It is really easy for those who engage in occult or New Age practices to fall victim to demonization. Such practices include visiting a fortune-teller who is legitimate, spiritistic inquiring of the dead via ouija board or other means, charming, the reading of books on sorcery and horoscopes, superstitious practices, for example, the wearing of amulets or the use of a rod or pendulum if it is allied to clairvoyance. New Age practices such as eastern meditation and yoga can possibly open a person to demonization, as well as the worship of false gods or idols. Also, a conscious subscribing of oneself to the devil, such as with one’s own blood, will result in a terrible form of demonic subjection and oppression. The motive behind surrendering one’s life and soul to the devil is usually the desire to have some special wish fulfilled.
However, it is not only the active engagement in occult or New Age sins like those we have just mentioned that leads to demonization, but one frequently finds that people whose parents or ancestors have practiced sorcery or witchcraft also fall under the grip of the devil.
Sure, the devil can sometimes give accurate information concerning the future when one visits a fortune-teller and people who are charmed are often “healed” by the power of the devil. But the devil does not give his services free of charge. If a person turns to him for help, he binds him with heavy chains and brings him into subjection. And the person will remain bound, unable in his own strength to break loose.
I have been contacted by people who have been heavily involved with the occult or New Age and received the inevitable consequences of practicing such sin which is demonization. One may wonder what must one do to receive deliverance from it? Here are basic points one can follow to not only receive deliverance from occult bondage but also retain it.
1. Deliverance is possible only through Jesus Christ
Victims of demonization must first trust in the Lord and God Jesus Christ and confess Him as Savior from the penalty of sin and Deliverer from the powers of darkness. This is the starting point in liberation from evil spirits. For one to be saved, there must be the recognization that he/she is a lost sinner, guilty of having broken the moral law of God and unable to please God. Only by trusting Jesus as Redeemer can he find acceptance before a just, holy, righteous God. Thus, he is reconciled to God through Christ who can save him and keep him from evil. Then the victim can deal with the problem of occult or New Age deliverance.
Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28
In the case of occult or New Age subjection, neither psychology nor psychiatry can be of any help. Meditation, yoga, and hypnosis are also impotent. Nor a witch doctor, shaman, or New Age medical practitioner can help. And nothing can be gained by turning to Buddhism, Hinduism, or the Muslim faith.
The only source of help in this world is the Lord and God Jesus Christ. In the Acts of the Apostles it is written, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). And that name is Jesus.
Jesus is the only one who has all authority over all the powers of the enemy. Jesus declared, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Matthew 28:18).
2. You Must Face the Enemy
The real battle is a spiritual conflict (Ephesians 6:10-18). Satan and his hosts have declared war against God. They fight not for territory but for souls. And we are the battlefield.
It is perilous to ignore the Adversary. The apostle Paul realized that. “We are not ignorant of his schemes” (2 Corinthians 2:11) he declared. It is equally hazardous not to stand against the enemy.
3. Every object of sorcery and the New Age must be destroyed
In the great revival which Paul experienced in Ephesus many of those who became believers brought their books on magic arts together and burned them (Acts 19:19).
In a revival in Indonesia, the natives brought their fetishes and occult objects together in heaps and destroyed them similarly.
Magical books and occult objects carry with them a demonic attachment. Anyone not prepared to get rid of it will likely not be able to free himself from the influence of the powers of darkness.
Consider the following testimony:
A young man wanted to surrender his life to Christ. In spite of burning his books on spiritism though, he was not delivered. Some Christian brothers continued to pray for him but there was still no change. Then two of them visited the young man’s home. There on the bookshelf they found a leather bound copy of one of Jakob Lorber’s spiritistical books. The young man did not want to part with the book with its gold embossed cover and gilt-edges. However, when he did finally burn it, he was completely delivered.
During various evangelistic campaigns, numerous people have handed letters of protection, letters of good omen, threatening letters, and copies of the 6th and 7th Book of Moses to me. I always through them into the fire. Some naive people, however, hang on to these things, especially when they find Bible verses contained within them.
(Occult Bondage and Deliverance, pgs. 90-91)
Another example:
A missionary in South Africa entered the house of a Hindu family. The daughter immediately started sliding about on the floor as if she were a snake. She just could not control herself. Her parents had no power over her either. The missionary asked them, ‘Have you any idols in the house? If you have, then get rid of them at once.’ They followed his advice. The missionary prayed for the afflicted girl and she was set free.
