Spiritual Warfare Ministries Online
Who Should Be Involved in Deliverance Ministry?
by Don Rogers
In one sense, any Christian can be involved in deliverance when called upon to help someone who is being spiritually oppressed.
But when we consider those who minister regularly to the spiritually oppressed, there are some very important characteristics that are necessary for the full-time worker.
A CALLING
Having a calling is crucial in any ministry. So often people become involved in ministry because it is attractive, there is a need, and they want to be part of something special etc. But if there is not a calling from the Lord for the specific ministry, the results can often be disappointing and sometimes disastrous.
I have seen people become involved in deliverance because of all the above, and most have not lasted very long. As dynamic as a deliverance ministry can be, it also has a punishing side. The enemy hates this type of ministry. He attacks through discouragement, sickness, slander, and divisiveness to mention a few. God permits many of Satan’s challenges against us to keep us humble and dependent upon Him.
I’m not sure that those called to this type of ministry even choose it. Rather, I am inclined to believe that God leads us into it and sometimes drops us into it. The latter is what happened to me. In any case, a person better count the cost before becoming part of such a ministry. It can have a sifting effect upon everything in your life and around you.
Character
Character is extremely important in every aspect of life. But the character that we are talking about for ministry should be patterned after the image of Christ. Jesus’ life exemplified one who was committed to seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
Jesus showed us how important HUMILITY is to God. He was incarnated as a little baby and developed through the normal stages of human growth. He learned a trade and waited for his heavenly Father’s direction to begin his ministry. He did not yield to Satan's temptations of self-glorification.
Jesus revealed to us LOVE and COMPASSION when he ministered to all types of people, teaching them, encouraging them, setting them free and healing them.
Jesus’ FAITH in the Father was perfect. He continually sought to know the Father’s will and then when it was clear to him, he obeyed it.
There were many times that Jesus could have reacted sinfully to his detractors and persecutors, but he never yielded to the temptation. He maintained SELF-CONTROL throughout his life.
He was NEVER JUDGMENTAL of the sinners who came to him for help, although he did condemn the hypocrisy of religious leaders who were keeping people in bondage to man’s traditions.
Jesus PERSEVERED in the work the Father told him to do despite the criticism, harassment and threats he received.
So Jesus modeled the ideal character that each of us should seek after.
We must pursue humility, because the enemy will constantly try to provoke us and lure us into prideful attitudes. Sometimes there are direct confrontations where the enemy intentionally tries to provoke us to reacting in the flesh. We must never be proud of the authority and power that the Lord entrusts to us for ministry.
Unless we have the love and compassion of Christ, the work will become burdensome and your patience with the sick and oppressed will wane. Sometimes success is slow in coming and there is a temptation to yield to an unloving attitude.
Faith will be your strength when you experience failure and face situations you do not understand. There are so many things that we cannot figure out. We are forced to trust God until it is made clear.
Without self-control, the enemy will push our buttons constantly. The disciplined servant will not react easily to temptations and provocations.
It is man’s nature to be judgmental on some level. There are temptations to question someone’s sincerity, second-guess their actions, and suspect hidden motives. A yielding to the Holy Spirit enables us to demonstrate a non-judgmental attitude which is necessary to give others confidence to open up and trust those who are ministering to them.
These are some foundational characteristics that lead to successful ministry. They are basically the Fruits of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Exercising our spiritual gifts without the fruits of the Spirit working in our lives will cause our gifts to be less effective and tainted by the flesh. I picture the fruits of the Spirit as the character of Christ in our lives and the gifts of the Spirit as the equipping of the ministry of Christ through our lives.
