I'm not talking about fear and paranoia as far as the "stigmas" surrounding deliverance ministry. I'm speaking of the "dark side" of deliverance ministry. I call it the dark side because there's a demonic rabbit hole that many fall into when they learn about deliverance and deliverance ministry. The enemy uses this tactic to steer people who are learning about deliverance ministry off the correct path and down the rabbit hole.
This rabbit hole that I speak of may sound familiar to some. If this sounds familiar, just know beforehand that I am not condemning. This is a slick tactic from the enemy, I fell into this trap myself, and I was stuck in it until the Lord revealed it and pulled me out. The enemy uses this rabbit hole to deter others away from deliverance because this rabbit hole makes deliverance look like a freaky chaotic mess. This rabbit hole is actually a form of bondage itself. It's a delusion that makes the person think they are free, but really they are still in bondage. You'll see what I mean...
As I always say, the things I teach on or speak about are never meant to cause fear. The enemy is nothing to be afraid of whatsoever. I speak on topics to raise awareness, and hopefully the Lord uses it to bring revelation to someone. The truth in this article should be enough to bring a truth revelation that the Lord will use to set you free. The truth will set you free!
Let me explain this rabbit hole. You may be falling into this rabbit hole (or already stuck there) if you experience an overabundance of the following:
An obsession with demonic spirits and all the different kinds
Always seeing the demonic at work in people rather than seeing the good
Feeling like you need to rebuke anything and everything all day long 24/7
Worried about attacks, warfare, and witchcraft 24/7
A magnified self focus about everything that might be wrong, which causes an over analyzation of the self (one should only draw attention to an area the Holy Spirit highlights. This isn't something we should search out on our own)
Feeling in constant need of more deliverance
These are just some of the "symptoms" of this rabbit hole I speak of, or what I call the dark side of deliverance ministry. This dark side shouldn't even exist, but like I said, this is a tactic of the enemy to stunt growth and steer a person off track.
I'm not taking away from the fact that deliverance ministry is indeed a very deep and extensive ministry. I'm very aware of this, but there is a healthy balance. The focus is always Jesus, and the relationship with Him.
Here are some reasons the enemy uses this "dark side" of deliverance rabbit hole tactic:
To steal the joy and peace of the believer
To keep the focus away from Jesus
To stunt the growth of the believer
To keep the believer in fear and paranoia
To keep the believer from their true authority, which lies in letting go and letting God, a deep trust in God that He is bigger than any issue
To keep a believer from seeing the bigger picture that God is truly in control of it all
To get the believer addicted to deliverance or deliverance ministers
To keep the believer from understanding the truth of the Word of God. For example, if a believer stands on the truth of the Word of God concerning Galations 3:13 which states that we no longer live under any curse. If the believer truly believes this to be the truth, then that means that once they break those curses, it's over, there are no more curses that stand. But this mentality will cause a believer to think they constantly need to break curses all the time regardless of the fact that they have already broken all curses in their life, and regardless of the fact that they stand on Galations 3:13 for this truth. If they truly believe this to be true, then indeed no curse stands! (Although there are times when deliverance is needed to find the root of the curse and get it broken).
To keep the believer focused on their issues, which in turn results in the believer staying in bondage. The believer will end up needing deliverance constantly because their over analyzation of the self actually puts them in bondage. This cycle will continue until the person receives an understanding or revelation from the Lord about this. (I went through this cycle for many months before). Ultimately what this does is it steals the person's ability to truly trust God and understand that He is in control. For example, if someone gets set free from lust, but yet afterwards they continue to focus and worry about lust, they will continue to fall into lust because the focus is on lust. If the focus is on it, failure will happen every time. We must let go and let God do what God does. Like I said earlier, we are only to look into a matter if the Lord highlights it for us to take care of with His help.
The goal of any true deliverance ministry is to point a person to Jesus and away from themselves. The goal is to help the person be empowered and grow in their relationship with Jesus. Deliverance Ministry absolutely does serve a massive purpose in the Church body, but of course, it is not an end in itself. Once freedom happens, it's entirely up to the person who was set free to take care of their relationship with the Lord and maintain that freedom, and to understand their authority in Christ. Deliverance is only the beginning of the journey!
I'm also not saying that deliverance is only going to be needed once either. Deliverance is absolutely a process. Sometimes deliverance can definitely be a journey itself. Deliverance is the Children's Bread after all. It's needed every now and again. For those that understand this fact, don't think that I am ruling any of this out. After being in the deliverance area of ministry since May of 2020, and being a part of around 300 deliverance sessions, I definitely understand all about the deliverance process.
With all of this being said, there is a dangerous path to take concerning deliverance. The enemy wants you to go down this dark side deliverance rabbit hole and get stuck in that cycle. I pray the Lord has used this article as a very eye opening resource, and to bless you! Even better yet, I pray the Lord has used this information to set you free! The truth will set you free! Share this blog post to someone who you know will be blessed by it!
Much love and blessings,
~ Mason Ledbetter