Do demons exist and what should a person do if they suspect that they are being harassed by them?

The Bible plainly shows that demons do exist and even though today they are evidently restrained from materializing, they still have great power and influence over the minds and lives of people, even having the ability to enter into and possess humans and animals. The Bible also shows that they use inanimate things such as houses and charms. (Mt. 12:43-45)

There have been instances where some people claim to have the overwhelming sense that they are being attacked by demons. However, not all who believe that they are being attacked by demons necessarily are. Demonic involvement is apparently the exception...not the rule. Some victims of mental difficulties fear they are under demonic attack, claiming at times to hear "voices." It is true that demons have been known to make sane individuals behave irrationally. (Mark 5:2-6, 15) But there is no proof that the demons are involved in most cases of bizarre behavior, any more than that they are involved in all cases of speechlessness, blindness, and epilepsy. Yet, back in Bible times, demons sometimes caused (or at least aggravated) these very ailments. (Matthew 9:32, 33; 12:22; 17:15-18) The Bible makes a clear distinction, though, between "those who were ill and those demon-possessed." (Mark 1:32-34; Matthew 4:24; Acts 5:16) So it seem as though the vast majority of cases of blindness or epilepsy today are caused by physical (not demonic) factors. The same no doubt can be said of most cases of mental distress.

Satan and his demons are `waging war' with God's people and have been known to harass faithful Christians. (Revelation 12:17; Ephesians 6:12) Because the demons are sadistic, it should not be a surprise that they take delight in tormenting some mentally distressed people...making their problems even worse.

But if there is good reason to suspect that demonic influence is involved, the following contains some sound, scriptural advice:

1) The disposal of any suspicious items directly and deliberately from individuals who are involved in some form of demonism may bring relief. (Acts 19:18-20)

2) Since Christians are told to "oppose the Devil," the afflicted one should reject any strange "voices" that could be of demonic origin. (James 4:7; Matthew 4:10)

3) If a person feels under attack, he should pray fervently, calling upon Jehovah's name out loud. (Ephesians 6:18; Proverbs 18:10)

For more, see:

Demons - Links to Information (Defend Jehovah's Witnesses)

What Should a Christian's View Be Toward Dancing?

There are many types of dancing merely as recreation that people do not find objectionable. Most
importantly, God does not condemn the act of dancing itself. In fact, Ecclesiastes 3:4 mentions that "There is a time to skip about ["the time for dancing," TEV]."

The Bible has often mentioned dancing:

After Israel witnessed the demonstration of God's power in destroying the Egyptians, they expressed their thanks and praise to God through singing and dancing. When the men joined Moses in singing a victory song, Miriam led the women in dances to the accompaniment of tambourines:

"And Mir´i·am the prophetess, Aaron's sister, proceeded to take a tambourine in her hand; and all the women began going out with her with tambourines and in dances." (Ex 15:20)

There was also the account of Jephthah's daughter's victory dance. She came out to join her father in praising God for having given the Ammonites into his hands:

"Finally Jeph´thah came to Miz´pah to his home, and, look! his daughter coming out to meet him with tambourine playing and dancing!" (Judges 11:34)

Other dances motivated by deep religious feelings were included...

...by the women of Israel, who danced to the music of lutes and tambourines and welcomed Saul and David back after God's victory over the Philistines. (1 Sam. 18:6, 7; 21:11; 29:5)

... in parts of certain annual festivals in connection with the worship of God. (Judges 21:19-21, 23)

...as a general means of honoring and praising God: "Praise Jah, you people! . . . Let them praise his name with dancing. With the tambourine and the harp let them make melody to him." "Praise him with the tambourine and the circle dance."—Ps 149:1, 3; 150:4.

...by King David on the occasion when the ark of the covenant finally arrived in Jerusalem: "And David was dancing around before Jehovah with all his power, . . . leaping and dancing around before Jehovah." (2 Sam. 6:14-17)

However, there is quite a contrast between this dancing "to God's glory" and the pagan dancing that is also mentioned in the Bible. When the Israelites made the golden calf, they then participated in a form of pagan dancing before their idol, of which God condemned. (Ex. 32:6, 17-19)

Also, the worship of Baal was associated with wild, unrestrained dances. In Elijah's time, the priests of Baal participated in a demonic dance and lacerated themselves with knives as they kept "limping around" the altar. (1 Kings 18:26-29) Other translations describe this "limping around" as a "dance".

