Joe Beam

In recent years, there has been a growing movement within evangelical Christianity called spiritual warfare. The spiritual warfare movement teaches that God and his angels actively battle Satan and his demons for control of the world and for each individual human soul. Human beings can play a dramatic role in this struggle by living a holy life and battling moral decadence within their cultures.

Citing Biblical precedents, many theologians believe that demons can actively take over human lives. In this excerpt from his book Seeing the Unseen (2000), pastoral counselor Joe Beam makes a religious argument that demonic possession is a genuine threat.

As we prayed for her, she slipped from her chair and puddled on the floor. Her husband quickly moved to the floor with her and lifted her head into his lap, cradling her as he would...