Can Christians Be Demon Possessed?

Routinely, people ask me if Christians can be possessed by demons. Although we use the phrase demon possessed regularly to refer to people who seem to be under Satan’s influence, there is no such phrase found anywhere in the Bible. Instead, the New Testament writers used the term demonized to describe someone who is under the influence of evil (this is the meaning of the Greek word used in Luke 8:27, to describe the man most English translations describe as being “possessed with demons”).

Can a Christian be possessed or owned by Satan and his demons?

Absolutely not.

The moment you trust in Christ as your Savior, God permanently marks you as His property giving you His Spirit. Since God has never been One to believe in joint ownership, if you belong to Him, you cannot be possessed by anyone else.

Possession Versus Influence

The real question is not whether Christians can be possessed by demons, but whether Christians can be influenced by demons. Consider an exchange between Jesus and the apostle Peter. After the Lord revealed to His disciples His impending crucifixion and resurrection, Peter attempted to persuade Jesus that such suffering was unnecessary.

“Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, ‘God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” (Matthew 16:22)

Jesus immediately recognized the origin of this temptation to bypass the cross and circumvent God’s plan for the redemption of mankind. Peter was simply acting as a mouthpiece for someone else.

“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 God’s interests, but man’s.’” (Matthew 16:23)

Jesus was not implying Peter was possessed by Satan, but that he certainly was being influenced by Satan. Some theological types might argue, “Yes, but that happened before the Day of Pentecost when God sent the Holy Spirit to permanently indwell believers. Today Christians cannot be influenced by Satan like Peter was.” Really? Consider the experience of two Christians who were controlled by Satan (or his demons) after Pentecost.

Ananias and his wife, Sapphira, were members of the church in Jerusalem. As such, there is no reason to suspect they were not genuine believers. However, in an attempt to receive the same kind of adulation that was heaped on another church member named Barnabas (he had sold property and given all the proceeds to the church), this couple also made a generous gift to the church. They lied, however, saying they had given all the money to God’s work when, in fact, they kept a portion of the sale price for themselves.

As a result of their sin, both Ananias and Sapphira were struck dead by the Holy Spirit of God before the eyes of the entire congregation! Although Ananias was a believer who was indwelt by the Holy Spirit (remember, this event occurred after the coming of the Holy Spirit to every believer at Pentecost), his heart was “filled” (the word means “controlled”) by Satan.

How can someone be indwelt by the Holy Spirit and also be filled with Satan at the same time? As I discussed more fully in a previous book, I Want More!, there is a difference between what the New Testament calls the baptism with the Holy Spirit and the “filling by the Holy Spirit.” Every person who trusts in Christ is immediately baptized with the Holy Spirit. The baptism with the Holy Spirit is the one-time act of God by which a Christian is joined together with Jesus Christ and is permanently indwelt by the Holy Spirit. It is part of the basic package for every Christian, as Paul reminded the Christians in Corinth:

“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 12:13)

While every Christian is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, not every believer is empowered by the Holy Spirit. The biblical term for being controlled by God’s Spirit is the word filled. While Christians are never commanded to be baptized with the Spirit (that’s God’s responsibility), we are commanded to be filled with the Spirit (that’s our responsibility).

The word translated “filled” is a nautical term that refers to the filling of a ship’s sail with wind. The ship is filled or controlled by the wind. Similarly, Christians are to allow themselves to be directed by the Holy Spirit of God. Unlike the baptism with the Spirit, which is a one-time experience, the phrase “filled with the Spirit” denotes a continuous action. We must daily, if not hourly, decide what is going to direct our lives: God’s will, our will, or Satan’s will.

What does this short treatise on the Holy Spirit have to do with demons? While no Christian can be possessed by a demon, we can be influenced by demons. Any area of our lives that is not controlled by the Holy Spirit is vulnerable to being controlled by Satan and his forces.

You may remember from physics that nature abhors a vacuum. The same truth applies to the spiritual realm. Some spiritual force is going to fill or control your life. Any area of your existence—finances, marriage, work, morality—that is not being directed by the Holy Spirit is vulnerable to being controlled by demonic influences.

The key to resisting demonic influences in our lives is to make sure that every area of our lives is filled or controlled by God. May we all seek to be directed by the Spirit—every minute of every day.

Adapted from The Divine Defense by Robert Jeffress. Copyright © 2006 by Robert Jeffress. Published by WaterBrook, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. Tune in to LIFE TODAY this Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 18 and 19, to glean from Robert Jeffress’s insights.