Liberty

a) The condition of being free from restriction or control.

b) The right and power to act, believe, or express oneself in a manner of one's own choosing.

c) The condition of being physically and legally free from confinement, servitude, or forced labor.

Freedom from unjust or undue governmental control.

A right or immunity to engage in certain actions without control or interference: the liberties protected by the Bill of Rights.

[Middle English liberte, from Old French, from Latin lberts, from lber, free; see leudh- in Indo-European roots.]

The Duty of Standing Fast in Our Spiritual and Temporal Liberties
A Sermon, Preached in Christ-Church, July 7th, 1775.

Before the First Battalion of the City and Liberties of Philadelphia; And now published at their Request.

By the Reverend Jacob Duche´, M. A. Philadelphia.

Galatians, Chap. 5 Part of First Verse

Stand fast, therefore, in the Liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free.

Gentlemen of the First Battalion of the City and Liberties of Philadelphia,

Though I readily accepted of the invitation, with which you were pleased to honor me, and am fully satisfied that there can be no impropriety in complying with your request, yet I confess, that I now feel such an uncommon degree of diffidence, as nothing but a sense of duty, and a sincere sympathy with you in your present trying circumstances could enable me to overcome. The occasion is of the first importance: the subject in a great measure new to me – Throwing myself, therefore, upon your candor and indulgence, considering myself under the twofold character of a minister of Jesus Christ, and a fellow-citizen of the same state, and involved in the same public calamity with yourselves; and looking up for counsel and direction to the source of all wisdom, "who giveth liberally to those that ask it" – I have made choice of a passage of scripture, which will give me an opportunity of addressing myself to you as freemen, both in the spiritual and temporal sense of the word, and of suggesting to you such a mode of conduct, as will be most likely, under the blessing of Heaven, to ensure to you the enjoyment of these two kinds of liberty. Stand fast, therefore, in the liberty, wherewith Christ hath mad us free.

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Demon

In religion, folklore, and mythology a demon or demoness is a supernatural being that has generally been described as a malevolent spirit, daemon (Greek: daimonion) and djinn (Genie (Arabic: jinni; variant spelling djinni) or jinn is a supernatural creature in Arab folklore and Islamic teachings which occupies a parallel world to that of mankind). A demon is frequently depicted as a force that may be conjured and insecurely controlled. The "good" demon in recent use is largely a literary device (eg: Maxwell's demon). In common language, "demonizing" one's opponent is an aspersion.

The Greek conception of a daemon (δαμων) appears in the works of Plato and many other ancient authors, but without the evil connotations which are apparent in the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible and in the Greek originals of the New Testament. The medieval and neo-medieval conception of a "demon" in Western civilization (see the Medieval grimoire called the Ars Goetia) derives seamlessly from the ambient popular culture of Late (Roman) Antiquity: Greco-Roman concepts of daemons that passed into Christian culture are discussed in the entry daemon. The Hellenistic "Demon" eventually came to include many Semitic and Near Eastern gods as evaluated by Christianity.

The Greek daµµa daimonizomai (Matthew 8:28, Mat 8:33, Mat 9:32, Mar 5:15, Luk 8:36, etc) means "to be under the power of a demon." The Greek word daµ daimonion meaning "evil spirits or the messengers and ministers of the devil."

According to a Jewish opinion which passed over to Christians, the demons are the gods of the gentiles and the authors of idolatry, hence:

¹⁷ They sacrificed to demons that were no gods, to gods they had never known, to new gods that had come recently, whom your fathers had never dreaded.
—Deut. 32:17

The idea of demons is as old as religion itself, and the word "demon" seems to have ancient origins. The Merriam-Webster dictionary gives the etymology of the word as Greek daimon, probably from the verb daiesthai meaning "to divide, distribute." The Proto-Indo-European root *deiwos for god, originally an adjective meaning "celestial" or "bright, shining" has retained this meaning in many related Indo-European languages and cultures (Sanskrit deva, Latin deus, German Tiw), but also provided another other common word for demon in Avestan daeva.

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John Piper - Demonic power and indwelling sin

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