BREAKING FREE FROM THE POWER OF WICKED SPIRITS

69-71. How did the young girl in Brazil get free from wicked spirits?

⁶⁹ Once wicked spirits have gained control or influence over a person it is not easy to obtain relief from them. But, with the help of Jehovah God, it can be done and has been done by thousands of persons. An encouraging example is that of the young girl in Brazil who came under spirit influence and who prescribed cures for people. (See paragraph 22.) Years later, while asleep one night, she felt some force pulling her from her bed. Though still asleep, she walked outside and toward a nearby ditch filled with water. Then she tripped and awoke. The experience greatly disturbed her and made her want to get free from the control of the unseen spirits with whom she had been dealing. What did she do?

⁷⁰ Her first step was to pray to God to deliver her. The following morning someone knocked at her door. She heard spirit “voices” telling her not to open the door, that “the Devil was waiting for her.” But, with great effort, she did open the door. The visitor was not the Devil but was a young man who presented to her a copy of a Bible magazine, The Watchtower. In it was an article on the influence of wicked spirits. She felt sure this must have been an answer to her earnest prayer.

⁷¹ She began to study the Bible and to apply it by making changes in her life, not only learning but also doing God’s will. Gradually she became free from demon control. How happy she was to experience the great lesson that Jesus taught: “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”​—John 8:32.

72. What did the widow in Lisbon do to break away from evil spirit?

⁷² It was similar with the widow in Lisbon, mentioned earlier. (See paragraph 42.) When her communication with unseen spirits began to cause her great trouble and even terror, she was shortly thereafter contacted by Jehovah’s Witnesses and began to study the Bible with them. She learned what the Bible says about the true condition of the dead, the hope of the resurrection and the glorious good news of God’s kingdom. When she realized that she, like so many others in all parts of the earth, had been deceived by the demons, she put faith in the Almighty Spirit, Jehovah God, and severed all contact with those misleading spirits.

73. Why do millions of people not directly involved with spiritism need to know the truth about it?

⁷³ Yes, many, many persons around the earth have had their eyes opened to the truth about the spirit world. But not all cases are extreme ones like those mentioned. Millions of persons who are not spirit mediums and who do not personally claim to have ever heard “voices” of unseen spirits are nevertheless still in need of turning “from darkness to light and from the authority of Satan to God.” (Acts 26:18) Why so? Because they are deeply concerned in their daily life about such things as omens, the “evil eye,” taboos, and protective charms and rites that are tied in with the worship of spirits other than the true God, the all-powerful Creator of heaven and earth.

74. From what “web” do many people need freedom?

⁷⁴ Like a spider web that entangles and holds a fly or other creature that gets into it, so too there is a web of family and tribal traditions and rites that holds many people in the grip of fear. They are afraid that, if they do not observe all these traditions, they will not receive the help of departed ancestors or that they will be harmed by other unseen spirits. They fear they will not be successful in having children or that their children will die, or that their cattle will sicken and die, that their farms will not produce or that their businesses will not be successful.

75. To whom do people need to turn for help?

⁷⁵ Only the truth of God’s Word can set them free. By learning what his Word says, they can come to appreciate that there are unseen spirits who cooperate with spirit mediums and medicine men but that their power is as nothing when compared with the power of the true God. Persons who come to appreciate that God’s help is of far, far greater value than help from any other source realize that no hurt that any spirit medium, medicine man or any unseen spirit might threaten to bring upon them would be as damaging as their losing the favor and blessing of the one and only Source of life.​—Matthew 10:28.

76. (a) So what is the first step in breaking free from spirit worship? (b) What question now arises?

⁷⁶ Knowledge about the true God and his purposes is therefore the first step toward freedom from such enslavement. By the study of God’s Word we learn the true condition of the dead, that they are sleeping in death, unconscious and not capable of expressing love or hate, or of giving help or causing harm. We also understand the identity of those who actually inhabit the spirit world and that many spirit sons of God rebelled.

WITH FULL FAITH TAKE ACTION NOW

80. Why can you have confidence when you turn to Jehovah for help?

⁸⁰ Because of God’s patience, long-suffering and mercy, each one of us is being given the opportunity to show where we stand and in whom we will put our trust. If you desire to be free from enslavement to unseen spirits and the web of traditions and rites that bring people into such slavery, then do not hesitate to turn for help now to Jehovah, “a God merciful and gracious . . . abundant in loving-kindness and truth.” (Exodus 34:6) God’s messenger, Jesus Christ, taught his followers to pray: “Deliver us from the wicked one.” (Matthew 6:13) You can be confident that Jehovah hears prayers that come from a pure heart. “The eyes of Jehovah are upon the righteous ones, and his ears are toward their supplication.”​—1 Peter 3:12; Proverbs 15:29.

