Identifying demon possessed persons.

[SHINY707]

Can anyone here help me understand how can we indentify a demon possessed person ? Is it enough to see some abnormalities in a person and think that person to be demon possessed? I had once visited a church and there was a married lady and as we were worshipping , she just stood up and said I am going and her husband held her tight and she created a sort of drama ,I did't understand anything there, everyone were asked to pray for her, and next day she was just fine.A friend of mine who was a member of that church told me that she was possessed with demon. Actually I don't believe that she had a demon, more I thought that man was forcing her to stay. I don't know how to identify a demon possessed person , especially in a church.Again I once visited a church and when I was talking to the pastor , he told me something that I didn't understand at all. He said his church got a bad name , as people say that he fills people with demons. I don't know anything about all these confusing demon possession part and demon filling part.

I do know as christians, we are to fix our focus on Christ, and meditate on the law of the Lord. But these questions puzzle me and I really wish someone can tell me something about sighns of demon possessed persons.

 

[kenisyes]

There is no way to be absolutely certain. The problem is that the original Scriptures do not use the phrase "possessed by". The phrase comes into English as the closest equivalent of Greek middle voice in the case of pagans, and then is read back into a the Greek term "demonized" appleid to Jews, which is non-specific as to who is owning whom. Recall, Jesus is accused of "having a devil" by the crowds. There are also serious issues about what the precise relationship is between Satan, fallen angels, and demons. As a result, each denomination, and each person, has their own understanding and theology. There is also a vast body of anthropological literature that many deliverances are social rituals.

No matter what the reality of the situation (possession, obsession, etc.), Jesus always helps, prayer never hurts, and we DO have authority over all powers, prinicipalities, etc., in His name. So whatever position you or a given pastor holds to, as long as it is within a relationship with Jesus, some will be helped, and some offense will probably be taken by someone somewhere along the way.

 

[my_adonai_]

there are ways to find out
try the spirits, any demon will manifest itself when you authoratively rebuke IT in the name of JESUS.
and the gift of discerning of spirits is awesome, it does ease the work of identifying the spirit inside a person.

when you are close to GOD, HE can just give you an unction to rebuke,

at times anything that disrupts order in the church does not have Godly roots, and yes it can be fleshly or of the devil.

phew it is not easy, spiritual matters are not easy, thats why we need the HOLY SPIRIT

at times i could tell if a person had a demon, just happened. and when these people where being laid hands on, the demon would manifest itself. but it was not by experience, but through the HOLY GHOST.

remember that woman in ACTS that PAUL rebuked? was she openly cursing them? no she said :THESE ARE SERVANTS OF THE MOST HIGH GOD:"a quick judgement would be, she is just introducing us, maybe we should go say hello, but the Holy Spirit revealed to paul that she had a demon. and the demon was introducing them. why? thats another study.

Hope this helped. Draw nigh to GOD, and HE will draw nigh to you, when HE saturates HIMSELF in you. and have more of HIM in you, these matters would be less difficult. but when the flesh gets in the way, it is IMPOSSIBLE. why? the devil flourishes in those who walking according to the flesh, he knows there is no GOD in the flesh..

 

[Theophane]

Hello Shiny,

If you search the Internet you can find websites that discuss the symptoms of demonic possession and demonic oppression, but I can tell you that in real life it isn't as obvious as what we saw in that movie The Exorcist.

 

[my_adonai_]

Hello Shiny,

If you search the Internet you can find websites that discuss the symptoms of demonic possession and demonic oppression, but I can tell you that in real life it isn't as obvious as what we saw in that movie The Exorcist.

like this, and yes you can know a tree by its fruit. people who have certain kinds of demons, show certain kinds of actions, have certain ways of speaking. but necessary all that are haughty are possessed, they could be influenced but not possessed

and not all that can not sleep well at night are Oppressed by demons, could be that they are too stressful on a certain matter.

and not all that sulk are depressed because of demons, they have just decided to give up.

one can understand that, we Give place for the devil. or we choose not to.

