Demons

First, demons are real. Not only that, but that you can have one and not even know it. Most people who even admit demons are real, think that if you have a demon, you’d behave like the girl on The Exorcist. You know, foaming at the mouth, crawling up walls, growling at people, talking to yourself, etc. While this can happen, it’s not the most common type of demon possession. In this case, a demon can actually take over and control the body and mind. This is what people call fully possessed or full possession.

More commonly, though, people can have demons and not even know it, because they don’t completely take over their body or mind. It’s what I would call a partial possession. They only dominate a particular part of their lives or their personality. They can appear to be completely normal most of the time, but have some fatal character flaw in particular situations. Some personal affliction that surfaces from time to time and is completely destructive to their life. People that are labeled as toxic, manipulative, addicts, those with unexplained rage, those that are addicted to any particular sin, and those plagued by poltergeist activity are often partially possessed, and/or oppressed by demons. Possessed means that a demon lives inside your body and can actually control you at times. Oppression means they don’t live inside you, but are attached to your body or your life somehow. While this kind can’t force you to do anything, they can still torment your thoughts, and can strongly influence your feelings and actions. They can also orchestrate events in your life and sometimes control other people around you to bring about a certain outcome.

They will often say they “couldn’t control themselves” when they have some particular outburst, or they have uncontrollable desires to do a particular thing even though it’s completely destructive to themselves and those around them. Some even argue that certain mental illnesses, including personality disorders, delusions, psychosis, bipolar, and schizophrenia are victims of demons. People that live in a constant state of torment, anxiety, depression, fear, and irrational phobias; hearing voices that tell you to harm others or yourselves; seizures, nervous twitches, and uncontrollable body movements are also often caused by demons.

What are demons? It’s not specifically said what they are in the Bible, but it’s clear that they exist and need to be dealt with. To keep things simple, you can just think of demons as evil spirits with an insatiable hatred for mankind. They don’t have bodies of their own, so they want to use our bodies to carry out their agendas. What they want is to completely destroy us and cause as much heartache, pain, and tragedy as possible in our lives. In some cases, it seems they want to live out some personal fantasy and indulge in sins of all kinds. It may seem like a completely different person, with a personality and desires in complete opposition to those of their host (meaning the person afflicted). I believe that they do have genders, or at least they will take on the characteristics and tendencies of one or the other (male or female). Or perhaps this is just a means to an end, because the end-goal is always the same; steal, kill, destroy. They are driven by Satan who is thought to be the leader and organizer of them. Their number is unknowable, but evidence suggests there could be thousands to one human.

I would say in this day and age, there are more people with them than without. Unfortunately, many American churches today deny the existence of demons and therefore they don’t help people who have them. Or they don’t do it openly because it can be messy and ugly, and they don’t want to scare people. This has resulted in mass confusion and ignorance regarding demons. So now they are running rampant, almost completely unchecked – something like an invisible cockroach infestation, spreading the same filth and destruction, but no one knows what’s causing it or how to address it. I say ‘American churches’ because many foreign countries are more spiritually aware. As with many other truths, the American government and media have done a good job of covering it up.

Deliverance & Manifestation

If any of the symptoms I’ve described sound familiar, you have demons and you need deliverance. Whether they are within or outside the body, deliverance is the process of making them leave. It is the only solution. You must cast them out.

Throughout the books of Matthew, Luke, Mark, and John, you’ll find several examples of Jesus and His disciples casting demons out of people. He often just said the words “Come out of him/her”. It can be that simple. As we are acting on behalf of Jesus’ authority, however, we would modify it slightly by saying “Come out of him/her in Jesus’ name”, “come out in Jesus’ name” or “leave this body in Jesus’ name”. Any believer can cast them out. You can practice with your believing friends. It does not have to be a long, drawn-out process. Because you are assuming Jesus’ authority as a child of God, the demons must obey. You can couple these commands with prayers for deliverance and freedom from demonic bondage, possession, and oppression. As soon as you start making these commands, praying, and saying Jesus’ name, you should see some kind of activity in the person. It could be a small change in behavior. They could have different sensations, such as feeling anxious, angry, uncomfortable, hot or cold. Or you might see some major activity. This is how you’ll know it’s a demon. If the person does not have a demon, praying and commanding demons out should have no effect on them whatsoever. They won’t manifest and nothing will happen. It’s a good indicator that whatever they are dealing with, simply isn’t demonic. More on this later.

