Rebuking demons

And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him (Mk. 1:25 KJV)

Jesus taught us so apparently in the Gospel how easy rebuking demons can be as seen in the verse above. Jesus rebuked a demonic spirit from a man with the words “hold thy peace and come out of him.” The action the verse above labels “rebuked” is seen in the words directly addressing the spirit.

Growing up as young Christian, I was trained to rebuke demons by saying the words “I rebuke you.” In Zach. 3:2 and Jude 1:9, Satan is directly rebuked by God and angels with the words “rebuke thee”. However, Jesus did not rebuke demons by saying “I rebuke you.” He rebuked them by giving them simple and clear commands, such as “come of him.” The same is true about the fig tree that Jesus cursed in Mark 11. He did not say “ I curse you,” but “no man shall eat fruit from you.”

If there is one thing you need to understand about victory over demonic spirits, it is the truth that authority over demons is exercised by spoken words. Satan and his demons understand authority. If they meet a believer who operates in authority, they will respect his words. If he or she tells them to leave, they will.
Casting and rebuking demons are fundamentally simple and straightforward.There were moments in Jesus ministry that casting out demons was full of drama, by the devil, and there are times when it is not. The key is to learn to talk with authority to demonic spirits. God has put power in your mouth.

MEDITATE

Why must demonic spirits listen and obey our commands when we speak to them as believers? ( Col. 1:15, Luke 10:19). Declare that “Satan has been disarmed of his armor and I have been clothed with power and authority to rule over principalities and powers of darkness.”

APPLY THE WORD

Learn to talk and command evil spirits. Discernment is vital, to know when an evil spirit orchestrates a seemingly natural situation in your life. Exercise your God-giving authority and put demons in their place of defeat.