Our expectations for the Christian life matter and those expectations tend to create a gulf in the body of Christ. On the one hand, a major stream of theological thought holds that Jesus came, lived a life of miracles to prove that he was the Son of God, and purchased the forgiveness of our sins through his sacrifice on the cross.  His intent for us is that we come to faith in Him and his completed work on the cross, live a moral life, teach others the tenants of our faith, and do good to the people around us.  The expectations of these believers keep them from ever seeking more.

A second stream of thought is that Jesus came and lived a life of miracles to not only demonstrate that he was the Son of God but also that the Kingdom of God had come with power. His intent is not only that we would come to faith in Him but that we would also continue to demonstrate his reality and the power of the kingdom of heaven by doing the miracles he did as we lead others to Christ while doing good to those around us.

Perhaps, it seems like a small difference but in practice it is not.  The first stream of thought believes in the historic miracles of Jesus and the early church but holds that the historic record is sufficient for belief.  No current miracles are necessary to bring others to Christ and, therefore, the Holy Spirit no longer distributes gifts of prophecy, tongues, healings, miracles, and so forth.  Moral living, loving others, and preaching the gospel are the defining marks of the church.

The second stream of thought would echo moral living, loving others and doing good but would add the element of miracles not only for the purpose of evangelism but also as an ongoing expression of the love and compassion of God for hurting people.  Jesus did public miracles in order to establish who he was but he also did many in private telling the person who was healed to tell no one.  His motivation for healing as much out of compassion as it was to prove that he was the Son of God.  He is still compassionate.

There are all kinds of religions and religious groups who claim to have revelation from God concerning salvation.  They also point people to living a moral life, loving others, and doing good.  They nearly all have some form of historic miracles on which their doctrines and stories stand.  So…how will a Muslim, a Hindu, a Buddhist, a Scientologist, or a Satanist determine that Jesus is the real God versus the one they have been taught to worship since birth?

Moses seems instructive in this matter.  Remember when he had his showdown with Pharaoh and the false gods of Egypt (Ex. 7-12).  Pharaoh called on his magicians to match the miracles of Jehovah….and they did….for a while.  Moses had Aaron throw down his staff and his staff turned into a snake, but so did theirs by “secret arts”.  The snake from Aaron’s rod ate the snakes of the magicians, but both displayed impressive power.

Moses then commanded the waters of Egypt to turn to blood.  Pharaoh’s magicians did the same by their “secret arts”.  Moses called up a plague of frogs. The sorcerers of Egypt matched that as well.  However, Jehovah through his servant Moses continued to display his power and when a plague of gnats was called out, the magicians could not match it nor any of the plagues that followed. Then those same magicians declared to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.”

There came a point when the works of darkness could not compete with the works of God and those who saw the miracles began to believe.    Since our struggle is not against flesh and blood (Eph. 6:12), we need to understand that miracles were not just to impress men, but also to demonstrate the superiority of the Kingdom of Heaven over the kingdom of darkness.  Jehovah declared that his plagues were not just judgments on the men who had enslaved his people but also were judgments on all the gods of Egypt (Ex. 12:12).  In most parts of the world, men still do not need to be convinced that a spiritual realm exists.  Their question is not whether there is a god but only whether the God we serve is more powerful than the god they serve.  That can only be demonstrated by the miraculous hand of God.

Jesus reflected that same reality when he said to the Pharisees,  “But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you” (Luke 11:20). A demonstration of power was always at the center of Christ’s ministry as well as those he sent out.  When he sent out the twelve and the seventy he gave them power and authority to heal and cast out demons. When he gifted the church, he gave gifts that demonstrated the power of the Kingdom of God through prophecy, healing, miracles and so forth.

Throughout the book of Acts we see the supernatural move of God through miracles, angelic activity, and moves of the Holy Spirit.  That is the model of evangelism and church growth that we see in the New Testament. Interestingly, many of the churches that reject the miraculous move of the Holy Spirit today claim to model themselves after the New Testament church and yet omit the very things that demonstrated the reality of Jesus over the demonic spirits that were being worshipped throughout the New Testament world.

Jesus made an interesting comment about John the Baptist in the gospel of Luke.  He declared, “I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he” (Lk.7:28). How could a brand new Christian or even a mature Christian be greater than John the Baptist?  Certainly, he would not be greater than John in character and faith but he would be greater in capacity because the baptism of the Holy Spirit makes a lifestyle available that not even John had access to.

By Old Covenant standards, John was the culmination of the prophets although we have no record of him doing any miracles.  But Jesus said that the least New Covenant follower would be greater than John. He said that because he was going to send the Spirit for all of his followers after he returned to the Father. Why would Jesus give us such capacity for power through the Holy Spirit, but not want us to exercise that power just as he did?  After all, he promised that anyone who had faith in him would do the works he had been doing and even greater things (John 14:12).  That sounds like an expectation for all who have faith and he did not put an expiration date on that promise.

In a world where no one knows who to believe or what to believe, it will take authentic demonstrations of the reality of the Kingdom of Heaven and the finger of God to convince the world that Jesus is who he says he is. Living a moral life and doing good is praiseworthy but it does not set us apart from others who claim to have God’s seal of approval and who live relatively moral lives and do good. Even Satan appears as an angel of light.  It will take miracles that outstrip what others can produce even by their secret arts just as in the days of Moses so that the truth of God’s word and the reality of Jesus become undeniable. My hope then and my prayer is that the church in America and each of us will begin to embrace the power of the Holy Spirit in order to duplicate the ministry of Jesus that will once again turn the world upside down.  The apostle Paul summed it up when he said, “The kingdom of God is not a matter of talk, but of power” (1 Cor. 4:20).  The question for each if us then is, “How is that power being displayed in our lives or our churches?”

Blessings in Him.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.  I Corinthians 13:8:13

The passage quoted above comes from 1 Corinthians 13 which is often referred to as the Love Chapter.  Paul’s description of love in this chapter has been read at countless weddings and other settings.  You know…. “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud”…and so forth.  Interestingly, this chapter is sandwiched between two other chapters on the use spiritual gifts such as prophecy, tongues, healings, miracles, administration, and so forth.

The reason the chapter exists is that the believers at Corinth had been given amazing gifts but were exercising those gifts in selfish ways rather than as God intended.  Paul begins his letter by declaring, “So now you aren’t lacking any spiritual gift” (1 Cor. 1:7), which is very impressive, but he goes on to say, “When I was with you, I found it impossible to speak to you as those who are spiritually mature people for you are still dominated by the mind-set of the flesh” (1 Cor. 3:1, Passion Translation).

