How Angels Minister to God’s People


We have talked about the nature of angels, but in what ways do they minister to God’s people?

First of all, they are messengers. The term “angel” stems from the Greek word angelos, meaning “messenger”. Angels frequently appear in scripture to announce pivotal events and interpret visions, such as the archangel Gabriel announcing the births of John the Baptist and Jesus.  Angels in the empty tomb told Mary that Jesus had been raised from the dead, etc. Sometimes they appear in person and sometimes they appear in dreams and visions as with Daniel. Overall, this is, perhaps,  their most prominent ministry.

Although we may hear from God through the Holy Spirit, God still sends angels with a word.  When Paul was on a ship that had weathered days of a terrible storm, he said, “Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you” (Acts 27:23-24). Paul certainly heard from God frequently as a prophet and an apostle, but at times God still spoke to him and others through angels.

Secondly, they serve and protect God’s people.  Remember, they are described as ministering spirits sent to serve God’s people (Heb. 1:14).  They protect, guide, provide, and comfort.  Sometimes we are aware of their presence, sometimes we are not.  An angel shut the mouths of lions when Daniel was cast into a lion’s den (Dan. 6:21). An angel protected Shadrach and his friends from harm in a fiery furnace (Dan. 3:25). An angel rescued Peter from a prison cell (Acts 12:7).  Angels ministered to an exhausted Elijah with food and water as he ran from Jezebel (1 Kings 19:5). Angels ministered to Jesus on the night of his arrest in Gethsemane (Lk. 22:43). An angel appeared to Cornelius in a vision and told him to send for Peter so that the Gentiles might receive the gospel (Acts 10:3).

Throughout scripture, angels watch over God’s people to protect them, warn them, provide for them, encourage them, and rescue them. If you ask a group of believers today if they believe angels have kept them from harm, most will say they believe angels have protected them in the midst of a car accident or near accident or gave them some direction as a stranger who just happened by when they needed to know where to go. Our seers often see angels present on Freedom Weekends when we are about to minister deliverance to believers.  They are there to partner in what we are doing.   In the end times, angels will place a mark on the foreheads of God’s people to protect them from judgments released on the earth (Rev.7:3), When Jesus returns, the angels will gather his people from the four corners of the earth (Mt.24:31).

Though powerful and awesome, angels are not to be worshipped.  In the Book of Revelation, in a moment of awe, John fell down to worship an angel.  The angel declared, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book. Worship God!” (Rev. 22:9).

Thirdly, they carry out and impose the judgments of God.  Angels act as instruments of God’s justice and wrath. Instances include the execution of the plagues in Egypt.  We are told in Psalms the plagues were released by a band of destroying angels (Ps. 78:49).   Two angels were involved in bringing destruction upon Sodom and Gomorrah.  We see an angel suspended between heaven and earth with his sword drawn releasing a plague over Jerusalem in judgment (1 Chron, 21:16). In Acts 12:23 we are told that an angel struck down Herod because he did not give glory to God and we see them throughout the book of Revelation releasing God’s judgments on the earth.

Finally, they partner with God’s people in carrying out God’s will on the earth.  Remember when John fell down to worship an angel and the angel rejected his worship saying he was a fellow servant with John and the other followers of Jesus (Rev. 22:9)?  As you serve God, angels may well be handling things or clearing away resistance in the spiritual realm while you are handling things in the natural realm. One of the most fascinating examples of this is found in the book of Daniel. 

In Daniel 10, we are told the prophet received a revelation that concerned a great war. He was deeply troubled by the revelation so he began to fast and pray, asking God to give him understanding of the vision. The text says, “Then he (an angel) continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come” (Dan. 10:12-14).

Scripture reveals that demonic spirits often resist the answers to our prayers.  An angel had been dispatched as soon as Daniel asked for understanding, but a demonic prince, the Prince of Persia, resisted the angel. They fought against one another in some cosmic battle for twenty-one days until Michael, the archangel, came to take up the battle so Daniel could receive understanding of the vision.

It was clearly important that Daniel receive a proper interpretation of the revelation he had received and that Satan had sniffed out the importance and attempted to keep that prayer from being answered.  Daniel prayed, the angel came, and the angel fought a demonic prince to get the message to God’s prophet.  Apparently, God does not simply wave a magic wand when we pray to answer our requests.  Often angels are involved even to the extent of fighting Satan in order for our prayers to be answered and the will of God to be done on earth. If God’s will were automatically done, Jesus would not have instructed us to pray for his will to be done on earth as in heaven.  This is not a limitation on God’s power, but is simply how he has decided to exercise his sovereignty on this planet.

Although it is not specifically stated in the text, I believe if Daniel had stopped praying for the interpretation of the revelation, Michael might not have been dispatched and the angel carrying the answer to Daniel’s prayer might not have ever delivered the message. Angels often partner with us in fulfilling God’s will in our lives, and our prayers, our declarations, and our commands assist those angels in fulfilling their part.  So…keep praying and declaring God’s word over the situations you are involved in.

Finally, angels are often seen in scripture surrounding the throne of God in worship.  We will be co-worshippers with them and are already.  The seers I know (those who have the gift of seeing into the spiritual realm) often see angels in church when we are gathered worshipping with us.

In closing, one question we often ask in regard to angels is, “Are their guardian angels?” If we mean are their angels assigned to us our entire life to watch over us and guard us from harm, scripture does not say.  We know from Biblical accounts that angels are often sent or dispatched to care for God’s people, but that doesn’t seem to be a lifelong, every-minute assignment.  Jesus does say, however, “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven” (Mt. 18:10).

We do not become angels when we die, so these angels must be assigned to children and always have immediate access to the Father on their behalf. Maybe they are assigned to all children or the children of those in a covenant with God. Perhaps, they are assigned when parents pray for that assignment.  We cannot be sure from scripture but we can know that angels were created to minister to those who will inherit salvation and that is you and me.

Be encouraged when you seem to be in a battle.  You are not alone.  Pray for the ministry of angels in your family, your church, and your circumstances.  We actually have so much more at our disposal that Satan can bring against us.  We have Jesus as our perfect sacrifice, our High Priest and our mediator.  We know that he is in us and is greater than he that is in the world.  We also have the Holy Spirit who reveals, prays for us, leads us, and gives us power to overcome the enemy.  We have one another so that when two or three agree together on anything, it will be done.  And we have myriads of angels partnering with us, watching over us, providing for us and fighting for us.  And if God is for us, who can stand against us!!!  We are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus.  Be encouraged!

After considering the dark side (the demonic) for several weeks, we should be encouraged by the help we can receive from heaven  –  specifically through the activity of angels.  We see their involvement with the people of God from Genesis to Revelation.  Many of our prayers are answered through the activity of angels, so lets look at their nature and ministry as revealed through scripture.

The writer of Hebrews wrote, “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation” (Heb. 1:14)?  This is the overarching purpose of angels. They are spirits who serve God’s people in various ways.

The Nature of Angels

Angels are spiritual beings who were created.  Genesis says, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Jewish and biblical thought describes three heavens.  The first we call the atmosphere.  The second, we call space.  The third heaven, however, is the spiritual realm…what is often called “the heavenlies.”   What we now think of as heaven or Paradise is in the third heaven. It seems that all spiritual beings exist in that realm. When God created the heavens and the earth, he created all things physical as well as spiritual. It was probably then that God created angels.  Paul confirms that the unseen realm was created just as the natural realm was created.  “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col. 1:16-17).

