Description

Definition
Deliverance is using spiritual authority to deliver people from the influence of demons and includes using spiritual power to break evil oppression. The scriptural lists of gifts used for this study do not include this aptitude, but it is of the same caliber as several that are (for example, discernment of spirits, healing, and working miracles).
Jesus frequently drove demons out of people and taught that His followers would do the same: “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons” (Mark 16:17). In Matthew 17:14-18, Jesus healed an epileptic boy by rebuking the demon causing the problem, commanding it to come out of him.
Paul also drove demons out of people, and Scripture describes one such incident in detail. “Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, ‘These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.’ She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, ‘In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!’ At that moment the spirit left her” (Acts 16:16-18). Notice that the spirit was speaking the truth, but was disruptive. Notice also that Paul spoke with authority to the spirit, not the girl.
This is different from exorcism, which involves trying to persuade the demons to leave. Deliverance is expelling the demons with power and authority.
People with this aptitude, whatever their spiritual condition, thrive on confrontation and are willing to stand up for what they believe or value. They are natural warriors. Whether they are fighting someone else’s battle for them, freeing someone from tyranny, or just responding to a normal life situation, they are ready for a fight.
If you have this aptitude, your Christian role is to combat demonic forces and expel them with authority and power, which makes you a spiritual warrior. That is why you have a warrior personality. Many people teach that intercessors are spiritual warriors, but in this study, deliverers are the warriors; intercessors are the advocates.
The lesson of Matthew 17:14-20 is the importance of faith when delivering someone from the demonic. The disciples were unable to heal the epileptic boy and Jesus clearly stated the problem was faith. He called them “unbelieving and perverse,” which means they were faithless or distrusting and they distorted the truth. Then He specifically said they could not drive the demon out because “you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” The original text reads, “if you have faith as a mustard seed,” but the translators added “as small as.” Jesus’ analogy of a mustard seed emphasized its ability to grow. Some Bible manuscripts add, “But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting,” but this does not fit the context or other biblical teaching. Prayer and fasting are important because they help prepare you for the work God has for you, but Jesus identified the problem as underdeveloped faith. As a warrior/deliverer, you have great faith in your ability to prevail in a conflict.
You are probably intuitive, causing you to rely on your instinct and hunches, which may be spiritual in origin. This can be important for both survival and conquest. If you are spiritually oriented, your mind focuses on the spiritual realm and you may have less concern for the events of daily human life.
You are motivated to deliver people from any type of oppression or injustice, even if demons are not involved. This can make you very confrontational if you think someone is abused in any way.

Typical Characteristics
● Comfortable with confrontation.
● Intolerant of oppressive situations, not hesitant to confront anyone you consider oppressive.
● Great appreciation for power and authority in various forms.

Tendencies
● General Orientation: extrovert. You like action, although you may not be people-oriented. In fact, your confrontational personality interferes with close relationships.
● Priorities
● Results, tasks. You want to see results and that means eliminating the danger or threat.
● Either spiritual, mental, or physical. These provide your arena for battle. If you are drawn to the spiritual, you will be motivated to either drive demons out or get involved in the occult for conquest. If you are mentally oriented, you will likely develop debating skills or take up a cause, such as politics or the environment. If you are physically oriented, you will find the military, sports, or martial arts very appealing.
● Issue Perception
● May be objective. With your emphasis on right versus wrong, you don’t tolerate whatever you consider inappropriate.
● May be subjective. If you are strongly intuitive, your feelings respond to spiritual influences. This might make you very sensitive to the feelings of the oppressed, although you are unlikely to form close relationships.

Misunderstandings
People may think you are always angry because you are confrontational and enjoy conflict. They think this because they become confrontational and engage in conflict only when they get angry.

Vocations and Roles
If you are physically oriented, you might look to physically combative roles such as the military, martial arts, or contact sports. If mentally oriented, you may enjoy debate and be drawn to law, politics, or advocacy efforts. A spiritual orientation may interest you in being an evangelist with an emphasis on deliverance.

Perversions

Self-Centeredness
(Perverts your aptitude by focusing it on you, emphasizing the pleasure or fulfillment it gives you.)
You are not only comfortable with confrontation, you find it energizing and you thrive on it because it provides an environment in which you can do what comes naturally. You enjoy using your power and authority to overcome the opposition, whoever it may be. While there is no substitute for victory, you probably find the confrontation itself fulfilling or even pleasurable. The adrenalin rush produces such an emotional high that you welcome opportunities to engage in a conflict.

