Spiritual Warfare and Casting Demons out of Cities

[presidente]

This is a saying of Jesus about casting out demons, actually a type of parable, but I am operating under the assumption that what he is saying about demons is, of course, accurate, and that it applied to that generation as well.

Matthew 12
43 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. 44 Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”
(NKJV)

Back in the late '80's and early '90's, there were certain teachers who taught on spiritual warfare. A seminary professor put out a book that proposed that the key to opening up areas for the Gospel may be a type of 'spiritual warfare' by means of speaking against principalities over certain regions. So then there was this movement to identify the spirit over a certain territory. One approach seemed to be to name a spirit after the city's problem (assuming a one to one correlation between a problem and a spirit, e.g. spirit of drunkennes, spirit of murder, etc.)

And then there was a move to drive or even fly around a city or region and rebuke the principalities and cast them down.

So here is a question, if you do this and it actually works, if there happens to be a spirit or principality to corresponds with what you are rebuking, and it leaves the city, and you cast out all the demons you name in a city, and you don't evangelize everyone and win them to Christ, then won't they come back, get seven times the reinforcements for each unsaved person they were cast out of, and the city or region may be worse off than it was?

I had a conversation with a former missionary to India who'd lived in one of the areas that was used as a test case to support this idea that rebuking principalities opens up areas. He didn't agree that the story was accurate since many people had been ministering in the gospel before whoever it was came in and did this so-called 'spiritual warfare'.

I also have another concern about this sort of thing that has to do with the warning against speaking evil of dignitaries in Jude.

We have a lot of great and precious promises in the Bible about praying to God in faith. There aren't promises about casting out demons as a cure-all.

 

[Grace777x70]

In my opinion - Casting out demons in cities is religious nonsense and is all works-based religious activity. Christ has already defeated them. Speak and proclaim Christ and His gospel and this is what sets people free.

Turn on the light and darkness flees.

 

[stonesoffire]

Actually, in the OT, if you look at the Hebrew names of the 'ites...you will see the spirit of the clan.

I'm not doing this by the way, but I do know others who have.

 

[sevenseas]

yeah. I would not get involved in that. I don't think it's biblical.

Ephesians 6 indicates we stand against them. we don't chase them down the road and while we cast out demons in Jesus name, we are not Jesus and best not to play with things that live to destroy, are far more intelligent than we are and are intent on hurting God any way they can.

 

[BeyondET]

In my opinion - Casting out demons in cities is religious nonsense and is all works-based religious activity. Christ has already defeated them. Speak and proclaim Christ and His gospel and this is what sets people free.

Turn on the light and darkness flees.

[video=youtube;rjaZGss9tQQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjaZGss9tQQ[/video]

 

[88]

This is a saying of Jesus about casting out demons, actually a type of parable, but I am operating under the assumption that what he is saying about demons is, of course, accurate, and that it applied to that generation as well.

Matthew 12
43 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. 44 Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”
(NKJV)

Back in the late '80's and early '90's, there were certain teachers who taught on spiritual warfare. A seminary professor put out a book that proposed that the key to opening up areas for the Gospel may be a type of 'spiritual warfare' by means of speaking against principalities over certain regions. So then there was this movement to identify the spirit over a certain territory. One approach seemed to be to name a spirit after the city's problem (assuming a one to one correlation between a problem and a spirit, e.g. spirit of drunkennes, spirit of murder, etc.)

And then there was a move to drive or even fly around a city or region and rebuke the principalities and cast them down.

So here is a question, if you do this and it actually works, if there happens to be a spirit or principality to corresponds with what you are rebuking, and it leaves the city, and you cast out all the demons you name in a city, and you don't evangelize everyone and win them to Christ, then won't they come back, get seven times the reinforcements for each unsaved person they were cast out of, and the city or region may be worse off than it was?

