Getting free of demons

The Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:11-13 ^tlb “Put on all of God’s armour so that you will be able to stand safe against all strategies and tricks of Satan. For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against persons without bodies; the evil rulers of the unseen world; those mighty Satanic beings and great evil princes of darkness who rule this world, and against huge numbers of wicked spirits in the spirit-world. So use every piece of God’s armour to resist the enemy whenever he attacks, and when it is all over, you will still be standing up.”

The purpose of this paper is to give basic understanding of where those powers came from, how they can affect us today, and how we can be released from their influence.

 

Where did these powers of darkness come from?

God’s original creation included spirit beings in descending order of rankings, including one with exceptional wisdom and abilities. In one of the two main prophetic references to that being (Ezekiel 28:12-14 ^niv), we read “You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God;…… You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you.” That being was Lucifer, later to become known as Satan.

Lucifer’s personal downfall began with inner corruption. Ezekiel 28:15-17 ^niv reads “You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till wickedness was found in you. Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you CORRUPTED your wisdom because of your splendour.” (The other major prophetic reference to Lucifer is in Isaiah 14:12-14[1]).

Then, as found in Revelation 12:4[2]>, it is generally accepted that Lucifer, in his seditious whisperings to other spirit beings that God had created, managed to lure approximately one-third of them over to his side, where they ended up on earth.

The powers of darkness we are considering in this paper, include all the spirit beings already referred to in Ephesians 6:12[3]>. The “mighty satanic beings” are the fallen angels who chose to follow Satan into rebellion. With specially assigned positions from their overlord Satan, they appear to pass on their orders and their particular brands of evil to the lower ranking fallen spirit beings mentioned in the latter part of this verse, who more directly attack Christians today.

 

How can these powers of darkness affect us today?

Firstly, indwelling status in the believer’s life where this is possible.

It should be noted that indwelling demons in the personality of a true believer are not constantly on the surface. They operate much like an enemy submarine – coming to the surface to cause as much destruction as possible when from their viewpoint it is an opportune time to do so, then disappearing below the surface to lie dormant for a period of time until a new opportunity arises to cause further destruction.

But how do they actually gain indwelling status? A Christian does not pick up a demon by accidentally bumping into one as he or she goes down the street. Demons gain access by a number of clearly discernible routes.

Secondly, external harassment where indwelling status cannot be gained.

Such demonic attacks can occur at random, for Satan constantly and continually opposes God’s plans and his people. However some externally operating spirits may have a legal right to attack if a believer becomes involved in active persistent sin, or is affected by a curse, or is spiritually wounded in such a way as to attract demonic attention.

Getting rid of external tormentors is a simple matter, for they have no foothold within the believer’s life, but are simply acting from the outside.

 

How can we be released from demonic influences?

Those that have gained indwelling status.

We can get rid of many indwelling spirits of darkness by ourselves. Luke 10:19[4] reminds us that Jesus has given us authority. We need to ensure that we renounce and cut off any legal reasons that such spirits may have to reside within. This process may mean that we need to repent where sins have been committed by us, or forgive where wrong attitudes are still held against someone else. We must treat God’s Word seriously, and refusal to repent or forgive will without doubt keep us in chains. However, if we have been involved in sinful practices such as witchcraft, we will have attracted quite powerful demons, and it would be wise for us to seek the assistance of those who are genuinely anointed by the Lord for the ministry of deliverance.

Here is a suggested prayer for self-deliverance:

“In the name and authority of the Lord Jesus Christ I command you ….. (name the demonic spirits)….. to leave me immediately. I renounce and revoke your right to operate in my life. In Jesus name, go now.” Joel 2:32[5]

It should be mentioned here that while it is best to accurately identify the names of any indwelling spirits, it is not always essential to do so. Many times it is adequate to simply identify the type of work done by a spirit. (e.g., ‘the spirit that caused me to fly into a rage just now’, or ‘the spirit that is putting lustful thoughts into my mind at the moment’.)

