Witchcraft and the Church

Part 6 – The Confrontation and the Casting Down

               In the first five installments of this series, we have discussed how witchcraft operates, who it operates through, and how it entered into mankind. We have also discussed some specific spirits of witchcraft and detailed their operations. Now we get to the good stuff: how to confront and cast down witchcraft when it is operating in our lives or in our churches.

               One thing that we need to understand about witchcraft is that it is never just going to go away on its own. Once it obtains power in a person’s life or ministry, it will continue to take ground and work on the heart and mind of that person until they are so bound up that they are of no use to man or the kingdom. Once witchcraft roots itself into a ministry, such as a church, it will continue its operations until the assembly splits or shuts down completely. Both of these results are a manifestation of broken covenant, and this is one place where witchcraft thrives.

               The only solution to this problem is to confront and cast down witchcraft before it can attain its goals. In the life of an individual, this may require intercessory prayer, casting the spirit down, retraining of the flesh, and some intense Christian Counseling to fully bring healing and restoration. In a ministry, the head of the ministry may have to step aside for awhile so that healing and restoration can be sought out. It may also require intense prayer on the part of those involved in the ministry, asking the Lord to send in someone anointed for the job. One thing that is always required to root out witchcraft is a man or woman of God who is anointed for the task; and they must have the will and the intestinal fortitude to see it through to the end.

               The Bible contains some pretty in-depth information on witchcraft. It tells us how witchcraft is introduced into a body, what can be expected of the operations of witchcraft, who it considers its primary enemy among men, and how to root it up and cast it down. 

               Gen. 3:1 says, “Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made”. Through craftiness, deception, deceit, and promises of illegal power, witchcraft will enter into the life of a person and begin to operate. We see this played out in Genesis chapter 3 between the serpent and Eve. Once we allow ourselves to be deceived, it is only a matter of time before we become a tool used to destroy the lives of others, as well. We see this in every manifestation of witchcraft presented in the Bible.

It should be noted here that witchcraft cannot enter into a ministry unless it first enters into the life of someone in authority in the headship of the ministry. This person may be the pastor, the pastor’s wife, a board member, the worship leader, etc. Once it has entered the life of an individual in authority in a ministry, it will seek to form sin covenant bonds with other spirits of witchcraft operating in the same ministry. The two, working together, will then form other alliances and open doorways for other spirits of witchcraft to operate.

               1 Kings 16:31-33 tells us how this takes place. It says, “And it came to pass, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jereboam, the son of Nebat, that he (Ahab) took as wife Jezebel        the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonaians (Phoenicians); and he went and served Ba’al and worshipped him. 32 Then he set up an altar for Ba’al in the temple of Ba’al, which he had built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made a wooden image. And Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.”

               So here we have it all laid out. Ahab is living a life of walking in his father’s sins. In other words, he has inherited a generational curse, just like many of us. Instead of seeking the Lord and walking righteously before God to have that generational curse removed, he chooses to allow the sin lifestyle to take more of his life than did anyone that came before him. Unfortunately, the same could also be said of many of us.

               The biggest mistake Ahab makes is to then form a sin covenant with Jezebel. Many of us probably do the same thing. Jezebel was not a Hebrew girl; and being a king’s daughter and a worshipper of Ba’al, she was most likely a priestess of Ba’al; meaning that she was most likely a high dollar prostitute. So Ahab’s lust for her gets him into this situation, and she takes full advantage of him. This is very typical of the Jezebel and Ahab sin covenant. It is also very typical of the Ahab spirit to use lust to entice a person into some places where they really shouldn’t go.

               The next thing we see is that Ahab goes and begins to serve Ba’al. This is typical behavior when a person is oppressed by a spirit of witchcraft. It will work tirelessly to open doorways for other spirits of witchcraft to enter into a person’s life.

               So what does Ahab do next? He builds a temple and an altar for Ba’al, effectively introducing witchcraft into his ministry. Because of the operation of Jezebel and Ahab, the entire nation of Israel was led astray into Ba’al worship.

               We see the same things happening in ministries all over the nation. A pastor, board member, or other authority figure in a ministry will make some bad decisions and allow spirits of witchcraft into their own lives. As a result, doorways are then opened for witchcraft to begin its operations in their ministry. From this position, witchcraft is then released to attempt to open doorways in the lives of their congregation because they are then used as a tool without even realizing it.

