"Demons are spirits Mat_12:43; Mat_12:45 are Satan’s emissaries; Mat_12:26; Mat_12:27; Mat_25:41 and so numerous as to make Satan’s power practically ubiquitous. Mar_5:9. They are capable of entering and controlling both men and beasts Mar_5:8; Mar_5:11-13 and earnestly seek embodiment, without which, apparently, they are powerless for evil.; Mat_12:43; Mat_12:44; Mar_5:10-12.
Demon influence and demon possession are discriminated in the N. T. Instances of the latter are; Mat_4:24; Mat_8:16; Mat_8:28; Mat_8:33; Mat_9:32; Mat_12:22; Mar_1:32; Mar_5:15; Mar_5:16; Mar_5:18; Luk_8:35; Act_8:7; Act_16:16.
They are unclean, sullen, violent, and malicious; Mat_8:28; Mat_9:23; Mat_10:1; Mat_12:43; Mar_1:23; Mar_5:3-5; Mar_9:17; Mar_9:20; Luk_6:18; Luk_9:39. They know Jesus Christ as Most High God, and recognize His supreme authority; Mat_8:31; Mat_8:32; Mar_1:24; Act_19:15; Jas_2:19. They know their eternal fate to be one of torment; Mat_8:29; Luk_8:31. They inflict physical maladies; Mat_12:22; Mat_17:15-18; Luk_13:16 but mental disease is to be distinguished from the disorder of mind due to demonical control.
Demon influence may manifest itself in religion asceticism and formalism 1Ti_4:1-3 degenerating into uncleanness 2Pe_2:10-12. The sign of demon influence in religion is departing from the faith, i.e. the body of revealed truth in the Scriptures. 1Ti_4:1. The demons maintain especially a conflict with believers who would be spiritual.; Eph_6:12; 1Ti_4:1-3. All unbelievers are open to demon possession Eph_2:2. The believer’s resources, prayer and bodily control Mat_17:21 "the whole armour of God" Eph_6:13-18. Exorcism in the name of Jesus Christ Act_16:18 was practised for demon possession. One of the awful features of the apocalyptic judgments in which this age will end is an irruption of demons out the abyss. Rev_9:1-11." -Scofield
From Robertson's Word Pictures on the healing of the two demon-possessed men of Gadara:
"Thou Son of God (huie tou theou). The recognition of Jesus by the demons is surprising. The whole subject of demonology is difficult. Some hold that it is merely the ancient way of describing disease. But that does not explain the situation here. Jesus is represented as treating the demons as real existences separate from the human personality. Missionaries in China today claim that they have seen demons cast out. The devil knew Jesus clearly and it is not strange that Jesus was recognized by the devil’s agents. They know that there is nothing in common between them and the Son of God (hēmin kai soi, ethical dative) and they fear torment “before the time” (pro kairou).
Usually ta daimonia is the word in the New Testament for demons, but in Mat_8:31 we have hoi daimones (the only example in the N.T.). Daimonion is a diminutive of daimōn. In Homer daimōn is used synonymously with theos and thea. Hesiod employed daimōn of men of the golden age as tutelary deities. Homer has the adjective daimonios usually in an evil sense. Empedocles considered the demons both bad and good. They were thus used to relieve the gods and goddesses of much rascality. Grote (History of Greece) notes that the Christians were thus by pagan usage justified in calling idolatry the worship of demons. See notes on 1Co_10:20.; note on 1Ti_4:1; note on Rev_9:20; and notes on Rev_16:13. In the Gospels demons are the same as unclean spirits (Mar_5:12, Mar_5:15; Mar_3:22, Mar_3:30; Luk_4:33). The demons are disturbers (Vincent) of the whole life of man (Mar_5:2.; Mar_7:25; Mat_12:45; Luk_13:11, Luk_13:16)."
Paul weighs in on the topic in 1 Corinthians:
"The word daimonia, so common in the Gospels, occurs in Paul’s writings only here and 1Ti_4:1. Demonology is a deep and dark subject here pictured by Paul as the explanation of heathenism which is a departure from God (Rom_1:19-23) and a substitute for the worship of God. It is a terrible indictment which is justified by the licentious worship associated with paganism then and now." -Robertson's Word Pictures
Here's Paul again in 1 Timothy 4:1:
"Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons..."
"In the Gospels demons are the same as unclean spirits (Mar_5:12, Mar_5:15; Mar_3:22, Mar_3:30; Luk_4:33). The demons are disturbers (Vincent) of the whole life of man (Mar_5:2.; Mar_7:25; Mat_12:45; Luk_13:11, Luk_13:16).
From these verses we learn that not all miracles are of divine origin and that not all miracle workers are divinely accredited. A miracle simply means that a supernatural power is at work. That power may be divine or satanic. Satan may empower his workers to cast out demons temporarily, in order to create the illusion that the miracle is divine. He is not dividing his kingdom against itself in such a case, but is plotting an even worse invasion of demons in the future. the purpose of demons is without exception to destroy. If Jesus had simply cast them out of the maniacs, the demons would have been a menace to the other people of the area. By allowing them to go into the swine, He prevented their entering men and women and confined their destructive power to animals." Believer's Bible
"This incident demonstrates that the ultimate aim of demons is to destroy, and underlines the terrifying possibility that two men can be indwelt by the number of demons it takes to destroy two thousand swine (Mar_5:13)." Believer's Bible
Jon Courson makes a bold statement here:
"This demonized individual was wearing no clothes and was obsessed with death—not unlike what we see happening in our own day. Nudity and obsession with death are the direct insignias of Satanic and demonic activity."
I still have not unraveled my question about mental illness and demon possession, though I did find this article interesting. I'm definitely skewed toward cynicism of dramatic displays of a spiritual nature. It's not that I don't believe there is another world, a fight, surrounding us, as I have seen too many uneducated and emotionally driven people use the supernatural as a tool for their flakiness.
However, I am tend toward Biblical literalism---in other words, if it's clearly taught as a reality or principle in the Bible, I believe it's true today. Demons are mentioned throughout the scriptures in multiple instances and as distinct from mental illness. I do think demon possession happens--that it is a real thing. It's the rare person who will not allow a belief in anything beyond the physical, a hard core atheist.
John Piper's about as non-flaky as they get and here's a small snippet of his position:
Question: Do you believe in casting out demons? How would you go about it?
Answer: "I do, and I think there is a steady state, normal way to go about it from 2 Timothy 2:24-26....
The steady state, ordinary way of bringing people out of the clutches of the devil is described in 2 Timothy 2 where it says, "Teach with gentleness, correct your opponents in love. God may perhaps grant them to repent and come to a knowledge of the truth and be delivered or escape from the power of the evil one who had taken them captive." That's a paraphrase. So clearly in that passage, teaching and love and patience and God's sovereignty—maybe he'll intervene—is the normal way that Timothy is being told to free people from the will and the bondage of the devil
So there are lots of ways, at least the three that I'm describing here. This teaching way, this self-sacrificing, gospel way, and this occasional exorcistic way.
Demons are real, Satan is real, and every pastor should do a serious study of the devil and of his ways and of demons, and decide how he is going to deal with that. Because there is an attack on the church in various forms all the time." -John Piper
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