““When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order. Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this evil generation.”” (Matthew 12:43–45, ESV)
The scripture from Matthew 12 shown above contains an important warning. The words of this passage contain Jesus’ wisdom concerning an empty soul and evil spirits. Jesus explained that when an “unclean spirit” leaves a man, that man is changed. While the unclean, or evil, spirit was in the man, his life was full of chaos. His soul was a mess. With his soul no longer occupied by the evil spirit, the person’s life may be “put in order” (Matthew 12:44). Evil spirits bring drama, emotional turmoil, self-destructive tendencies, bad habits, sin, and chaos. When the evil spirit leaves, the soul of a person becomes calm, ordered, clean, and pure (thus, “put in order”!). However, if God isn’t in the soul, that soul becomes an easy target for unclean spirits. Jesus ended His teaching above by saying that the evil spirit sees that empty soul and “brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of the person is worse than the first” (Matthew 12:45).
An empty soul is a soul that does not have the Holy Spirit within it. God doesn’t reside there. The person’s soul has no allegiance, no commitment, no obedience to anyone. Being “empty”, that soul will be liable to attract evil spirits. Without God’s presence in that soul to protect it, it will soon find itself the target of demons and evil spirits seeking to abide there.
No soul stays empty for long. Either God’s Spirit resides there, or evil spirits will soon take it over.
There is a foolish belief among atheists today that there is no soul. They believe a human being has no spiritual life. They do not believe in spiritual warfare, good and evil spirits, nor God’s Holy Spirit. Thus, the souls of these atheists are ripe for the picking. At any moment, evil spirits can find a way into the empty soul that goes unprotected by God. Those evil spirits may be let into the soul by greed, the lust for money, power, sexual passion, and all other temptations. By the time a person figures out his or her life is full of chaos, emotional turmoil, drama, self-destructive tendencies, bad habits, and sin, it is too late. The evil spirit or spirits have already assumed a place in the soul. Only repentance and a total commitment to obey God by the person will give him or her any hope to find peace, eternal security, and freedom from evil chaos.
A counselor took early retirement to spend the rest of his life helping the needy. He found a young boy with several birth defects. He arranged financial and medical help. Skilled surgeons restored the child’s facial appearance. Trained therapists taught him to speak and walk. By his teens, the boy was able to take part in all the activities of other young people.
Years later, the counselor asked his friends, “I wonder what has become of this young man?” One friend guessed he was a great athlete: another, a skilled surgeon. The counselor searched the internet for any information on what happened to the boy.
A week later, the retired counselor returned to his friends with the news. “The young man is a prisoner, serving a life sentence for murder. We were able to restore his physical features and his ability to walk and act, but we failed to teach him where to walk and how to act. I was successful in helping the boy physically, but I failed to help him spiritually.” (See The Best Sermon Illustrations, p. 285).
That boy may have been helped physically. His birth defects were repaired. He was taught how to speak and walk to the best of his ability. But his soul was empty. It was ripe pickings for an evil spirit that led him down a road that resulted in murder.
Every human being is born with a spiritual life. Every human being is given a soul. If the human being does not accept God into the soul, evil spirits will find a way into that soul. The result will always be bad for that person and the society around him.
When the Leninists and Marxists took over the leadership of Russia, some of their first actions were to close churches and put an end to godly worship. They taught atheism in the schools to succeeding generations. They taught there were no souls, there was no God, and the spiritual life was simply an illusion “to keep the masses in order”. Russians believed these lies and turned atheist. Within two decades, death followed. Evil spirits filled the empty souls of the leaders of Russia. Corruption took over. Then, Stalin was elected leader. Then there was war and death and suffering. Filled with evil spirits, Stalin sought to kill anyone who threatened his leadership, had different goals, or did not submit to his whims. It is said that more Russians died under Stalin’s leadership than by the Germans in World War Two.
I could give you millions of examples of people who chose not to obey God and whose lives were filled with sin, chaos, drama, and self-destruction. Without an obedience to God and the presence of the Holy Spirit in the soul, these poor people were driven by evil forces to do their worst. Temptations gave rise to poor choices. These poor choices resulted in sin. The sin invited in evil spirits. The evil spirits gave rise to self-destruction and social degradation.
I wish I could tell you that people today are smarter and more accomplished spiritually. That is far from the truth. Even people who worship in churches every Sunday do not realize when they have been manipulated by philosophies and ideologies that are not only foreign to God’s way, but they are also destructive to the soul.
