Pathway to Victory

Speaker 1

Hey podcast listeners, thanks for streaming today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.

Pathway to Victory is a nonprofit ministry featuring the Bible teaching of Dr. Robert Jeffress. Our mission is to pierce the darkness with the light of God's Word through the most effective media available, like this podcast.

To support Pathway to Victory, go to ptv.org/donate or follow the link in our show notes.

Now here's today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.

Speaker 2

Hi, this is Robert Jeffress and I'm glad to study God's Word with you every day.

Speaker 3

This Bible teaching program on today's edition.

Speaker 2

Of Pathway to Victory. I know some people roll their eyes when we talk about demons. They're portrayed in secular culture as comic book figures, little creatures that sit on our shoulders whispering sweet temptations into our ear.

But as our friend Chuck Swindoll says, demons are neither funny nor phony.

Speaker 1

Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor Dr. Robert Jeffress. Demons are mentioned in scripture from the false gods of the Old Testament to the New Testament encounters with Christ. Yet many Christians either dismiss demons as ancient superstitions or obsess over them in very unhealthy ways.

Today on Pathway to Victory, Dr. Robert Jeffress reveals that demons are real spiritual beings with personalities, intelligence, and a specific agenda.

But first, let's take a minute to hear some important ministry updates.

Speaker 3

Thanks, David, and welcome again to Pathway to Victory. Over the years, I've become passionate about purposeful travel, gathering with friends and family to seek God in places that proclaim his power and glory. Well, imagine waking up every morning to the spectacular scenery of snow-capped mountains in Alaska. Picture yourself exploring the wonder of God's creation as you spot giant glaciers and wildlife like whales, dolphins, and bald eagles. With these images in mind, I invite you to join me on the Pathway to Victory cruise to Alaska. You'll never regret booking this vacation of a lifetime. All the details are at ptv.org, and when you respond early, you'll have optimal choices for just the right room.

Well, our current teaching series is called Spirit Wars, and it's about spiritual warfare. We're not doing the topic justice unless we step into the territory of the devil himself. So we'll do that in just a moment. As a practical help to you and your family, I want to send you two very important books. The first is brand new, and it's for the children in your life. Make no mistake, our kids are in serious danger these days. Our enemy, the devil, is working overtime to draw them away from God. And so I've written a book called Suit Up: The Armor of God for Kids.

Next, I've written a book for adults called Angels and Demons. Every family should own both books, and they're yours when you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory. More details later, including our contact information. But right now, let's commence with our study in Ephesians 6. Today, I'm talking about the world of demons.

Speaker 2

Let me ask you a question. Have you ever felt an inexplicable weight of oppression falling on your shoulders for no logical reason? You start feeling depressed, and there's nothing you can do to shake that feeling? Or have you ever been in an argument with another person that started escalating, getting tenser and more tense, hotter and hotter? You said things you shouldn't have said that you could never take back. It's almost like there was a third party, an invisible party in the room motivating that argument, trying to keep it out of the right boundaries. You've just felt like somebody was egging you on in that argument.

Or maybe here's a sensation you've had. Have you ever been having a great day, getting things done, checking things off your to-do list, when suddenly, out of nowhere, a fear came into your mind, a "what if"? And no matter how hard you tried, you couldn't rid yourself of that fear. Or maybe you've been in this situation: out of nowhere, a temptation comes in front of you that, if you didn't know better, you would think God had designed it because it was the perfect enticement, offering exactly what you felt like you needed at that very moment.

If you've had any of those experiences before, if you've ever found yourself in those situations, you have come face to face with a world of demons. Satan cannot be more than one place at a time. He has a multitude of minions we call demons who are doing his work. And today we're going to look at what the Bible teaches about the world of demons.

First of all, let's talk about the existence of demons. I know some people roll their eyes when you talk about demons. They think of demons the way they do Satan. They've seen him caricatured as that guy with the red suit and the pitchfork, stabbing people on the backside. They think the same way of demons. They're portrayed in secular culture as comic book figures, little creatures that sit on our shoulders, whispering sweet temptations into our ear. But as our friend Chuck Swindoll says, demons are neither funny nor phony. They are real forces that we need to understand if we're going to win in spiritual warfare.

One of the most basic passages about demons is Ephesians 6:11-12. It's been the basis for our series. Paul says, "Put on the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes, the methods of the devil." Now get this: verse 12. "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness." Notice the plural nature of these words. Our struggle isn't against the ruler, singular, or power or force. It's plural: rulers, powers, forces. This is a reference to Satan and his demons. If Satan is the brain of the operation of evil, then demons are the brawn that he uses to fulfill his mission.

