Deliverance is the process of casting out demons. Demons are part of the spirit realm and are often believed to be shrouded in mystery. For this reason, the subject of deliverance is often misunderstood and mistaught. As westerners, we have been taught to only believe what we can see and understand. Religion tends to set a few rules as safety precautions against demons in their churches. Spiritualists try to figure out how to get along with demons and coexist in an amiable manner. Spirit-filled Christians view them as an enemy and want to cast them out. And, somewhere in this mix are a group of people who don’t know what to believe and are afraid to get too close to the subject or practice of deliverance. The purpose of this article is to bring clarity to this part of ministry.
Demons are part of the devil’s force in the world. Whatever the devil’s agenda is, that is what demons are assigned to accomplish and advance. His goal is to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). He also binds people in physical and emotional ways (Luke 13:16). Peter Horrobin teaches and ministers a lot in deliverance. He says, “Power, sex, wealth, or false religion are at the heart of most of his (devil’s) tactics “(Horrobin 2008, 77). Deception is a big favorite of his. Demons are duty-bound to worship the devil and they have a particular hatred for anyone who does not do the same. Bondage and torment are usually present wherever they go. Even believers can suffer from this bondage and torment.
Demons access humans through various means. Some of the more commonly recognized ways are abuse, trauma, habitual sins, addictions, and occult involvement. Curses passed down from one generation to the next is a less recognized way. Wounds to the soul are extremely vulnerable points. In some cases, demons can just access one part of a person’s life, which is like a glitch in the system. Then there are cases where demons have access to more of the person’s life. This is like a stove top with half the burners not working. The most severe cases are when demons have access to the whole of the person and nothing works right. Believers are exempt from this most severe access because they have invited Jesus to take ownership of their spirits.
Areas of a person’s life which demons control, are called strongholds. Strongholds can be many things, including pride, rejection, lust, fear, bitterness, and rage. Strongholds can involve financial difficulties, diseases, and interpersonal relationship issues, to name a few. Manifestations indicating the presence of demons can be anxiety, lack of peace, brain fog, the feeling of heaviness, or voices in the head. All of this sounds very negative. The great news is that there is a ministry that provides deliverance from all these things.
Jesus’ ministry is a great place to start, in understanding the ministry of deliverance. Luke 4:33-35 NASB, In the synagogue there was a man possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, “Let us alone! What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are – the Holy One of God.” But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, he came out of him without doing him any harm. Another example from Jesus’ ministry is in Matthew 4:24 NASB. The news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them. Jesus taught His disciples to do the same, and sent them out to do just that. Matthew 10:8 NASB, He said, “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.”
Jesus not only did deliverance and taught deliverance; He also mandated deliverance to those who believed in Him. Mark 16:17 NASB, These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues”. We also read that the apostles continued the ministry of deliverance. Acts 16:16 and 18 NASB, It happened that as we were going to the place of prayer, a slave girl having a spirit of divination met us, who was bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling. … She continued doing this for many days. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out that very moment. The ministry of deliverance has not stopped since then. It has been preserved by great church fathers through the centuries. Today there are many ministries that recognize this mandate to believers.
Deliverance is a ministry of compassion. It is God’s heart to see people set free to enjoy life fully. Psalm 10:17-18 NASB, “O Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble: You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear to vindicate the orphan and the oppressed, so that man who is of the earth will no longer cause terror.” Deliverance is not a show of power or a shouting match with demons. Deliverance can be as gentle as Jesus ministering healing to a wound in the soul. It can be as simple as replacing a lie with the truth. It is as basic as understanding the authority we have when we use Jesus’ name and apply the blood of Jesus against curses or agreements with the demons. Ephesians 1:22 NASB, And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church. Repentance and asking forgiveness for sins and forgiving those who have harmed us, can expel demons. Any believer anywhere can be delivered from demons. Because Jesus won against the devil’s agenda, we can, too!
There is one very important thing about deliverance. If this is ignored, things will not go well. This is the important truth: Because Jesus is the source of deliverance, He must be invited to be Lord of the life that receives deliverance. If He is not Lord of that life, the enemy has the right to return and often things get worse than they were originally. For that reason, deliverance is for believers, not unbelievers.
The AGDM Team
Bibliography
Horrobin, Peter. 2008. Healing Through Deliverance. Grand Rapids: Chosen Books.