Binding, Loosing, etc. and How to Deal with Spiritual Warfare

Luke 10:1-10, 17-20

Jesus Appointed 70 disciples

Jesus appointed 70 disciples and sent them on ahead of Him, two by two, into every town and place where He was about to go. He commanded them with tasks and said that the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. He told them to do the following:

Specific Instructions 

- Pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.

- Go their way; He was sending them out as lambs in the midst of wolves.

- Carry no moneybag, knapsack, nor sandals and greet no one on the road.

- Whenever house they entered, say peace (which is a state of well-being) be to this house.

- If a son of peace is there, their peace would rest upon him. If not, it would return to them.

- Remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide for the worker deserves his wages.

- Don't go from house to house. Whenever they enter a town and were welcomed, they were to eat what was set before them.

- Heal the sick and say that the kingdom of God has come near to them.

When Disciples Returned

When these disciples Jesus sent out at the time returned to him, they did with joy saying even hostile divinities/evil spirits were subject to them in His name.

Jesus said to them that He saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Then He gave the disciples He sent out authority to move against serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy with nothing hurting them. He told them to not rejoice in this but to rejoice that their names were written in heaven.

Matthew 10:1, 5-13

Jesus Demanded Presence of His 12 Disciples (Later Caller Apostles)

Jesus demanded the presence of His 12 disciples and gave them authority over evil spirits to expel them and to heal every disease and bodily weakness. The names of the 12 were Peter, Andrew, James (son of Zebedee), John (His brother), Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew (the tax collector), James (son of Alphaeus), Thadaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas. He gave them the following instructions:

Specific Instructions

- Go nowhere among the Gentiles & enter no town of the Samaritans but rather go to the lost sheep of the descendants of Israel.

- Publicly declare that the kingdom of heaven is at hand as they go.

- Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers & expel hostile divinities.

- Since they received without paying, they would have given without pay.

- Acquire no gold, silver, or copper for their belts; acquire no bag for their journey along with two tunics, sandals, or a staff for a laborer deserves his food.

- They were to inquire about who is deserving of his food in the town or village they enter and stay there until they would depart.

- As they entered the house, they would have had to greet it, and if the house is worthy, let their peace come upon it, but if it's not worthy, let the peace return to them.

Matthew 28:18-20

Great Comission

Jesus said to His disciples that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him. He told the disciples to do the following since He has all authority:

- make disciples of all nations & instruct others in His ways & His teachings,

- baptize the new disciples in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,

- and teach these new disciples to observe what Jesus commanded them.

He tells the disciples that He will be with them always until the end of the age.   

The Error of Using These Passages for Spiritual Warfare

Casting out Demons, Healing, etc.

There are some who use the passages in Matthew and Luke mentioned above to claim authority where they can bind Satan, perform miracles, speak things into existence, etc. However, they take these passages out of context.  Jesus was speaking to a specific group of people (70 disciples in Luke's case, 12 in Matthew's case)  for a specific ministry. He even gave them specific instructions on what to do (go to certain houses, acquire no gold, acquire no bag, say peace be to this house, etc.).  These ministries described in Matthew and Luke with reference to His disciples already took place.  

Great Commission where Jesus has Authority

Some say that the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) to teach the authority of the believer. However, in this case Jesus has the authority where He tells his disciples to make disciples, baptize, and teach Jesus' commands. The disciples were simplying obeying what Jesus told them to do.

Really Dealing with Spiritual Warfare

Resist the Devil in James

James, inspired by the Holy Spirit, asks what causes battles and fights among us. Then he answers it by stating that our pleasures wage war within us. People desire and do not have so they murder. 

They desire greatly for something and have deep concern for it and cannot obtain it, so they fight and quarrel. People do not have because they do not ask and when they do ask, they don’t receive because they ask wrongly to spend it on their own desires.  

He then tells us to consider that Scripture talks about God longing for the spirit that He made to dwell in us. God gives grace to those who humble themselves before Him and resists those who are arrogant. 

James tells us to bring ourselves under the control of God. The Lord will help us to oppose the devil so he’ll escape. Keep in mind that God longs for our spirits since He made them. God wants us to approach Him and He will approach us. 

God wants us to possess moral virtue, so He wants us to be cleansed of our sins. Therefore, we should grieve over our pride and be sorrowful to the point where we repent and humble ourselves before the Lord approaching Him. Then, He will lift us up. 

Paul in Philippi

Paul, while in prison writing to the church at Philippi, tells them to let their manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.  This is so whether Paul was absent or came to see them, he may hear that they are firmly committed in their belief in one spirit and mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel.  

Paul also tells them not to be frightened in anything by their opponents. The result of them standing firm in one spirit striving for faith in the gospel along with not being frightened was a clear sign to opponents of their destruction but also of the faithful's salvation from God.

It has been granted to the church that for the sake of Christ they should not only believe in Him but also suffer for His sake and be engaged in struggling against opposition that they saw Paul had which resulted in his imprisonment.

Also, Paul (in prison) said that he rejoiced in the Lord that the Philippians revived their concern for him. He was not speaking of being in need since he learned that whatever situation he's in to be self-sufficient. He knew how to do with little and have in abundance. Paul learned the secret to being filled and dealing with hunger along with abundance and need. He said he can do all things through Him who strengthens him. He is able to function no matter what the circumstances because of Christ.

Ephesians 6:10-18

Paul is telling us that Christians are to put on the full armor of God.  In this situation, Paul is not talking about physical armor, but spiritual armor.  He is saying that one should depend on the Lord and not our own strength to withstand spiritual forces of evil and darkness.  Paul then goes on to talk about the belt of truth.  He wants us to focus on having strong faith in Jesus (since He is truth) and cling on to Him.  As Christians, we should move freely and quickly since we know that Jesus is truth.  When we are in Christ, we are clothed in righteousness and are meant to, with the Lord's help, show good Christian behavior regarding our thoughts, words, and actions.  He also tells us that we should be ready to stand firm in the gospel.  Paul is saying that faith in the true gospel of Jesus Christ and spreading this faith is what will help us against evil.  The helmet of salvation is in Christ's forgiveness of our sins and strength to conquer sin in the future.  He tells us to use Scripture as our defense as well along with prayer.

Suffer for Righteousness Sake, Don't be Troubled

Peter, inspired by the Lord, at one point asks who's there to harm someone if they of whom he was writing to were passionate and committed for what is morally upright. He says that if one suffers for righteousness' sake they'd be blessed.

Then he states to have no fear of them who harm nor be troubled but instead in their hearts revere the Lord & honor Him as holy. One should always make a defense to anyone who asks them for a reason for the hope in them.

Peter says to do this with gentleness and respect having a good conscience so that when they're spoken against, those who abuse the good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. It is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.

Sober-Minded, Watchful, Resistant

Peter also says that since the devil walks about like a roaring lion seeking to swallow and destroy someone, one should exercise self-restraint to help out in prayer and be constantly alert. He also says to resist the devil (the same thing that James says) being steady and committed to faith in Jesus Christ knowing that the same kinds of suffering have been and still are experienced by other Christians throughout the world.