Before we assume that a person is spiritually
afflicted, we need to rule out all the medical possibilities. This includes
organic, functional, mental or emotional disorders. In the case of a physical
infirmity or one from an oppressing spirit the person often needs more than
prayer. Experience teaches us that prayers and fasting are often a requirement
to set some people free that Satan oppresses. The symptoms of a person who
suffer oppression are described as: 1) an aversion toward the things of God
and the church; 2) manifestations of unnatural powers or strength; 3) the
knowledge of secret and remote things; and/or 4) knowledge of a language not
previously known. Do not confuse this with the gift of tongues.
There are some things we all need to
understand before we can minister to the spiritually afflicted. For that
matter, these rules apply to anyone who wants to minister in any capacity. We
can all be vessels of the Holy Spirit, and pour out the living water that
washes the sins away. God cleansed all of us through the blood of the Lamb
and we are worthy to minister to others only because of the Lord's sacrifice.
The Holy Spirit gives different individuals gifts as He sees the need. We are
all part of the same body but we all have different functions. The Father,
Son and Holy Spirit are all in agreement; they are of one accord, in harmony.
We have all been given a measure of faith, and our faith works through love.
When we minister, the fruits of the Spirit will be present. The anointing of
God will witness to our own spirit within the realm of our own personal
understanding. The battle is the Lord's. We are not capable of fighting
spiritual foes since we are only flesh and blood, but we can indirectly bind
and loosen spiritual beings. The Lord knows us and leads us, so He draws
people to whom He desires us to minister. There is reason to advertise in any
form available that we have liberty in Christ to accomplish His will. The
Lord will lead those who are bound, to the Gospel workers. He does this
through His angels and well-placed advertisement.
It is much easier to deal with the
spiritually afflicted if we learn to rely on the entire church for their
support. They don't even have to know for whom they are praying. Their
involvement in any capacity will help unify the body. It is much easier for
us to love one another and manifest our prayers of faith when we are in
agreement. This union of faith in God to do that which we ask will make our
success almost effortless. The steps to setting someone free are as follows:
Seek The Guidance Of The Holy Spirit
The person we are ministering to needs to
commit their lives to the Lord. In the case of oppression, we may have to
bind the spirits to set the will free so they may accept the
Lord's gift of salvation.
The counselee needs deliverance from the
curses of the law and on iniquity. Reminding them that they are not guilty of
the sins of their ancestry, but the visitation of iniquity may be present
because of their sins.
If they are guilty of unrepentant sins, they
need to repent of them. The counselor can then loosen the spirits and then
ask the Lord's angels to bind them before they cast them into Tartarus, a
prison for the punishment of fallen angels. Every believer needs to
understand that our battle is in the heavenlies with spiritual beings who have
strongholds in the minds of the unbeliever and sometimes with the believer.
Only the Holy Spirit knows the hearts of men.
Until He gives us the discernment to stop interceding for the individual, we
are not to stop.
When the Son of God sets them free, they shall
be free indeed. Those who surrender their hearts to Jesus receive the Holy
Spirit and God places them in Christ.
The on-going conflicts are real. As
we become more aware of the spiritual realm, the Holy Spirit will sharpen our
discernment. It is through knowledge and understanding of the Word of God
that we learn to become effective in ministering to the spiritually afflicted.
We will now take a closer look at
the problem of spiritual deterioration. It is a problem with believers of
every age, and if we don't forewarn them they could suffer from their own lack
of knowledge. Every believer comes in contact at some point in their walk
with some type of physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual conflict. We all
have to prepare to deal with the problems. If there are battles ahead, the
Word will prepare us, and the Lord will teach us that we can totally rely on
Him.
The first battle we encounter is
usually one of unbelief within ourselves. Before we can minister, we need
discipline and obedience. God allows the battles so that we will learn to
place our faith in Him alone to deliver us. God allows the enemy to attack to
see if we will rely on our resources or trust God. Spiritual attacks will
also teach us to discern the voice of the enemy. Only Jesus sets us free, and
after this experience are we truly able to believe for someone else and be
useful to God to set others free. If we already know that Jesus set us free
through His victory at Calvary's cross, it will be easier to believe God for
all the blessings He has in store for us.
Christianity is a lifestyle and not
a religious way of life. God has provided for our nurturing through the
church. If a person is a babe, he really needs a lot of constant fellowship
and teaching. After feasting on the milk of the Word and starting to grow
spiritually, the babes will be able to handle some of the meat of the
Scripture.
