Colossians 1:15-23, Part 10

Demons, on the other hand, are strong, intelligent, but evil spirits that are in constant opposition against God, his purpose, and his people. Theologians are careful to note that demons were not created evil, but that they are fallen spirits. This is accurate as far as it goes, but when these theologians use it to distance God from the origin of evil, we must respond that their effort is unbiblical, irrational, and unnecessary.

Some recognize the fact that the sovereignty of God and the freedom of creatures are incompatible. But if the demons became evil by an autonomous self-determination, then this is dualism, and theism itself is overthrown. Distancing God from evil then becomes the least of our concerns. This is the position that all attempts at metaphysically distancing God from the origin of evil put us in – they destroy theism itself.

And then there are those who claim that the two are compatible. However, when the context has to do with the cause of an event relative to divine sovereignty, it is self-contradictory to say that a creature's change of nature from good to evil, or even a simple decision to perform evil, is at the same time God-determined and self-determined. But this is the absurdity that results from trying to preserve both the sovereignty of God and the freedom of creatures. Since divine sovereignty is by definition an absolute and exhaustive control, the two are never compatible.

It is said that the self-determination refers not to a freedom from God, but to a person's ability to decide according to his own desires, and in a manner that is free from coercion. The subtle deception here is that "God-determined" and "self-determined" (or equivalent terms) are now used to address two different questions. The first term, "God-determined," specifies the metaphysical cause behind all events. So if the second term, "self-determined," refers to the metaphysical cause behind one's decision, it gives a contradictory answer to the same question. Also, it is dualism, which is blasphemy. On the other hand, if it addresses the event from a "lower" reference point, on the level of consciousness (desires, coercion, etc.) rather than metaphysics, then it has changed the question before answering it, which makes the answer deceptive and irrelevant.

Those who advocate compatibilism make much of the claim that the decisions of creatures are not "coerced," but this is again deceptive and irrelevant. Coercion is not a thing in itself – it is something that a person or object does to another. If it is said that a man is not coerced by other creatures in making his decision, then it is irrelevant because we are talking about divine sovereignty – the sovereignty of God relative to the decisions of creatures. But if it is said that man is not coerced by God in making his decision, then we must still ask why he is not coerced. If God exercises a genuinely absolute sovereignty, then the man is not coerced only because God so completely controls him, including all his desires and the principle that he will decide according to his desires, that there is no need for coercion – it simply does not apply.

God's sovereignty necessarily implies that he is the author of sin, that is, the metaphysical cause of it; otherwise, Satan and Adam could not have turned evil. Many theologians perceive this but refuse to follow through with it. And so they just call the entire question a "mystery," while the unbelievers rejoice in this hopeless inconsistency, and deride the Christian faith as if Scripture teaches this self-contradiction. God is the author of sin – it is blasphemy to say otherwise, for it would attribute the very power of God, of metaphysical causation, or of even creation itself, to demons and to men. Nevertheless, under God's control, the sinners are the ones who break his moral laws, and they are judged relative to these moral laws, not relative to the metaphysical cause behind their transgressions. There is no mystery or inconsistency here. The only hurdle is religious tradition that upholds the teachings of man rather than the word of God.

As for demonic activities and their place in human lives, unbelievers are children of the devil, and they are vulnerable to all kinds of demonic attacks and influences, resulting in lust, greed, rage, violence, insanity, and so on, but God's people are delivered from demonic powers through Jesus Christ. They can be tempted by the devil, just as Satan tempted Christ in the wilderness, and they can be assaulted by the devil's children, just as Christ suffered at the hands of the Jews and the Romans. But in all things we possess the victory through faith in Christ, because he has overcome all temptations and persecutions, including the power of death.

Demonic activities were already rampant before the coming of Christ, but God's people had limited abilities and options in dealing with them. The spiritual ministry of an anointed one could at times provide relief for the demonized person: "Now the Spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD tormented him….Whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would take his harp and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him" (1 Samuel 16:14, 23). The evil spirit was under God's direct command, and not regulated by some "permissive" sovereignty, a ridiculous theological invention that is unbiblical and self-contradictory.

The forceful expulsion of demons from persons under their influence is a sign of the kingdom, that is, a sign that the king has come, and that he is enduing his people with power and sending them forth as his heralds. As Jesus says, "But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Matthew 12:28). Even the demons bore him witness in their panic and confusion, exclaiming in effect, "What are you doing here? Have you come to send us to the pit before the appointed time?" He was not a prophet like any other, but the very Son of God. They recognized him, and they were mystified as to why he visited the earth in person.

Christians usually ignore Christ's command to cast out demons. One reason for this is the false doctrine of cessationism. Although not all cessationists think the same way, some of them argue that since the time of Christ and the apostles, the kind of demonic activities that we refer to have reduced or ceased. However, there is no biblical evidence to suggest this. And if we were to consider the contemporary cases of possible demonization, we might have to conclude that these activities have greatly multiplied, perhaps due to the neglect of this very ministry of casting out demons. Now, I agree that extra-biblical cases can at best illustrate a biblical teaching and not serve as a conclusive demonstration of a position. But this is precisely the point: unless there is a definitive demonstration from Scripture, to teach that it is no longer a Christian's duty to cast out demons is to teach rebellion against a clear command from Christ.

