Can a believer be demon-possessed?

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Can a believer be demon-possessed?
On the face of the following plain and positive promises of God, it is inconceivable how a child of God can be demon-possessed—

"There is no sorcery against Jacob, nor is there any divination against Israel" (Num 23:23).

"I give you authority over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you" (Lk 10:18,19).

"My sheep hear My voice... My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand" (Jn 10:27-29).

"He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world" (1 Jn 4:4).

A believer may be afflicted or even controlled by demons in certain areas of his being, but he can never be owned as an unbeliever can be. We may be deceived, oppressed and obsessed but never possessed (Mt 24:24; 1 Pet 5:8,9). Demons may influence our thoughts, emotions and actions when we fail to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. Peter was once thoroughly influenced by Satan (Mt 16:23). A post-Pentecost example can be Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:3,9). But none of these was possession.

Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit and evil spirits can never coexit (2 Cor 6:15,16). The Holy Spirit can be resisted, grieved and quenched. But He does not quit us when we sin. Even under the Old Covenant, David after his sin did not pray to get back the Holy Spirit. Rather he pleaded with God not to take away the Spirit from him (Psa 51:11).

Jesus was zealous for the Temple (Mt 21:12,13). So also the Holy Spirit is possessive of our bodies. He will not vacate a body that is purchased with the precious blood of Jesus, and leave it to the archenemy of God (1 Pet 1:18,19; Eph 4:30). Vacating even a tenant is difficult these days! Is it possible for a lesser power to vacate the Divine Owner? "When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a flag against him" (Isa 59:19).

Passages like Ephesians 6:10-18 stress the need for believers to be fully armed and be on constant alert to counterattack the enemy. The fullness of the Spirit and of the Scriptures is the insurance against demon-possession. When believers backslide, break fellowship with other believers, become involved in sinful and occult practices, and turn a deaf ear to the repeated warnings of the Scriptures and the Spirit, they are voluntarily walking into the danger zone.

Certain cases of believers possessed with evil spirits are reported these days. There are too many factors involved in it to give a simplistic explanation. In the absence of any clearcut Biblical example after the commencement of the New Covenant, we cannot establish a truth based on uncommon instances.

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