HEALING THROUGH DELIVERANCE

Abstract

It is pertinent to posit that the paramount objective of this study was to ascertain the efficacy of healing through deliverance in the Christendom and beyond. In the cause of the study, the researcher put forward certain objectives that will enable him complete the study, in the cause of the study the researcher discovered that sin is a major cause of oppression and demonic possession ranging from sexual immorality and other spiritual ties with witchcraftsy and Satanism.  At the completion of the study the researcher concluded that there is nothing Jesus can not deliver us from if only we bring it to him in place of prayer, worship, praise and thanksgiving.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

• Background of the study

Many Christians do not recognize or know they are in bondage, that they have strongholds and open “gates” or “doors” which allow darkness to influence them. The scriptural admonition stated in Hosea 4:6 is still applicable today: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” Isa 5:13 says “my people are gone into captivity because they have no knowledge”.  We know that before man inhabited the earth Lucifer was expelled from heaven to the earth. On earth Satan continued his rebellion against God by tempting man to disobey God. Man sinned and became alienated from his Creator. Man then became vulnerable to Satan and the supernatural beings under Satan’s control, known as fallen angels, demons or evil spirits. Satan has a plan for your life, to steal, to kill, and to destroy. (John 10:10) He first wants to keep us from believing in God and Jesus, if he fails in this, then he wants to keep us from knowing Jesus Christ personally, and if that fails, he wants to keep us from serving Jesus Christ effectively. The Kingdom of God and the kingdom of evil are engaged in fierce conflict one against the other for the souls, spirits and bodies of men and women on earth. But God, not willing to allow His creation to come under the influence of darkness, prepared a way of escape (salvation) for mankind and sent His own Son, Jesus to earth to show us the way. It is through the message of Jesus and His works on the cross giving us power over the darkness that we are redeemed and set free One of Christ’s purposes in coming to earth was to destroy the works of the devil (I John 3:9-10). He came first to “preach the gospel to the poor” (those spiritually oppressed, Luke 4:18) and to “proclaim liberty to the captives” (Luke 4:18; Is. 42:7, 49:9 and 61:1), then, second, “to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:19, Is. 61:2). The order is very important. Scripture also tells us that Jesus came to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God (Mark 1:4, Matt 12:28). Several other scriptures help us understand what the Gospel of the Kingdom of God is; “not in word, but in power” (I Cor 4:20), “But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you” (Luke 11:20), “the Kingdome of God is within you” (Luke 17:21) and “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost” (Rom 14:17). These suggest the Gospel of the Kingdom of God is reclaiming that which belongs to God, but has been temporarily occupied by the kingdom of darkness.   Many people in the world are trapped and wounded, and believe they are helpless. We were once among that group. By the grace of God, we were given a revelation of significant keys of the Kingdom that enabled first us and then many others to receive God’s restorative healing, deliverance and freedom.1 This book reveals the keys needed to unlock the chains that bind our lives and block and hinder our Christian growth. These keys are the revelation of how to minister to four problem areas that are in all of our lives and the importance of ministering to all of these problem areas simultaneously. With the mind’s eye, see the healing power of Jesus as His radiant light entering the person’s body. Whether you perceive the anointing as warmth, tingling and electricity, as many do, or not, keep seeing in your mind’s-eye the anointing entering the person and going to the place of infirmity (while keeping your primary attention on Jesus), because unless there is a block of some sort (sin, unforgiveness, anxiety, fear, unbelief), the Lord’s anointing is really going into the person. Focus the healing anointing by asking Jesus to intensify His power and healing light in the spot of the infirmity and by seeing Jesus’ healing light penetrating and increasing in intensity in the exact location of the infirmity.

