Is there such a thing as demonic influence or spiritual causes for disease? and is this the reason you’re ill today?
According to the Gospels, demons are everywhere! Jesus delivered people from demonic influence all the time and often the demons did cause sickness and disease.
Today we look at demonic influence today and whether or not this is something that causes sickness. More specifically you’re going to learn
- about the roots of disease
- demonic influence in the Bible
- whether demons exist Today
- demon possession
- the causes of disease
- curses
- the occult
- how to apply our freedom in Christ
I remember 20 odd years ago, deliverance ministry was strong amongst Christian healing ministries around the globe.
If your relationship with God is weak, you’ll believe what people tell you.
But when you develop a much stronger relationship with the Godhead and can hear the Holy Spirit for yourself, and follow His leading in your healing journey.
Has anyone ever told you (or maybe you believe yourself) that demonic influence is causing your illness?
I hope this post will help you relax a little and that my experiences in this area will set you free from any confusion you have about the relationship between evil spirits and disease.
SPIRITUAL ROOTS FOR DISEASE
Just to ensure we’re on the same page, let me clarify. I’m referring to the devil and his army of workers.
We know that sickness didn’t exist before The Fall so you could argue that illness and the devil are linked because of this.
One of my favourite verses is John 10:10 where it says ‘The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy…’ suggesting that the devil is behind illness.
However, my own personal conclusion is that you and I are subject to illness because we live where the ‘prince of this world’ reigns.
As we journey through life, we accumulate stresses, navigate traumas and cope with toxic environments and people.
The environment in which we’re born may position ourselves for illness later in life.
I believe the cause of an illness is usually a perfect storm of ingredients which over time manifest themselves as sickness.
To me, this is the same as an illness having spiritual roots. There is a cause, which isn’t physical.
So I guess you could say I do agree that there are spiritual causes for disease, I just don’t believe it’s because we’ve opened the door to demons other than in exceptional circumstances.
I would say we’re sick because we’re in this world, not necessarily because we’re opened the door to satan and his cohort.
For example, fear and shame are huge roots of illness. The Bible says fear is a spirit, so yes then there are spiritual roots of illness.
Mind-body doctors agree that fear and shame accumulate in a person’s body and could cause disease later on in life.
They call these emotions though, and not evil spirits.
I appreciate there are people out there who disagree with this and that’s ok.
DEMONIC INFLUENCE IN SCRIPTURE
In the Gospels demons were responsible for illness and disease.
and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. Luke 13:11
This woman clearly had a disease caused by the devil. Some type of curse afflicted her body and caused absolute misery. The number 18 is 6 + 6 + 6.
Can such spirits cause us our health problems?
This woman lived prior to the death and resurrection of Jesus, WHICH IS SO RELEVANT.
DO DEMON SPIRITS EXIST TODAY?
From Acts onwards, Scripture rarely refers to demon spirits which suggests that demonic influence today is nowhere near as rife as before Jesus died.
BUT DEMONS DO STILL EXIST.
The enemy is very real.
Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:9
We’re also warned to ‘resist the devil, and will flee’ James 4:7. This suggests to us that we need to be vigilant whilst we’re in this world.
The devil can’t be in more than one place so has an army of ‘evil spirits’ to do his work for him.
However as Christians, a demon cannot possess you.
YOU ARE NOT DEMON POSSESSED
Are you familiar with the story of Balaak and Balaam? Balaak instructs Balaam to curse the children of Israel, to which Balaam replies
But how can I curse those whom God has not cursed? How can I condemn those whom the LORD has not condemned?
Numbers 23:8
If God’s people were safe from the curse of others, how much more you and I as children of God in the new covenant?
I don’t see how anyone or anything can curse you (with sickness).
And as a child of God “your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you” 1 Cor 6:19. No darkness can exist where there is light.
A demon cannot possess you if you’re a child of God. The Holy Spirit and an evil spirit cannot exist together.
WHAT ARE THE CAUSES FOR DISEASE?
Experts like Irene Lyon have discovered the root of illness often lies within the disregulation of the nervous system. Faulty wiring in early childhood, developmental trauma or accumulated stress spanning many years causes such disregulation.
Clinicians world-wide use the ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences) study to prove that trauma early on in life causes disease and disability in adulthood.
Christian Neuro-scientist Caroline Leaf teaches along the same lines.
I don’t recall any of the above mentioning demons, evil spirits or the spiritual causes for disease. But they do all agree, the cause of illness is non physical.
FREEDOM IN CHRIST
Many years ago, I visited a church who gave me a print out of the ‘evil spirits’ within me (which they deduced according to all the health problems I had) ; there were at least 50!
