Casting out devils is the duty of the Church today as well as the preaching of the gospel. Not only is it the command of Christ to cast out devils but he also said it would be one of the signs to follow those who believe. Matthew 10:1, Luke 10:17-19 and Mark 16:17.
Christ, the apostles and the early Church considered the casting out of devils as part of the work of the ministry. Acts 8:5-8. And to the testimony of the scriptures could be added literally thousands of cases of deliverance from demons. Many of these cases could be authenticated. One Chinese brother was so successful in this type ministry that he signed his name Master of Demons. There are three principle ways demons are made to leave their victims. These are prayer, the preaching of the word, and casting them out by the word of faith. Though prayer and preaching hasn’t been recognized as a means of casting demons out there have been many deliverances wrought this way.
Fact is, it takes effectual fervent prayer if demons are to be cast out by any means. Demons do not respect prayer-less Christians or churches. Constant unceasing prayer is a must for those who would come against the powers of darkness. This is the outstanding characteristic of those used by the Lord to free men from devil power.
The main spirit in Judy Clevenger, which caused her to have seizures had to leave his previous victim because of prayer. The father, a minister, began praying over his daughter every time she would have a fainting spell. Dunce told us he couldn’t stand this constant prayer over the girl. When I asked him why he left the girl, he said, “I had to, her father just kept praying over her every time she passed out.” Beyond doubt many have been delivered through prayer when some saint of God took hold of the horns of the altar and refused to turn loose until the victory came.
Anointed preaching is also used of God to break Satan’s yoke over the lives of people. I feel this is especially true in conversion. Many people have spirits that will leave if the person is exposed to much anointed preaching. This is why it is difficult to get men under this type of ministry. The demons themselves are fearful of the anointing and do everything in their power to keep their victim away from it. This is also why anointed ministries are hated by demon-influenced humanity.
In highly charged Holy Ghost meetings when the word is going forth in power demons often come out. It is not uncommon to hear someone scream in a loud voice which many times is in reality demons leaving their victim. I believe this is what happened as Philip preached Christ to the people of Samaria. Acts 8:5-8. In fact, the Lord has shown us, through our seers, demons leaving people during our regular services on several occasions.
Casting demons out by the word of command is done by only a very few of God’s anointed servants in the earth today. However, it is my conviction that the Lord is preparing many for this ministry as I write these words. This will be one of the great tasks of the ministry in getting God’s people ready for the coming of Christ.
Casting demons out by command not only requires a life of prayer with the anointing but also great faith. Very few will attempt to do this because of unbelief. Having fought many battles against mankind for thousands of years demons have a tenacious faith. They count on the weakness of man to give up after awhile. Able to sense unbelief, demons pay little attention to those lacking the authority of faith.
Faith for casting out demons comes through prayer, fasting, and a knowledge of God’s word. A knowledge of God’s word, the power of the blood, and our position of authority in Christ are necessary to come against demons. Just a head knowledge of these things is not sufficient. We must believe from our heart. Often times in dealing with demons they must be reminded of the blood. Rev. 12:11. Likewise the word, which is the sword of the Spirit, must be constantly used in fighting devils. Matthew 4:1-11. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds ....”
Demon-possessed people are blind to their condition until they are dealt with. And even then it is well nigh impossible to make them see their condition. The veil of demonic blindness must be pulled from their minds by the anointing of Christ. This can be done by the anointed word or actually casting the demons out through the anointing. I make haste to emphasize that this work can only be done by the anointing. Satan does not respect beautiful sermons, flowery speeches, nor high sounding phrases. Only the anointing can break Satan’s yoke.
And of course we must be led of the Lord in this type ministry. We don’t go around looking for demon-possessed people to deliver any more than we look for sick folks to heal or sinners to save. The insane asylums are full of demon-possessed people, the hospitals are full of sick folk and the world is full of sinners.
The secret is in being led of the Lord. It must be those our great sovereign God is working with. As Jesus did only what the Father showed him so must we.
The saving, healing, and delivering business belongs to the Lord. We must remember we are simply vessels through which he does the work. When we are led of the Lord to someone we can have faith knowing the battle is the Lord’s and not ours. In such cases we can rest assured of final victory no matter what happens.
As a rule there must be someone who cares and is seeking God before people can be delivered. In most demon-possessed cases there is little concern. The family, if concerned at all, usually turns to the arm of flesh in the form of doctors, psychiatrists, or mental institutions. They will, in fact, resent and resist the least suggestion that their loved one is demon possessed. This is why it is almost impossible to help most demon-possessed people.
