WHAT IS "DELIVERANCE"

“Deliverance” is when Jesus Christ sets you free from anything that may be holding you back from living out God’s perfect will for you:

“As He spake these words, many believed on Him.

Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on Him,

‘If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed;

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.’”

– John 8:30-32

Sometimes the things we need to be made free from are “external” – people, places, circumstances, and evil spirits – but often they are also “internal” – wrong ways or “bad habits” of thinking and relating to God and to others, along with the evil effects and influences of the demonic spirits, which hold us back from putting our full trust in God and receiving more of Him.

Therefore, when God delivers us from problems, He addresses things from their spiritual root – and then we can see the “fruit” of the deliverance in the changes within our individual souls and our physical environments.

Since the Bible reveals that the devil and his demons are the sources of all the evil in the world (John 10:10), and since mankind has been subject to the devil since Adam & Eve yielded themselves to sin in the beginning, deliverance will always lead a person to confront and address the works of the devil and the effects of sin in that person’s life – whether it’s the effect of their own personal sins only or the effects of the sins of others around them as well.

This is what sets true biblical “deliverance” apart from traditional and worldly methods of addressing mental and emotional health.

Rather than addressing or treating just the physical “symptoms” or natural consequences of problems in a person’s life, biblical deliverance will address the (unseen) spiritual root of what is taking place – thereby making the person free from the natural (visible) effects as well:

“While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

– 2 Corinthians 4:18

Scripturally speaking, “Deliverance” is very similar to “Sanctification”, in that it is a type of “letting go and letting God” (more on this in the next section).

Like Sanctification, Deliverance is a total a yielding to God “in spirit and in truth” that produces a supernatural kind of cleansing or “purification” in spirit, soul, and body:

“Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit,
perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”

– 2 Corinthians 7:1

More specifically, true Deliverance involves first submitting yourself to God (coming into agreement with His Word in any area), and then actively & persistently resisting the devil(s) until he/they flee from you, just as we’re instructed to do in James 4:7-8:

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.”

This “active” (“determinedly” & “aggressive”) “resisting of the devil” is practically accomplished by Believers through the “casting out” of demon spirits, which involves (unwaveringly & firmly) commanding the demons to leave, “in Jesus’ name”, as Jesus decreed would be the first sign of all those believing in Him, in Mark 16:17:

“And these signs shall follow them that believe;

In my name shall they cast out devils”

The casting out evil spirits is an essential part of the life of any committed follower and effective witness for Jesus Christ.

At the same time, casting out demons is not the only way that Jesus taught us to resist the devil and the darkness seeking to influence our daily lives.

If you read the Gospels, you will see Jesus frequently casting out unclean spirits from people – but you will also see Him teaching and demonstrating to His disciples the necessary principles of having faith in God, taking care of the needy, honoring & loving the Heavenly Father first,

and then loving our neighbors as ourselves.

In other words, Jesus always acknowledged and confronted the presence of outside evils (“demons”), but He also focused on the importance of the way we perceive others from within and the overall condition of our hearts:

“Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery’: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery
with her already in his heart.”

– Matthew 5:27-28

Then, in another passage of the gospels, Jesus sends 70 of his disciples out to preach the gospel of the Kingdom of God in various places. When they finally return, all 70 of them are excited and filled with joy – having realized that they have authority “in Jesus’ name” over the unclean spirits oppressing people.

This is Jesus’ response to them:

“Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”

– Luke 10:20

Jesus confirmed here that evil spirits are subject to disciples “in His name” – but the main thing to rejoice over is that our ‘names are written in heaven’, or basically, that we are known by God.

It’s our relationship with God – established in heaven after our spiritual new birth – that gives us dominion and authority over the devil ‘in heaven and in earth’, in the name of Jesus:

“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying,

‘All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost;

Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever
I have commanded you:

and, lo, I am with you always,
even unto the end of the world. Amen.’”

Therefore, every born again person who learns to put their faith in Christ in action has power and authority over any evil spirit, which can be used to prevent demon spirits from destroying and tormenting themselves or others.

And just like with praying “the prayer of salvation” (Romans 10:9-10),“casting out devils” (or overcoming any kind of evil oppression) is just a matter of first believing in your heart, and then openly “confessing”, or confronting and commanding, whatever it is to “go!”, “stop!”, or “come out!” – “in the name of Jesus”.

First you believe in the power of God in your heart, and then you confess what you believe with your words. Sometimes it only takes one command to get the desired result, and sometimes you need to keep commanding until the results are manifested

– but don’t give up!

Your words have an impact every time they are spoken by faith in the name of Jesus – because they are backed by the very power and presence of God Himself – the Holy Spirit:

“But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God,

then the kingdom of God is come unto you.”

– Matthew 12:28

Therefore, the key to overpowering the devil is to believe in your heart Jesus’s victory over him, and then to boldly confess what you believe by commanding Him to leave – every time:

"And Jesus answering saith unto them,

‘Have faith in God.

For verily I say unto you,

That whosoever shall say unto this mountain,

Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

Therefore I say unto you,

What things soever ye desire, when ye pray,

believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.’”

– Mark 11:22-24

As your faith in God increases, taking authority over the works of the devil becomes easier and easier to do, but always remember that the ultimate aim of receiving salvation is to obtain eternal life with God – in order to fully worship Him and enjoy complete access to His love and His presence, now and for all eternity.

Deliverance is necessary for every Believer because it allows us to grow nearer to God and to fulfill His full purpose for our lives here on earth, but our efforts to resist the devil should never detract or deter us from our primary desire to love, know, and to please God above everything.

Focusing excessively on the activities of the “kingdom of darkness” can sometimes become a distraction when not accompanied with the other aspects of a healthy Christian life: prayer, worship, study, meditation in the Word of God, fellowship with other disciples, and sharing the gospel with the world – much like focusing too much on the “blessings” and the “prosperity” that God promises to give us as we trust and obey Him as well.

Both prosperity and "blessings" are real parts of walking by faith (Matthew 6:33), but again, the main goal of our salvation is not just authority or riches – it’s communion with God through knowledge and conformity to His Son, Jesus Christ:

“And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent.”

- John 17:3

Communion with God is the essence and substance of eternal life, therefore the important thing in life is to always keep your eyes on God and whatever He is doing or wants to do with and through you at all times.

Jesus cast out evil spirits for the glory of the Heavenly Father, for the purposes of healing people, and to take away their suffering – not just to “prove a point” to satan or to “show off” to the disciples.

His motives were totally pure and always centered on His relationship with God and His mission from heaven.

The real way to overcome anything that the devil may be doing in your life is to keep your focus on God’s will for you and what Jesus has

already done for us – no matter what.

The nearer you draw to God, the further you get from the devil – every time.

If you have additional questions about deliverance and would like some quality resources to assist in this area of your walk, we highly recommend the teachings and resources from Jesus is Lord Outreach Center in Phoenix, AZ – and especially the in-depth books, teachings, and ‘cast out tapes’ from Pastor & Brother

David F. Middleton.

If you would like to learn more about Jesus is Lord Outreach Center and all they can assist you with regarding obtaining and maintaining your deliverance, you can visit their website at: http://www.doersoftheword.org.

You can also browse the various video and written materials here on our ministry site (LookatGodministries.com) where you will find some additional teachings, books, and materials on the same subject as well.

Hallelujah!