Jonathan Brenneman's Blog, page 14

Those Who Believe Will Do The Same Works And Greater!

[image error]I’ve been thinking about translating some of my books to Portuguese for awhile, and some people have asked for them. I was planning to do it eventually, but it wasn’t top priority. Translating is a lot of work.

On Sunday I was feeling pretty exhausted and a bit discouraged. It’s funny how the Lord sometimes tells you to do something when you feel like you’re at your weakest. He is good at helping you get your focus off of yourself. I started to think about writing a book in Portuguese. It felt like God touched the top of my head and strengthened me, and I started weeping. So I downloaded a Portuguese language pack for word, turned on auto-correct, and started writing that night. I’m already on the second chapter. Now I’m not translating a book, but I’m writing a fresh one in Portuguese.

Today I was working on writing testimonies of how several friends started ministering healing. The stories set my heart on fire afresh, especially Kevin Peterson’s testimony which I had just written.

The Holy Spirit’s Work Tonight

Tonight I went to a meeting at somebody’s house, with my heart burning. Somebody told me to prepare and asked me to preach. I started thinking about what I was going to say. When somebody asks me to preach, I see myself sharing the message and imagine what I am going to say. I was going to share from a few verses of John fourteen and then share several of the testimonies I was writing today.

However, I had to take my daughter home because she fell asleep and my wife got home from work. My wife leaves early and often gets home later, after 8 pm. Then since she hadn’t eaten, I went to get her some food while she was holding Rebekah. So by the time I got back to the meeting, that had gotten somebody else to share.

At the end of the meeting, a friend asked me to pray because she had a headache. It left quickly. Then she pointed out some other people who needed to be healed, and we saw a few different people healed, also quickly. One was an elderly lady with pain in her legs, so much that she had been hospitalized. When the pain left her legs, I asked her to touch her toes. She began to protest, explaining why she couldn’t, but then she did.

You should have seen the shock on her face! She covered her mouth in awe, and it got everybody’s attention. We started talking and proclaiming God’s mighty works. Then most of us walked a block away to visit another elderly lady who had oxygen tubes. We ministered to her, and she felt every symptom disappear.

Surely the knowledge of Jesus will fill Brazil as the waters cover the seas! There is a revolution going on of ordinary people doing the works of Jesus, and we are pushing to spread this revolution in Brazil. Mindsets opposed to the manifestation of Christ through the church have infected many people’s thinking. It takes grace to teach people where they’ve missed the truth, and build up and encourage them at the same time. Sometimes as I speak I am directly contradicting what somebody else just said!

Here is the short and simple message I was going to share tonight and then illustrate with testimonies. Perhaps this look at John 14 will help you to explain to others how to minister with authority. I’m sure it will strengthen you as it is strengthening me right now.

Do You Believe You’re In Jesus And He Is In You?

John 14:11-12 (NIV)  Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

Do we believe this promise? How many people did Jesus raise from the dead? How many paralytics did he heal? How many deaf ears did he open? How many have you opened? Those who believe in Jesus will do the same works and greater.

Who did Jesus say would do the same works and greater? Did He say “My Father in heaven will do the same works as I do and greater?” No, He said “My Father is working in me, and those who believe will do the same works and greater.” He said you would do the works, if you believe.

Believe what? Believe in Jesus. And what does Jesus do? He makes us righteous and joins us to the Father. He makes us one with God in spirit.

1 Corinthians 6:17 (NIV) But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit.

Jesus said He was in the Father and the Father was in Him. That was how He did his mighty works. According to scripture, if you believe in Jesus, you are in Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 8:1) and Jesus is in you. (Galatians 2:20, Colossians 1:27). That is how we do mighty works.

Don’t just believe in Jesus’ existence. Trust in Him. Hang your life on Him. Be joined to God through Him

Do you believe you are in Jesus and Jesus is in you? If so, you will lay your hands on that person and speak. You will speak the very words of God.

1 Peter 4:11 (NIV)  If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. 

We have tried serving God with our strength, but it is impossible to do the things that Jesus did with our strength. If we are going to do the same works and greater, we must serve with the strength God provides. That is only possible if we know we are in Jesus and He is in us. God has given us the command to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, and cast out demons. (Matthew 10:8) He provides the strength. We do it.

If you don’t believe you are in Jesus and He is in you, you won’t do it. You will ask God to do it. You will try to serve God with merely human strength. And you will live in powerless “christianity.” But if you serve with the strength God provides, people will be left in awe and God will be praised in everything through Jesus and through Jesus’ body, the church. People will praise God because of you and because of the manifestation of Jesus through us.

If you believe you are in Jesus and Jesus is in you, you will do what Jesus did and talk like Jesus talked. You will act, knowing that we the church are Christ’s body and the fullness of God on earth. If you don’t believe you are in Jesus and He is in you, you will ask God to do it.

Where is God’s hand? It’s on your arm. Christ is the head and we are his body. So stretch out your hand and do the works of Jesus.

Look at Luke 8:40-56. A man came to Jesus because his daughter was dying. Then people came and said “It’s too late. She’s dead.”

What did Jesus say? Did he say “We don’t understand now why the Father took that little girl, but we will understand someday. She’s in heaven now.” Did Jesus use human rationale to try to make sense of the situation? No. How did Jesus speak?

Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid.” Jesus said, “She’s not dead but sleeping.” Then Jesus said, “Little girl, get up.” What did Jesus do? He took her hand.

Do you talk like Jesus talked? You will if you believe you are in Him and He is in you. You will speak the very words of God. And if you believe, you will do the same works as Jesus did, and even greater works.

 

The post Those Who Believe Will Do The Same Works And Greater! appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

Protection Against Poisoning And Accidents

[image error]Scripture encourages us to pass on the stories of God’s work to future generations.

Psalm 145:4 (NIV) One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts

Psalm 102:18 (NIV) Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord:

Psalm 71:18 (NIV) Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come.

Some time ago we did a series of blog posts on divine protection, starting with Divine Protection part 1. Although we shared several stories, we never got to talking about protection from poisoning and accidents. So I have a few testimonies today to encourage you. If any of you guys have stories in your family of God’s protection, please share in the comments!

Deliverance For You And Your Family

Acts 16:31 (NIV) “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

We often forget or don’t realize how practical the word “saved” is in scripture. While it does mean “born again,” a little study will show that it means much more than only that. It’s a practical word that means delivered and made whole, and scripture often uses it in a practical way.

