Saved Not Soft – Episode Summary
Podcast: Saved Not Soft
Host: Emy Moore
Episode: The Truth About Demons
Date: April 7, 2026
Episode Overview
In this highly anticipated and deeply personal episode, Emy Moore confronts misconceptions about demons, spiritual warfare, and sin within the modern Christian community. Drawing from her own spiritual journey, scriptural analysis, and theological teaching, Emy aims to break chains of fear-based theology, clarify the biblical truth about the demonic, and root listeners in the authority and freedom found only in Christ. The tone is compassionate yet unflinching, as she calls for accountability over blame, discernment over paranoia, and a Christ-centered, scripture-based approach to the spiritual realm.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
[01:45] Emy’s Heart and Intentions for the Episode
- Personal struggles: Emy shares her personal wrestle with the topic of demons and the impact of spiritual fear and false doctrine in her life.
- Mission: Break fear-based chains, correct misunderstandings, and point listeners to Christ’s supreme authority.
- “My goal today is to no longer see the sheep bullied... to remind you that Jesus Christ has all the authority, dominion and power...” – Emy [03:12]
- Transparency about her journey: “This topic was birthed from a lot of deceit, attempts of deceit where people have tried to deceive me. Lots of crying, lots of fear and paranoia and prayers that were performance-based and not biblical or intentional or intimate.” [06:00]
[08:30] Reminder: Test All Teachings by Scripture
- Scripture is the absolute test: All teaching—including her own—must be measured against the Bible.
- Warning against Eiseny: Don’t twist scripture to fit personal ideas (eisogesis); instead, accept scripture for what it says (exegesis).
- “Everything must be tested by the Word of God.” [11:09]
- “Don't just eiseny the scripture... exegesis it... you're taking the scripture for what it actually is.” [12:45]
[14:00] Distinguishing Sin from Demonic Influence
- Pendulum in the Church: The cultural split between over-spiritualization (“everything is a demon”) and denial of spiritual reality.
- Key argument: Not all sin is caused by demons.
- “There's nothing in the Bible that talks about an incubus, a succubus, a mermaid spirit... Not everything is a dang demon. It might just be us.” [17:10]
- Stats on Scripture: “Human sin and moral failure appear over about a thousand times in Scripture... [references to] demonology... only a hundred and something times...” [19:30]
- Misplaced Blame: Over-attributing sin to demonic causes leads to lack of accountability and repentance.
- “I'm sick of people in the church excusing their misbehavior and not taking accountability by pinning it on a demon. Which by the way, probably doesn't exist.” [17:45]
[22:45] The Nature and Mechanics of Sin
- James 1:14 unpacked: Sin arises from personal desire, not demonic coercion.
- “Sin isn’t something the devil created. Sin is a byproduct of us refusing God’s goodness.” [24:44]
- Free will's place: Sin is possible because God allows human choice; without freedom, love cannot exist.
- “When you limit a person to make a choice, that is not love. It's dictatorship, it's manipulation...” [27:37]
[31:10] Scriptural Mandates: Put Sin to Death, Don’t Excuse It
- Colossians 3:5: We are to put to death what is earthly in us, not merely to ‘cast out’ demons when the real issue is our sinful nature.
- Responsibility: “God has breathed enough authority on the inside of you... we can cast out demons all day and what we cannot cast out is a season that God has ordained for us to go through...” [36:05]
- Dangers of mislabeling sin: Leads to shallow repentance, displaced responsibility, and delayed sanctification. [38:21]
[39:20] Over-Spiritualization in Practice
- John 9:1–3 example: The disciples assume a man’s blindness is due to sin or demonic curse; Jesus corrects this.
- “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, said Jesus. But this has happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” [41:05]
- Did the devil send Jesus to the cross? No, it was sin and the will of God, not demonic orchestration.
- Matthew 16:22–23 and Ecclesiastes 7: Over-spiritualization leads to missing God’s actual will and falling into damaging extremes.
- “Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes.” [47:50]
[51:00] The Inconsistency & Fear of Hyper-Spiritualization
- Modern examples: Refusing to use Starbucks, AI, or other products out of spiritual paranoia while ignoring equally “tainted” things elsewhere.
- “If you want to spiritualize everything, then spiritualize everything. But don't demonize a person because they go to Starbucks and you’re this holy of a person...” [53:41]
- Effects: Hyper-vigilance fueled by fear, not faith. Awareness does not guarantee safety or healing; only Christ does.
- “Awareness doesn't always equate to safety... my awareness wasn’t what healed me...” [57:18]
[01:02:00] Witchcraft, Testimonies, and the Authority of Christ
- Ex-witch testimonies: They give undue power to darkness seen outside the protection of Christ’s blood.
- “When you equate witchcraft... next to the power of Jesus, it is nothing... it just means it cannot conquer the blood of Jesus.” [01:05:05]
[01:06:22] Living in the World, Not of It
- Worldliness vs. Demonization: Living in this world does not mean being spiritually compromised.
- “If you’re being formed by it, flee from it... it’s not that deep. I promise you. We’re good.” [01:08:23]
- Jesus’s prayer (John 17): Not that we be taken out of the world, but protected from the evil one.