In Ezekiel 28, the prophet takes up a lament against the King of Tyre. It seems that he is drawing an analogy between the king’s pride and Satan’s pride the got him expelled from heaven. The text says, “You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you…Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. …So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor” (Ezek. 28:12-17). Most scholars believe this is a reference to Satan…a created being who lost his place in heaven.

It also seems the spiritual realm functioned before the natural realm was created. When Job was being questioned by God, the Lord said, “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone— while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy” (Job 38:4-7). It appears the angels were witnesses to the creation of the world.

Angels, then, are created beings.  Because they are spirits, they are not subject to death, but have limitations.  They are not omnipresent nor all-knowing.  In fact, things the angels have longed to know have been revealed and announced to them through the church (1 Pet. 1:12).

Clearly, angels are awesome.  When seen in their heavenly glory, they are powerful and majestic.  When appearing to men, their first words are usually, “Do not be afraid.”  In Daniel 10, the prophet saw an open vision of an angel who had come to give him a message.  Even Daniel, who had seen so much and had been delivered from lions by an angel, trembled.   The men with Daniel were terrified, even though they didn’t see the angel, and Daniel fell to the ground. The text says, “A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. He said, “Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling. Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel” (Dan.10:10-12). The good news is that these powerful heavenly beings were created to minister to you. How many angels are there? In the book of Revelation, John states, “Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand” (Rev. 5:11).

We also know that angels, like mankind, have free will.  They can choose to serve God or rebel.  We know from various scriptures that Satan, who was an angel that desired to take God’s throne, led a rebellion in heaven in which a third of the angels joined and were driven out of heaven.  “And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him” (Rev. 12:7-9).

For rebellion to take place, the angels must have free will.  Like men, they choose to serve God or reject him. That passage also reveals that God and those who serve him are more powerful than those who serve Satan. Every instance of deliverance in the gospels reveals that Jesus had authority over the demons and over Satan.  Jesus even gave us authority to trample on snakes and scorpions (demons) and to overcome all the power of the enemy (Luke 10:19). James tells us when we submit to God and resist the devil, he will flee (Ja. 4:7). Because of Jesus, we have no need to fear the demonic but we need to be wise and equipped to fight if need be. 

Scripture also reveals that angels can work unseen, appear as angels, or can manifest as humans. The writer of Hebrews charged believers, “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it” (Heb. 13:2).  There are numerous passages in scripture where people thought they were dealing with men, but then discovered they were face to face with angels.  For instance, in Judges 6, Gideon is met by a “man” who tells him that he will lead his people in victory over Midian. It is only at the end of the conversation that Gideon realizes the “man” was indeed an angel when the angel touched a rock with his staff and fire came from the rock while the angel disappeared. The Lord and two angels walked into Abraham’s camp, visited with Abraham, shared a meal, and only as the two angels went ahead to Sodom and Gomorrah does the Lord stay behind and reveal who he was and that the two men were angels (Gen. 18). As the angels entered Sodom to judge the city, Lot and the citizens of Sodom assumed they were mere men until they struck a number of wicked men blind.

In 2 Kings 6, Elisha and his servant are surrounded by the army of Aram sent to arrest him.  His servant was greatly alarmed while Elisha was unafraid. Elisha prayed that God would open the eyes of his servant.  The Lord did so, and the servant suddenly saw angels in chariots of fire surrounding them ready to fight on their behalf. No one else could see the angels but they were there to battle for Elisha.  At many other times, angels appear to God’s people in visions, in the empty tomb, etc., and they know they are engaged with angels.

We also know that angels are incredibly powerful.  In 2 Kings 19:35, we are told that one angel went out against the Assyrian army encamped around Jerusalem and killed 185,000 men in one night.  We discover in Psalms that it was angels who released the destructive plagues on Egypt (Ps. 78:49) and we see another angel release a plague on Israel that killed seventy thousand men (1 Chron. 21:12).  Men cannot stand against the power of God wielded through his angels.    Now remember, these angels are sent forth to minister to God’s people – which includes you!  Next, we want to consider how God’s angels minister to us.

Next Week:  How Angels Minister to God’s People

In this four-part discussion on deliverance, we have seen that Satan is always in search of a legal right to afflict God’s people.  For those who are not in Christ, he needs no permission from heaven.  Paul wrote, “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Col. 1:13-14). If we have not been rescued, redeemed, and forgiven, we are still under the dominion of darkness and under the authority of the evil one so he needs no ruling from heaven.

Satan may gain entrance into believers through unrepented sin, the sins of our fathers, word curses and, sometimes, trauma.  When we participate in the things of Satan – especially idolatry and witchcraft of all forms – he can enter into us because we have joined him by our participation (See 1 Cor. 10:20).  We have come into agreement with him. If we have done so before coming to Christ, we may have taken away his legal right when we were saved, but we may still have to drive him out by the authority of Jesus.  Demons are like bad renters. You may have an eviction notice in your hand, but a bad renter may still not leave until he is forced out by the sheriff.  Sometimes, you or other believers ministering to you will have to be the sheriff.

It is important to know that not everything you struggle with is demonic.  We live in a fallen world full of imperfect people who carry their own brokenness. We live in a fallen world where disease and infirmity can impact us without demonic assistance.  But if a problem has a demonic root, the problem will not go away until the demon is dispatched. If it does not have a demonic root, go to a doctor, a pastor, or therapist.  If it does, get busy fighting.

The reason it is sometimes difficult to determine what Is demonic or not, is that demons mimic conditions that exist in the natural realm.  In the gospels, we see deaf people healed by the touch of Jesus, but also see deaf people healed when a demon is cast out. We find blind and mute people healed by the touch of Jesus, but also healed when demons are driven out. Scripture describes epilepsy as a physical condition healed by the power of Christ, but we also see demonized people falling on the ground with seizures, healed through deliverance. We see a man with many demons who would be diagnosed as insane today, but after a legion of demons were cast out, he immediately sat clothed and in his right mind. 

What, then, are some indicators that you may be demonized?

1.  There are parts of your emotional or physical well-being that hinder your life, keep you from succeeding, consistently damage relationships, or that compulsively drive you to sin or destructive behaviors. You have sought help but have seen little or no improvement.  Doctors or therapists have found it hard to diagnose your problem and treatments have been largely ineffective.

2.  You have compulsive ways of thinking that are not aligned with God’s truth.  When you resist the thoughts, they do not diminish, but actually press in harder.

3. You have participated in activities or been part of organizations or religions that were submitted to Satan…especially where witchcraft or occult activities were practiced. These would include psychic readings, tarot cards, horoscopes, Ouija boards, seances, mediums, Eastern religions, Wicca, new age, Freemasonry, Mormonism, etc.

4. You recognize destructive patterns in your family line…financial failure, divorce, extreme anger, violence, addictions, depression, suicide, sexual sin, premature deaths, and other tragedies, etc.

5. You simply know that you are under demonic attack…you sense it, see demonic manifestations, or hear a voice that you identify as demonic.  You may also have people you respect suggest you may be demonized. Sometimes others see what we cannot see in ourselves.

