Q&R: “Should we be afraid of the devil?” Brad Jersak
Question:
I have an ongoing fear of being stalked by evil, even after several experiences with “deliverance ministry.” I feel as if the devil is listening in on my prayers and using them to ambush me. The Bible says, “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). But my attention to demonic activity is crippling me with fear. Can you help?
Response:
“Greater is he that is in me…”
Jesus Christ and his apostolic successors preached this paramount truth as part of their gospel. Jesus is Lord, and you need not fear. Christ is victorious, has all authority, and forever lives within you as your champion. Take these texts to heart. They are true:
+ 1 John 4:4 “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”
+ John 12:31 “Now the prince of this world will be driven out.”
+ 1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…”
+ Colossians 2:15 “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.”
This triumph, this promise of victory and protection, is prophesied in Psalm 91 and fulfilled in Jesus:
Psalm 91
1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
3 Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8 You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.
9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10 no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
12 they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”
“Submit yourselves to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
Jesus was, is, and will forever be victorious over satan (evil personified), having dealt the decisive blow at the Cross. And we continue to experience the victory of Jesus in our lives as we submit ourselves to our heavenly Father’s loving care and resist temptation. In other words, we participate in the victory of Christ whenever we practice Christ-focused (not demon-obsessed) surrender to the Jesus Way. The Bible uses a variety of verbs and metaphors to describe our victorious struggle.
+ Luke 10:19 “Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.”
+ Ephesians 6:10-17 “10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
+ James 4:7 – “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
Paganizing Deliverance
Many deliverance ministers and their clients applied these same Scriptures in order to experience new freedom and confidence in Christ. But for far too many, just the opposite happened. Why? To put it bluntly, I believe we (yes, me included in the early 90s) had “paganized deliverance” and created an idolatrous image of the devil that enslaved us in fear. Here’s how or why that happened.
1. First and foremost, we took our eyes off Jesus. Instead of believing that he is always with us and keeping our eyes fixed on him (Hebrews 12:2), we began imagining how the devil or demons are always with us. We demoted Jesus into someone weak and distant and silent, while we attributed divine attributes to the demons (everywhere present, all-knowing, all-powerful). We wouldn’t have admitted, but our fears betray the fact that we were ascribing all authority to satan rather than to God.
Thus, we were chained by our fear of demons, even where there were none.
2. Instead of being “wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil” (Romans 16:19), deliverance ministers advertised themselves as experts on demonology and fabricated techniques of control… over demons and over people. Their alleged power over demons went to their heads, and they forgot Jesus’ warning:
+ Luke 10:17-20 17 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
18 He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.20 However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
Jesus here cautions his disciples against spiritual pride and redirects their eyes to heaven’s throne. I can’t tell you how many who practice deliverance ministry are waylaid, not by demonic oppression, but by their own pride and grandiosity. Many felt entitled by their own swagger, develop a messiah complex, and became spiritual abusers as a result.
Thus, we were chained by our pride over demons, even where there are none.
3. Instead of resisting the devil through daily surrender to God’s loving care—or recognizing that our spiritual armor is comprised of salvation, truth, faith, righteousness, the Spirit, and the gospel—deliverance ministries commonly traded a simple Christ-centered focus for pseudo-Christian superstitions, incantations, and talismans. We (yes, I was tempted too) bought into a pagan worldview and some even drew their theology of demons from the demons, who they should have remembered always lie.
Instead of following James’ simple wisdom—resisting temptation by obeying God—we generated whole worldviews that mimic “the dark arts” rather than simply following Jesus. Paul warned us about this:
+ 2 Corinthians 11:3 “But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.”
Thus, we were chained by our worldview about demons, even where there are none.
4. Instead of actually resisting the devil or sin, we indulged in a role-playing game, a fantasy world that we populated with our own fears. I believe there are spiritual forces of evil at work in the world. But if fallen angels are roaming around, seeking to possess human beings, I’m no longer sure I’ve ever met one during a deliverance ministry session. I should never say “never,” but in almost every case, here is what I saw:
A vulnerable person in terrible pain just wants to be fixed. They are desperate. They’ve tried everything else. They’ll do anything to be free. Their agony makes them highly suggestible.
They find a deliverance ministry that speaks with authority, exudes confidence, and promises freedom. The minister interrogates them, hunting for demons behind every “stronghold,” demanding they reveal themselves. And the client complies, verbalizing and vocalizing unconsciously whatever is squeezed out of them. I’m describing a semi-hypnotic state.
As the minister commands “the demons” to leave, they may shriek or their voices may go silent. In the catharsis of that moment, a strong sense of relief ensues. Rinse and repeat.
From that point, the client may begin living in new ways, with new practices that bear good fruit. No harm, no foul? OR, as in your case, they may continue to live in fear and bondage. Perhaps their real malady is unbelief in God’s love or bad teaching about spirits. Or they might suffer from mental illness (e.g., obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety disorder, or depression). Or perhaps their lifestyle habits have led to addictive behaviors. None of these require the presence or activity of demonic spirits.
In a lot of cases, deliverance ministry might even “work,” but I can’t tell you how many people have need healing from the abuse they experience in those sessions.
Thus, we were chained by our deliverance from demons, even where there are none.
“I will show you the most excellent way.”
Again, I do believe in the reality of evil. Darkness pervades the world and its systems. Among the most common “unclean spirits” (not necessarily entities), we see fear, hatred, pride, shame… and they are always rooted in either human sin or human wounds (personal or collective). We overcome these—we experience freedom—through our intimate relationship with Jesus. We get to the heart of the matter, not by shouting at demons or “praying against” this or that principality… we are freed by the hope, comfort, encouragement, and healing of Jesus—by lifting our gaze to the Lord on his throne.
I’ll close with an odd story and a scripture. One day, circa ’95, a man knocked on my door. I knew him as a man of peace and discernment. He loves God and was well aware of my work in deliverance ministry. He said something like this: “Brad, the Lord sent me here with a message for you. God wants you to stop going through the deliverance door. The darkness there is not for you. From now on, he wants you to go through the healing door. There’s more light there. And the Light always outshines the darkness.”
Since then, I’ve learned the more excellent way to freedom: to focus on Jesus, follow his way, and surrender myself to his care. That’s where the transformation is. That’s where the deliverance is. That’s where the Light is. And that is how you resist the devil.
+ Romans 8:35-37 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Plain Truth Ministries | Box 300 | Pasadena, CA 91129-0300
