:23, AMP.

Jesus addressed him as Satan and not Peter because he was not talking to Peter. Something in Peter’s life allowed the enemy access to his life that allowed him to speak through Peter and use him as a stumbling block.

The Holy Spirit does not prevent evil spirts from dwelling in a believer’s body or soul. We can be Spirit-filled believers who memorize the Word of God, sing in the choir, teach Sunday school, serve as deacons, or preach, and still be demonized. I did! I have been saved since I was 18 years old. I have loved God since I first gave my heart to Him, I have always prayed, and I have even been used by Him to minister to others numerous times, and yet I lived in bondage to the enemy. Living with demonic oppression takes a major toll on the body both physically and mentally.

It is not always a salvation issue, but it is always a torment issue. If demons were driven out at the point of salvation, why didn’t Jesus just tell the people their sins were forgiven? He did not do that; He verbally cast the demons out of many people. Even when He was healing them, many times He cast demons out of them. When Jesus died and rose from the dead, He gave us free access to salvation, healing, and freedom, but we must ask for each of them to be applied to our lives. They are not just handed to us; we must appropriate what He did on the cross for our personal lives. He made it possible for all generational curses to be broken and for all demons to be driven out, but we must accept it for ourselves, pray for it to be applied personally, and use the authority He has given us in order to walk in the full freedom He intended.

Once we know about deliverance, and personally experience it, we just know. No one can take away what the Bible says on the subject or argue over our personal experiences. It is as if the veil is removed, and we can see deliverance ministry all over the gospels. Every deliverance session I have done has been with people who love Jesus and are doing their best to serve Him. I would not do deliverance on them if they were not Christians and seeking to serve the Lord with their whole hearts.

Blessings,

Nichole Henson, Fullness of Joy Ministry