Sometimes when one asks a person to destroy his occult objects, one meets with a lot of resistance, especially if the articles are also extremely expensive works of art. Yet even the little figures made out of precious stones which often originate from heathen temples have to be destroyed if the owner finds he cannot free himself from his occult oppression.
(Occult Bondage and Deliverance, pgs. 91-92).
4. Mediumistic contacts and friendships must be broken
It would be wise to cut all ties to those involved with the occult and New Age. What fellowship does light have with darkness (2 Cor. 6:14)? People who have been delivered from occult oppression and yet have to return again and live in an occult or spiritistic atmosphere never find real and lasting peace. It is advised for young people stemming from such environments, “Stay away from your parents – or from your uncle, aunt, etc. – if they are not prepared to forsake their occult practices and interests.”
5. Confession
Generally speaking in most forms of counseling work confession is usually made in the presence of the counselor. However, there are people who have only had God as their witness when they have made a confession of their sins. There is no law to be made about the matter. God is able to justify a person no matter how he confesses his sins, but it may be preferable for a person to follow the advice of James 5:16, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
Occultly oppressed or demonized people should, in fact, make an open confession of every single hidden thing in their lives to remove the very last foothold of the enemy.
The following is one example:
In Suwa on the Fiji Islands a young woman came to me and confessed that for two years she had been suffering from attacks of paralysis. The doctors had been unable to find any cause for her illness. I told the young woman that I had experienced conditions like hers before in people whose parents or grandparents had practised spiritism or crude forms of hypnosis and other occult practices. I asked her if any of her family had engaged in anything like this. Her reply was negative. I could get no further in counseling her. Later I heard that on the way home she had told the woman with her, that as a young girl she had taken part in some tablelifting. This was undoubtedly the cause of her trancelike states of paralysis.
The confession of a subjected person should not only cover the occult, but also every other department of his life. Yet compulsion must never be used. Unless the confession is completely voluntary, it will be worthless.
The power behind the revival in Uganda in Africa consists of what is called ‘walking in the light’. This expression is used by the Christians to describe an almost daily practice of James 5:16. Every hidden resentment and sin is brought into the light. Nothing is allowed to build up or develop which might give an opportunity to the devil.
(Occult Bondage and Deliverance, pgs. 98-99)
You may also want to check out “An Important Element For Deliverance: Repent and Sin No More!“
6. Prayer of renunciation
A prayer of renunciation is of great significance. The question is why? Every sin connected with sorcery is basically a contract with the powers of darkness. By means of sorcery, the archenemy of mankind gains the right of ownership over a person’s life. This is true even if this is only the sins of a person’s parents or grandparents that are involved. The devil is well acquainted with the second commandment which ends, “for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me.” The powers of darkness continue to claim their right of ownership although quite often the descendants remain completely unaware of the fact, perhaps since they have had no contact with sorcery themselves. Nevertheless, immediately a person in this situation is converted, satan very soon makes his claim felt.
In praying a prayer of renunciation, a person cancels satan’s right both officially and judicially. The victim should single out each specific form of occult or New Age involvement and confess it to the Lord as a heinous sin.
When the demonic oppression is minimal, the person who has made his confession will have little difficulty in repeating a prayer of renunciation after the counselor. The prayer can take the form, “In the name of Jesus I renounce all the works of the devil [you may want to name each one] together with the occult practices of my forefathers, and I subscribe myself to the Lord Jesus Christ, my Lord and Saviour, both now and forever. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.“
The prayer is not a formula. Every time it is prayed, it can take a different form. Also, pray with a sincere heart.
In severe cases of oppression, on the other hand, a number of complications can arise when it comes to praying a prayer of renunciation.
A deliverance minister wrote:
“In Switzerland the son of a bishop came to see me. It soon became evident what the root cause of his trouble was. When I asked him to pray a prayer of renunciation after me, he found he could not bring his hands together to pray. His mouth would not open either. He just ground his teeth and was unable to repeat the prayer. This was not a simple cause of occult subjection but rather one of demonization or obsession.
