The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:14,15

The deliverance movement seems to never run out of altered angles from which to declare the message that born-again believers are in need of expelling indwelling demons. There are various teachings and books available, telling people how to rid themselves once and for all of Jezebel, Leviathan, unclean spirits, the religious spirit, and any other demon responsible for what the Bible calls “works of the flesh”. (Galatians 5:19-21) These same books will describe demon groupings for every ailment and sin under the sun, ascribing power to the devil and the need for casting out these entities. People are told to break agreement with the devil in areas of their bloodline where legal rights are said to have been claimed by Satan. There are many who seek out individuals specializing in deliverance ministry, hoping to be set free and to never again battle with temptations, sickness, and sin. Some deliverance teachers will even tell people to follow their instructions, and in doing so, they can stay free from demonic habitation.

There was a recent teaching online titled, “Dusty Demons and Why Deliverance Stalls Out.” In this teaching, an appeal was made to Genesis 3:14 and other passages stating man coming from the dust. (Genesis 2:7, 3:19, Psalm 103:13,14) According to this leader, demons need the proper environment in which to live, and based on a prophetic picture from these verses, demons live in the dusty spaces of a person’s life. He told the congregation that pain and trauma in a person’s life leads to patterns where demons can operate, and he stated that deliverance can stall due to not sweeping the dust out of one’s life.

Someone might ask why I bother to listen to such teachings and to discuss them. What good comes of this? Hearing these teachings brings sadness towards those who would believe such things. I talk about them now in hopes of helping others who have come out of similar beliefs by encouraging other women to go back to the gospel and back to the Word of God in context, or to help those who have loved ones entrenched in this movement and to provide some understanding as to the belief system. From there, a potential conversation can take place with thoughtful questions with gentleness and patience, leading back to the Scripture. One thing that brings great comfort and encouragement is that there is such freedom in Jesus Christ and in His gospel, which leads me to a far better message found in Genesis 3 than the doctrine of dusty demons found nowhere in the passage.

We know that because of Adam’s sin and rebellion against God, death entered into the world, and sin and death entered into humankind. (Romans 5:12) In the midst of Adam’s rebellion against God and the pronouncement of judgment upon those involved, we see something profound taking place. Though a focus was placed in this particular teaching on Genesis 3:14, the following verse holds what has been called the protoevangelium. This is the first gospel, where we see the curse on humanity for Adam’s sin while also hearing the foretelling of God’s provision in a Savior. This Savior would take upon Himself the penalty for our sins, and He would defeat Satan and death. We know that Jesus Christ crushed the head of the enemy, and God has delivered His people from darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13,14)

Since we are indeed made from the dust of the ground, how would one ever be truly free and fully delivered from indwelling demons according to the teaching of dusty demons? How much dust must one sweep out before there is complete deliverance? My friend, we all go through trials and difficulties in life. We all endure pain and suffering. We all face three enemies in this life: the world, the flesh, and the devil. We face temptations and sin while in this world, but we have not been left ill equipped. God has sent His Spirit to indwell us and to help us in our sanctification and to help us kill sin. (Romans 8:13) He comforts us, and He strengthens us in our weaknesses. Repentance is a fundamental aspect in the life of a believer, and this repentance is not directed toward Satan in breaking agreement with him, as this leader instructed the congregation, but repentance is directed to God.

Here is some wonderful encouragement to guide us back to true freedom in Christ Jesus: our Savior’s deliverance has not stalled, and we are not our own deliverer. The gospel of Jesus Christ is sufficient for deliverance from the tyranny of Satan. His gospel is sufficient to deliver us from the penalty of sin and the power of sin. One day, He will deliver us from the presence of sin. Thanks be to God that though we are not yet perfected while in this world, He has sent His Spirit to indwell those who are His and to seal us for the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30). From the fall in the garden, God made His plan of salvation known. We will all return to the dust from which we were made by God, but that does not mean we are to fear demons dwelling within “dusty places”. We deal with the sin in life by going back to the Word of God and bearing fruit in keeping with Biblical repentance. We cast our cares upon the Lord in times of suffering and hardship, and we trust in Him who has saved us. We can be confident in shaking the dust from this teaching off our feet.

Listen to this episode discussing a recent teaching about dusty demons: The Lovesick Scribe Podcast: The Doctrine of Dusty Demons on Apple Podcasts