 

[Theophane]

like this, and yes you can know a tree by its fruit. people who have certain kinds of demons, show certain kinds of actions, have certain ways of speaking. but necessary all that are haughty are possessed, they could be influenced but not possessed

and not all that can not sleep well at night are Oppressed by demons, could be that they are too stressful on a certain matter.

and not all that sulk are depressed because of demons, they have just decided to give up.

one can understand that, we Give place for the devil. or we choose not to.

Right!

Evil can't come in unless we invite it in. In the David Lynch movie Lost Highway when the character Fred Madison demands to know how the Mystery Man (played by the real-life murderer Robert Blake) got into his house, Mystery Man (who is implied to be the Devil) has this to say:

"It is not my custom to go where I am not wanted."

Think about that.

 

[PeteWaldo]

Can anyone here help me understand how can we indentify a demon possessed person?

You could start by considering those who chronically post multiple successive posts, particularly while quoting themselves thereby engaging in an exchange with themselves, while putting effort into flushing away truth of other posters, by flooding with posts unrelated to the topic. Particularly while replying to posts addressed to others who were engaged in their own exchange.

 

[danschance]

Here is a partial list of traits common to those with issues of demonic involvement The more traits you have in common with this list, the more risk one has of having a demonic issue.

1) Abusive childhood or a traumatic experience up to age 15. (May have some amnesia of this trauma)

2) Issues with depression or anxiety

3) Suicidal thoughts or Attempted Suicide

4) Self harm (cutting, burning, hair pulling, hitting or biting ones self.)

5) Victim of sexual abuse.

6) Previously seen a ghost or spirit or felt the presence of one.

7) Possess spiritual abilities. (psychic, telekinetic, communicating with spirits, etc)

8) Frequent Nightmares or frequent night terrors

9) Sudden shift in emotions (explosive anger that comes out of no where, tears for no reason, separate personality, etc)

10) Occult or paranormal proclivities. Fascinated with ghosts, psychics, UFOs, Ouija board, vampires, the paranormal, Kabalah, witchcraft, etc.

 

[SHINY707]

I THANK ALL MY BROTHERS IN CHRIST WHO HAVE SHARED THEIR PRECIOUS KNOWLEDGE IN THIS TOPIC.

I began this topic because since became a believer, I have heard lots of pastors say many things about demon possession. But no one ever gave a solid reason why did they claim a person to be demon possessed. I consider that God's kingdom is based on knowledge, truth , order and it is important to base our conclusions on knowledge and truth.

When we learn about how the Lord healed the demon or unclean spirit possessed persons, we find that they showed some symptoms as we read in the word of God:

Luke 9:37-42
[SUP]37 [/SUP]The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. [SUP]38 [/SUP]A man in the crowd called out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. [SUP]39 [/SUP]A spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams; it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him and is destroying him. [SUP]40 [/SUP]I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not.”
[SUP]41 [/SUP]“You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.”
[SUP]42 [/SUP]Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the impure spirit, healed the boy and gave him back to his father.

MARK 5:2-7
[SUP]2 [/SUP]When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. [SUP]3 [/SUP]This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. [SUP]4 [/SUP]For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. [SUP]5 [/SUP]Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.
[SUP]6 [/SUP]When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. [SUP]7 [/SUP]He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!”

LUKE 4:33-34
[SUP]33 [/SUP]In the synagogue there was a man possessed by a demon, an impure spirit. He cried out at the top of his voice, [SUP]34 [/SUP]“Go away! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”

As we learn it ,there are:
1: physical symptoms
2:they are afraid of Christ.
3:they have self destructive nature.
4:they question the divine authority.

I have prayed to God to give me knowledge and insight to distinguish a demon possessed person and a normal person and I got a thought from the Lord:
There are 3 categories of behaviour:
1:Godly nature based on the word of God.
2:Human nature based on human instincts and feelings.
3:demonic nature that has nothing to do with Godly nature or human nature.

demonic nature has a power that is neither found in human nature and is not from God.They are distinguished. And as we learn the Lord always rebuked the demons. So it is necessary to rebuke the demons in demons possessed persons, nothing else will work on them.

This is just a thought I got when I prayed.

 

[SHINY707]

I just wanted to add prayer and fasting, as the other way to receive deliverance from demon-possession.

 

[RedTent]

This is a very dangerous subject. We have an illustration in Joan of Arc and the witches of Salem. It is important for us to ask ourselves why we are interested in this subject. If it is because we enjoy judging, best to just get it out of our minds.