In the case of the Legion, Mark 5:1-20 and Luke 8:26-39, we find a poor, demon-possessed man running and falling down before the Lord Jesus and worshipping him. In the case of the woman of Syrophenicia we have a beautiful example of a mother who would not be denied until the Lord delivered her child. Matthew 15:21-28. The fortune teller girl of Acts 16:16-18 followed Paul and Silas several days before the apostle cast the spirit out of her. And though we wouldn’t say there are no exceptions to this rule, we believe that in most cases of deliverance there is someone seeking God. It is either the person who needs deliverance himself or some deeply concerned friend or loved one. God works when and where you find earnest souls seeking his face.
Having been led of the Lord to help someone with evil spirits the next question is how do we go about delivering them? I personally like to deal with such cases in the privacy of a home or the church with a group of consecrated Spirit-filled believers to help out.
And of course those with experience or discernment are a great help in this work. Those who can pray and have real liberty in praise are also a great help in fighting demons. Oftentimes there will be someone who has been delivered themselves and they have a real compassion for such people. Only those who have victory in their own lives and have a burden for such people can help deliver them.
In addition to being led of the Lord to those he wants to deliver, and having the help of Christ’s body, we need the gift of discernment as we undertake this work. At this present time God is restoring this gift to his Church. In our assembly the Lord has given us five young people who are being used as seers in a most marvelous way.
These five young people, two of whom are only eleven years old, actually see the spirits in a person and can tell how many they have. By this special anointing they also know how the battle is progressing and when the spirits come out. During the course of the battle if a word of wisdom or knowledge is needed the Lord will give it to us through the seers by vision.
They not only see the spirits in the person but other spirits that are present that try to help the spirits which are being cast out. And believe me, demons always try to come to the rescue of those under attack.
With such a group operating as a body under the headship of Christ you will be able to deliver people from demons. This being the time of the forming of the body of Christ, God is blessing wherever a genuine cooperative effort is being made.
Gathering together with your group and the person to be delivered, it is good to sing a few songs as the Lord leads and have a season of prayer and praise. This creates a good atmosphere and helps to raise the faith of everyone. The next step is to simply sit the demon-possessed person down in a chair and start commanding the spirits to come out of him.
Though there are basic principles we must ever employ in coming against Satan, there is no set pattern or formula we can follow in casting out demons. Every case must be approached in simple faith looking to the Lord for direct leadership as we battle this enemy.
Only the Holy Spirit can recognize Satan’s subtle tricks to deceive us and avoid being cast out. Any 1-2-3 or A-B-C procedure would soon become a lifeless form that the devil would laugh at with scorn. Only as we move in the anointing, using those basic God-provided weapons can we defeat this adversary.
You must not strive, fret, worry, or get anxious, but wait in simple faith. Pleading the blood, the name of Jesus, quoting the scriptures, and extolling the power and authority of Christ over the enemy will often bring the result you desire. Sometimes it is a long, weary battle and only persistent faith will bring the victory.
Where many demons are present it sometimes takes hours or even days to cast all the spirits out. This is when discernment is a must. As the spirits come out, the remaining spirits will remain quiet or pretend to be the person. They are very cunning and will deceive you if you aren’t careful. Not aware they are under the control of a demon, the person fully cooperates with them in deceiving you.
Having lived in the person so long, the demons have become one with the person and indeed are accepted without question as being part of the person’s own personality. The fusion of the human spirit and the evil spirit is so complete they are for all practical purposes one.
Though the person may think, act, talk, and appear normal, that mystical veil of darkness covers the mind as long as the demons are there. It is at times like this that keen discernment is needed and complete dependence on the Holy Spirit is necessary.
Upon inquiry they may tell you they are fine and that they are in complete control of their faculties. In fact they may sincerely think they are. However as long as there is a single evil spirit in the human vessel the person is not normal. His mind and will are in varying degrees under the influence and control of that spirit.
The influence and control is of course according to the nature and strength of the spirit, and also the degree of manifestation at any particular time. Though all demons are evil and exert some influence upon the person, some are stronger and more persistent than others. Some being comparatively weak have less control and influence over the person. They are also easier to resist and cast out.
When demons are quiet they must be pressed to manifest themselves before you can cast them out. This is why they purposely stay quiet and help the person to appear normal to deceive you. They will even let the person sing gospel songs, go to church, and appear religious to hide their presence.
You cannot reason with a demon as there is no sympathy nor conscience in these depraved beings. Never try to bargain, compromise, or appeal to them. Use the Word and the Blood to cut them off on every hand. Offer them nothing but judgment and divine retribution. You must be absolute master over them. They recognize and respect nothing but authority.