Paul’s letter to the Corinthian church makes it clear that believers can possess and exercise impressive spiritual gifts while at the same time not having the spiritual character to operate in those gifts as God intended.  The church at Corinth was full of people who were self-promoting, self-focused believers who were using their gifts to exalt themselves and to establish some kind of pecking order for who was “greatest in the kingdom.”

It’s important to notice that Paul did not forbid the use of the gifts because they were being abused, but rather instructed them in how to exercise the gifts with a godly perspective and attitude.  So…he drops an entire chapter in the middle of the conversation telling them that if there use of the gifts was not governed by love, then what they thought was impressive was totally unimpressive to God.  By the way that is true for all things not just the exercise of spiritual gifts.  If preaching, evangelism, giving to the poor, leading worship, etc. is not done with a heart of love towards God and his people, it counts for nothing in the kingdom of heaven.

Paul was essentially saying to God’s people at Corinth that although they thought they were extremely mature, they were extremely immature.  God is love.  Therefore, he cannot do anything without love as his motive. Paul argues that we must reflect that same love in everything we do if what we do is going to be pleasing to the Father and if we want him to increase the anointing and favor in our lives.  It is not about earning his love or favor, because it is all by grace, but it is about demonstrating that we can be good stewards of what he gives us.  Remember the principle…he who is faithful in little will be made faithful in much.  Love seems to be a defining measure of what it means to be faithful.  To be faithful means that we live and use the resources God has given us just as God would use them.

So…in that chapter, Paul states, “Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.”

Much has been made of this text by those who believe that God no longer distributes his miraculous gifts to the church.  They argue that the apostle clearly states that the gifts will cease and they will cease when “perfection” comes.  The word translated as “perfection” is teleion in Greek, which can mean complete.  So those who hold the Cessationist view (the gifts have ceased to operate) argue that perfection is the “completed word of God.”

The idea is that gifts such as prophecy, tongues, and knowledge were needed only until the New Testament canon was completed, and once the complete will of God was made known through the written word, all the gifts would cease in the church. That view holds that the gifts were only temporary and temporarily needed to reveal God’s will to his church because the New Testament was in the process of being revealed. Once all of the N.T. had been penned and compiled in what we think if as the New Testament, the miraculous would cease.

The word teleion can mean complete in the sense of “there is no more to do,” but it also means complete in the sense of full maturity.  Jesus used the word when he said, “Be perfect even as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Mt. 5:48). He was challenging his followers to have the mind and heart of God which is the definition of full spiritual maturity.   In Philippians 3:12, Paul says, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”  The word perfect in this verse is teleion again. Paul is simply saying that he his not yet Christ-like in every thing he says or does. In other words, he is not yet motivated by love in everything he does, says, or thinks.

In the context of 1 Corinthians, spiritual maturity is the goal, not a completed New Testament canon.  The idea of perfection is that when we are perfected in Christ, the gifts of prophecy, tongues, and knowledge will no longer be needed.  When we are perfect, complete, and fully mature in our ability to love, then those three gifts (and, perhaps, the rest) will cease. Okay, so if the gifts are needed until we love like Jesus loves…then I think they are still greatly needed.  I believe that we will be perfected in love, only when Jesus returns and when we are with him face-to-face, and so I belief the gifts are for the church until Jesus returns.  Paul is simply highlighting the fact that love is superior to gifts because the time will comes when the gifts will not longer be needed but love is forever.

Paul underlines this emphasis on spiritual maturity when he says that we need to be transformed from children to spiritual adulthood…which is his theme throughout the letter.  His point is that if you want to truly be great in the kingdom, seek love over the gifts. Don’t be mistaken…Paul is big on the gifts and wants them to powerfully work in the church.  However, he insists that they must be motivated and directed by love.  Otherwise, they will do more harm than good.

I think we can conclude from this section, that if we want an increase in gifts and anointing in our own lives and in our churches, we should pray first for the capacity to love as Jesus loves.  Our desire for the gifts must be based on a hunger to bless others rather than to exalt ourselves.  Paul counsels us to “Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy” (1 Cor.14:1).  Notice that he puts love before the gifts in this verse.

Perhaps, our daily prayer then should be, “Lord, I earnestly desire your spiritual gifts and your anointing in greater measure, but more than that, I want to love as Jesus loves. Give me that heart first, and then the gifts I desire because then I will use them as you desire.”

Blessings in Him

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. Psalm 100:4-5

This, of course, is the week of Thanksgiving.  This is the time that we commemorate the coming of the Pilgrims to America. As we think about the holiday, we may envision happy pilgrims sitting down with friendly Native Americans and feasting on a sunny day in New England. We tend to forget the sacrifice made by that small band of believers who sailed to the New World on the Mayflower not only to escape religious persecution in Europe and England but to spread the gospel as well.  I want to quote some of Stephen Mansfield’s article from his Leading Thoughts publication in which he provided a Thanksgiving meditation for this week.

“For 66 days the little ship, no longer than a modern volleyball court, made the treacherous voyage from England to the coast of what would one day be Massachusetts. When the Pilgrims arrived, what must their thoughts have been as they stared at the howling wilderness that was to be their home? William Bradford, later their Governor, recalled:

Being thus passed the vast ocean, and a sea of troubles before in their preparation, they had now no friends to welcome them, nor inns to entertain or refresh their weather-beaten bodies, no house or much less towns to repair too, to seek for succor.  What could sustain them but the Spirit of God and his grace. May not and ought not the children of these fathers, rightly say: ‘Our fathers were Englishmen which came over this great ocean, and were ready to perish in this wilderness.’

And perish they almost did. More than half of them died during that first winter, often called “the starving time.” At one point, each person’s ration for a day was no more than five kernels of corn and a few ounces of brackish water. Native friends like Squanto and Samoset taught the whites how to harvest the bay and the land, but the yield would not be sufficient until the next year. So they buried their dead and prayed for the mercy of God.

In the spring they planted and soon after began sensing that God had heard their prayers. The previous winter had been the worst of times, but the harvest looked bountiful now, the settlement was growing, and God seemed to be smiling upon them.