The majority of references to demons are found in the New Testament. Every writer of the New Testament, with the exception of the author of Hebrews, talks about demons. For example, do you know what the first book of the New Testament that was written was? Not Matthew; it was James, the letter we studied a few months ago. James talks about demons. He's writing to Jewish Christians, and he said in James 2:19, "You believe that God is one. You do well. The demons also believe—and shudder." That Greek word "shudder" means for the hair on your neck to stand up. That's what it's a reference to.

Why did he say that? These Jewish Christians thought that just by believing the right set of facts theologically, they could be a Christian. If you just believe the right things in your head, that makes you a Christian. James said no. If James were writing to Gentile Christians, he might say it this way: "You believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Congratulations. The demons believe that as well." As we'll see in a moment, they recognized Jesus immediately as the Son of God.

Listen, if you don't hear another thing I say today, hear this: you can believe that Jesus is the Son of God. You can believe that he died on the cross for the sins of the world. You can believe that Jesus rose again on the third day. You can believe all of those things and go straight to hell when you die. Demons believe those things. They believe in the deity, the crucifixion, the resurrection of Christ. They believe it more than you do, more than I do, because they were eyewitnesses to all of those things. If intellectual belief is what makes you a Christian, then the demons are going to be in heaven. Does anybody expect to see demons there? No. There's a difference between belief and saving faith.

The first reference to demons is found in James 2:19, and the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, also talks about demons. We don't have time to look at this, but look just briefly at Revelation 16:13-14. John is describing the battle of Armageddon, and he says, "And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon"—that's Satan—"and out of the mouth of the beast"—that's the Antichrist—"and out of the mouth of the false prophet three unclean spirits like frogs. For they are the spirits of demons performing signs which go out to the kings of the whole world to gather them together for the war of the great day of God."

At that battle of Armageddon, all the major nations of the world will assemble on that plain of Megiddo in Israel, a place many of us have been. The world forces will come to do battle against the Antichrist. What will lead them to come to that one place? Well, John says it was demons, demonic activity. But interestingly, the scripture also says it was God who released the demons in order to deceive the nations into waging war at Armageddon.

The majority, however, of references in the New Testament occur during the Gospels that record the life of Jesus Christ. There has never been a time in history, and I don't think there ever will be, when demonic activity was so present as it was during the time of Jesus Christ. Why did Christ's coming stir up so much demonic activity? Well, just think about it. The invasion of the Son of God to poison planet Earth, which Satan believed belonged to him, represented a threat to Satan and his kingdom. Satan and the demons wanted to do everything they could to prevent the Son of God from accomplishing his plan of redemption. And so they unloaded their arsenal of spiritual attacks against the Son of God.

And you find many references to Jesus dealing with demons. By the way, I have to say it here: Jesus not only talked about demons, he talked to demons. Now, if demons aren't real, if they're nothing more than, as some religion professors have said, crude first-century attempts to explain the origin of evil, then Jesus should have been locked up in an insane asylum because he was talking to beings that didn't exist. But Jesus believed in the reality of demons.

Well, where do they come from? Where did demons come from? There is no Bible verse that tells us explicitly from where demons came. And so people have come up with different ideas. Some people believe demons are the souls of non-Christians who have died. Others believe that demons came about as the result of an unholy union described in Genesis 6, when the sons of God cohabitated with what are called the daughters of men. Some people believe it's angels who left the domain of heaven and came and had sexual relations with women, and the offspring were demons. They believe it's the same union described in Jude 6 about angels who left their abode and came and dwelt with human beings. That may be the case. When we get to our study of Genesis next year, we'll look at that, but we can't be dogmatic about it.

What we can say for sure is this: Satan has a group of helpers. They are referred to as his angels (Revelation 12:9). These same helpers are also called demons in the Bible. And so we know that there are a legion of spiritual beings who help Satan accomplish his work.

Now let's talk about the personality of demons for just a moment. These are not just forces or ideas. These are real beings. When we talk about demons, turn to Luke 8 for a moment, beginning with verse 27. "And when Jesus had come out onto the land, he was met by a man from the city who was possessed with demons and who had not put on any clothing for a long time and was not living in the house but in the tombs. Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before him and said in a voice, 'What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me.'"

And there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain. And the demons implored Jesus to permit them to enter the swine. And he gave them permission. And the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

Let me just say this about what this passage reveals about the personality of demons. Demons are actual beings. They're not just ideas. They're not inanimate objects. Think about it. For something to be a being, it has to possess, first of all, intelligence. Demons have intelligence. This pulpit has no intelligence; it's never had a thought in its life. But demons are filled with intelligence. They're aware of what is going on around them. They were able to recognize Jesus as the Son of God.