What does this imply in the verse above? God’s protection and deliverance can extend beyond believers to cover people close to them, including unbelieving members of their families.

No Deadly Poison Will Hurt Them

Mark 16:16-18 (NIV) And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”

Of course, Jesus wasn’t telling his disciples to drink deadly poison! Poisoning people’s food or drink was a common way of taking people out in that time. Jesus was saying it wouldn’t affect them. This, in turn, was a sign for those who attempted to poison Christians. Similarly, Paul was bitten by a snake on the island of Malta. When he just shook if off into the fire and suffered no ill effects, this served as a sign to the people of Malta. (Acts 28:1-10)

But how could this apply to “you and your family shall be saved?” My mom told me about two different times when I ate poison as a child and suffered no ill effects.

When I was one year old, playing outside, my mom noticed I was eating something. They were yew berries! 

While yew berries themselves are not poisonous, the seeds and almost everything else about the plant is. People and animals poisoned by yew have been known to show no symptoms and suddenly drop dead two hours later.

My mom prayed and I was fine. It could be that I didn’t bite any of the seeds and they passed through my body. Or it could be that God protected me.

When I was about two years old, we moved into a new house. My mom wasn’t aware that there were naphthalene mothballs under the furniture, and she found me eating them! She was alarmed, but someone else said I looked fine and a few mothballs wouldn’t hurt me. So against her better judgment, she let it go.

Two hours later she told the neighbor what happened. The neighbor said “Oh my! Those are deadly poisonous. You need to call the poison control center.”

So she did. They asked, “How long has it been?” 

“Two hours.”

“It’s too late to do anything now except watch him and if you notice anything, take him to the emergency room.”

My mom had lost her little brother to an accident when he was a toddler. She wasn’t going to lose me. She started stomping around and rebuking the spirit of death. “You can’t have him!”

Maybe she wasn’t initially sure how much I’d eaten, but my diapers smelled strongly like mothballs for a whole week! It couldn’t have been only a little!

Mothballs are deadly poisonous. Even breathing too much of the fumes is poisonous. Eating them can cause convulsions within an hour. I think God was protecting me even before my mom went stomping around the house and rebuking the spirit of death!

Just dermal exposure to blankets and diapers that were stored in mothballs has caused acute hemolytic anemia in newborns. Mothball poisoning can cause internal bleeding, jaundice, kidney failure, coma, and death. But I had no symptoms except for my diaper smelling like mothballs for a week. The poison passed through my body without harming me.

Protection Against Accidents

My mom told us about some close calls my Grandfather had before he returned to Christ. She believes God rescued him from death at least once!

My Grandparents had a big house with a huge yard that went down to a gulley in the back. When my uncles were teenagers, they dug out a big area in the back of the backyard and made an underground fort. Once I saw an old picture of it. It was the size and shape of a small room, with walls and a ceiling to keep the dirt from caving in.

The ceiling eventually caved in with a heavy winter snow, and my grandfather began filling it with brush. It got infested with groundhogs. I imagine they were ravaging Grandpa’s precious gardens! He decided to burn the whole thing to get rid of the infestation.

Using gasoline to start a fire is a bad idea!

My mom, at her middle school a mile away, heard a sonic boom! It shook the school, and she thought it was a jet or something. The kids at the high school two miles away heard an explosion. Her younger brother at his school on the other side of the bay heard it too.

Mom came home to find police, fire trucks, and ambulances all around the house! The explosion had blown out all ten windows on the back of the house, as well as the windows on the back of the neighbor’s houses. My mom thinks the explosion was about 50 feet away. I know the property well, and I think it had to be much further than that. Having worked in construction with a 25 foot tape measure, it seems to me that the distance to the location of the fort (which I saw in a photo) was at least three tape measures away. So my estimate is that the explosion was 80 feet away from the house.

The houses also have a fair distance between them. So to have blown out all the windows on the back of three houses and be heard miles away, this had to be a huge explosion!

My Grandpa just heard a “puff.” He was fine. 

Was he “in the eye of the storm?” How did he end up fine so close to such a huge explosion?  How did it not blow his eardrums out? How did he escape getting burnt? I don’t know. I’m not a physicist. But I think it sounds like God sent an angel to protect him. And I’ve had enough experience with God’s intervention to think that this explanation is as reasonable as any!

I’d Love To Hear Your Stories!

I’ve often been amazed at the stories people have of God’s intervention. Sadly, some people are afraid to share their stories for fear of being mocked or ridiculed. But they will share with you if they believe you are a safe person to share these types of things with, and if you ask.

If any of you guys would like to share your experiences about God’s protection or intervention in your family, I’d love to hear your stories in the comments!

The post Protection Against Poisoning And Accidents appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

God’s Address

[image error]

Last week I shared what God spoke to me, “No Inferiority!” This word has been challenging me. It’s always good to be challenged to walk as Jesus does.

A crazy guy has been roaming the streets of my neighborhood, threatening people with a machete or a stick. The latest thing is he’s been following pretty women and little girls around. He’s sexually assaulted a few women in the area.

The police arrested him about a week ago after he threatened a particular woman. But then released him a day later because he’s not in his right mind.

Well, he may not be in his right mind. But that’s not the point! He needs to be restrained so he doesn’t rape anybody. Now I could catch him unaware and overpower him, but what would I do? Give him to the police to be released on the streets again? Just beat him up? That would make me a target, and I don’t think it would stop him for long. I don’t have a jail in my backyard to hold him in.

This is where the rubber meets the road. We feel inferior to the situation. We feel like we don’t know the answer. But when God says “no inferiority,” I understand that I must refuse to accept that feeling as truth. God lives inside me! I’ve been united with Him through Jesus. My attitude must reflect these truths. I’m still growing, and I’m welcoming God’s word, allowing it to do its work in me. And I appreciate your prayers as I grow, especially that I exercise heavenly wisdom and God’s power in situations like these.

My Address Is God’s Address!

If people are looking for God, where can they find Him? Where is his address? It’s you! What’s God’s phone number? It’s your number!

Colossians 1:27 (NIV) …Christ in you, the hope of glory.

[image error]May we never treat this fact as mere doctrine, but may our attitudes continually reflect it. People who walk in God’s power learn to think this way.