6.  You have addictions that you hate, but counseling, support groups, and rehab centers have not given you any lasting victory.

Steps to Deliverance

If you know or suspect that you have been demonized, there are a few simple steps to gain your freedom. That begins by removing the legal grounds Satan has to afflict us. You may drive out a demon, but if the demon has legal grounds he will return soon or another spirit like him will gain entrance.  Let me be clear…if you truly do not want to be rid of an issue or have not genuinely repented of a sin (unforgiveness, gossip, judging others, a sexual relationship you don’t want to give up, etc.) you are giving the enemy a legal right to remain where he is or to come back quickly if he is driven out.  James said, Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (Ja. 4:7).  First, you must submit to the Lordship of Jesus before resisting (oppose, be hostile toward, push back) the devil, if he is going to leave or flee. Half-hearted deliverance is ineffective.

Step 1:  You need to acknowledge any sin or brokenness in your own life.  You need to confess it to God and to other trustworthy believers who will not judge you but support you (see James 5:16). Too often we deny our own issues, blame others, or rationalize our sins.  Writing to believers, John said, “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:9). When we deny sin or blame others, we come into agreement with Satan and that continues to give him legal access to us.  You must confess the sin, repent of it, and renounce it verbally as one testifying in court.  “He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy” (Pr. 28:13).

Step 2: Do the same thing on behalf of your bloodline.  If you know of or suspect unrepented sins in your bloodline – confess, repent and renounce those sins on behalf of your bloodline. 

Step 3:  Plead the blood of Jesus over those sins…yours and your ancestors.

Step 4: In the name of Jesus and by his authority, command any unclean or demonic spirit to leave immediately and never return. Recognize who you are in Christ and the authority he has given you as a believer to tread on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy (Lk. 10:19; Mk. 16:17; Jn. 14:12).In the name of Jesus and by his authority command any unclean, demonic spirits to leave you or the one you are praying over.  In the name of Jesus, cancel their assignment against you and command them to leave immediately and never return. You must command rather than ask or beg.  Most spirits do not leave immediately.  They hang on for a while, hoping you will give up.  Those that have been present for years are most resistant.  They have established a stronghold. It may take a while to batter down the walls. Keep commanding. 

If a spirit is present, as you command you will feel things in your body or hear his voice telling you that you are powerless against him. These spirits manifest when being driven out in an effort to intimidate you or discourage you so you will give into their presence.  Keep commanding until that spirit leaves.  Most often you will feel it leave and any manifestations will cease. If, after doing all those things, you feel or experience nothing out of the ordinary, you most likely did not have a spirit attached to you.  Sometimes it is hard to know whether or not a spirit is operating. The old axiom goes, ”When in doubt, cast it out.”  If you are unsure, go through the process and see if anything manifests.  If it does not, you have lost nothing.  If it does, you have gained your freedom. 

If a spirit manifests (reveals its presence), but does not leave after a reasonable time of confessing and commanding, ask the Lord to show you if there is something still giving Satan a legal right to afflict you that you are unaware of.  Sometimes, there is something in our bloodline that needs to be revealed or something in us that we have not recognized as sin or have not truly wanted to give up.  If you are confident that you are being afflicted by a demonic spirit but have not been able to get rid of it, seek out some believers who are experienced in deliverance to minister to you.

Transformed

If you want more detailed information and detailed steps to deliverance, you can check out my new book Transformed.  You can pre-order the book now, but it will be available on Amazon and most other book outlets in early August.  It is an update of an older book I wrote called Born to be Free, but with some significant additions.  The Lord continues to teach us new things about deliverance and I have added those to the new book.  The book will give you a more extensive theological basis for deliverance, help you discover who you truly are in Christ, help you understand the sources of your brokenness, help you identify demonic activity and curses operating in your life and will walk you through a process of breaking curses and soul ties. It will then direct you in driving out specific unclean spirits. I think it can be very instructive for any believer. 

Next Week – The Ministry of Angels

This week we want to answer the question, ”How do demons gain access to God’s people?”  After all, we are saved and the Holy Spirit lives in us.  In the first chapter of Job, a somewhat disturbing scene is revealed from the heavenlies.  Satan comes before God after “roaming throughout the earth going back and forth” (Job 1:7).  Satan seems to have been diligently searching for something.  God brings up his servant Job as a model of righteousness and Satan immediately begins to accuse him.  We should not be surprised.  Satan actually means “adversary” and his other primary title, the devil, means the “accuser” or “slanderer.”

We also see that scene played out in the book of Revelation.  Speaking of the devil, we are told, “For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down” (Rev. 12:10).  In the gospel of Luke, Jesus speaking to Peter said, “Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail” (Lk.22:31). We see the same scene in Zechariah 3:1 where Satan is standing before the Lord accusing Joshua the high priest.

These texts present us with a court room scene in which Satan brings accusations against God’s people. He is the adversary or prosecuting attorney who brings accusations in order to gain a legal right to afflict God’s people.  He searches the earth to do so. God, being a just God, must allow him some access if there is a legitimate accusation.   It seems that God does set limits on that access, but Satan procures some access all the same. 

The legitimate question arises of how Satan can find cause against us when our sins have been forgiven and covered by the blood of Christ.  One of the nuances of scripture that is often overlooked is that our sins can be forgiven in heaven while we still face consequences in this life.  

King David is an example of this principle.  After David’s adultery with Bathsheba and after setting her husband Uriah up to be killed in battle, Nathan the prophet confronted David with his sin.  The text says, “Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own…Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’ “This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’ Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. But because by doing this you have made the enemies of the Lord show utter contempt, the son born to you will die” (2 Sam. 12:19-14). 

Not only did the child die, but David’s son Absalom attempted to take the throne from his Father, had sex with is father’s concubines on the palace roof, and was killed in battle.  Even though David’s sins were forgiven and his relationship with the Lord restored, there were still the consequences of his actions to be faced.  God walked with David through the consequences of his sin, but he still had to endure them.  Paul restates the principle when he says, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life” (Gal. 6:7-8). Consequences are God’s great teachers. When I disciplined my children, I was not angry (usually) and my love had not diminished, but I knew negative consequences were needed to turn them from dangerous or destructive behaviors later.

God is a father.  In Deuteronomy 28, he clearly states that if Israel was careful to keep his commandments, then abundant blessings would follow. In parenting terms, he was reinforcing positive behaviors. They would be blessed in the city and in the country.  Their children would be healthy.  Their crops would flourish.  The rains would come at just the right times.  They would have peace on their borders, etc. But, if they were not careful to keep his commandments, abundant curses would come on them.  In parenting terms, he was extinguishing destructive behaviors with war, drought, disease, famine, miscarriages, etc.  These consequences were designed to turn them back to God so he could forgive their sin and bless them again like the prodigal returning to his father.

In addition, the Lord also said that rebellion and idolatry committed by parents would be visited upon their children to the third and fourth generations (Ex. 20:5). In other words, the unrepented sins of parents would have consequences for their children, grandchildren, and so on.   These are generational curses.  Demons assigned to family lines can be passed on to the next generation so that a child may have a demon assigned to him/her from birth.