81. To be free from spiritism, what action must you take? Why?

⁸¹ Being sincere, you will also back up your requests to God by acting in harmony with what you request. What does this mean as regards traditions and rites connected with spiritism? The inspired apostle Paul writes: “I do not want you to become sharers with the demons . . . you cannot be partaking of ‘the table of Jehovah’ and the table of demons.” (1 Corinthians 10:20, 21) We must choose between worshiping God and worshiping the demons, since Jehovah God and the demons are at enmity. If we want Jehovah’s friendship and protection we must break all connections and associations with spiritism in its many forms. That includes disposing of any objects that relate to spiritism. Such objects would only serve to keep us captive in the web of demon influence. The removal or destruction of such objects is an important step toward breaking free of that influence.

82. How does God’s Word show we should not fear any object, such as an image?

⁸² Here, too, God’s Word is of great help to give us the courage to take such a step. It shows us why we should not be in fear of such objects, even though some persons may view them as charmed or possessed of some strange power. Through his prophet Jeremiah, Jehovah God gave these words of encouragement: “Do not fall into the ways of the nations . . . For the carved images of the nations are a sham, they are nothing but timber cut from the forest, worked with his chisel by a craftsman; he adorns it with silver and gold, fastening them on with hammer and nails so that they do not fall apart. They can no more speak than a scarecrow in a plot of cucumbers; they must be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them: they can do no harm, and they have no power to do good.” (Jeremiah 10:2-5, New English Bible) A small child may be in fear of a scarecrow out in a field but grown persons know better. And God’s Word shows that, just as a scarecrow cannot talk or walk or help or hurt anyone, the same is true of the images that men make and call sacred.

83. How does the Bible show the unreasonableness of one’s worshiping anything made by human hands?

⁸³ The Bible shows how unreasonable persons are who look upon things made by human hands as though they could have some superhuman power in them. For example, the inspired prophecy of Isaiah tells of the man who cuts a big tree from the forest, takes part of it to make a fire and to bake some bread and then uses the other part to make an image and “bows down and prays to it and says: ‘Deliver me, for you are my god.’” Jehovah God says of such ones: “They have not come to know, nor do they understand, because their eyes have been besmeared so as not to see, their heart so as to have no insight. And no one recalls to his heart or has knowledge or understanding, saying: ‘The half of it I have burned up in a fire, and upon its coals I have also baked bread; I roast flesh and eat. But the rest of it shall I make into a mere detestable thing? To the dried-out wood of a tree shall I prostrate myself?’ He is feeding on ashes. . . . And he does not deliver his soul, nor does he say: ‘Is there not a falsehood in my right hand?’”​—Isaiah 44:14-20.

84. (a) Can a piece of wood; cloth or string of itself help or hurt us? (b) What can do us real harm?

⁸⁴ Wood is still just wood no matter how much men may work on it. That is why a wooden image can be burned up and destroyed just like any other piece of wood. It cannot protect itself from being destroyed. And the same is true of cloth or string or mud or stone or seeds or anything else that men may use to make some object for spiritistic worship. They can all be destroyed in one way or another. If these things cannot protect themselves, they certainly cannot protect others. But real harm comes in believing in such things and thereby letting deceitful, unclean spirits, the demons, enslave us to things that are false and a sham. God’s Word shows us the way to get free from such falsehood.

85. What did certain Christians in Ephesus do?

⁸⁵ The Bible tells us of persons who had the faith and courage to destroy some spiritistic possessions, even though it was at great cost to them. After describing the witnessing about the true God done by the apostle Paul in the city of Ephesus, the Bible book of Acts states: “Quite a number of those who practiced magical arts brought their books together and burned them up before everybody. And they calculated together the prices of them and found them worth fifty thousand pieces of silver.” (Ac 19:19) Think of what a fortune that was! Yet, having the approval of the Almighty God and being free from demon influence meant much more to them than what that money represented.

86. (a) What were the results of that experience? (b) How has the same been true among many people today?

⁸⁶ Why not look around your home and ask yourself if you are showing the same faith and following this example, removing anything associated with spirit worship? The results of that experience in Ephesus were very encouraging: “Thus in a mighty way the word of Jehovah kept growing and prevailing.” (Acts 19:20) The same has been true today among thousands of persons who have turned from spiritism to the true God and his worship. The power of the truth of God’s Word has moved them to collect together all books, amulets, fetishes, bracelets, “protective” strings, garments and every object related to spiritism and destroy them.