You can watch some YouTube videos on deliverance to get an idea of what to do and what it might look like. Vlad Savchuk, Isaiah Saldivar, and Alex Pagani are some big names in Deliverance who have posted some good deliverance videos (and a few of my favorites!).

Some of the more popular videos are extreme cases, however. There does not have to be any theatrical manifestation, though you may see some of that. Manifestation means that the demons come to surface and make their presence known. Some demons manifest by screaming, vomiting, convulsions, etc. They might try to speak to you. Commonly, the person will contort their face, or have strange, involuntary muscle movements. Sometimes they fall down, scream ‘No’, or get violent. People tend to exhibit more signs of possession when the demons are caught. Those demons really want to stay hidden, and they don’t want to leave their comfortable home in you unless they have to. But when you start calling them out, they have no choice but to make themselves known. It seems to me that they lose their power to hide. Or it’s a last-ditch effort to scare everyone in an attempt to resist or delay the deliverance. However, others can go quietly and nearly unnoticeably, except that the person will feel and know that it’s gone. If you do see manifestation though, it’s important to keep going until you know it’s gone. Keep commanding that demon out until you see evidence of it leaving. The easiest time to get it out is when it’s manifesting. They are kind of forced to the surface by the power of God and it’s the best time to get rid of them. During manifestation, often the person suffering doesn’t remember what happened, or the experience is somewhat muffled, as if they are present, but taking a back seat while the demon is driving. Sometimes they even have physical pain afterward and need some time to recover from the deliverance itself.

Now, if nothing happens, then likely it wasn’t a demon in the first place. But sometimes, the demon just knows how to hide well. So, it won’t manifest during the deliverance session, but the person goes home and continues to be tormented. In these cases, ensure that you have gone through all the possibilities in the Hindrances section, and you can try it again another time, perhaps with a professional. The person will likely know that something is still off, and you’ll just need to continue working at it. Continue seeking God until you are freed from it.

Self-Deliverance

Self-deliverance is possible in some cases, though it’s not the Biblical model. I do think that the Biblical model will provide the most, lasting success – which happens in a church setting with apostles that have been ordained for such work. However, Jesus can do anything, and He will honor a true heart that needs deliverance. Self-deliverance has been proven to work based on the testimonies of others, and I have experienced it myself. First repent of your sins, especially those that are habitual. If there’s an area of your life you haven’t given to God, you must do that. As you continue in your journey you will find that God has a much better plan for you and the love and presence of God is no comparison to some cheap imitation, that is just a passing thrill.

Follow the same steps as in Deliverance. Then spend some time actually casting those demons out of yourself. You simply say the words, as referenced above, but say ‘come out of my body, in Jesus’ name’. There can be hindrances involved just as with regular deliverance. In my experience, I was able to expel some on my own, but not all. It was enough, though, at least to allow me to experience the presence of God, which I had never know before, despite being a believer for 2 years prior. His Holy Spirit was a huge help and comfort to me, and it gave me the strength to be obedient to God for the next season of my life, until I could find a more powerful deliverance. I believe He honored me in this because He knew that I had no other option.

I didn’t feel comfortable talking about my addiction, or the fact that I knew it was caused by a demon. Not even with my closest friends and family. They would think I was crazy! But, once I realized what my problem was and how to solve it, I was all about it. I started saying certain prayers every night, using the same methods as the priests in the videos. I was also repenting and renouncing all of the wicked things I’d done – everything I could think of. I even repented of unknown sins. This went on over the course of a few weeks, and I started to have a lot of supernatural experiences. I had a dream one night about Hell, where I was kind of a spectator not experiencing anything but watching. It was like a hot desert with some strange flying creatures. Not typical demons but almost like some sort of animal that lived there. I did not see any souls or torment, but it was like a desolate wasteland, and the heat was strong. Then I believe it was an angel, speaking to me saying “Repent, Repent, Repent” over and over again, in a beautiful female voice that I had never heard before. I woke up from this dream, still hearing the voice a few more times after I was fully awake, as if she were standing right over me and saying it in my ear.