When Satan is accusing us before God, he is looking for unrepented sin in our own lives as well as sins in our bloodlines that have not been confessed and renounced.  When he finds those sins, he asks for a legal right to enforce a curse that has been assigned to the sin.  Demonization can be a consequence of sin that has not been dealt with.  In my experience, the sins that lead in this area for believers are unforgiveness, judging others, dabbling in witchcraft, unbelief, sexual sins, abortion, materialism, prejudice, compromise with the culture, etc.   These are sin curses.  When sin goes unrepented, because of his righteousness, God may have to lift his hand of protection and give Satan some level off access.  It may lead to demonization.  In any area of our live where we come into agreement with Satan, we give him authority in our lives. 

A second source of demonization can come through word curses…authoritative words that direct demons to afflict or oppress another individual, an organization, or a nation. The reality of this threat is borne out in Numbers 22 when Balaam (I think a prophet gone bad) is hired to declare a curse over Israel. God takes the curse seriously enough to be being willing to kill Balaam to prevent him from declaring the curse.  Satan can prompt someone to speak a curse over another or even over himself.  If he can gain legal access, he can enforce the curse. Curses can be formalized statements made by witches or warlocks, which is far more prevalent today than you might think. But, they can also be informal statements that express harmful outcomes over another person. These are especially potent if someone speaking a curse has spiritual authority over the target…parents over children, husbands over wives, spiritual leaders over those who follow, etc.  Their authority gives Satan authority to enforce the curse. 

It is true that Solomon declared, “Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest” (Prov. 26:2).  But Satan is in the business of finding something that can make the curse “deserved.” During Stalin’s reign of terror in Russia, his chief of police famously said, “Show me the man and I will show you the crime.”  In other words, everyone has something if you look hard enough.

Often these curses are spoken in anger or fear or frustration, but they are spoken all the same.  They may be something like, “I wish you were dead!  I wish you had never been born! You will never amount to anything!  No one will ever love you!  I hope you suffer like I have!  You’re  going to end up in prison just like your father! Etc.  We often speak things like that over ourselves.  These statements can function as curses that Satan is glad to enforce.

James spends a great deal of time talking about the tongue and the call on believers to speak life (blessings) over people and situations and not death (curses).  “The tongue has the power of life and death” (Prov. 18:21).  Curses are a real thing and demonization of an individual can occur as a result of spoken words.  It’s important to remember that demonization does not cost us our salvation.  It simply hinders our destiny and our ability to become more like Jesus. 

Demonization occurs when a demon(s) gets a permanent assignment on a person.  He may simply attack through people and circumstances from the outside, but most often the unclean spirit attempts to take up residence within the person and a stronghold is established. That stronghold wages war in our thought life so that our thoughts and our feelings are heavily influenced by the enemy.  That influence is designed to move our hearts further and further from God, to undermine our success, and damage our relationships.  They can even mimic diseases in our lives so that we battle sickness and debilitating conditions for years.  They come to us through unrepented sin in our own life, sins in our family line that have not been dealt with and through word curses spoken over us by others or ourselves.  I will also add that some can find entrance through trauma we have endured  – violence, abuse, molestation, rape, etc.

Next Week – Indicators of demonization and how to break free!

Last week, we discussed the prevalence of deliverance or “casting out demons” in the gospels.  Not only did Jesus minister deliverance to many, he also gave power and authority to others to do the same. Luke reported, “When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick” (Lk.9:1-2). Then Jesus sent out others.  “After this the Lord appointed seventy–two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go…The seventy-two returned with joy and said, ‘Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.’ He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven’“ (Lk. 10:1, 17-20).  Mark tells us, “He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well” (Mark 16: 15-18). 

So, deliverance became one of the marks of the New Testament church.  It was ministered by many or even most believers rather than just by Jesus and his apostles. There were two motivations for this deliverance.  One was simply the compassion of Christ and his followers who encountered people in torment.  Out of compassion, they set them free.   Secondly, there was a need to demonstrate the power of Christ over the enemy. In a world of pagan gods, there was no need to convince people of the spiritual realm or the existence of gods. What they wanted to know was whose god was the most powerful. Deliverance demonstrated that Jesus had power and authority over every demon that stood behind the idols they worshipped.  Many people on earth still live in cultures where “gods” abound and they ask the same question.  Deliverance in the name of Jesus answers that question.

However, you might ask if such a demonstration is even needed in a modern, technological world where science is seen as our ultimate savior. The answer is “Yes.” Regardless of bowing the knee to science in America and the west, millions still seek after spiritual experiences outside the Christian faith.  Some pursue New Age enlightenment while others are seeking power in witch’s covens and satanic cults.  Many adopt eastern religions and Eastern practices for healing and meditation that have spiritual components.  Others seek to know the unknown through psychics, mediums, and tarot card readings.  Even Christians dabble in these things looking for something they have not yet found in Christ because the church has not taught them how to hear from God and operate in the power of the Holy Spirit. They seek these experiences because science and sometimes their church is not adequate to answer their personal need or crisis. 

According to scripture, whenever we seek contact in the spiritual realm, outside the covering of Jesus, we invite demonic involvement.  Many who dabble in the occult end up demonized so that part of their life is out of their control and under the control of the enemy.  Many did so before coming to Jesus and bring demonic spirits into the kingdom with them.  They also need to know that Jesus has absolute power over the enemy.

Several years ago, I met a woman who was a Satanic ritual abuse survivor.  At five years old, she was subjected to an incredibly traumatic satanic ritual in the basement of a building that looked like a church.  She knew about Jesus because she had been to Sunday school with her grandmother on many occasions and so in terror she cried out to Jesus.  But that day she was not rescued. After hours of abuse, she was released to go home to her mother with a threat of death if she ever told anyone what had happened to her.  As a teen, she lived a life of drug abuse and promiscuity. As an adult, she battled severe depression and suicidal thoughts.  She still believed in Jesus and even served in her church.  But she also lived a life of fear, believing that Satan was more powerful than God since he had not rescued her rescue that day.  When her depressive episodes became extreme and more frequent, I suggested deliverance to her.  She wanted no part of that because she was terrified of what the demons might do to her or her family. 

Finally, she came to a point of total desperation. She agreed to deliverance.  After an hour or so she had been set free from multiple spirits in the name of Jesus.  This “power encounter” demonstrated the authority of Jesus over the demonic and allowed her to trust God to protect her. That demonstration of power changed her life. I have also talked to and seen interviews with former witches and satanists who had come to Christ because their spells and incantations could not touch true followers of Jesus.  They felt powerless against the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. So they abandoned the weaker “god” to serve the greater God.  Even today, people need to see and experience the power of Jesus to set them free.  Our idols today may not be made of silver and gold but we have them all the same and behind our idols of power, wealth, fame, and sex, lie demons waiting to take their place in the lives of those who seek these things.

That may be true for satanists and drug addicts and for those who seek dark things, but what about Christians?  Can they be afflicted by demons since they belong to Jesus and the Holy Spirit lives in them?  Many say Christians can’t be demon possessed and so it is a topic of little relevance for the church.  I agree that Christians can’t be possessed because possession implies ownership.  We have been purchased by the blood of Christ, so he possesses us.  But demonization is not possession.  It is oppression, affliction, and even torment but not possession. Most people oppressed or tormented by demons function well in most parts of their lives.  They work, they have families, they go to church, and even lead churches. They seem normal and even happy to those who don’t know their inner life.