87. What did a woman in southern Africa do, and what was the result?

⁸⁷ As one example, a woman in southern Africa who was a spirit medium accepted the help offered by one of Jehovah’s Witnesses to study the Bible. When they read the Bible account cited earlier describing how honest-hearted persons in the first century destroyed their books on spiritism, the woman asked if she should do the same. The Witness showed how this could bring God’s favor, and they agreed on a date to do this. On arriving, the Witness found the woman ready with all her religious garments and spiritistic objects and some paraffin. They made a fire and burned all the objects. What resulted? The woman gained relief from demon influence and she is now enjoying the grand privilege herself of aiding others to put their trust in the true God.

88. How did a man in the same region break free from the worship of spirits?

⁸⁸ Similarly, a man in the same region had begun to train with a famous medicine man and had made quick progress, becoming the chief assistant to his spiritist teacher. The teacher’s wife, however, began studying the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses. One day this assistant sat in on the study. Scriptures were discussed showing that God prohibits the drinking or taking of blood. (Leviticus 17:10-14; Deuteronomy 12:23, 24; Acts 15:20, 29) This impressed the man deeply. He was about to “graduate” from his course in “medicine” and magic and knew that drinking blood was part of the “graduation” ceremony. What did he decide? He wanted to please the Source of all life, Jehovah, rather than try to get the favor of opposing unseen spirits. So he stopped practicing spiritism immediately, continued studying the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses and now rejoices in his freedom from bondage to selfish unseen spirits.

89. What vital actions must be taken to gain the victory over unseen spirits?

⁸⁹ To break free from such unseen spirits, it is essential not only that you pray for Jehovah God’s help, but that you “persevere in prayer.” (Romans 12:12) God’s Word shows that it is vital not only to stop spiritistic practices but also to clean out any spiritistic objects that would maintain your ties with the worship of unseen spirits. And, if you are to gain victory and the freedom it brings, you need to avail yourself of help from others so that you do not face the spirit adversaries alone.

ASSOCIATING WITH SERVANTS OF THE TRUE GOD

90. Why is it important to associate with God’s people?

⁹⁰ The Bible urges us to meet together with others to be built up in love and faith. (Hebrews 10:24, 25) With whom can you do that? Members of the churches of Christendom, though professing belief in the Bible, often are right in among those seeking the services of spirit mediums and medicine men in different parts of the earth. However, Jehovah’s Witnesses take a different course. They keep fully clean from anything that could lead to control by unseen spirits in opposition to the teachings of God’s Word. They are happy to help anyone to study the Bible and learn its freedom-giving truth. And, like Jesus and his disciples, they do this free of charge. They will be happy to help you find the answers to your questions through such a free study.

91, 92. What benefits will attending meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses bring?

⁹¹ They also meet regularly for group study of the inspired writings of God’s Word, and these meetings likewise are free, with no collections taken. To attend these is a tremendous help in carrying on the warfare that the apostle Paul writes about when he says: “We have a wrestling . . . against the wicked spirit forces in the heavenly places.” The apostle then goes on to urge us all to “take up the complete suit of armor from God,” and to “stand firm, . . . girded about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness, . . . the large shield of faith, . . . the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit, that is, God’s word.”​—Ephesians 6:12-17.

⁹² To know how to use this spiritual armor and the “sword of the spirit” effectively may take some time. But your association with others who have gained and are gaining victories in their spiritual warfare will help you make good progress. As you learn more about the purposes of the Universal Creator and Ruler, Jehovah God, and see the wisdom of his laws and righteous requirements, your faith will grow. You will gain the marvelous hope of life in a paradise earth, where the meek of the earth will enjoy endless life, free from sickness and suffering, under God’s kingdom by Christ Jesus. You will learn how you can be among those who will live to see the time when God will “wipe out every tear from their eyes.”​—Revelation 21:4; Psalm 37:10, 11; Matthew 5:5.

93. What personality change is required?

⁹³ To stay free from control by selfish unseen spirits we need to follow the Bible’s counsel to “put away the old personality which conforms to your former course of conduct” and “put on the new personality which was created according to God’s will in true righteousness and loyalty.” (Ephesians 4:22-24) Our former course of conduct may have been governed, not by God’s will, but by human traditions and the customs of people in our area. We need to examine our conduct to see that we are avoiding all things that have any connection with the demonic lie that the dead can help or hurt the living.​—2 Corinthians 13:5.