When the harvest was gathered that fall, their leaders called for some of the men to go hunting in preparation for a great feast to celebrate the goodness of God. Wild fowl, fish, and venison were gratefully prepared. They invited their native friends, too, who brought five freshly killed deer. The white women prepared hoecakes, cornmeal pudding, and a variety of vegetables while the Indian women introduced delicacies made with blueberries, apples, and cherries. The most welcome new food the natives brought with them, though, was a new way of cooking corn in an earthen pot until it became white and fluffy—popcorn!

It was indeed a thanksgiving, but not just for safety and abundance of food. It was also a time to remember the words they had penned about their purpose for coming while they were still on board The Mayflower. They came, they said, “for the Glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith,” “for propagating and advancing the gospel of the kingdom of Christ in those remote parts of the world; yea, though they should be but even as stepping-stones unto others for the performing of so great a work.”

So they were, and we ought to remember them this Thanksgiving, and take their mission to our hearts.

Thus out of small beginnings greater things have been produced by His hand that made all things of nothing, and gives being to all things that are; and as one small candle may light a thousand, so the light here kindled hath shone to many, yea in some sort to our whole nation; let the glorious name of Jehovah have all the praise.

William Bradford, “Of Plimoth Plantation””

It would have been easy to turn their backs on God as nearly half of those who came to America died the first winter.  It would have been easy for them to focus on their loss and see God as a cruel God or a detached God who let their family members perish after sailing across a treacherous ocean for his glory.  Instead, they focused on his goodness and gave thanks for what he did provide and out of their sacrifice and his provision came more than they could ever imagine.

As modern Americans we tend to believe that God is good only when everything is going our way.  The idea of hardships and sacrifice doesn’t seem to be in our playbook, so at the first sign of struggle, loss, or disappointment we begin to question God and his goodness.  We begin to question whether he really cares for us.  It is in those moments that thanksgiving becomes a powerful weapon in spiritual warfare.

The first temptation recorded in scripture was in the Garden of Eden. As you recall, Satan asked Eve a question subtly suggesting that God was withholding good things from the couple he had created.  Once that seed of doubt about God’s love for them was planted, their faith was undermined and sin had its way. The opposite of giving thanks is complaining.  One of the negatives that marked the Hebrews in the wilderness in the days of Moses was that they constantly grumbled and complained.

At the heart of their complaint was the idea that God wasn’t treating them as they deserved.  Although God had just led them out of 400 years of slavery in Egypt with flocks and gold in their hands and was feeding them daily with supernatural bread from heaven and providing water, as it was needed, it wasn’t enough.

When believers complain, it is an accusation against God.  It is a statement that in our hearts we believe that God isn’t watching over us or treating us well or treating us fairly as he should.  Satan loves to sow discontent which again plants a seed that questions God’s goodness toward us.  Once we start down that road we may begin to see God as an adversary who is withholding good things from us or who even delights in hurting us.

Paul, writing from a prison cell, to the church at Philippi said…

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life.

As complaining marked the people of God in the wilderness, thanksgiving and an absence of complaints should mark those who follow Jesus.  Those who complained in the wilderness never entered the Promise Land. On the other hand, faith believes that God is good and that he is watching over us.  Faith says that God will always meet our essential needs.  Faith says that trouble will come our way in a fallen world but that God will see us through that hardship.  Faith says that God will even use those hard circumstances to bring about some good in our lives.  Faith says that this world is not our home but a preparation for home.  Faith says that we should not always expect comfort in the midst of a war zone, but that the God of all comfort will meet us in hard times.

The Pilgrims understood that principle and gave thanks in the midst of hardship. David, in Psalm 100, declared that thanksgiving opens the gates to God’s presence and praise, which flows from thanksgiving, brings us into his courts.  I believe that thanksgiving is a spiritual discipline because our fallen nature is quick to complain.  Our fallen nature declares that even when life is good, it isn’t good enough.

Someone said that complaining is the language of hell, while thanksgiving is the language of heaven.  I think that is true.  When we complain, we come into agreement with the enemy. When we give thanks, we align our selves with heaven.  So … this Thanksgiving, I want to resolve to eradicate complaint in my life because it is an open door for the enemy and I want to grow in giving thanks because that opens a door to heaven. Be blessed today and give thanks even in hardship because God does care for you.

In the twelfth Chapter of Genesis, God called Abram and declares, “The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Gen.12:1-3)

We derive several principles about blessings from these verses.  First of all, God is the source of blessing.  Secondly, blessings seem to be associated with God’s purposes for a location, an individual, a family line, or a nation.  Next, it seems that blessings impart the power, life, health, and prosperity that enable the object of the blessing or the person receiving the blessing to fulfill their God-given purposes.  Finally, blessings can be passed on and are activated by the words we speak as God’s priests on the earth.

In a general way, a blessing deposits the favor of God or the grace of God and the resources of heaven on whatever or whomever God determines to use to fulfill his purposes. God even blessed a day. “Therefore, God blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy” (Ex.20:11).  When God blessed the Sabbath, he apparently assigned his favor to the day and those who kept the day faithfully could make withdrawals from that favor.  God also declared that those who blessed Abraham would be blessed and that all the people on the earth would be blessed through him or through his descendants. \

That declaration applies not only to the Messiah coming through Abraham’s bloodline, but also to the contributions the Jews would make to the world.  If you research a list of Nobel Prize winners, Jewish recipients are hugely over-represented in all categories including the arts, science, and medicine.  All nations have truly been blessed by the descendants of Abraham.

Paul further refined our understanding of the descendants of Abraham under the New Covenant when he said, “Consider Abraham: ‘He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’ Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham” (Gal.3;6-7).  By faith, we are also descendants of Abraham and the world is to be blessed through us as conduits of his grace. This truth and this job description for followers of Jesus cannot be overstated.

It is the nature of God to bless.  As his representatives on the earth, our nature should mirror his.  If God is the source of blessings, then as his children who desire to be like him, we too should be constant sources of blessing…even toward our enemies.  Jesus commands, “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you” (Lk.627-28). A blessing is simply a prayer or declaration that directs the life-giving, enabling grace of God to rest on someone.

James pushes back on our propensity to speak death over others and sternly declares,  “All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water” (Ja.3:7-12).

James makes the point that both blessing and cursing should not come from the same mouth.  He treats it as something unnatural. Instead, we should be sources of fresh water that give life in every circumstance. Since the Holy Spirit is living water within us and his words are life, our words should direct that life toward others and their circumstances.  As his representatives, we are to be distributors of God’s grace on the earth through blessings we speak.

