Fear of Satan

The Exorcist was a horror movie that frightened millions around the world. The poor pathetic priest was no match for the demons that tormented the little girl. What a lie! What the movie did, and others like it, was to establish Satan as a greater fear object than God in the minds of the viewers. To fear Satan more than God is to elevate Satan as a greater object of worship than God. Most Christians fear Satan more than they fear God, which is in direct opposition to Scripture. Have we lost the fear of God, which is the beginning of wisdom?

I was in a radio studio as a guest along with a Catholic Priest who was also a guest by way of the telephone. He represented a diocese that had filmed an exorcism that was a ritual similar to one attempted in The Exorcist movie. The video had been shown on cable television the night before. I said, “If I could show you a way to set that person free without losing control and with none of the manifestations shown on your video, would you be interested?” The Priest said, “Of course,” and the host went to a commercial. During the break the host indicated to me that he was moving on to another topic against my protest. He never did give me a good reason why he wouldn’t let me explain our approach.

The apostle Peter wrote, “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by brethren who are in the world” (1 Pet. 5:8,9). Why does a lion roar? Some will stand over a smaller animal’s den and roar. When the frightened animal comes out of his “sanctuary” the lion consumes it. They also roar to paralyze their prey in fear and then consume them. But what if the lion’s only “bite” is the roar? Don’t minimize that ability. People all over the world are paralyzed by fear, or compelled to do foolish things. Remember, all you have to do is remove just one of the attributes of a fear object, and it is rendered impotent. Satan and his demons fill this earth, but they are disarmed (Col. 2:15), and every child of God has authority over them. The answer is to resist him, firm in your faith. It is what you believe that enables you to stand firm.

Dr. Neil

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