To possess is “to have ownership of; to take control of someone’s body or mind especially in a supernatural manner.”
There are those who have strange spirits resident in them. Their minds and actions are being manipulated by these spirits.
Read Acts 16:16-18 from your Bible
Here is another category of people who need deliverance. They need deliverance from demon possession. It is called “battle against possession.’ Some spirits have possessed them, and these people know that they are possessed. You cannot be possessed without knowing it.
In the text above, the possessed damsel had the ability to see visions, which the bible called “soothsaying.” She had the ability to tell things by DIVINATION. People were consulting with her to know hidden things about their lives. And being a slave girl, her master made much gains from her gift (otherwise, familiar spirit). When Paul and his companion came into town, the possessed girl turned her attention to them, telling all who cared to listen that they were messengers of God who came to teach the way of salvation.
Note that while the message of the damsel appeared to be true, she was operating from an influence that is not godly. This is where many christians get deceived. The fact that someone, a prophet or a prophetess, is able to prophesy or forecast the future and it comes to pass, does not make them genuine men or women of God.
Many of these so called prophets and prophetesses that people consult are possessed by the spirits of divination (the act of divining; a foreseeing or foretelling of future events; the apparent art of discovering secrets of the future by supernatural means).
It is by this spirit of divination that they see vision, prophesy, and prescribe solutions to problems. These prescribed solutions are usually at variance with the word of God. If Apostle Paul lacked the Spirit of discernment, he would have endorsed the prophecy of that girl and allowed her to follow them, which after mixing with them would have polluted their body with her strange spirit.
We have many of such in town today. They have established churches or prayer houses where people go to receive information about their future. They are able to tell many things by simply looking at a person or holding an item that belong to a person, either a picture, piece of cloth, etc. They may tell things that are true about a person’s past or foretell things that may actually come to pass, but it is by the spirit of divination and not from the Spirit of God. The spirit of divination is a serpentine spirit. It is that spirit that inspires visions for most of these “prophets” and “prophetesses.”
Note that not every person who sees a vision or makes accurate prediction that comes to pass is of God. The damsel in our text was delivered by Apostle Paul when he rebuked the spirit of divination. Consequently, she was unable to “see” or prophesy again. This was the reason Paul and Silas were cast into prison. Some people are possessed with witchcraft spirits. They know it but are either enjoying its privileges or afraid to expose it. They need to come forward and confess before God so that the spirit will be cast out of them. If they don’t confess to expose that spirit, no matter how long they come to church, the spirit may never leave them. Salvation only comes by confession.
Read Romans 10:9-10 from your Bible
Anyone who fails to confess his/her affiliation to any kingdom and pretends to be a Christian does so to their own deception and peril. The man of God may enforce deliverance by the anointing of God but as long as the person is not a willing participant, the spirit will wait for him/her and re-possess them.
But if the word of God convicts them and they give their life to Christ, it is expected that he/she will come forward to confess that they had been initiated into any kingdom of darkness they belong. It is not something to be ashamed of. In fact, it is a plus to them. The man of God, acting upon that information, will then cast out the spirit, the person being a willing candidate in the deliverance. But in cases where people pretend or keep quiet when they should rather speak up, they become agents of satan in the church, feeding the enemy kingdom with information and also become a channel of oppression to others.
After reading one of my messages, a woman called my line and confessed to have been initiated into witchcraft. That is genuine confession. She had been battling with it but had been unable to break the tie. The truth is that you cannot deliver yourself. You need somebody who has been empowered by the anointing of God to break the yoke and bring you out. But you must first do your part by confessing. If you don’t, what you are doing is keeping their oath of secrecy. Satan and his cohorts thrive in secrecy.
Some others have been initiated into and possessed by the power of occultism. They have powers to embark on astral travel to astral planetary locations where they hold meetings with their grandmasters to be empowered for evil. They know that they are initiated and that they have powers or spirits working with them. Some of them got initiated for protection, power, fame or wealth, while others were lured into it by their friends or colleagues for different reasons. They need to be delivered.
Some others have been initiated into the marine kingdom and are possessed by marine spirits. They know this fact. Some of them are marine witches/ wizards. They can transform into serpents, half human-half fish to attend meetings in rivers or oceans and are empowered by the queen of the coast to wreak havoc among humans. These people come to church but hide their condition. It is not that the power of God is not able to expose them. Sometimes that may happen. However, that does not guarantee deliverance. The individual only gets tortured, the spirit leaves momentarily, but returns as soon as the session is over, because the person still welcomes the spirit or spirits.
Note that a single individual can be possessed by a legion of demons (Mark 5:15). Legion means between 3000 – 6000. The battle is usually over the soul of the possessed, to keep them in bondage and cause them to miss heaven. But when they come to God and see the light, they ought to confess and be delivered. It is possible that these individuals were initiated at childhood by their parents or to save their life at a time of crisis. That notwithstanding, he/she needs to come for deliverance.
Some are either enjoying their position in the kingdom of darkness or looking forward to the wealth, beauty or power they have been promised. Yet there are some who are afraid because they have been threatened by the kingdom they belong to that if they try to opt out, they will be killed. They choose to believe the power of satan more than the power of God.
I once prayed for a lady who was afraid to confess because of the threat to her life. And because she had witnessed so much destruction, she believed them until the power of God convinced her otherwise. She confessed to me that it was customary for her spirit to come out of her body at 3a.m. to attend meetings. When the power of God came upon her, the spirit came out of her. I then instructed her on how to maintain her deliverance. Before that time, she was a tool in the hand of the enemy. She does not like it but because she was possessed, she found herself doing things, most times against her will. Once you surrender genuinely to God and confess and prayer is made, you will be free.
Read Philippians 2:9-11 from your Bible
Several people are fighting against demonic possession that is using them against their will. They are prisoners in the kingdom of darkness. Yet when these same people come to church, they don’t seek deliverance. It is quite unfortunate that people will hear the word of God and still end up in hell. If you are possessed, you must seek deliverance before it is too late.
May the Lord give you victory in Jesus’ name.
Some other people are possessed by familiar spirits that operate in the graveyard, desert or forest. If anyone is going through such, he/she needs to repent, confess and deliverance will be conducted to enable him/her live for God not satan.
If you notice your children behaving strangely, or a child that was once well behaved suddenly begins to act strange, it is possible he/she has been initiated. Don’t wave it away or hide it. Bring them for deliverance. Don’t wait until the spirit grows in the child as the child matures thus making it difficult for them to be delivered. Satan seeks to possess children and use them against their parents. Many children have confessed to be the cause of their family’s many woes. It may not be their making, but their innocence were compromised by evil forces.
Shalom!
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