It’s exactly when we begin to think this way that it uncovers feelings of inferiority. We feel like “I’m not God. How can I do anything about this problem?” That’s the natural, earthly way of thinking. But the truth is, God is with you and dwelling in you!

God has given the church authority over all the power of the enemy, but there’s a difference between having authority and exercising it. We exercise authority by acting and thinking according to gospel realities.

I am God’s address. If you are in Duque de Caxias, Rio de Janeiro and want to find God, where do you go? His address is Jonathan Brenneman!

Is that pride? No. It’s humility and receiving what God says in scripture instead of stubbornly resisting Him. We need to have this attitude!

“God Lives In This Suit!”

As I young missionary, God began to develop this attitude in me. When I come to a city, God is coming to that city! God just showed up! Because I did! And it felt like an army of angels was going with me, an indescribable feeling.

When we think like that, we are not diminishing the fact that God also dwells in the other believers. Of course, we know that God is omnipresent, everywhere. But his presence manifests through us. God is omnipresent, but He has a body. My body is His body. The church is his body. But how many Christians actually act and think as if God lives in them?

Without diminishing the fact that Christ’s spirit dwells corporately in the church, it’s important to develop the attitude as individual believers that my address is God’s address, my phone number is God’s phone number, and when I show up, God is here! “God has entered the building!”

Do any of you go on mission trips? What if when your plane touches down in Uzbekistan (or any other place), you think “God has just come to Uzbekistan?” Scripture says Elijah was a man like us, but we know he turned a nation from Baal to God. Godly men throughout history have altered the course of nations. Do you want to be a nation-changer? This is how nation-changers think. 

John G. Lake altered the course of history, especially in the United States and South Africa. The Better Business Bureau examined his healing ministry in Spokane, Washington imagining it was a fraud. They concluded that not only were the reports of miracles legitimate, but what was happening far surpassed all the reports they had heard.

In South Africa, John Lake led a movement with hundreds of native missionaries and many salvations and great miracles. We probably have little idea how much that movement affects South Africa to this day.

John would get up in the morning, look at himself in the mirror, and say “God lives in this suit.” 

Really believing that Christ lives in us not only leads us into a walk of power, but it leads us to demonstrate Jesus’ nature through our lives. God’s character is now my character. His love is my love. His patience is mine. His compassion is mine. His gentleness is mine. His joy is mine.

John Lake taught that Jesus is the Savior and we are also saviors, because Jesus lives in us. He was speaking in terms of deliverance from oppression and sickness. Faith in Jesus’ sacrifice for sin and resurrection is the only way to be freed from sin and born again. But in the sense of deliverance, we are also saviors (with a small “s”), because God has sent us to bring his salvation to the world and has commissioned us to set people free. And the Spirit of Jesus dwells in us to enable us to do so.

I’m learning to walk as a man who God lives in. And much of my prayer for you guys and for the church is that we learn to live this way, free from every sense of inferiority, and always conscious of having been joined in spirit to the Lord, abounding in the work of the Lord and the power of the Holy Spirit. I’m praying for my readers. You guys can also pray for me and especially for the church in Brazil, that we walk no longer as mere men but as heavenly people, born of heaven, and joined to Jesus. His mighty strength is at work within us!

Ephesians 1:16-23 (NIV) I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

The post God’s Address appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

No Inferiority

[image error]

Recently the Holy Spirit spoke to me saying “No inferiority!” These words kept echoing in my spirit, and I’ve been thinking about them since. God has raised us to the highest place by calling us his sons and seating us with Jesus in heavenly places. God’s children are inferior to nothing else in all creation!

Identifying Yourself As Inferior Is Not Identifying With Christ!

Righteousness puts us in the same standing with God as Jesus has. What is superior to a son of God on this earth? If Jesus is not ashamed of you and calls you his brother or sister, and Father God gave you the same glory he gave to Jesus, what are you inferior to? You have been united with God! We are kings, raised to the highest place with Jesus, all things under our feet! We are in Christ and Christ lives in us! God has joined us to Jesus, and what God has done for Jesus He has done for us!

The church has been plagued with a sense of inferiority, worsened by guilt and condemnation. God is saying it’s time for this to end, and he’s taking us out of it! One of the biggest passions in my heart right now, especially in Brazil, is helping the church to recognize where we have identified with the old man instead of as the new creation, joined to God through Jesus and united with Him in spirit.

There have been times when I felt inferior in front of circumstances, including injustice, systemic corruption, and more. God is reminding me now “No inferiority!” As we grow in understanding and believing what God has done in making us righteous and bringing us into His family, we will get the sense of inferiority out of our thoughts and prayer life.

Ministering Healing

How many Christians feel a sense of inferiority before sickness and disease? Jesus didn’t feel any sense of inferiority when he faced disease, and neither should we! We have been born from above, no longer mere men, but raised to heavenly places with Jesus.

Recently a friend asked me to pray for his teeth again. I felt “inferior” to the issue, like I couldn’t do anything about it. I’ve seen all God do all kinds of miracles through me. But I felt discouraged because I prayed for my friend’s teeth before, and he’s still having trouble.

What do we do when we feel that way? We recognize that feelings can lie, and we choose to act according to truth. We keep feeding on God’s word. That’s how miracles happen. And so much has happened when we continue to act on truth no matter how we feel.

I’ve felt like other things were impossible before. It felt impossible to have overflowing joy in certain circumstances. But I recognized that scripture teaches it’s possible. I knew I wasn’t reflecting that truth in my life, but I wanted to. So I kept coming to God with it and reminding myself of God’s word on the matter. Soon I was experiencing joy many people can’t even fathom in the midst of some crazy trials! God’s word produced it in me as I continued to look to His word.

We must remind ourselves of God’s word concerning the position He has raised us to, especially when we recognize we are acting and praying as if we are inferior to the things we confront. As we humbly receive God’s word, His word does the work and conforms our lives to what God says.

John 3:31 (NKJV) He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.

1 John 5:4 (NIV) …for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.

What About Injustice And Persecutions?

What about when you are suffering injustice? Injustice and corruption is rampant in Brazil, and we have suffered wrong.

It’s so easy to feel like a victim, inferior to the system around you. But I remind myself of Corrie and Betsie Ten Boom in a Nazi Concentration camp, and this passage of scripture that became so real to them during that time.

