I don’t know. The Bible doesn’t say. I do, however, have a few thoughts. The first I remember learning from my father. He suggested that it may that the scope of demon possession when Jesus walked the earth may have been so high because this was the day of battle. The incarnation was an invasion, and it would make sense for all the troops to be called to active duty. Of course the demons were subject to Jesus, and so we see Him move from victory to victory.

The second suggestion I learned from CS Lewis. In his The Screwtape Letters he suggests that the demonic realm tends to adopt one of two strategies. It either is very upfront and aggressive, encouraging us to fear them. Or, sometimes demons wish for us to forget they are there. They wage their warfare with greater subtlety, hiding in the shadows. The more technologically advanced a culture becomes, the more the demons are apt to take this second tack.

I would argue that demons are just as active in our day as they were in the first century. What is less common now is the kind fo manifestations that make these things obvious. Paul tells us after all that we wage war not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers. That admonition did not come with an expiration date.

I have never, to my knowledge, come face to face with demonic possession. Neither have I, to my knowledge, entertained angels unaware. Which doesn’t mean that I haven’t come face to face with demons, or that I haven’t entertained angels. It just means I didn’t know it. I can say, however, that I have experienced the presence of the demonic. Visit any abortion mill and I suspect you will experience the same.

I am not expert on the demonic realm. One the one hand I think it prudent to avoid falling into the Flip Wilson defense of our sin, claiming “The devil made me do it.” Our depravity is sufficient that we can and do commit horrific sins. On the other hand, there is no doubt that demons can influence us. To suggest otherwise is to deny the reality of the battle. I believe we make ourselves more susceptible to their influence when we let down our defenses.

Substance abuse, toying with the occult, delving into sexual immorality are some of the ways we put down our guard. Demons delight when the natural order is perverted. When God in His grace allows us to escape these kinds of snares, we find ourselves free indeed.

Evangelicals, in large part, give insufficient attention to these matters, acting as though demons have been on the sidelines since Jesus walked the earth. We have been trained through a modernist culture to be slightly embarrassed by our acknowledgment of the supernatural realm. Which is just one more place to push back against the world. We have three great enemies, the world, the flesh and the devil. We must be on guard on all three fronts.