Freedom in Christ -Power2Serve Resources

"a comparison"

Lately I have been getting a number of requests from those who are entering deliverance ministry, or have had deliverance experience, to comment regarding the differences between the ministry that we have outlined in "War & Freedom - Living in the Combat Zone" and the ministry of Freedom in Christ Ministries produced by Dr. Neil T. Anderson. Most people who are well versed in the deliverance ministry are familiar with Neil's first pair of books - "Victory Over the Darkness" and the "Bondage Breaker". Multiple thousands of people have also experienced one or another of Freedom in Christ's workshops, video, or audio products. Having just recently attended a "Setting Your Marriage Free" seminar I counted up that Neil's ministry has produced 23 different books, 4 study guides, 9 video or audio series and sundry other items such as a calendar, booklets and bookmarks.

Dr. Anderson's deliverance ministry began approximately 20 years ago, as did our ministry, and similarly grew out of a confrontation of the demonic manifesting itself during counseling process. His ministry initially beginning as a confrontational approach, and moving towards a truth encounter, was similar to our experience as outlined in "War & Freedom" (manual).

Over the last few years our ministry has begun to experience a repetitive pattern - that of having people come for counseling with continued demonic hassles even after being through "The Seven Steps" to Freedom in Christ. Personally I have been involved with probably over 100 of these in the past few years. The 2nd thing we are also beginning to experience is the requests from churches who have previously gone through one or another of the workshops or seminars (Resolving Spiritual Conflicts, Setting Your Church Free etc.) indicating that there is a reoccurrence of demonic pressure and other problems that have yet to be resolved. More and more churches are experiencing stepped-up pressure from the kingdom of darkness through organized witchcraft as they move ahead in freedom. Most pastors that I have talked to feel that Freedom in Christ was helpful, but sense that it was not thorough. Some churches experienced a backlash of attack, particularly after a Setting Your Church Free workshop. It often appears that the greater the freedom experienced shortly after moving ahead, that attacks quickly pushed the church back. This also is an issue that must be discussed and explained.

Being gifted in 'discerning of spirits' and observing people go through the "steps to freedom" and still have demonic problems, I have had numerous discussions with the Lord in prayer, and have finally decided that it is time to carefully analyze the differences in procedure and process between the 2 ministries. Before I get into the differences let me make some general comments:

First of all, I do not want to appear to be critical towards Freedom in Christ, Neil, or any of the people who work in his organization. There is a very definite place for this ministry within the body of Christ, and God has obviously blessed the ministry in very special ways. Primarily, the most important thing that has happened is that the evangelical church at large was finally confronted with a deliverance ministry that was palatable and non-confrontive. A pastor friend of mine once said to me, "I really like Freedom in Christ's process. It is so easy, you really don't have to know too much." The process is clearly laid out, there is little demand for discernment or gifting, and people bear witness to results. Twenty years ago, it was not at all acceptable to discuss the demonic as a Christian problem, now it is generally accepted. The Lord has led and blessed Neil to help bring this about.

As I will point out later there are reason's why the process as outlined by Freedom in Christ (FIC) is less spiritually volatile and experiences lesser backlash or pressure from the kingdom of darkness than other methods or procedures. Personally I believe that the process as outlined by FIC was basically all that the body of Christ, particularly in North America could handle. As I will point out later, there are some critical things that are not covered in the process that still allow demonic access to the individuals who have been through the process. That being said, there are those who operate as counselors with FIC who utilize and exercise various levels of discernment that do catch some of the stuff that is missed by the process, and deal with it. By and large though this is not the case.

Furthermore, there are some great strengths in the FIC process. The emphasis on "who you are in Christ" is extremely important to the spiritual health of a Christian and has probably been presented better by Neil than any other writer in deliverance ministry. All this being said let's document the differences:

Preparation to the Seminar (generally similar)

FIC recommends that "the possibility of maintain freedom will be greatly enhanced if you read Victory over the Darkness and The Bondage Breaker first. (Steps to Freedom in Christ, 1993, revised 1996, p. 1) Our process is to have people read War & Freedom - workbook edition. I believe that people often come for help in dealing with presenting problems, but are not really serious about their walk with Christ. If people won't extend the effort to learn, and thus enhance their relationship with the Lord, there is little sense in attempting deliverance. Those that won't work before deliverance, won't maintain deliverance due to their lack of resolve and desire in their relationship with the Lord. While our process involves the filling out of a fairly extensive inventory before coming to counseling, FIC uses a short inventory previous to coming for counseling, and then further checklists etc. during the process.