Romans 8:31-37 (NKJV) What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.  Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written:

“For Your sake we are killed all day long;

We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 

This scripture became present reality to Corrie and Betsie in that concentration camp as they ministered to the other prisoners around them who were dying daily. It was not “We will be more than conquerors.” It was “We are more than conquerors!”

How can a prisoner in a concentration camp be more than a conqueror?

When nothing can change your destiny in heaven, you are more than a conqueror.

When nothing can stop you from loving with God’s love and bringing heaven to people around you, you are more than a conqueror.

When you have unspeakable joy in Christ and nobody can steal it, you are more than a conqueror.

When no matter what people do to you, they can’t change who you are, you are more than a conqueror.

I once heard someone say that the conqueror is the boxer who wins the match. His wife, who spends the prize money, is more than a conqueror! And that’s how it is. We share in Jesus’ victory and triumph.

If we really understand the gospel and let the Word of truth do its work in us, there will never be a place for any sense of inferiority or self-pity! Rather, our hearts always burst with triumph! I’m not going to be more than a conqueror. I am more than a conqueror, now, through Him who has loved me!

1 Corinthians 15:57 (NIV) But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

The post No Inferiority appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

When “Inner Healing” Goes Wrong

[image error]Last week in Inner Healing And Deliverance,  I shared some of my views on inner healing. I believe ministering inner healing is certainly valid, but I don’t believe we should see it as a condition for physical healing or deliverance. It often follows physical healing or deliverance.

Today we’ll look at how “inner healing” ministry gone wrong can do more harm than good.

When I Tried Getting Christian “Inner Healing” Ministry

I tried getting some Christian “inner healing” ministry in my late teen years. I felt overwhelmed with emotional pain over the past and I didn’t know what else to do.

It didn’t help. In fact, it seemed to make the problems worse!

The extreme with “inner healing” ministry gone wrong is that it puts faith in the problem instead of in God and ends up exacerbating and magnifying the problem instead of getting people free. That’s what I experienced as a teen.

Scripture says in Romans 6:11 to count ourselves dead to sin and alive to God. When “inner healing ministry” goes wrong, it teaches people to identify with their issues rather than with Christ. When the very thing we need to do is to consider ourselves dead to that issue and alive to God, “inner healing” gone wrong teaches us to consider ourselves very much alive to the problem and dead to God.

Dan Mohler shared the story of being gripped with fear of the dark after just seeing the Holy Spirit do a glorious work. He overcame the attack, and God said “You don’t have a ‘problem.’ It’s an attack from the outside trying to get in.”

If Dan had identified with the problem as his own, that attack would have gotten in! Dan didn’t have a spirit of fear! But Satan’s tactic was to try to get him to identify with a spirit of fear (a problem) so that spirit could gain a foothold in his life.

This is a common tactic of the enemy. He attacks us in our thoughts and emotions, trying to get us to identify with the problem so as to give him a foothold. He brings up issues from the past and tries to get us to “own” them instead of considering ourselves dead to them.

Many Christians have experienced this kind of attack. Think of a believer who Jesus set free from pornography. All of the sudden comes a barrage of dirty thoughts. It may be “an attack from the outside trying to get in,” but if the believer suddenly identifies with “having a lust problem,” that attack will get in. Satan uses lying accusations in an attempt to plant fear and doubt that Jesus has really set us free.

That’s what I was experiencing during that period of my late teen years. Instead of considering myself dead to sin and alive to God, “inner healing” gone wrong encouraged me to identify with old problems instead of identifying with Christ. I only became more aware my “issues” and less aware of Jesus!

Even when a person does have a problem, Satan will lose his foothold in that area when the person stops identifying with the problem and starts identifying with Christ. That’s how the “free gift of righteousness” works to bring change and redemption.

Inner Healing Ministry Must Be Gospel-Centered!

Inner healing ministry done right is about applying gospel truth.

The extreme of “inner healing” ministry gone wrong is when all of the sudden we have ten reasons we think a person can’t be free yet. I’ve prayed for people who were only more frustrated after weeks of that kind of ministry, and seen them set free in a few minutes. That was only possible because I didn’t believe those things had to be dealt with first. The resolution of those issues followed, not preceded, the deliverance. 

I’ve heard some inner healing ministers make it clear that they believe everybody has a fragmented soul and we will always be working through problems and never really hope to be free. I know that’s far from true. It’s an extreme view. It’s accepting something as “normal” that should be subnormal in the church. People who think this way have no idea how much of heaven it’s possible to experience on earth! Jesus is able to save completely those who come to God through Him. (Hebrews 7:25)

If ministering inner healing to others is leaving you heavy or depressed, there’s something wrong. If you are getting “inner healing” ministry and it’s leaving you all the more frustrated with feelings of despair that you don’t know if you’ll ever get through your “issues,” something is wrong. We will never identify with Christ and his death and resurrection if we continue to self-identify by our problems. “Inner healing” done right teaches us to identify our “issues” as having been crucified with Christ, instead of continuing to resurrect them.

 Not Hurt, Depressed, Or Abandoned!


This powerful message from Dan Mohler gives a lot of insight on what it looks like to identify with Jesus and God’s righteousness instead of being defined by circumstances and “issues.”

The post When “Inner Healing” Goes Wrong appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

Inner Healing And Deliverance

[image error]


In the last few weeks, we’ve been sharing a strong case from scripture for the simplicity of deliverance ministry. We looked at the simplicity of Jesus’ deliverance ministry and the apostles’ deliverance ministry. We also made a case that the devil has no legal rights, and we highlighted the difference between Jesus’ deliverance ministry and the rites of other Jewish exorcists.


Some time ago we also had a three-part series on How I Stopped All The Complicated Stuff In Healing The Sick. This was a similar topic, since healing and deliverance ministry are closely related.


This brings up the question for many people “What about inner-healing ministry?” Since some people have asked my views on this, I’ll share some thoughts.





Jesus Came To Bind Up The Broken-Hearted

 Isaiah 61:1 (NIV) The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners


We sometimes swing from one extreme to another with what we believe. However, I don’t see belief in a simple approach to deliverance as a reason to discard the validity of “inner healing.” Jesus came to bind up the brokenhearted!


Spirit-led people today are ministering inner healing and helping others. And if you minister inner healing and a demon leaves, that’s great. There are so many testimonies of heart issues being resolved through a word of knowledge or other supernatural ministry, and we always celebrate what God does.




