Where does it say in the Bible that it is not possible for believers to be indwelt by evil sprits/devils/demons? The Bible said that there were those “posessed WITH devils, which in Olde English simply means that one HAD devils. Like fleas. Like parasites.
Matthew 17:14-21/Mark 9:23-29
“23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. 24 And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. 25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him. 26 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead. 27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose. 28 And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out? 29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.”
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The Roman Catholic item known as “exorcism” is not the same item as biblical deliverance.
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An interesting side note: Most “modern” Bibles have removed Mark 9:29.
bump
Mark 16:9 to 20 does not appear in the early manuscript evidence or early Church fathers. It was likely added because the ending appeared to be so abrupt without it. There may have been another ending that we are not aware of but, in truth, the Holy Spirit rules. The other gospels fill in the blanks.
One thing that goes away when this is no longer included is snake handling. I don’t think that’s a bad thing.
But it was the child who had the demon, not the believing father. And even if it had been the father, he was a brand new believer. IMHO, Christians can be oppressed by demons, but not possessed, unless they allow themselves to be, at which point, are they still Christians? Many Christians ARE oppressed, usually through a lack of knowledge, or disobedience. Of course, the devil tries to tempt the devout Christian, who is prayed up and full of God’s Word, but we are overcomers, if we will hold fast.
Here we go!