Disclaimer:
Due to the large amount of sermons and topics that appear on this site I feel it is necessary to post this disclaimer on all sermons posted. These sermons are original to the author and the leading of the Holy Spirit. While ideas and illustrations are often gleaned from many sources including those at Sermoncentral.com, any similarities and wording including sermon title, that may appear to be the same as any other sermon are purely coincidental. In instances where other minister’s wording is used, due recognition will be given. These sermons are not copyrighted and may be used or preached freely. May God richly bless you as you read these words. It is my sincere desire that all who read them may be enriched. All scriptures quoted in these sermons are copied and quoted from the Authorized King James Version of the Holy Bible.
Pastor James May
GET REAL WITH GOD!
It’s time to get real with God! Too many people are playing church and claiming to be what they are not! Too many are trying to fake their way into Heaven and fake their way into Christianity but no one is really fooled, especially God. What is in your heart will eventually come out, no matter how hard you may try to hide it! When the truth finally comes out, it will be revealed completely.
Acts 19:11-20, "And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them. Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. And this was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. And many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver. So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed."
In Israel there were those who attempted to fake their way into the circles of Christianity. There were people, called vagabonds, much like the gypsies of our day, who would not have a specific place to call home but they would travel the width and breadth of the country looking for any means possible to make money.
They often worked in unscrupulous ways and they were really good at being con artists and magicians. Many of them made their living by performing “exorcisms” of evil spirits from other people.
There are many in our world today who attempt to give the appearance of being right with God and who try to convince us that they are spiritually minded but their lives don’t hold up to the test of truth from God’s Holy Word.
Some time ago, while attending another church, I heard a sermon entitled “Are You Live or are you Memorex?” For those of you who have never seen or heard the old commercials for Memorex cassette tapes, the commercial used to have a crystal glass standing and then a singer would hit the high pitch live and crack the glass. Then they would play the recording and produce the same results, proving that you couldn’t tell the difference between the live performance and the taped performance.
I believe that there are a lot of “Memorex Christians” in the church world. They give every appearance of being real. They would fool just about anyone, but they are not real and they don’t fool Jesus. Neither can they fool Satan because, if you are to do battle with the powers of hell, you better be and have the real thing. There is no power but that of Jesus, there is no other blood that can deliver from sin, and there is no other name under Heaven that will bring the Devil to his knees in submission.
The passage of scripture that we have read for this message contains a severe warning to all that will listen to what the Word of God is trying to tell us today.
As I have said before, there were exorcists in Israel. It is evident that there are still many in our time who attempt to practice exorcism. Just as it was in the days of Paul, many of these “exorcists” are no more than good magicians.
Through special chants, repeated phrases and fake manifestations, the exorcist attempts of make those around them believe that they have power over evil demonic spirits to cast them out.
The Jewish historian, Josephus, tells of one system of exorcism that was used. His description was not touted as being magical but he claims that it was a system that was handed down by King Solomon instead.
In his system, a ring was placed under the nostrils of the person who was possessed by the demon spirits and this ring was used to pull the demon spirit out through the nose of the demoniac. When the delivered person fell down, the evil spirit was commanded, under the name of Solomon, never to return again. Then cups of water were placed in a circle around the delivered man and the demon was told to turn over a cup of water as it left to show that it was gone.
I don’t know about you, but that sounds kind of strange to me. In the first place it has an air of showmanship and magical tricks. Pulling on a ring, invoking the name of Solomon and then turning over a cup of water doesn’t prove anything but it sure fooled a lot of people and there were many who paid a lot of money to have these things done out of desperation.
We have to be careful that we do not fall into the traps of the enemy. We absolutely believe in the casting out of evil spirits and demons from those who are possessed and to rebuke spirits that attempt to oppress the Child of God. We don believe that a true born-again Child of God can ever be possessed for you are the temple of the Holy Ghost and the Bible says that light and darkness cannot mix, therefore, the Holy Spirit living in your heart and body will never allow the demons to move in with Him.
I believe in the casting out of demons and evil spirits. I have seen them cast out a number of times through the years. But, they are never cast out by anyone who is not right with God in the first place and they are only cast out by calling upon the name of Jesus Christ. Jesus and He alone, has power to cast out demons.
The seven sons of Sceva found out the hard way that there is no other way to cast out demonic spirits.
They thought that just using the name of Jesus, like Paul, that they could make a lot of money casting out demons. They didn’t count on the demons turning against them instead.
The devil knows those who belong to Jesus. He knows whether you are “Live or Memorex”. He knows your heart too. Satan will not listen to those who not of God. The only power that he will surrender to is the power of the Blood of the Lamb.
What are demon spirits and evil spirits anyway? They are the messengers of hell sent to torment and possess men and women to accomplish the works of darkness that Satan has planned to destroy mankind and war against God!
It is very possible that you will encounter someone, even in school, who is possessed of an evil spirit or a demon. These types of people will hate you and be very hateful toward you because the spirit within them recognizes the Holy Spirit within you.
Sometimes they are fearful of the power of the Lord within you but there are times when they will be quite bold and speak out against you!
Have you ever walked into a room, or been around someone who made your spirit feel very uneasy? Chances are that there was an evil spirit around somewhere. Just as your spirit will witness with the spirit of another Christian, your spirit will also witness the presence of evil and darkness.
It would be best for all of us to be prayed up and full of the Holy Ghost all the time because we never know when we will have to do battle with the devil in spiritual warfare.