So, I was praying every night and saying those words to cast out the demons. Some nights I’d even wake up speaking out loud as I was casting demons out. I named every sin, demon, and behavior I could think of and commanded it to go. I heard a testimony of someone playing deliverance videos at night while they were sleeping and had some success with it.

As I was casting them out, my body would twitch and convulse, without my control. My head would turn to the side as if saying ‘No’ (which is common in deliverance… the demons don’t want to leave, so many times they will scream No or cause the person to shake their head No). I would get heat waves and cold chills. I would feel a tingling sensation all over my body, or my body would shake. All of this just encouraged me to keep going because I knew something was there. Finally, one night, I was doing this again and felt the tingling sensation, but this time I felt something leave my body. I immediately had a vision of dark shadow beings flying out my bedroom window. I instantly felt physically lighter, like a weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. Another night I saw a dark figure above me, and it was saying ‘you must do’ and it was giving some specific instructions. It may have even been talking to my husband or other demons. I don’t remember exactly what it said, but I knew it was evil and I said the first thing that came to mind, ‘Get behind me Satan’ and it vanished. As time went on, I noticed a new lightness and the feeling of love and peace around me got stronger and stronger. This was the Holy Spirit upon me, and He gave me a new strength and will to avoid the temptation to sin.

Freedom

When the demon leaves, you will see an immediate change in the person. They will go from that manifestation stage of contorting, screaming, crying and carrying on… to being completely relaxed, with true happiness in their face, and a kind of peace about them. It’s like they are waking up for the first time. Most will cry tears of joy. Some may start speaking in tongues. Some can even be cured of lifelong ailments, like muteness or back pain. You will see signs that whatever the demon was doing to them, is now gone.

The key is the person should be better off at the end. I don’t trust those who post videos of someone manifesting, but they never show any signs of freedom. The goal of deliverance is not to get the demon to manifest, it’s to reclaim the person’s freedom in Christ! Simply getting a demon to manifest is a feat within itself, but stopping before their deliverance is complete, is just a waste of time! So, be persistent. Take breaks to pray for guidance, play worship music, or whatever you feel led to do, but keep going until it is complete.  

When the demons are gone, ask God to fill you or the other person with the Holy Spirit. You don’t want to miss this step, because the Holy Spirit can protect the person and ensure the demons don’t come back. There’s a Bible verse that some believe, means that the person will be worse than they were before, if they don’t get the Holy Spirit to indwell them after getting rid of the demons.

That verse is this: “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order.Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.” (Matthew 12:43-45).

I would argue this is also a warning on maintaining deliverance. Demons will come back and try to tempt you into that same sin again, so that they can re-enter and stay with you. It’s imperative that you resist this temptation, as you could end up worse than you were in the first place. Now that the devil knows you want to follow God, he is going to work even harder against you. So, it is best to pray for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit because He can help you resist temptation, fight against the attacks of the devil, and maintain your deliverance.

Now, I’m a little unclear on whether the Holy Spirit is with you from the beginning or not, because some Scripture seems to support that it is (“I will pour out my Spirit will be upon all flesh”, Acts 2:17  and Joel 2:28). Or if we simply aren’t able to feel the Holy Spirit until we get the demons out of the way (my personal experience seems to support this). Or if you get the Holy Spirit when you believe or are born again, or when you pray for it (as there is Scripture that says to pray for the Holy Spirit). If you have some insight on this, I’d love to hear it in the Comments. But either way, this model seems to work. Cast the demons out, then pray for the Holy Spirit. I explain in more detail how to receive the Holy Spirit in more detail in my other blog, New Believer’s Manual.

Now, if you’ve tried deliverance and seen some manifestations or you are otherwise sure it’s a demon, but can’t get it to go, please move on to the Hindrances section.

Maintaining Deliverance

After being delivered, it’s important to stay on the path of righteousness. Continue in your faith. Find a home church. Pray and read your Bible every day. Make friends with some fellow believers and spend time with them regularly. Cherish that deliverance because if you let them, those demons will come back and you’ll want to be ready. Avoid that sin like the plague. And you’ll find temptations for different sins will suddenly pop up as well. You start getting good at resisting one type of sin, they will throw everything at you hoping something sticks. Praying continually is your best defense against temptation. When you are tempted, pray, before you do anything else. There is no temptation that we cannot resist.

