Ministering Deliverance Safely

⁷As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ ⁸Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.

¹⁷The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in Your name.” ¹⁸So He told them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. ¹⁹Behold, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will harm you. ²⁰Nevertheless, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

²⁶What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a psalm or a teaching, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. All of these must be done to build up the church. ²⁷If anyone speaks in a tongue, two, or at most three, should speak in turn, and someone must interpret. ²⁸But if there is no interpreter, he should remain silent in the church and speak only to himself and God. ²⁹Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said. ³⁰And if a revelation comes to someone who is seated, the first speaker should stop. ³¹For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged. ³²The spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. ³³For God is not a God of disorder, but of peace—as in all the churches of the saints.

¹Brothers, if someone is caught in a trespass, you who are spiritual should restore him with a spirit of gentleness. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. ²Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. ³If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. ⁴Each one should test his own work. Then he will have reason to boast in himself alone, and not in someone else. ⁵For each one should carry his own load.

²²Flee from youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, together with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. ²³But reject foolish and ignorant speculation, for you know that it breeds quarreling. ²⁴And a servant of the Lord must not be quarrelsome, but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, and forbearing. ²⁵He must gently reprove those who oppose him, in the hope that God may grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth. ²⁶Then they will come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, who has taken them captive to his will.

¹As a fellow elder, a witness of Christ’s sufferings, and a partaker of the glory to be revealed, I appeal to the elders among you: ²Be shepherds of God’s flock that is among you, watching over them not out of compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not out of greed, but out of eagerness; ³not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. ⁴And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away. ⁵Young men, in the same way, submit yourselves to your elders. And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

¹⁵A lone witness is not sufficient to establish any wrongdoing or sin against a man, regardless of what offense he may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

¹⁴For lack of guidance, a nation falls, but with many counselors comes deliverance.

¹³He who answers a matter before he hears it—this is folly and disgrace to him. ¹⁷The first to state his case seems right until another comes and cross-examines him.

¹“Do not judge, or you will be judged. ²For with the same judgment you pronounce, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. ³Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but fail to notice the beam in your own eye? ⁴How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while there is still a beam in your own eye? ⁵You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

¹⁵If your brother sins against you, go and confront him privately. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. ¹⁶But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ ¹⁷If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, regard him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. ¹⁸Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. ¹⁹Again, I tell you truly that if two of you on the earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by My Father in heaven. ²⁰For where two or three gather together in My name, there am I with them.”

³⁸John said to Him, “Teacher, we saw someone else driving out demons in Your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not accompany us.” ³⁹“Do not stop him,” Jesus replied. “For no one who performs a miracle in My name can turn around and speak evil of Me. ⁴⁰For whoever is not against us is for us.

⁵Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them. ⁶The crowds all paid close attention to Philip’s message and to the signs they saw him perform. ⁷With loud shrieks, unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, and many of the paralyzed and lame were healed. ⁸So there was great joy in that city.

¹¹God did extraordinary miracles through the hands of Paul, ¹²so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and the diseases and evil spirits left them. ¹³Now there were some itinerant Jewish exorcists who tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those with evil spirits. They would say, “I command you by Jesus, whom Paul proclaims.” ¹⁴Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. ¹⁵But one day the evil spirit responded, “Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?” ¹⁶Then the man with the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. The attack was so violent that they ran out of the house naked and wounded. ¹⁷This became known to all the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, and fear came over all of them. So the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. ¹⁸Many who had believed now came forward, confessing and disclosing their deeds. ¹⁹And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books and burned them in front of everyone. When the value of the books was calculated, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. ²⁰So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail.

³For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but think of yourself with sober judgment, according to the measure of faith God has given you. ⁴Just as each of us has one body with many members, and not all members have the same function, ⁵so in Christ we who are many are one body, and each member belongs to one another. ⁶We have different gifts according to the grace given us. If one’s gift is prophecy, let him use it in proportion to his faith; ⁷if it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; ⁸if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is giving, let him give generously; if it is leading, let him lead with diligence; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. ⁹Love must be sincere. Detest what is evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁰Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Outdo yourselves in honoring one another.

