Physical Demonic Torment: Determining the Source

Many people experience manifestations of demonic torment in their physical bodies. The nature of this torment varies greatly, but most are confident that the source is outside of them. It is our experience as deliverance ministers that most of the physical torment is from spirits inside the house.

Soulish torment is common and well understood where  emotional and mental strongholds,  such as anger, depression, fear, mental illness, rage and more, can be present.

What about physical torment?  How do demons operate in this realm?

Demonic Torment From Inside

We see many instances in the gospels where Jesus came across sick people, and he laid hands upon them and healed them. We recognize healing as a valid and necessary part of the present day ministry of the Holy Spirit and believers should be actively involved in that.

However,  demon spirits are behind many sicknesses and diseases, and they need to be cast out before the healing can manifest. In Luke 13:10-13, Jesus called a spirit of infirmity out of a crippled woman. In our ministry, we have seen many people set free from physical infirmities caused by demons, and also those diagnosed with certain “syndromes and disorders.”

Pastor Henry Wright has some excellent teaching resources on spiritual roots of sicknesses and diseases. In his book, “A More Excellent Way”, I first became acquainted with the notion that demon spirits were  behind many physical afflictions. A number of soul-based spirits, including fear, anger, bitterness, rejection and more, open the door for these body-tormenting spirits to enter and begin to manifest.

We suggest that diagnoses that include the terms disorder or syndrome should include a spiritual treatment plan, up to and including deliverance. We see many clients with these types of diagnoses, and they are coping with the conditions and not being cured.

The etiology (or cause) of these is unknown, there are no known cures (at this point) and the medical approach is to prescribe medications to treat the symptoms.  Many believe that the main reason that the cause is unknown because the root is spiritual not medical in origin. In the absence of definitive data, doesn’t this sound like a very reasonable option?

Demonic Torment From Outside

While our understanding continues to evolve in this area, we contend that the most physical pain or sensation people experience is due to spirits within a person rather than those on the outside.

The noted exception to this contention is when the spirits, subsequent to deliverance, return to the house looking for open doors to re-enter.  We have seen that they can bring the physical symptoms back trying to delude the person into thinking that they are not free. For example, when a person is set free from migraine headaches, an important part of their post-deliverance regimen involves knowing what to do if they start to experience the pain again.

We encourage them first to recognize that the spirit is trying to return before they reach for the medication. Once they discern that, they can choose to deal with it spiritually. We have them command to speak to the pain very specifically for it to stop and for the spirit to leave in Jesus name(James 4:6).

As an aside, the response above is not effective when the perpetrator is inside the house and where the person has not been delivered of the torment.  These people get frustrated when the pain does not subside. The problem is that they think that they are resisting demons and shooing them away from the house when they are still indwelling.

We take precautions at the outset of deliverance ministry to prepare the prayee to let us know if they start experiencing physical discomfort. When that happens, it is the demons inside the person who are trying to distract and disrupt the deliverance session

If that distraction occurs, we simply stop for a moment; bind up the spirits causing the pain, tell them to stop and proceed.  The pain or physical manifestation almost invariably ceases and is gone completely when we finish the session.

In conclusion, we think it is important to understand the origin of the torment to deal with it most effectively. What we have shared in this article is very much a work-in-process, and as we gain more or different revelation in each area, we will share it with you in subsequent articles.

Have you had experience with physical touching or pain that you knew or suspected was in demonic in origin? How did you handle it?  If it’s a present condition, how are you handling it now?  We would very much like to hear from you!