Hindrances

There can be hindrances involved such as unforgiveness, deep hurt, unbelief, curses, and stubborn demons. These will typically require a stronger effort, and possibly someone who is already in deliverance ministry. They just have more experience with it, so it’s like going to an expert. So, if you know something is there, but it’s not going despite your best efforts, you should look for a deliverance ministry or conference.

In most cases, you must deal with repentance and forgiveness before you can be delivered. Demons are like corrupt lawyers. They break the law themselves, by coming in without a person’s knowledge or permission, but then they claim they have a legal right to stay because you indulged in some sin that let them in. You have to nullify those rights. To do so, you repent of it, and then simply declare ‘my agreement with you is broken’, ‘my partnership with you is broken’, ‘your legal rights are hereby revoked’. Unrepentance and unforgiveness are probably the top 2 things that demons cling to. Once you resolve these, and cast those demons out, they cannot stay.

Repentance

True repentance is important. You need to want that thing, that sin, in your life to be gone forever. Recognize that it’s the demon in you and not you that desires to be sinful, and your life is going to be a lot better without it. Repentance is a form of confession. You can do this with God alone if you aren’t comfortable talking with others about it. If you are, talking to others can be extremely helpful as well. After repentance, pray for freedom from the bondage of sin, and freedom from those demons. Then, start the deliverance.

Hurt, Healing, and Unforgiveness

When someone hurts you deeply it can be hard to forgive that person. In fact, most people want to hurt them back and get some kind of revenge. So, hate, bitterness, and anger fill your heart for that person. Wanting that person to suffer or pay for what they’ve done, is unforgiveness. You may have stuffed down all the other feelings about what happened to you, but this one you are not able to ignore. The problem is, that person is probably not aware of your feelings, and even if they are, it has more of an impact on you than it does them. It’s a dark area in your soul and in your heart and darkness only attracts more darkness. I know this is a tough one to get around, and so do the demons. It can help to get some therapy and just talk out the trauma you dealt with, focusing on how it made you feel, and letting all those emotions that come, just flow. We get into trouble when we try to stifle and ignore our feelings and when we keep our trauma hidden. You have to acknowledge it, and you have to talk about it, even if it’s just to God. You have to let those feelings come out, in other words you have to feel them, whatever they are. Confession leads to healing. That is how you will release those pent-up feelings and heal from the hurt. I cannot tell you how liberating it is to just talk about your trauma with someone.

Secondly, forgiveness, may look different for different people and different situations. Ideally, forgiveness means you put the hurt behind you and are able to love that person again, and bring them back into your life. This is how Jesus treats us. However, that may not be possible with everyone. If this person is dangerous or toxic and letting them back into your life would be detrimental, then the process of forgiveness, can just be completed in your own heart without any interaction with the person. You decide what level of interaction is appropriate to give you closure and allow you to move on. One options might be to write a one-way letter that tells the person how you feel, if you can do this in a loving way. Or even write the letter, but never send it. The goal is that you let go of the negative feelings, and try to recover from the pain. It can be as simple as saying the words out loud “I forgive (and the person’s name)”. You can even tell them to their face if that’s safe to do. ‘Safe’ counts as your emotional well-being as well. There were people in my life that I could not face again no matter how reformed they were, but I was able to come to the point of forgiveness in my own heart, and with God.

In this context, you are still acknowledging that what was done to you was not ok, and the person was wrong for doing it – whether they are remorseful or not. However, you stop harboring all of the negative feelings around it, and wish the person no ill-will. It can help to understand that the person was likely being driven by demons when they did it. If you can pray for this person’s salvation, you have come full circle. And trust me, I know how hard that is, but personally, I wouldn’t wish an eternity in Hell on my worst enemy. If you struggle with this forgiveness, I would recommend reading or watching the movie The Shack, by William P. Young. It’s not embraced by every Christian, but I think it lays a powerful foundation for forgiveness. Also, if you just can’t bring yourself to this point, keep praying about it. Ask God to help you forgive this person and heal from what happened. There are some demons that will leave immediately the moment you release unforgiveness, without any additional effort.