The basic principle for Chistians is to do "all things to God's glory." (1 Corinthians 10:31) So Christians need to ask themselves, "Is the type of dancing I am considering to participate acceptable to God? Is the type of dancing I am considering to participate in viewed as sexually suggestive or sensual? Is the type of dancing I am considering to participate in considered as a detraction from my worship to the only true God?"

If the answer to any of the questions above is "yes", then true Christians should avoid those types of dances.

For more, see:

DANCING - Links to Information (INDEX; Watchtower Online Library)

DANCING (Insight-1 pp. 574-575; Watchtower Online Library)

How Do Jehovah's Witnesses View Dancing? (Defend Jehovah's Witnesses)

What does the Bible say about dancing? (Jehovah's Witnesses Questions and Answers)

When 2 Tim. 3:16 says, "All Scripture is inspired of God", does this include the New Testament?

2 Tim 3:16 says: "All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness." (NWT)

It may be that Paul was referring to the scriptures available then (the OT), but we (and most others who call themselves Christians) now also include what is called the New Testament (NT) under the designation of "inspired scripture."

Therefore, since 2 Tim. 3:16 itself is "inspired scripture," it now should be considered (by Christians, at least) as part of the "all scripture" mentioned above.

Additionally, it may be that the inspired writings of the NT writers (including Paul's writings, of course) were considered inspired scripture even then.

Notice 2 Peter 3:16:

"[Paul,] speaking of this as he does in all his letters. There are some things in them hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do THE OTHER SCRIPTURES." - NRSV.

The word for "scripture(s)" in the NT is 'graphe.' The inspired writers of the NT always used this word as meaning "inspired scriptures." Here are all the 51 places it is found in the NT:

"Scripture": Mark 12:10; 15:28; Luke 4:21; John 2:22; 7:38; 7:42; 10:35; 13:18; 17:12; 19:24; 19:28; 19:36; 19:37; 20:9; Acts 1:16; 8:32; 8:35; Romans 4:3; 9:17; 10:11; 11:2; Galatians 3:8; 3:22; 4:30; 1 Tim. 5:18; 2 Tim. 3:16; James 2:8; 2:23; 4:5; 1 Peter 2:6; 2 Peter 1:20.

"Scriptures": Matthew 21:42; 22:29; 26:54; 26:56; Mark 12:24; 14:49; Luke 24:27; 24:32; 24:45; John 5:39; Acts 17:2; 17:11; 18:24; 18:28; Romans 1:2; 15:4; 16:26; 1 Corinthians 15:3; 15:4; 2 Peter 3:16.

"Graphe" (Strong's # 1124) is used at 2 Peter 3:16 as "inspired scripture" and context itself indicates this meaning there. Paul's writings were compared to "other [inspired] scripture."

"As used in the Christian Greek Scriptures, the Greek word 'graphe' ('a writing') refers only to the sacred writings in God's Word the Bible." - Insight on the Scriptures, Vol. 2, p. 879.

What scriptures have a bearing on the attitude of true Christians toward involvement in ceremonies commemorating events in a nation's political history?

John 18:36: "Jesus answered [the Roman governor]: `My kingdom is no part of this world.'"

John 15:19: "If you [Jesus' followers] were part of the world, the world would be fond of what is its own. Now because you are no part of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, on this account the world hates you."

1 John 5:19: "The whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one." (Compare John 14:30; Revelation 13:1, 2; Daniel 2:44.)


For more, see:

Neutrality - Links to Information (Search For Bible Truths)

Neutrality - Links to Information (INDEX; Watchtower Online Library)

What is neutrality and why should true Christians not share in patriotic ceremonies? (Jehovah's Witnesses Questions and Answers)

Why Don't Jehovah's Witnesses Vote, Pledge Allegiance Or Support The Military? (Search For Bible Truths)

How do Jehovah's Witnesses view voting? (Jehovah's Witnesses Questions and Answers)

How do Jehovah's Witnesses view voting? (Search For Bible Truths)

Voting in Political Elections (lv pp. 212-215; Watchtower Online Library)

Why Don't Jehovah's Witnesses Vote? (Slate article)

Christian Neutrality (Jehovah's Witnesses United)

The refusal to participate in millitary service includes maintaining respect for governments and their participants. (Jehovah's Witnesses Questions and Answers)

Why don't Jehovah witnesses say the pledge of allegiance? (Search For Bible Truths)

What is a "Principle" and Why is it Important?