In 1 Peter 2, the apostle tells us that we are a holy and royal priesthood belonging to God.  One of the primary functions of the Levitical priesthood was to bestow God’s blessings on God’s people. The Lord told Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: ‘The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.’ So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.” The priests directed the blessings of God toward Israel by speaking a blessing over them. God was poised and ready to bless, but he waited on his priests to declare the blessing before he released it, In short, regarding this blessing, God said, “I will do it when you have said it.”

Christ is a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek and that is the priesthood in which we serve. We serve under a better covenant, with a greater priesthood, lead by a great high priest who will never die. How much greater should the blessings be that we direct than those given by the Levites? As in many things, we partner with God.  There are those he is willing to bless but he waits on us to declare the blessing over them.  I don’t believe this is indiscriminate blessing, but blessing directed by the Holy Spirit.  Jesus is our model for living and serving and he did nothing without a prompting from the Father.

I believe a large part of our ministry as believers should be the giving of blessings.  As we go, perhaps, one of our daily prayers should be, “Lord, show me who you want to bless today and give me the very words for that blessing.”  The holiday season would be a perfect time to begin your ministry of blessing to those God wants to bless.

Some churches are quite comfortable never engaging in spiritual warfare.  They assign the supernatural works of God to no later than the first century and assign demonic activity to the same century.  For these churches, salvation is the forgiveness of sins and the development of good character.  Throw in reasonably good church attendance and occasional tithing and you have the Christian life.  For emotional and physical healing you go to doctors and therapists trained by the world and if you are really spiritual, you go to Christian doctors and therapists who were also trained by the world.  Jesus came to heal the brokenhearted and set captives free.  We send them to clinics.

In many cases, the whole idea of discipleship is simply leading someone to pray the sinner’s prayer and then get him or her to the baptistery.  When that has been accomplished, the work of discipleship is done.  In churches I attended in the past, the sentiment was to shake your hand as you rose from the waters of baptism and then simply  wish you good luck.  Other than serving in the children’s department on Sunday mornings or greeting folks at the door there wasn’t much else.  How exciting.   If you were white, middle class, perhaps, that was sufficient.  When illness or the death of a family member jarred a family’s  world, there was a plethora of casseroles and caring people who took care of the grieving.

But what about the rest of the world?  Who reached out to those molested time and again as children or those defiled in human trafficking rings.  What about those who were abandoned and fell into drugs and heavy sexual addictions to medicate their pain?  What about those who tried to make sense of their pain and find some form of control in their lives and so fell into satanic cults and witches covens looking for power?  Some looked for it the church first but found none,  so they decided to play for the other team. What about those who were seduced by the homosexual culture and fell into lifestyles filled with shame and secrets?

The churches I attended didn’t have many of those folks in the pews because we didn’t know what to do with them and had no power to pull them out of the pain and bondage they were in.  If they came looking, it didn’t take long to know that we might care but we couldn’t help except to encourage them to try the things they had already tried with no lasting success.  Perhaps, we deceived ourselves into believing that those kinds of people were such a small percentage of the population that it didn’t really matter that much and, hopefully, they would find some street ministry run by former gang members or former addicts who could help.

When churches won’t face the reality of Satan still being very active in this world and the reality of demonic oppression and intense spiritual warfare, it does matter. First of all, many of the people already sitting in their pews are racked by demonic oppression and affliction. It is called depression, suicidal tendencies, and anxiety.  Hopefully the drugs will help. The Bible calls these things a spirit of heaviness, a spirit of death, a spirit of fear,and a spirit of bondage. If a spirit is involved, only spiritual warfare will provide a lasting solution.

Francis MacNutt  tells a story of one of those people that Jesus died for who desperately needed help to gain freedom.  She had been involved in a witch’s coven and wanted out. The coven had been desecrating churches and offering blood sacrifices in their rites.  She had approached some church leaders asking for help.  They were not sure if they could even believe her and they offered no help to escape the devil or the coven.  In her anger, she had retaliated against that church.

An interview with the woman went something like the following:

Q:  You told me earlier that one of the reasons you were engaged in the incident was because you were angry with the Church.

A:  Any church.

Q: Where did this anger originate?

A: From their not believing it was real.

Q: And your anger was first directed against (the name of a church)?

A:  Yes.

Q: And the prayer group there?

A:  I wanted to split them up and cause division.

Q: That was three years ago?

A: Yes, and I did.

Q: How did you cause division?

A:  Put thoughts in people’s minds…like, “This stuff isn’t for real.  What’s in it for me? Gossip about each other…not being secretive about each other when they should have been….I directed my anger at church leaders….(she talked bout splitting the leaders and causing one to believe he was homosexual, etc.)

Q: What would you say if someone said you were crazy?

A: I would say, Maybe so, but I know what I’m talking about. If they say I’m crazy, they had better back off, because they are in the line of fire. I know what is real and what isn’t. I know what I’ve been into and they don’t know what they are talking about. If they had seen and felt the power that I have, they wouldn’t be saying that.

Q:  What power do you have?

A: I’d rather not have it.

Q: What power is it?

A: The power of destruction and the power to help.

Q:  The power to help?

A:  The power to help is white magic, the power to destroy is black magic….

A:  So now you want the church to get involved?

Q: I don’t care how they work it out. I want help.  I can’t do it by myself.

(Deliverance from Evil Spirits by Francis MacNutt, p. 64-66)

This woman was in bondage to Satan and she new that the church should be able to help. When they would not or could not, she felt betrayed.  I wonder how many others sitting on our pews or passing through our doors feel betrayed?  If Jesus set people free, shouldn’t his church set people free as well?  If Satanists know that,  why doesn’t his church?  .

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?    Romans 8:28-31

I’ve been reading through Romans again and continue to run across so many scriptures that I know have a depth that I can never fully plumb but even small nuggets that I haven’t noticed before enrich me.  One of those sections is the text I quoted above out of Romans 8, which must be in the top five chapters in all of scripture. I just wanted to dig around in it a little more to see what I could find.

One of the most well known and most often quoted scriptures is 8:28 in which we are told that in all things God works together for the good of those who love him. Many times we read that as a scripture promising that God will quickly deliver us from whatever dilemma or ordeal we are facing. However, the word translated as “works” means that God will work together with the circumstances to transform us rather than simply delivering us from the hardship.  God is the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our troubles (2 Cor.1:4).  Without trouble we will never know his comfort.  It is in the midst of hardship and challenges that we discover God and that discovery allows us to become like him.

