It seems, from time to time, that the evangelical church becomes aware of some strange “new” practice on the fringes of some charismatic churches. Some evangelicals experience a kind of jealous desire to join in, most react with cynicism and disdain. Whether it is angel feathers falling, fillings turning to gold, or holy laughter we feel a tension of wanting to not miss the moving of the Spirit and to not be misled by false spirits.
By the time reports of this kind of activity make their way beyond fringe charismatics there is usually already a history there. The practices may trace back to Azusa Street, Keswick quietists, nineteenth century mystics or some such. That there is a history satisfies some that it must be just fine. The trouble is, they miss that these things do not go back to the Bible, or even to the ancient church. Which, while I acknowledge is not compelling proof that the practices are false, it is evidence nonetheless.
“Deliverance ministry” fits this same pattern. While exorcism has a long history in the church, this was affirmed to be only for unbelievers. All Christians, for the first 1500 years of the church and beyond recognized that a person cannot be demon possessed and Spirit indwelt at the same time. Deliverance ministry still affirms that truth, but fashions another doctrine, that Christians can be oppressed or assaulted by demons. Once again, yea and amen. The reality of spiritual warfare is clear in the Bible as the nose on the face of someone with a very big nose. That most evangelicals pay it little heed is more a function of our worldliness and modernism than any spiritual maturity.
The trouble comes in the application. The Bible teaches we war against principalities and powers. It doesn’t teach us the demon Subglub rules over Cleveland, or how to recognize a “Jezebel spirit,” or how to uproot generational curses. In fact, these common tenets of “Deliverance Ministry,” if you look closely, are just as worldly and modernist as those theories that deny them. What they have in common with each other is they all, like much of modern psychology, fall under the heading of Flip Wilson Theology. For you youngsters, Flip Wilson was a comedian last century who made a fortune with this tag-line, “The devil made me do it.” Psychology, Flip Wilson and “Deliverance Ministry” all seek to distance our guilt from ourselves and put it on others.
“Deliverance ministry” does precious little to deliver us either from our sins or from our guilt. Repentance and resting in Christ does that. What it seems to remove is our mere feelings of guilt. Because the cause of our sins are laid at the feet of the demon oppressing us, or some childhood trauma, or some generational curse we’re suffering under, who could blame us? Sure, I may be a quick tempered, angry jerk, but my grandfather was the same. It’s his fault. Sure, I may be unfaithful to my spouse, but it’s because I was hurt by my mother when I was a child. It’s the spiritual version of Freud blaming our sins on our potty training.
We, again, surely need to be delivered from our own sinful patterns. This happens as we run to Christ in repentance. Surely we need to be delivered from the fiery darts of the devil. This happens when we put on the full armor of God. We won’t, however, ever be delivered from our sins unless we are delivered by Jesus, and delivered to a place of repentance and faith. There are no special tricks. No secret insights. There’s only the problem in the mirror, and the solution on our knees.