Some of our church members are fighting these evil spirits within their own homes and families right now. I dare say that there are a lot of evil spirits that you are all battling and may not even be aware that this is what is happening. If you want to know whether you are fighting the demons or not, just ask God to reveal it to you and you will soon know. Sometimes we are fighting a hard-hearted person and sometimes that hard-heartedness is the result of demon possession.
These sons of Sceva were magicians and exorcists. They were attempting to cast out demons without having the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in their heart and the demon knew that they were fake.
The demon confessed to know Paul. Satan knows those who belong to Jesus and he trembles in fear when a true child of the most high God wakes up in the morning. He roars, trying to make us fear, but if we know Jesus Christ as our Lord, we have nothing to fear. We can call upon the name of the Lord, resist the devil, and he will have to cower away in fear and defeat. Every demon, every evil spirit, and the devil himself knows that they are defeated by the Blood of the Lamb. They cannot stand under the power of the name of Jesus as it is called upon in prayer by the Child of God.
Demons and evil spirits must use a living body to do their works of darkness. They are constantly seeking the man or woman who will surrender their will to Satan. Alarmingly, Satanism is one of the fastest, if not the fastest, growing religious movement in the world today. The Spirit of the Antichrist, which is the spirit of Satan, is reaching his tentacles into every fabric of society as he prepares for the last great all-out war with the God of Heaven in these last days. Satan knows that his time is short and he must do all that he can to destroy all that God has created, especially man who is created in the image of God.
These sons of Sceva attempted to stand against the powers of hell and were nearly destroyed. The demonic spirits within men and women often give them supernatural power and strength far above what they should normally have as a human being. The un-natural voices, the eyes that pierce into the soul, and a myriad of other manifestations can occur when demons are present.
I have heard stories of those whose body would be covered with bite marks where the demons would bite them before they would leave. I have seen a few who would actually throw up a demon in the middle of a service when he was cast out in Jesus’ name.
Demons are not to be played with or tolerated. Neither are we to attempt to deal with them in our own strength lest we are found just as the sons of Sceva. They were overcome completely even though it was 7 to 1. The demoniac ripped off their outer garments, beat them severely and chased them away screaming. I doubt if they ever tried to perform an exorcism again. This time, they had no magic that would work because this time the demon was real and powerful.
I would to God that we, in this church, and other churches would begin to be less tolerant toward demons that would try to destroy the works of the Lord. It is always the powers of hell that are trying to destroy whenever there is trouble in the church in any fashion.
There may not be demon-possessed people in our midst but I can guarantee you that there are demon oppressed and demonic influenced in our midst. The spirit of the devil will and does arise in us every time we get into a spirit of rebellion and disobedience.
We must resist the devil and he will flee. We must not give place to him at all. He doesn’t play games. He is here for the singular purpose of stealing your victory, destroying you peace, and squeezing the eternal life from your soul that Jesus has given to you.
How can we be ready to do battle with the demons of hell and the evil spirits that come into our midst?
In Mark 9:29 and again in Matthew 17:21, Jesus gives us the formula for being ready to cast out devils when He said that, “this kind can come forth by prayer and fasting.” That’s what our church needs more of right now!
We are in a spiritual war with the forces of darkness. We are assured of the victory through Jesus Christ our Lord but we must prepare for the battles ahead through prayer and fasting.
Prayer keeps our heart and our relationship right with God while fasting keeps us humbled and disciplined as soldier of the Cross.
It is never our power, our knowledge, our spirituality or any other thing of our own conjuring that will defeat Satan and his army of demons; it is the power of the Holy Ghost within the heart of the blood washed Child of God who is calling upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ!
Are you ready to face down the demon spirits of hell? Are you ready to do battle with evil spirits? Are you ready to call upon the name of the Lord? Is your heart right and your spirit right with Jesus?
If not then you better get right now. Remember, the evil spirits are in need of a willing vessel to live in. Don’t become a target for evil spirits – stay close to Jesus!
Serve notice on the Devil that you are blood bought Child of God, washed in the Blood of the Lamb, who is prayed up, fasted up and fitted for battle with all the armor of faith, trust, and salvation. Let him know that you carry the weapons of war, called the Word of God, in your heart and that he is your worst enemy.
GET READY AND STAY READY FOR THE BATTLE AHEAD AND YOU CAN’T LOSE!
God will use your life, just as he did Paul, to do special miracles like leading your friends and family to Christ, healing the sick and casting out devils. There is no telling what God can do through you if you are on fire for Him.
People will recognize that there is something special about you. Demons of hell will tremble in fear when you walk into their presence. Evil spirit will shrink into the shadows hoping that you will not command them to leave. Satan will give his demons instructions to stay away from you lest they be cast into the Lake of Fire before their time.
You are a Child of God and you have the Spirit of God living within you. As you live your life for God don’t be surprised when some of your friends come to Christ and then cast down their occult books, demonically inspired music and their occult games. When Jesus comes into their hearts, the evil works that they have done will be cleansed and they will experience freedom from oppression for perhaps the first time in their lives.
If you stay prayed up and fasted up, the demons of hell will know it, Satan will know it and the people who are surrendered to them will know it. Don’t be surprised if, one day, you walk into the room where the demons are and someone walks up to you and says, “you are a Christian, you need to leave.” I’ve had it happen to me and you will too if you live for Jesus.
Just remember, if you live for Jesus you are on the winning side. 1 John 4:4, "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."