The core of this text is God’s eternal intention to conform us to the image of Jesus Christ.  His motive for conforming us is love.  According to Merriam-Webster, conform means “to take on the same shape, outline, or contour. It is to make one thing like another; to be similar or identical; to be in harmony with another; or to be in agreement with.”  Ultimately, it is God’s desire to make us just like Jesus and to bring our thoughts, actions, and emotions into perfect alignment with his.  It is not that God wants to clone Jesus but that he wants us to have the same heart and mind as Jesus because in that alikeness is found perfect joy, peace, and love…even in the midst of chaos. It is Jesus sleeping in a boat while the storm rages around him.

Here is what we need to know.  God predestined us to be conformed.  It was his intention to make us like Jesus even before the creation of the world. He is committed to conforming us because he loves us and because he knows that everything we are searching for in life is found in Jesus or found in being like Jesus. The issue we run into is that we resist God’s work in our lives.  But if you read the text, God is committed to the process because he knows our best life and best eternity is at the end of the process.

Back in my teens and college days when I had time and the inclination, my friends and I spent a lot of weekends working on our old cars. We wanted them to look sharper and go faster and so we tinkered with them endlessly adjusting the timing, trying bigger jets in the carburetors, adding dual exhausts, etc. Occasionally, we would try our hand at bodywork.

In those days there was still some metal in car bodies and when there was a dent, you took special tools called body dollies that were pieces of heavy metal with differing shapes that you placed behind the fender or door and then hammered the dent against the dolly to conform to the curve or flat surface behind it. Some parts of the car were fairly pliable while others were very hard and stiff. The pliable pieces were shaped with a minimum of effort, a minimum of pain, and small hammers.  When the metal was stiff and stubborn, we didn’t give up on shaping that piece, we just got a bigger hammer.  God is like that.  If we are flexible and pliable when he puts his hand on us, then our shaping is not so difficult and takes a minimum of time.  However, if we push back, resist, and stiffen when he tries to conform us to the image of Jesus, he won’t give up, he may just get a bigger hammer. It’s our choice.

So why would we resist becoming like Jesus in the first place? Of course, our fallen nature (our natural man) opposes submitting to anything or anyone.  The natural man wants to be in charge and still believes that happiness, significance, peace and security can still be found in the natural realm and clings to that delusion. Satan, of course, is totally opposed to our becoming like Christ because each layer of conformity to Jesus weakens the devil’s hold on us. And so he lies to us and constantly beats the drum declaring that God is holding out on us and keeping the best stuff for himself.  That was his tactic in the Garden of Eden and still is. Satan kills, steals, and destroys and then points the finger at God whom he paints as a God who is out to get us, who takes away the people we love, who is angry and vindictive, or simply detached and uncaring.  Each of those lies becomes a barrier to becoming like Jesus and drawing close to God.

Being conformed to Jesus is being conformed to the Father and the Spirit because they are one.  Jesus said that if we have seen him we have seen the Father.  As we conform to Jesus we align ourselves with the Father more and more and as we align with Him all of heaven becomes available to us as it was to Jesus when he walked the earth. In the gospel of John we are told that in him (Jesus) was life and that life was the light of men (Jn.1:4). People were drawn to Jesus because they saw a quality of life in him that they had seen in no other.  As we become more like Jesus, that quality of life will form in us as well.  It is what Jesus called abundant life.

Ultimately, the wise man or woman embraces being conformed to the image of Jesus.  He or she doesn’t despise difficult circumstances because those are the very tools the Father uses to shape us into being like Jesus.  Paul finishes this little section with the declaration that God is for us!  He has no intention to hurt us but to bless us.  Those blessings have been in his heart since creation and they are deposited as we become more and more conformed.  Cooperating with God in the process seems by far to be the best choice.

As we continue to consider the nature of the demonic realm through the lens of Mark’s gospel, one of the more interesting moments is when the demons enter the herd of swine and they all rush into the water and drown. Mark tells us that after Jesus commanded the demons to leave, they began to plead for mercy. Demons don’t always leave at our first command and some will try to talk you out of the deliverance. Typically they are feigning boldness but are actually terrified of losing their place. Once given permission to enter the herd, destruction quickly followed. If demons look for some kind of body to inhabit, then destroying their hosts seems counter productive because they would be left to wander through arid places again. This suggests what we already know…it is the nature of Satan and his demons to kill, steal, and destroy. They can’t help themselves even if it means looking for another residence.  If you expect anything else from them, you will be mistaken.

They may feign friendship for a while, but in the end they will destroy you.  Demons are glad to bide their time and slowly but progressively take over more of a person’s life.  They often pretend friendship in the beginning and even provide what the host would consider a blessing and a path to happiness – the relationship he or she wanted, financial gain, fame, healing, the promotion, or even the removal of an enemy.  Those who follow demons or worship them as false God’s would not continue to do so unless there were some payoffs in that relationship. Ultimately, however, those spirits will come to collect on the bill and destruction will follow.

The next thing revealed in the account is the immediate change in the man who had been tormented.  Suddenly – within minutes – he is clothed and in his right mind. His problem was not mental illness, but demonic infestation.  All the therapy and drugs in the world would not have set him free.  I’m not saying that all mental illness is demonic but much is and will not bow except to divine weapons.  By the way, where did they get the clothes for the formerly naked demoniac. Some commentators believed that Jesus brought them with him as he already knew the man’s needs.  Mark records that while they were terrified of the storm as they crossed Galilee, Jesus was asleep resting on a pillow or a cushion.  It is possible that the pillow was simply a bag full of clothing that he was carrying for the man that would soon be set free.  Jesus knows every need and can meet every need when suddenly we are separated from the demonic who sometimes has been our provider.

Next we see the response of the people to the healing and restoration of the man. We might have expected them to be excited for the man whose sanity had been restored or to beg Jesus to stay. Surely they had their share of sick and demonized people who needed his touch. Instead, they asked in a demanding way for Jesus to leave immediately.

People fear what they don’t understand and that fear makes them blind to the good they are witnessing.  If you are not used to supernatural moves of God, your response may be fear rather than wonder.  Some people get excited when they see a miracle while others simply get very uncomfortable. They may even ask (or insist) that those who brought the supernatural goodness of God into their midst leave or even declare that the healings or deliverance they are witnessing are of the devil rather than God. That was the response of the Pharisees.

