One of the benefits of going into a chain restaurant is that you have the comfort of knowing exactly what you are getting regardless of where you go! No muss, no fuss, just peace of mind. In the ministry of deliverance in the church today, there are no common rules or teaching so it is truly “buyer beware”!
I had occasion to travel overseas a few years back and I can tell you that when our little group hit the airport in Taipei on the return trip we made a beeline for the Burger King. I don’t know when I enjoyed a Whopper and fries more fully than after two plus weeks of steamed rice at every meal. I knew what was there, what to expect and they did not disappoint!
Deliverance ministry is more of a cottage industry in the Body of Christ with lots of small (and often single person) mom-and-pop ministries engaged in this important activity. Jesus commanded His church to do it and said that driving out demons would be one of the signs to follow believers (Mark 16:17. We have worldwide evangelistic, prayer, worship and teaching ministries but a dearth of the same when it comes to deliverance.
There are so many different approaches and methodologies that it really is an exercise in perseverance for those who seek out deliverance ministry. We have clients worldwide who have found us because they could not get help (or at least competent help) in their own location. That is truly a sad situation and I will be the first to say that I cannot defend every ministry of deliverance that is out there but I will passionately defend the present day ministry of deliverance as whole.
For us, it is a non-negotiable but many are passionately opposed to it and will try to attack us in blog posts or emails. We accept it as part of the present day reality but it does not deter us; we prefer to let the fruit of the ministry and the testimonials and referrals from clients do the talking.
Solid Deliverance Ministries Have Much In Common
One of our great comforts is that there are many ministries who do believe and teach similar things as we do in the areas of open doors for demonic torment. While the methodologies and approaches differ, God’s truth is being revealed. We believe that deliverance is most effective when done with some preparatory teaching and then followed up with some teaching on how to stay free and do spiritual warfare when the spirits try to return to the house (Matt 12:43-45).
Some minister at the altar, some do group sessions and individual declarations and pronouncements. Sometimes it is loud and messy. We have found that because of the preparatory teaching and homework done by the prayee that generally the process flows quietly and gently. We are not into loud spectacles but once again some ministries use this approach and there is no one standardized approach or process that all deliverance ministries embrace.
The differences do cause confusion for people seeking help and we try as best as we can to explain our approach so people can make up their own mind. Paul was happy that Christ was preached, regardless of how it was done (Phil 14:18). We feel similarly about deliverance ministry as long as people are not being mistreated.
We are all on the learning curve when it comes to deliverance ministry and we are not so arrogant as to presume that our approach is the only way to do it.
What’s been your experience in going through deliverance or witnessing it somewhere?
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