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Home , Unclean spirit

Allen Chapel Church of Christ

The , His , Unclean Spirits, and David Bentley

1. First, angels are created beings, not divine, nor all powerful. The Scripture says that by Christ “all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things have been created through Him and for Him” (Colossians 1:16). 2. Angels were created during the six days of creation and sometime on the first day of creation before the earth. See Exodus 20:11 and Job 38:6-7. How could they see the creation if they had not already been created? 3. sinned from the beginning – that is, from the beginning of the creation of the earth and all things in it. See 1 John 3:8. Perhaps he saw the power, might, and majesty of God and sought to have it for himself. 4. Satan rose up against God, deceiving other angels to do the same ( 12:7). 5. They were cast out of heaven “down to earth” (Revelation 12:9). 6. This occurred sometime before the fall of man. It is important to note that when the “sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord”, Satan came among them. When asked where he came from, he answered, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it” (Job 1:6-7). 7. Satan begins his work deceiving the world, first with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3). This is why they says that “ entered the world through one man” (Romans 5:12-20; 1 Cor. 15:21) – that is, through Adam compromising the Word of God by giving into the deception of Satan. 8. Satan continues his attempt to tempt the world and deceive the nations. Consider Job and David (1 Chron. 21:1). 9. The time came when Satan was to be “bound” for a thousand years, according to Revelation 20:1-3, where he would no longer deceive the nations “until the thousand years were completed”. Consider what has been said in 2 Peter 2:4 and Jude 6. See also Matthew 25:41. First, before his being bound, think of how he deceived even the , the very people whom God had delivered from the hand of the Egyptians – the bad spies who gave a false report about the promised land (Numbers 13 – had their report been true, God would have been a liar), they had many wicked judges who did evil in the sight of the Lord, and after that they desired to be given a king that they could be like all the other nations (1 Samuel 8), false prophets were running rampant, and idolatry was seemingly more common than worship of the one true God. And so, Satan was bound for the purpose of laying the groundwork for the coming of the Messiah, Christ, and to accomplish the will of God through Him. 10. God had enough with the idolatry, uncleanness, and overall sin of His people. Time and again, the Father would speak through the prophets, telling the people that His people do not act like they do or live like they do. Consider the damning response He gave to them through the prophet Hosea in chapter 1 and chapter 8.

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Allen Chapel Church of Christ

The Devil, His Angels, Unclean Spirits, and Demons (Part 2)

1. God’s answer for the of the people and their being massively deceived by Satan was through His Son, the promised Messiah, in order to purify them through His sacrifice. Consider now what was spoken through the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 13:1-2). a. “In that day”. What day is “that day”? We must look back at chapter 12 to find the answer. i. In that day, nations who oppose God will drink the cup of His wrath (12:1-2). Consider the words of Paul in Romans 1:18 that “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness”. ii. In that day, God will fight against the wicked that oppose His kingdom (12:3-9). Consider the events of the and His vengeance upon the enemies of righteousness. iii. In that day, the of grace will be poured out (12:10). iv. In that day, people will mourn over the pierced Son of God (12:10-14). Josiah’s death at the hand of the Egyptians as they passed through the land. In the same way, all will mourn over the pierced Son of God – either as the catalyst that drives them to obedience in this life, or as the response of a life that was found unfaithful. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds and behold every eye will see Him, yea, and those that pierced Him. And at the name of Jesus, when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father, they will mourn when cast into that place where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. v. This is “that day”. It is the day of Christ, when He would come into the world, be crucified for the sins of man, be buried, conquer death and the grave through His resurrection, then ascend to heaven to reign over and in His kingdom at the right hand of the Father. b. “A fountain will be opened.” i. This is the shed blood of Jesus. There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel’s veins… His blood makes clean that which is unclean (Hebrews 9:22). c. “Prophet and unclean spirit shall pass from the land.” i. We must differentiate now between physical Israel and spiritual Israel. Knowing how the people of God in the OT had been deceived and were so infiltrated among themselves with falsehood and idolatry, God was no longer going to allow it. The “land” is the kingdom of God – the church – spiritual Israel. ii. When sins are forgiven through Christ, they are forgiven. All forms of idolatry and lifestyles of sin are vanished from the true people of God. This is what the text means when it says that unclean spirits and [false] prophets would be driven from the land. See Hebrews 10:1-vf and 2 Peter 2:1-3. While idolatry/false teaching continues today, it cannot exist and will not remain in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. iii. For further proof that Zechariah 13:1-2 is speaking forward to the time of Christ and His coming kingdom, see what Jesus said in Luke 10 and Luke 11:20.

