My Name Is Legion -- Part 1

Some time before the original creation of the earth (science shows this to have been more than 13 billion years ago) God created angels. From the Scriptures, we can determine that there are many millions, perhaps even billions of angels and at some point in time the Archangel Lucifer was placed in a position of direct authority over one third of them. In a previous message on this blogsite, I discussed my belief that the vast majority of the angels that followed Lucifer in his rebellion have long since repented of their sin and are waiting -- as we are waiting -- for a day of judgment to arrive. I would recommend that now or later, you go to the Archives of this blogsite and take time to read and consider “The Angels that Sinned.”

We are told in Hebrews 1:14 that the angels are “all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall inherit salvation”; but does this speak only of God’s initial purpose at their creation? Was that purpose somehow misdirected, or frustrated by the rebellion of Lucifer; or may “the angels that sinned” still have an important part to play in the destiny of mankind?

One of the more important questions I hope to answer over the next few weeks will be whether or not some of the angels that followed Lucifer in his rebellion do now, today, on occasion inhabit the bodies of lower animals. I do with some reservation believe this happens; and when it does this “possession” is not a short term or temporary occurrence but an event which covers the lifetime of the animal. However, I want to impress upon you that I do not see this possession as a malignancy; neither do I believe that the angels in these cases are those referred to in the Bible as “demon spirits.”

Are all of the lower animals possessed? No; I don’t believe so! Are some humans also possessed? I admit to believing this possibility exists: but if some humans are or have been possessed in these most recent times it would have been by “demon spirits.” It is my belief that demon spirits belong to a very small minority of the angels which long ago followed Lucifer in his rebellion.

Let me repeat that last statement and expand upon it. Of the one-third of all of God’s angels that followed Lucifer in his rebellion, it is my belief that relatively few should be classed today as demons. Can there be any hope of redemption for the angels: “...who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode; [God] has reserved [them] in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day...” (Jude 6)? This is just one of the many important questions we need to more carefully consider.

The present state of the angels that sinned is a question I believe needs to be given far more thought and consideration than it has so far received. Anyone truly interested in this subject should begin by going to the Archives of this blogsite to locate and read the previously published message “The Angels that Sinned.”

Why God Created Angels

There is so much that mankind has yet to learn; and so very much we could learn from those angels that have been bound to the Earth since their rebellion -- at least, from those who have truly repented of their sin. They must have built up a storehouse of knowledge and experience from before the original creation, through the rebellion, the destruction, and then the re-construction of the world as we now know it; down to this present day and beyond. The very thought of being able to benefit from their service, and from their vast experience, seems wonderful to me.

According to the writings of the Apostle John, the Lord of the Old Testament was the one who gave up his position as God to become the human we know today as Jesus. Did he simply waste his time and energy when he, “...went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water” (1 Peter 3:19-20)?

God had made up his mind to destroy life from the face of the Earth by means of a great flood; for more than one hundred years he ignored mankind and went to preach to those angels who had sinned when they followed Lucifer in his rebellion.

Did God actually preach to those angels for 120 years; if so, what was His message?
Was their fate already assured? Do you truly believe He went from one angel to the next telling each and every one they were doomed to the lake of fire -- and this for one hundred and twenty years? Does such a belief truly make any sense to you?

Why were these particular beings created? Why did they rebel? And if they did in fact rebel how can there be any hope for their redemption? If they did receive words of hope in the preaching they heard during the days of Noah and if some of them did in fact heed those words and repent, what have they been doing from that time until now?

At this point I want to draw your attention to a few Bible facts. First, from the book of Hebrews 1:14 when speaking about angels it says: “...are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister [to serve] for them who shall inherit salvation?” Next, from 1st Corinthians 6:2 we are told “the saints shall judge the world”; and if that’s not enough to humble anyone who aspires to sainthood then read on in verse 3 where it tells us: “Know you not that we shall judge angels!”