Of course I’m grateful they were trying to help, but actually it did the opposite. It was very depressing.
I do believe in seeking God for freedom from anything hindering. I probably wouldn’t use the term deliverance but really ‘deliverance’ and ‘freedom from’ mean the same thing.
How does God do this?
- The Word of God sets us free (or delivers) us.
God’s word is powerful, living and active (Her 4:12) and I believe it causes transformation physically, spiritually and emotionally.
I’m sure, if you’re a Christian, you will have noticed how the Word of God has changed and freed (or delivered) you, sometimes unconsciously. You look back at the journey, and you see change.
- God asks us to speak to the mountain. (Mark 11:23). The power of our words also frees us. See SPEAK LIFE OVER YOURSELF AND SEE CHANGE IN YOUR BODY
- I have often been to church services where The Holy Spirit has done something within me. I leave the service differently, lighter as though something has shifted which I can’t cognitively explain.
Often this is how God, via His Holy Spirit, sets us free. But I still wouldn’t class this as ‘deliverance from evil spirits per se’.
Our eyes are on Jesus who heals and sets free.
As I walk this healing journey, God tells me, by His Spirit, what my next step is. He doesn’t highlight all the ‘evil spirits and demons’ I need to be free from, it’s just not how He operates.
CURSES FROM OBJECTS
I’m sure you know people who pray before they touch people and things, just in case they catch a demon from it?
If this were true, we’d all have to walk around naked and live in bare homes. After all, who knows where clothes or furniture have come from?
Yet we see Jesus touching the demon-possessed. He knew that the power of God in Him was greater than He who is in the world.
He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
1 John 4:4
If you ever touch something (or someone) that is carrying any kind of curse, it will not defile you.
Remember Jesus touched the leper and he was cleansed, His power was greater. You are not sick because you’ve touched something.
CURSES OF WORDS
We can ‘curse’ ourselves with our words though. When we speak something into the atmosphere, it’s a bit like reinforcing something with glue.
See LIFE AND DEATH IS IN THE POWER OF THE TONGUE.
“I’ll end up in a wheelchair…….I’ll be in pain forever…..This illness will only get worse…..”
Words are powerful and have creative power, it’s the way God has beautifully designed us. BUT I DON’T AGREE THAT THIS IS THE SAME AS DEMONIC INFLUENCE
We really do need to watch we speak over our lives. If you’re living with an illness, the worse thing you can do is talk about it as this keeps the illness alive.
Sometimes other people speak negatively about our situations. God has given us the authority to refute these words.
I don’t think it’s that the person has cursed you, but it’s the fact you believe the words that cause them to damage you.
If a dr pronounces something ‘negative’ over your situation, I believe you can refute these words in the quietness of your own heart. This will break any power the dr’s words have.
God has given you authority to stand against words spoken over you.
IS THE OCCULT REAL?
A Chinese medicinal practitioner may chant over an individual. My understanding is that this could very well open a door to spiritual causes of disease so I suggest you not go down this route.
There are plenty of people who do engage in the occult however but they’re not sick. They may have opened the door to other problems, but I don’t know of any evidence that sickness is one of them.
I love watching Netflix, especially thrillers, but I would steer clear of anything which suggests supernatural involvement.
Mainly because I love the Lord and He has asked me not to, not because I think I’ll end up with some kind of disease.
It’s wise to steer clear of any glorification of witches and Halloween, as well as avoiding ouija boards
If you’re ill today, and you know you have had some kind of strong involvement with the Occult, like engaging with witchcraft, I suggest you talk this through and gain some prayer from your church leader.
LET’S TRUST GOD
If demons cause sicknesses today, then why aren’t the most evil people in the world sick? Why weren’t Hitler or Saddam Hussein chronically ill?
I believe that demons causing illness is a small slice of the pie and I would encourage anyone within the healing ministry to seek God in this area for themselves.
If a demon is making you ill, surely your loving Father in heaven would make this clear to you?
What would the Christian healing ministry look like if the church adopted the teaching that trauma causes illness and not demons or sin?
Heal the trauma, heal the disease.
Do you think there might be spiritual causes for disease? Has this post helped you in any way?
Have a great rest of the week
Lorna x
Have you read
IS GOD PUNISHING ME WITH SICKNESS?
BY JESUS STRIPES: DOES THIS INCLUDE PHYSICAL HEALING?
(Please remember that these are my own beliefs and thoughts, I know there are Christians out there who would disagree, and this is okay. This is where I’m at at the moment)