Can a Christian Have a Demon?

Can a Christian, possessed by the Holy Spirit, also have the internal influence of a demon?

This is one of the most common questions asked about deliverance ministry. Usually, it comes in the form of a challenge:

“Where does the Bible say that a Christian can have a demon?”

But that question may begin with a faulty assumption.

The Bible doesn’t actually use our modern language of “demon possession” in the way we commonly use it today. And the word Christian wasn’t even commonly used during Jesus’ earthly ministry.

So maybe we have been asking the wrong question.

The real question isn’t, “Can a demon own a Christian?”

No. A Christian belongs to Jesus.

The better question is:

Can a Christian experience demonic influence, bondage, or give the devil a foothold?

The New Testament gives us good reason to say yes.

What Does “Demon-Possessed” Actually Mean?

The Greek word often translated by the King James Bible with phrases such as “possessed with devils” is daimonizomai. The problem is that the English word possessed carries an idea that isn’t necessarily contained in the Greek word: ownership.

When we say, “I possess this house,” we mean, “This house belongs to me.” But daimonizomai does not mean that a demon owns a person. It describes someone who is demonized or afflicted by demonic activity. And the biblical accounts themselves demonstrate varying degrees of demonic influence.

That distinction matters enormously.

Can a demon own a Christian? No.

You have been bought with a price. You belong to Jesus. But can the devil influence a Christian? Can he deceive a Christian? Can he gain leverage in a Christian’s life? Can a Christian experience bondage from which he or she needs to be set free?

Those are different questions.

And Scripture addresses them directly.

The Children’s Bread

During Jesus’ inaugural ministry, when He went around Israel casting out demons, there were yet no people calling themselves “Christians.” The name Christian came later and originated outside the Jesus-believing community as a mildly derogatory nickname.

During Jesus’ earthly ministry, the people in covenant with God were called “God’s people,” “the children of Israel,” or “God’s children.”

That makes the common challenge thrown at deliverance ministers—“Where does the Bible say that a Christian can have a demon?”—somewhat anachronistic. It is similar to asking, “Where in the Bible does it say that a Christian can possess a smartphone?” Smartphones didn’t exist yet, nor had the name Christian taken on the widespread meaning it has today.

To answer the challenge biblically, we have to ask what relationship deliverance had to the covenant people of God.

Mark’s Gospel gives us a remarkable answer.

Jesus got up and went away from there to the region of Tyre. And when He had entered a house, He wanted no one to know of it; yet He could not escape notice. But after hearing of Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately came and fell at His feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of the Syrophoenician race. And she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter. And He was saying to her, “Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” But she answered and said to Him, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children’s crumbs.” And He said to her, “Because of this answer go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.” And going back to her home, she found the child lying on the bed, the demon having left. Mark 7:24–30 NASB

Without getting distracted by the other questions that often arise from this interaction with Jesus, let’s acknowledge one simple fact:

Jesus uses the image of the children’s bread to describe the deliverance this woman was requesting.

The woman who approached Jesus was not an Israelite but a Gentile. Jesus’ initial response concerns the fact that she stood outside the covenant people of Israel.

This is almost the exact opposite of the modern Western Christian objection.

Modern Western Christians ask:

“How can someone who belongs to God need deliverance?”

But Jesus’ response raises almost the opposite question:

“How can someone outside the covenant expect to receive the children’s bread?”

To the relief of all, Jesus honors the woman’s faith and releases her daughter from the demon.

Deliverance, then, is not presented as something incompatible with belonging to God. Quite the opposite. Jesus describes it using the imagery of bread belonging to the children.

Rather than asking, “How can a Christian have a demon?” perhaps we ought to ask:

“How could anyone outside of Jesus expect to receive deliverance?”

Is Deliverance Automatic?

Some will argue that when a person comes to faith and receives the Holy Spirit, all demons automatically flee. In this view, salvation brings about total and automatic deliverance from every demonic influence. Real-world experience gives us plenty of reason to question this belief, but let’s stick with the Scriptures.