I had a conversation with a former missionary to India who'd lived in one of the areas that was used as a test case to support this idea that rebuking principalities opens up areas. He didn't agree that the story was accurate since many people had been ministering in the gospel before whoever it was came in and did this so-called 'spiritual warfare'.

I also have another concern about this sort of thing that has to do with the warning against speaking evil of dignitaries in Jude.

We have a lot of great and precious promises in the Bible about praying to God in faith. There aren't promises about casting out demons as a cure-all.

*** you can't cast out Principalities like demons, the Word says we wrestle against Principalities and Powers (Ephesians 6)***we over through Principalities and Powers by winning bound souls in the city and bringing the Gospel and they lose their grip over a region*** their may be more to this, so I will study more also...

 

[Veteran]

There aren't promises about casting out demons as a cure-all.

Jesus certainly made promises to His disciples about them having power and authority over demons.
And everything in the gospels applies to us also (except for some obvious historical aspects).
Most churches don't talk about these things because they do NOT have the baptism with the Holy Spirit
(with the initial confirmation of some tongues), which is (mostly) necessary to do things like this!
Sorry, don't know much about the cure-all aspect.

 

[Depleted]

This is a saying of Jesus about casting out demons, actually a type of parable, but I am operating under the assumption that what he is saying about demons is, of course, accurate, and that it applied to that generation as well.

Matthew 12
43 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. 44 Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”
(NKJV)

Back in the late '80's and early '90's, there were certain teachers who taught on spiritual warfare. A seminary professor put out a book that proposed that the key to opening up areas for the Gospel may be a type of 'spiritual warfare' by means of speaking against principalities over certain regions. So then there was this movement to identify the spirit over a certain territory. One approach seemed to be to name a spirit after the city's problem (assuming a one to one correlation between a problem and a spirit, e.g. spirit of drunkennes, spirit of murder, etc.)

And then there was a move to drive or even fly around a city or region and rebuke the principalities and cast them down.

So here is a question, if you do this and it actually works, if there happens to be a spirit or principality to corresponds with what you are rebuking, and it leaves the city, and you cast out all the demons you name in a city, and you don't evangelize everyone and win them to Christ, then won't they come back, get seven times the reinforcements for each unsaved person they were cast out of, and the city or region may be worse off than it was?

I had a conversation with a former missionary to India who'd lived in one of the areas that was used as a test case to support this idea that rebuking principalities opens up areas. He didn't agree that the story was accurate since many people had been ministering in the gospel before whoever it was came in and did this so-called 'spiritual warfare'.

I also have another concern about this sort of thing that has to do with the warning against speaking evil of dignitaries in Jude.

We have a lot of great and precious promises in the Bible about praying to God in faith. There aren't promises about casting out demons as a cure-all.

Heads up -- living in a city doesn't make you evil. (Nor does it make you a believer.)

 

[BeyondET]

Heads up -- living in a city doesn't make you evil. (Nor does it make you a believer.)

a city dweller..? lol.. jk

 

[tourist]

Casting out demons in an entire city sounds nuts to me. Demons can be in the country in rural areas too. I live in the Tampa / St. Petersburg, Florida metropolitan area with a population of 2.9 million. I guess some misguided person could attempt to cast out all of the demons and send them to Walt Disney World in Orlando. Good luck with evangelizing the entire population that is currently, by some standards, lost.

I have never heard about driving or flying around certain areas to avoid all of the nasty evil people that reside there. I was in Las Vegas a couple years all and I'm sure that city has their share of sick and depraved people. Now, Jesus is the Great Physician and I'm sure that He is there and all of the other areas that abound in depravity. After all, if you want to heal you have to go where the sick people are.

This test of that missionary sounds whacko.

 

[stonesoffire]

It's not about casting spirits out of cities. It's about strongholds or gates of influence. Binding by intercessory prayer is more what I might do....but not as beating the air as Paul said. There's a gift of discerning of spirits.

I would have to be to be shown something to move this way. And I'm not at this level.