A principle is defined as "a general or fundamental truth: a comprehensive and fundamental law, doctrine, or assumption on which others are based or from which others are derived." - Webster's Third New International Dictionary

Principles differ from laws in that they provide the BASIS for laws. They provide direction on things that are not specifically covered by a Law. Rules may be provided for some particular time or situation, but principles are timeless. (Psalm 119:111) Divine principles do not become outdated or pass away as the following Scripture can well attest: "The green grass has dried up, the blossom has withered; but as for the word of our God, it will last to time indefinite." (Isaiah 40:8)

Many machines are designed to obey instructions. Animals have instincts. But when Jehovah declared "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness," humans were created to be guided by principles. (Genesis 1:26) In addition, since they contain the potential for personal decisions as to application, they allow a person to knowingly or unknowingly show what is in their hearts.

For our benefit, Jehovah has had hundreds of these principles recorded in His Word. It is interesting that while all godly principles are beneficial, some carry more weight than others. For instance, in Matthew 22:37-39, Jesus showed that among the commandments and corresponding principles of the Mosaic Law, some were more important than others.

Mt. 22:37-39 says: "He said to him: "`You must love Jehovah your God with your whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole mind.' This is the greatest and first commandment. The second, like it, is this, `You must love your neighbor as yourself." (NWT)

Out of the hundreds of principles found in the Bible, it may be difficult to actually know them all. But keeping in mind the Scripture above, the key principles of the Bible are those that have a direct bearing upon our relationship with Jehovah. If we take these to heart, God becomes the prime influence on our moral compass. Secondary, there are the principles that affect our relationships with other people.

For more concerning principles, see:

Bible Principles — INDEX; Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

How Do Bible Principles Benefit Us? — Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

Godly Principles Can Benefit You — Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

Your Choice of Principles — Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

Guide Your Steps by Godly Principles — Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

How to Be a Good Father: Five Bible Principles (JW.ORG)

Before and After—Bible Principles Made a Difference — Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

Find Contentment by Applying Bible Principles — Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

"No Man Has Seen the Father"

"No Man Has Seen the Father"

John 5:37 - "The Father who sent me ... his form you have never seen" - RSV.

Numbers 12:8 - "with [Moses] I speak mouth to mouth ... and he beholds the form of [Jehovah]."

Therefore, some trinitarians claim, Moses saw the form of Jehovah. And since Jesus said that men have never seen the form of the Father, the Father must not be Jehovah. Jehovah God of the Old Testament must really be Jesus, they say.

First, we should note that Jesus was speaking to first century Jews at John 5:37. Of course they had never seen the "form" of Jehovah. That does not necessarily mean that Moses did not see the "form" of the Father more than a thousand years earlier!

Second, John tells us that no man has ever seen God (John 1:18, 1 John 4:12). And yet many men have seen Jesus (hundreds saw him even after his resurrection). Therefore, Jesus cannot be God, but Jehovah certainly is God. Therefore Jesus cannot be Jehovah!

Furthermore, we know Jehovah is not Jesus:

Psalm 110:1 - "Jehovah saith unto [Jesus - compare Acts 2:34-36]" - ASV;

Ps. 2:2 - "the rulers take counsel together against Jehovah, and against his anointed [Messiah - compare Acts 4:24-27]" - ASV;

Ps. 2:7 - "I will tell of the decree: Jehovah said unto me, thou art my son; this day have I begotten thee' [compare Acts 13:33,34]" - ASV;

Micah 5:2, 4 - "And he [Jesus] shall stand, and shall feed his flock ... in the majesty of the name of Jehovah his God." - ASV.

We also know that Jehovah is the Father, not the Son. Jehovah is never called "the Son," "the Messiah," "the only-begotten," "the firstborn," etc. But he is called the Father: "O Jehovah, thou art our Father" - Is. 64:8 ASV (compare Is. 63:16; Jer. 3:19, 20; Deut. 32:6; Ps. 89:26, 27).

And we know that Jehovah alone is the only true God.

