Deliverance Without a Savior
"Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself... and the last state of that man is worse than the first." — Matthew 12:45
A Tragedy That Repeats
A woman had become involved in a group that practiced meditation and taught psychic skills. After about a year she realized what she had become involved in and withdrew — and her troubles began.
For a year she was tormented daily. She could not sleep. She suffered numerous unexplainable illnesses and accidents. She fled to another city and found no relief. She sought counsel repeatedly and no one could help her.
Eventually she visited a church that practiced deliverance and went forward after the service to ask for it.
Without taking any time to find out where she actually stood with the Lord, those involved simply commanded the spirits to come out. And they did.
She described what followed:
"I knew all the demons were gone, and I felt such a terrible emptiness inside which I can't really describe. The agony of the emptiness was almost as great as the torment had been. However, I did sleep that night without the usual torment for the first time in almost two years."
Two days later, in her emptiness, she returned to a religious practice she had been counseled to examine — and everything came back, worse than before.
"I am much worse now than I ever was."
She was suicidal at the last contact. She has not been heard from since.
Why This Happens
Jesus explained the mechanism precisely:
"When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first." (Matthew 12:43–45)
And immediately before it:
"How can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man?" (Matthew 12:29)
She had no strong man in the house. She was not indwelt by the Holy Spirit, because she had not come to Christ. There was nothing to keep the house.
Swept, garnished, and empty is the most dangerous condition a person can be in.
The Principle That Follows
Casting demons out of a person who has not come to Christ is generally not a benefit to them — because they will return with many more, and that person will be worse off than at the beginning.
The exception noted in Scripture is the man of the Gadarenes, who was not a believer when Jesus delivered him — but who plainly became one, evidenced by his desire to follow Jesus immediately afterward.
Which means: if the Lord ever commands you to cast something out of an unbeliever, quick follow-up is essential. Bring that person to Christ immediately, or they will be far worse off.
Children are a distinct case, since they have not yet reached an age of accountability before God.
Point to Ponder
Swept, garnished, and empty is the most dangerous condition a person can be in.
Verse to Remember
"How can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man?" — Matthew 12:29
Question to Consider
Have I ever tried to help someone spiritually without first establishing whether they belong to Christ?
Today's Practice
Learn the order, because getting it wrong causes real harm.
Establish where the person stands with the Lord — first, and by asking directly. Not by assuming from church attendance, family background, or religious vocabulary. Ask: "Have you personally asked Jesus Christ to forgive your sins and become your Lord and Savior?"
If they have not, that is the priority. Present the gospel. Bring them to Christ. Everything else waits.
Ask what they are still involved in. A person can be genuinely willing and still be holding onto something that gives ground for immediate return. Deal with that before anything is commanded out.
And never leave a house swept and empty. Whatever is removed must be replaced — with the Holy Spirit indwelling, with Scripture, with fellowship, with someone standing alongside them.
If you are currently trying to help someone, work through those four steps this week in that order.
Prayer
Father, I have wanted to help people and I have not always asked the first question.
Forgive me for anywhere I have rushed to address a symptom in someone who did not yet belong to You. And have mercy on anyone who was left worse off because of well-meant haste — mine or anyone else's.
Teach me the order. Christ first. Always Christ first.
Give me the courage to ask directly where someone stands, even when the question is awkward. Give me the patience to wait rather than act. And give me the diligence to follow up rather than walk away from a house I helped empty.
You are the strong man who keeps the house. Without You there is no keeping it at all.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Christ first. Always Christ first. Everything else waits on that.