I recently visited a charismatic church. The sermon was about strengthening the spirit, or, as they put it, "Getting the wuss out of you!" The main scripture was Numbers 13:29, and the way it was explained suggested that each group (Amalekites, Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, Canaanites, and Nephilim mentioned later) represented a spirit, and that those same spirits are holding people back today. For example, one of them was the "spirit of discouragement," another a "spirit of the python." I haven't ever heard of this notion, but wanted to study it out. I could not find any definitions that backed up what was presented. Please shed a little light on the subject, or advise me where I should look. -- Krissy Fischetti (Orlando)
The reason you couldn't find any definitions backing up this teaching is that it isn't a biblical doctrine. Among the neo-pentecostals it has become very popular, especially since the 1980s, to attribute various sins and attitudes to demons. To me, this is fanciful interpretation in the extreme.
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