The 4th Reason Why You Are Not Completely Delivered

All right, the fourth common reason why people sometimes do not receive deliverance is a failure to break with the occult. They keep one finger still in Satan’s territory. They leave the door open a chink to the occult world, and they never receive complete deliverance.

Read in Acts 19 with me a moment. Acts the 19th chapter. And we’ll read this incident from verse 13 through verse 19.

“Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, ‘We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth.’”

They weren't converted. They weren't disciples of Jesus, but they saw that the name of Jesus produced results when Paul used it against evil spirits. So, they thought they'd do the same. But you see, the name of Jesus is only effective when it’s used in faith.

“And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. And the evil spirit answered,” not the man, but the evil spirit answered and said, “‘Jesus I know,’” and “‘Paul I know; but who are ye?’”

And in the Greek, it’s even clearer because two different words are used for know. “Jesus I acknowledge. Paul I know about. I’ve heard about that man Paul. But who are you?”

“The man, in whom the evil spirit was, leaped on them, and overcame them,” prevailed against them, “so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.”

Seven men chased out of the house by one man because he was charged with demonic power. And I tell you, if I didn't believe in Jesus and know the power of the blood and the authority of His name, there are many, many times I would be very reluctant to deal with evil spirits because I realize they can give people absolutely supernatural power. But they don't have power over the name of Jesus.

The most frightening case I’ve ever dealt with was a woman who'd been a gang leader when she was 12 years old. And if ever I’ve seen a tough person, she was it. And she came to us for deliverance, and there’s a little man, friend of mine called Sid Pearce from England, who doesn't stand more than knee-high to a grasshopper, and myself. And I thought, what good would he be in an emergency? And there we were up in the hotel room, about the fifth floor, and this girl wanted deliverance, and I knew she was going to be a tough one.

I tell you, there were some people, I believe they might be here in the next room. They said that made believers out of us that night. She was wearing thick, heavy boots, and when she started, she was banging her head so hard against the bathroom door that you could hear it about three rooms away. But every time she lunged at me, I said, “In the name of Jesus.” And she did not touch either the other brother or myself. But I was very conscious that if there’d been any chink in my armor at that moment, I would have been in difficulties.

Now, let's look at the result. I want you to see the result.

“This incident was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.”

They’d never seen anything happen quite like that. Sometimes people come to me after a deliverance service and say, “I’ve never been in a service like that before.” I can believe that.

Now, I want you to notice the next step. Verse 18:

“Many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds.”

I want you to notice they were not unbelievers, but they were believers that had been fooling around with the occult and still claiming to be believers, like thousands of charismatic people today. Just a little bit of Jean Dixon and the horoscope and the Ouija board, but really, I’m saved, and I speak in tongues. But they suddenly came face to face with the awful reality of demon power. And then they changed their minds. They repented. For the first time, they really repented. They came, confessed, and told publicly what they were guilty of.

“Many of them also which used curious arts,” this is the whole realm of the occult, “brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver.”

You could say $50,000 worth of books publicly burned. And when you've been involved in the occult, and you have charms, Ouija boards, books about the occult realm, false teaching, heresies, in my considered opinion, the only proper solution is to make a bonfire and burn. And if you leave them around, I’m afraid you've left the door open a chink. And Satan knows he's not totally unwanted. Sooner or later, he'll get his dirty nose through the door again. There’s nothing to do but cut it off.

Some of the best advice ever offered by anybody was offered by Daniel to King Nebuchadnezzar when he had a dream about a tree that was cut down. And Daniel said, “Nebuchadnezzar, you are that tree that's going to be cut down. Look out, the judgment of God is headed for you.” And he said,

“O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and break off thy sins by righteousness.”

That’s repentance. It’s a clean cut. It’s a total break with everything that’s sinful and replacing it by the positive righteousness. Now, Nebuchadnezzar didn't follow that good advice, and you know what happened? The demons got him. For 7 years, he was a maniac, out of his mind, living like a beast, feeding on the grass of the earth. And that’s a very sound lesson.

“Break off thy sins by righteousness.”

Sever every contact with the occult realm, and there’ll be hope for you.