Jesus once encountered a woman who had suffered for eighteen years. When the synagogue official objected to Jesus healing her on the Sabbath, Jesus responded:

“You hypocrites, does each of you on the Sabbath not untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it away to water it? And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound for eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this bond on the Sabbath day?” Luke 13:15–16 NASB

She was a daughter of Abraham

Notice Jesus’ language.

She was a “daughter of Abraham.”

She belonged to the covenant people of God.

Yet Jesus also said that Satan had bound her for eighteen years.

Covenant membership did not automatically prevent Satanic bondage. On the day of her encounter with Jesus, this woman did not become a daughter of Abraham. She already was one.

What happened that day was that she received freedom from a bondage Jesus explicitly attributed to Satan.

Someone may object, “But that happened before Pentecost. What about someone who actually possesses the Holy Spirit?”

That’s a fair question.

So let’s look at what the New Testament says to Spirit-filled Christians.

Don’t Give the Devil a Foothold

Paul writes:

“BE ANGRY, AND YET DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity.” Ephesians 4:26–27 NASB

Other translations describe this as giving the devil a “foothold.”

A foothold is a place where you put your foot to gain leverage.

If the devil has a foothold in your life, he has gained some measure of leverage that he can exploit.

And notice something very important:

Paul is writing to Christians.

In fact, these are the same Christians whom Paul says were “sealed” with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13; 4:30).

So Paul apparently did not believe that possessing the Holy Spirit made it impossible for the devil to gain an opportunity in someone’s life. Otherwise, his warning makes no sense.

Paul’s command is essentially:

Don’t give the devil room.

And if a Christian can give the devil room, then a Christian can also need that room taken back.

That’s deliverance.

The Soul and the Spirit

One of the major sources of confusion concerning Christians and demonization is that Western Christians have not always developed a sophisticated understanding of the soul and spirit.

The soul and the spirit are not the same thing.

Paul prayed:

“Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 5:23 NASB

You and I, made in the image of God, possess spirit, soul, and body.

When a person surrenders their life to Jesus, the Holy Spirit moves in. Scripture says believers are “sealed” with the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 4:30). And once the Holy Spirit moves in, He isn’t looking for an excuse to leave. For He Himself has said, “I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER ABANDON YOU.” Hebrews 13:5 NASB

Our soul is the realm in which we experience our mind, will, and emotions. It is also where we experience wounds, trauma, fear, rejection, and the lies we sometimes believe as a result.

I believe this distinction helps us understand how someone who belongs completely to Jesus can nevertheless experience demonic bondage.

The Holy Spirit is not sharing ownership of you with a demon.

You belong to Jesus.

But areas of our lives that remain wounded, deceived, bitter, fearful, or rebellious can become areas the enemy seeks to exploit.

If the Truth Sets You Free, a Lie Ties You Up Jesus said:

“You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32

If the truth sets you free, a lie ties you up.

Do you know any Christians who have been deceived by lies?

Of course you do.

If we are being honest, at times we feel that God abandoned us, failed us, or didn’t listen to us. We wonder if God even exists.

Deep within, we may know that God exists and loves us, but our mind, will, and emotions are not necessarily in agreement.

The wounded soul asks:

Where was God when Mom and Dad got divorced?

Where was God when the car wreck happened?

Where was God when I was abused?

Demons exploit these hurts and fears in order to deceive us into thinking we really were abandoned, unwanted, and forsaken. They tempt us to despair. They tell us to numb the pain. They tell us there is no hope. The more our soul agrees with these lies, the stronger the enemy’s influence can become. Once a lie becomes deeply rooted, demonic suggestions can begin to sound like our own thoughts. And our soul enters into bondage.

Satan Can Influence Believers

We don’t have to speculate about whether genuine disciples can come under Satanic influence.

