Let’s talk about deliverance prayer.

1. What is it?
2. Who needs it?
3. How to know if you need it?

What is deliverance prayer:

Deliverance is setting people free from the bondage of the enemy (demons). It is removing their legal right and verbally casting them out. Deliverance is not a spiritual gifting or office. We as Christians can all perform deliverance because we all have authority over the enemy through Jesus Christ. 

Luke 10:19-20 Listen carefully: I have given you authority [that you now possess] to tread on serpents and scorpions, and [the ability to exercise authority] over all the power of the enemy (Satan); and nothing will [in any way] harm you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”

Matthew 16:19 I will give you the keys (authority) of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind [forbid, declare to be improper and unlawful] on earth will have [already] been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose [permit, declare lawful] on earth will have [already] been loosed in heaven.”

Mark 16:17-18 These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak in new tongues; ¹⁸ they will pick up serpents, and if they drink anything deadly, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well.”

Who Needs It:

Anyone being tormented by demons. I only do deliverance prayers with Christians because if the person is not a Christian, they will not be able to keep the demons from coming back and they would end up worse off than they were.

So that leads to the next questions I so often hear: how can a Christian have a demon living in them? Many people confuse possession with demonization/oppression. There is a huge difference. Possession means ownership. A Christian cannot be possessed by a demon. Possession means you lose control and cannot stop what is going on in your body. You are owned by the demons and consumed with evil. This would be what can happen when a demon moves into a non-Christian.

Demonization is not ownership. According to 1 Thessalonians we are made up of three parts: spirit, soul and body. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Our spirit is the home of the Holy Spirit. When we get saved the Holy Spirit comes in and dwells within our spirit. Our soul/body is our mind, will, emotions, and flesh. This is the area the demons can attach to if we give them an open door and legal right to our lives through personal or generational sin. Below are several scriptures to support the fact that Christians can have demons attached to their lives and have a need for deliverance.

Jesus preached and cast out demons in the synagogues (churches). The church folks were the ones He was casting demons out of.

Mark 1:39 “And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out the demons.” 

Satan entered Judas, who was one of the twelve. He spent days with Jesus walking, talking, and learning from Jesus and yet Satan entered his heart.

Luke 22:3 “And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the twelve.”

A little boy was thrown into fire and water by demons trying to destroy him. Demons can even enter children.

Mark 9:21-22 “And He asked His father, “How long has this been happening to him? And he said, “From childhood. It has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!”

Peter declared that Satan had filled the heart of Ananias. He was a Christian, but he had a heart issue that allowed a demon to enter.

Acts 5:3 “But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of land?’

Paul told the believers in Ephesus: “Neither give place to the devil.” This implies that it is possible for a Christian to give place to the devil or his demons.

Ephesians 4:27 ^“And do not give the devil an opportunity [to lead you into sin by holding a grudge, or nurturing anger, or harboring resentment, or cultivating bitterness].”

The devil oppresses Christians.

Acts 10: 38 “…God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil…”

Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor, He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed.”

Satan was using Peter to try to create a stumbling block. Matthew 16:23 “But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on things of God, but on things of man.”

The Holy Spirit does not prevent evil spirts from dwelling in a believer’s body or soul. We can be Spirit-filled believers who memorize the Word of God, sing in the choir, teach Sunday school, serve as deacons, or preach and still be demonized. I did! I have been saved since I was 18 years old. I have loved God since I first gave my heart to Him, I have always prayed, and I have even been used by Him to minister to others numerous times, and yet I lived in bondage to the enemy.

It is not a salvation issue; it is a torment issue. If demons were driven out at the point of salvation, why did Jesus not just always tell the people their sins were forgiven? He did not do that, He verbally cast the demons out. Even when He was healing them, many times, He cast demons out of them. Living with demonic oppression takes a major toll on the body both physically and mentally.

How do I know if I need deliverance:

I want to discuss the difference between demons and the flesh. Many people often think they are to blame for the negativity going on in their minds. I felt this way for years. I could not understand why I could not get “my” thoughts under control. I cried, prayed and repented but “my” thoughts continued to be so dark and negative. It was what many labelled negative self-talk. The only issue with that label is many times it is demons and not our own thoughts at all. If it is a flesh issue/self, we can crucify it. When we are acting out of the flesh we can fast, pray, spend time at the feet of Jesus, and read the Word of God to get it back under control.

Roman 6:6 “knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;”

Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”

Galatians 5:24 “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”  

Maintaining personal discipline is also key in making the flesh submit to the will of God.

Colossians 3:3 “For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Ephesians 4:24 “and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.”

If you are having torment issues that you cannot stop you may need deliverance. I am going to list a few symptoms: enticement towards sin, harassment, torture (physical illness or mental illness), compelling and compulsions, enslave, addictions, defile by creating vulgar and horrific thoughts and imaginations, deceive by distorting the truth of God, mental and emotional breakdowns, barrenness, impotency, miscarriages, and female complication because they want to kill, steal, and destroy, patterns of failure, poverty, inability to hear God’s voice or feel His presence, chronic life traumas, chronic or hereditary diseases, history of abuse and trauma, compulsive desire to blaspheme God, His Word, and/or preachers, hostility or fear of people in ministry, revulsion against the bible/difficulty reading or understanding it, compulsive thoughts of suicide or murder, deep feelings of bitterness/hate towards people for no reason, compulsive thoughts, desire to tear others down, manipulating others, terrifying feeling of guilt (even after confession to God), physical symptoms, deep depression, violent rage or anger,  terrifying doubt of salvation, uncontrollable/irrational panic attacks, anxiety, fear, and/or phobias,     horrific dreams, nightmares, and/or night terrors, abnormal or perverted sexual desires,  challenging God’s Word, sleep or eating disorders with no medical cause, rebellion and hatred for authority,  fascination/drawing towards the occult, criminal activity, extreme low self-image/self-hatred, confusion in thinking, perceptual distortions, desire to do right but inability to follow through, sudden personality and/or attitude changes, dark countenance/dark eyes, lying, exaggerating, or stealing Compulsively, compulsive sexual sins, irrational laughter or crying, compulsion to hurt self or others, negative reactions to the name and blood of Jesus Christ, extreme restlessness, especially in a spiritual environment, uncontrollable cutting and mocking tongue, critical of others, negative attitude, vulgar language and actions, loss of time, black outs, extreme sleepiness around spiritual things, voices are heard in the mind (The voices often mock, intimidate, accuse, threaten, or attempt to bargain. They never say anything good or tell you to do anything helpful.), voices that refer to him/her in the third person, supernatural experiences (Examples include movement or disappearance of objects, seeing shadows move in your home, feeling a dark presence, hearing voices or smelling particular smells that do not belong.), pain without Justifiable explanation and sudden temporary interference with bodily functions (For example, an inability to speak or hear, severe headache, and/or temporary paralysis.).

If you think you may need prayer please reach out to me, or someone who understands deliverance prayer,  and we can chat, pray, and seek freedom!!!