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DELIVERANCE |
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Can
A Christian Have a Demon?
When you go into the ministry of casting out demons (and you will if you follow Mark 16) you will inevitably be challenged with the question: 'Can a born-again believer have a demon?'In
charismatic and Pentecostal circles the question is: 'Can a believer who
is baptized in the Spirit have a demon? Absolutely not!' is the standard
answer. 'The Holy Spirit cannot dwell in the same body as a demon!' This
is often spoken with the insistence of a slogan, to close the mind to
further inquiry. However,
this answer cannot be supported by scripture. In fact, it is an
extra-scriptural piece of logic that rests on an assumption. It is
dangerous to assume that Satan and his demons have some kind of
hands-off policy when it comes to believers while the truth is that
believers are the very objects of their wrath and attack. In
the New Testament, the Greek word 'daimonizomai' is used to express the
presence of demonic spirits within a person. What this word means is:
'to be demonized; to be under the power or influence of a demon in
certain areas; to have a demon.' In
the King James Version of the Bible this particular Greek word is
translated 11 times as 'to be possessed with devils'. The word
'possessed,' however, is a misleading translation for this Greek word.
To English speaking people the term 'possessed' implies total ownership
of something. This concept, as pertaining to the relationship between a
demonic entity and a person, has no support in the scripture or in the
original intent of the Greek word. There is no suggestion in the
scripture that a demon has totally taken over a person as the word
'possessed' implies. Even the Gaderene demoniac had enough humanity to
cry out to Jesus for help. Rather,
after close scriptural study, it can be seen that the effect of demons
upon people was usually in one or more areas of the personality - not
the whole person. The best translation of this Greek word is: 'to be
demonized' or to 'have a demon.' A
useful analogy would be the city of Chicago. In the 1930's Chicago had a
mayor over the town, but the Mafia definitely ran parts of the town.
Even so, while a believer may profess Jesus Christ as Lord of their
life, it's quite possible that certain areas of the life may be under
the domination and controlling influence of demonic spirits, i.e. an
area of jealousy, lust, or annoying and compulsive habits. Because
of a scriptural misunderstanding of exactly what occurred at their
spiritual rebirth, many believe that they are somehow immune, or
instantly free, from the strongholds, bondages and curses accumulated
during a lifetime of sin. A careful study of the New Testament will reveal that our spiritual rebirth was just that, a 'spiritual' rebirth. Jesus said in the third chapter of John; 'That which is born of the Spirit is spirit.' It was the human spirit that received life when we confessed our sins and were born again. God told Adam that in the day he ate of the forbidden fruit he would die. Yet he went on to live for many hundreds of years. What died in Adam when he fell into sin? Obviously it was that same part of his nature that Christ came to bring back to life - his spirit. THREEFOLD
SALVATION FOR THREEFOLD MAN
The
Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:23 that man is a tripartite
being: spirit, soul and body. For this threefold being (created in the
image of his threefold Creator) God has provided a threefold salvation.
When one is born again, the spirit is infused with the very life and
presence of God. This burst of inner life (called justification) often
serves to liberate the person from bondages in the soul and, sometimes,
even sicknesses in the body. However, regeneration in the spirit does
not mean complete salvation and perfection for the soul. This is evident
in any believer's experience. The
second-fold of God's salvation involves the daily process of cleansing,
changing, conforming and renewing the soul into the likeness of the
Lord. The soul (composed of a man's mind, will and emotions) is far from
perfect. It is in this realm where the habits, patterns and bondages of
the past may still be found. By careful and consistent conformity to the
will of God, directed from the presence of God in the human spirit, the
soul is slowly transformed to become a pleasing habitation of the Lord.
This process is called sanctification (or 'set apart' unto holiness). Finally,
the third part of God's salvation involves the body. When Christ comes
again, the scriptures tell us that we shall be changed and shall receive
new bodies like unto the Lord's new body after his resurrection. This is
called glorification. It is also evident, from the teachings in the New
Testament, that the degree of glory expressed through our bodies then
will be related to the degree of glory allowed to manifest through our
souls now. In
justification (our past salvation) we were delivered from the penalty of
sin (eternal separation from God). In sanctification (our present
salvation) we are being delivered from the power of sin in our lives
each day. In glorification (our future salvation) we shall be delivered
from the very presence of sin. The scriptures are full of pictures, analogies and parables depicting the teaching of man's tripartite being with God's provisions of salvation. When Jesus cleansed His Father's temple, full of wrath against the men that had turned a house of prayer into a den of thieves, He was revealing God's heart. We too, are the temple of God and thus need the invading presence of the holy Lord to cleanse us from the 'thieves and robbers' within. SCRIPTURES SUPPORTING THE FACT THAT CHRISTIANS CAN BE DEMONIZED
RESULTS WHEN CHRISTIAN DEMONIZATION IS DENIED
Terms
and Scriptures Reference Since some readers may not be familiar
with the scriptural grounds for deliverance, we wish to acquaint them
with the basic principles of deliverance. Start with the Basics
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke
abound with accounts of Jesus casting demons out of people. A major part
of His earthly ministry, perhaps as much as one-third, was devoted to
deliverance. His purpose in becoming man, dying on the cross and
conquering the grave was to defeat Satan in our behalf. “The reason
the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work” I
John 3:8. Jewish religious leaders were amazed at
the authority Jesus exercised over demons. They said, “He even
gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him” Mark 1:27. He did not use incantations or any sort of
paraphernalia; He merely spoke to these real yet invisible beings and
they obeyed Him. “He drove out the spirits with a word...” Matt.
