It's Not Delivery it's Deliverance or Deliverance for Dummies

One of the things i was always curious about as an early Christian, and perhaps before was demons and spiritual warfare. Right up there in the middle would be casting demons out of people. My interest in this was before i had actually been spiritually attacked and realized the terror involved, and also i suspect alot of youthful arrogance was at play.

Like the foolish disciples in Luke 10:19 - 20, i wanted to rejoice in the fact that demons obeyed rather than my name being written in the Book of Life and that Christ had paid for the sins i should be punished for.

Even though we shouldn't seek this opportunity out (unless the Lord calls us to), we should be ready for it should the need arise. It's not something we should revel in, or use to glorify ourselves, but rather it should glorify God and His Son Jesus Christ.

Ask a few people in your church if they could do deliverance. You'll probably find half the people will look at you like your crazy, the other half would probably just laugh at you. Maybe it's not that bad, but it might be. (Please comment if you have had a reaction.)

I have never once, that i can remember, heard a sermon on this in all of my time attending church. And even in the circles i travel in (listening to Revelations radio podcasts and Russ Dizdar) i don't know that i've heard a whole lot on this specific subject, though i have caught some information here and there. They likely don't dwell on it, as it's pretty straightforward for the most part. Or at least it should be.

+++DISCLAIMER+++

I have (thankfully) never had to do this, so what i am about to say has never been applied by me. Furthermore, this isn't something we should go around doing willy-nilly.

It is also potentially dangerous, so this is for a situation in which you KNOW a person is demon possessed. Follow the Holy Spirit's lead on whether you should apply this or not. Use your own discernment. I'm not trying to put this out there to make a bunch of Christian demon-hunting Rambos, it's just information i think will be helpful should the need arise. And its aomething ive always wanted to know, but never been "taught".

In addition, take physical safety precautions, making sure you enlist the aid of others, in the event restraint is needed.

Even more important is that you need to take the proper spiritual precautions. Most importantly (besides being saved), you need your armor:

Ephesians 6:13 - 17

13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:



+++End DISCLAIMER+++


First and foremost. Before you go around trying to exorcise or cast demons out, THE MOST KEY THING is, are you saved or not? If you try to cast a demon out, and you are not saved through faith in Jesus Christ, you are in big trouble.


Acts 19:13 - 17

13 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. 14 And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. 15 And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? 16 And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. 17 And this was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.


If you're unsaved, you will fare no better. And even if you are, care is needed. You should also have at least another person with you, preferably more, praying constantly, singing praises to the Lord, reading scripture. It may also be possible that you may also have to physically restrain someone, so more people is better.

Second, don't be surprised, but the demons will probably know who you are and know information about you. In light of this, having a short account with sin is a good idea. I have heard stories where unconfessed sin will be an impedence in this work. It's a good idea anyways to regularly confess your sins to the Lord.

I have also heard that demons will try to tell you things about your future, and you should know better than to listen to them (recall that God forbids seeking advice from a medium). We'll come back to what do in a moment.

Here's an example of a demon knowing who a person is.


Acts 16:16 - 19

16 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: 17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. 18 And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. 19 And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,


Notice that Paul (eventually) shut her up, something that should you encounter a possessed individual, is a good idea. It's also something Jesus often did. He did so because it wasn't yet time for Him to be known as Messiah.


Luke 4:33 - 35

33 And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice, 34 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God. 35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.


I would guess it's a good idea for us to silence them so we're not tempted to listen to them, but also so we are not distracted from our purpose in casting them out.


How do we tell if someone is actually possessed?

There are alot of supposed methods, some of which are based on experience. Russ Dizdar says they have "multiple eyes". I once saw a guy in a mental hospital, and i had a feeling he was possessed, his eyes did look funny, but i couldn't say if he was truly possessed or not.

Rather than relying solely on man though, let's see how the Bible can be applied. A recent interview on vftb.net with Doc Marquis and pastor Hoggard suggested this method. They claimed that one church often had demoniacs coming in, and to test them they had them read 1 John 1:7 out loud. Often, they could not because demons fear the blood of Jesus. It is an assurance of their ultimate defeat.

1 John 1:7

7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.


1 John 4:1 - 3 is one that LA Marzulli uses with some success.

1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.


Once you determine if deliverance is needed, it should be quite simple to cast them out. It's not an elaborate exorcism, it's not a long ceremony. You don't need a priest, but you should probably have people with that are praying, reading scripture and praising the Lord.

As Paul did in Acts 16, just command in the name of Jesus Christ for the demon to come out. Some argue that you should command them to silence and to not harm anyone. That's probably a good idea, but i have no experience and can't say for certain.

When you do it, have faith. Have faith in Jesus Christ, and His authority over the demons. Have faith that as Christ's representative, you you are relying on His authority to cast demons out. Our faith in Christ makes us one with Him, and so we draw from His authority, we have been deputized. As long as we command with faith, in His name, the demons obey. Because they fear and respect the sheriff, the must obey the deputies who wear His badge.

If you have no faith...


Matthew 17:15 - 20 (see also Mark 9)

15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. 16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me. 18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour. 19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? 20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.


Here are some verses demonstrating how easy it should be to do this. Many of them are Jesus commanding (demonstrating His authority as God's Son), but the same principal should apply. Refer also to Acts 16 for how a Christian should do it.


Mark 9:25 - 26

25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him. 26 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.


Mark 5 (just read it)


Mark 9:38 - 39

38 And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us: and we forbad him, because he followeth not us. 39 But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me.


Can all demons/evil spirits be cast out, simply by commanding in Jesus Christ's name? While the above steps should be sufficient to free someone from possession, sometimes the entity just won't budge. But wait, you said...

Here's the one exception:

Mark 9:28-29

28 And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out? 29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.


That's right, some spirits will not leave even if we command. So, we must do prayer and fasting, in fact, if possible, that may be a good first step if given enough time. Once you've done your prayer and fasting though, you should be able to follow the above guidelines.

Something that has always made me scared, should i ever need to do deliverance. People who have cast devils out (amongst other things) in Christ's name will evidently be sent away at the final judgement. I took this to mean if i go around casting devils out, i won't go to Heaven. I was wrong.

Matthew 7:22 - 23

22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.


I have to fully confess, i do not know exactly what is going on here. It seems as though these people were trying to please God through what they've done, their works, rather than faith in Jesus Christ. They were self righteous, like the pharisees, they relied on "doing the right tgings" to okease God. If you have a good explanation, please share it. In short, it has nothing to do with the fact that they've cast demons out.

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/False%20Doctrines/Lordship%20Salvation/ray_comfort-matthew_723.htm

http://pastormark.tv/2012/02/09/tough-text-thursday-matthew-7-2223


One last thing, you shouldn't always cast the devil's out. So it seems at least. You should really only do a deliverance if it will lead to the victim of possession's salvation. In some cases, the person wants the devil inside of them, or they just don't want to be saved.

If that's the case, casting a demon out will be a bad idea. You will need to pray and get discernment from the Holy Spirit on the matter.


Matthew 12:43 - 45

43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. 44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. 45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.


This may not cover everything you need to know, but it was not intended to. This is merely my working theory, based on God's Word. Again, I've never done deliverance, though i have successfully rebuked demonic attacks from discarnate entities by 1) having a relationship with Jesus Christ. 2) calling on Him when i am under attack. And 3) rebuking the demons in His name.

Applying those principals and God's Word, this is my best guess at how to do deliverence. Please feel free to share your own experiences in the comments section, especially if you've done it before.



Addendum:

Nicky cruz's book, "one holy fire" has a good section on spiritual warfare thats worth checking out.