Remember when Jesus told Peter:

“Get behind Me, Satan!” Matthew 16:23

Jesus wasn’t saying that Peter was Satan.

Peter was a disciple whom Jesus loved and had chosen.

But in that moment, Peter’s thinking had aligned so completely with Satan’s agenda that Jesus addressed the spiritual source behind the temptation.

Think about how remarkable this is.

Only moments earlier, Peter had confessed:

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus told him:

“Flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.”

And shortly afterward Jesus said:

“Get behind Me, Satan!”

One moment Peter was receiving revelation from the Father.

The next moment he was voicing an agenda aligned with Satan.

A genuine disciple can speak words inspired by heaven in one moment and entertain thoughts aligned with hell in another.

That’s precisely why we need discernment.

“Why Has Satan Filled Your Heart?”

The book of Acts gives us an even clearer example.

Ananias and Sapphira were members of the Spirit-filled Christian community in Jerusalem. They sold property and made the church believe they had given the entire sale price with radical generosity, when in reality they secretly kept some of it back.

Peter confronted Ananias:

“Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land?” Acts 5:3 NASB

Read those words again:

“Why has Satan filled your heart?”

Peter is speaking to someone inside the Christian community about Satan filling his heart.

Whatever terminology we use to describe exactly what happened, we cannot simply say:

“This person has the Holy Spirit, therefore Satan cannot possibly gain influence within his life.”

The New Testament itself uses stronger language than that.

What Shouldn’t Happen but Does

James writes to Christians:

“The tongue is a fire. The tongue is a world of injustice… No single human is able to tame the tongue. It is an irrepressible evil, full of deadly poison. By it we bless the Lord and Father, and by it we curse humans who are made in His likeness! Blessing and cursing come out of the same mouth! My dear family, it isn’t right that it should be like that. Does a spring put out both sweet and bitter water from the same source?” James 3:6, 8–11 NTFE

James’ point is simple:

It shouldn’t be this way.

But sometimes it is.

With the same tongue, we bless God and curse those made in His image. We encourage, but we also gossip. We praise, and we slander. Then James tells us something remarkable about the source of some of this behavior:

“But if you have bitter jealousy and contention in your hearts, don’t boast and tell lies against the truth. This isn’t the wisdom that comes from above. It is earthly, merely human, and coming from the world of demons.” James 3:14–15 NTFE

James is writing to believers, yet he warns them that bitter jealousy and contention can accompany wisdom that is demonic.

This fits perfectly with Paul’s warning:

Don’t give the devil a foothold.

A Christian can possess the Holy Spirit and nevertheless listen to lies.

A Christian can possess the Holy Spirit and nevertheless harbor bitterness.

A Christian can possess the Holy Spirit and nevertheless entertain thoughts influenced by hell.

A Christian can possess the Holy Spirit and nevertheless give the devil a foothold.

And if the devil has gained a foothold, that foothold needs to be removed.

Maybe We Have Been Asking the Wrong Question

So, can a Christian have a demon?

I think the question itself creates unnecessary confusion.

If by “have a demon” you mean, “Can Satan own someone who belongs to Jesus?”

No.

You have been bought with a price. You belong to Jesus. The Holy Spirit has sealed you. Satan does not own you.

But that’s not the question the New Testament seems most concerned about.

The better question is:

Can the devil gain a foothold in the life of a believer?

Paul apparently thought he could.

That’s why he warned Christians:

“Do not give the devil an opportunity.”

Can Christians believe lies?

Can Christians harbor bitterness?

Can Christians come under Satanic influence?

Can Christians entertain demonic wisdom?

Can Christians experience bondage?

Can Christians need freedom?

The New Testament answer is clearly yes.

And that is precisely why deliverance belongs in Christian discipleship.

Paul said:

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12

If, while reading this, you have concluded that you might have unwelcome company and are in need of deliverance, you can email me here and we will set up an appointment to bring you the freedom Jesus died to give you.