 

[Locutus]

You just have to clear 'em out of the swamp in Washington DC..

 

[truthhurts]

Lets not forget the story in Daniel 10.13... Gabriel was an angel who was delayed for 21 days to bring Daniel an answer...The Territorial Prince of Persia[demon] detained Gabriel and Michael the Arch angel had to assist...

I seem to recall there is only 1 fight we are commanded to fight and that is the fight of Faith....We wrestle with levels of demonic activity, but I never heard us fighting them...I have rebuked spirits in the name of Jesus that were on and in people before, but I think 95% of all spiritual warfare is designed to sell books and make the wallets and purses of hirelings fat...

 

[NotmebutHim]

yeah. I would not get involved in that. I don't think it's biblical.

Ephesians 6 indicates we stand against them. we don't chase them down the road and while we cast out demons in Jesus name, we are not Jesus and best not to play with things that live to destroy, are far more intelligent than we are and are intent on hurting God any way they can.

Exactly

If you notice, the "sword of the Spirit" is the only offensive piece in the armor of God. Everything else is defensive.

 

[truthhurts]

Exactly

If you notice, the "sword of the Spirit" is the only offensive piece in the armor of God. Everything else is defensive.

The Boots are offensive as well...Romans 16.20

 

[Johnny_B]

C. Peter Wagner was the professor and I believe his book was, Power Evangelism. This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness, were the novels that started all that non-sense. This idea that evil spirits cause people to sin comes form the book of Enoch. Where azazel is said to have taught others to sin and the Lord told I believe Gabriel to place the sin on azazel. People sin because they love darkness rather then the light. John 3:19. What this is all about is taking the focus off of people being responsible for their sin and blaming it on demons is not what the Bible teaches. People need to repent and place their faith in Jesus, not have demons cast out and it's not the full Gospel either. It's people that believe an experience is equal to the authority of the Bible.

The earliest manuscripts do not have verse 9-20 in them so to base the Gospel on these verses is not the best idea, I was one that was a full Gospel believer. I remember once a few of us were out in an area where many gathered on the weekends, we were preaching out there and someone began to mack me and I rebuke him by saying "hold your peace, you demon in Jesus name" he and the crowd laughed at me and mocked all the more. I prayed about it and wonder why he did not stop in Jesus name. As I began to study God's word I realized that he was doing that because of sin, not because of a demon. This did happen during those time of the novels.

What opened my eyes was all the demons we were binding in prayer, were all works of the flesh or the sin nature. One of the biggest thing that got me to question it all, was listening to people praying in a meeting before a service. We would talk the demons and satan more then to God, one day a brother said Father to address God but ended up saying father satan god, I rebuke you, but I was like wow he just called satan father and god, at this point you may be wondering why I was listening to someones prayer, because we taught God was deaf and we used to yell, i was a sign that the Spirit was moving in us (not) so we thought.

I don't bind and loose anymore, my prayers are to God and I don't talk to satan anymore. That was another thing that opened my eyes, I taught how would I like it if one of my children were talking to me and every 3 to 5 words they would start talking to someone else, not with my children, but I've had that happen to me before and it bugs the heck out of me.

 

[LanceA]

C. Peter Wagner was the professor and I believe his book was, Power Evangelism. This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness, were the novels that started all that non-sense. This idea that evil spirits cause people to sin comes form the book of Enoch. Where azazel is said to have taught others to sin and the Lord told I believe Gabriel to place the sin on azazel. People sin because they love darkness rather then the light. John 3:19. What this is all about is taking the focus off of people being responsible for their sin and blaming it on demons is not what the Bible teaches. People need to repent and place their faith in Jesus, not have demons cast out and it's not the full Gospel either. It's people that believe an experience is equal to the authority of the Bible.

