I’ve never been exposed to people
blatant worship to the devil. Of course people indirectly do it all the time by
worshipping things of creation and not the Creator, but I’ve never experience
such open wickedness. I also think I have a subconscious fear of demonic
activity because of scary movies I’ve watched about demon possessions. I
strongly believe the devil uses seemingly “harmless” scary movies to instill in
us fear of himself and make it appear as if he is more powerful than He. In all
demon possession/scary movies, God’s power is displayed as insignificant and
typically nonexistent, but this is a perverse perspective created by the father
of lies. For example, in The Devil Inside
a Catholic priest gets possessed by multiple demons. Someone who is supposed to
be a man of God is controlled by the devil. Let me tell you what scripture says
about this. “But the Lord is faithful. He will establish and guard you against
the evil one” (2 Thessalonians 3:3). If you believe God’s word as wholly true
then this contradicts what was portrayed in The
Devil Inside, unless the man actually did not have the Holy Spirit indwelt
within him (he professed to be of God’s people, but was not). The verse in 2
Thessalonians I just shared was written to the church of the Thessalonians, so
it was written for God’s people. Those who are non-Christians do not have the
guaranteed protection of God from the devil/demonic possession. However, if you
do have a regenerated heart from God (you have truly been saved by Him) then
you have the Spirit of God inside you. Do you really think the devil can be
inside you as well? If you do, then you I question if you have the Spirit of
God inside you. I say this because if you know the power of God that has
radically changed your wicked heart, there should be no room for question that even
the trim on His robe is infinitely greater than all darkness combined.
Also if God is all-knowing and
powerful over everything, do you not believe that everything includes the devil?
He allowed the devil put Job through hell on earth to make Job more like Himself.
Almost all of us have heard Romans 8:28 which says, “And we know that for those
who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called
according to his purpose.” For those who love God what’s “good” is not worldly
success, but rather to be made more like Christ. How are we to become more like
Christ in a cushy, comfortable life? We must go through the fire of sanctification,
which includes opposition and obstacles put in front of us by the Adversary. “In
this you rejoice, through now for a little while, if necessary, you have been
grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith – more precious
than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire – may be found to result in
praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7).
There is another thing I want to
mention to the children of God. This is very important. It’s something the Lord
has taught me in the midst of spiritual warfare, and I believe He wants to
share it with you. It is for certain that you will be attacked by the enemy.
Ephesians 6:12 says, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against
the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this
present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
However, regardless of if you feel the boldness of the Lord to rebuke Satan in the
name of Jesus or if you’re weak and feel helpless, God is with you always. He’s
with you always. Satan can scare you like he did to me in Haiti when I
was lying in bed listening to voodoo ceremonies. Satan can take away all your
possessions, your loved ones, your health (I am speaking of what happened to Job
here), but He cannot separate you from the love of God. “For I am convinced
that neither death nor life, nor angels nor demons, neither the present nor the
future, nor any powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all
creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus
our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39). The devil can hover over you at night, he can shout
at you, he can scare you in your dreams, he can whisper wicked thoughts into
your ear, but he CANNOT have possession of the children of God; YOU ARE OWNED
BY GOD. The great and holy God, creator of all, is in you and ultimately holds
all the power. For me this is comforting because I don’t always recognize the
authority inside me that I have to stand up to the Adversary, but I know at the
end of the day, God has victory – He has already won, and I am owned by Him.
When I came back to America from
Haiti, I had a greater sensitivity to the darkness and brokenness around me. It
was as if, previous to this trip, I was blind to the fact that the devil was seriously
at work in America. We can’t just ignore the fact that he’s at work around us –
it is good to be aware of this. However, do not become distracted or fearful
because of this, but rather always keep your eyes focused on the light that is
Christ. I think of it like this: there is darkness all around me – it’s not
just the absence of light, but the darkness is the wickedness and evil that
surrounds me – but there is a lantern that never goes out to guide my path. I
cling to that light because I need it to lead me through the darkness. I constantly follow it,
taking every step toward that light. "In him (Jesus) was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." (John 1:4-5)
There are two things of
encouragement I want those who love God to take away from this:
1.
I
encourage you to reflect on the fruitfulness of watching scary movies and
movies about demon possessions. Please recognize that the devil has a huge
stronghold in entertainment media – it’s very subtle, and we typically don’t
recognize it’s him, but that’s what makes it so dangerous. Are the movies you
watching putting bad thoughts and images into your head? What good is going to
come out of watching this? Is it glorifying to God?
“Therefore
put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the
implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” (James 1:21)
2.
God
is good. He owns you and lives inside of you. You have authority over the
darkness through the power in you. “But you are a chosen race, a royal
priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may
proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his
marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). Praise God! What an encouraging verse. We have
been called out of that darkness into his marvelous light.
3.
Recognize
the power in prayer. You are praying to the one who reigns over all! Both your
creator and your Father.
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