Anyone can fall into one of the
snares of the enemy awaiting unwary Christians. We belong to Jesus and
nothing can snatch us out of His hand. However, God allows the tests, and He
gives the enemy permission to be the instrument by which we are tested. The
church is under attack because the enemy knows that his time is short. Do not
fear; God will never abandon His people. God did not leave us powerless. In
this age God is pouring out His Spirit and His grace upon all those who call
upon the name of the Lord. He sent His church into the world to disciple His
own, and God will baptize them into Christ with the Holy Spirit. Every
believer receives the Holy Spirit, so being a Christian cannot be the hardest
thing to do on earth. People find that being without Christ as their Life was
the hardest way to go.
There are warning signs when
Christians are having some trouble living and walking the way of the Spirit.
Everyone needs to know about spiritual deterioration, otherwise, how will we
avoid becoming its victim? The simple explanation is the spoiling of one's
faith in God. It can be the direct result of demonic oppression, or the
frustration caused by our inability to overcome the trials and tribulations of
life. Often a person is not relying on the Lord’s timing to deliver them when
they are in trouble. Some of them do not even know what constitutes sin until
they are under it’s bondage again.
In the book of James, we get a view
of some of the difficulties people were having. He did not have to spell them
out. All he did was tell them 'why' they were having problems and 'how' to
get the help they needed.
You ask and do not receive, because
you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and
adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with
God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an
enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, ‘The Spirit who
dwells in us yearns jealously’? But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:
‘God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’ Therefore submit to
God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will
draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts,
you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to
mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord,
and He will lift you up. Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is
anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call
for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with
oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and
the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may
be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. --
Ja. 4:3-10; 5:13-16
The problem of backsliding is a
gradual process. We do not become backsliders overnight, and not in a week or
two. It is a process that takes time. The only protection is to consecrate
our lives to the Lord and look at our walk daily.
The idea of a demon possessed
Christian is a falsehood. The is no reason to believe the enemy could take
possession of a person who is born again who is filled with the Holy Spirit,
even if they backslide. The people who claim they know of a possessed
Christian are usually confusing the terms of oppression, or demonization, with
possession. Possession is a total overthrow of a personality over a lengthy
period or time. Whereas demonization is for a short period of time with
limited control of the persons will. There is no recorded case of possession
in the New Testament after the New Covenant went in to effect upon the
resurrection of Christ. Oppression usually causes some personality defects.
The individual still has control and can go where they want and do what they
want to. The enemy only clouds their judgment. The enemy influences their
decisions -- the enemy does not totally control the people. They have strong
aversive thoughts, fiery darts, from the spirit(s) oppressing them.
Oppression is usually the result of progressive spiritual deterioration over a
long period of time.
Spiritual oppression can occur to a
person who is born-again, Holy Spirit-filled, and walking according to the way
of the Spirit. When a person makes a commitment to the Lord, they are under
His divine protection. However, their faith may be tested. Demons can
oppress us if God permits. Or, when God calls upon a person to minister, the
enemy may try to oppose them so they do not do God's will.
Oppression in a person's life can
affect a person mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. It will
cause spiritual deterioration and is the direct result of an attack upon their
faith in God. We need to be strong in the power of His might.
The temptations of the enemy come
directly through the fiery darts or thoughts that appeal to our former lusts
or pride of life. If we resist the temptation and submit to God, the enemy
will flee. If we yield to temptation and knowingly sin, we will have to seek
repentance, Godly sorrow for the act, before we overcome the oppression. This
form of oppression we repel by faith in the atoning sacrifice of the Lord. We
take authority over the situation by submitting to God; resisting the devil
and knowing through God's Word and personal experience that he will flee.
There is a reason why God allows
testing in a specific area of our life. The Holy Spirit can shows us, gives
us revelation, and we can ask the Lord to deliver us from the flaw and the
break the curse of iniquity. If we do not yield to the conviction by the Holy
Spirit, we can expect further discipline as a result of habitual sin. There
are no limits to the complications that occur to any certain category of
illnesses or types of affliction.
The possibility exists of a
Christian becoming oppressed is if they backslide. By backsliding, a person
is walking in direct opposition to God's will, and they know it. A backslider
knowingly sins, and will not come to repentance. The difference between a
believer and a backslider is obedience to God's will. A Christian will seek
help when they fall into the snare of the enemy. The backslider's darkened
conscience and heart hardened towards God deceives them, and this can
eventually blind them to the work of the enemy because of the sins they
continue to commit. Only God knows the hearts of men. Perhaps a person we
believe to be a Christian is yielding to sin, opening the door to oppression.
They have been disobedient and discipline may come in the form of a spiritual
affliction. God will not divinely protect us from the enemy if we break our
relationship with the Spirit and walk according to the world again. We can
come under the discipline of a loving God if we don't continue to walk
according to the Spirit. There is no middle ground, we can enjoy the
blessings of God through obedience; or we can suffer oppression as a result of
our disobedience.
![[Under Construction]](http://abundantprofitclub.com/undercon.gif){kind=small}