In cases of possession, the victim can easily fall into a trance when it comes to renouncing the devil. At other times a person may cry out, “I can’t use his name (Jesus), I can’t force myself to say it.”
(Occult Bondage and Deliverance, pg. 101)
In cases like this, one must command the evil powers in the name of Jesus (more about this later).
In 2 Corinthians 4:2, Paul writes: “We have renounced the hidden things.“
Renunciation is often followed by a remarkable change. One deliverance minister wrote about a letter he received:
When I wanted to get up, I found I couldn’t. It was as if I was bound. Then you came across to me and somehow I managed to get my feet…. In the vestry you asked me a number of questions. You then told me to get down on my knees and to pray a prayer after you. When I did this, I meant it with all my heart. After that, I left. It’s now ten years since I talked with you. I have never fallen into the same old mistake again. It’s gone completely. The day after our conversation I felt quite strange. I was so light and free. It was as if I could fly, as if chains had fallen from me. It was really wonderful.
(Occult Bondage and Deliverance, pg. 101-102)
Not to say everyone will experience such elated feelings after deliverance, but the change of ownership is still valid no matter how one feels.
Renunciation is particularly important in cases where natives are converted out of a heathen background. One chief of an aborigine Wongai tribe noted: “Many converts backslide through not having renounced before God the various magical practices of their tribe.”
7. Complete Surrender to Jesus
One deliverance minister noted while dealing with the worst case of possession ever, he asked the voices coming from the possessed person, “Why don’t you leave him alone?” The demons replied in English, “We have possessed him because he didn’t surrender his life completely to the Lord.”
What a serious warning this should be to all believers. The powers of darkness will seize the slightest opportunity to try to gain entrance into our lives.
When a person is delivered from a state of occult subjection, he must withhold nothing in his life from the Lord. Those areas which are not surrendered to his Lord will soon be occupied again by the enemy.
There is a great difference between saying that we are prepared to live our lives according to the dictates of the Lord Jesus and saying that the Lord can rule our lives for us. This is what He waits for – the command to take over. If we hope to stand in the battle, Jesus must become the Lord of our time, the Lord of our strength, the Lord of our wills, the Lord of our possessions, the Lord of our plans, and the Lord of our decisions.
Jesus said in Matthew 11:27, “All things have been delivered to me by my Father.” Does this include us?
Only when Jesus is our Lord will He protect us from the lordship of others.
It is also important to humble ourselves before the Lord. I have come across cases where the person’s pride seemed to have hindered or delayed deliverance. The Bible reads“Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble” (James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5).
8. Forgiving others for their sins
In my observation, deliverance from demons can be hindered unless the person forgives others for their sins. It is suggested to truly forgive others for their sins before having deliverance prayer.
One deliverance minister wrote:
I had the opportunity to minister to a woman who came in for prayer because she found a lump in her breast that made her very concerned thinking it to be breast cancer. I began to pray for her and, after a short time, I heard the voice of the Lord saying to me “Ask her to find the lump.” I stopped the prayer and said, “Sister, try to find the lump.” She touched her chest trying to find it but it was gone. She could not find it. Praise God!
But the story does not end here. I heard the voice of the Lord again, and this time, the Lord said, “Tell her now to forgive her ex-husband.” I had no idea she was divorced but I followed the direction of the Lord and I said, “Sister, the Lord is telling me now that you are to release forgiveness to your ex-husband.” Wow! This sweet nice sister turned into another person. She became very mad and very uncomfortable saying, “I am not forgiving him. Stop! I don’t want to go there” and so on. I tried the best I could to explain to this precious woman the importance of releasing forgiveness in her process of freedom and how important it was to God that she forgave in order to get right before God. I even said to her I would leave her alone to talk to God and ask him to give her the strength to forgive and get right before Him based on Mark 11:25-26 which states,
“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses”
But this woman refused saying that she did not want to do that and this went on for about 10-15 minutes until I heard the voice of the Lord again saying, “Ask her to look for the lump”. I asked and, to our surprise, the lump was back and at that point I could not do anything else to help her with my prayers because she had hardened her heart toward the voice of the Lord and she had given satan the legality to strike her with sickness. I saw that woman going back home with tears rolling down her face and carrying her lump in the breast because of her unwillingness to let go and forgive.