Secondly, demons experience emotion. This pulpit has never had any emotion; it's never been happy or sad. Demons were fearful that Jesus would send them into the abyss, a temporary place of punishment for demons. They had emotions. Thirdly, demons have a will. This pulpit never wakes up in the morning and plans what it's going to do for the day. But beings have a will, and the demons had a will. They did not want to go into the abyss. They came up with an alternative for Jesus to send them into the swine. And they submitted themselves ultimately to God's plan.

Finally, demons have names. The chief demon in this man, Luke 8:30, was a man named Legion, which was taken from a military term, a legion with 6,000 Roman soldiers. To be an actual being, you have to have a mind with will, an emotion, and a name.

Now, the most important thing about demons: what is the work of demons? What do they exist to do? Well, that's easy. They are here to do Satan's will. Matthew 12:24 talks about the devil and his demons. Temporarily, they are under the control of Satan to fulfill his twofold objective. Remember Satan's goal, first of all, toward unbelievers. Satan has one desire for those of you here or watching who are not yet Christians. He wants to blind and bind you so that you can never trust in Jesus to be your Savior. He wants to keep you in his servitude. He wants to make sure you are never released from spiritual slavery. He wants to take you to hell when you die. That is his goal for you.

How does he accomplish that goal? The primary way is through false religions. Sometimes the false religions that Satan uses are religions shrouded in darkness, witchcraft, sorcery, voodoo. But other times, Satan is more crafty in what he uses. He creates an alternative gospel, an alternative set of so-called spiritual facts, an alternative God. And he will deceive people into thinking it's actually the same God, just worshiped in different ways.

Notice what Paul says about those kinds of religions: "If we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached, he is to be accursed." Do you realize that the two greatest deceptive religions in the world today that are leading people straight to hell by the hundreds of millions, both of those religions claim they were given by angelic revelation?

Think about Islam for a moment. Islam is a deception from Satan. Mohammed, the founder of Islam, claims that from 610 to 632 A.D., the angel Gabriel came to him and gave him the information that became the Koran. He claimed angelic revelation. Islam, the worship of Allah, is not Christianity. Allah is not just another name for God. Allah is a false God. Mohammed was a false prophet using a false book to teach a false religion. But they claim it's from God.

Or think about Mormonism for a moment. In 1827, a charlatan, a huckster named Joseph Smith claimed that the angel Moroni—who in the world is that? Sounds a lot like Moron, doesn't it?—came and showed him where the golden tablets were hidden. Joseph Smith found those golden tablets and used them to publish the Book of Mormon in 1830. Mormonism sounds good. But make no mistake, the Jesus of the Bible is not the Jesus of the Book of Mormon. One is the true Jesus; the other is a false Jesus. What they teach about salvation and the role of works is a false religion.

Paul says, "Even if an angel from heaven should preach this gospel to you, do not believe it if it is contrary to the Gospel of Jesus Christ." Sometimes Satan will use dark religions like witchcraft and voodoo. Other times he will use what seems to be logical but is just completely different, like Islam or Mormonism. But sometimes Satan is very subtle in the way he perverts religion. Sometimes Satan will use respectable religion and turn it just a little bit, enough to cause a person to be deceived.

That's what Paul was directly addressing in Galatians 1:8. He wrote this because of a group of people who had invaded the Galatian Church called the Judaizers. And this was the message Paul was combating. The Judaizers said, "Oh, faith in Jesus Christ, yes, that's important. Jesus is the Son of God. He died for the sins of the world. He's coming again. He rose again from the dead. We believe all of those things. Faith in Christ is crucial for salvation, but it's not quite enough. You need to have faith in Jesus Christ and keep the Old Testament law in order to be saved."

Paul said, "Let that person who says that thing be damned." When you say Jesus Christ is necessary but not sufficient for salvation, that is heresy from whomever it's coming from. It may be coming from a respectable pastor dressed in fine clerical robes, but if he's preaching that, he is a false prophet. That message may emanate from a denomination or a church that has been around for hundreds of years. It's a respectable church with respectable people. But if it's not preaching that salvation is by faith in God's grace alone, it is a false religion.

Look, if you want to cut to the chase about other religions, if you're a member of another denomination, another church, and you're not sure what they believe, just go to your pastor or your priest and ask this simple question: "Reverend, what do I have to do to go to heaven when I die?" Just ask that simple question. And if he hems and haws around, saying, "Well, you know, that's an interesting question, and there are a lot of different ideas, and tell me what you mean about heaven," blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, get out of that church. You're in a false church with a false pastor.

