Episode Description:
What is your immediate reaction when you hear the word ‘deliverance’? What images does it conjure up in your mind? In this episode of the Hearing God Podcast, we unpack deliverance, our experience, and share stories to help demystify and explain it simply. Join us as we share the importance and practicalities of simple deliverance and how we listen to God’s promptings throughout the process.
Episode Notes:
Introduction to Deliverance:
- When talking about deliverance, I’m not talking about SRA – satanic ritual abuse or severe psych issues or freemasonry. That’s a whole other story.
- The Bible views demons as actual beings, without bodies. We don’t normally see them unless you have the gift of discerning of spirits. Demons are evil, and their purpose is to kill, steal, and destroy, to torment you, and to distance you from God. John 10:10.
- Christians can have a demon – be oppressed by them. They can attach to you through an opening, whether generational or sin or trauma. When people accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour, it’s great to break off all the ungodly stuff from their past that impacts them. Don’t let it scare you though.
- Fear piggybacks on to trauma. Look at the symptom and the root. What the hurt is e.g. rejection, fear etc
- A story I use to explain deliverance.
- Where there’s garbage (brokenness, trauma, hurt) there’s rats. Rats, depicting demons, don’t stay unless there is garbage, so once you clean up the garbage and block the hole where they come in, the rats will go. Deliverance consists of removing the rats that have taken up residence in a person’s life. There is no use trying to evict them, though, until you have dealt with the entry point into that person’s life plus the garbage that is also keeping them there.
- Satan is extremely legalistic & hierarchical. Thus, if he can find a legal loophole to stay, he will. Our job is to clean the mess up, deal with all the legal issues which usually involves addressing the root issue and cut off the authority that satan has in that person’s life.
- I usually find that when the root issue is properly addressed, authority reclaimed, the demons quickly and quietly leave as they have nothing left to cling to and no legal right to remain in that person’s life.
- As I wrote my book, ‘Ministering like Jesus: How to Grow in Healing, Deliverance and Miracles’, I was astounded at how many times Jesus dealt with demons. In fact, Jesus’ first ministry act in Mark’s Gospel was in the Synagogue where He cast out demons. It is not something that we can hide or pretend that we don’t see. But remember, Jesus did not look for demons. They revealed themselves as Jesus went about doing His Father’s business.
- Demons knew and instantly recognized Jesus. They recognized His Identity and authority. Therefore, if we know and operate in our Heavenly identity and authority, we have nothing to fear. The Holy Spirit in us is far more powerful than any demons.
- In Mark 1:21-27, In the synagogue, Jesus simply responded to the loud interruption of the demon with “Be quiet! Come out of him!” It was not a lame, timid command but a forceful order spoken with authority. Jesus was not intimidated by the demon. Jesus knew His identity as the Son of God.
- Jesus speaking with authority does not mean that He raised His voice. It does not say that Jesus spoke loudly. It says that Jesus spoke sternly. Please do not think that raising your voice when addressing demons will indicate authority. Shouting at demons suggests to the demons that you are not necessarily in control. It might also imply that you are unsure about the authority you carry. You need to be sure of your identity and authority in God when dealing with demons.
- Jesus gave a command to the demon, telling it exactly what to do. There was no messing about, being unsure or fearful. We need to follow Jesus’ example and be specific when dealing with demons.
- Jesus did not get caught up in a conversation or an argument with the demon. Just as Jesus knew and operated in His authority as the Son of God, we also have authority as children of God. Thus, we dictate the process. The demon does not dictate to us. Remember that, as a child of God, the Holy Spirit will guide us and help us, giving us what we need when we need it.
- Sometimes there may be a physical and noisy response. The demon may try to intimidate you, but do not let it affect you. Keep your focus on who you are as a child of God and the authority you carry. It is important to know your authority in Christ.
- In Mark 5:1-20, Jesus had an interaction with the tormented man in the tombs of Gerasenes. Jesus gave the demon an instruction to follow. “Come out of this man.” Jesus then asked, “what is your name?” “Legion” replied the demons. Naming the evil spirit when casting it out addresses the identity of the spirit. When you call a person by name, they take notice. At home, if I call out, “Can someone please take out the rubbish?”, I am not likely to get a response. If I personalize it by saying, “Josh, can you please take out the rubbish?” then Josh will take out the rubbish. He hears his name and responds; likewise, with evil spirits. Naming them means that they cannot ignore that you are addressing them.
- When an evil spirit comes out of a person, it goes somewhere. Sending them to the foot of the cross for Jesus to deal with is a great solution when we are evicting demons from a person.