⁴There are different gifts, but the same Spirit. ⁵There are different ministries, but the same Lord. ⁶There are different ways of working, but the same God works all things in all people. ⁷Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. ⁸To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by the same Spirit, ⁹to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, ¹⁰to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in various tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. ¹¹All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, who apportions them to each one as He determines.

²⁴Not that we lord it over your faith, but we are fellow workers with you for your joy, because it is by faith that you stand firm.

¹Therefore, since God in His mercy has given us this ministry, we do not lose heart. ²Instead, we have renounced secret and shameful ways. We do not practice deceit, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by open proclamation of the truth, we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. ³And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. ⁴The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. ⁵For we do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. ⁷Now we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this surpassingly great power is from God and not from us.

¹Therefore if you have any encouragement in Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, ²then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being united in spirit and purpose. ³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves. ⁴Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. ⁵Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus: ⁶Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, ⁷but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness. ⁸And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross.

¹²But we ask you, brothers, to acknowledge those who work diligently among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. ¹³In love, hold them in highest regard because of their work. Live in peace with one another. ¹⁴And we urge you, brothers, to admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, and be patient with everyone. ¹⁵Make sure that no one repays evil for evil. Always pursue what is good for one another and for all people. ¹⁶Rejoice at all times. ¹⁷Pray without ceasing. ¹⁸Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. ¹⁹Do not extinguish the Spirit. ²⁰Do not treat prophecies with contempt, ²¹but test all things. Hold fast to what is good. ²²Abstain from every form of evil.

¹This is a trustworthy saying: If anyone aspires to be an overseer, he desires a noble task. ²An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, ³not dependent on wine, not violent but gentle, peaceable, and free of the love of money. ⁴An overseer must manage his own household well and keep his children under control, with complete dignity. ⁵For if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he care for the church of God? ⁶He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same condemnation as the devil. ⁷Furthermore, he must have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the snare of the devil. ⁸Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued or given to much wine or greedy for money. ⁹They must hold to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. ¹⁰Additionally, they must first be tested. Then, if they are above reproach, let them serve as deacons. ¹¹In the same way, the women must be dignified, not slanderers, but temperate and faithful in all things. ¹²A deacon must be the husband of but one wife, a good manager of his children and of his own household. ¹³For those who have served well as deacons acquire for themselves a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

¹⁹Do not entertain an accusation against an elder, except on the testimony of two or three witnesses. ²⁰But those who persist in sin should be rebuked in front of everyone, so that the others will stand in fear of sin. ²¹I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels to maintain these principles without bias, and to do nothing out of partiality. ²²Do not be too quick in the laying on of hands and thereby share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure.

¹Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. ¹³Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good conduct, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. ¹⁴But if you harbor bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast in it or deny the truth. ¹⁵Such wisdom does not come from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. ¹⁶For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every evil practice. ¹⁷But the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peace-loving, gentle, accommodating, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and sincere. ¹⁸Peacemakers who sow in peace reap the fruit of righteousness.

²⁵But Jesus called them aside and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their superiors exercise authority over them. ²⁶It shall not be this way among you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ²⁷and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave— ²⁸just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

²Be shepherds of God’s flock that is among you, watching over them not out of compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not out of greed, but out of eagerness; ³not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.

¹Brothers, if someone is caught in a trespass, you who are spiritual should restore him with a spirit of gentleness. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. ²Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

³³For God is not a God of disorder, but of peace—as in all the churches of the saints. ⁴⁰But everything must be done in a proper and orderly manner.

¹³Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good conduct, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. ¹⁴But if you harbor bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast in it or deny the truth. ¹⁵Such wisdom does not come from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. ¹⁶For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every evil practice. ¹⁷But the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peace-loving, gentle, accommodating, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and sincere. ¹⁸Peacemakers who sow in peace reap the fruit of righteousness.