What I struggle with is when a person goes to an inner healing session (or multiple ones) and being unable to cast out a demon, we conclude “We couldn’t do it because they still have a lot of issues to work through.” We have made a strong case that such “issues” didn’t stop Jesus from healing someone or expelling a demon, and we shouldn’t let them stop us. At the end of this article, we have one of many testimonies of people whose issues couldn’t stop Jesus from touching them. Therefore, we should never put the blame on the person receiving ministry and their failure to work through heart issues when we fail to do what Jesus did.
How Did People Receive Inner Healing From Jesus?

Scripture tells us that Jesus came to bind up the brokenhearted, but it doesn’t seem to go into a lot of detail about how he did so. I think much of the inner healing that happened when people were around Jesus was just because of the rivers of living water flowing out of him. It was his pure love.


I’ve experienced deep comfort that I physically felt pouring over my head like oil when another Christian gave a few kind words. Just today I felt something similar on my head, physically tangible, but there was nobody around. It was probably an angel ministering God’s presence to me. I’ve felt it many times. I’m sure people felt the same thing when they met Jesus.


I don’t think you can get much more demonized than the Gadarene demoniac was. But there’s a manifestation of God’s glory(love) that can be released through a God-filled person and crush every barrier in a moment. Why doesn’t the Bible seem to say much about how Jesus ministered inner healing? I think because it was so simple. It was truth, love, and glory that did the work.

The wounds in Zacchaeus’ heart were already being bound up when Jesus said “Come down. I must stay at your house today.” The Samaritan woman was receiving “inner healing” when Jesus revealed the secrets of her heart. There’s something very healing and comforting just in seeing that God knows all your secrets and He loves you.

Jesus is pure love. As we grow in him we’ll learn to manifest the same. I was personally set free from a heavy burden with the simple words “What is there to be depressed about?” 

Did the Gadarene receive inner healing? I’m sure he did. My question is, when? The account doesn’t suggest much happening right before Jesus cast out the demons. They left quickly with a simple command. When Jesus was standing in front of the Gadarene, no “heart wounds” were enough for a demon to cling to! I believe the Gadarene, as well as many of the others who Jesus ministered to receive heart healing during and after being physically healed or delivered from demons, not before. The same love that drove the demon out was also healing balm to their hearts. If you drive demons out with love, the house is not left empty for them to return!

 As the body of Christ, we can also minister inner healing. We bind up the brokenhearted with truth, grace, and love. Words of knowledge can also be a powerful tool to shine light on the secrets of people’s hearts.
Things Get Easier With A Greater Manifestation Of God’s Glory

Too often the church has seen inner healing as a condition for physical healing or deliverance to be able to happen. Rather, inner healing often follows the physical healing or deliverance from a demon.

Some of us have seen physical healings after persevering for hours. And we will persevere until we see results. However, there’s a place of walking in God’s glory that all we need to do is be close and when our shadow touches someone they are healed. No matter what the condition or how complex it is. I see inner healing the same way. It’s easier and faster with a greater manifestation of glory. The greater manifestation comes as we are transformed by beholding the Lord.

There’s a place where we are walking in God’s light until even our presence exposes demons so they cry out. I’ve tasted it, and I want to continually abide in such an awareness of God’s presence.

Jesus Healed Him In Spite Of His Bitterness And Anger!

I’ve shared some of my testimonies in other posts of people experiencing a heart change only after they were physically healed. I recently listened to Bradford McClendon’s testimony and wanted to share it as well. Cancer had spread all through his body, and he thought he was going to die.

Brad was angry at God. He would get mad if anybody mentioned Jesus. When his wife dragged him to church, he was mocking God. He fumed away after receiving prayer. (At his wife’s insistence) He didn’t feel a thing when he received prayer. But when the doctors checked him soon after, they found no cancer! The atheist doctors said “This had to be Jesus, because you were a dead man.”

Brad got even madder after God healed him. He hated God. He wanted God to leave him alone. He didn’t want to be healed. He wanted to die and be separated from God.

Brad’s heart was so hard that he continued in sin, misery, and bitterness against God for more than a year before he repented and dealt with the heart issues. Jesus is so merciful, and he really does love his enemies! Brad eventually did repent. His story is the first in the God stories playlist. (It keeps showing #52 even though I link to the first, so you might have to go to the playlist.)

May testimonies such as Brad’s inspire your faith and encourage the church throw out the notion that we should expect sin, unforgiveness, or other heart issues to “block” Jesus’ work through us.

Next week we’ll look at how an unbalanced view of “inner healing” ministry can do more harm than good.

The post Inner Healing And Deliverance appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

Why Were The Jewish Exorcists Astounded At Jesus’ Authority?

[image error]We’ve been talking about deliverance ministry in the last few weeks. First, we looked at the simplicity of how Jesus cast out demons. Then we looked at casting out demons in the book of Acts. After that, I shared my experience with seeing deliverance in the Universal Church, and then we examined the notion that demons have a “legal right” to afflict people.

As I was writing on this subject, one of my friends posted a video by a guy named Bradford McClendon. I liked the way he carries God’s presence, and I started listening to a few of his other “God Stories” videos.

Jesus Delivering The Deliverance Minister

I really resonated with a lot of what Brad said as he shared his testimonies. In the video below, Brad shares a story of a deliverance minister who gained extensive knowledge about the names and methods of various demons and how to deal with them. He said “You need to know a demon’s name to cast it out,” and he had a book and notepad with hundreds of demon’s names and information about what they were, what they did, and how to cast them out.

Brad said “I thought we had to know the name of Jesus and not the name of demons.” The deliverance minister got really upset. He continued to talk about knowing demon’s tactics and Brad responded: “Well, how much do you know about Jesus?” From then on the deliverance minister got more and more upset!

The next morning the deliverance minister walked up to Brad crying. He had felt a tug on his foot in the night, and it was Jesus at the end of the bed. Jesus whispered, “Come into the kitchen.” When they went into the kitchen Jesus turned and smiled, saying “You’re delivered now.” He started vomiting as the religious spirit left. Then Jesus smiled and disappeared.

You Connect With What You Focus On, So Let Jesus Capture Your Attention!

Long ago I warned a friend that he didn’t need to learn much about demons to overcome them. He needed to know Jesus. Brad’s story is not one-of-a-kind. People have often become demonized by studying demonology, and I didn’t want my friend to fall into the same trap. In the spirit realm, you connect with what you focus on. Focus on Jesus and what he’s done.