- Something that I have observed about evicting demons is that there appear to be several techniques. In the Bible passages I have referred to above, we see the ‘overt’ method of demons being forcibly removed with the demons making a demonstration as they leave.
Methods of Deliverance:
- Open Deliverance:
Open Deliverance is overt. The prayer team confront the demons directly. Demons are spoken to and interrogated, then the prayer team seek to weaken their power and command them to leave the person, place, or property. All Christians have the authority to minister in open deliverance.
Manifestations may include:
- Shaking, falling over, claw like motions, severe body/facial contortions, animal type behaviour
- Screaming, hissing, a tightening of muscles in the throat, impaired speech, sudden/unusual changes in voice, atypical foul language, growling, groaning
- Sudden dizziness, nausea & wanting to vomit, extreme sweating
- Refusing to make eye contact, eyes darting all over the place, red piercing eyes, or eyes rolling back so only the whites are visible
- Pain shifting within their body to another place
- Sudden headache
I don’t allow these manifestations to continue because they are usually dishonouring to the person and disruptive to meetings. We never let the devil set the agenda. If you are unsure if it is a demon due to subtle changes, ask the person how they are feeling. Their response will reveal either peace (Holy Spirit) or a demon.
Recommendations on how to deal with manifesting demons:
- If no one experienced is available simply address the spirit and command it to “Be quiet, in Jesus’ name!” or “Stop manifesting!” Do not get drawn into a conversation with the demon, just keep repeating the commands until the spirit is quiet.
- As soon as the demon stops manifesting, comfort the person and release God’s peace and love over them. They may feel intimidated, confused, or embarrassed, so they will most likely require some reassurance.
- Before the guest leaves, bless them and forbid the demon to manifest again until it is being delivered. A simple prayer like “I forbid you to harm the person, their property, or their family in any way, and I forbid you to manifest in any way until you are being delivered”. Encourage them to consider further prayer ministry. After they have left, pray a prayer of protection over your prayer team.
- Displacement (Lifting off shock & trauma):
Displacement is a very safe way to minister. It’s gentle, quick, and easy, and a brilliant way to do sneaky deliverance. The guest receiving prayer may be completely unaware that they have demons and that they are being delivered. Displacement may not deliver every kind of demon, but it will weaken them, and it often alleviates symptoms the person is suffering from.
In displacement ministry, we come against the work of the enemy with prayers and blessings in the opposite direction of the affliction. The Bible gives us some powerful promises of displacement which we can craft into prayers.
“Beauty for ashes… joy instead of mourning… praise instead of despair” Isaiah 61:3
“Instead of shame and dishonour, you will enjoy a double portion of honour” Isaiah 61:7
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear but power, love, and sound mind” 2 Timothy 1:7
“…Perfect love drives out fear”. 1 John 4:18
Recommendations:
- We bind the negative attribute or area of torment and release a positive alternative.
- There is no need to mention the presence of demons. I also don’t mention spirits e.g. spirit of fear. I say fear.
- Follow this by blessing the person and asking the Holy Spirit to fill the ‘space’ previously occupied by a demon, with something from God.
- My personal words: “I lift off all shock, all trauma, all fear, all despair, all disappointment, all (anything else you are sensing)…. (Take your time. Note that they may feel a response and usually have tears.) “Holy Spirit, would You now fill this person up with (the opposite) Your peace, Your freedom, Your joy, Your Presence…”
- Inner Healing:
Deliverance minister Charles Craft say’s “Demons are attracted to emotional wounds like rats are attracted to garbage. If you clean up the garbage, the rats will leave.” He is suggesting that demonic influence is usually a secondary problem and evidence of soul wounds that have not yet healed. Inner healing can involve healing of memories, removing trauma, addressing unforgiveness, repenting of lies in combination with displacement ministry. When we facilitate Inner Healing, we seek to deal with the emotional wounds that demons exploit. By removing the wound, we remove the access point for demonic activity. Proverbs 26:2 says, “A curse without cause will not alight”.
It’s worth noting that all emotional wounds occur in the presence of fear, and therefore they can only be healed in the presence of love. So, an important starting place for any inner healing is to release God’s comfort and protection until the guest feels completely safe and comforted by the presence of God.
- Prophetic Acts:
Simple prophetic acts can have powerful ramifications in the spiritual realm and are another way to do sneaky deliverance. A prophetic act is something done (at God’s direction) in the natural (physical) realm that supports God’s workings in the spiritual realm, to bring forth results in the natural realm. It opens the channel for God’s presence, power, and victory to be released to have an effect in the physical realm and change outcomes.