Religious people tend to define what God can do or not do based on their understanding of scripture so that anything outside the fences they have erected is distrusted and dismissed. God certainly will not contradict his word but he doesn’t mind contradicting our understanding of his word. Freedom ministries are not wide spread because they tend to be planted outside of traditional denominational fences even though healing and deliverance helped define the very ministry of Jesus. Our “God in a box” mentality has kept much of the church in bondage for centuries.  I wonder what God will have to say  to those who so zealously protected their box while his sheep remained in bondage?

Finally, as you would expect, the man who had been freed from his bondage by Jesus did not want to leave his side.  I don’t blame him.  I would have been afraid that the former tenants would be looking to return at their first opportunity and I would have assumed that only the presence of Jesus could have kept me free.  Jesus, however, would not let the man get in the boat but simply told him to go and tell others what God had done for him.  We discover the power of testimony in this story.

First, his testimony prepared the soil for Jesus to return at a later time.  On his return to Decapolis months later, crowds would be waiting for him.  The former demoniac did not have a degree in theology but he had a testimony.  But even more than that, the testimony of the man seamed to seal his deliverance. For those set free from Satan, his first attack is nearly always an attempt to persuade the individual that nothing really changed and that the freedom he or she “thought” they had experienced was a deception. If Satan can convince the newly freed believer that he or she is still under his power, then that person will quickly relapse into believing the lies of the enemy and be oppressed again. Testimony not only honors God, but establishes faith in those who hear the testimony as well as in the one who is giving the testimony.

Many churches have a few individuals or couples who minister deliverance in their home or a back room of the church, but their ministry is not mentioned from the pulpit.  Indeed, when is the last time you heard a sermon on demons and deliverance? I know we want to avoid looking weird but the demonic realm, the need for deliverance, and the power of Jesus is not weird…it is a reality that needs to be talked about and testimonies given. Otherwise, thousands of God’s children will never know the freedom Jesus purchased for them.

The question is often asked as to whether we should deliver unbelievers from the power of Satan.  After all, there is some risk involved if the person delivered does not give his life to Jesus.  Remember that Jesus said a demon that had been cast out would return to see if the house (the host) was vacant.  If so, he would return and bring seven others with him more wicked than he was. (Jesus’ words reveal that there are not only levels of authority among demons, but also degrees of wickedness.) This question is probably best decided on a case-by-case basis and the leading of the Spirit.  Not everyone who is delivered will become a follower.  Matthew’s gospel says that there were two demoniacs that Jesus encountered after the storm, but the other gospels mention only one.  I believe that only one was mentioned in the other gospels because that one was known by the church.  He had become a follower of Jesus while the other did not become a follower and simply disappeared into history.  It might be fair to share the benefits and risks of deliverance to an unbeliever before ministering freedom and let him or her decide. Even believers need to be warned to fill up the space left after deliverance with the Spirit of God or they also may be subject to the return of the enemy.

Hopefully, our walk through this account has given you some additional insights into deliverance and the demonic realm or confirmed some things you were already thinking. Dealing with the demonic should be an everyday event in the life of every church as it was with Jesus.  We do not want to become obsessed with the enemy because our obsession should be Jesus.  However, we do need to know his schemes and know how to deal with him as he afflicts those around us.

In his gospel Mark tells a familiar story that can be instructive for us in the ministry of deliverance, so I thought I would make a few observations from the text.  It is a little long for one reading, so I will break it into two parts.

He (Jesus) got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm….They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him. This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with a chain. For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.

When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me!” For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you evil spirit!” Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” “My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area. A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” He gave them permission, and the evil spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.

Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid…Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region. As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed. Mark 4:39-5:20

As this story opens, Jesus and his disciples were crossing the Sea of Galilee late in the evening.  The topography in that area is such that high winds can funnel through cliffs surrounding the lake and in a moment create hazardous waves or severe thunderstorms can come up quickly and place boats on the water at risk.. On this occasion, all we know is that one of those storms arose quickly so that the boat was taking on water. The disciples were terrified, woke up Jesus, and Jesus rebuked the storm and the waters became peaceful.

One question is why did Jesus decide to leave an area where hundreds were coning to hear him teach and sail five miles across Galilee to an area that had a significant number of non-Jews?  Of course, we could speculate on any number of reasons but Jesus was always so intentional that we can suggest that he crossed Galilee to set the demoniac free.  I have been to Galilee and the interesting thing is that from the place Jesus was teaching, the man for whom he crossed the lake could be heard on a still night as he wailed among the tombs. Compassion, more than likely drove Jesus to make this late evening journey.

With that in mind, we can also speculate that the storm that arose on the lake was demonically inspired. Remember that Satan sent a great storm in from the desert in Job 1:17, which killed the children of Job. Mark also notes that other small boats were traveling with the boat Jesus was in so that they were in danger as well.  Jesus, perhaps, could have miraculously protected his boat from sinking but only stilling the storm would make the others safe.  Sometimes, Satan’s attacks can spawn collateral damage so that others are injured who were not the primary target.

According to Mark’s gospel, Jesus and his disciples beached their boat late in the evening. As soon as they placed their feet on dry ground, the man they had heard screaming across the lake came running to Jesus. The moment had to be eerie.  Here he came naked, dirty, scarred, with pieces of chain hanging from his wrists or ankles.  He undoubtedly smelled like something rotten. Sometimes, when setting people free we will have to deal with things that make us uncomfortable or even disgusting. Vomiting, foul language, disgusting smells, and even bodily discharges may be the price we pay for setting people free.  It goes with the job.

Unexpectedly, the demonized man ran straight to Jesus and the demons began to beg for mercy. Either the demons were compelled to fall at the feet of Jesus because of who he was or there was still just enough of the man left that he sensed Jesus was his last hope. Either way, what we learn immediately is that Jesus has authority over demons. Of course, he had already demonstrated that many times before but not to this extent.  There are clearly levels of demonization revealed in the gospels. In many cases, Jesus cast out a single demon.  Mary Magdalene had seven demons and this man had so many that they identified themselves as legion.  In my experience, demons rarely operate alone but rarely are their hundreds. However, just as a military unit would work together strategically for a common goal, so do demons. The important thing is that whether one or hundreds, they all must bow to the authority of Jesus.

