Reading Time: 2 minutesQuestion 08089 Not all demonic activity is the same, and the failure to distinguish between different forms of it leads to both unnecessary panic and unhelpful pastoral counsel. The two categories most commonly discussed are possession and oppression, and they describe genuinely different conditions. What Possession Involves Possession, in its full biblical sense, describes a…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 08058 The relationship between occult practices and demonic activity is one of the most clearly addressed subjects in Scripture, and yet it remains one of the areas where Christians are most uncertain. Some believers dismiss the entire category as superstition, while others live in exaggerated fear of accidental demonic contamination. The biblical position is…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 08054 The idea that demons can attach themselves to physical objects or locations is widespread in popular culture and not uncommon in certain Christian traditions. Some believers will not bring second-hand items into their homes without praying over them. Others feel a palpable spiritual unease in certain places and attribute it to demonic presence….
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 08085 Scripture is clear that Satan faces eternal judgement in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10). But what about the vast host of fallen angels who followed him in rebellion? Will demons be judged separately from Satan, and does Scripture tell us anything about how and when that judgement takes place? The Judgement Prepared…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 08140 The New Testament contains a remarkable statement about the future relationship between believers and angels, one that sits uncomfortably with the instinctive assumption that angelic beings are permanently our superiors. Paul tells the Corinthians that the saints will judge angels, and this claim has significant implications for how Christians understand both their present…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 08120 Few questions in pastoral ministry generate as much fear, confusion, and theological disagreement as this one. Horror films have shaped the popular imagination far more than Scripture has, and the result is a great deal of anxiety among believers who wonder whether they or someone they love might be subject to demonic possession….
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 08110 Martial arts encompass a vast range of disciplines with very different histories, philosophies, and purposes. The question of whether they are spiritually dangerous cannot be answered with a blanket statement, because the category includes everything from Olympic judo and boxing to practices deeply embedded in Eastern religious philosophy. A biblically informed answer requires…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 08100 If marriage and family are high-value targets for the enemy, the local church is the highest-value target of all. The church is the body of Christ on earth (1 Corinthians 12:27), the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16), and the pillar and buttress of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15). A healthy,…
Reading Time: 4 minutesQuestion 08098 Marriage is one of the most significant institutions God has established, and it should come as no surprise that it is also one of the enemy’s primary targets. The union of husband and wife reflects the relationship between Christ and the Church (Ephesians 5:31-32), which means that every healthy Christian marriage is, in…
Reading Time: 3 minutesQuestion 08109 Yoga has become so thoroughly embedded in Western culture that the question of whether it is spiritually dangerous can seem alarmist to many people, including many Christians. It is offered in gyms, schools, workplaces, and community centres as a health and fitness activity, and the vast majority of Western practitioners have no interest…