Jesus told us, “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you” (Luke 6: 37-38).

And “if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14-15). Of course you realize, none of us can stand on our own merit being judged under the law, so this is a must to enter the kingdom of Heaven.

There are 2 important principles here. In many ways, Jesus wants us to be like Him. To be plentiful in love, compassion, giving, patience and, mercy. Forgiveness is no different. Jesus taught us by example, and He wants us to learn by living it out. If we expect Jesus to forgive us of all the sins we’ve committed against Him, we must learn what it is like to forgive sins that are committed against us. By doing so, we learn more about His character and we learn how to be more like Him.

The second point, give and it will be given to you (and it goes on to say with the measure that you have given), applies to many things. Whatever we give, we shall receive. It’s kind of like karma. If you are giving bitterness and hate, you are probably going to get the same back from others. If you are giving love, mercy and forgiveness, you will get the same back. And in all of these latter things, we should be generous and giving cheerfully.  

Unbelief, Fasting, and Prayer

Unbelief can hinder and even prevent deliverance (and healing for that matter). If the person needing deliverance doesn’t believe in Jesus, or demons and deliverance, you will have a harder time. Many times, Jesus told people they were “healed by their faith”. In fact, Jesus was grieved, disappointed and even angry when people displayed a lack of faith. (Matthew 8:26, 14:31, and 16:8). Notably in Matthew 17:21, when a man brings his son to Jesus saying that the disciples were unable to cast a demon out of him, Jesus responds saying “Oh faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? Bring him here to me. And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour”. Then the disciples asked Jesus why they couldn’t drive it out and He said, “Because of your unbelief” (KJV) or “because you have so little faith” (NIV). He goes on to say that if you have faith the size of a mustard seed then nothing will be impossible for you. Yet, “this kind” only comes out by prayer and fasting. The demon He is referring to was causing seizures, and apparently attempting to kill the boy by throwing him into fire and water. If you are seeing similar manifestations, you may need to include fasting and prayer into your deliverance. This can be done on the part of the one needing deliverance, or on the one performing the deliverance, or both. it is another powerful weapon we have against demons. If you’re new to fasting, I invite you to read Beginner’s Guide to Fasting.

So, faith is more commonly rewarded, and unbelief tends to hinder or prevent breakthrough. You will have a better chance of success, of course, if both the deliverer and the demonized are faithful. However, strength in faith on only one side can still be enough. In all cases, however, the person suffering must want freedom. You can’t deliver someone who doesn’t want it. They need to want to be free from whatever sin or destruction is ruling over their lives and understand that this may be the key to their victory.

I do not believe that an unbeliever shouldn’t be delivered. It’s my opinion that a successful deliverance could bring someone to believe. If they don’t understand what’s happening to them now, but realize that it is cured by calling a demon out in the name of Jesus, that’s a powerful miracle to show someone. I would say if they are willing to consider it possible, you can go ahead with it. And in the case where the person is so demonized (or even possessed) that they are constantly manifesting, they may not be in a state where they can even understand belief versus nonbelief, or coherently ask for help – they will need help from a believer to get free before they could even decide if they believe. So, in these cases, I would say just go ahead with the deliverance. Always seek guidance from God and Holy Spirit first, though.

Stubborn Demons: Calling Them Out By Name

Many times, naming the demon or the behavior it causes can make a stubborn demon go. There is a Biblical example of this, one that even resisted Jesus. “When the man saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees before Him. And he shouted in a loud voice, ‘What do You want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You before God not to torture me!’ For Jesus had already declared, ‘Come out of this man, you unclean spirit! ‘What is your name?” Jesus asked. ‘My name is Legion,’ he replied, ‘for we are many.’ And he begged Jesus repeatedly not to send them out of that region” (Mark 5:6-10).