2. Therefore, Satan is loosed during the time of Christ and His church. See Revelation 20:7-10. Also note that during this time of being loosed is the same time the church is in existence, though His power continues to be diminished. See Revelation 20:4-6.

For what purpose would he be bound except for God’s will to be accomplished in laying the groundwork for the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ? For what purpose would he be loosed except to be defeated and rendered powerless through the work of Christ and His church?

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Allen Chapel Church of Christ

The Devil, His Angels, Unclean Spirits, and Demons (Part 3)

1. Satan, and his army of angels, rose up in heaven against God (Revelation 12). → “There was no longer room found for them in heaven,” so they were cast down to earth. → Satan roaming about on the earth, tempting mankind and leading them astray, even deceiving whole nations (Genesis 3; Job 1:6-7). → Satan bound at some point during the Old Testament, prior to the coming of Jesus and His kingdom (Revelation 20:1-6). → Satan released after “1000” years, for “a short time”, during the time of Christ (Revelation 20:7-9). → Satan thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10). a. It is important to note that the 1000 years that Satan was bound, then released, is not consecutive with the 1000 years reign of Christ (time of the kingdom of God, church). 2. During the time of Jesus on earth, Satan is released. Luke 11:14-28 is an indication of this, given the from Zechariah 13:1-3 that the and unclean spirit would pass from the land in the day of Christ. a. Notice the parable of Jesus in Luke 11 about the strong man and the stronger man. i. The strong man is the devil – his house is the world (1 John 5:18-21). ii. The stronger man is Jesus iii. The plunder of the strong man is the of the people iv. In order to release the strong man’s plunder, the stronger man must incapacitate the strong man – render him powerless (1 John 3:8) v. That was Christ’s purpose, and still is (Luke 4:17-19; Colossians 2:15). 3. When considering the devil and his angels, understand that these are his messengers. His work is to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). So, it goes without saying that his messengers spread words/influences that accomplish his will. 4. Unclean spirits and demons in the Bible are the same. See Mark 5:1-19 (vss 2 and 18). If God gives the breath (pnuema – spirit) of life, Satan certainly gives the breath of death – the unclean spirit. See Revelation 16:13. We see the power and work of Satan, through himself as well as unclean spirits/demons, in numerous places during the life and . He confronted Jesus personally (Matthew 4; Luke 4), and the disciples of Jesus were given authority over the unclean spirits (Matthew 10:1; Luke 10:17). 5. Christ rendered Satan powerless in His death, burial, and resurrection, in that now Satan cannot overpower a man unless the man allows him the open door of opportunity. James 4:7. And the answer to one who is held captive by Satan today is the same as it was then – turn your life over to the Lord Jesus Christ! a. No one today can rightfully say, “The devil made me do it.” Now it is the choice of the individual to let the unclean and demonic/devilish lifestyles and doctrine in. It is also his choice whether or not to allow the power of God through the Word to drive it out.

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Allen Chapel Church of Christ

The Devil, His Angels, Unclean Spirits, and Demons (Part 4)

