It Is Time to Recognize—and Deal with—the Jezebel Spirit Within the Church

“But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols” (Rev. 2:20).

I have never enjoyed talking or focusing on demonic issues. But it is a topic we must discuss.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, in His ministry, took time and dealt with the issue at hand when confronted with demons. I am very disturbed at how many pastors in the last few years have fallen into sexual immorality. When this happens, not only is the pastor’s reputation destroyed, but his family is hurt, his church is hurt and Christianity receives another black eye.

It is foolish to say that all these unfortunate events are not demonically inspired. However, even if it comes from a demon, we must own up to it. A pastor, especially, is a target of Satan. The Jezebel spirit, according to Jesus in the book of Revelation, does several things. The spirit prophesies, teaches and leads the servant of God into sexual sin. The Jezebel spirit is very dangerous and will use counterfeit gifts of the Holy Spirit, manipulation and false doctrine to lead pastors astray.

Pastors must have accountability. In our culture, sadly, many pastors become what I call benevolent dictators. They are great guys, charismatic and godly but have no accountability.

When there is a spiritual attack or deception, often it can be averted by a humble and submissive attitude toward other fivefold church members. Accountability brings protection. It is time we wake up and recognize that the spirit of Jezebel is tempting and leading pastors into sexual immorality.

We cannot blame Jezebel for everything, but I promise you she is what we call today an ‘influencer.’ Satan has always targeted pastors, and one of the greatest temptations of a pastor is sexual temptation.

Jezebel will assign women to tempt the pastor. The woman or man who is under the influence of Jezebel may not realize that they are being used, and the pastor may not be aware that Jezebel is attacking until it is too late. As a result, the pastor suffers tremendous shame and guilt.

The church suffers horrible consequences and Christianity receives another black eye. I believe as the body of Christ, we have a responsibility to do spiritual warfare and to be aware of the Jezebel spirit that Jesus warned us about.

The evidence of the destruction caused by this spirit is overwhelming. We have failed to do our job to take authority over this spirit, cast it out and forbid it from implementing its evil scheme. The Jezebel spirit can be controlling, manipulating and very subtle. We need to be aware of what is happening in the spirit realm.

The apostle Paul told us in his letter to the Corinthians that we are not to be ignorant of Satan’s schemes (2 Cor. 2:11). In counseling, we may say, “there is an elephant in the living room.” That means the problem is big and obvious, but we do not want to talk about it.

We need to put on the armor of God and take up our sword and never again allow this evil spirit to destroy another pastor or hurt another church. {eoa}

Dr. Ray Self is the founder of Spirit Wind Ministries Inc. and the International College of Ministry. He holds a doctorate in Christian Psychology and a doctorate in Theology. He currently resides in Orlando, Florida. Follow and subscribe to Self Talk With Dr. Ray Self. Dr. Self is the author of Redeeming Your Past and Finding Your Promised Land, and Hear His Voice, Be His Voice at Amazon.com.