A christian man who has worked with people that he knows were demon possessed because he was there when demons were ejected wrote a book about it. It is "People of the Lie" by Peck. It is a book written to help us identify evil. He warns against trying to find the evil in others. If you don't want to read the entire book, the net has several good reviews of the book.

Any time we explore scripture, good, God we are on solid ground. Exploring demons has to be done only when we have wrapped ourselves in the full armor of God.

 

[coconut]

I don't think the average believer would be able to discern an individual who is demon possessed. The reason being is because they are not walking in the light of truth through the Spirit. They are walking as dead people who have never learned to be quickened by the Spirit. This is how dead orthodoxy operates and how it infiltrates the church robbing it of the Spirit that gives believers life, resurrection life, to be able to discern the things of God and to know those things that are of God and what is of the kingdom of darkness.

 

[danschance]

This is a very dangerous subject. We have an illustration in Joan of Arc and the witches of Salem. It is important for us to ask ourselves why we are interested in this subject. If it is because we enjoy judging, best to just get it out of our minds.

A christian man who has worked with people that he knows were demon possessed because he was there when demons were ejected wrote a book about it. It is "People of the Lie" by Peck. It is a book written to help us identify evil. He warns against trying to find the evil in others. If you don't want to read the entire book, the net has several good reviews of the book.

Any time we explore scripture, good, God we are on solid ground. Exploring demons has to be done only when we have wrapped ourselves in the full armor of God.

I think it is a neglected topic among Christians. Most Christians get their ideas on demons from Hollywood movies and not reality. In the New Testament, demons and demonization is talked about as frequently as healing the sick. There is no topic in the bible which is taboo, especially among Christians. We should expose the things Satan does and be aware of the enemies schemes to protect our self and others.

 

[TheAristocat]

and we DO have authority over all powers, prinicipalities, etc., in His name.

Could I get a verse reference for this, please?

 

[my_adonai_]

3:demonic nature that has nothing to do with Godly nature or human nature.

demonic nature has a power that is neither found in human nature and is not from God.They are distinguished. And as we learn the Lord always rebuked the demons. So it is necessary to rebuke the demons in demons possessed persons, nothing else will work on them.

This is just a thought I got when I prayed.

when one acts in the flesh, it is giving place for the devil to work. and our human nature can never please God, tried it, and failed. thats why HE gave us HIS Holy Spirit. the word of GOD says, whatever words HE SPEAKS are SPIRIT, and TRUTH. and the FLESH profits NOTHING.

and yeah demons are to be rebuked. but there are circumstances that require other Spiritual technics. Sometimes the spirit of heaviness can be chased by the garment of PRAISE. sooooo much more. the more you study on deliverance, the more you learn and underrstand

 

[kenisyes]

Could I get a verse reference for this, please?

Colossians 2:10. The "etc." comes from Col. 1:16 which is on the same subject.

 

[Bookreader]

Demons as distinct supernatural beings do not exist.

The idea of a person being possessed of something supernatural has been the belief of many through time. Nowadays we would say such a person has a mental illness.

Jesus (and others) used the language of the day (so people would know what they were talking about) when they cured mental illness.

In the modern church it's as real as speaking in tongues except even more people buy into it because of their erroneous belief in the devil as a supernatural being...

 

[crosspreacher]

There are demons who are hidden and they are identify by the word of God.
There are also some who shout when they hear the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

[justamazed]

How can one identify a "demon" in a person without knowing what one is. Satan's angels are men. Micheal's angels are men.

 

[danschance]

Demons as distinct supernatural beings do not exist.

The idea of a person being possessed of something supernatural has been the belief of many through time. Nowadays we would say such a person has a mental illness.

Jesus (and others) used the language of the day (so people would know what they were talking about) when they cured mental illness.

In the modern church it's as real as speaking in tongues except even more people buy into it because of their erroneous belief in the devil as a supernatural being...

You are entitled to your opinions and whatever you choose to believe. I knew a man who told me that when Jesus walked on water, it meant that he was walking in shallow water to wash His feet. The bible says Jesus and His disciples cast demons out. That settles it for me.