But there is a slice of their life they can’t control and that nothing seems to make better.  Counseling, more prayer, more Bible reading, and even medications only seem to make these struggles manageable…but it takes lots of energy and they often succumb to depression, anxiety, fits of rage, pornography, suicidal thoughts, unbelief, persistent feelings of rejection or shame, etc.  When they try to resist their shameful or compulsive thoughts, those thoughts press in even harder.  That is where a demon or demons are operating and injecting thoughts that stir up these harmful emotions. They typically enter through places of emotional brokenness or trauma and then amplify those things.  These are the strongholds” Paul talks about in 2 Corinthians 10.  Their goal is to keep believers from fulfilling their destiny in Christ. They hinder, limit, derail, and undermine relationships, success, emotional health and even physical health.  Often these “conditions” have been part of us since childhood so we think they are normal and just our lot in life. These spirits often work in very subtle ways so that no one thinks to look outside the natural realm for solutions.  But spiritual oppressors need spiritual weapons to overcome them.

Scripture does not directly state that believers can be demonized.  Neither does it say they cannot.  However, Paul issues a number of warnings about the enemy’s ability to derail our faith and our destiny and each of those warnings is directed at believers.  See Eph. 6:10-12; 2 Cor. 10:2-5; Rom. 6:15-16; 1 Cor. 10:18-22; Eph. 4:26-27, etc.)  If demons can’t afflict us, then the warnings would be unwarranted. In addition, we have cast out hundreds of demons over the past 20 years and nearly all of those who were delivered were church going believers who had one element in their life that was out of control.  We need churches todays who minister deliverance in healthy and biblical ways because Satan is still active on planet earth and is even more active now as he senses the end is near.

Next Week…What gives demons access to God’s people and how do we remove that access?

Lately, I’ve been feeling led to write a multi-part series on deliverance (casting out demons).  Some believers are very familiar with the theology and practical application of deliverance.  However, the majority of believers in America grew up in church environments where deliverance was never talked about, spiritual warfare only got an honorable mention, and demons were considered essentially fictional in our technological age.  Others may have grown up in churches that believed in deliverance, but they never were trained to minister deliverance or even given a biblical basis for this biblical theme. Still others question whether it is something that is even relevant in the contemporary church or whether Christians could ever be subject to demonic control.  Considering all the differing views and experiences in the American church, I want to present a clear and biblical case for deliverance. I think the topic is not only relevant but essential to the church being all it can be in this season of spiritual warfare.  So…I want to address some questions and some practical considerations for this subject in a multi-part blog over the next few weeks.

As many of you know, I became a follower of Jesus in my college years.  I came into the kingdom through the influence of cessationist churches. What that means is the church I was part of and was discipled by did not believe the Holy Spirit still works in the same way he did in the first century.  They believe that the Holy Spirit still takes up residence in every believe and works to bear his fruit – love, joy, peace, etc. –  but, he no longer imparts supernatural, spiritual gifts to his people – healing, prophecy, tongues, miracles, spiritual discernment, etc. 

Their view is that God no longer intervenes in his people’s lives in supernatural ways but works only through the natural order of things.  In these churches, believers pray for God to influence the surgeon to do his best in some way, but would not pray for direct healing in a person’s body.  They would pray for chemo to be effective, but would never command cancer to leave a person’s body. They believe all the miracles in scripture did happen, but God no longer operates in those ways.  In their view, New Testament miracles were allowed in the first century as evidence that Jesus was the Son of God and that his apostles wrote the New Testament under the inspiration of the Spirit.  Once enough miracles were recorded, those should be sufficient for belief and continuing miracles are not required.  This view, of course does not explain all the miracles in the Old Testament or why believers other than the apostles and those who wrote the New Testament, such as Stephen and Philip, also performed great signs and wonders. It would also not explain why supernatural gifts were given to ordinary members of the church as Paul discussed in 1 Corinthians 12-14. None of these were the Son of God nor did they write any part of the New Testament.

As an adjunct to the cessationist view, they tend to downplay the supernatural all together.  They really don’t talk about demons as a reality in the 21^st century.  If someone reported an angelic visitation, they would be highly skeptical. They believe that God only speaks to his people through the written word and no longer speaks to them directly, so that rules out prophecy and words of knowledge, and so forth.  Those are the things I was taught when I first became a Christian.  God might heal someone directly in response to prayer on very rare occasions, but no one possessed the gift of healing. Miraculous healings were given no credibility.  Prophecy was seen as a deception by the enemy and tongues were simply emotionalism unleashed. Deliverance was simply theater.  These are churches full of great people who love the Lord, but their theological lens keeps them from accessing the power of the Holy Spirit in many circumstances where it is needed.

For most of my ministry years, I was the staff member to whom most people came for counseling. My God-given temperament was wired for counseling and I had a degree in sociology which leaned in that direction.  I went to as many workshops on counseling as possible and did graduate work in that field, but still felt inadequate.  Even Christian counseling conferences taught secular approaches to counseling.  They might add a prayer or some scripture reading to their approach, but they never dipped into the spiritual realm and its influence on us.  I brought my best counseling skills to the table but saw very little dramatic life change in my church.  People did their best to live a moral life and manage their addictions, compulsions, depression, anger, shame, etc. and most made some progress…at least for a while. But many defaulted back to their previous state after a few months or as soon as they found themselves in a crisis or under stress,

I assumed the relapses were because of my inadequate counseling, which I’m sure contributed.  But there was something else that was lacking.  When I read through the New Testament, it seemed that dramatic life change was the expectation not the exception.  Afterall, we are new creations in Christ and are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:2). Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, “Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Cor. 6:9-12).

Paul speaks of an expectation of change, of putting those lifestyles behind them relatively soon after coming to Jesus, rather than struggling for years to get free from their conditions.  There is no indication that their transformation required professional counseling, the newest drug therapies, or years of twelve-step programs.  I’m not saying those things can’t be helpful. They can. But they tend to help us manage issues rather than getting complete victory over those issues. 

I finally realized what we were lacking was power.  What we were lacking was the ability to deal with not only addictions on a physiological and emotional level, but with spiritual bondage that kept God’s people stuck in the same struggles for years.  According to the gospels, the thing that kept people stuck in torment and bondage, was demonic affliction.

In Isaiah 61, the prophet foretold that Messiah would come to preach good news to the poor, heal broken hearts, and set captives free. When Jesus began his public ministry, he preached good news to the poor, healed broken hearts, and set captives free.  The freedom part came through deliverance which, according to the gospels, was considered a form of healing. In essence, Jesus and his followers preached the good news of the kingdom and then demonstrated it though the power of the Spirit.  That was the New Testament approach to evangelism…not just for Jesus but also for the twelve, the seventy he sent out, and all the other believers empowered by the Spirit.

When God drew me into the ministry of emotional healing and deliverance, I began to see people set free from the things that had kept them in bondage for years.  They were set free in hours or weeks, not decades.  Although I anticipated they would default back to their old conditions after a few weeks or months, they did not. People who had been subject to fear, depression, suicidal thoughts, pornography, shame, even homosexuality for years, were set free and transformed. 

