Demons Flee

Matthew 17:19-21 ¹⁹ Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁰ So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. ²¹ However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.NIV

and again in Mark 9: 17:29 ¹⁷ Then one of the crowd answered and said, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. ¹⁸ And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.”
¹⁹ He answered him and said, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.” ²⁰ Then they brought him to Him. And when he saw Him, immediately the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and wallowed, foaming at the mouth.
²¹ So He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?”
And he said, “From childhood. ²² And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”
²³ Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, ( all things are possible to him who believes.”
²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”
²⁵ When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!” ²⁶ Then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so that many said, “He is dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.
²⁸ And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?”
²⁹ So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting. NIV

As I myself struggle with some "demons" of my own, I realize that I must constantly ask the Father to remove the deaf and dumb spirit that takes a hold. Like the father, I believe, but I must ask Him to help my unbelief. Not only deaf and dumb spirits must flee, but all manner of unclean spirits are at the command of the One who came to take away the sins of the world.

I realize fasting and prayer, constant fasting, is in order. What, you say? Constant fasting to remove a demon? If you fast too long, you will die. That I understand, but there are many types of fasting. If I am wanting to be rid of the demon of selfishness, I must fast from being selfish. I must reach out to others, be on the look out, with a constant diligence, to areas that I may be selfless. If I want to remove deceit, I must fast from deceit - have no demon of deception within me. Be known as a person of integrity.

And so I take heart in these Scriptures, for as I attempt to remove a demon, I can ask the Holy Spirit, who is within me, to do the work. And I can come alongside the Holy Spirit and work alongside of him by fasting from the demon myself. Sound simple, when put into writing.

Any comments? Encouragements? I encourage you today to begin to fast from your own demons.