Christians, redemption and deliverance

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Jesus is calling
Oh come To The Altar  - Elevation Worship

Recently a young woman was found with her throat slashed and her body stuffed into an igloo. It was later discovered that the culprit was a Seventh-day Adventist deacon who had previously served time in prison for the heinous murder of his wife.

Considering that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, many believers think it is reasonable for persons like that to be embraced and welcomed back into the body of Christ, while others draw the line at giving them a position in the church ... but is that complete restoration?

Family and Religion reached out to Reverend Carlene Bryan of Dominion In Christ International Ministries church for insight on the matter.

She said that it is easy for those who claims to be Christians to commit heinous crimes, as going back to scripture, she reminded that the heart of man is desperately wicked.

Regarding positions in the church, Bryan said that no one should be appointed to any position in any church unless the Lord names the appointee.

Bryan also said that the church should deal with the appointments of anyone to any position of authority by allowing the Holy Spirit to name the people He wants.

"In Acts 13, the church leadership was fasting and ministering to the Lord before the Holy Spirit named Barnabas and Saul. We need to do the same before every appointment. Isaiah 11:1-3 is clear that the seven dimensions of the Spirit is necessary so that we do not judge after the seeing of our eyes and the hearing of our ears. Jesus needed the power of the Spirit and so do we as five-fold ministers. On the instruction of the Lord, the apostles chose men of honest report, filled with the Holy Ghost and wisdom," she pointed out.

That is why it is possible, she said, to have saved people who lie, steal, cheat, on their partners or commit murder. Others who are cranky and cantankerous and are not nice to be near. This, she said, is why it is very important to renew minds.

Bryan added that believers can learn about the Bible, but if their minds are not renewed with the Word of God, then they are going to be ineffective as Christians and can easily slide into the trap of the devil.

She also shared that there is still another level where Christians need to get to, where they are transformed on the inside with the fruits of the spirit being demonstrated on the outside.

Deliverance

"This is a perfect segue way into something many Christians are unaware of. Every Christian who is going to be used of God needs deliverance, not just ex-convicts. What is deliverance? It is a process by which we destroy demonic activities and influences in our lives. We do this through the power and the blood of the eternal covenant through the name of Jesus Christ. Deliverance comes by the Holy Ghost," are the impassioned words from Reverend Bryan.

For her, Christians sometimes carry out heinous acts - whether they have positions or not. Their minds were not renewed and they were still under demonic control.

"A stronghold is anything we hold on to that ends up holding us. Strongholds are toxic thoughts that can have an adverse effect on our thinking process. When demons build strongholds in your mind, they can control you. While Christians cannot be possessed by demons, they can be controlled and oppressed by demons. It is important to note that demons won't leave until they are confronted. The Bible exhorts us to pull down strongholds in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5," she shared.

Bryan said that if Christians are Spirit-led, they can pick up things in their spirits that some things aren't right about other people that they interact with closely.

"Often, we ignore the Holy Spirit's prompting. A man just does not get up and kill someone just out of the blue. Usually there are warning signs and cracks in his character that we do see and fail to heed along the way. Sometimes the needs in a church are so dire and pressing to do the work of the ministry that we just override these checks. Five-fold ministers also fall prey to subtle intimidation from their congregation and the 'what-will-they-say' syndrome which will lead [church leaders] to put people in positions in which they do not belong," she said..

familyandreligion@gleanerjm.com