Preparatory Prayers (different)

While I am sure that those who assists taking others through the "Seven steps" have their own preparatory prayer processes, nothing is outlined in the materials through which I have in my possession. It is possible that there are instructions for those doing the assisting in "Helping Others Find Freedom Curriculum". We have made a point of covering the following general areas:

- recognizing and thanking God for our position in Christ (6 things)

- asking for the Spirits empowering, gifting (5 things)

- requests for protection etc. for the person being helped. (4 things)

- prayers for angelic protection and expulsion of wandering spirits (4 things)

- breaking of numerous demonic strategies that would block the session etc. (8 things)

Our experience is that the more things that are covered before a session is to begin, the less resistance that the individual will experience during the session.

Step 1 - Counterfeit vs Real (renunciation of occult practices and false religions) (some differences)

Basically, FIC covers off the same materials in their checklist as we do. While FIC requires that each instance of evil experience is to be verbally renounced, we simply request that this be done in the form of a signed document which is also read aloud. Anderson does have a good list of "Special Renunciations for Satanic Ritual Involvement" while we simply ask for a list from those who have had such involvement as there are more specific things which could occur that are not included in the "list". An example would be active involvement in animal or human sacrifice, astral traveling, mind control, giving of curses and the sending of demons etc. We would want to ensure that any curses etc. that have been sent to others would be released and broken nullifying their effects.

Step 2 - Deception vs Truth (different emphasis)

While it is true that there are deceptions that allow demonic problems, our experience is that we are to be transformed by the renewing of the mind, but that it is the rare individual who is demonized because of error and lack of truth and still had the ability to become a Christian. We generally find that Christian people are demonized because of ancestral sin/infestation, sexual sin, occult involvement, or emotional trauma. Those who have strongholds in the area of the mind generally are not open to deliverance and rarely will maintain freedom afterwards. We have had a few cases in which we found it necessary that there be a proper grounding in doctrine so that freedom would be maintained afterwards. It has been in these cases that there has been such strong manifestations that have driven these 'deceived' people to help. Deceived Christians are generally not pushed by the demonic in ways that would cause them to pursue deliverance. Often pride develops in the deceived and the need for deliverance is not seen.

Step 3 - Bitterness vs Forgiveness (similar)

We would agree with Anderson that this is generally one of the most important issues that needs to be resolved and would be in agreement with all FIC materials at this point. Particularly in the area of church freedom, forgiveness is a big issue.

Step 4 - Rebellion vs Submission (different emphasis)

Our experience is that people who are in rebellion will not proceed with deliverance. There appears to be a direct correlation with being in submission to proper authorities and being in submission to Christ. This has therefore not been an issue which we have undertaken in our process, but would rather confront the individual ahead of time and through discernment would tell them that they are not ready for the process. Those who would attempt to go through the process that we have outlined will find the process not effective should they not be in submission to Christ and to His will.

Step 5 - Pride vs Rebellion (different emphasis)

Again our experience will show that those who are too proud to submit to Christ will generally never show up for deliverance and most will have decided that they do not have a problem. All of us, even those who are free from demonic inhabitation etc. will struggle with pride and must continue to pursue the putting to death of the flesh and its desires etc.

Step 6 - Bondage vs Freedom (similarities and critical differences)

Here Anderson lists other common sins that need to be confessed and renounced. Again we have included this in the preliminary questionnaire that the individual deals with before showing up for the deliverance process.

Anderson does at this point take on specific sexual sins and has the individual confess any misuse of the body sexually and asks the Lord to break any "bonds" to the other parties. Our experience has found that the FIC process is deficient here. We ask that "all one-flesh unions that are not of God" would be broken and released. While it is a small supposed technicality of terms, remember that the Satanic kingdom operates like lawyers and will look for any way out. Even when there have been bonds that have formed that did not involve "a misuse of the body" such as in previous marriages etc. it is critical that all one flesh unions are broken apart from the current marriage. While inappropriate sexual behavior apart from intercourse can be unhealthy to the mind, it is the one-flesh union alone that gives the rights and grounds for demonic transference. It is for this reason that we generally do not encourage individuals who are married to go through deliverance alone - it is critical that the demons be removed from both sides of the relationship so that there is not a continued transference. In the case of one unbelieving spouse, or a sinful rebellious spouse, certain steps need to be taken so there can be freedom for the individual who wants to be free. This is discussed in the manual.