Another thing we see here is that even though he was in the form of a man, Jesus was recognizable in the spiritual realm. In the book of Acts, the demon that the sons of Sceva were trying to cast out in Jesus’ name declared that they knew who Jesus was and knew who Paul was.  We are marked in the spiritual realm as those who belong to Jesus because we are sealed by the Holy Spirit.  Some believers have reputations even among the enemy. If you are a Christian, you are marked. You can’t hide from the enemy so you may as well fight him. And if you are going to fight you should do so with the ferocity that will gain you a reputation among your enemies.

The response of these demons to the presence of Jesus was terror.  That should be the response of any demon to the presence of any follower of Jesus. Authority is the issue in the spiritual realm and Jesus has all authoritywhich he has also delegated to us. They asked Jesus if he had come to torture them before the appointed time. They begged him not to do so. Demons often speak through their hosts.  Sometimes they are threatening and at other times they just keep asserting their right of ownership over the person. Dialoguing with demons is typically not productive because they are liars and expert manipulators.  Any dialogue should probably be kept to a minimum. In addition, demons apparently know that judgment is coming and that their fate is sealed by the blood of Christ. They fear the end but their inescapable nature is still to kill, steal, and destroy. Their next plea was for Jesus not to send them out of the area or the region. This confirms that demons are given territorial assignments and are afraid of failing at those assignments.

It also becomes apparent in this account that these spirits are in search of some kind of body to inhabit – preferably human – but an animal will do. ( Yes – that cat may be possessed after all).  Jesus said that when a spirit comes out of a man he wanders through arid places seeking rest (Matt.12:43).The word translated as “rest” mean to cease striving. That suggests that a demon’s very assignment is to inhabit a body, not just wander around on the earth.  Because of that, these spirits are constantly trying to gain entrance. Therefore, we must guard our hearts and our thoughts so that we do not provide an open door for the enemy.

Interestingly, Jesus did not destroy these demons or send them to hell or the abyss as some deliverance ministries do.   It seems that the world would be a better place if we could assign demons to hell where they could no longer roam the earth, but Jesus did not.  Our practice is to send them to the feet of Jesus for his judgment. Perhaps, they still play some part in God’s purposes or the wickedness of man gives them a right to remain on the earth until Jesus returns. At any rate, Jesus allowed Legion to enter a herd of pigs where chaos ensued!

More Next Week

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete.  2 Corinthians 10:3-6

This is a very well known passage from the writings of Paul, but I’m not sure how many Christians actually know how to use divine weapons or even know what they are.  The Greek word translated as stronghold is an ancient  military term that means a fortified place.  A fortified place implies that someone has intentionally built up defenses to protect something. Strongholds, as Paul uses the term, are well established belief systems deep within us that are opposed to God’s truth.  In the context of Paul’s writing, these strongholds or belief systems actively argue against God’s truth.

The word translated as pretensionmeans anything that arrogantly sets itself up above the word of God.  Anything that wants to exalt itself above God or his word is demonic.  Isaiah, speaking of Satan said, “How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit” (Isa. 14:12-15). The word translated as demolishcan also mean “to dethrone.”  These strongholds are built and reinforced by Satan and contain thoughts that always want to argue against and exalt themselves above God’s truth.

Undoubtedly, each of us has to contend with some measure of strongholds in our life.  We are constantly bombarded by the belief systems of the world from childhood as we listen to television, read books, attend secular schools, pick up the strongholds of our parents, etc.  On top of that, we have experiences that establish beliefs about ourselves, God, and life in general and act as filters for every subsequent experience we have. For instance, an abused child will walk away from that abuse believing that something is so defective in him or her that they cannot be loved. Why else would a parent treat them that way? An abandoned child may grow up believing that, sooner or later, everyone they love will leave them.  Others will grow up in homes where whatever they did was “never good enough” and so will always struggle with feelings of incompetence and fears of failing.  Others will experience some disappointment and walk away believing that God doesn’t hear their prayers. These strongholds begin as some childhood conclusion we draw from a hurtful experience but then Satan reinforces those beliefs that oppose God’s truth.

Each of those strongholds will limit a person in life and in relationships. Each of those strongholds produces beliefs contrary to the word of God when it comes to those who are born again and have a destiny in Christ. God says he will never leave us or forsake us.  He tells us that we are more than conquerors in Jesus Christ and that nothing can separate us from his love.  He tells us that he has made us competent and that we can do all things through Jesus.  He tells us that whatever we ask for in the name of Jesus that is aligned with his word will get his full hearing. As long as we have persistent thoughts that are not aligned with God’s truth, strongholds exist that war against and argue against our faith and our obedience.

When believers hear these scriptures enough, they come to believe them on an intellectual level but may not believe them in their hearts.  They tend to believe them for others but not themselves or always have a “Yes, but…” response when called on to believe a promise enough to act on it.

Those belief systems that are buried deep within us are reinforced by the demonic realm at every opportunity.  In the parable of the sower, Satan comes to steal the seed which represents the word of God before it can put down roots and bear fruit. When strongholds exist, the enemy will provide any number of reasons not to believe God’s truth when it is offered. Because these strongholds are places fortified by the lies of the enemy as he operates in the spiritual realm, it takes divine weapons to dismiss the demons that keep rebuilding the walls of those lies and divine weapons to destroy the stronghold.

Counseling and therapies that do not engage the enemy on a spiritual playing field will not be able to truly demolish these spiritual fortifications.  We may learn to manage our issues to some degree or learn coping skills, but that is far from freedom and victory over the issue.  Most churches still send their members out to counselors who do not believe in or have skills in spiritual warfare, although Paul clearly says our struggles are not against flesh and blood but spiritual powers. Even churches that have counselors on staff, typically have counselors who were trained in secular approaches to counseling.  They may pray and offer a scripture but do not know how to confront the enemy and exercise authority to break these strongholds. Because of that, only a small percentage of Christ’s body actually walks in the full freedom that Jesus has purchased for them.

Divine weapons include Spirit-led counseling, the spiritual gifts of discernment, healings, wisdom, revelation, deliverance, prayer, hearing God, and so forth. If you think about it, most strongholds are established as a result of some intense experience or trauma.  Most life-altering transformations also occur as a result of an experience with God –  Moses at the burning bush, Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus, the apostles seeing the resurrected Christ and experiencing the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Gideon watching an angel ascend in flames, the servant of Elisha seeing chariots of fire all around him, Jewish neighbors seeing Lazarus emerge from his tomb and so forth.  Divine weapons allow us to experience the presence and power of God so that strongholds are discredited, demolished, and them replaced by the truth that comes through encounters with God. It often takes an experience with God to overwrite what we have believed because of an experience with Satan.

