Setting the Oppressed Free
A number of years ago, Jim and I were in a city that has been known for a strong influence of the New Age movement. While we were there, we could feel the oppressive atmosphere and we saw something extraordinary that we will not forget. We were walking down the street and we ended up following an older man at a distance- by whose unkempt appearance appeared to possibly be a street person- but I cannot be sure. He had a colorful bird on his right shoulder, it looked like a parrot. As we were walking down the street of shops and restaurants, we were about a block behind him and we watched as he talked to the bird on his shoulder. He turned into a store that we were planning to go into so we followed him into the store. When we entered the shop, we quickly spotted him- but the bird was gone. It was nowhere to be seen. We looked everywhere. There had not been enough time for him to get rid of the bird. I am convinced that Jim and I were seeing spiritually and were permitted to see a spirit that had attached itself to the old man. We were not able to get an opportunity to minister to the man, but we interceded for him. But, that incident reinforced to me the reality of the spiritual realm and the activity of spirits- good and bad.
And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. Acts 10:38 (New Living Translation, NLT)
There is much debate about the treatment of mental health issues. Most medical professionals approach it from a purely physical perspective and usually attempt to treat it with medication and behavior modification. Jesus, on the other hand, dealt with it differently. He saw that oppression comes from the devil and He took authority over him to deliver and heal those who had been under his power. Physical sickness comes from satan and so does mental sickness.
Am I saying that all depression, anxiety, personality disorders, etc are spiritual in nature? No, I believe there are instances when chemical imbalances and other physical problems are the cause. However, we must be prayerful and discerning to identify cases where people may simply be under demonic oppression. In such circumstances, we must understand the authority we have to use the name of Jesus to bring deliverance to them. We cannot ignore the possibility of such problems being spiritual in nature. The devil has done a good job of convincing the general public that he does not even exist- therefore, they don’t believe that people manifesting mental health symptoms could be dealing with demons. I’m not saying that we tell people to get off their antidepressants and other such medication, but we can use our authority to pray over them to bring them to a point where their physician will tell them they no longer need to take it.
The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come. Luke 4:17-19 (New Living Translation, NLT)
We hold the key to setting the oppressed free. We cannot be afraid to use the Name to bring deliverance to the captives.
