Randy Clark: In Jesus’ Name They Shall Cast Out Devils
Practical Guidelines for Deliverance Ministry
When we minister deliverance, we are ministering to a person, not a demon. As you minister, counsel the person in order to bring forth the truth. Minister quietly, avoiding flamboyant demonstrations of warfare. Always give the individual priority.
The Person Is the Priority: Recognize and be sensitive to the fact that the person you are praying for may have lost hope of being set free after having spent years in bondage. Remain faithful, steady and comforting. Provide a loving, quiet environment for deliverance. Deliverance can be a long process. Do not try to rush through it.
Taking Authority Over Manifestations: The next step in ministering deliverance involves recognition of manifesting spirits. If a spirit manifests, command it to be quiet and submit to you “in the name of Jesus.” You take authority over a spirit when you order it to submit in Jesus’ name. You must be persistent, as it can take time to command a spirit.
It must submit eventually, so maintain faith. Dr. Arlin Epperson says that demons tend to know how much faith you have, just as dogs know if you have fear. Make sure not to stir the spirit by touching or speaking loudly to the person in bondage. Your goal is to quiet the spirit, not stir it up.
The spirit may manifest by causing the person you are praying for to growl, whine, argue, threaten or contort. Do not speak to the spirit unless it is to command it to submit in the name of Jesus. Ministry should be done in a quiet place where there is little distraction. Maintain authority and communicate clearly.
Determining Sincerity: When you have quieted any manifesting spirits and established communication with the person, it is time to ask them if they want to be free and to determine if they are sincere in their request to be set free. They must be sincere or the bondage can and will likely return. If you find that the person does not want deliverance and wants to continue with the lifestyle holding them in bondage, do not pray for deliverance. Provide love and encouragement, and end the session until they truly wish to be set free.
Accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior: If the person is sincere and earnestly desires to be set free, then it is time to ask him if he has accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior. This is important because, if he is a believer, the Holy Spirit will help him stay free. If he is not a believer, bondage can and likely will return. If he is not a believer, offer to lead him to Christ. If you cannot, then bless him instead and encourage him to continue to consider accepting Jesus as Lord.
Casting Out Spirits: You now are ready to cast out unclean spirits. Sometimes a person will indicate that the spirit is leaving by burping, yawning, jerking or wincing. If the person you are praying for starts to manifest or is strained in some way, all doors may not be closed. Ask the Holy Spirit for help.
Inviting the Holy Spirit: The last step in deliverance is to ask the person to pray that the Holy Spirit will come and fill all places that formerly were occupied by evil spirits. This is an important step. If the Holy Spirit is not invited to fill the places formerly occupied by evil spirits, the enemy can and will return to those places, oftentimes in a stronger way than before.
When you feel confident that all doors are closed, then you are ready to lead the delivered one in praise and thanksgiving to Jesus for his deliverance. This is a joyful time. Join in with your own thanks and praise.
Even though a person has been delivered, continued healing may be needed in relationships or other areas. John Wimber once remarked to me that deliverance is the easy part. The hard part is helping a person stay free and enter into a healthy relational lifestyle. Encourage the person who has been delivered to continue to seek prayer and counseling if needed.
Those involved in deliverance ministry should get in the habit of covering themselves and their family members with the blood of Jesus and putting on the full armor of God. After ministering to the demonized, take time to dust off any residue from the encounters. Ask the Lord to wash everything off you, to cancel any assignments of hell and to release the assignments of heaven over you and your team. Ask Him to keep your mind pure, guard your emotions, protect your body and bless those who would curse you.
Randy Clark is the president and founder of Global Awakening. A noted international speaker, he is known primarily for revivals associated with healing and impartation. He is the author of There Is More and co-author of The Essential Guide to Healing and Healing Unplugged.
A resource on this topic:
If you want to learn how to fight your spiritual battles with supernatural power and be free of oppression, read Randy Clark’s The Biblical Guidebook to Deliverance (Charisma House). You can find this resource on amazon.com, christianbook.com or wherever Christian books are sold.