This Scripture shows how a demon manifested just because Jesus was walking by. This can happen with Jesus’ followers today too, especially if they are involved in deliverance ministry. It’s like the demons can’t resist outing themselves when there’s a powerful believer around. They will begin to say odd things or behave strangely, and that is your queue to start deliverance on that person! Also, notice how the demon is pleading with Jesus after He commanded it to come out. So, it did not leave immediately. Jesus’ response was to ask its name. After it had given its name, Jesus cast it out. And many modern-day testimonies have confirmed that some demons will not come out unless you call them by name. So, you may want to name the particular spirit, sin, or behavior, that is present in the person’s life. You might say, “Come out you unclean spirit” or “spirit of heaviness, come out of him”. Some spirits that are specifically named in the Bible include: heaviness, bondage, antichrist, fear, familiar, unclean, mute, disobedience, lying, slumber, familiar, divination, mute and deaf. They are typically named by the symptom they cause or the sin they entered through. Other common ones are Death, Murder, Lying, Lust, Pride, Foul, Infirmity, Illness/Disease (or specifically the name of the illness), Witchcraft, Sorcery, Free Masonry, Satanism, Drunkenness, Idolatry, Adultery, Pornography, etc. Others seem to have specific names, like Legion, Satan, or Python.

From what I have learned if you ask a stubborn spirit its name, it will usually obey because of its obligation to obey the Holy Spirit within us, and knowing its name can help you guide the person through repentance and cast it out. However, I would not recommend interviewing demons, or mocking them, or attempting some long conversation with them. Remember that the person afflicted by them is suffering through this deliverance, and it is only courteous to them to try to get it completed as quickly as possible, and in a dignified manner. Also, demons lie. Their leader is the “father of lies”. So, you can never really know if they are telling the truth. You can try to get information from them for the sole purpose of aiding in the deliverance, but other than that, it’s best to just focus on getting them out as soon as possible.

Many times, Jesus rebuked demons that were being too vocal, and commanded them to be quiet before telling them to come out. “Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not” (Luke 40:35). Yes, this may have been because it wasn’t the right time yet for Him to be known as the Messiah, but we can follow the same principle of not letting these demons put on a show. Just tell them to be quiet and cast them out.

False Deliverance

Be careful when you’re looking for deliverance, as there are a lot of false deliverance ministries out there as well. The way to tell the difference, is the process is backwards. In a normal deliverance, a demonized person will begin to manifest, the deliverance performer may put their hands up in front of or on the person as they cast the demons out. Then you will see the demonized person become free. The manifestation stops completely, and they are left in a state of joy and peace. They may start speaking in tongues. They are free. The focus is on Jesus. They should thank Jesus for the deliverance.  

In a false deliverance, the focus is on the manifestation and the performer. The process happens in reverse, when the performer puts their hands up or on the person, they begin to manifest. The manifestation is extreme. There’s convulsions, and demonic voices, etc. It’s theatrical. Not that these things can’t happen in a real deliverance, but they aren’t the focus and usually are not exaggerated. The performer interviews, maybe mocks the demons. The demons get center stage, and you never see the person get free. If someone waves their hand and several people fall down and begin to manifest, that is demonic. They may even be imparting demons into these people. There’s mind control. There’s mockery of the demonized as well sometimes.

So, it’s important to be careful when looking for a deliverance ministry and to get familiar with the pastors and the deliverance team, and possibly even watch another deliverance session before you do it yourself, to ensure they are true and Godly. Always pray about it. Use your discernment and judgment. Deliverance is scary either way. A little fear is ok. The demons in you may make you fearful, nervous, sick, or emotional to try to convince you to avoid the deliverance. So, it can be a fine art to figure out the true from the false.

There can be generational demons as well. Have you ever known a family who seems to be plagued by death, drunkenness, suicide, adultery or other behaviors and events – generation after generation? This is likely the same demon that is getting passed down through the family line. In this case, when casting out you might say something like “I cast out any demons that were passed to me from my family” or “my mother” or “my father”.

Curses

Briefly, a curse is a repetitive cycle of harm and punishment. Evidence of a curse is when something negative happens repetitively to a person or even an entire family. It could be a physical problem, such as a sickness, or they may be particularly prone to accidents and physical injury. Curses can cause generational poverty and failure. Isn’t it strange that even though someone might have a college degree or have done all the right things, they just can’t ever get ahead? It’s probably because of a curse.

