Demonization - One of the Most Misunderstood Spiritual Warfare Topics
This is part two of our spiritual warfare series. For the complete discussion of this topic, watch the episode on YouTube or listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Part One Link: The Hidden Spiritual Realm Most Christians Never Learn About — Rooted 4 Legacy
Intro
Few topics in the Christian world stir more confusion, debate, or discomfort than the question: Can a Christian be demonized? For many believers, the immediate response is an emphatic “no.” After all, how could someone filled with the Holy Spirit also experience demonic influence? We often hear the statement “A Christian can be demon-oppressed but not demon possessed.”
But as we look at the Greek word used in the Bible, walk through Scripture, and church history, the answer becomes far more important for believers seeking freedom and fullness in Christ.
Understanding the Word: Possessed vs Oppressed
If you are like us, you most likely hear two English words used when describing how demons operate and afflict people: possessed and oppressed. These terms have shaped many people's viewpoints and theology, but they do not exist in the original Greek.
In Greek, the New Testament uses one word:
daimonizomai — meaning to be under demonic affliction or influence.
This single term covers a spectrum of experiences, from mild torment to severe affliction, but it does not imply ownership.
This distinction is crucial. When we think of the word possession in English, we think of ownership, but ownership of us belongs to Christ alone. Influence and affliction, however, are a different matter — and Scripture gives us multiple examples.
Biblical Examples of Demonization Among God’s People
1. The Woman Bent Over for 18 Years (Luke 13:10-17)
Jesus describes her as:
“a daughter of Abraham, who Satan bound for 18 years.”
This phrase “daughter of Abraham” was a covenantal term referring to someone in right relationship with Yahweh. Yet she was afflicted by a “disabling spirit.”
Her healing required deliverance from a disabling spirit, not merely physical restoration.
2. The Mute Man (Matthew 9:32–33)
A demon caused his muteness. When Jesus cast out the demon, the man spoke. The physical condition was rooted in a demonic cause.
3. The Synagogue Attendee (Luke 4:33–36)
This man was worshiping in the synagogue — a place reserved for those in covenant with God and Scripture says that he had the spirit of an unclean demon. When Jesus was teaching, the demon manifested.
What is amazing about this story is that no one was surprised that a demon was present. What they were surprised at was the level of authority and power that Jesus wielded over the demon. People were used to seeing supernatural manifestations and attempting to conduct exorcisms, but having true authority over the demon was shocking to those present.
Why Demonization Happens: Open Doors & Legal Rights
Demonization occurs because there is an open door or legal right in a person’s life that provides an access point.
Open doors may include:
• Habitual sin
• Unforgiveness
• Occult involvement
• Generational patterns and curses
• Vows/oaths or rituals (e.g., Freemasonry)
• Trauma
• Soul ties
• Rebellion
• Idolatry
Paul warns believers directly in Ephesians 4:27, which says, “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.”
The Greek word for opportunity used is topos, meaning “a habitable space, spot, location, or opportunity.”
This aligns perfectly with a “squatter in the house” analogy:
Your spirit belongs to Christ.
But your soul and body can have “rooms” where squatters attempt to reside until evicted. A squatter never possesses or owns the home, but that does not stop them from taking up residence if they find an open door.
The Spectrum of Demonization
When we think of demonic affliction, the story in the Bible that probably comes to mind is that of the demoniac (legion) in Mark 5 — extreme, violent, dramatic.
But Scripture (referenced above) shows that not every person whom Jesus set free from demonization was in this severe condition. Many people were afflicted in ways that looked purely like physical conditions/sickness.
Once we understand that there is a spectrum, it allows us to begin discerning where the enemy may be operating in our lives as opposed to completely shutting out the possibility of demonic affliction.
Church History Confirms the Biblical Pattern
Early church fathers wrote about demonization among believers. Below are just a few examples (not an exhaustive list).
Tertullian (Tertullian, De Spectaculis (On the Shows), Chapter 26)
“We have the case of the woman…. who went to the theatre, and came back possessed. In the outcasting, accordingly, when the unclean creature was upbraided with having dared to attack a believer, he firmly replied, ‘And in truth I did it most righteously, for I found her in my domain.’”
Cyprian (Cyprian, Epistle 75 (To Magnus), Section 16)
“Some of those who are baptized in health, if subsequently they begin to sin, are shaken by the return of the unclean spirit, so that it is manifest that the devil is driven out in baptism…. and returns if the faith afterward shall fail.”
Augustine (Augustine The City of God (Book XXII) Chapter 8)
“A gouty doctor of the same city, when he had given in his name for baptism and had been prohibited the day before his baptism from being baptized that year, by black woolly-haired boys who appeared to him in his dreams, and whom he understood to be devils, and when, though they trod on his feet, and inflicted the acutest pain he had ever yet experienced, he refused to obey them, but overcame them, and would not defer being washed in the laver of regeneration, was relieved in the very act of baptism, not only of the extroadniary pain he was tortured with, but also of the disease itself..”
Early Church Practice
New converts often underwent deliverance before baptism to ensure they began discipleship free from spiritual bondage.
This was a normal practice of the early church.
Why the Church Today Disagrees on This Topic
• Abuse and superstition in medieval Catholicism
• The Protestant Reformation’s reaction against mystical practices
• Enlightenment rationalism
• Denominational fragmentation
• Cessationist theology
• Fear of appearing “extreme” or “charismatic”
The result?
A church that often denies the supernatural realm entirely or denies that believers could have levels of demonization occurring in their lives — leaving believers in bondage that Christ came to set them free from.
Why This Matters for Believers Today
Understanding demonization is not about fear, and it's not a salvation issue. It’s about freedom.
Jesus spent a significant portion of His ministry casting out demons. The apostles continued this work. Deliverance is part of the gospel — not an optional add-on.
If we ignore the spiritual realm, we often struggle unnecessarily and attempt to address spiritually rooted items as if they were battles of the flesh. If we embrace spiritual warfare fully, we walk in greater authority, clarity, and victory.
How to Discern If Something Is Spiritually Rooted
Assume it’s flesh first unless you have a really good reason to suspect otherwise (sleep paralysis, demonid dreams, voices, etc.).
Work on discipline, repentance, crucifying your flesh, and obedience.
If breakthrough doesn’t come…
If patterns in your own life or in your generations are unable to be broken…
If torment continues
If what you are experiencing doesn’t feel normal…
Then ask the Lord whether there is a spiritual root.
Discernment is key.
Conclusion: Yes, a Christian Can Be Demonized — But They Can Also Be Set Free and Should Not Go Into Fear
The Bible, church history, and real-life experience that we will share in future episodes all point to the same truth:
Believers can experience demonic affliction — but they cannot be owned/possessed, and they can absolutely be delivered into full freedom.
Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil.
Deliverance is part of that mission.
This topic is not about fear.
It’s about walking in the fullness Jesus paid for.
Prayer: Father God, we come to you today and thank you for the freedom and redemptive work that Christ paid for on the cross. We know your will is for us to walk in freedom and not walk in bondage from the enemy. Please open our eyes and show us what is in your word, and show us areas of our life where we may need to come against demonic affliction. We know you have given us authority over the demonic and ask that you teach us how to wield that authority appropriately. Lead us and guide us and give us the gift of discerning of spirits so we can understand the difference between our flesh and the demonic. Amen.
Praying for you all!
Ryan and Julie
For additional resources on this topic, we recommend two great books: Deliverance by Jon Thompson and Redacted: The Secret History of Exorcism by David M. Miller.