8.16 Furthermore, Jesus trained The Twelve plus seventy-two other
disciples and commissioned them to cast out demons. Jesus called his twelve disciples to
him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits...The Lord
appointed seventy-two others...The seventy-two returned with joy and
said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
Matt. 10:1; Luke 10:1, 17 Prior to His ascension into heaven, Jesus commissioned His Church to
preach the Gospel throughout the world, confirming the Word with signs
following. The first sign mentioned is deliverance: forcing demons to
depart from a person in the Name of Jesus. “And these signs will
accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out devils.
Power of Attorney
Believers in Christ have been entrusted with a spiritual “power of attorney”: authority to act in the absence and interests of Another. All authority in heaven and on earth belongs to Jesus (Matt. 28:18), and He has given us complete power over Satan and the demonic kingdom. Even though we cast out demons, the devil has no power to retaliate or harm us in any way. Jesus said: “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions, and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you” Luke 10:1 Prerequisites
for Deliverance
The Word of God lays down three
absolute prerequisites for those who seek deliverance from oppressing
evil spirits. First, one
must repent of all sin.
Repentance is a firm resolve in the
Lord to forsake sin and turn about to walk in the ways of God. Ongoing
sin in one's life is an open invitation to demons. Yielding to sin is
yielding to a 'whom', a person: namely, the devil. 'Do you not know
that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are the one's
slaves whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to
righteousness?' Rom. 6:16 Second,
there must be unqualified forgiveness toward all others no matter what
they have done, how many times they have done it, or whether they
continue to offend.
Forgiveness of oneself is also
mandatory. Anyone who has any reservation about forgiving any other
person is turned over to tormenting demons until he pays the debt of
love's forgiveness. 'In anger his master turned him [the unforgiving
servant] over to the jailers until he should pay back all he owed. This
is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your
brother from your heart' Matt. 18:21-35 (Brackets ours). Third,
there must be a complete separation from every association no matter how
casual with the occult, cults and Eastern Religions.
This separation includes the destruction of all books
and paraphernalia associated therewith. (Deut. 7:25-26; 18:9-13; Acts
19: 19-21).
We
have been given three offensive weapons by which to cast out every
oppressing spirit:
The
name of Jesus.
”Jesus”
is the name of absolute authority. His name is above all other names.
The authority of Jesus' name is given to every one who believes in Him
for salvation through the forgiveness of sins. Thus, every believer has
the right to say to demons, 'Go! In the name of Jesus', and the demons
must obey. The power in His blood.
The blood that Jesus shed on the cross is incorruptible - it
never dies and never loses its power. To use the blood of Jesus as a
weapon, tell the devil and his demons what His blood has done for you.
It has ransomed, redeemed, atoned, justified and sanctified you. The
Word of God. His
Word is called 'the sword of the Spirit' Eph. 6:17. We use the Word in warfare
when we read or quote aloud applicable scriptures to the devil This is what
Jesus did in the time of His wilderness temptations. He said, “Satan, it
is written....'” In times of battle against the devil, the
anointing of the Holy Spirit should be sought and anticipated. The power
channels for the Holy Spirit's anointing are the gifts of the Spirit. Of
special importance in spiritual warfare is the gift of 'discerning of
spirits'. By means of this gift there comes a supernatural insight in the
spiritual realm so that one is able to know the presence, nature and
activities of evil spirits. The gift of discerning of spirits guides the
deliverance minister in his work. He need not call upon lying spirits to
identify themselves, for the Holy Spirit has already revealed to him who they
are. (See: Acts 1:8; I Cor. 12:7-11). Furthermore, the gift of 'faith' arms one
with strength to speak to evil spirits with absolute assurance of victory over
them. Jesus taught that by speaking in faith one can remove a mountain. Demons
indwelling a person represent a mountainous problem that demands removal. The
Bible says, 'Covet earnestly the best gifts' and 'desire spiritual gifts'
I Cor. 12:31; 14:1. An effective way to begin a deliverance ministry is for the person seeking deliverance to verbalize specific prayers and confessions. Such prayers will affirm the candidates relationship with Jesus Christ, make definite request of God for deliverance and serve the forces of darkness their eviction notice. Balance
Is A Key Factor
Not every problem is demonic. For example,
Jesus healed people without casting out demons. Not every demonic problem is
exclusively demonic; there are also fleshly attitudes and activities which
must be crucified. Corrupt flesh and unclean spirits are companions; you
rarely find one without the other. Any one who receives valid deliverance
cannot expect to retain his deliverance apart from disciplined living. His
tongue, mind, emotions, will, physical appetites, finances and his spirit-man
must remain rigorously disciplined. 'Like a city whose walls are broken
down is a man who lacks self-control'
Prov. 25:28. The enemy has ready access to the life of one whose walls
of discipline are not solidly constructed. Who Should Seek Deliverance and Why?
Why should a person want deliverance for himself? Is needing relief from torment, defilement, addiction or compulsive behavior a valid motivation? We know our Lord wants us to be free from every oppressive bondage, but seeking to be conformed to Christ's likeness is always the highest motivation. We should hate everything in us that detracts from this process and gives advantage to the devil.
Click here to read a sample of the "Ambassadors of Love" E-Zine You may email us at: nikki@chooselove.org
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