Be careful what you believe. Learn to trust and obey God. Don’t be deceived by smooth talking individuals and thereby invite evil spirits into your life. You will pay dearly for that mistake. Keep faithful to God. Ask for and nourish the Holy Spirit in your soul. Let the Word of God dwell richly in your mind. Listen to Jesus’ teachings. Trust in God’s grace and forgiveness. Put your soul’s allegiance firmly into God’s hands.
An empty soul is a soul that does not have the Holy Spirit within it. God doesn’t reside there. The person’s soul has no allegiance, no commitment, no obedience to anyone. Being “empty”, that soul will be liable to attract evil spirits. Without God’s presence in that soul to protect it, it will soon find itself the target of demons and evil spirits seeking to abide there.
No soul stays empty for long. Either God’s Spirit resides there, or evil spirits will soon take it over.
There is a foolish belief among atheists today that there is no soul. They believe a human being has no spiritual life. They do not believe in spiritual warfare, good and evil spirits, nor God’s Holy Spirit. Thus, the souls of these atheists are ripe for the picking. At any moment, evil spirits can find a way into the empty soul that goes unprotected by God. Those evil spirits may be let into the soul by greed, the lust for money, power, sexual passion, and all other temptations. By the time a person figures out his or her life is full of chaos, emotional turmoil, drama, self-destructive tendencies, bad habits, and sin, it is too late. The evil spirit or spirits have already assumed a place in the soul. Only repentance and a total commitment to obey God by the person will give him or her any hope to find peace, eternal security, and freedom from evil chaos.
A counselor took early retirement to spend the rest of his life helping the needy. He found a young boy with several birth defects. He arranged financial and medical help. Skilled surgeons restored the child’s facial appearance. Trained therapists taught him to speak and walk. By his teens, the boy was able to take part in all the activities of other young people.
Years later, the counselor asked his friends, “I wonder what has become of this young man?” One friend guessed he was a great athlete: another, a skilled surgeon. The counselor searched the internet for any information on what happened to the boy.
A week later, the retired counselor returned to his friends with the news. “The young man is a prisoner, serving a life sentence for murder. We were able to restore his physical features and his ability to walk and act, but we failed to teach him where to walk and how to act. I was successful in helping the boy physically, but I failed to help him spiritually.” (See The Best Sermon Illustrations, p. 285).
That boy may have been helped physically. His birth defects were repaired. He was taught how to speak and walk to the best of his ability. But his soul was empty. It was ripe pickings for an evil spirit that led him down a road that resulted in murder.
Every human being is born with a spiritual life. Every human being is given a soul. If the human being does not accept God into the soul, evil spirits will find a way into that soul. The result will always be bad for that person and the society around him.
When the Leninists and Marxists took over the leadership of Russia, some of their first actions were to close churches and put an end to godly worship. They taught atheism in the schools to succeeding generations. They taught there were no souls, there was no God, and the spiritual life was simply an illusion “to keep the masses in order”. Russians believed these lies and turned atheist. Within two decades, death followed. Evil spirits filled the empty souls of the leaders of Russia. Corruption took over. Then, Stalin was elected leader. Then there was war and death and suffering. Filled with evil spirits, Stalin sought to kill anyone who threatened his leadership, had different goals, or did not submit to his whims. It is said that more Russians died under Stalin’s leadership than by the Germans in World War Two.
I could give you millions of examples of people who chose not to obey God and whose lives were filled with sin, chaos, drama, and self-destruction. Without an obedience to God and the presence of the Holy Spirit in the soul, these poor people were driven by evil forces to do their worst. Temptations gave rise to poor choices. These poor choices resulted in sin. The sin invited in evil spirits. The evil spirits gave rise to self-destruction and social degradation.
I wish I could tell you that people today are smarter and more accomplished spiritually. That is far from the truth. Even people who worship in churches every Sunday do not realize when they have been manipulated by philosophies and ideologies that are not only foreign to God’s way, but they are also destructive to the soul.
Be careful what you believe. Learn to trust and obey God. Don’t be deceived by smooth talking individuals and thereby invite evil spirits into your life. You will pay dearly for that mistake. Keep faithful to God. Ask for and nourish the Holy Spirit in your soul. Let the Word of God dwell richly in your mind. Listen to Jesus’ teachings. Trust in God’s grace and forgiveness. Put your soul’s allegiance firmly into God’s hands.