               For instance, a minister under the influence of witchcraft will get up behind the pulpit and preach about prosperity. He will indicate that God blesses those that give. He will then extol his congregation to increase their level of giving, promising anything from monetary return to actual signs and wonders if they will give. This is manipulation and it is witchcraft. Every person that then gives has become complicit in his witchcraft by trying to manipulate the hand of God with money. As a result, everyone that gives has opened up doorways for witchcraft to operate in their own lives. Even though giving is a kingdom principle, giving in order to influence God to give you a miracle is witchcraft. It is the motivation that is in sin.

               We see the same principle displayed in Genesis Chapter 3 between the serpent and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The serpent deceives her into believing that if she eats the forbidden fruit, she will be like God. Seeking the power that comes with that type of knowledge, she takes a bite and then gives it to Adam, also.

               Now, there is nothing wrong with seeking knowledge. In fact, Proverbs 1:7 says that “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge”. And Proverbs 10:14 says “Wise people store up knowledge”. In 2 Chron. 1:10, Solomon asks God, “Now give me wisdom and knowledge that I may go out and come in before this people; for who can judge this great people of yours?” In 2 Chron. 1:11-12, God grants his request, and then promises long life and wealth in addition.

               God does not mind us seeking knowledge. He objects to us seeking knowledge for the sake of the power we presume it will bring. That is the difference between knowledge alone and knowledge with wisdom: Knowledge tries to figure out how to do something, where wisdom stops first to ask if it should be done. When we seek knowledge to bring us power, we are practicing witchcraft, just like Eve. When we seek knowledge and wisdom to better serve God, we are pleasing to Him.

               In the story of Jezebel and Ahab (1 Kings chap. 16), the very first thing Jezebel does is to convince Ahab to serve Ba’al. This is a very typical way of doing things in the world of witchcraft. One spirit enters a life because of a bad choice, then proceeds to make sure other doors are opened for other spirits. Notice, however, she has also succeeded in leading another person into witchcraft.

               In effect, Ahab was the head of the Church of his day. Being king over all Israel was his ministry to the chosen people of God. As such, he was bound by covenant with both God and the children of Israel. Once Jezebel entered the picture, both covenants were easily laid aside in favor of the worship of Ba’al. Thus, she had convinced him to allow witchcraft to enter into and destroy his ministry to Israel.

               We see the same thing in Gen. Chap. 3. Eve eats the fruit and then gives it to Adam. Witchcraft never operates alone, and when it is alone, it will find another person to entice into sin. Adam’s ministry was to tend God’s Garden. When he allowed sin to enter into the Garden, he broke his covenant with God and forfeited his ministry. He also damned all of humanity to be born into sin.

               And notice from the story recorded about Jezebel and Ahab, their primary enemy among men is always the prophet (1 Kings 18:13; 19:2; 21:20). This is because the prophet is the polar opposite to the witch. Witches use false prophecy to manipulate others into doing their will. Prophets speak prophecy to edify, exhort and comfort the children of God to keep them on track with the Father. Witches crave power and authority which is not theirs; prophets give all the glory to God. Witches believe that they are more powerful in numbers; a prophet knows all power in heaven and earth belongs to Christ Jesus. Witches lift up themselves; prophets lift up Jesus. A witch’s ministry produces false signs and lying wonders; a prophet’s ministry is followed by true signs and wonders from heaven.

               It is also the prophet that has the gifting necessary to expose the witch for what he/she truly is

(1 Kings 18:18). Prophets can discern through the Holy Spirit when a spirit of witchcraft is in operation, what spirit is operating, what its operations are, and whose life it has infected (although not all prophets will have all this information, they will have enough to do their job). While other ministers may possess discernment, the prophet’s sense of discernment is usually sharper, especially where witchcraft is concerned.

               As a result, witches will usually place a prophet very high on their list to destroy (1 Kings 19:2). They will be discredited, have their reputations soiled, directly challenged, called false prophets,  forbidden to minister within a body, and even get thrown out of churches. Each and every one of these avenues is a normal, expected avenue of attack. And all of the reasons for such actions will sound so reasonable. It is only the Spirit of the Lord that can truly identify witchcraft in operation.

               One of the main reasons that prophets are so disliked is because they carry the anointing for destroying witchcraft. A prophet walks in the anointing to destroy witchcraft as part of their calling and gifting. So getting rid of a prophet is just playing it safe if you are a witch.

