Casting Out.
In Jesus' ministry we see that he did many wonderful things: preaching, teaching, healing, and casting out demons.
In some circles there's debate over whether or not casting out should be done in public. If we review Jesus' ministry and we take our queue from him, most if not all of the examples we have were done in a public setting. Of course this is different than calling yourself a "demon hunter" and going around looking for trouble. In my experience those who need help will find you, that's why we must be prepared.
Who can cast out demons? Is casting out always necessary? What does prayer have to do with casting out demons?
1. Any Spirit-filled believer can cast out evil spirits. Some require more faith or "spiritual strength" than others; however, you don't have to be ordained or even a teacher of the Word, although you should be mature / understand what you're doing.
2. Do we always cast out...it depends. We must be led by the Spirit concerning how to proceed. In most cases the demonization isn't so bad that it must be done immediately, and in some instances other things must happen prior to spirits being cast out (e.g. counseling, etc). There may be rare cases where in order to prevent massive damage the spirit must be cast out....extremely rare cases.
3. Is prayer the only way or an effective way to cast out demons? Yes and no. We remember how the disciples could not cast a demon out of a young boy. Jesus was unimpressed by their little faith and told us that some only come out by prayer AND fasting.
Resources:
1) Casting Out
2) Being Led
3) No Fear
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