In addition, a huge part of destroying strongholds is offering obedience in every part of our life.  Many believers don’t experience freedom because they withhold slices of their lives from God and do not willingly submit to him in the areas of relationships, giving, entertainment, forgiveness, addictions, and so forth.  Each area that remains “unsubmitted” to Jesus is an open door for the enemy to come in and rebuild the very fortifications they are trying to tear down. Paul says, “we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete” (2 Cor. 10:5).  In other words, when we have submitted all of our life to Jesus, then those who oppose us in the spiritual realm and the natural realm will be punished or caused to suffer by God. When we are obedient, demons can be driven out and the strongholds they have defended can be torn down.

I would venture to say that nearly every believer has some stronghold that remains within him or her – myself included. So many strongholds have been with us for so long that we don’t even recognize them.  They seem like a natural part of who we are and the enemy has provided numerous justifications for our beliefs that don’t line up with the Word.

Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any strongholds that exist so that divine weapons can be applied and the stronghold torn down. In its own way, every stronghold is a form of bondage though we may not recognize it is that.  A stronghold is simply a slice of our thought life that has been taken captive by Satan.  Our goal should to surrender every thought to Jesus because surrendering to Jesus truly brings freedom.  An essential part of deliverance is discovering these strongholds and pulling them down. Giving some serious thought to our personal strongholds on a regular basis is also essential to becoming all that he wants us to be.

In my last two blogs I laid out the biblical background for the spirit of python which seems to be encountered much more frequently now by deliverance ministries than it was even 20 years ago. This proliferation has most likely been brought on by the emergence of new age practices since the 60’s as well as the growth of satanic organizations and witchcraft in America.  Many Americans dabble in the occult without knowing the dangers or are exposed to it in unintended ways. How many of us when we were young played with Ouija boards, went to palm readers, or participated in séances at sleepovers thinking it was all fun and games?  This spirit can also be passed on generationally from grandparents who practiced white magic or who were involved in Masonic organizations decades ago.  Remember that python is a spirit of divination or witchcraft (Acts 16) which manifests in numerous ways.  The spirit of python can manifest in prophecy, communicating with the dead, and healing at times.  That was the draw at Delphi in the days of Paul.

I want to talk about some of those manifestations in this blog so that you can recognize what you are dealing with in those to whom you may be ministering.  In deliverance, knowing the name of a spirit is much more effective than simply calling out some unclean spirit.

Today, there are those who are demonized by this spirit who prophecy, provide spiritual counseling, speak to the dead, and even heal in the name of Christianity. Often, these individuals manifest uncontrolled jerking and shaking and claim they are under the influence of the Holy Spirit.  This may take some discernment, but as John said, we are to test the spirits because not every spirit is of God.

Those who are impressed by their prophecies and physical manifestations may seek an impartation of the gifts they believe they are witnessing and will receive not only a “gift” but the spirit of python as well.  The spirit is usually a source of significant income for those who allow it to work through them. Prayer, discernment and an observation of the fruit of that person’s ministry may be needed to determine if this spirit and the gifts are from God or not.  This spirit will seem to be a source of blessing at first so that people may believe that God is blessing them, but at some point that spirit will come to collect the bill for services rendered. Jesus has paid the bill for those who serve him, but Satan always comes to collect.

Those who are simply being afflicted by this spirit will exhibit some other manifestations.  Remember that python slowly squeezes the life out of people, organizations, and ministries.  For instance, if a once vibrant Christian has slowly lost his/her passion for the kingdom of God and has become apathetic towards prayer and ministry, this person may be under attack from this spirit.   This usually happens gradually rather than because of some traumatic event so that the person himself cannot explain the loss of passion. If a ministry or business seems to have stalled out with no further growth, even though everyone is still working hard and doing the right things, a python spirit may be coiled around the business or ministry restricting its ability to expand.

On a physical level, breathing disorders (asthma, COPD, chronic pneumonia, bronchitis, etc.) that doesn’t respond well to treatment or that keeps reoccurring may be an indicator of this spirit as his coils try to suffocate his victims.  We did a house cleansing recently where two of the family members had been plagued by breathing problems for several weeks.  Medications had not helped.  The Holy Spirit showed us that a python spirit was in the house so we commanded it to leave.  By the following day, the breathing problems cleared up. Skin problems may also become evident and reflect the molting of skin that a serpent goes through.

This spirit, because it is a spirit of witchcraft, may also manifest in perverse sexual drives and practices. Many pagan religions and cults through the centuries have had very sexualized rituals that included temple prostitutes (male and female), as well as public fertility rights, etc.  Some deliverance ministries suggest that this spirit may manifest in teenage women as a desperation or compulsion to get pregnant by any means and by anyone.

As you begin the deliverance process, you should have the person to whom you are ministering repent of any and all occult involvement for himself or his bloodline and to renounce all forms of witchcraft and divination. He or she should also agree to get rid of any objects in their house related to witchcraft in any form…jewelry, books, movies, music, souvenirs from overseas, even native American artifacts, etc.

When you begin to command this spirit to leave a person, you may find that it does not leave immediately or easily. Not only will it be coiled around a person but may be biting that person as well to maintain a hold.  You should command it not only to uncoil but also forbid it from biting. Often this spirit will hiss at those ministering deliverance and boast that the person belongs to him. On occasion, we have seen people sway like a serpent or fall on the floor and writhe like a snake. Those who are being delivered may complain of difficulty in breathing or pressure on their chest. You should forbid the spirit from restricting the person’s breathing or placing pressure on the chest as you continue to command it to leave.  You may also call on angels to cage this serpent or for the Holy Spirit to restrain the serpent.  You may also want to use the sword of the Spirit on the head of the serpent, as that is typically the best way to rid yourself of a snake.

Sometimes a snake gets in because the spiritual, hedges or walls around the person have fallen into disrepair. Ask the Lord to rebuild those walls and then make sure the person to whom you are ministering knows how to maintain the walls or hedges of protection with time in the word and prayer. As always, we need to keep in mind that not everything is a demon, but we need to be one to the possibility and be ready to minister deliverance when the Holy Spirit points us in that direction.  Hopefully, this has been helpful.