Another thing Brad said was “If the love of God shows up, everything else has to go that’s not of love.” I wanted to shout “Yes!” As Corrie Ten Boom said “Love is the most powerful force in the world.” I’ve experienced a love that drives everything else out. This was how I got set free when nobody could help me. It was a love so real that it became physically tangible, enveloping my face and then spreading over my body. After one such experience when I was 15 years old, I was continually near the point of tears for several months and I kept thinking “How is it possible for me to love so much?”

What if we manifest God’s love to other people in such a tangible way as I experienced? With all my heart, that’s what I want to grow into by God’s grace. God has given us the Holy Spirit to manifest His love.

The powerful manifestation of God’s love can quickly end any kind of torment. So what we need isn’t more special knowledge or methods. It’s a greater manifestation of God’s glory. This comes through us and it increases as we behold the Lord and are transformed into the same image by His glory.

How Was Jesus Different Than The Jewish Exorcists?

As Brad was talking, he mentioned that the reason Jesus’ casting out demons was so scandalous to the Jews was that he did it so differently. They had their system to cast out demons. Jesus broke their tradition and was ruining the whole system.

I’d been aware that Jews cast out demons before hearing this video. In fact, various religions, including witchcraft, have exorcism practices. And scripture mentions the Jewish exorcists. In fact, it seems to contrast Christian deliverance ministry with their methods.

Matthew 12:27 (NIV) And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges.

Acts 19:13 (NIV) Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.”

As we read in Acts 19, some of those Jewish exorcists were the seven sons of Sceva, who was a Jewish high priest. They tried to use Jesus’ name ritualistically, and they got beat up by the man with the evil spirit. This story contrasts with verses 11 and 12 of the same chapter, which tells us that demons fled when even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched Paul were brought to people.

What does this tell us? It’s not about a ritual or a method. It’s about knowing Jesus.

Brad’s comment about Jewish exorcists made me curious. I’d noticed them in scripture, but I knew very little about the way they cast out demons. So I googled “Rabbinical exorcism” and “Jewish exorcism” to read several articles. Here are the links to some of them in case you want to read more for yourself, but I’ll summarize what stood out to me.

Jewish Exorcism

Jewish Encyclopedia On Exorcism

Rabbi Andrew Jacobs on Jewish Exorcism

Dybbuks, Demons, And Exorcism In Judaism

Wikipedia Article On Exorcism: Judaism

Jews were known for their expertise in casting out demons. It was a long and laborious process. It involved repeated ritual actions and many threats and rebukes. It focused heavily on learning the demon’s name because the exorcists believed they overcame the demon with the power of its own name. It also focused on gaining knowledge about the evil spirit, including learning why it was there and how it had entered. They also could include various other things such as incense, Torah scrolls, blowing a shofar, and even amulets. Jews sometimes invoked angels or “beneficial spirits” to help with the exorcism.

One or two sources stated that Jewish exorcists were usually involved in Kaballah. (A form of the occult.) Some were demonized themselves, and believed “such possession could on occasion be benevolent.”(Likewise, a friend who was formerly involved in the occult told me that they had expelled demons with the help of other demons.)

If Jews Were Already Familiar With Exorcism, Why Were They Astounded At Jesus’ Authority?

Mark 1:21-28 (NIV) They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”

“Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.

The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.” News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

When we understand the background of Jewish exorcism practices, it sheds some light on why they were amazed at Jesus’ authority. In this story, all Jesus said was “Be quiet! Come out of him!”

He didn’t need to learn the demon’s name in order to have power over it.

He didn’t burn incense and blow a shofar.

He didn’t spend three hours threatening the spirit, conversing with it, and trying to find out how it entered and why it was there.

Jesus’ authority stood in sharp contrast to the methods of the Jewish exorcists.

I didn’t mention Jewish exorcism practices in my latest book, “What Really Causes Needless Casualties Of War.” I hadn’t yet read much on the subject. However, I did share several reasons that people become vulnerable to attack because of their approach to confronting evil. Today’s article ties in closely with some of my conclusions in “What Really Causes Needless Casualties Of War.” If you’re looking for more insight on this topic, you might want to get a copy!

[image error]

 

 

 

The post Why Were The Jewish Exorcists Astounded At Jesus’ Authority? appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

Does The Devil Have Legal Rights?

[image error]In the last few weeks, we’ve been looking at the simplicity of the deliverance ministry that Jesus and the apostles modeled.

The devil would love to make something simple appear complicated because if it seems complicated we will be double-minded and waver in our faith. What we have noticed is that things are as complicated as we make them. In other words, if we believe we have to do something to heal someone or cast out a demon, we’re probably not going to have any success unless we do everything believed necessary. However, if we believe it can be so much simpler, our experience follows.

Today we’ll examine the question of if demons ever have a “legal right” to wreak havoc and destruction.

What Did Jesus Do With The Legalities That Were Against Us?

 Colossians 2:13-15 (NIV) When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

There’s a big problem with playing by legalities. Scripture says that everybody who relies on the works of the law is under a curse. If our approach is based on legalities, we are just where Satan would like us to be. Witchcraft is law-based, because that’s the ground Satan has an advantage on.

So many of the teachings about spiritual warfare that I absorbed as a young person emphasized the blessings and curses of the law. They failed to mention that nobody was able to obtain the blessing based on that law, and everybody who relies on it is under a curse.

Galatians 5:4 (NIV) You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.

You can choose. Do you want to live by legalities or by gospel rules? You can’t do both. If you’re under the jurisdiction of the gospel court, don’t appeal to the court that works by legalities operating according to the basic principles of this world.

Is Satan Lawful?

I had already questioned the idea that Satan has “legal rights” for several reasons, including the simplicity of Jesus’ deliverance ministry. If any of the demons Jesus cast out had a “legal right,” then casting them out was an act of lawlessness. And Jesus is not lawless. If the Python spirit that Paul cast out had a “legal right,” what Paul did was also unlawful.

Then I came across a Facebook note written by my friend Cheryl Fritz. Cheryl’s thoughts really brought clarity to the subject. She distinguished between an “opportunity” or “foothold,” and a “legal right.”

Scripture says that Satan is a thief, a liar, and a murderer. By definition, Satan is lawless.

