The Deliverance Ministry

Typically, deliverance ministries involve prayers, the laying on of hands, engaging in spiritual warfare, breaking generational curses and delivering believers from perceived demonic possessions. While this ministry can be extremely useful, Christians need to proceed with caution!

For one thing, Scripture does not list deliverance as a ministry. Moreover, it is a dangerous practice when ministers do not spiritually prepare themselves.

Spiritual Warfare

Many of the people we pray over for deliverance are survivors of severe spiritual warfare. It can be extremely challenging to get through the bondages that they have encountered and to bring them into complete freedom in Christ. It's important for the deliverance ministry to be gentle with these people and give them time to heal.

There are also situations where a person is experiencing oppression from other spirits such as in prisons, psychiatric units or nursing homes. We pray to cut free or cleanse them from these spirits and it's important for the deliverance minister to be able to discern these situations and how to deal with them.

The key to victory in spiritual warfare is simply trusting Jesus and believing that His word is true. It's a daily battle to choose Jesus over our fears, doubts and self-will. Victory often doesn't look like freedom from a major life challenge but more like overcoming daily challenges that come from shame, loneliness, disappointment and insecurity.

Forgiveness

Forgiveness is one of the most Christianity powerful weapons in spiritual warfare. But it is not easy. It takes a lot of courage to forgive the person who wronged you. It may also be difficult to let go of negative feelings toward that person, like anger or hostility.

But forgiveness is necessary for emotional healing. It can free you from the soul tie that is keeping you stuck. It allows you to heal the wounds and move on.

Forgiveness isn’t about getting another person to change. Forgiveness is about letting go of hurts that are tied to the soul tie with the person who wronged you. Forgiveness is releasing the person and their actions to God. It means letting God handle any judgments that you have about the person. It’s about letting your hurt and anger go so that you can be free of the soul tie with that person. And it’s about allowing God to restore a healthy relationship between you.

Healing

For some Christians, healing is often linked to deliverance ministry. They believe that a person can be indwelt by evil spirits, which cause them to have problems like addictions, depression and even illness or possession of parts of the body.

The Holy Spirit uses gifts of discerning spirits, miracles, and healings in deliverance. He also couples these tools with prayer, the Word of God and laying on of hands to equip the saints with a holy arsenal for spiritual warfare.

It is important that anyone involved in deliverance ministry receives support and care within their Christian community, and that they are aware of their personal limitations. It is also vital that any cases of deliverance ministry involving serious or vulnerable issues are dealt with in line with the House of Bishops' guidance on Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults. The Church of England's safeguarding guidelines should be adhered to at all times. For example, it is not appropriate to perform deliverance ministry over issues relating to sex identity, sexual orientation or gender-based violence.

Salvation

Whether you call it demonic bondage, demonic oppression, or a demon cast out, the ministry of deliverance is about breaking spiritual chains and freeing people. It is not a magic formula to make things disappear - that's more like miracles - but it can help you overcome and live in freedom.

Jesus demonstrated healing and deliverance when he walked with a blind and mute man (Mark 6:6-13; Luke 11:2-4). He cast out the legion of demons that had possessed this man, so he could walk and talk again.

The Holy Spirit enables us to use the gifts of discerning spirits, healing and exorcism as tools in the ministry of deliverance. However, it is important that any ministers who practice this ministry have proper support from their church and are aware of their own personal limits. They should also follow safeguarding policies and procedures for cases involving serious mental health vulnerability or issues that require more complex rites of deliverance.

deliverance Ministry, Sra survivors, Christianity