Completing the Restoring the Foundations integrated approach to biblical healing ministry in these four problem areas brings integrated healing into our lives. This can be a major life-changing occurrence. We experience the transforming power of God’s grace as His purpose is accomplished and we are conformed more and more into the image of His dear Son, Jesus the Christ. This further opens the door for intimate fellowship with God and His empowerment, making it possible for us to live the ‘‘overcoming’’ Christian life. Sins, wounds, and hurts are always barriers which separate us from approaching God or from feeling connected to Him. These dark influences in our lives (at times resulting in bondage) hinder or prevent us from being restored to our rightful relationship with the Lord, from hearing His voice and knowing His will for our lives. Dark influences severely restrict our ministry; they keep us in bondage and prevent God’s healing power from working in us. Nonetheless, know that God wants whatever is separating us from Him to be healed. He wants to close the open gates in our spiritual hedge and to set us free from the influences of darkness. He wants to remove all the chains (or ropes) binding people in the different areas of their lives. The Good News is that God’s love can heal us, can rebuild our hedge and restore our spirit, our emotions and our body to wholeness, and can transform us to allow us to experience and live the abundant life promised through Christ.

• STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Sin opens doors or gates in our spiritual hedge, allowing spiritual pollution to enter, thereby causing spiritual as well as physical problems. Sin can actually make us sick spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. There is no “safe dabbling” or “demon free zone” when it comes to associations with the powers of darkness. Sins, wounds, and hurts are always barriers which separate us from approaching God or from feeling connected to Him. These dark influences in our lives (at times resulting in bondage) hinder or prevent us from being restored to our rightful relationship with the Lord, from hearing His voice and knowing His will for our lives. Dark influences severely restrict our ministry; they keep us in bondage and prevent God’s healing power from working in us. It is in view of this that the researcher is interested in investigating the concept of healing through deliverance.

• PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The main purpose of the study is to ascertain the efficacy of healing through deliverance. But to aid the completion of the study, the researcher wishes to achieve the following sub-objective;

1. To ascertain the reliability of deliverance as a source of healing
2. To investigate the effect of deliverance on the physical and spiritual health of the believer

• To investigate the role of the church in ensuring the spiritual and physical wellbeing of it’s members.

1. To investigate if there is any relationship between sin and healing
   • RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

H₀: healing through deliverance is not a reliable source of healing in the christiandom

H₁: healing through deliverance is a reliable source of healing in the christiandom

H₀²: deliverance does not have any significant effect on the physical and mental health of the believer.

H₂: deliverance does have a significant effect on the physical and mental health of the believer

• SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The scope of the study covers healing through deliverance in churches in Nigeria, the study will focus on members of mountain of fire in Uyo metropolis as it case study.

• SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

It is believed that at the completion of the study, the findings will be of great importance for the entire christaindom as the study seeks to enumerate the effect of sin on the spiritual and physical health of a Christian. The study will also enumerate the role of deliverance on the

spiritual and physical wellbeing of the Christian. The study will also be of great importance to pastors and teachers in school of theology as the study seek to enumerate the efficacy of healing through deliverance. Finally the study will be of great importance to students, teachers lecturers and the general public as the study will add to the pool of existing literature on healing through deliverance.

• LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

In the cause of the study, the researcher encounters some limitation which limited the scope of the study;

Time constraint: The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.

Financial constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

• RESEARCH PROCEDURE

This study employs both the survey and historical research designs. These are suitable and advantageous for assessing large and small populations especially where a small population is to be derived from a large one. According to Ndiyo (2005), the simple percentage method is a non-parametric test used to determine the degree of association or depending between two variables. The simple percentage method and chi-square statistics is designed to test the significance of the difference between a set of observed frequencies and a set of frequencies expected.

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Healing

Healing is the process of the restoration of health from an unbalanced, diseased or damaged organism. The result of healing can be a cure to a health challenge, but one can heal without being cured.

Deliverance ministry

Christianity, deliverance ministry refers to the activity of cleansing a person of demons and evil spirits in order to address problems manifesting in their life as a result of the presence of said entities and the root causes of their authority to oppress the person.

Sin

In a religious context, sin is the act of violating God’s will by transgressing his commandments. Sin can also be viewed as any thought or action that endangers the ideal relationship between an individual and their God; or as any diversion from the perceived ideal order for human living

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