[01:10:30] Holiness: Not Fearful Avoidance, but Christ-formation
- True holiness: It’s about refusing to be formed by anything other than Christ.
- “Holiness is not about avoiding everything. It's about refusing to be formed by anything other than Christ.” [01:11:01]
Deep Dive: Deliverance & the Real Teaching of Luke 11
[01:13:45] Misinterpretation of Deliverance Stories in Luke 11
- Luke 11:24–26 unpacked: The commonly misused passage about ‘the return of the unclean spirit’ is routinely used to scare believers about repeated demonic oppression.
- “The dangers of this is that it's prompting a works-based gospel rooted in fear instead of a grace-based Gospel that's rooted in the authority of Jesus.” [01:16:23]
- Context: Jesus rebuts accusations of demonic power, then warns that cleanliness without spiritual filling is dangerous.
- “Jesus is warning the people who want to be clean so bad but don't want to be filled by his spirit.” [01:22:01]
[01:24:00] The Role of God’s Presence: The Key to Permanent Freedom
- Matthew 12 parallel: Additional detail—the house (person) is “empty, swept, and put in order.” [01:25:30]
- Permanent deliverance isn’t about your effort, but Christ filling the void:
- “Temporary deliverance without permanent transformation leads to spiritual torment... The spirit could only fill a vessel that lacks substance.” [01:26:10]
- Application:
- Spiritual warfare rooted in self-effort is incomplete:
- “The gates of hell do not shake because of your performance prayers. The gates of hell shake because of Jesus.” [01:28:12]
- Fill your life with Jesus, not just “deliverance;” otherwise, cycles of oppression return.
- Spiritual warfare rooted in self-effort is incomplete:
[01:32:30] How Do We Get Filled with God’s Spirit?
- John Piper insight: Being filled is about entering the joy and life of God’s Triune relationship.
- “Being filled with the Spirit means basically having great joy in God... to be caught in the joy that flows among the [Trinity].” [01:34:11]
- Baptism: Water baptism as a point of Spirit-filling. Don’t delay it for aesthetic or touristic reasons.
- “Get baptized. If God has called you to be baptized, get baptized. Get filled with the Spirit. Life is too urgent.” [01:39:10]
- Ongoing filling: Live a life of pursuit and receptivity to the Spirit after deliverance; don’t leave your “house” empty.
[01:43:00] Closing Exhortations
- A freedom not rooted in fear:
- “We’re not going to live a fear-based doctrine, a fear-based gospel. No, you guys, this is not what Jesus intended for us.” [01:44:00]
- Be Jesus-centered, not demon-focused:
- “It concerns me how many people know so much about demons, but they know nothing about Jesus...” [01:45:32]
- Fill yourself with the gospel:
- “If you want to be filled with God’s spirit, I would encourage you to not fill yourself with only just hyper awareness of demonology, but fill yourself with who Jesus actually is.” [01:46:10]
- The gospel defined:
- “God sent his one and only Son through a virgin Mary... to die a gruesome death that you and I deserved on a cross... so that the debt of sin is paid. That is the gospel. And being filled with that is just receiving it.” [01:48:38]
Notable Quotes
- On the difference between sin and demons:
- “Not everything is a demon. It might just be your sin.” – Emy [17:10]
- On true spiritual authority:
- “The demonic cannot overpower the authority of God’s spirit.” [01:31:00]
- On deliverance vs. discipleship:
- “You can love deliverance all day... but the moment that we miss the intimacy of Jesus... those same spirits have authority to come back because we are empty vessels not filled by anything.” [01:29:15]
- On fear-based Christianity:
- “Hyper-vigilance that’s fueled by fear is not faith, not in safety.” [57:18]
Important Timestamps
- 01:45 – Emy’s heart for the episode and her backstory
- 08:30 – The supreme authority of scripture; warning against teacher-olatry
- 14:00 – Sin vs. demonology: breaking the pendulum
- 19:30 – Statistics: frequency of sin vs. demons in scripture
- 22:45 – Sin defined; James 1:14 explained
- 31:10 – Colossians 3 and taking personal responsibility for sin
- 39:20 – Over-spiritualization: biblical examples
- 51:00 – The inconsistency of modern demon-labeling
- 01:02:00 – Witchcraft, testimonies, and true authority in Christ
- 01:13:45 – Deep teaching on Luke 11: the empty house
- 01:24:00 – True deliverance comes from being filled with God’s Spirit
- 01:32:30 – How to be filled: Trinity, joy, baptism, and pursuit
- 01:43:00 – Exhortation to freedom and Christ-centered living
Final Thoughts
Emy delivers a compelling biblical rebuke of fear-based and superstition-driven faith. She highlights the necessity of ongoing discipleship, real spiritual freedom, and a Christ-centered gospel that neither underestimates spiritual realities nor exaggerates their power. The episode is a call to discernment, scriptural fidelity, and above all, being filled with Christ rather than consumed by paranoid fear.
For further spiritual growth, Emy reminds listeners to get into their Bibles, seek biblically sound mentors, and continually test all teaching by the Word of God.