Without the power of the Spirit and the ministry of deliverance, these men and women would still be in bondage to those things that had robbed them of joy and fruitfulness for decades.  Is every issue caused by demonic affliction?  Of course not.  But much more is than we realize.  Paul emphatically stated that our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly or spiritual realms ((Eph. 6:12).  He also declared that we cannot wage war as the world wages war but we must fight with divine weapons (2 Cor. 10:4).  Those divine weapons are embodied by the supernatural gifts of the Spirit.

In the gospel of John, Jesus clearly stated, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (Jn. 14:11-12). What had he been doing?  He had been preaching, healing, and casting out demons.  His statement carries an expectation that those who have faith In Jesus will continue his ministry as he had been doing it. It did not seem to give that expectation and shelf-life of a few decades but spoke to those who have faith until he returns.

To fail to do so, is to depart from the New Testament pattern of ministry for the church.  It weakens our ability to evangelize and often leaves our own people in bondage.  I have visited with several people who had gotten involved in witches covens.  They had left the covens because the coven was “going too far.”  I asked them what had prompted them to get involved in witchcraft.  They said their lives had been in turmoil and they had gone to the church for help, but the church could not help them because it had no power.  Witchcraft offered power so they gave themselves to that.  Paul said the kingdom is not a matter of talk, but of power (1 Cor. 4:20).  We owe the world power to overcome the enemy. Deliverance is a primary manifestation of God’s power and his kingdom on this earth.  It is essential to the life of the church.

More next week….

They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death (Rev. 12:11)

In Revelation 12, John spoke of those whose names were written in the book of life. He spoke of the devil, who accuses the brethren both day and night before our God, finally having been cast down. Speaking of the believers around the throne of heaven, he declared they overcame this accuser by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.

The Greek word translated as “testimony” is “martyria.”  In this context, it is translated as “testimony,” but in other texts it is translated as “witness.”  Our word martyr is usually associated with those who have died for their faith like Stephen in Acts 6-7.  They did not die because they lived quiet lives of peace and good deeds.  They died because they testified about the truth revealed in God’s word and about righteousness and judgment.  They also declared that Jesus is the Son of God who died for our sins, was raised on the third day, and ascended to heaven where he now sits at the right hand of the Father as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. 

“Testimony” is defined as the verbal (or written) evidence of a witness (usually an eyewitness) that something is true. Speaking to his disciples, Jesus said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).  The word witnesses in this text is also “martyria.” 

Shortly after Jesus ascended, Peter was speaking to the disciples in Jerusalem about another man taking the place of Judas as an apostle.  He said, “Therefore, it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection” (Acts 1:21-22). Notice the emphasis on this man being one who personally saw and heard everything from the time Jesus was baptized by John to the resurrection.  The strongest witness is an eyewitness. In Luke’s gospel. He assures us that what he wrote came from eyewitnesses (Luke 1:2).

So how does our testimony enable us to overcome Satan, the accuser of the brethren?  First of all, our personal testimony legally aligns us with Jesus.  When we speak God’s truth and God’s truth about Jesus, we align ourselves with God in the spiritual realm.  Satan is constantly accusing us of missing the mark, rebelling against God, unbelief, and agreeing with Satan.  He takes his accusations into the courts of heaven, seeking a legal right to attack us.  We know we still sin, even as believers, but as we continue to acknowledge Jesus in our lives and declare who he is, his blood continually covers our sin. 

John announced, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin” (1 Jn. 1:7). Walking in the light does not mean perfection, but that we are still continuing to seek Jesus, even when we stumble from time to time.  It means our heart is still turned towards him. The word purifies in this passage is a present tense verb which denotes continuous action.  As we seek Jesus, even imperfectly, his blood continually washes away our sins.  Our testimony affirms that we are still seeking Jesus and following him.

Our testimony enables Jesus to intercede for us whenever Satan launches his accusations. Jesus said, “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven” (Mt. 10:32) and John tells us our goal is not to sin, but if any believer does sin, we have an advocate with the father – Jesus Christ the righteous one “ (1 Jn. 2:1). An advocate is one who speaks on our behalf.  Our testimony, then, that Jesus is Lord and Savior, is a powerful weapon in the spiritual realm that disarms the accuser because it enables Jesus to speak on our behalf in the courts of heaven.

Our testimony, however, also requires a personal witness to the truth of who Jesus is.  What is our eyewitness testimony?  What is our personal evidence that what scripture says about Jesus is true?  Not only should we declare what scripture says about Jesus, but we should also be able to share our personal experiences that demonstrate the truth of what scripture declares.

In other words, how have I personally experienced the resurrection, the love of God, the life changing power of Jesus, the freedom I have experienced in Christ, healings I have received, powerfully answered prayers, unexpected provision, prophetic words coming true, the hand of God in my life, supernatural moments of protection, etc.  If you think about scripture, it is filled with stories of God’s provision, protection, and deliverance. The stories are testimonies of how God’s people experienced him and knew he was the true and living God who fulfills every promise.

In addition, our testimonies increase our own faith in God and his son Jesus and contribute to the faith of others.  Paul told the church at Rome, “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved” (Rom. 10:9-10). God has designed us so that the more we speak something, the more deeply that truth is written on our hearts.  Not only is it a declaration to men and to the spiritual realm about what we believe and where we stand with Jesus, but it is a declaration to own hearts. 

Personal testimony is essential to a renewed mind.  Our memories, beliefs, emotions, attitudes, perspectives, etc. are stored up in neural pathways in our brains.  These pathways, when stimulated by people, events, and other experiences in our lives, produce our “automatic response” to what is going on.  When the word of God and our experiences with God dominate our neural pathways, then faith, forgiveness, compassion, etc. are our first response to our circumstances.  That is a renewed mind and one of the most powerful ways to establish these neural pathways that possess our first thoughts and feelings is speaking the belief, the truth, the insight, or the experience verbally, as well as writing it and sharing it with others.

In other words, the more we express who God is and our personal experiences with him, the more that truth becomes part of us and Satan’s lies have a diminishing effect. We should give more thought to our testimonies that affirm what scripture says about God is true and that Jesus is alive and at work within us. To do so keeps us aligned with Jesus, enables him to acknowledge us before the Father so his blood can be continually applied to our sin, and deepens our own faith.  It also contributes to the faith of others since what God did for one, he will do for another. And, perhaps, most importantly, our testimonies glorify God which is ultimately the highest calling of man. 

Giving consistent thought to our own testimony about the reality of Jesus helps us see his hand in our lives in all the obvious and not so obvious ways.  I once led a small group in which our opening question was always, “How did you experience God in your life this week?  When we first started, half the group could not identify God’s activity in their lives.  Within weeks, however, they began to notice the hand of God in both big and little ways.  Their faith grew, their joy grew, and their testimony grew.  Remember, we overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony. Keep your testimony fresh and share it.

In his second letter to the church at Corinth, Paul wrote:

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore, go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you and you shall be sons and daughters to me. (2 Cor. 6:14-18).