"Father,.... This is eternal life to know thee who alone art truly God..." - Jn 17:1, 3, NEB. Cf. Ps. 86:6, 10; Is. 45:5, 6, 21, 22.


Numbers 12:8 Examined

So, how can we reconcile Nu. 12:8 ("[Moses] beholds the form of Jehovah") with the rest of the Bible? Especially when Jehovah Himself said just before he showed Moses His "form": "man shall not see me and live" (Ex. 33:20 - ASV)!

First, Robert Young tells us in Young's Analytical Concordance to the Bible, "Hints and Helps to Bible Interpretation":

"What a SERVANT says or does is ascribed to the MASTER."

That is why angels sent directly from God and perfectly speaking God's very words to humans are frequently called "God" or "Jehovah": Ex. 3:2, 4; Gen. 32:24-28, 30 and Hosea 12:3, 4; Gen. 31:11, 13; Gen. 16:11, 13; Judges 13:21, 22. Therefore, seeing the form of one of God's perfect representatives was spoken of as seeing God. (E.g. Manoa knew he had spoken with an angel of Jehovah and yet said: "we shall surely die because we have seen God." - Judges 13:21, 22 ASV.)

Second, the Hebrew word translated "form" at Nu. 12:8 is temunah which is used 10 times in the entire Old Testament. It can be translated "form," "likeness," "image," or "similitude" (as in KJV). "Similitude" means "one that is like or similar; a facsimile."

In fact, Dr. William F. Beck, noted Lutheran scholar, translated Nu.12:8 - "[Moses] sees what the LORD is like." - The Holy Bible in the Language of Today.

And the Holy Bible: Easy-to-Read Version translates Nu. 12:8 - "Moses can look at the very image of the Lord." (Examine uses of temunah at Ex. 20:4; Deut. 4:16, 23, 25; and 5:8.)

So, just because Jehovah's angel, speaking and acting for Jehovah, showed Moses a portion of his glory as a "likeness" or "image" of God does not mean that Moses literally saw God "face to face." (For another interpretation of Nu. 12:8 examine the footnote in the NIVSB.) In fact, we see that, even though Moses had just spoken "face-to-face" with God (Ex. 33:11), God says that no man (including Moses, of course) can actually see His "face" and live! (Ex. 33:20, 23).

We can see, then, that when John said that no man had ever seen God, he meant it in the literal, physical sense: no man has actually seen the very person of God (who is the Father, Jehovah, only) with his physical eyes. We can also be confident that, since many men have seen Jesus (both before and after his resurrection - and, probably, in his pre-existent form as the Angel of Jehovah whom Moses saw, as even some trinitarian reference works show ), Jesus cannot be God!

* * * * * * *

Walter Martin uses his version of this trinitarian "evidence" on pp. 69-70 of The Kingdom of the Cults (1985 ed.) to show that "Jesus ... was truly an incarnation of Jehovah":

"As recorded in the eighteenth chapter of Genesis, Abraham had three visitors. Two of them were angels (Genesis 19:1), but the third he addressed as Jehovah God, fourteen times! .... To further confuse the Witnesses' peculiar view of God as a solitary unit [only one person], Jesus Himself said concerning His Father, `... you have not at any time either heard his voice or seen his form ... for God is a Spirit ...' (John 4:24; 5:37). Now then, here is the evidence. Moses declares that God spoke face to face with Abraham (Gen. 18:26), and Jesus and John say, `No man hath seen God at any time.' But Jesus makes it clear that He is referring to the Father, and so does John [?]."

So, again, we find people in the Old Testament "seeing" God and the New Testament denying that any human has ever literally, physically seen God.

Martin then tells us that there is only one "solution to this dilemma": God the Father was in heaven while "God the Son" spoke face to face with Abraham (see the IMAGE study, p. 6 and f.n. #7). We already have seen another, more honest, "solution to this 'dilemma'" above. Now notice what Martin himself admits about this "dilemma" in a later place in this same book.

Martin tells us that the Mormon idea that the Father and the heavenly-resurrected Son are persons with bodies of flesh who can, therefore, be seen and touched by humans is totally false. He tells us that the angels in heaven are

" 'ministering spirits' (Hebrews 1:7), beings who have immaterial 'bodies' of spiritual substances and yet exist." - p. 205.

He then points out that God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and the Son (before coming to the earth as Jesus Christ) had "immaterial bodies" of spirit - p. 206.