More information on the issue of not forgiving others.
9. The weapons of this warfare
There are battles even now taking place in the unseen realm, the existence and the severity of which we have absolutely no idea. Occasionally, the Bible gives us a glimpse of this situation.
In Jude ch. 9, for example, we have a short account of the battle between the archangel Michael and the devil concerning the body of Moses. In Daniel 10:13, we hear too of the struggle between Michael and the angel Prince of Persia; a story which seems to indicate that angels of protection exist not only for people but possibly also for whole nations.
The heavens are ringing with the war cries of evil spirits. Yet all is not lost. We are not alone. There is Someone with us who is greater than all those that are against us.
How can we make use of the sword of the Spirit? When reading the bible, make a habit of underlining certain verses to repeat to yourself over and over again during the day to learn them by memory. The words that we continually turn over in our minds and consider in our hearts are ever renewed by the Holy Spirit, and they become to us a source of great strength.
If a person is freed from his occult oppression, he must be cautious to make use of every means of help recommended to him in the pages of the Scriptures.
10. Command the enemy in the name of the Lord
The way this commanding is to be carried out was spoken of by the apostle Paul in Acts 16:16-18. Faced with the spirit of divination (python) in this fortuneteller of Philippi, the apostle Paul commanded it in the name of Jesus Christ, and the woman was set free. Commanding and believing in the name of Jesus is a more potent form of prayer. Every Christian ought to practice it in order to win in the struggle with the powers of darkness. Hell trembles before the name of the Lord.
A deliverance minister related a story:
In 1964, I traveled among a number of Indian tribes in the upper Amazon area. I also visited the Bible school near Pucallpa. One night I was called out to see a young Indian woman. I found that she had gone to sorcerers five times, and that she drank Ayahuasca, a magic potion. She would fall into a trance just like the sorcerer himself and then being able to sing in a very high pitched voice. As far as the Christian faith was converted, she was totally closed to it. And now I had been called out to help her at half past one in the morning. She had been singing her magic songs for the past hour. I prayed with her, placing myself under the protection of Jesus’ blood. Then in the name of Jesus Christ, I commanded the powers to go out from her, and also commanded her to cease at once from her magic song. She stopped at one and sang no more.
(Occult ABC, pg. 307)
It also sometimes happens that demons will go out of one person and then enter another person nearby. Command those spirits in the name of Jesus not to transfer into anyone.
Note: Deliverance can be a protracted struggle. Don’t get discouraged!
11. Immerse yourself in prayer and fasting
A person liberated from occult or New Age power should develop a strong, consistent prayer life. Why? Prayer maintains vital contact with the Lord, where the devil’s attacks are rendered powerless (Luke 18:1; Ephesians 6:18; 1 Thess. 5:17; Jude 20). It is crucial to maintain communion with God through Christ.
Jesus met his disciples one day when they were disillusioned by the fact that they had been unable to heal a possessed boy. “Why could we not cast it out?” asked the Lord. “Because of your little faith,” Jesus replied. “This kind never comes out except by prayer and fasting” (Matt. 17:14-21).
Fasting was a recognized practice in both the Old and the New Testaments. We know that Daniel fasted and prayed for three weeks on one occasion (Dan. 9:3;10:3), and Jesus himself went without food for forty days in the wilderness.
Over the last few centuries, the Catholic Church has turned fasting into a kind of penance. In the Protestant churches, on the other hand, fasting is almost unheard of today. Yet fasting has still a very meaningful place in the support of a person’s fervent prayers.
I will share my personal experience with fasting. I remember years ago I was being harassed by a demon, and even though I would rebuke it in the name of Jesus it would keep returning. I resorted to fasting against it in the name of Jesus for 4-5 days (I didn’t eat any food, just drank water or juice). When I broke the fast the demon showed up in my bedroom enraged and furious at me. The atmosphere in the bedroom felt so evil and heavy you can cut it with a butter knife. I distinctly discerned it was speaking to my spirit “Why did you fast against me?” That is when I knew fasting is a very powerful weapon when used in conjunction with prayer. Since then, I have practiced fasting as part of my Christian walk.
It would also be of benefit to be part of a prayer group of strong believers.