Even in the absence of any biblical argument to excuse them, some people just prefer not to deal with this. So when it comes to contemporary instances of demonized persons, they either stick their heads in the sand and pretend these things can no longer happen, or they shove these people into mental institutions and lock them up, so that these maniacs cannot trample their impotent theology. But psychiatrists and medications are no match for demons.

In any case, if anyone would teach that a command of Christ is no longer applicable, he better be sure, lest he falls under the curse of Matthew 5:19 and be regarded as a worthless servant. Are you so sure that you will tell someone to stop doing what Christ said to do? Are you so sure that you will criticize and even persecute those who continue to do what Christ commanded? If so, then make your case. If not, then shut your mouth. Tradition can be effective in hiding unbelief and disobedience (at least from ourselves), but when it seeks to subvert God's command, we must defy what authority that these men credit to themselves and to one another, even in the face of severe persecution unleashed by those who call themselves Christians, and instead follow the command of Christ with boldness of speech and action.

Perhaps it is better that the cessationists leave the demons alone, for the fallen spirits might say to them, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?" (Acts 19:15), and then overpower them and beat them (v. 16). Demons will submit to servants of Christ who act boldly in his name, and not to credentials and reputations that men have conferred upon one another. It is not that God and Satan have ceased their extraordinary activities in the world, but that faith has ceased in the hearts of the cessationists.

It is sometimes said that a "Reformed charismatic" is an oxymoron. This can be contested on both theological and historical grounds, but so what if it is granted? So what? Why does anyone need to call himself "Reformed" or "Charismatic"? Those who make this claim assume a meaning for "Reformed" and a meaning for "charismatic" that are incompatible with each other, and then jam them together and slap the label on people, thus appearing to make their opponents look foolish. It is just as easy, and more accurate, to say that a Christian Cessationist is an oxymoron, not that cessationists are unbelievers (although many of them are crippled with severe unbelief), but that cessationism is incompatible with Christianity. Also, the objection itself betrays that they value tradition in their hearts, and not Christ. This is the murderous spirit of the Pharisees, else why do they persecute their brothers who heal the sick, cast out demons, and desire spiritual gifts, as Scripture commands all Christians to do?

One argument is that ever since Christ's triumph over Satan, God has placed strong restraints upon demonic activities, so we ought not to come across the kinds of demonizations that are recorded in Scripture. There are variations of this argument. But this is a forced inference that is contradicted by Scripture. Christ's triumph over Satan does not make it unnecessary for believers to cast out demons; rather, it has made it possible. And Christ's triumph did not occur at the completion of the canon of Scripture, but at his crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. All of this has already happened by the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles, but evil spirits continued to demonize people, and believers continued to cast them out. If some Christians insist on their defiance against Christ on this matter, at least they should refrain from criticizing and persecuting those who obey him.

Regarding the ministry of casting out demons, if a person's first reaction is disbelief and ridicule, he would do well to examine his own attitude toward God and the Scripture, rather than to criticize those who attempt to obey Christ's command on the matter, and to face the evil one on the behalf of those oppressed by him. Casting out demons was an integral and consistent ministry of Christ and the apostles, so that a person's attitude to this ministry also reflects his attitude toward them. To argue for a cessation of these activities is one thing, although this is an assault on the Christian faith, but to mock the ministry itself is to mock Christ and his holy servants. There are many who commit this evil today. It is far better for them to acknowledge their unbelief, cowardice, and disobedience in failing to obey Christ's command.

We have stated that humans are not to initiate contact with angels, but can only respond to contact initiated by them, if such should occur. A similar principle applies here. The kind of confrontation that is involved in casting out demons is not to be initiated by believers. Some charismatics who advocate a "ministry of deliverance" have indeed carried it to an extreme, attributing even ordinary flaws and habits in people's lives to demonic activities.

Although there is a sense in which Satan's hand is behind all wickedness, this is not the kind of demonic activity that we have in mind in this context, and it is unbiblical to constantly suspect or look for demonic activities in people. Rather, the biblical pattern is that when the demonization becomes so evident that the victim's mind and body are taken over in an obvious manner, when the demons begin to overtly express themselves through a person, then believers are to confront this situation head-on and command the evil spirits to depart. Demonic powers are involved in many other instances of evil, but in ordinary cases the biblical teaching is for us to utilize the usual methods of ministry to overcome them, such as prayer and preaching. That is, in ordinary situations there is no need to distinguish between demonic or human evil, for they are addressed in the same manner.

Again, in our context the most important point is that Christ is greater than all demons, not as an angel, nor as a man, and not as God only, but as the incarnation of God, the God-man, Jesus Christ. And as Christians, we have authority over the father and master of all non-Christians, that is, the devil.