There's one answer to that question, "What must I do to be saved?" The answer is believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Not just intellectually. Trust in, depend upon, cling to, make your only hope Jesus Christ in him alone, and you will be saved. That's what the Apostle Paul said. No, no. There's only one gospel, and it's a gospel built on the grace of God.

Don't just ask the pastor or the priest. Ask yourself that question: "What am I depending on to save me when I die? When I stand before God and he asks me, 'Why should I let you into my heaven?' do you have a good answer?" If it's anything to do with you and your works and your goodness, you're going to miss heaven. The only right answer is, "The only reason I'm going to heaven is by the grace of God, demonstrated by Jesus Christ when he died for me."

Satan is going to do everything he can to keep you from that gospel. 2 Corinthians 4:4 says, "For Satan has blinded the minds of unbelievers so that they cannot see the light of the glory of Christ." That's his plan for unbelievers. But did you know demons have a plan for you as well? They know they can't rob you of eternal life. They know they can't have your soul forever in hell. But they want to steal from you God's privileges in this life. They want to steal your joy, your peace, your contentment, your family, your reputation, your witness for Christ. And they've got a plan to do just that. It's a plan we're going to look at next time when we talk about what the demons want to do to you.

Speaker 3

The message I shared on today's program contains far more teaching than we could include. But in a moment, David will explain how you can request the entire study on audio CD and video DVD. There's even a third thumb drive format if that's what you prefer.

But first, I'd like to be sure your family receives my brand new children's book called *Suit Up: The Armor of God for Kids*. As the father of two wonderful adults and grandfather to triplets, you can be sure that my concern for protecting them is absolute. This culture is not only unfriendly to our kids, it's downright hostile. And guess who's behind the temptations they feel? It's the evil one we talked about today.

Let me send you my book *Suit Up: The Armor of God for Kids*. In language your loved ones will understand, I walk you through the protective armor God has provided. Satan will do everything in his power to pull us away from God if we let him. We can't let him, and this book describes how you can fight back with the tools God has provided.

When you respond today, I'm going to include an important book I've written for adults. It's called *Angels and Demons*. Both books will be sent to your home right away when we receive your generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory.

Thanks for giving your best gift. These are strategic days for Pathway to Victory as we push back the forces of evil in our country, and we cannot succeed without the support from friends like you. Together, we're piercing the darkness with the light of God's word. Here's David with all the details.

Speaker 1

When you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory, you're invited to request *Suit Up the Armor of God for Kids*. Additionally, you'll receive *Angels and Demonstrations: Fact versus Fantasy*. That's a brand new resource designed especially for adults. Make your gift and request both books by calling 866-999-2965 or visit online at ptv.org. When your ministry gift is $100 or more, you'll receive both books plus the *Spirit Wars* teaching series on audio and video discs, along with Dr. Jeffress's best-selling book, *The Divine Defense*. Call today at 866-999-2965. You could also contact us by mail. Write to PO Box 223609, Dallas, Texas 75222. That's PO Box 223609, Dallas, TX 75222.

I'm David J. Mullins. Satan commands legions of fallen angels called demons, and they're working relentlessly to derail your relationship with God. Learn what demons want to do to you. That's Friday on *Pathway to Victory*. *Pathway to Victory* with Dr. Robert Jeffress comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas.

You made it to the end of today's podcast from *Pathway to Victory*, and we're so glad you're here. *Pathway to Victory* relies on the generosity of loyal listeners like you to make this podcast possible. One of the most impactful ways you can give is by becoming a Pathway Partner. Your monthly gift will empower *Pathway to Victory* to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ and help others become rooted more firmly in His word. To become a Pathway Partner, go to ptv.org/donate or you can follow the link in our show notes.

We hope you've been blessed by today's podcast from *Pathway to Victory*. Oh, and one last thing before we go. Have you reserved your spot yet for the 2026 *Pathway to Victory* cruise to Alaska? You've been hearing me and Dr. Jeffress mention it, so what are you waiting for? Just picture yourself on the deck of Holland America's elegant Koningsdam and stepping out on deck to witness nature's grandeur. It's beautiful. These moments in God's creation will deepen your faith in powerful ways. It really will! Experience five-star dining, luxurious staterooms, and visit iconic ports like Juneau, Ketchikan, and Skagway. We're also bringing along our own Christian entertainment. You'll love it! Seats are filling up, so book your spot today at ptv.org.