As yet none of us have reached the spiritual plateau of faith and discernment where we can cast demons out as easily as Jesus did. For this reason we may encounter hard cases that we have to battle with for hours or even days before final victory. In such cases, we must hold on and have help from other members of Christ’s body.
It is my conviction that as the church comes back into perfect divine order her power and discernment will also be fully restored. And the time will soon come when casting out devils will be quick and decisive.
We must understand demons are capable of feelings as well as we are. Though evil spirits are intelligent, powerful and tenaciously persistent they can be harassed, tormented and overcome. As you would battle against a cunning and powerful human adversary you must battle against demons until their stubborn wills are broken.
The idea that we can snap our fingers and, presto, demons immediately leave their victims never to return, is false. Although some demons are comparatively easy to cast out, others put up a terrific fight and can only be defeated by prayer, fasting, and a faith that will not give up.
Some of the more difficult cases to help are Christians or greatly enlightened people. These people are more responsible to help themselves than others. It is often through pride, rebellion, and willful negligence that they get into trouble to begin with. Such people stand in need of repentance and confession before they can be delivered. Trying to cast the devils out of people to continue on in their rebellion against God will not work.
Where you do not have a group able to move together in the deliverance of demon-possessed people the Lord is still faithful and will honor one or two who will dare to believe him. His word is still true which says, “believe only and ye shall see the glory of God.
Several years ago my wife came under the control of demon spirits that almost destroyed her mind before I realized what was taking place. She had been literally living in torment for months before I discovered her condition. Like most people afflicted by demons she was convinced in her own mind that her trouble was real. Also convinced by the same delusive spirits that there was no hope for her, she kept her trouble to herself.
Finally noticing her depressed state, I discovered, after much questioning, that my poor wife was in a prison house of mental dispair. Nothing I could say would convince her it was the work of Satan. She just could not believe otherwise. To her it was a terrible reality and not demonic delusion. Her hopelessness became such that she wished she could die and she began entertaining thoughts of suicide.
Although I knew little about evil spirits at the time, I believed her trouble was demons and began battling against them in prayer. Taking the Bible, I also began teaching my wife everything I could find about demons. Waging an unceasing battle in this manner I came against these devils day in and day out,
Sometimes, after ministering the Word, prayer, and rebuking these spirits in Jesus name my wife would be almost free. And then after a few hours that awful darkness of despair would settle upon her mind again. This went into weeks and then months with the intervals of relief becoming less all the time. For a while it seemed the harder I fought the greater the hold of the enemy upon my wife’s mind.
With no visible progress being made after several weeks the devil began telling me she wasn’t going to get any better and that she would have to be put in a mental institution. With this turn of events I began battling against the spirits that were trying to destroy my faith. Calling them a liar even as their father the devil, I proclaimed that she was going to be delivered and they couldn’t stop it.
Only by the anointing of the Spirit as I prayed was I enabled with great boldness to withstand these spirits. For awhile it seemed we reached an impasse with neither side giving ground. And then, hallelujah! I detected the power of these demons loosing their hold on my wife’s mind. With this definite sign of progress I literally shouted the victory in the devil’s face as I rejoiced in the goodness of my God.
About this time the Lord began to open my poor, deluded wife’s spiritual eyes and she could see that it was the enemy who had caused her condition. With this revelation she began resisting the devil herself and it wasn’t long until his power was broken. Although there was a convalescent period in which she had to grow strong again, the horrible nightmare of mental anguish was over. Demons cannot stand before the power of prayer. But it must be effectual, fervent prayer. James 5:16.
Since we always have to contend with apostate criticism which claims we are not of God because we do not do things like Jesus did an answer to this is necessary.
First of all let’s remember Jesus had the Spirit without measure, consequently he ministered with a fullness that has not been experienced since then. Even during Paul’s day the apostasy was taking hold of the church. Already the powerful anointing that was upon Christ and the church at Pentecost was on the decline.
Today the apostate church world is in such condition that they don’t believe in healing, casting out of devils or the miraculous of any kind. Likewise the body of Christ is in a sub-par condition due to the influence of the apostasy. A sub-par church can only bring forth sub-par results.
I might add that none of our critics would dare to claim to be as dedicated and effective as Christ in soul winning, teaching, or in prayer. Yet they do not discount themselves because they do not measure up to the spiritual stature of Christ in these things. It is only those who believe in the supernatural for today that are not of God because they do not get the same results, they say. As the body of Christ, composed of all truly born again men and women, becomes subject to their head in this hour, the church will experience restoration. With this restoration will come increasing effectiveness in the ministry of casting out devils.