               Casting down witchcraft is always done through direct confrontation. If Jezebel is operating in an assembly, someone with the anointing and the will and the authority to challenge her must step up to the plate and carry through. When the infestation is serious, God usually sends a prophet anointed for the job (1 Kings chap. 18), to either cast down witchcraft or to anoint the man who will (2 Kings chap. 9).

               Confronting witchcraft is never easy. Ba’al and Jezebel can root themselves very firmly in a body with very little time to do so. There are so many of us that are susceptible to promises of illegal power; or that struggle against lust or pride, that it makes the job of a spirit of witchcraft that much easier. The first thing to remember when confronting a spirit of witchcraft operating in a life is to never negotiate. It goes, the person stays.

               Spirits of witchcraft will generally seek the highest position in a ministry as possible, and will always work in teams. The couple that writes the biggest tithe checks, serving on the board, and calling all the shots in a church is a near guarantee, and must be confronted if the ministry and they themselves are to be saved. Otherwise, the ministry will split or close completely, and Jezebel and Ahab will take a good many of the congregation with them to another assembly to do it all over again.

               The elder who just recently divorced and remarried two months later, amid rumors of marital infidelity is another nearly sure bet. The older woman who always sits in the front pew, scowling at anything she doesn’t like, who writes tithe checks that pay the pastor’s salary is another place to check. Any church member in authority that has issues with covenant relationship, or seeks to control the ministry should be approached prayerfully.

               Jezebel and Ba’al will resist being cast down. They will split the church, get the pastor fired, have the visiting prophet thrown out, and have the worship leader replaced with a close friend that is not anointed for the job (thus placing a spirit of witchcraft in the driver’s seat for worship). In short, they will pull every dirty trick in the book to retain or grab hold of more illegal authority. And they will always reproduce themselves in disciples. Two spirits of witchcraft will always work together as a team, but will train disciples to do the same thing they are doing.

               The pastor who won’t allow anyone else except family to flow in their giftings is one good example. The busy-body that brings a troop of ten women with her to complain about the new Sunday School teacher is another one. Or the new couple in the church that brought five other couples with them. All of the above situations should be carefully monitored, so that a spirit of witchcraft can be shut down before it gains any real power in the Body.

               Once a spirit of witchcraft is found out and cornered, it generally is rather cowardly, preferring to run instead of facing a direct confrontation with a true man or woman of God. The person that has been oppressed should be removed from power, and then deliverance and post-deliverance counseling (for retraining of the flesh) should be sought out. If the person will not be convinced to be prayed for and counseled, then the only choice left is to ask them to leave. That should always be the last resort, and even then only when the Lord endorses it. People are not disposable just because they are oppressed, but if they are unrepentant and unwilling to submit to church authority, then the rest of the Body must be protected.

               Ministers that exhibit signs of witchcraft in their ministries need to be prayed for through serious intercession. Only when the voice of the Lord says to do so, should they be asked to step down for a long enough period to seek healing and restoration. Then they should be gradually reintroduced to their authority in the Body. Close monitoring needs to be used for awhile, until it can be reasonably guaranteed that they are not falling back into the same trap again. Again, this should only be done under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and should be confirmed numerous times through several individuals before it is acted upon. One of the first things a witch will try to do is to upset the power structure in a ministry through false prophecy. We need to be sure that it is definitely the Lord speaking.

               Confrontation needs to be direct and to the point, but done in a loving manner. Remember, these people are not demons, they are oppressed by demons. There is a huge difference. Guilt and shame should NEVER be used as leverage to make someone submit to prayer or to stepping down temporarily. Confronting witchcraft with witchcraft is not going to do any good.

               The most important part of deliverance counseling with those oppressed by spirits of witchcraft is the counseling. Pre-counseling needs to be used to be sure that it is indeed witchcraft that they are struggling with. Post-deliverance counseling needs to be employed to help them retrain their flesh. Otherwise, it is almost a guarantee that they will fall right back into the same trap. If a minister senses the presence of a spirit of witchcraft and does not have the time or the experience to counsel the individual involved, then the minister should intercede that the Lord will send a deliverance counselor to set them free.

               Most importantly of all, love those that are oppressed. We all have open doorways in our lives. To treat someone like a leper because they are struggling against something is not Christ-like. It is not good for them or for other members of the Body. And it is not the heart of God. The heart of God is that we love our neighbors as we love ourselves. In other words, the Golden Rule definitely applies here. Treat those that are struggling with the same love and respect that you would want to receive. If you cannot, let another minister pray for them.

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