The earliest manuscripts do not have verse 9-20 in them so to base the Gospel on these verses is not the best idea, I was one that was a full Gospel believer. I remember once a few of us were out in an area where many gathered on the weekends, we were preaching out there and someone began to mack me and I rebuke him by saying "hold your peace, you demon in Jesus name" he and the crowd laughed at me and mocked all the more. I prayed about it and wonder why he did not stop in Jesus name. As I began to study God's word I realized that he was doing that because of sin, not because of a demon. This did happen during those time of the novels.

What opened my eyes was all the demons we were binding in prayer, were all works of the flesh or the sin nature. One of the biggest thing that got me to question it all, was listening to people praying in a meeting before a service. We would talk the demons and satan more then to God, one day a brother said Father to address God but ended up saying father satan god, I rebuke you, but I was like wow he just called satan father and god, at this point you may be wondering why I was listening to someones prayer, because we taught God was deaf and we used to yell, i was a sign that the Spirit was moving in us (not) so we thought.

I don't bind and loose anymore, my prayers are to God and I don't talk to satan anymore. That was another thing that opened my eyes, I taught how would I like it if one of my children were talking to me and every 3 to 5 words they would start talking to someone else, not with my children, but I've had that happen to me before and it bugs the heck out of me.

I actually liked the books you mentioned. Great fictional reads. All I am going to say is a agree and disagree with you. As Christians it seems it is one way or the other, no middle ground. I tend to tread in the middle where yes, our carnal self is to blame for a lot of what we do but then again yes, there is demonic activity influencing people. I guess we have to rely on the HS's guidance as to what we are dealing with

 

[presidente]

C. Peter Wagner was the professor and I believe his book was, Power Evangelism.

John Wimber wrote Power Evangelism, and it was not about casting out demons over territories. It was about spiritual gifts in evangelist. As I recall either this one or Power Healing felt a bit academic. I recall a testimony of John Wimber talking to a man on a plane and seeing 'adultery' written on the fellow passenger's forehead and telling the man the name of the woman he was committing adultery with.

 

[Johnny_B]

I actually liked the books you mentioned. Great fictional reads. All I am going to say is a agree and disagree with you. As Christians it seems it is one way or the other, no middle ground. I tend to tread in the middle where yes, our carnal self is to blame for a lot of what we do but then again yes, there is demonic activity influencing people. I guess we have to rely on the HS's guidance as to what we are dealing with

I agree with you, Ephesians 2:2 tells us that of which we were once a part of verse 3. It's the casting out demons that are causing people to sin is where I depart and I believe from what you are saying you do too. There is definitely powers and principalities that are working against us. Which is interesting because if you do a study on spiritual warfare or casting down thought that exalt themselves above Christ. It all sinner that come against us because they are being influenced by those powers and principalities.

Here's another thing that I noticed when Jesus said, "that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses." If I'm going to make a charge assign something as doctrine, I need to establish it in the OT, Gospels and the epistles. So I thought where is the OT witness, is a picture of spiritual warfare. Then I found that every time Israel was over taken by their enemies it was because they had turned from God to idols. So I began to understand that if powers and principalities are over taking me, I need to seek God and repent of what ever it is He's trying to show me through this warfare. The book of Judges is a good one to study while studying spiritual warfare. I'll look it up, there's a verse or two tat call fiery arrows, words, so I take the fiery darts to be sinners words that hurt us.

We agree that there are powers out there that influence sinners to do things and some time to us.

 

[presidente]

Johnny_B,

I came from a Pentecostal background. None of the churches I grew up in (I moved and so changed churches) taught some of these so-called 'spiritual warfare' teachings.

I never really thought of sin as always being caused by demons. Satan tempted Jesus, and I still think demons can tempt people to sin. But I don't think sin is demons. It isn't a part of my world view either from reading the Bible or things I heard in church growing up. If you could cast all the demons out of a city and people are unsaved, I think they'll still sin. Demons do not equal sin. Maybe some of the people in this movement think that way. I'm glad you brought that up. That would be a good area to address in teaching. I might interview some people one-on-on who are into this stuff and get their perspective on it.