Many people see this passage as primarily a directive for marriage.  Certainly, in the Old Testament, God was very clear that his people were not to marry Gentiles because they would inevitably be drawn into the idolatry and pagan culture of the unbeliever. In fact, that very thing happened on numerous occasions and Israel always suffered for turning their back on Yahweh end embracing other Gods.  Often, they still maintained their temple worship, but intermingled their worship and their sacrifices with pagan Gods.  In Deuteronomy 32:14, the writer clearly says that behind each of these idols and these “false gods” were demons who personally desired worship but also worked night and day to draw God’s people away from Him.

God also commanded his people to avoid making treaties or entering into other kinds of covenants with unbelievers. Moses wrote. “Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices. And when you choose some of their daughters as wives for your sons and those daughters prostitute themselves to their gods, they will lead your sons to do the same” (Ex.34:15-16).

Paul warned the church at Corinth against the same kind of yoking.  Corinth was a city full of idolatry. It housed numerous temples for the worship of Apollo, Aphrodite, Asklepieion, etc. Many of the believers had grown up immersed in idolatry and many still had friends and family that worshipped the pagan gods.  In response to that circumstance, Paul wrote, “Consider the people of Israel: Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he” (1 Cor. 10:18-23)?

The principal is that we are not to enter into covenants, agreements, treaties or, remain in relationships that influence us with those who belong to Satan.  That agreement opens us up not only to his influence but his presence.  We tend to think that the people who belong to Satan are the witches, warlocks, and satanists who actively pursue and serve the enemy.  But according to 2 Corinthians 6, whoever does not have the Spirit of God in them, belongs to the enemy and Satan’s  spirit operates in them.  “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature” (Eph. 2:1-3).

We think in terms of behaviors to determine whether a person is good person or evil.  Behaviors are important, but the best we can offer God still leaves us as wretched sinners when we are compared to his righteousness.  Our righteousness falls far short of any merited salvation (See Isa. 64:6).  Only the righteousness of Christ allows us to stand before God.  The seal of that righteousness is the Holy Spirit living in us.  When that happens, a great gulf is created between us and those who are not in Christ.

Paul compares that difference as light and darkness, Christ and Belial (Satan), the temple of God or the temple of idols, and believers versus unbelievers.  His point is that because of Jesus, we are essentially and vastly different from those who have not named Jesus as Lord. We see the differences in people as a matter of degree, but in the spiritual realm there is a marked, black and white, difference between the two.  You are either a child of God or a child of the devil.  You are either a citizen of the kingdom of God or you belong to the kingdom of darkness.  You are either alive in Christ or dead in your trespasses.  You are saved or lost, forgiven or unforgiven. You have the Spirit of Christ or the spirit of disobedience.

Because of that, God commands us to come out from among them. He is not saying we should isolate ourselves like monks in the desert, or we could never bring people to Jesus or be salt and light in the world.  But we are not to be yoked, tied, or bound to unbelievers. Moses commanded, “Do not plant two kinds of seed in your vineyard; if you do, not only the crops you plant but also the fruit of the vineyard will be defiled. Do not plow with an ox and a donkey yoked together. Do not wear clothes of wool and linen woven together” (Dt. 22:9-11).

In our culture, Christians frequently marry unbelievers. Sometimes those unbelievers present themselves as Christians because they attend church once in a while, but they have not truly made Jesus Lord of their lives and do not have the Spirit of God in them. In addition, believers often go into business with those who don’t belong to the Lord.  They spend more time with friends of the world than with Christian friends. These binding relationships can not only influence us and draw us away from the Lord but give Satan a legal right to afflict us because we have tied ourselves to those who belong to him. Because God takes unequal yoking seriously so should we.

Jesus declared we should be in the world but not of the world.   We should influence the world for good, but not join with the world in its sinful ways.  Too many times, believers join with unbelievers or casual believers as they partake in the things the world values and promotes. Amos 3:3 says that when we walk together with someone, we have come into agreement with them. Agreement with the enemy also gives him a legal right to afflict us. When Adam and Eve came into agreement with the serpent, they fell under his authority. 

This is a serious enough issue that we need to pray and seek God before entering into covenants, contracts, agreements or influential friendships with others.  The fruit of their lives should clearly display their active relationship with the Lord.  On a practical level, we should also be aware of their maturity in the Lord.  Unequal yoking, even among believers, can also hinder spiritual life. So often I see mature Christian women marry men who are believers, but whose spiritual maturity is far behind theirs and a hunger for God is not really evident. When married, she is forced to be the spiritual leader, not him.  That is not God’s design for marriage. Or a spiritually mature man might marry a lukewarm woman.  If he continues to grow and she does not, they will grow apart and the marriage will suffer. 

Satan attacks us through these unequally yoked relationships so be prayerful and wise before tying yourself to someone else. Even when our heart is to bring an unbeliever to Jesus, be sure you are evangelizing them, rather than them evangelizing you.

In the first century, the synagogue and the Rabbi’s were central to Jewish culture.  I want to quote from an article by Tim Kelly entitled The Dust of the Rabbi regarding those Rabbi’s and their disciples:

According to Ray Vander Laan, Jewish children – both boys and girls – begin their formal study of the Bible at age 5 by attending a Beit Sefer (house of the Book)  that was associated with the local synagogue and taught by a ‘rabbi’ – which was the respectful way of addressing the teacher. 

The teaching focused on the Torah, emphasizing reading, writing, and memorization.  Large portions of the text were memorized, and some students memorized the entire Torah by the time he or she reached the conclusion of their primary education at age 12 or 13.

At this point, a male child was allowed to go to the Temple and participate in the sacrifice of his family’s Passover lamb.  Though he was now expected to learn the family trade, boys who showed exceptional study skills were also allowed to continue their biblical studies in what was called “Beit Midrash”, which roughly means ‘the house of searching’, as in searching for the meaning of the scriptures.

In the Beit Midrash they would continue to memorize scripture while studying the prophets and the writings.  This would continue until about age 18 which is the age when young men were encouraged to begin a family.

Though 18 was the age for marriage, some gifted students were allowed to postpone marriage and continue their studies under a rabbi.  Most students sought to learn under rabbis with an exceptional reputation and whom they believed had a good understanding of the scripture.  Once they found that particular rabbi, they would ask if they could ‘follow’ him.  If the rabbi believed the student would be successful in learning and understanding what would be taught, he agreed to let that student ‘follow’ him and the student would become his disciple.

What we need to understand is that disciples of these Rabbi’s sought out the teacher and, having been evaluated and accepted by the teacher, essentially began to live with him.  They were not just interested in what the Rabbi knew, but actually wanted to learn how he lived. They emulated his dress, his habits, his daily routines, his approach to scripture. the way he prayed, etc.  Typically, this discipleship lasted about twelve years.  If he began at age 18, then by 30 he himself could become a Rabbi.  If the Rabbi was located in a town, his disciples spent as much time with him as possible each day.  If he were an itinerant Rabbi travelling from place to place, they travelled with him. We see that pattern clearly with Jesus.

Here is what was different about Jesus.  He did not establish a school and wait for the best and brightest to come to him.  He actually went after those he wanted to follow him and called them to come.  Clearly, he did not pick the best and brightest scholars from the synagogues.  He picked men from Galilee which was reputed to be the most Torah-illiterate district in Israel.  These were men who had not pursued studies after their initial schooling but had gone on to be fisherman and tax collectors.  They did not follow Jesus for twelve years but only for three.  At many times, they did not seem like promising disciples and on many occasions were sources of great frustration for Jesus.  But that should be a point of great encouragement for us.

