For the segment of the audience that might still be in demon denial, pay special attention to this firsthand account from an anonymous reader:
So this is back in the late ’90s. I was, as most teenagers are, degenerate to at least some degree. At last my dad arranged for me to meet with one of the priests at the our church who dealt with the possibly demonic.
After we were in prayer, he addressed himself to any spirit who might be affecting me, demanding a name. And…I got a response internally: The image of a spear (long purpleheart wood shaft) with the wicked metal head piercing a heart. So I responded with what I saw, and that I thought the name being given was ‘Heartpiercer’.
Prayer and eviction followed. Along with a second demand. This time, a different internal response. No longer an image, but a word: Mindtwister.
The third time was the sense of an internal voice, not just an image, not just a word, but as of someone speaking inside, saying: “I Am Pride” for the name demanded.
This time, we both thought the demon’s name was Pride, but–being prideful–it prepended God’s name. Trying to resist the demand placed on it, showing more contempt towards God, and gaining more punishment. And more prayer, casting out. Perhaps even renaming the sucker because of that.
After that…no more responses.
So I am sure they had been influencing me before, and glory be to God that they were stopped! I just have to be careful not to slide back into corruption.
Note: I did get the sense that the demons DID NOT WANT to share their names, but they were forced to give in to the demands made in the name of Jesus Christ by His faithful minister.
If you learn nothing else from testimonials like these, know this:
- Demons exist
- They hate you
- They will try to take you down with them if given an opening.
Know also that the power of the demonic is nothing compared to the infinite might of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
So in regard to demonic activity, be neither outright dismissive nor terrified into despair.
The best metaphor I’ve heard for the proper approach to the subject is carrying a brimming cup of hot coffee across a white carpet.
Be too careless – or to anxious – and you’ll spill.
Maintain situational awareness while walking with confidence, and with God’s help, you’ll make it just fine.
Glory to God for the grace of deliverance!
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What strikes me is that the demons’ names are their functions: what they do is who they are.
Do demons, or angels, have an identity beyond their function? Is this something that the more a being is spirit and less matter, the more its form and essence merge?
Opinions differ among theologians and apologists as to whether angels and demons have verbal personal names. After all, they’re pure intellects, so ideas aren’t mediated to them via sensible signs like words.
In Hebrew metaphysics, one’s name expresses one’s nature. Hence God revealing His name as “I Am.”