The Bible gives many clear examples of demons directly causing sickness, disease, muteness, deafness, blindness, insomnia, and mental illness. So, the answer is yes. Demons can cause sickness.
Furthermore, there is a mountain of anecdotal evidence that this is still the case. After all, demons have not retired. Nor have they lost their ability to harass and afflict people.
Casting out demons of sickness is an integral part of my ministry. I have seen the spectacular results upon people’s body’s and minds once a demon is cast out. So this is not theory for me.
This is also the regular practice and results of thousands of other Christians who obey the Lord’s command to cast out demons:
And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he who does not believe shall be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe:
In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.
Mark 16:15-18
I mention casting out demons in regards to the question of demons causing sickness because it is when you cast them out that you see direct evidence that they do cause sickness. But the foundation of our faith is first of all in the written word of God.
So let’s see what the Scriptures say about demons causing sickness. There are many examples in the Bible, but for the sake of space I will use only one.
Demon Causes Illness: Kyphosis Or Similar Disease
Kyphosis causes an abnormal curvature of the spine in the forward position. In its most advanced stage a person may be permanently bent over and have a hunchback.
There is a story in the Bible of a lady with such a disease who was healed when the demon of sickness was cast out!
Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath, and behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up.
But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.” And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.
But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, “There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day.”
The Lord then answered him and said, “Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?
So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound–think of it–for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?”
Luke 13:10-16
There is so much to learn from this healing of kyphosis.
Jesus Heals the Woman by Casting Out the Demon of Sickness
No one can say for certain whether this lady had kyphosis. But her physical illness of being doubled over for eighteen years fits the medical description. Here is a point I want you to notice. The point is that the Bible said she had a “spirit of infirmity,” which is a demon of sickness.
Jesus confirmed that her illness was caused by a demon when He said, “So ought not this woman…whom Satan has bound…”
Yet how many of us would look at a person doubled over by a crippling disease and consider that it might be the work of a spirit of sickness? No one outside the church, and very few within–unfortunately.
We can’t blame the world for being blind to this possibility. They don’t believe the Bible is the word of God.
But it is astounding that most of those (in America and Europe) who say they believe the Bible is the word of God also do not believe in demons of sickness. They have selectively cast aside any portion of the Bible that conflicts with their tradition or sense of sophistication.
Nonetheless, there is no way around the inconvenient fact (for some) that in this case Jesus dealt with a crippling disease as though it were a demon.
What does that mean for us?
Demons, Or Spirits, Of Sickness Are Real
Apparently, there are some liberal theologians who believe that Jesus didn’t actually believe in demons, and that He only acted as though He did for the sake of the ignorant. I guess He didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.
I’m not going to waste a lot of words on something this silly. Let me just say that Jesus wasn’t the only one in the Bible who acted as though demons were real and that they could harm people.
The twelve apostles believed they were real: “And they cast out many demons…” (Mark 6:13).
The seventy disciple Jesus sent out believed they were real: “Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name” (Luke 10:17).
We could go on, but we’re already up to 83 people running around talking and acting as though demons were real. Are we to believe they were all dumbing down for the benefit of the ignorant masses?
And the people who supposedly had the demons? Were they also in on the act? That’s an incredible conspiracy!
The truth is if we believe the Bible is the word of God, we must believe demons are real. We also must believe they can sometimes make people sick.
Now the natural follow-up question is are demons the cause of all sickness?
Demons Cause Some Sickness, But Not All Sickness
The Bible is explicit in its examples of Satan or his demons directly causing sickness and disease. But I think it is also clear in Scripture and human experience that not all sickness and disease is caused by Satan.
We are presently in the Covid-19 pandemic. There is nothing necessarily demonic about one person being infected by another with the virus. I could say the same of the flu, a sexually transmitted disease, or smoking one’s self into lung cancer.
These physical bodies are born dying and susceptible to degraded physical and mental conditions. Of course, there are many variables that may make one more susceptible than another to any particular condition.
So, we have a coin with two different sides. One side is the reality that demons can and do cause sickness and disease. The other is the reality that demons do not cause all sickness and disease.
This means we must see sickness and disease as possible attacks by Satan. Consequently, we should vigorously resist him in faith with the word of God. Perhaps our earliest response in prayer should be to command the attack on our body or mind to stop.
Commanding a condition to leave our body, however, is not an admission that all sickness is caused by Satan. It is not even certain that when we rebuke a “demon of sickness” from our body that a demon is even present. I know how this sounds. So let me explain.
How Do We Know It’s Demon Of Sickness?
The Scripture says, “we know in part and we prophesy in part” (1 Corinthians 13:9). This truth can be applied to our lives across the board to include our prayers and warfare against Satan.
None of us knows everything. Unless the Holy Spirit reveals to us the deepest source of our trouble, we can only respond to it with the knowledge we have.
One fact we know is demons can cause sickness. Knowing this, it would be wise to initially and routinely resist the sickness as though it were a demon even though we know it may not be one.
This is not dissimilar to what is often done when we employ the services of an automotive mechanic or a doctor.
You hear an odd sound from your car. You take it to a mechanic and he tries this and that until, hopefully, he finds the source of the odd sound.
You feel something odd in your body. You go to a doctor and explain what happened. The doctor asks a bunch of questions, poke and prod here and there, draws blood, and has tests done.
Why doesn’t the mechanic or doctor simply perform or prescribe a fix after thirty seconds? It’s because they “know in part.” So they use their experience to track down the source of the problem.
This is the same process I use when I’m ministering deliverance and healing to people. It often produces startling answers to prayer as demons are exposed as the problem and cast out.
You should give it a try!
Real-Life Lady Healed of Demon of Sickness
I’m including below a testimony of a lady who was spectacularly healed as I went through the above process with her. This was done over Skype.
There are a few things she doesn’t mention:
- Twice as I ministered to her she abruptly jumped up from her chair and ran to the restroom. Each time I could hear her loudly vomiting.
- She told me afterward that as I ministered, she literally felt a hand inside of her body moving things around and healing her.
Okay, let’s hear directly from her. Oh, and this testimony is on Amazon. It’s included in her rating of my book, Deliverance from Demons and Diseases.
Real-Life Lady Healed of Demon of Sickness That Caused Scoliosis
Some of Eric’s Spiritual Warfare Novels
Eric’s Non-Fiction Books About Demons
Other Articles Related to Demons
- If You Don’t Believe Christians Can Have Demons…
- 10 Mistakes We Make When Casting Out Demons
- How Much Should You Pay For A Demon to Be Cast Out?
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