Death or Sheol?
One of the big issues for us as we wandered around the issue of alien human spirits (AHS) was how they could still be there in people who had gone through so much deliverance. The answer is found in Isaiah 28.
The column on the left pertains to demons and the column on the right to AHS. This is language from the NIV.
Death | Sheol |
Covenant | Agreement |
Lie | Falsehood |
Refuge | Hiding place |
A tested stone | A precious cornerstone |
Justice | Righteousness |
Measuring line | Plumbline |
Hail | Water |
Sweep away | Overflow |
Annulled | Will not stand |
Rise up | Rouse himself |
Mount Perazim | Valley of Gibeon |
Work | Strange work |
Task | Alien task |
Each of these words has much wisdom to offer as we dig into the original. The central point here is that on the left you have a legal arrangement, such as my entering into an agreement to lease a building from you. When there is a breach of the lease, you go to court, invoke justice and the lease is annulled. It is a legal action because the original deal was based on the law.
The agreement with the Sheol on the other hand, is more like an agreement with a loan shark. He does not go to court if you violate the agreement. The enforcer from the loan shark just comes after you to break an arm or a leg or whatever it takes to collect the debt.
This is one of a host of things we have learned about the limitations of deliverance. It is a powerful tool for demons. They work on legal ground revolving around lies, sin, rebellion and all those other things we are familiar with. You deal with demons from the perspective of legality.
On the other hand, an AHS has an agreement with Sheol and you can’t deal with it from the perspective of justice. It requires righteousness. It is a whole different ball game. The first time I asked Jesus to come deal with an AHS and they doubled over in laughter over my request (and Jesus didn’t show up) I knew I was up against a whole new paradigm.
Eventually, Jesus became very engaged in the process, but it required a massive mental shift from justice to righteousness before He would partner in these situations.
Take another word. On the demonic side you have a lot of lies. This word portrays an absolute that was reversed. I said I was not there on Tuesday, when in fact I was. There is a reality, a fact, that is being subverted.
The falsehood is more like a Ponzi scheme. There never was any reality to the deal. It was all an illusion without substance. It is not like a bank that got embezzled. There was nothing there to begin with, except debt.
So we have a stiff learning curve ahead of us as we practice dealing with two different processes, depending on whether we are dealing with a demon or an AHS.
You might want to look at the New Testament deliverance. Sometimes they are referred to as casting out an evil spirit. I believe this is a demon. Other times, it is an unclean spirit. This is probably an AHS. Any living entity in us that is not part of our original God-given design is alien — an offense to God.
Notice how often the term unclean spirit is used in conjunction with general healing as if Jesus did the two things at once. We have found that many AHS are the direct contributors to medical issues.
I encourage you to dig in and explore the things I shared in this new album. I am not dogmatic on many issues which are still unclear. On the other hand, as in the list above, there are a number of Scriptural passages that teach us new tools for addressing this old dynamic.
Those who are walking in long sought after freedom are vigorous witnesses that the principles work, once we let go of the concept of justice.
Copyright July 2013 by Arthur Burk
From home
Usage Policy for Free Articles:
Our articles may be downloaded for free. You may copy and distribute them for free in any way that is beneficial to the Body of Christ. You may not charge a fee.
Downloading any article indicates that you are in agreement with this policy.