Extremes
(Perverts by exaggerating, taking your characteristics and tendencies to extremes.)
In the extreme, you probably will look for opportunities to do battle or even create them if none exist. You may quickly become hostile and thoroughly intimidate those you think are wrong. You may not be a good judge of which causes are worthy or which is the better position to take. As a result, you may even support indefensible or morally inappropriate positions. In the extreme, the moral correctness of your position seems less important to you than the opportunity to fight. Even if you realize your position is wrong, you may continue to defend it simply because it is the position you chose.

Control
(Self-centeredness makes you want to be in control, and you struggle for control in a way that is unique to your character.)
You are willing to use every resource you have to gain control, which can make you a “dirty fighter.” When you feel threatened or out of control, you quickly become combative and overwhelm your opposition, even if the issue is unimportant.

Redemption

Putting on Important Traits
Certain godly character traits are especially important to you as a deliverer. Consciously developing the following traits will help you set people free from whatever oppresses them.

● Humility (Considers self relatively unimportant compared to others; prevents using abilities for one’s own satisfaction.) Humility helps you avoid engaging in conflict for the thrill it gives you and prevents you from boasting of your victories.
● Agape (Considers others’ welfare, needs, interests, and desires more important than your own; motivates you to act for others’ benefit regardless of personal impact.) Considering others’ welfare, needs, interests, and desires more important than your own motivates you to deliver them from harm, even if it involves personal sacrifice.
● Patience (Self-restraint in the face of provocation, offense, or difficulty caused by other people; tolerance of the intolerable.) You must restrain yourself when provoked and patiently endure an offense, or you will want to retaliate.
● Faith or faithfulness (Firm conviction regarding something for which there is no proof; action based on such conviction.) This is likely one of your strongest natural traits because without faith you will not confront the oppressor. You must have faith in the justice of your cause, the reality of the oppressor, and the effectiveness of spiritual authority to break oppression.
● Zeal (Intense eagerness to experience a desired result; intense emotion that compels action.) This may be one of your stronger natural traits. It gives you an intense desire to see God’s will done and compels you to go to battle for those in need.
● Anger (Hatred for every form of sin and its results.) This may be another of your stronger traits, causing you to hate every form of oppression and abuse, then combat it in your unique way.

Repentance, Renewing Your Mind
(The changes you need to make in the way you think, including your attitudes, standards, priorities, and perspective.)
Your role is to deliver people from forces that captivate them, to free them from oppression and danger, especially demonic influence. Deliverance is a demonstration of God’s power and a benefit of His kingdom, not just a means to relieve people of their distress. You provide an important service for other believers by protecting them from demonic forces so they can focus on their tasks without distraction. By liberating nonbelievers from demonic influence, you remove the barriers that would prohibit them from hearing and responding to the good news of the gospel.

Denying and Humbling Yourself
(Rejecting your own desires and self-interests. Refusing to be motivated by desire for recognition or credit for the results.)
Your desire to deliver people could easily deteriorate to a love for the challenge and excitement of violence; the raw emotion becomes a compelling force. You must reject the demands of that desire and refuse to engage in conflict simply for the adrenalin rush it produces. You also must reject your sinful desire for glory by refusing to accept credit for any victories.

Taking up Your Cross
(Accepting that which has potential for great harm, threatens to break you down, or reveals your inadequacies.)
God very likely will train you to rely on His strength and not your own by placing you in overwhelming circumstances. An ungodly reaction would be to trust yourself to overcome those circumstances, but you must put that tendency to death. You can do so by accepting those situations God places you in, especially if they are terrifying and extreme even by your standards.

Following Jesus
(How you uniquely imitate Jesus by doing what He would in your situation.)
Jesus confronted those who opposed His Father’s work and He delivered those whom the devil oppressed. Yet He refused to defend Himself, even when He was on trial and sentenced to death.

Becoming Like a Child
(Accepting what God gives you, believing what He tells you, trusting Him to take care of you, and simply doing what He says.)
Develop a gentle, trusting attitude toward God. Depend on His protection as you deliver others. Without any concern for your own safety, trust Him to defend you.