In the case of male homosexuality it is again important to break the "one flesh" unions. It is the male organ that brings about the union, not the female's therefore 2 males can become one-flesh, while females cannot. This is one of the reasons for the much larger problem with males than females in this area of abhorrent behavior. In rape cases if there has been vaginal or anal penetration again there must be a specification of "one flesh union".

A general note:. When an individual confesses all their own sin and properly deals with the sins of their ancestry (generational curses etc.), if there is an unresolved one flesh union, the demons will generally stay with the other individual who has not undergone deliverance. This will always remain an open door for the kingdom of darkness to use, at some time in the future, at an opportune time to disrupt the relationship and attack the delivered person.

It is at this point that Anderson lumps together all things that have been done to the individual by outsiders or ancestors. It is at this point where the major differences between the two approaches becomes obvious. Our experience, discernment and discussions, and directions from the Lord have shown us that demons that have gained access through personal sin have not broken any spiritual laws. Sin is an open invitation to demonic strongholds. Once these sins are confessed and renounced the demons generally then will leave as ground is taken back. Ground given over to the Spirit will also cause the demons to leave as they will want to avoid the light. There are also those demons though who, at no fault of the individual through any personal sin, have taken up residence. These come from curses placed upon the individual, sins of the ancestors which allowed demonic access, and through curses upon the ancestry. These demons have taken up residence outside of the person's free will, and these demons generally will not just leave. We therefore will bind all these demons up, and after removing all their rights and grounds, send them to the pit or to the Lord for his judgment.

To reiterate then we have the individual confess all the sins that are in their life, that they are aware of and the Holy Spirit would reveal to them, before they come for deliverance. The demons associated with these sins will often have vacated premises before they individual shows up for deliverance. There are times though when some of these demons will have become bound in by larger demons which have come through curses or ancestral ground. These lesser demons have therefore become slaves to these larger demons and then will be dealt with in the same way as these larger demons.

The first thing that we then do to deal with these demons is command that all demons that have 'rights and grounds' and 'have been sent by others' to come and be bound outside the hedge of angels surrounding the place where we are doing the deliverance. We then break all curses etc. that are upon the individual through other people. Generally curses can be broken with simple command, but there are instances of which we call "ongoing curses" in which specific individuals are continuously cursing the individual reinforcing the power of the curse so to speak. These have to be dealt with through discernment or words of knowledge at that time as well. This as well is outlined in the process in the manual. This process will then dealt will all curses which have come upon the individual since conception. All these demons are sent to the pit, or dealt with by the Lord - in either case you will very rarely ever encounter these same demons again.

The next step is to retrieve all demons which have rights and grounds because of the ancestry. These we again command to come and be bound and then there are a number of specific steps:

1. To confess and renounce the sins of the ancestry - Anderson does this as well.

2. To break all forms of witchcraft placed upon the ancestry - this is not specifically covered by FIC

3. To renounce all occultic sins etc. that were done by the ancestry to others reversing the effects. - not covered by FIC.

The breaking of the above have huge ramifications both for the individuals that are undergoing deliverance, and their children, but also for extended members of their families - siblings and other relatives. This usually involves negotiations between the Lord and Satan (or his emissaries). This is discussed as well in our manual.

Finally we deal with what are called hidden structures. In all our extensive readings we only found reference to such structures in some early church writings regarding deliverance process. Experience over the years found us encountering people, who had been through deliverance, experiencing freedom for awhile, sometimes a few years, and then all of a sudden things would again flare up. We discovered that demons had been able to hide in different forms of hidden structures. Later we were to learn that these hidden structures were passed on through the ancestry, and were usually the residence for family demons and the most powerful demons of the ancestral hierarchies. Even if the demons were expelled, if the ancestral structures were not removed at certain opportune times, ancestral demons would come from other non-delivered relatives and take advantage of the situation before leaving through the structures. Once we began to eliminate these structures during the initial deliverance, we found that people retained freedom with much less struggle. It is also at this point in deliverance that there is the most demonic resistance and counterattack. If deliverance is being undertaken, but there are continued access points through these structures, then Satan is not so concerned about stopping the process. He can send demons to return at some point in the future and again wreak havoc. It is also during the breaking of these structures open that we have had the experience of encountering Satan himself coming to block the process. Without going into detail here, the creation of these structures is the result of "hidden/secret sins" - these are usually centered around either occult activities or sexual deviations and are passed on through the "sins of the ancestry".

