In a recent sermon, I preached on Jesus casting out demons and healing people from the end of Luke 4. I distinguished between the ordinary and extraordinary demonic, as the Scriptures do:
Ordinary Demonic
- Sexual sin (2 Cor. 7:5)
- Marriage between Christians and non-Christians (2 Cor. 6:15)
- False religion, false teaching, false Jesus (1 Cor. 10:14–22; 1 Tim. 4:1–2; 2 Cor. 11:1–4)
- Bitterness (Eph. 4:17–5:2)
- Foolishness and drunkenness (Eph. 5:8–21)
- Idle gossip and busybodying (1 Tim. 5:11–15)
- Lies (John 8:44)
- Idolatry (1 John 5:18–21)
Extraordinary Demonic
- Torment (Acts 5:16)
- Physical injury (Matt. 9:32–33; 12:22–23; Acts 8:4–8)
- False miracles (Acts 8:9–23; 16:16; 2 Thess. 2:9–10)
- Accusation (Rev. 12:10)
- Death (Prov. 8:36)
- Murder/Suicide (John 8:44)
- False spirits and spirituality (1 John 4:1–6)
The topic of spiritual warfare commonly raises a large number of questions. In an effort to answer many questions and offer an introduction to spiritual warfare, a few years ago I taught a lecture on the subject to the Mars Hill staff. You can find the lecture in audio and video formats, as well as the lecture notes, here. I also recommend the following resources for those who want to pursue further study on Satan and demons. Since spiritual warfare includes battling the world, the flesh, and the devil, books for each of these categories are listed.
Books on the world and the flesh:
- Getting to No: How to Break a Stubborn Habit by Erwin W. Lutzer
- Overcoming Sin and Temptation by John Owen
- Addiction and Grace: Love and Spirituality in the Healing of Addictions by Gerald G. May
- Flirting with the World: A Challenge to Loyalty by John White
- The Enemy Within: Straight Talk about the Power and Defeat of Sin by Kris Lundgaard
Books on the devil:
- For a good introduction to the demonic in the New Testament, much insight can be found in Powers of Darkness: Principalities and Powers in Paul’s Letters by Clinton E. Arnold.
- For a practical understanding, I recommend Three Crucial Questions about Spiritual Warfare by Clinton E. Arnold, Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices by Thomas Brooks, The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis, and Lord Foulgrin’s Letters and The Ishbane Conspiracy by Randy Alcorn.