As Cheryl pointed out, what judge would rule that a burglar had a “legal right” to steal because the homeowner was away on vacation and left every door of the house open with valuables sitting in plain view?

What cop would fail to arrest that burglar on the grounds that he had a “legal right” to burglarize such an easy target?

What judge would rule that a rapist had a “legal right” to assault a woman because she was dressed provocatively and hanging out with the wrong crowd?

If those scenarios sound preposterous, then why do we apply that kind of logic to dealing with Satan? When does Satan have a “legal right” to oppose God’s purposes? When does he have a “legal right” to lie and blind people to God’s glory revealed through Christ? When does he have a “legal right” to rob and murder people?

Never. If he was acting lawfully, he would tell people the truth and teach them to turn to Christ!

Opportunities Vs. Legal Rights

Satan is an opportunist when it comes to oppressing people. He has no “rights” to his rebellion against God, but he looks for vulnerabilities. Yet he would love to convince us that he has a “legal right” to wreak havoc, and thus it is unlawful for us to expel him.

You know, I’ve had some experience talking to criminals. Hardened criminals love to justify themselves. Not only do they deny the wrongfulness of what they’ve done or shift the blame, but they make themselves out to be the victims! Why do we fall for it?

Scripture says not to give the devil a “foothold.” If you get robbed, the cops may recommend closing and locking your doors, or installing an alarm system. Nothing’s wrong with identifying and remedying vulnerabilities that a criminal may try to take advantage of. But let’s stop calling those vulnerabilities “legal rights.” 

You are the one who has a “legal right”—to kick Satan out, trample him underfoot, and plunder him!

The “legal approach” to dealing with demons is one of the ways that people needlessly get hurt in spiritual warfare. I call it “playing by the devil’s rules and not by gospel rules.” For more on the topic, check out my book What Really Causes Needless Casualties Of War?

[image error]

 

The post Does The Devil Have Legal Rights? appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

The Universal Church’s Deliverance Ministry

[image error]

Tempe Of Solomon, Universal Church headquarters in São Paulo

In the last few weeks, we looked at how Jesus and the apostles ministered deliverance. Today, I thought I’d share my experience at the Universal Church, which is a church organization (denomination?) based in Brazil.

I Didn’t Like The Universal Church!

Many people speak against the Universal church in Brazil. The criticism often has to do with the prosperity teaching and money.

I didn’t like them either. First of all, I don’t have a problem with prosperity but I hate manipulation surrounding giving. And I consider it a very serious wrong to ever connect healing or deliverance with a person’s giving. Besides that, sitting as a spectator in a Mega-church isn’t my cup of tea. I like to participate.

I also had confused them with Universalists. Universalists teach that everybody will eventually be saved, and some of them teach that there’s more than one way to get to God. I’m don’t like that.

I try to avoid making hasty or premature judgements, but I have to admit that’s exactly what I did with the Universal Church. It’s still not all my cup of tea, but I’ve realized that I can learn something from them. I’m not into all their gimmicks either, but I do have to admit, they help to keep people engaged.

My wife had also judged them prematurely, but now she’s going regularly. I’ve gone with her a few times.

They are not Universalists. I had just gotten the terms confused. Some of the criticism about manipulation with offerings is deserved, but it’s not the whole picture. And what I saw wasn’t as extreme as what I heard about.

I don’t agree with all the doctrine, but few of us agree on every doctrinal point. They do have some manipulation in taking the offering, but what I saw honestly wasn’t much different than many large churches. It wasn’t of the kind that attaches giving to healing or deliverance, and even though I really don’t like it, it doesn’t negate the good.

In fact, when a person gives a testimony of their healing or deliverance from demons, they often ask “How much did it cost you?” The person says “Nothing.” So they are making it clear that those things are free gifts. That’s good. As far as I know, they are the only church doing much ministry in prisons and they are doing a lot to help the poor.

So much so that a thief stole a woman’s car but he apologized and returned it when he saw something from the Universal church in her car. As much as other churches may criticize them, they’ve gained the respect of the poor and even some criminals. We’ve even heard the testimonies of some Christians who spoke against them, and then ended up going there for help.

A Unique Group

The Universal Church in Del Castilho is a huge complex with various buildings, including restaurants. The main auditorium is a half-circle stadium that seats 10,000 people. They have multiple meetings every single day of the week, and they’re packed.

The church encourages people to start businesses, and they have an entrepreneurs’ meeting, in which they give business tips and pray for businesses. Some members are very rich, but the church focuses a lot on ministry to the poor. They also focus a lot on ministering to people who have become demonized through witchcraft and spells. They have regular deliverance meetings.

On Sunday the four-story garage is so packed that you don’t put on the handbrake when you park. People parallel-park in front of the other cars parked in the regular parking, and then the security guards need to roll the cars back and forth to let out the people they are blocking at the end of the service. It’s a real mess, but it made me laugh!

How They Minister Deliverance

The thing I like at the Universal Church is how aggressive they are at ministering deliverance. They sing and preach forcefully, proclaiming Jesus’ work and challenging every force of evil oppressing the people. In the meetings, we regularly hear screams coming from people around the auditorium as they manifest demons. I’ve seen many deliverances happen with mild or little manifestation, but I’ve never seen so many where the demon manifested speaking through people in a low, growling voice as at the Universal Church.

One thing they’ve been doing lately is turning off all the lights and holding a spotlight behind the pastor. He moves his arm so that the shadow passes over the whole building, including the top and bottom stadium levels. As the shadow passes, we hear screams coming from people falling down, demonized. Then they minister deliverance. Some of the people they bring up front. Although the demon speaks, the person isn’t always aware of what’s going on and it’s like their hands are tied behind their back.

We’ve heard so many testimonies of people who were set from oppressive spirits at meetings like this. Those testimonies show long-term results. Many are of people who were on drugs or cheating on their spouse, and now they have a happy and healthy marriage.

My observation, in comparing this approach to other Christian groups I’ve seen, is how simple it was to set them free. I think it mirrors, a little bit, how simple it was for Jesus when he cast the legion out of the Gadarene demoniac, and cast out demons “with a word.” The life change followed the deliverance. Some Christians would have tried to minister to these people as if they thought the life change needed to precede the deliverance!