It is also here that we also differ radically from Anderson. In all his writings it appears that demons are just commanded to leave. There is then a continued war waged with the family demons, who reenter through the hidden structures, as well as with the individual demons, who through temptation, try to gain footholds again. Unfortunately if the hidden structures are not removed then there is easy access back to the inside and the future struggles are that much more difficult. Even if there are no 'secret ancestral structures' the demons which have had previous access will hover and circle around and plot and plan strategies to regain access. As demons are intelligent beings, like humans, they retain the memories and key information regarding the weaknesses etc. of those individuals whom the have been involved with in the past. We prefer to send all demons to the pit or, if they chose to not go there, to go before the Lord Jesus Christ for his instructions and judgment. Experience has shown that He often is more severe than we are in just sending to the pit. Often I have seen in spiritual reality how He will make a mockery of the demons for the rest of spiritual reality to watch before bringing judgment upon them.

The differences here I would liken to the differences of catching the crook, judging them, and sending them to prison, or just letting them go to come right back and steal again. There are of course those that say we do not have the right to send demons to the pit. It is to this that we must comment. For this is the crux of the war. You do not capture the enemy and then let him go to rape, kill and pillage again.

Anderson relates the following:

"One victim of incredible atrocities shared this illustration: "It's like being forced to play a game with an ugly stranger in my own home. I kept losing and wanted to quit, but the ugly stranger wouldn't let me. Finally I called the police (a higher authority), and they came and escorted the stranger out. He knocked on the door trying to regain entry, but this time I recognized his voice and didn't let him in." What a beautiful illustration of gaining freedom in Christ. We call upon Jesus, the ultimate authority, and He escorts the enemy out of our lives. Know the truth, stand firm and resist the evil one. Seek out good Christian fellowship, and commit yourself to regular times of Bible study and prayer. God loves you and will never leave or forsake you." (ibid p. 17)

We should never have to deal with the same demon twice. Let me quote from the War & Freedom manual (pp. 276-278):

"In the New Testament we find that Jesus "cast" out demons (Mk 1:39); the disciples "cast" out demons (Mt 10:1); the seventy "cast" out demons (Lk 10:17); and the future church of believers is to "cast" out demons (Mk 16:17). We are to "resist" Satan when he is on the outside (Jas 4:7) and are to "cast" him out when he gets within.

"Christ was given authority over all other authorities to execute judgment (Jn 5:27). Christ came to Earth as a man with the purpose of destroying the works of the devil (I Jn 3:8). We see in the story of the Gaderene demoniac that the demons beseeched Jesus not to torment them before their time. It must be clear that the torment spoken of here refers to the "lake of fire" (Rev 20:10), not to the place where demons are chained to await the judgment - commonly referred to as the pit, the abyss, or hell. Tartarus is the lowest level of the pit and is the place where certain fallen angels have been chained to await the judgment (2 Pet 2:4). We see in Luke 8:31 that the demons were "entreating Him that He would not command them to depart into the abyss." Christ has the power to send demons to the pit, and was probably in the custom of doing so. If he was not in that habit, these demons would not have been so concerned that they too would be sent there. This power to send demons to the pit has been passed on to the church. Christ gave the twelve, power and authority over "all the demons" (Lk 9:1). He gave the seventy, authority over "all the power of the enemy" (Lk 10:19). During the time that the seventy were out "casting out" demons Jesus said that He saw Satan "falling like lightning from heaven (Lk 10:18). The authority that was given to the church was the beginning of the destruction of the works of the devil. My own understanding is that one of the church's responsibilities is to continue in destroying the works of the devil. Matthew 16:18 reads "And I tell you, you are Peter [petros, masculine, a large piece of rock], and on this rock [petra, feminine, a huge rock like Gibraltar] I will build My church, and the gates of Hades (the powers of the infernal region) shall not overpower it - or be strong to its detriment, or hold out against it" (Amp). We have the power to bind what has already been bound in heaven, and to render judgment upon the kingdom of darkness that has already been rendered in the heavenlies.