Some Christians don’t believe in curses, but I disagree. They are mentioned throughout the Bible, and there are several curses still in effect today. Curses afflict those who are disobedient to God. The curse against Adam, Eve, and the serpent, for example are still in effect today. The serpent is cursed among beasts. The ground is cursed; it still must be painfully toiled to produce food. Women are still cursed with pain in child bearing.

They can be generational, as in someone in your ancestry line sinned against God and their descendants are then victims of the curse. Godsaid “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments (Deuteronomy 5:8-10). Given in the 10 commandments, the sin of idolatry carries this curse.

In Deuteronomy 27:15-26, Moses cites several actions that are cursed. For example, “Cursed is anyone who dishonors their father or mother”. It does not say what the curse is, but when the commandment was given, God attached a blessing to it, saying “Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you (Deuteronomy 5:16). So, I would assume breaking this commandment will bring on early death and possibly issues with property and housing.

God declares a terrible curse in Deuteronomy 28 for anyone who doesn’t keep His commandments. You can read this one on your own. It’s quite long. In Deuteronomy 29:9, Moses says (speaking for God) “Carefully follow the terms of this covenant, so that you may prosper in everything you do… (14-15) I am making this covenant, with its oath, not only with youwho are standing here with us today in the presence of the Lord our God but also with those who are not here today… (30:19) This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live”. As these curses were attached to the law, and we know Jesus did not abolish the law but establish it, I believe these are still in effect. Aside from the Scripture, throughout my own life, I do find that whenever I turn astray from God, my life erupts into disaster and chaos. And the theory of curses seems to be still relevant based on recent testimonies.

The Scripture also supports that people are capable of cursing other people. In Numbers 22:12, there was a wicked prophet named Balaam who was instructed to curse the people of Israel, but God told him he must not do it. Therefore, he must have had the ability to do it, or God would not have said this. That’s just one example. It’s mentioned that God can turn a curse into a blessing (Nehemiah 13:1-2). Then, in Galatians 1:8, Paul declares this, ^“even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!”. I’m assuming God’s curse is the one mentioned in Deuteronomy 28. So, here Paul reinstates it for false prophets. If it was ever abolished before, it isn’t now!

So, I do believe there is some truth to the concept of curses. On the bright side, Solomon said “Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest” (Proverbs, 26:2). Some translations say a “causeless curse”. So, if a curse spoken against you were causeless or undeserved, meaning you did nothing to invoke the curse, then it would be essentially ineffective. However, God’s curses are certainly not causeless. The generational curse  in Deuteronomy was a result of idolatry, so even if a person didn’t commit that sin personally (but it was committed in their family line) it wouldn’t be causeless.

Curses must be broken, often before deliverance can be successful. It seems as though if a demon comes in under a curse, they are protected until the curse is broken. Now, if you are afflicted by a curse, you only need to be a believer in Jesus, and then to break it off. To break curses, a believer simply needs to declare over you that “the curse of poverty/injury (whatever it happens to be) is now broken in Jesus’ name” or “I command this curse be broken in Jesus’ name”, “I command every generational curse be broken in Jesus’ name”, “every demonic assignment/covenant over his body, his life, and his family line be broken in Jesus’ name”. You can also do this over yourself and your own family. Then continue on through the deliverance.

Conclusion

I hope this article has been useful to you in determining demonic activity and learning how to deal with it. I know it’s not much consolation, but if you are dealing with some of these issues, and you can’t seem to get free, try not to focus on the issue or problem. Only focus on the One who has the solution. Sometimes you just have to trust God and His timing. Keep praying and seeking Him, trusting in Him and believing for your deliverance. It is very hard these days to even find a church that does it, but there are some other options available. Go to conferences, revivals, and deliverance events. These are usually a great place to meet people that are walking in God’s calling and power. Many people get delivered at events like these. Also, Isaiah Saldivar has created an online deliverance map that is very useful if you can’t find a local church or event, https://www.isaiahsaldivar.com/deliverance. He is also one of my favorite YouTubers! He does live deliverance on his channel at times as well and has a lot of great content regarding demons and deliverance.

Please post in the Comments, your own experiences in dealing with demons. How did you get free? What strategies did you use?