Can one actually sell their soul to the Devil?

[Prodigal1984]

I read in history accounts of people who are claimed to have sold their soul to the Devil or made a deal with the Devil.
Is this actually a possible thing theologically speaking?

 

[CelticWarlord]

Is this actually a possible thing theologically speaking?

Not in a material sense. I imagine the devil would find such an offer most laughable. In the Christian tradition, one “sells their soul” to the devil merely by turning their back on God. They can give it all sorts of dramatic imagery, but no literal transaction actually takes place. How could it, after all?

 

[TheLittleLady]

No. This is a literary device.

 

[Diaconia]

No, contrary to the excellent song by Charlie Daniels; you cannot.

Not even against a fiddle of gold.

Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who breathes life into us,
Deacon Christopher

 

[Prodigal1984]

No, contrary to the excellent song by Charlie Daniels; you cannot.

Good example.
I was actually brought on to this by this old blues singer, Robert Johnson, who they say sold his soul to the Devil

Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil in Rosedale, Mississippi - Rolf Potts

Last month, while I was driving down the Mississippi River on a magazine assignment, I had a curious experience in Rosedale, Mississippi. As I was eating lunch in a place called Leo’s Market, a waitress mentioned that Rosedale is the place where the legendary bluesman Robert Johnson sold his...

rolfpotts.com

 

[Lane]

Same way I give my stipends to the church for my masses. Satanic worshippers could give their organization money for some sort of exchange. It’s a scary thought but it’s possible

 

[CarmeliteKnight]

Nope, one cannot sell their soul to the devil because we don’t own our soul. Our soul is on loan from the LORD Jesus Christ. Our soul has already been redeemed (as in ‘bought back’) by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Render unto Ceaser what is Ceasar’s, and to God what is God’s. Just like how money is made with the image of Ceaser, we are made with the image of God, ergo we belong exclusively to God and God alone. Now wether we turn our back on God or not is another story.

 

[Zaccheus]

Recently I read a story in which a man tried to make a deal with a demon: longevity and wealth in return for his soul.
The demon’s answer: “Why should I pay for what is already mine? If you’re wicked enough to make sure a deal you’re already bound for damnation.”
Then the demon killed the man to remove the danger that he might repent later, and be saved.

It can be an interesting plot device if well written, but in real life? No. Anyone willing to make such a deal has nothing to offer that the Evil One doesn’t already have.

Edit: And Carmelite is right. We don’t own our souls anyway.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

I don’t doubt that it is possible for a very evil, depraved person to enter into some kind of “dialogue” with Satan, and to make some kind of promise to serve him. in exchange for temporal favors that the person imagines Satan to make possible for him.

I have never known anyone who admitted to doing this, but I do know there is such a thing as Satanic worship. I have also known people whose entire personality is permeated with sin, and a seeming determination to commit as many sins as possible. They may not have made a pact with Satan, but they certainly lived as though they were in his service.

 

[Hodos]

You soul was already in the possession of sin, death, and the devil. That is why Christ came to redeem it (buy back).

“For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” - Colossians 1:13-14

 

[IdaCatholic]

I don’t know if I would term it “sell” your soul. That implies an exchange of things of worth. Certainly your soul has worth but the devil has nothing to offer to you for it. Can one pledge or give their soul to the devil? Sure, people have done so for ages.

 

[OurLadyofSorrows]

no they cannot. God owns our souls.We cannot sell them

 

[thistle]

I read in history accounts of people who are claimed to have sold their soul to the Devil or made a deal with the Devil .
Is this actually a possible thing theologically speaking?

It is impossible. We all have until our dying breath to repent and be saved.

 

[GEddie]

That wasn’t a case of selling the soul, but “betting” the soul.

Which would be equally sinful, if such a game could occur, which it cannot.

ICXC NIKA

 

[bibcat]

Yes, one can sell his soul in the sense that we have the freedom to willfully submit our souls to Satan’s service, which ultimately leads to suffering an even greater consequence – eternity in hell. God’s Word makes it quite clear that one can sell himself to do evil:
“There was never anyone like Ahab, who sold himself to do evil in the eyes of the LORD, urged on by Jezebel his wife.” (1 Kings 21:25) .

It’s the only explanation for people who prosper despite living openly unchristian lives. For the evil to prosper would be otherwise counterintuitive.