Those that harass us from outside.

The process of casting away these attackers is virtually the same as for those who gain indwelling status. These spirits generally have no firm grip upon us, or they would have already gained indwelling status, a much greater achievement for them. Be alert, however, to the possibility that they may be linked to internal spirits, so in getting rid of them try not to miss anything hiding inside. The sort of prayer to use for externally harassing spirits can be the same as that for indwelling demons.

The most important thing is to have an attitude that recognises the seriousness of demonic presence. All demons are committed to our destruction, and will use every trick in the book to remain undetected. God is faithful, however, and sooner or later he will expose all darkness to us PROVIDED we are willing to do something about it when made aware.

 

The place of ‘Binding’ in pre-deliverance ministry.

Matthew 18:18 ^niv reads “I tell you the truth; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in Heaven…”

In Luke 11:21-22 ^niv we find these words “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe; but when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armour in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils.”

Binding simply means to leave a demon where it is, but to shut down its ability to operate for a specified period of time. Binding may have a very real part in our spiritual armoury. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 10:4 ^niv “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” However, binding is not in itself ‘deliverance’, and there are some important things we need to understand if it is to be a truly effective part of that armory.

There needs to be understanding of the enemy’s character.

Demons are incredibly sly, and should be treated as such. Therefore we need to be very specific in binding them in the authority the Lord has given us. They will be most elusive where conditions are undefined – e.g. “I bind you in Jesus’ name” without any specific conditions to that binding will give easy escape routes for them. They will be trapped where conditions are very exact – e.g. “I bind you totally from any activity at all in this person’s life up to 10.00pm 1 calendar month from now. During this time you will remain totally still and totally silent. I bring you this command in the full authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will do exactly as you have been ordered.”

There needs to be accurate Biblical basis for any orders given.

It is quite wrong to pray ‘Lord, will you bind these spirits please for such and such a period of time’? In Luke 10:19 ^niv we read the words of Jesus “I have given YOU authority to trample on snakes and scorpions.” There is no use asking God to do what he has already asked us to do.

It is quite wrong to bind or pray without good reason. We must not be flippant in these matters. Matthew 12:36[6] warns us that even our careless words will have to be accounted for on judgement day. We shouldn’t enter into conflict with the enemy unless the one being prayed for is serious about wanting help.

There needs to be a definite purpose for imposing a binding.

Example: A person may be literally unable to receive and hold on to truth, or receive pure love, or get emotions under control because of demonic interference. It is a common tactic of the enemy to attack with families of truth blocking, love blocking or emotion blocking spirits. Such spirits may need to be bound for a season of time.

Example: Families of Suicide/Death spirits may need to be bound to give respite from deeply distressing torment.

There needs to be prompt follow up where this is possible.

Binding of the enemy should never be regarded as a substitute for deliverance, but properly understood, may well prepare the way for the permanent release of the person who has come for ministry. Long-term binding is undesirable.

 

Final thoughts

If demons are allowed to continue unchallenged in the life of a believer, it will be quite impossible for that person to enter into the full freedom and joy that the Lord intends. It is our responsibility, therefore, to understand and apply the authority given us by the Lord, firstly in our own lives, and then, as he directs, also in the lives of others. Deliverance, however, must never be substituted for dealing with the old sinful nature, for we cannot ‘cast out’ the flesh. Deliverance without repentance or forgiveness is futile and dangerous.

 

Maintaining our freedom

Here are some appropriate steps towards our spiritual freedom once we have been delivered of demonic squatters. It is important to work at keeping ourselves free as we find a sober warning in Matthew 12:43-45[7] of the results of failure to do so. These following seven points are reproduced from the book ‘How to be set free from Freemasonry’, with the kind permission of it’s author, Joan Edmondson.

This paper seeks to accurately represent the teachings of Holy Scriptures. You are free to copy or alter all or any part of this paper PROVIDED that the Holy Scriptures are not misrepresented as a result.