Well, it seems like everybody and his brother is demon possessed. Who knew? I sure didn’t. Until…
A young woman I talked with is struggling to get over a dark past (not her fault). She’s relatively new in the faith. As she mentioned trying to stay strong in the Lord, she added, “But I know Jezebel wants…” Huh? In trying to clarify what she meant by “Jezebel” and where she got the idea, well, that’s when I discovered the avalanche of demon hype that’s out there. All kinds of books, podcasts, very specific details. Like, if a person’s behavior is A or B or C, he is possessed by demon X or Y or Z (specific names have been decided). And the person claiming to be an expert (sometimes billed as a “deliverance minister”) may have a step-by-step formula to free the person. A future post may dig into some of those sources a bit more. But for now, let’s zero in on two extremes.
To clarify: Some people might see hateful, domineering behavior in a person and comment, “Whoa, what a Jezebel spirit!” Meaning only, “That reminds me of wicked Queen Jezebel of ancient times.” It’s not saying the person is literally possessed by the “ghost” of that dead queen or by a literal demon named Jezebel. And even in fun situations, we might use “spirit,” like: “Have you seen that young rock singer? He’s got an Elvis spirit, for sure!” So the term “a such-and-such spirit” has legit, casual usage. What I’m challenging is the trend described above: that someone accused of having, for example, a Jezebel spirit, is literally possessed by a literal demon named Jezebel.
First Extreme
Kurt Koch was a renowned expert in the occult. (1913–1987; books published mostly in the 1970s; quotes here are from his Occult Bondage and Deliverance, p. 64.) Koch witnessed and reported on all kinds of occultism, including demonic subjection/oppression/possession. His works detail a bazillion case studies. Some of his comments are relevant as a caution against today’s trend.
Koch was outraged that a certain healer had told a Christian girl that she was possessed. Koch says, “Never in my life have I ever said to a person, ‘You are demon possessed,’ even on the occasions when I have actually felt this to be the case.” Koch would’ve been qualified more than most to make such a pronouncement. (And his material gives very specific signs of literal possession, based on his experience.) But Koch adds, “We can pray for a person without having to say what we think is wrong with him…. We must be very careful not to start jumping to conclusions in this area, and thereby become the victims of a kind of occult neurosis.” That last statement clicked with my concern about my friend—that she could become paranoid that she has a demon. “Occult neurosis.” I could imagine a person swallowing all the sales pitches, looking for a demon under every rock, and fretting, “Oh, I’m so angry! Maybe I have the demon named . But I’m frustrated too, so maybe it’s the demon . Oh, no! Might I have both? What if I can’t figure this out?!”
So first, we don’t need to jump to a diagnosis of literal demon possession. Then…
Second Extreme
It also struck me that assigning everything to demon possession could minimize our own sense of accountability/responsibility. Koch mentioned that many things have “a quite natural explanation.” Don’t misunderstand. Yes, the dark side is always aiming to influence and tempt us: “The devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). But we humans also have “natural,” self-centered/sinful leanings. “Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed” (James 1:14).
I’ll attempt a hypothetical example here. Imagine that some “deliverance” formula or declaration has been employed to get rid of the supposed demon, but the behavior persists. Mightn’t we sink into thinking, “Hmm, guess that thing is still here. Not MY fault. I’m trying to get rid of it. Can’t help it that nothing’s working yet.” So we might not step toward the instruction in 1 Peter 5:9: “Resist [Satan], standing firm in the faith.”
And the Bible tells us much about how to fight our battles. For example: “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God” (Ephesians 6:10, 11), which includes the Word as our sword (v 17). And Romans 8:28-39 just sizzles (!) about Jesus “interceding for us” (v 34) and that “we are more than conquerors through him” (v 37).
* * *
So my take on the current fad is that: (1) there’s an unfortunate over-diagnosing of literal demon possession, forgetting that it’s a rare occurrence; and (2) there’s potential danger of avoiding personal responsibility for one’s actions.
Not saying it’s always easy to “stand firm” in the Lord, to “let nothing move you” (1 Corinthians 15:58). But let’s leave Jezebel out of it. She’s dead.