1. We established that Satan was bound at some point during the Old Testament – Can’t be loosed if not first bound! 2. We also studied proof of Satan’s loosing during the time/day of Christ. Zechariah 13 prophesied concerning the coming kingdom and how “in that day the unclean spirit and [false] prophet would be driven from the land.” During the time of Christ, we can read of numerous accounts of demons/unclean spirits being cast out by Christ and those to whom He granted authority over them (Luke 10:17; Luke 11:14-28; Mark 5:1-19). Jesus told the people that what they were seeing was a clear indication that the kingdom was near. 3. Let’s begin in John 12:27-32. Again, Christ appeared for this purpose: “to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). How would He do this except through His death, burial, and resurrection. That’s why Jesus says there in John 12 that the “ruler of this world will be cast out”. It is important to note that the Scriptures refer to Satan being cast out three times. a. Revelation 12:7-12 – when he rose up against God b. John 12 – when he was rendered powerless to accuse through the sacrifice of Christ c. Revelation 20 – when he will be totally defeated at the end. i. Notice that he was cast out, first, physically. Second, spiritually. And third, eternally. Satan is a loser and always has been. 4. So, the power of Satan has been diminishing greatly since the day of Christ, and, though he is still “loosed”, his power continues to be diminished through the church age. 5. Remember that we discussed in our last lesson that demons and unclean spirits are one and the same. And if God gives the spirit of life, Satan is the author of the spirit of death. Demons and unclean spirits still exist, but cannot exist within the people of God, who are “the land” in Zechariah 13. It is a spiritual impossibility for false doctrine or false teachers to be numbered among the children of God – this was not the case in Israel. 6. Now let’s consider unclean spirits and demons in the church age. a. Acts 5:16 b. Acts 8:7 7. In what sense do these unclean spirits and demons “possess” people today? And how do they do it? a. Not by force. b. Choice of the individual to let himself be overcome with unclean and devilish/demonic lifestyles or doctrine. Therefore, it is also the choice of that individual to turn his life over to Christ in order that that which is unclean may be driven out. In the same way that God will not save a man against that man’s will, Satan can no longer overpower a man and “possess” him against that man’s will. Think Judas and Peter. Still has the world through deception (2 Corinthians 4:3-4). c. 1 Timothy 4:7

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Allen Chapel Church of Christ

The Devil, His Angels, Unclean Spirits, and Demons (Part 5)

1. God does not permit these unclean spirits and demons or demonic doctrine to enter His people by their own authority. They come in through the lukewarm who are riding the fence. The fence or boundary of the kingdom of God is the Word of God, and Satan is powerless to overcome it. But when Christians attempt to live on the edge of the Word with one foot in and one foot out, evil will try to come dragging in behind them. a. This is why Paul warned the elders in Ephesus in Acts 20:28-30. b. For one to allow destructive doctrine to creep in and promote it through lifestyle or teaching is to become a savage wolf and to be accursed, not part of the church, and driven from “the land”. Consider the gravity of what Paul said about this in Galatians 1:6-10. 2. So how do we avoid this? a. Church discipline (Matthew 18:15-20) b. 2 Timothy 2:24-26 c. Ephesians 4:27 – do not give the devil an opportunity d. James 4:7 – resist the devil and he will flee from you e. 1 Peter 5:8 – be on the alert f. Hebrews 2:14-18 i. Satan rendered powerless in accusations against the faithful. (Revelation 12:10 – Romans 8:33) ii. Though he attempts to accuse, through Jesus, we are overcomers (Revelation 12:11 – Romans 8:37-39) 3. What is still to come? a. Continued attempts by Satan to deceive the brethren (2 Corinthians 11:1-3; Revelation 20:7-9). b. Satan’s eternal defeat (Revelation 20:10). c. The Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15).

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Allen Chapel Church of Christ

1st day of Satan and his Satan bound for Satan released Kingdom of God The End creation angels cast down "1000" years after "1000" and "1000" years • Satan and his • Sometime on to earth • Sometime years • Power of Satan angels into the first day of • Revelation during the Old • "A short time" continues to lake of fire creation, 12:7-12 Testament • Revelation be diminished. • Great white before the • Genesis 3 • Prior to 20:3, 7-9 • Church throne formation of • Job 1:6-7 coming of • During the established. judgment the earth, sun, • Satan roaming Jesus and His time of Christ • False prophet • Revelation moon, stars, about on the kingdom on earth and unclean 20:10-15 etc., the angels earth, • Revelation • Zechariah spirit driven were created, tempting 20:1-6 13:1-3 from "the including Satan mankind and land" (Zech. (Job 38:1-7; • Mark 5:1-19 deceiving 13:1-3). Col. 1:16; • Luke 10:17 nations. • 2 Peter 2:1-3; Exodus 20:11). • Luke 11:14- 2 Corinthians 28 11:1-4; Acts 20:28-30; Galatians 1:1- 10.

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