To my knowledge, the Bible never describes a "spirit of" a specific sin. It does, however, seem to describe spirits that are sinful in one specific way or another. But I believe these are not talking about an external spirit which is attached to us, but our own spirit which is in sin. For example, a "spirit of rebellion", or "rebellious spirit", may mean that a person's spirit (or character) is full of rebellion. Replace the concept of rebellion with any sin and it is the same, whether it is adultery, idolatry, or gluttony.
The "lying spirit" mentioned in 2 Chronicles 18 was, as I understand it, not a spirit of lies, but a spirit which lied. This spirit did not make the prophets lie, but lied to the prophets so that they would pass those lies to the king.
There are definitely instances where Satan tempts/tests people, as we see with Eve and with Jesus, and we see how Satan filled Ananias' heart to lie, but these appear to be the exceptions, not the rule. It appears far more common that our sin is the result of our own flesh, our own desires.
James says in (James) 1:13:
Does not blaming a spirit for our temptation and our sin then indicate that we would be sinless and innocent if only that spirit would not interfere? We no longer recognize that it is our own hearts that are responsible, and shift our efforts and our prayers to removing this spirit that is impeding our path.
We do not need help from an external spirit in order to sin. Our own spirit is willing, but our flesh is weak, so "I do not do what I want to do, and I do what I do not want to do". It is no longer I who sin, "but the sin which dwells in me".
If we find that we are particularly prone to a specific sin, it is not likely because there is another spirit there to blame, but only our own spirit. Our flesh is weak here. Maybe we don't know how to stop, or don't want to. Or perhaps we believe it is a sin when it is our God-given nature that we are trying to rid ourselves of (for example, a man conflating confidence with arrogance, or a child conflating possession with selfishness).
So, no, I do not believe there is a "spirit of polygamy" (nor a "spirit of monogamy"). Or at least not in the way you are defining it. Technically, it is completely possible that there is a "spirit of polygamy", or rather that a spirit can be polygamous. In the same way that we were not given a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind (describing our own spirit, not an externally attached one), so God also has a spirit of love and a whole lot of other good aspects, among which is likely polygamy, since that is how He describes Himself. These are attributes of an individual's spirit (or character), not the intentions of an external spirit. In that way, there are men (and possibly women, depending on how we define this attribute) on this very forum who have a polygynous spirit. Not that they have some external spirit persuading them to act in a certain way, but that their own spirit is filled with love in the form of polygyny in the same way that the Father's spirit is filled.
To attempt to cast these spirits out is, I think, misguided. Yes, Jesus and His disciples cast out demons. But if we consider what those demons were doing, do we see them causing sin or tempting people? The only examples which were described that I can think of were those that caused affliction: seizures, fortune-telling, and a variety of behaviours that caused a city to be amazed when the man returned from the tombs after the legion were cast into pigs. These things seem more comparable to mental and maybe physical illnesses nowadays than to persistent sin. The idea that sin can be caused by demonic spirits which can be cast out is not something I remember reading in scripture.
Similar to what I said about the nightmares earlier, if we make our fight against sin instead a fight against spirits, we miss the underlying cause. When that cause is neglected, and the spirits do not seem to leave, our question again becomes "why?". Why does God not aid in our fight? Why does He not free us from this oppressive spirit? Why are we failing? It is again not because we are not good enough to cast out these demons, nor because God does not wish to help us, but because our focus is wrong. It is our flesh, our hearts and our minds which need to change. We need to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.
We should not fear the enemy, who can destroy our bodies, but instead we should fear (reverence) the One who can destroy both body and soul. We know that if we confess our sins then He is faithful and just to forgive us. Here, too, we need to trust God to teach us, to conform us, to renew us. We need to trust God that He knows our hearts. He knows our desire to obey Him, and how strong or weak that desire can be. We can trust Him to mold us into the shape that He wants us to take. Sometimes it requires patience on our part, who see our sin and desperately want it gone immediately. But renewal takes time. This is another good example of where sometimes we need to be still, cease striving, and know that He is God, and He is good and faithful.
For some, being still comes naturally, and they need to work on striving sometimes. For others, striving comes naturally, and they need to work on being still sometimes. Different people, with different struggles, facing the same God with different perspectives.
Regarding the consideration of the existence of a spirit of polygamy and the implications that would have, I think this is looking backwards at things.
God is the author of the law and of righteousness. Because He is the author of those things, He is indirectly the author of (the definitions of) sin. The enemy, and those under him, are not the authors of sin. They do not define what sin is, but merely oppose righteousness.
The enemy does not oppose righteousness with pure unrighteousness. There is truth mixed in with the lie.
Consider, for example, if you feel an urge to give all of your money and belongings, every last penny and item, to a homeless person. That may seem good on the surface, but it would leave you incapable of providing for your family, which God requires you to do if at all possible. Say you recognize that, and understand that this must be a ploy of the enemy. So instead you give the homeless person nothing. You have opposed the opposition of righteousness. But, in doing so, you may have missed God's desire for you to give the homeless person something. By opposing the opposition of righteousness, you have also opposed righteousness.
We cannot look to the desires of the enemy and negate them to understand the desires of our Lord and thus understand righteousness. We must look to the desires of our Lord to understand righteousness.
