Spirit Cockroaches
Cockroaches are undisputedly one of the most hated insects on earth. Imagine coming into the kitchen for a midnight snack. You flip the light on and then you hear the unmistakable scurrying of a cockroach across the kitchen floor. It is what you have always dreaded. A six-legged creature that has been around since the time that dinosaurs roamed the earth. Living in a squalid world of garbage, it runs from the daylight and emerges only at night. This creature looks like it is from deep in the jungle, or straight from a horror movie; but it could be in your own home.
However something a million times worse could be living with you. A cockroach can’t really hurt you much. This other creature can lead you to destruction and death, forever. It also runs from the light and loves the darkness and it lives in a squalid world of garbage. It not only looks like it’s from a horror movie, it is horror itself. Undetected and untreated, it is your worst nightmare. Cockroaches are an ice cream sundae compared to these creatures.
Demons (evil spirits) are these creatures. Cockroaches are prolific breeders. One cockroach can spawn several thousand offspring in a year. As bad as that is, a demon undetected and untreated (driven off) can lead to a demonic infestation and cause immeasurable and everlasting harm to you and your family.
Where do demons come from?
"Then war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels battled against the dragon. The dragon and its angels fought back, but they did not prevail and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. The huge dragon, the ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, who deceived the whole world, was thrown down to earth, and its angels were thrown down with it." Rev 12:7-9
God didn’t create the devil and his demons. God created angels and archangels with free will. The devil was initially a beautiful, powerful angel called Morning Star or Lucifer (cf Isaiah 14). His pride caused him to lead a rebellion of a third of the angels against God and "war broke out in Heaven." They lost that war and were hurled down to our earth where they roam to this day. They are up close and personal and live in your neighborhood and maybe in your home or worse, in you. Like cockroaches you’ll never see them until you let the light shine in the darkness.
Cockroaches are attracted to uncleanness and food crumbs among other things. Demons are attracted to unrighteousness and sin. If you don’t cleanup your kitchen, the cockroaches are going to move in. If you don’t cleanup your life, demons are likely to consider you their best friend and breed and multiply and bring you all kinds of hell. Demons ignored, either out of ignorance or unbelief and left untreated, will attempt to exert more and more influence and control over your life. If you don’t believe they exist, that is just the darkness and cover they love to operate in. Your enemy isn’t your husband, wife or boss, your enemy is the devil and his demonic hordes.
Some years back I had a spirit of lust and I was really ignorant about their existence and how they operate. As hard as I tried to kick it, I never really got victory over it. I would grit my teeth and hold it off for a while, but then I would fall. This went on for some time. It was more powerful than I was. I could not get rid of it with my own will power. But then I had an encounter with Jesus Christ. As the blazing light of Christ entered my soul and I experienced the tremendous love of Jesus, that lustful demon fled like a cockroach when commanded away. It’s been 27 years now of continuous unbroken victory over that demon. Thank you Jesus!
Demons are not to be feared in any way. They run and hide in the shadows and darkness when confronted with the power and the light of the Holy Spirit.
"Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for (someone) to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith." 1 Peter 5:8,9
"Thus did God disarm the principalities and the powers, he made a public spectacle of them, leading them off captive, triumphed in the person of Christ." Col 2:15.
The demons are like a roaring lion. But Jesus has defanged them for the Christian. Satan and all his demons, and all his principalities and powers have been disarmed, made captive, triumphed over and a public show made of them through Jesus! Demons are not to be feared, but we can’t ignore them either. They do not leave you until you command them away in the name of Jesus.
If you been addicted for any length of time to anything that was initiated from sinful behavior, there is a good probability of a demon or demons hanging around you or in you. In these situations we need to repent of the sin and command those demons away from us. We may still need rehab, counseling and lifestyle changes, but without repentance and deliverance from demons, all the rehab and counseling in the world won’t work. It’s like mowing the top of weeds. The roots (demons) are still there and they must be dug out.
Irrational fears, continual anxieties or worries can be demonic in nature also. Jesus commands us not to worry and offers us the peace that passes understanding. Fear is the opposite of faith. When these fears knock at our door, answer with faith in Jesus and command them away. Fear knocks - faith answers - and there is no one there! The devil flees.
WE HAVE A GREAT BIG GOD!
Have you ever considered the immensity and size of the universe? We have a huge sun in our solar system, but there are 60 billion suns in our galaxy and there are 60 billion galaxies discovered so far. And the universe is still expanding! Scripture tells us that God holds all this in the palm of His hand (Is 40). We have a great big God and He lives in us! Scripture also tells us that the devil is confined to planet earth (Rev 12). Like the planet earth compared to the universe, satan compared to God is puny and insignificant. If you have committed your whole life to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, the devil is terrified of Jesus who lives in you!
The devil sees Jesus in us and responds to Jesus’ authority that we exercise in His name. It doesn’t have to be exercised in a shout or scream; a whisper will do the job. Sometimes we think if we turn up the volume, we will be more effective. It’s like we are trying to work up faith and convince ourselves that this will work.
The place to get convinced of the effectiveness of the name of Jesus is in prayerful meditation on the appropriate scriptures and in intimate worship before the face of Jesus. That’s where conviction and confidence comes. Stay there until you are utterly convinced in every fiber of your being that greater is He (Jesus) in you than he (satan) who is in the world (cf 1 John 4:4.) Then get up off your knees and go step on that cockroach wherever you perceive him.
In the society today, there is little belief in a personal devil. There is a great silence in the Church concerning demons and their influence upon us. There is next to no teaching on deliverance from evil spirits. It is this atmosphere that plays right into the hands of the enemy. He likes nothing better than have us believe that he doesn’t exist, or if he does exist we can ignore him. We are not talking about exorcisms of evil spirits from people possessed. We are talking about waging war against the demons that harass us. We are talking about doing as Jesus commanded us:
"As you go, make this proclamation: ’The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons." Mt 10:7,8
As we are obedient to Jesus in doing this we will experience the same reaction that the disciples did.
"The seventy two returned in jubilation saying, "Master even the demons are subject to us in your name."" Lk 10:17
***** JESUS IS LORD *****