A prayer team member got the prophetic word ‘Chains of affliction’ for a guest. When she shared it with the guest, nothing appeared to occur. But when the team prophetically lifted chains off the guest, she instantly went down in the spirit and shook under the power of God. After being delivered, the guest was overwhelmed with joy to the point where they couldn’t stand or speak and has reported being amazingly free since that moment.
- Prayer Cloths:
In Acts 19:12 we read, “Because of this, people took Paul’s handkerchiefs and articles of clothing, even pieces of cloth that had touched his skin, laying them on the bodies of the sick, and diseases and demons left them and they were healed.”
Reinhard Bonnke had a similar experience when the tent they were planning to have a crusade in was ripped to shreds by a violent storm. At first, they were devastated until reports of salvations and deliverances started filtering in from wherever pieces of the tent landed! What the enemy intended for evil God used for widespread healing and deliverance.
Filling the void:
The last thing we desire for anyone is that they leave worse off than when they came. Thus, it is essential to ‘fill’ any space in a person’s life that was previously occupied by a demon. Luke 11:24-26 and Matthew 12:43-45 highlight this fact. Thus, it is vitally important that we always follow any time of expelling demons with a time of filling the person up with the things of God’s Kingdom – the Holy Spirit, peace, joy, freedom, love, hope, kindness etc. These are the qualities which we desire to occupy any spaces in people’s lives.
Also, please offer the person a choice to accept Jesus Christ as Lord of their life. If Christ is not Lord, it gets complicated with leaving them exposed to more demonization. There may well be other stuff that needs addressing. There are usually layers. Sometimes it is a process. Sometimes it is a one-off, fully cleansed and dealt with.
Steps for Deliverance:
- Give the individual priority. Don’t make them a spectacle. Love them in the name of Jesus Christ and emphasize that Jesus Christ can set them free. Don’t embarrass the person or make a spectacle of them. Treat them with respect.
- No one right way. Others do it differently. Whatever works and brings freedom.
- If a spirit manifests, command it to be quiet in the name of Jesus. Do not touch the person and have others pray quietly, not loudly so as not to stir up the demon.
- Try to establish eye contact. Encourage them to keep looking at you.
- Ask the person what they want freedom from. They need to verbalise it.
- Make sure they have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord & Saviour.
- Find out the legal rights.
- Close the door through which the spirit entered.
- Forgiveness
- Repentance
- Renounce
- Breaking the bondage caused by the sin/vow/attitude etc (In Jesus’s name, I break the power of the spirits of.. or the vow …
- Breaking soul ties
- Clear out the unclean spirits. When you think you have finished, ask the person if there are other spirits to still be dealt with.
- Have the person thank Jesus for their deliverance.
- Have the person ask the Holy Spirit to fill them up and all the places formerly occupied by the evil spirits.
Please do not go against a person’s will. If they are not ready to submit to the Holy Spirit and renounce or give up, please do not force it.
It is important to maintain your freedom:
- Consciously have Jesus as Lord of your life in all areas.
- Daily spiritual practices – reading your Bible, prayer, worship, speaking in tongues.
- Take responsibility for your thought life.
- Walk in forgiveness as a lifestyle (forgiveness is a decision not a feeling).
- Change those habits causing concern.
Summary:
Hard to summarise. Basically, having the right mindset and strategy, and treating people with respect and kindness.
This podcast is about Hearing God, so hearing God when doing deliverance is going with the inner promptings you feel, sense, etc. But don’t enter into this lightly. Ask an experienced person to be with you and help you.
Prophetic activation:
Arrange to spend some time on your own with God. You might like to journal, just sit, or take a walk. Have a conversation with God about your thoughts and feelings on deliverance. As you are chatting, allow time and space for God to speak to you.
Time Stamps:
[0:49] – Gary & Jane share how they have heard God this week.
[4:13] – Introduction to deliverance.
[7:50] – A story Jane uses to explain deliverance.
[11:43] – How we manage simple deliverance.
[21:54] – Inner healing and deliverance explained.
[22:32] – Filling the void.
[24:27] – Gary explains a process we use.
[26:18] – Summary
[27:21] – Prophetic activation.
[28:36] – Gary & Jane share a prophetic word for a listener.
[31:00] – Gary prays for you.
Resources / Links Mentioned:
Bible Verses Mentioned:
- John 10:10
- Mark 1:21-27
- Mark 5:1-20
- Isaiah 61:3, 7
- 2 Timothy 1:7
- 1 John 4:18
- Proverbs 26:2
- Acts 19:12
- Luke 11:24-26
- Matthew 12:43-45
- 1 Corinthians 14:3
Connect with Gary & Jane:
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