Do Evil Spirits Exist?
It must have been a dramatic scene. A raving lunatic bursts into the synagogue where Jesus is and begins shrieking: “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God!” Unfazed, Jesus responds: “Be silent, and come out of him.” With that, the man cries out, begins convulsing, and collapses to the floor (Mark 1:24-28; Luke 4:33-34). It appears that Jesus recognized evil spirits at work within the man-and that the evil spirits recognized Jesus as well. Today, millions of believers pray, “Deliver us from evil,” yet it may be worth asking how readily we recognize demons or their work in the world. Very few of us would doubt that there is “evil” in the world. But for many of us, making the jump from the concept of evil to the reality of evil spirits can be difficult. That’s why we want to focus our attention this month on Jesus’ power to overcome evil spirits and to bring protection, healing, and deliverance to all of us. Of