What angels does the Bible refer to when it says they shall be judged by the saints? God’s angels are without sin; they are in no need of judgment! The demons of Satan are already condemned and are destined for the lake of fire. There must then be a third category of angels and it is them that I see as a potentially fascinating source of help, information, and knowledge in the age and life to come -- does Hebrews 1:14 not assure us they were originally created to serve those who shall one day inherit salvation?

Possession -- Malignant or Benign

There are many New Testament examples of possession by demons and/or unclean spirits; but a careful study will show that not all of these cases were overtly malignant. That is to say, not all instances of possession show an evil intent on the part of the offending spirit. Nevertheless, the words and the actions of Jesus in casting out these spirits clearly show that human possession of any kind would no longer be permitted.

It is apparent that in the time of Jesus, and to a certain extent in the time of the apostles following Jesus, spirit possession of humans was not uncommon. If human possession still takes place today, then I must believe these instances are very isolated and far from common. It seems reasonable that if these statements are true then something must have happened to change the frequency of human possession. The question may then be asked: “Why were there so many instances of possession in Jesus day?” I hope we can answer this question as we go along.

When a simple word from Jesus or the disciples was not enough to force an offending spirit to depart, there were instances where the situation became quite exciting. One example in particular would not have been too out of place in the fictional story of “The Exorcist”; and since it did not involve either Jesus or his followers, why don’t we take a look at that one first.

In Acts 19:11-16 we read: “And God worked special miracles by the hands of Paul: so that from his body were brought handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from [sick people] and evil spirits went out of [those who were possessed].” At this time there were seven men who were sons of a Jewish chief of the priests named Sceva; they considered themselves to be exorcists. These men were apparently not followers of Jesus, Paul, or any other of the apostles. They took it upon themselves to attempt an exorcism of evil spirits from some people who were possessed, invoking the power of God by saying: “We adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.”

These gentlemen obviously expected the evil spirit to immediately depart and for the individuals possessed to once again be free; but such was not the case. The evil spirit answered the men by saying: “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” At this point the man in whom the evil spirit resided leaped upon the seven men, overpowered them and tore off their clothing so that they ran away naked and injured.

Note: I have paraphrased parts of the preceding so you really should read it for yourself from your own Bible, but I’m sure you will agree that this event must have been quite exciting and in a very real sense somewhat frightening.

In most cases the spirit or spirits left their human host without causing a great deal of fuss; it is this that prompts the next question which must be asked. Why were some of these spirits apparently quite reasonable while others were markedly unreasonable? Let me begin by saying that the New Testament words most commonly used when referring to devils or evil spirits are listed in Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance under the reference numbers: 1140 = a demonic being; 1141 = demon-like; 1142 = a demon or supernatural spirit; and most commonly 1139 = to be exercised by a demon or: to be used by or possessed (by).

There are others which the Bible refers to as “unclean spirits” and these are found under the reference numbers 169 and 4151 as follows: 169 = unclean or impure; and 4151 = spirit.

I believe that as there have been degrees of unrighteousness in man, so have there been degrees of unrighteousness in angels. In Ezekiel 28:15 when speaking about Lucifer (now known as Satan or the Devil) God says: “You were perfect in your ways from the day that you were created until iniquity was found in you.” Here we have on the one hand Lucifer, an Archangel of God who was created without sin; and on the other hand the extreme opposite in Satan. Likewise, as we shall see later, some of the angels that sinned so very long ago appear to be more disagreeable, more powerful, and even more evil, than many of the others.

From the beginning of the ministry of Jesus Christ he performed miracles and healed all manner of sickness and disease among the people. Matthew 4:24 also tells us: “...they brought unto [Jesus] …those which were possessed with devils…and he healed them.”