"Over the past year I have had a number of discussions with the Lord regarding what is occurring within the church - as it relates to this ministry, and to what is to occur in the future. He has told me that He is beginning to bring greater judgment to bear upon the kingdom of darkness. As we approach the end times He will use the church to bring about the defeat and downfall of much of Satan's kingdom, removing its influence from the Earth, thereby opening up the doors to widespread evangelism. He is preparing to pour His Spirit out upon the Earth as never before. We, the church, are to be involved in the process of bringing all into subjection to Christ:

"After that comes the end (the completion), when He delivers over the kingdom to God the Father after rendering inoperative and abolishing every [other] rule and every authority and power. For [Christ] must be King and reign until He has put all [His} enemies under His feet. [Ps. 110:1]. The last enemy to be subdued and abolished is death. For He [the Father] has put all things in subjection under His [Christ's] feet. But when it says, All things are put in subjection [under Him], it is evident that He [Himself] is excepted Who does the subjecting of all things to Him. [Ps 8:6] However, when everything is subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will also subject Himself to [the Father] Who put all things under Him, so that God may be all in all - that is, be everything to everyone, supreme, the indwelling and controlling factor of life" (I Cor 15:24-28 Amp).

"Part of the process of putting all in subjection to Christ and rendering it inoperative is the binding of the kingdom of darkness and the casting of it into the pit to await the judgment. Christ is leading his army of holy angels and righteous warriors within the True Church, in warfare. As believers we have the power to remove any segment of the kingdom of darkness (from the earth) that has already been positionally removed (by Christ) in the heavenlies. I have seen Christ obliterate thousands of demonic entities; at other times He has let some go free to await later judgment. As believers we can only carry out what He has already decreed. For this reason I include in the commands of expulsion that `the demons go to the pit, or go to Christ who will then deal with them.' Sometimes He is not nearly as kind as we as believers are. The wrath of an angry God is fearful to behold.

"We need to always be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit and to the voice of our Commander Jesus Christ. For those who feel uncomfortable taking the authority to cast demons into the pit, please send them to Jesus to be dealt with. DO NOT SIMPLY SEND DEMONS OUT OF A PERSON. Even if you command that they are not allowed to return, that command will only stay in place for awhile, and the demons will be sure to return and attempt to regain entry to their old home. Christ alone has the keys of death and Hades (Rev 1:18). Demons cannot be cast into the pit unless he opens it with His key, and they cannot come out unless He lets them out. There are numerous reasons why certain demons are put into the pit and why others are allowed to come back out, or not even go in, but this is all in the control of the Lord Jesus Christ (see also Rev 9:1-11; 20:1-3). Be assured that Jesus will be involved personally with every deliverance session that involves casting demons into the pit. "

To be fair to Anderson, there was a reference made to "sending demons to the place where the Lord Jesus Christ sends you" (in the Setting Your Marriage Free workbook), but none of these demons had been gathered, or bound, or broken free from any hidden structures, or all ancestral rights and grounds.

I hope this clarifies some of the differences between the 2 approaches and explains some of the reoccurring challenges that come up. I strongly believe that different deliverance ministries are being raised up by the Lord to deal with the church where it is at. The more damage that is done to during deliverance to the kingdom of darkness, the more concerned Satan becomes. I am certain that we will see a day soon in which much more comprehensive methods of deliverance will be utilized by the church at large. Unfortunately the church generally right now is not serious enough about spiritual freedoms to be ready to handle the stepped up attacks which Satan is quick to hurl at any group that really begins to remove his grounds within the body of Christ. There is a direct correlation between a number of factors: intensity of desire for holiness, deliverance and revival. Within the current outpouring of renewal and revival that is being experienced in different places around the world what is most evident is that the people are terribly hungry for God, are undergoing deliverance either through a ministry or directly under the empowerment of the Spirit (floor time etc.). It appears to me that those places which have incorporated deliverance ministry are experiencing a much larger outpouring of true revival in which there are more new conversions as to renewal amongst existing Christians. I believe that the church at large will really not experience the depths of revival until their own level of intensity of desire for the Lord increases. Persecution will be the factor that will cause all within the body to move into purity with Christ or to reject Him.

Part of the call of Power2Serve Resources is to help purify the body through deeper and thorough deliverance. Our current mandate is to bring freedom to all those individuals who are serious about their walk with God individually. We feel that the timing is now right to begin working more with church bodies that have a core of leaders who will take warfare seriously and be prepared for intense attack from Satan, and be the first fruits of complete corporate freedom. Working in line with this is also a leading by the Spirit to bring about "clean revival" - a revival in which people are spiritually cleaned up so that there are much fewer of the bizarre manifestations of the demonic reacting to the Spirits presence. Many of these manifestations have been heralded by some as of the Lord, while others see them as entirely demonic. There is an element of truth in both of these, but I will not discuss this here. See the article "An exorcists response to Kansas City".