Martin continues (p. 207):

"The Mormon teaching that God was seen 'face to face' in the Old Testament (Exodus 33:9, 11, 23; Exodus 24:9-11; Isaiah 6:1, 5; Genesis 5:24; Genesis 6:5-9, etc.) is refuted on two counts, that of language and the science of comparative textual analysis (hermeneutics).

"From the standpoint of linguistics, all the references cited by the Mormons to prove 'that God has a physical body that could be observed' melt away in the light of God's expressed declaration, 'Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me and live' (Exodus 33:20).

"Exodus 33:11 (face to face) in the Hebrew is rendered `intimate' and in no sense is it opposed to verse 20. Similar expressions are utilized in Deuteronomy 5:4, while in Genesis 32:30 it is the angel of the Lord who speaks, not Jehovah himself. The Old Testament is filled with theophanies (literally, Godforms), instances where God spoke or revealed Himself in angelic manifestations...."

Isn't it strange that when he wants to defend a trinity idea, Martin can find only one explanation for God speaking face to face with someone: Jesus was God! And yet, when he needs a different understanding for a different purpose, he can see a different (and more honest in this case) explanation.

Notice that Martin claims that Jesus is equally God with the Father and that they both had immaterial spirit bodies during the time written about in the Old Testament. Having immaterial spirit bodies and being God, neither of them could have been seen by humans! However, if Jesus had had the same type of spirit body that the other sons of God (angels) had, and if he were not God, he could have temporarily assumed a body of flesh during a meeting with humans upon earth just as they did at various times in the Old Testament.

But God (whether father, son, "cousin," "uncle," "nephew," etc.) has never been seen by man - Jn 1:18; 1 Jn 4:12.

As Martin tells us,

"all the references cited ... to prove 'that God has a physical body that could be observed' melt away in the light of God's expressed declaration, 'Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me and live' (Exodus 33:20)."


* * * * *


NOTES


1.
E.g. - "Angel of the Lord - occurs many times in the Old Testament, where in almost every instance it means a supernatural personage to be distinguished from Jehovah (Gen.16:7-14; 22:11-18; 31:11,13; Ex.3:2-5 [etc.]). Some feel the preincarnate Christ is meant." And, "Titles and Names of Jesus Christ. .... Angel of the Lord (Ex.3:2; Judg.13:15-18)." - pp. 39, 624, Today's Dictionary of the Bible, Bethany House Publishers, 1982.

Traditional Christian interpretation has held that this "angel" was a preincarnate manifestation of Christ as God's Messenger-Servant." - footnote for Gen. 16:7 in The NIV Study Bible, 1985, Zondervan.


2.
For a discussion of John 14:9 ("He who has seen me [the Son] has seen the Father") see the OMN study paper.

Why didn't God give us more information than what is found in the Bible?

We have everything we need to know, but not everything that there is to know.

Why?

God's reasoning on this may be likened to the perspective of Him being our Father (our parent).

For example: for many human parents, there are some things that they don't bother telling their children about because age and experience will be the best teacher for them. Some things are too deep and are very difficult for their children to be able to comprehend at that time.

Similarly, since God's "ways are higher than [our] ways, and [His] thoughts than [our] thoughts" (Isa. 55:9), He has given us all of the information that we need for right now.

However, we can discern a lot of (otherwise "hidden") information right now as we progress in our understanding:

"The path of the righteous ones is like the bright light that is getting lighter and lighter until the day is firmly established." (Prov. 4:18)

Unfortunately, a large problem some may have is that they give up on God simply because they are unable to find the information that they are looking for in the Bible or that there is just a misunderstanding of the information that they already have. We are encouraged not to give up, but to keep seeking and to keep searching for understanding - likening it to "hid treasures":

"My son, if you will receive my sayings and treasure up my own commandments with yourself, so as to pay attention to wisdom with your ear, that you may incline your heart to discernment; if, moreover, you call out for understanding itself and you give forth your voice for discernment itself, if you keep seeking for it as for silver, and as for hid treasures you keep searching for it, in that case you will understand the fear of Jehovah, and you will find the very knowledge of God." (Prov. 2:1-5) NWT

For more, see:

Bible - Links to Information (Search For Bible Truths)

Why doesn't the Bible give all of the answers? (Jehovah's Witnesses Questions and Answers)