In Matthew 8:16 it says: “And [Jesus] cast out the spirits with his word…” You can find many places where the spirits were obedient to the words of Jesus and left their human host with little or no difficulty, but such was not always the case. In fact, in the first recorded example of an exorcism, found in the book of Mark, Jesus had to repeat his command and the second time his command was said more sharply than the first time:

Mark 1:23-26 “And there was in [the] synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out saying, ‘Let us alone; what have we to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth, are you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.’ And Jesus rebuked him saying, ‘Hold your peace, and come out of him.’ And when the unclean spirit had torn him and cried with a loud voice, he [or it] came out of him.”

Some time later we read in Mark 1:34 “He [Jesus]…cast out many devils; and suffered them not to speak, because they knew him.”

One of the more fascinating stories of possession concerns a man Jesus encountered in the land of the Gadarenes. The account of this meeting as it is related in Matthew begins by speaking of two men; but by studying all of the scriptures together it appears that of the two individuals encountered by Jesus only one of them actually played a prominent part in the events that took place. You will find this confrontation recorded in Matthew 8:28-32; Mark 5:1-13; and Luke 8:26-33; and it is this confrontation I intend to discuss over the next few weeks. If you take time to study each and every one of these examples by yourself, I believe you will find an abundance of fascinating information.

Jesus and his disciples had crossed the Sea of Galilee and had entered the land of the Gadarenes where they met a man who had been possessed by devils for a long time. This man apparently lived in the tombs; but sometimes the spirits would drive him into the mountains or into the wilderness. He was quite fierce and obviously very strong; for many times he had been bound with fetters and chains, each time managing to free himself by breaking both the fetters and the chains. This man was so troubled that he never wore any clothing; and both day and night, whether in the mountains or in the tombs, he would cry aloud and cut himself with stones.

Question: Do the possessing spirits make their human hosts act in such an erratic and troubled manner? Do they force their hosts to harm themselves; cutting themselves with stones? There is even an example in Matthew 17 where a possessing spirit would cause a young boy to fall into the fire or into a body of water? Could this troubled behaviour arise from the fact that humans object to being possessed and have sufficient intellect to feel angry and offended by that possession?

In any event, this man in the land of the Gadarenes saw Jesus and ran toward him worshipping and pleading and calling Jesus by name. When Jesus asked the spirit, “What is your name” the spirit answered, saying, “My name is Legion, for we are many.” It is important that you hear all of the words attributed to the possessing spirits from each of the accounts as written. In Matthew the initial greeting of the spirits was, “What have we to do with you, Jesus, you son of God? Are you come here to torment us before our time?” In Mark it says “What have I to do with you, Jesus, son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God that you torment me not.”

Note: At this point I came to realize that trying to show each separate account of the incident in this present format would be most confusing. What I chose to do instead was paraphrase each recorded portion of the incident in my own words; however, you should study each account for yourselves, as they were recorded by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, directly from your own Bibles.

For each statement, I have added a clarifying “Comment” giving you some insight into how I personally understand the events of this meeting. Hopefully by examining point-by-point everything that happened, we will be able to isolate and identify far more than we could by trying to glean understanding from the gospels as they are written.

Does that sound overly pretentious to anyone? Does it even smack of sacrilege to suggest that man may improve on inspired scripture? Allow me to draw your attention to some direction on this from the Old Testament book of Isaiah:

Isaiah 28:9-11 “Whom will he teach knowledge? And whom will he make to understand the message? Those just weaned from milk; [or] those just drawn from the breasts? For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little. For with stammering lips and another tongue He will speak to this people...”

I intend to use these instructions to help us learn as much as possible about the possessed man in the land of Gadara; and the devils, demons, or unclean-spirits that possessed him:

Note: Next week, in “My Name is Legion -- Part 2” I hope to immediately immerse each of us in the actual meeting of Jesus with the man in whom there were a “Legion” of possessing-spirits. In preparation, I would strongly suggest that you become as familiar as possible with this event as it has been recorded in Matthew 8:28-32; Mark 5:1-13; and Luke 8:26-33. I am convinced that as you gain a more perfect understanding of what actually took place, you will find it as absolutely fascinating as I do.