Oppression v Possession
It is only when a Christian finds that they are struggling in their walk with God, that they may need to consider whether or not they may have been oppressed by the enemy. If you are a person who has accepted Christ into your heart and follows God, but finds that you are not getting very far on their journey with Him, then this sermon may provide you with some useful information. Christians can sometimes be very bold, except when it comes to dealing with matters relating to oppression, which Satan may have put upon them. There are two schools of thought relating to Christians and demons. The first views is that Satan cannot oppress Christians who have come to Christ. The other school of thought is that every Christian needs deliverance. Both polarisations are far from the truth, and lend themselves to urban myths. But the truth of the matter is that most oppression is dealt with at conversion. However, sometimes minor oppression can effect Christians, due to doorways that they have opened in their lives before they came to Christ.
When we are talking about oppression in this sermon, we are not talking about possession of the Christian soul by a demon. Oppression and possession should never be confused. A person who is soundly born again cannot be possessed by a demon in the depths of their souls, where Jesus reigns. However, they can have a demonic oppression in the realm of their emotions, which may have gained a foothold, and which needs dealing with. Therefore, not every Christian needs to concern themselves with this subject, unless they are finding that they are under some sort of cloud or heaviness upon their soul which they cannot deal with. So today, if you have been struggling on your journey with God, due to the fact that something seems to be getting in the way of your walk with Jesus, then please continue to listen to the rest of this sermon, just in case you find answer you are looking for in your walk with God.
1. Am I Oppressed?
The number of Christians I have met, who are under some form of oppression from the devil, is alarming. There appears to be a correlation between those who do not believe that the Devil can oppress them, and those who are oppressed. This is part of Satan’s lie, which keeps some people in bondage. Christians believe that because they are saved and have the Holy Spirit in them, then Satan cannot possibly occupy the same space. And before we continue with this subject, just because a Christian is oppressed by the Devil, this does not necessarily mean that they have an unclean spirit in them. Also, those Christians who go around thinking that they have got an unclean spirit in them, often don’t.
So, let us check out the theory about whether or not anything unclean can occupy the same space where God the Holy Spirit dwells. In Job 1:6 (NIV) it says, ’One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them’. Here scripture tells us that even Satan can be in the same place, where God and his holy angels dwell. You see, God is so powerful that he does not flinch when Satan is in the room, and neither should you. It also says in 1 Samuel 16:14 (NIV), ’Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him’. Here, we see that God allowed an evil spirit to torment Saul. And before you start panicking, don’t presume that you have an unclean spirit sent from God, because you think that you are out of God’s will, this is unlikely to be the case.
The point of this scripture is to show us that even unclean spirits are subject to God. And, a further point is to show us from scripture, that just because the Holy Spirit is present in someone’s life, does not mean that they are immune to oppression from unclean spirits. However, this does not suggest that a Christian can be possessed by an unclean spirit, if they have received Christ into their lives. It just means that the Holy Spirit is available to help them overcome any oppression, which has had a detrimental effect upon their lives. If we accept what scripture tells us, and recognise that Christians can be oppressed by the Devil, then there are two questions that need answering. The first question is, how did the oppression get on the Christian in the first place? The second question is, how do we deal with the unwanted oppression, and see the captive set free? This we will consider in part 2 and part 3 of this sermon.
2. How Did I Get Oppressed?
The questions that we need to consider are, how do people get oppressed from an unclean spirit, and how do we deal with it. In this part of the sermon, we shall consider how unclean spirits manage to oppress people, and in the next part, we shall consider how we deal with them. There are many reasons why a Christian might be oppressed by an unclean spirit, such as: from a traumatic event, which has effected their life; to constant involvement in sin, which has not been dealt with. However, today we are going to look at the doors which Christians may have opened into the supernatural realm. Doors which some Christians may not been aware of, and which may have been opened before they came to Christ. As humans, we are made up of body, soul and spirit. When we accept Jesus into our lives, we actually accept him into the soul realm of our body. That is, the centre of our being, along with our spirit, where God the Holy Spirit resides. But this does not mean that God has control over our body, the flesh. Gaining such control over the flesh takes time, as we continue to walk with God and subdue anything that is contrary to the Kingdom of God in our lives. So, how do unclean spirits get into our lives?
It says in 1 Samuel 15:23 (NIV), ’For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king"’. Here, Samuel rebukes Saul for his rebellion against God, for not putting down the Amalekites. Saul’s rebellion was no different to people getting involved in divination. When I have asked Christians if they have ever been involved with divination before coming to Christ, they always say no. However, when I asked them if they used to read what the horoscopes said about them in the papers, the answer was often in the affirmative. When I have gone on to explore whether they have ever visited a fortune teller, or were ever involved in an Ouija Board, or whether they were involved in a seance, or practiced spiritual yoga, or have been hypnotised, etc, the answer has often been yes. Even though they only dabbled once, and claim not to have been serious about it, such activities were enough to open a door for an unclean spirit to oppress them.
You may wonder why such oppression is not dealt with at salvation? Sometimes it is, but sometimes such matters have remained buried and forgotten by the person, and need repenting of to get them dealt with. And just because a Christian is oppressed, does not mean that they are not saved! In part 3 of this sermon, we will consider how to deal with such oppression.
3. How Do I Deal With Oppression?
It is important to think back into our past, and consider whether or not we have been involved in any of the activities mentioned earlier, such as reading horoscopes, or visited a fortune teller, or have gone through hypnotism, etc. Once we do that, and start to recognise that we may have dabbled in such things, then we need to do something to get rid of the oppression. Most oppression, which may have been caused by dabbling in aspects of the occult, can be dealt with quite easily. Where people have had exposure to more serious aspects of witchcraft, seeking help from the leader of a church is appropriate. But for today, we will deal with some of the lesser infringements, which people may have made into the world of the occult, as listed earlier. In 2 Corinthians 7:1 (NIV) Paul says, "Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God".
Christians, who have dabbled in aspects of witchcraft before they come to Christ, need to confess out loud to God these activities. Such activities love darkness, and will not want you to name them out loud before God. But if you are willing to name what you have done before God, and renounce such activities and repent of them, you are on your way to seeing some of the oppression on your life lifted. It may be that you need to spend a little time before God, going through some of the past activities associated with the works of darkness. Do not worry about this, there is no rush, God wants you to be thorough, and renounce every single activity related to your past, which you may not have considered as significant. And do not go on your feelings when you do this. You may feel a burden lifting as you repent of your past, or you may not, or a light switching on in your head. Such feelings are not important.
You may even feel brave enough to command any oppression on your life to leave you, once you have confessed these unclean practices, and this is okay too. God has given every Christian authority to command anything which is not of God to leave them. And as you spend time dealing with some of these past associations, you will reap the reward of a more peaceful walk with God. Fear is often something, which tries to prevent Christians from dealing with such issues. But I have got news for you! Fear can also be a spirit, trying to oppress you. So, command fear to go from your life too, and you will discover a greater sense of freedom in your walk, like you may never have experienced before.
Walking In The Light
To end this sermon on oppression, please concentrate on this scripture found in 1 John 1:7 (NIV), ’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’. Remember, look to the power of Jesus, and his precious blood, and do not look to the power of the enemy. Satan’s power, and any hold he had on your life will be broken and gone, in Jesus Name, as you follow the advice I am giving you in this sermon. Jesus is Lord, and not Satan! And once you have repented, and commanded that which is not of God to go from you, you will never look back. And if you find that you are struggling with something that you cannot deal with, do not panic! It just means that you need to speak to a mature Christians, or your pastor and elders to help you prayerfully overcome in this area of your life.
