7 THINGS DELIVERANCE REALLY IS AND WHAT IT'S NOT.

"But upon mount Zion shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions." (Obadiah 1:17)

What Deliverance Ministry is NOT
I want to emphasize some important truths about what deliverance is not and what it is.

This is not to diminish the importance of deliverance in any way, but to help keep things in the proper perspective.

Below are three things that deliverance is not:

1. Deliverance is not an end in itself

Deliverance should not be seen as an end in and of itself. Rather, it is a means to an end.

Obadiah vs. 17 says, “But on Mount Zion there shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.” 

This passage gives a progression of how God establishes His people, just like when He first established Israel. First He delivered them from the bondage of Egypt, then He set up the law and called them to holiness, and then He led them into the Promised Land to “possess their possessions.”
Before Israel could walk in holiness to the Lord or enter into their inheritance, they had to be set free from slavery. 

Deliverance was a necessary step in the process of their destiny. In the same way, believers will not be able to grow in the Lord and walk in the fullness of His plan for them if areas of their lives are still in bondage to demons.

But the purpose of deliverance is not just to get delivered; it is to propel you into deeper intimacy with the Lord, grow in holiness, and fulfill the destiny that God has for you. It is a beginning, not an end. If we turn deliverance into an end in itself we will open ourselves up to extremes and get off course.

2. Deliverance is not a solution to every problem

When you first learn about deliverance it is easy to think that you now have the answer to every problem a person may face. The truth is, deliverance is not a cure-all. As powerful and necessary as this ministry is, it is not the solution to every problem; and it will not make all of your problems go away.

Jesus said that we would have trouble in this world (see John 16:33) and Paul said that we enter the kingdom through “many tribulations” (see Acts 14:22). 

Don’t think that being delivered from demons will make all of your problems go away.
It is also important to remember that we have three enemies: the world system, the flesh, and the devil. Not every negative issue is caused by a demon; many times we are dealing with the flesh and need to act accordingly.

3. Deliverance is not a substitute for spiritual disciplines

When a person receives freedom from demonic influence it can cause them to begin to grow rapidly in the Lord. Deliverance however is not a substitute for spiritual disciplines such as prayer, fasting, time in the Word, and fellowship with other believers in a local church. 

In other words, deliverance is not a shortcut. You will still need to exercise discipline, learn to resist the enemy, and walk in the Spirit on a daily basis.

When evil spirits are present in a person’s life, there is no substitute for the ministry of deliverance. You can’t counsel away a demon. Nor can you exercise enough discipline for demons to go away. Evil spirits must be cast out.

At the same time, let’s be careful not to make deliverance a substitute for other important practices. 

*There is no substitute for time spent in the presence of God and for meditating on God’s Word regularly. 

*There is no substitute for discipleship and good teaching. 

*There is no substitute for connection to fellow believers in the local church. None of these take the place of the others; they all have an important place in our walk with God.

My hope is that the church will fully embrace the need of deliverance. It is much needed today; so many people need to be set free. But let’s remember to keep the ministry of deliverance in its proper place.

7 THINGS DELIVERANCE REALLY IS.

1. Deliverance is ejecting evil tenants that are inhabiting your life.
2. Deliverance is to break every yoke that is troubling your life.
3. Deliverance is to break every conscious or unconscious evil associations for example with witches, and occult groups.
4. Deliverance is to forcefully throw out evil spirits .
5. Deliverance is to escape from satanic prisons and cages.
6. Deliverance is to be released from altars of affliction.
7. Deliverance is to destroy satanic dreams and dismantle their effects.

There are certain factors that can hinder a person's deliverance. Some of these factors are unconfessed sins, prayerlessness, ignorance, unbroken curses and covenants, attachment to satanic materials, lack of faith, and not hiding the word of God in one's heart.

Prayerlessness does not necessarily mean that one is not praying but one could be praying amiss by praying wrong prayers, praying at the wrong time or praying fireless prayers that fail to hit there targets.

There are several benefits of deliverance. 

*It terminates satanic oppression. 

*It enables one to have dominion over the power of the enemy. 

*Deliverance opens the heavens over a life bringing about rapid breakthrough in various areas of life such as career, marriage, business and spiritual. 

*It gives good health. 

*It cancels untimely death. 

*It disgraces bondage. 

*It enables one to possess his possession or in some cases to recover lost possession. 

*It damages ignorance, makes holiness easier and makes one's prayer life more productive.

There are certain things that a person must do if they are to maintain their deliverance and keep walking in it. First and foremost you must make Jesus Christ your personal savior and friend. Separate from ungodly friends and associations. 

You ensure that your armor which are salvation, righteousness, truth, faith, and peace stay on always. You must engage in spiritual warfare everyday and join a church that believes in spiritual warfare. Study the bible and pray everyday. Return every curse to sender.

Deliverance is not meant for non-believers

In Colossians 2:13-15, we are told of the means by which Jesus paved the way for our deliverance:

"And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it."

Had Jesus not forgiven our sins, the principalities and powers spoken of here would not have been spoiled (disarmed). The demonic kingdom, which works through demonic spirits, would have legal grounds in our lives because of our sins.

Before you can effectively cast demons out of a person and rest assured that they will not return, the legal grounds must first be removed. 

Jesus tells us clearly in Matthew 12:43-45 that if you cast demons out of a non-believer, who has not had his legal grounds removed, they are bound to return, each wicked spirit bringing 7 more even worse evil spirits with it:

"When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation."

As you can see, this warning applies to the non-believers, who are considered wicked and have not receive atoning for their sins. The demonic spirits will still have the legal grounds in that person's life, and can freely return as they please. In order for a deliverance to be successful and bring lasting results, the person must be a believer. Casting demonic spirits out of non-believers is only setting them up for an much worse disaster.

Jesus made it clear that deliverance is children's bread

In Mark 7:25-27, we find a woman who was a Gentile, and therefore outside of covenant with God, and her daughter had an unclean spirit. Jesus referred to deliverance as children's bread and made it clear that it is not proper to take what belongs to children (those in covenant with God) and cast it before dogs (those outside covenant with God):