They also have special meetings for people addicted to drugs, and they treat it as a deliverance as well. Since they are reaching many spiritualists, they call it a “spiritual treatment” or a “light treatment,” but the treatment is the authority of Christ! They literally bring up people who are craving drugs or tobacco, minister deliverance, and then put the substance in their face for them to smell. The thing they craved a minute before now makes them want to puke! And we’ve heard testimonies quite a while later of people who were set free from addictions by deliverance ministry at the Universal Church.

I’d already had just a few similar experience praying for people with addictions, but I’d never seen this happen so regularly! Seeing this at the Universal Church has really encouraged my faith to believe for the same thing.

Here’s another observation. Some people would think such an approach to helping addicts is way too simplistic, but can they replicate the results? Of course, discipleship and follow-up are valuable. But over-complicating things can keep us from actually ministering in the power of the gospel.

Conclusion

The subjects of healing and deliverance are closely related and often intersect. Scripture tells of how crowds thronged Jesus, begging to touch even the hem of his garment and everyone who touched it was healed.

“Everyone who touched is was healed” means that nobody touched it and wasn’t healed. Nobody touched Jesus’ garment and it didn’t work because their issue was too complicated for a simple touch to resolve! If that was true of Jesus, then what do the “greater works” that he’s called us to look like?

Somebody can tell me a story of a person who was healed after forgiving someone who wronged them. Well, I rejoice that they were healed! It can happen that way. But I also remember the story of a lady with stage-four cancer who continued in drunkenness, bitterness, and unforgiveness for weeks after she was healed. It was only when she realized she was healed that her heart softened, the alcoholism fell away, and she forgave others.

You can tell me a story of deliverance from Obsessive-compulsive disorder as a person underwent counseling and examining wrong beliefs. If someone got free, I rejoice! It can happen that way. But I also remember how it felt like no amount of counseling could help me but I was delivered from Obsessive-compulsive disorder (and probably a ton of other stuff with it) as I had one tangible encounter with God’s glory. For every person you can think of who got healed or delivered after dealing with an issue, there are others for whom the resolution of the same issue followed the healing or deliverance rather than preceding it. So let’s not let methods stand in the way of faith. A greater manifestation of God’s glory means things get easier!

In spite of the fact that not everything at the Universal Church is my cup of tea, they have some long-lasting fruit of people getting set free in a way that’s far simpler than some believe it can be. Even so, the Universal Church is only worth imitating to the extent that they imitate Jesus. Jesus is the standard.

Next week we’ll examine the difference between a demon having a “legal right” and a “foothold.”

The post The Universal Church’s Deliverance Ministry appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.

How Did The Apostles Cast Out Demons?

[image error]Last week we looked at how Jesus expelled demons. He was never unable to cast one out. It wasn’t complicated or difficult. A word from Jesus was enough. Today we’ll look at casting out demons in the book of Acts.

How Did The Apostles Cast Out Demons?

Acts 16 tells the story of a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She was annoying Paul..

Acts 16:18 (NIV) Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.

The Greek language in this passage shows us that this was a Python spirit. The Python spirit guarded the Oracle at Delphi. It was a well-known spirit with territorial influence.

According to what I was taught about deliverance, this slave girl would at least have needed to pray a prayer of renouncing witchcraft before she could be delivered. There would probably be a need to identify the point of entry, make sure everything is repented of, and identify and cast out accessory demons before such a “major” thing as this Python spirit could be expelled.

But how did Paul cast it out? With a command! When did the demon leave? Scripture says it left immediately.

Expelling Demons With Handkerchiefs?

Acts 19:12 (NIV) …so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.

If anything more than the manifest presence of God was needed to expel demons, the demons would not have left when Paul’s handkerchiefs got near them. If the demon had a “legal right” to stay, it would have taken more than a handkerchief saturated with God’s presence to drive it out. If a “generational curse” could keep a demon from leaving, Paul’s handkerchiefs wouldn’t have worked.

What have we done when we command a spirit to leave and it doesn’t leave immediately? We assume “I did the right thing, and it didn’t work, so there must be a reason. There must be something else I need to do.”

We make faith into a formula and then when it doesn’t work, we make the formula more complicated. By doing so, we come up with all kinds of reasons that we aren’t able to do what Jesus and Paul did. A healthier response would be to let scripture challenge us to grow. If we are honest with ourselves, we have room to grow in manifesting God’s presence and power to a greater degree.

Is This An Argument From Silence?

Some have argued that this is an argument from silence, as if we are invalidating certain methods only because we don’t read of Jesus doing them.

First of all, I’m not invalidating teaching people to repent, renouncing witchcraft, or helping people to deal with heart issues. I don’t have a problem having a person renounce witchcraft. I don’t have a problem with Holy Spirit-led inner healing ministry.

I am saying that scripture challenges the idea that these things are necessary to expel demons. We should never say “I couldn’t cast out that demon because…” We should never treat any of these things as hoops we must jump through to cast out an evil spirit. The devil would love to make a simple thing complicated, because by doing so he wears us down and gets us to waver and doubt. Let’s let scripture challenge the traditions of men.

It’s not only that we never read of Jesus or the apostles needing to jump through hoops to cast out a demon. After Jesus’ disciples failed to cast out a demon, Jesus told them nothing would be impossible if they believed. If anything more than believing is ever needed to cast out a demon, Jesus’ words in that passage are not true. Questioning if anything more is needed is not an argument from silence because we invalidate Jesus’ words in scripture if we teach that believing isn’t enough.

Faith in God isn’t about mental assent or subscribing to a belief system. It’s about knowing God, and we are growing in the knowledge of him as the Holy Spirit is building us up until we reach the full measure of the stature of Christ.

We fall into a trap when we make things so complicated. The need right now in the church is for the simplicity that’s found in Christ.

When I share this point of view on deliverance, some people (especially some deliverance ministers) respond by assuming people who hold such views don’t have experience with deliverance. I’d like to point out that doing so is getting theology from personal experience instead of scripture. It’s lowering the standard of scripture to fit our experience instead of letting our experience change, and it’s exactly what many people have done with God’s will to heal. 

Because of this objection, next week we’ll look at how the Universal (not Universalist) church in Brazil is ministering deliverance to demonized people. If your experience has been that ministering deliverance is complicated and difficult, it will encourage you to know that it can be simple. Then we’ll examine the idea that Satan has “legal rights.” After that that we’ll go on to discuss deliverance and inner healing ministry, and deliverance during teaching.

The post How Did The Apostles Cast Out Demons? appeared first on Go to Heaven Now!.