DELIVERANCE FROM THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
Ephesians 6:12
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
An understanding of the operation of the powers of darkness will help us understand how to curb their activities:
DEMONS AND HOW THEY OPERATE:
Demons are fallen angels that look for human bodies to possess in other to carry out their assignments. Their assignment ultimately is found in John 10:10, ‘…to steal, kill and to destroy…’.
There is hierarchy in the kingdom of darkness as we can see in the scripture quoted above: Principalities, Powers, Rulers of darkness & Spiritual wickedness.
The following are some of the symptoms of demonic operations in a life:
· Sexual immorality: Whenever one finds out that he is held bound to a particular sexual perversion, he needs to know that he is under demonic bondage. Sexual immoralities are not just natural as some would say. They are prompted by demons. Some of these perversions include: Fornication, Adultery, Lesbianism, Homosexuality, masturbation, incense etc. All these are contradictions to God’s order on sexual pleasure.
· Emotional Imbalance: People that lose their emotional balance easily need to check it. It could be an indication that they are under demonic influence. Some of the things to look out for here include Boiling Anger, Loss of Memory, unusual withdrawal from people etc.
· Slavery to bad habits: Uncontrollable bad habits are results of demonic influence over a life. Stealing, cheatings and the likes still come under habits.
· Speech perversion: Anyone that can say immoral things without feeling ashamed or bad about it is more likely to be under the influence of demons.
Antidotes to demonic possession:
v Watch what you see, hear or touch
v Be careful to allow a bad trait become an habit
v Don’t join them to use negative slang
Demons are easily attracted to any place where the fear of God is not because they know that their operations would be unhindered. And that is why for you to sustain your deliverance, you must keep away from places where God’s name is not being glorified.
NOTE PLEASE!
YOU CANNOT PRAY THAT DEMONS SHOULD DIE
Demons can only be driven out of a victim. They are spirits and therefore cannot die. Praying that demons should die is only a sheer waste of time. Even God would not honor such prayers. The demons also know this and so whenever you make such prayers, they only laugh at you and continue with their affliction as usual if not in a higher dimension.
As a believer, you have the power to bind demons and to cast them out. But you can only keep them out of a life totally when a resolution to living a holy has become a commitment and practice.
The final destruction of demons would come after the second coming of Christ when the devil and all his aids would be cast into hell forever. Until then, you can only bind them for a season and you can be sure that they would be constantly inspecting the life from where they have been cast out to see if they could gain access into it again.
Luke 11:24
When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out.
THE POWER OF ‘IT IS WRITTEN’
Matthew 4:4
But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
Matthew 4:6-7
And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. [7] Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
Matthew 4:10
Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
The power of the word is very potent in keeping the devil at arm’s length. Whenever the devil hears the phrase ‘it is written’, he shivers, knowing fully well that the scriptures cannot be broken and that he cannot contend with the power of the word of God. It therefore becomes necessary that every believer should be versed in the word of God so as to have an answer to the devil anytime he comes around.
FORMS OF DELIVERANCE
Deliverance could be administered in two different forms viz: Self-Deliverance and Assisted Deliverance.
SELF DELIVERANCE
Through the use of the word, a man may administer deliverance unto himself. As a matter of fact, to have a sustained deliverance, one should learn to take charge of the devil and his agents each day through prayers and word-confession i.e. confessing the word of God.
When the life of a man has been saturated with the word of God, and he lives by it, his life becomes too hot for demons to inhabit and so naturally, they vacate such life. The word of God dwelling richly in you would drive demons out of your life.
ASSISTED DELIVERANCE
Assisted deliverance is needed where a man discovers that despite all his personal prayers, he still feels that he is enslaved in doing one thing or the other that is sinful. In this case, a visit to someone of higher anointing and grace becomes necessary. The person now uses his own faith to pray for the deliverance of the captive.
James 5:14
Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
So, the lesson is, when your faith cannot carry you through a problem, seek for assistance or help from a higher authority.
THY SEED
Another word for seed is life i.e. THY LIFE.
"But whosoever is born of God doth not sin
for His SEED abideth in him…"
I John 3:9(KJV)(Emphasis mine)