In John 15:16, Jesus told his followers, “You did not choose me, but I chose you…” We do not have to approach Jesus with a resume, hoping he will accept us.  We do not have to be Bible scholars with well-developed theology. We simply have to be responsive to the call of Jesus and trust him to develop us as he sees fit. We don’t even have to believe in our own potential, because God believes in our potential.  These unlikely disciples of Rabbi Yeshua did not need twelve years of teaching from him because the Holy Spirit would be their teacher.  In many ways, they did not need to be experts in the Law and the prophets because Jesus said the Law and the Prophets were summed up by two things -love God and love your neighbor.  That is what we need to master

Satan loves to make us feel unqualified to be followers of Jesus.  But Jesus has qualified us and he has chosen us.  He sees great things in us that we do not perceive.  He has given us a teacher who will lives with us forever – His Holy Spirit.  Of course, he has given us the written word of God, but he continues to explain it to us by his Spirit.  Our part is to follow Jesus, our Rabbi, daily and to do the things he did which we see on the pages of the gospels.  Our part is to be teachable and obedient.  Our part is to spend time with him in prayer, contemplation, doing his will. and spending time with other believers. When we are 3with other believers he is in our midst (Mt. 18:20).  Our part is to have faith that Jesus has called us to be his disciple…that he wanted us, that he calls us his friend, that we are his workmanship, and we are not accidental or inferior followers. He has a destiny for each of us and will complete the work he has begun in us…if we continue to follow.

Being the disciple of a great Rabbi was a great privilege.  Being called to be a disciple of the greatest Rabbi is the greatest privilege.

One of Satan’s primary strategies against God’s people is accusation.  In fact, he is called “the accuser of the brethren” in Revelation 12.  He is shown to accuse us before God at every opportunity.  He also accuses us through hurtful people in our lives and he accuses us to ourselves in our thought life.

He accuses us in the sense that we often have thoughts that we are not worthy or not qualified for the things God is calling us to.  Perhaps, we have thought of volunteering for some ministry role but have quickly decided we didn’t know enough, weren’t gifted enough, weren’t spiritual enough, or whatever.  We quickly talked ourselves out of saying “yes” to an invitation to serve in an important role or of saying yes to a role that we simply knew was needing to be filled.

Churches often need people to step up and serve in roles they have not served in before – camp counselors, marriage mentors, small group leaders, coordinators, table leaders, etc., but no one steps up because they don’t feel qualified.  At other times, we may feel prompted to talk to someone about Jesus, but that little voice tells us we don’t know enough Bible or we won’t know what to say, or we will embarrass ourselves and Jesus.  At other times, we feel prompted to talk to someone about the destructive direction of their life, but then the voice convinces us that our own life is such a mess, who are we to talk to them about their bad decisions?

The voice of the accuser constantly insists we are not enough, we don’t know enough, we aren’t spiritual enough, and are doomed to fail.  His goal is to limit us, discourage us, and disempower us.   But God has always called the weak, the unlikely, the inexperienced, and the reluctant to greatness. One of my favorites is Gideon.

In Judges 6, Israel was under the boot of Midian.  Because of their rebellion and idolatry, God had lifted his hand of protection and left them to the oppression of their enemies. Because of their suffering, Israel called out to God for deliverance.  God answered and the text says:

“Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior” (Judges 6:11-13). Then the Lord said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of the hand of Midian. Am I not sending you?”

The angel of the Lord called Gideon a mighty warrior.  As we read the text, it is clear that is how God saw him, not how Gideon saw himself. In response to God’s call, Gideon described himself as a man whose clan was the weakest in Manasseh and he was the least in his family.  In other words, ”I’m not qualified to be a warrior or a leader.  I’m a nobody.”  There is no indication that Gideon was a leader among his people or that he had any training in warfare.  God just showed up and told him to go deliver Israel from Midian.

It’s important to note that he told Gideon to go “in the strength he had.”  He didn’t tell him to wait until he was ready or until he had years of leadership training.  In essence, he was telling Gideon to go as he was and God would make up for whatever he lacked. 

God most often picks the inexperienced and the uncertain because those men and women are forced to depend on God, not on themselves.  They will listen to him and often use God’s unorthodox methods because they don’t already have their own way of doing what God is calling them to do. In our weakness, God gets the glory.

Another important point this text reveals is that we don’t always have to be full of faith to be used by God. Gideon was cautious. He was uncertain…not about God, but about himself.  He asked for signs to confirm it was God who was talking to him rather than Satan or his own imaginations.  In the same chapter, the angel who had brought the word of the Lord to Gideon, touched an offering Gideon has placed before him with the tip of his staff and it burst into flame as the angel disappeared.  Gideon cried out that he had seen the face of the Lord.  He apparently expected to die, because God immediately spoke to him saying, “Peace. Do not be afraid. You are not going to die” (Jgs. 6:23). 

God’s first command was for Gideon to tear down a nearby altar to Baal and the Asherah pole that was next to it, build a proper altar, and sacrifice a bull to the Lord.   Gideon took some men and went to do as the Lord commanded, but did so at night because “he was afraid of his father and the townspeople.”  So he obeyed the Lord, but he did so in the face of his own fear.  God did not rebuke him.  Gideon was going in the strength he had.  When we feel nervous and insecure as we try to follow God’s leading and his call, the enemy will rush into to rebuke us for a lack of faith.  But God was pleased with is obedience, even though his faith was not fully formed.

After that incident, Gideon asked for another sign that God was truly going to use him to deliver Israel from Midian.  He determined to place a wool fleece on the threshing floor at night.  He asked God to see to it that in the morning the fleece would be soaked with dew and the ground would be dry.  In fact, that is what God did.  But, just to prove this was not meteorological anomaly, he asked God to reverse the procedure the next night.  In the morning the fleece was dry and the ground was soaked. 

Then, as Midian and Israel camped across from one another and the first battle loomed, God said to Gideon, “If you are afraid to attack, go down to their camp with your servant Purah and listen to what they are saying.  Then you will be encouraged.” Again, God took note of Gideon’s insecurity and met his need for encouragement.  As you read Judges 7, you will see the unorthodox strategy that God used to defeat the Midianites. Gideon goes on to be a judge of Israel and grew in confidence as God gave him future victories.

My point is this.  When we sense God’s call on or lives or feel his prompting to let him use us in some way, we need to recall that, in most cases, willingness, even when coupled with fear and insecurity, is all God is asking.  Then he steps in and makes up for our lack.  The adventure of faith is seeing God come through, but we will never see it if we never place ourselves in uncertain situations. 

Don’t let the accusations from the enemy keep you from saying “yes.”  Ask for some kind of confirmation, if you like, that God is calling you to that moment or to that ministry.  God will not be offended because we want to be sure we are following his leading not the leading of the flesh. But don’t let the devil talk you out of your destiny that God established for you before the creation of the world.  Make up your mind.  The next time God calls and we feel totally unqualified, say “yes” anyway.  You will be saying “yes” to God and “no” to Satan.