The "lying spirit" mentioned in 2 Chronicles 18 was, as I understand it, not a spirit of lies, but a spirit which lied. This spirit did not make the prophets lie, but lied to the prophets so that they would pass those lies to the king.
There are definitely instances where Satan tempts/tests people, as we see with Eve and with Jesus, and we see how Satan filled Ananias' heart to lie, but these appear to be the exceptions, not the rule. It appears far more common that our sin is the result of our own flesh, our own desires.
James says in (James) 1:13:
If it is our own lust/desire which causes us to be tempted, why would we say that an external spirit is instead responsible for our temptation?
Does not blaming a spirit for our temptation and our sin then indicate that we would be sinless and innocent if only that spirit would not interfere? We no longer recognize that it is our own hearts that are responsible, and shift our efforts and our prayers to removing this spirit that is impeding our path.
We do not need help from an external spirit in order to sin. Our own spirit is willing, but our flesh is weak, so "I do not do what I want to do, and I do what I do not want to do". It is no longer I who sin, "but the sin which dwells in me".
If we find that we are particularly prone to a specific sin, it is not likely because there is another spirit there to blame, but only our own spirit. Our flesh is weak here. Maybe we don't know how to stop, or don't want to. Or perhaps we believe it is a sin when it is our God-given nature that we are trying to rid ourselves of (for example, a man conflating confidence with arrogance, or a child conflating possession with selfishness).
So, no, I do not believe there is a "spirit of polygamy" (nor a "spirit of monogamy"). Or at least not in the way you are defining it. Technically, it is completely possible that there is a "spirit of polygamy", or rather that a spirit can be polygamous. In the same way that we were not given a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind (describing our own spirit, not an externally attached one), so God also has a spirit of love and a whole lot of other good aspects, among which is likely polygamy, since that is how He describes Himself. These are attributes of an individual's spirit (or character), not the intentions of an external spirit. In that way, there are men (and possibly women, depending on how we define this attribute) on this very forum who have a polygynous spirit. Not that they have some external spirit persuading them to act in a certain way, but that their own spirit is filled with love in the form of polygyny in the same way that the Father's spirit is filled.
To attempt to cast these spirits out is, I think, misguided. Yes, Jesus and His disciples cast out demons. But if we consider what those demons were doing, do we see them causing sin or tempting people? The only examples which were described that I can think of were those that caused affliction: seizures, fortune-telling, and a variety of behaviours that caused a city to be amazed when the man returned from the tombs after the legion were cast into pigs. These things seem more comparable to mental and maybe physical illnesses nowadays than to persistent sin. The idea that sin can be caused by demonic spirits which can be cast out is not something I remember reading in scripture.
Similar to what I said about the nightmares earlier, if we make our fight against sin instead a fight against spirits, we miss the underlying cause. When that cause is neglected, and the spirits do not seem to leave, our question again becomes "why?". Why does God not aid in our fight? Why does He not free us from this oppressive spirit? Why are we failing? It is again not because we are not good enough to cast out these demons, nor because God does not wish to help us, but because our focus is wrong. It is our flesh, our hearts and our minds which need to change. We need to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.
We should not fear the enemy, who can destroy our bodies, but instead we should fear (reverence) the One who can destroy both body and soul. We know that if we confess our sins then He is faithful and just to forgive us. Here, too, we need to trust God to teach us, to conform us, to renew us. We need to trust God that He knows our hearts. He knows our desire to obey Him, and how strong or weak that desire can be. We can trust Him to mold us into the shape that He wants us to take. Sometimes it requires patience on our part, who see our sin and desperately want it gone immediately. But renewal takes time. This is another good example of where sometimes we need to be still, cease striving, and know that He is God, and He is good and faithful.
For some, being still comes naturally, and they need to work on striving sometimes. For others, striving comes naturally, and they need to work on being still sometimes. Different people, with different struggles, facing the same God with different perspectives.
Regarding the consideration of the existence of a spirit of polygamy and the implications that would have, I think this is looking backwards at things.
God is the author of the law and of righteousness. Because He is the author of those things, He is indirectly the author of (the definitions of) sin. The enemy, and those under him, are not the authors of sin. They do not define what sin is, but merely oppose righteousness.
The enemy does not oppose righteousness with pure unrighteousness. There is truth mixed in with the lie.
Consider, for example, if you feel an urge to give all of your money and belongings, every last penny and item, to a homeless person. That may seem good on the surface, but it would leave you incapable of providing for your family, which God requires you to do if at all possible. Say you recognize that, and understand that this must be a ploy of the enemy. So instead you give the homeless person nothing. You have opposed the opposition of righteousness. But, in doing so, you may have missed God's desire for you to give the homeless person something. By opposing the opposition of righteousness, you have also opposed righteousness.
We cannot look to the desires of the enemy and negate them to understand the desires of our Lord and thus understand righteousness. We must look to the desires of our Lord to understand righteousness.
) it is providing what the animals need to thrive and produce, and keeping them safe. Lessons I hope our children will learn in caring for the sheep. A barbed wire fence is as deadly as a coyote if your milk ewe rips her udder and gets mastitis. There is something very satisfying about listening to sheep cropping grass (or weeds) the chewing and short walks from plant to plant. Then to see them bed down in the shade to chew their cud. Relaxed and happy. ... I like this.