Morris Cerullo - One Demon Spirit that controls, dominates, possesses, oppresses, vexes, and torments, 8 out of 10 people in the world today, including born-again Christians: FEAR!

One Demon spirit:

that controls, dominates, possesses, oppresses, vexes, and torments, 8 out of 10 people in the world today, including born-again Christians:

FEAR!

BY MORRIS CERULLO

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION

Could a demon be controlling your life?

Demon power is real.

Do you believe it?

I know you say that you do, but do you really believe that Satan's demons could be controlling your life right now?

I'm beginning to discover that even very dedicated Christians don't really understand what is happening to them in the spirit world.

The other day I was deeply concerned when one of my most fervent partners said to an associate of mine, "There's something about spiritual warfare that I just don't understand."

"What's that?"

"Well, Brother Cerullo says that, 'There is no total victory in spiritual war until we (as Christians) conquer our enemy who has already been defeated.'

"Now I know that Satan is our enemy, and that demons do exist. But if Jesus already defeated them at Calvary 2,000 years ago, why do we have to conquer them all over again? How could Satan have any real power over Christians if Jesus has already won?"

Unfortunately this thinking is very common.

On one hand, Christians are living lives of tormentwalking in bondage and defeat with no real spiritual power.

On the other hand, they know God's Word and have been trained in spiritual warfare, but have little idea of the power and the seriousness of the war they are in.

The bottom line of all their thinking is, "Satan has already been stripped of his power. I'm safe because I'm in Jesus' hands."

Beloved, if this is what you have been telling yourself, you, too, have been blinded by one of the enemy's most brutal deceptions.

Somehow he has convinced you that all the problems, illnesses, defeats, depressions, and anxieties in your life have nothing to do with demon powers; they are all caused by circumstances, your in-laws, the wrong vitamins, a bad childhood, or anything else you can think of!

But the fact is that demon oppression is very real in the Church today.

There is one demon spirit that controls, dominates, possesses, oppresses, vexes and torments eight out of ten people in the world today...including born-again Christians!

Right now there is an 80 percent chance that this demon spirit is secretly pulling you away from God, destroying your witness for Christ, and choking your growth in the Holy Spirit...and you don't even know it.

Can you believe it?

I intend to prove it to you.

Let us now turn to the Word of God. For God's infallible Word is the same yesterday, today and forever.

Chapter 1

WAS DEMON POWER REAL IN JESUS DAY?

The Bible says that one day a man came to Jesus and pleaded, "Sir, have mercy on my son, for he is mentally deranged, and in great trouble, for he often falls into the fire or into the water" (Matthew 17:15, TLB).

What was the boy's problem? Was it psychological, or hereditary? The Bible goes on to plainly state that he was vexed with a demon. For as soon as "Jesus rebuked the demon in the boy... it left him and from that moment the boy was well" (verse 18).

Then, in the book of Luke we learn of a man from Gadara who was more than insane. When he came to meet Jesus he was homeless, naked, and lived in a cemetery among the tombs.

The demons took control of the man so often that even when he was shackled with chains he simply broke them apart and rushed into the desertcompletely under the demons' power.

When attacks and fits of demon activity would come upon him, he would throw himself against rocks until his body was cut open and bleeding. When Jesus asked this demon his name he replied, " Legion," because there were so many! (Luke 8:27-31).

Many people in our "modern, sophisticated" 20th century society would say, "The poor man probably had a severe hormone imbalance." Or, "I know that that kind of behavior is the result of a traumatic childhood." Or, "I guess he was just born a 'bad seed.'

But that's not what the Bible says. The Bible says it was the work of demon spirits, pure and simple.

The Word of God proves that this man was not just a "bad seed" with a chemical problem, because when he was delivered of all those foul spirits he immediately became an outstanding evangelist (Luke 8:33-39).

Luke reports that his life became such a miraculous testimony that the very crowd that had kicked Jesus out of town was later waiting to meet Him (verse 40).

We could go on and on, proving in case after case that demon power was real in Jesus' day. Not only was it real, but it severely tormented, oppressed, possessed, vexed and controlled many people of biblical times.

Demons caused deafness, blindness and countless other ailments that destroyed the minds and bodies not only of the "heathen," but of God's very own people.

IS DEMON POWER REAL TODAY?

Now I want you to take a little imaginary trip with me.

Come into a mental institution for the insane such as is found in many of your cities. I want you to take a good look around as we walk inside.

There's a woman who comes to greet us at the door. She's wearing a white uniform, and has long keys dangling from her side. Let us have no delusions about what those keys unlock.

They unlock cold, clammy, gray steel doors that house human beings just like you and I; people who are caged behind bars.

You look inside one of those cages and what do you see?

You see a person just like you crouched against solid cement walls. On these walls you can see indentations as deep as your fingers that have been made by bleeding, human hands.

Next we walk to the place where they keep the "hard cases." There's one skinny little man there, and it is taking five men to get that one human being into a straitjacket. Sound familiar?

Like someone you just met in the country of Gadara in the Bible?

Tell me, where do you think he gets his superhuman strength?

As we watch, we see that it takes one 250-pound male nurse to hold down each one of his arms, and two more to hold down his body and his legs. Meanwhile, another man tries to squeeze him into that straitjacketthe only thing they have to control him.

Why? Because that man is possessed with superhuman power.

That same superhuman demon power that was so real two thousand years ago, is just as real today.

If you don't believe me, pick up your morning newspaper and ask yourself, "What makes a man 19 years of age strangle a beautiful young lady he has never seen before?

"What makes a young mother take her seven-day-old infant, stuff her into a trash can, close the lid, and leave her there to die?"

The Bible tells us exactly what makes her do it. It is the same demon power that tried to murder that "mentally deranged" boy by throwing him into the fire!

Again, we could go on and on with modern-day examples of demon power and not even uncover the tip of the iceberg.

In Jesus' day, the reality of demon power was never questioned. People knew it existedpure and simple. The only thing that amazed them was that there was finally Someone around Who had the power over the devil to do something about it.

And do something He did. Jesus dealt with all of these gruesome situations in short order. How? With power and authority He commanded each one of these foul spirits to leave, and they did!

The public was astounded. "What new doctrine is this?" they cried. "For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him (Mark 1:27, NKJ).

By now you may be saying, "All right, Brother Cerullo , I've read my newspaper. I'll admit that Satan has great power in the world today.

"But all those things I read about are with unsaved people. The devil can't get away with those atrocities in born-again Christians. We're protected by the blood of the Lamb. Jesus died to save us from all that."