12. The protection of the blood of Christ
Nothing perhaps fills the demons with more fear than the name and the blood of Jesus. If a person dealing with demonically oppressed people fails to use the protection that God has provided for him, he will achieve nothing.
Missionaries in occult-ridden lands place themselves daily under the protection of Jesus’ blood, so that the enemy may have no power over them.
More scriptures about the power of the blood of Jesus.
13. Guard against the return of demons
In Matthew 12:43-45, we are warned that demons which have been cast out are eager to return. They find the house swept and in order, enter in, and the last state of the man is worse than the first.
Anyone who has had anything to do with counseling the demonized is familiar with the problem of spirits that have been cast out returning and making matters worse.
Guard against the return of the enemy by staying away from sin, staying clinging on to the Lord. It is necessary to walk in the will of God according to the Word of God, meticulously avoiding any complicity with the kingdom of darkness. The ground wrested from the devil must be protected for Christ.
The enemy will try to throw everything and the kitchen sink at a person to reopen the doors to him. One may get erotic dreams if a person is fighting against lust. I have noticed the enemy will throw ungodly men at single women who desire to be in a relationship. Don’t fall for it!
You may want to read “I Turned To Jesus Christ And Now I Am Getting Attacked – What’s Going On?” for more information.
14. Put on the spiritual armor
In Ephesians 6:10-18, Paul devotes a whole section of his letter to the spiritual armor that God provides. He speaks of the whole armor of God: the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the belt of truth, feet shod with the Gospel of peace, and the sword of the Spirit.
These are words taken from the language of war. Paul uses these military terms to show us that, in our struggle with Satan and his demons, we are on a battlefield where live ammunition is used.
The enemy does not always fight with his visor open. Many of his attacks have a religious camouflage. This is why Paul speaks in Ephesians 6:11 of the wiles of the devil.
The Bible should be read with a pencil in one’s hand. We should underline all the things we want to note and which we can use in the battle against Satan’s attacks. During Satan’s worst attacks on me, the use of the words of the Bible helped carried me through all my struggles. When spiritual-sounding demons try to confuse us, we must say as Jesus did, “Again it is written.” Against the misuse or distortion of words from the Bible, we must answer with the proper use of the Bible.
15. Obey the Lord in all things
Those who, after conversion, are not obedient to the Lord will experience many setbacks and defeats.
Obedience in the things of every day, both large and small, it brings with it a great blessing. Disobedience paralyzes our spiritual power.
It is said of Jesus in Philippians 2:8, “He became obedient unto death.”
It was part of Paul’s commission to bring about the obedience of faith (Romans 1:5). Peter speaks of obedience to the truth (1 Peter 1:22)
16. Be filled with the Holy Spirit!
We receive the Holy Spirit when we are born again. No one can call Jesus Lord without the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 12:3). Infant baptism is not the same as rebirth.
We must not stand still when we receive the Holy Spirit. Paul, who had experienced the filling with the Holy Spirit of the believers at Ephesus (Acts19:6), writes to the same people in Ephesians 5:18, “Be filled with the Spirit.” This means that we do not need a baptism of the Spirit as a second experience of full salvation. We need a continual filling with the Holy Spirit after we have become members of the Church of Christ through the second birth
Most of the information in this post is based on Occult Bondage and Deliverance & Occult ABC by Kurt E. Koch
If you don’t know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior you can receive Him into your heart, and He can deliver you from darkness and sin and have your name written in His Book of Life.
If you are sincere you can say this simple prayer to the Father (it doesn’t have to be word for word):
“God, I recognize that I have not lived my life for You up until now. I have been living for myself and that is wrong. Please forgive me of all of my sins just as I forgive others. I need You in my life; I want You in my life. I acknowledge the completed work of Your only begotten Son Jesus Christ in giving His life for me on the cross, I believe in my heart Jesus is Lord and was raised from the dead and I long to receive the forgiveness you have made freely available to me through this sacrifice. Come into my life now, Lord. Take up residence in my heart and be my king, my Lord, and my Savior. From this day forward, I will no longer be controlled by sin, or the desire to please myself, but I will follow You all the days of my life. Those days are in Your hands. I ask this in the Lord and GOD Jesus’ precious and holy name. Amen.”
If you need prayer for deliverance, then feel free to reach out to me.
Jesus Truth Deliverance 