Believers are at different levels in their spirit walk with God. Spiritual growth is a lot like physical growth. We are all in the process of becoming and growing. On many Bible subjects, believers differ on how they should live and act according to those scriptures.  There are believers who don’t believe you have to rebuke the devil, Is this true? Is this what the scriptures teach? In today’s podcast, we are going to drill down into this and endeavor to show you from the Word of God that you can and should rebuke demons in Jesus Name.

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[Tweet “The Word speaks of high places in many places. Why is heaven up but hell is down? High Places.”]

Read the Notes

You can view a basic transcript of this podcast at the bottom of this section.

Accept the Challenge

Each week’s podcast contains a call to action. The Word of God will not produce in your life unless you put into operation.
This week’s call is:

Meditate on the authority you have in Jesus Name. He is the Head and you are His body. The body has the same authority as the Head. Use the Name of Jesus from this level of understanding.

Join the Conversation

Each week’s podcast also contains a question designed to encourage testimony. Testimony is vital to a believer’s life. We overcome by it (Rev. 12:11).
This week’s question is:

Question: How have you used your inspired authority in Christ to rebuke the hosts of darkness? Please share your comments, in the comments section below.

Episode Resources:

You can find additional information on the Name of Jesus in the resources listed below.

1. #S3-011: What’s the Value of a Good Name? [Podcast]
2. #S3-012: Why the Name of Jesus Works for Your Life [Podcast]
3. #S3-015: How the Mighty Names of God Energize Your Life [Podcast]
4. #S3-016: How to Obliterate Temptation in Jesus Name [Podcast]
5. #S3-017: Why the Name of Jesus Is So Powerful [Podcast]
6. #S3-018: How God Reacquired Adam’s Stolen Authority [Podcast]
7. #S3-020: How Jesus Destroyed Demons in One on One Encounters [Podcast]
8. #S3-021: Want Victory? Look at Jesus Shocking Geographic Throwdown [Podcast]
9. #S3-022: Why You No Longer Have to Be Sick Because of Jesus Name [Podcast]

About Emery

Emery committed his life to the Lord Jesus Christ over 40 years ago and has served as both a full-time pastor and an itinerant minister. Both he and his wife Sharon of 35 years emphasize personal growth and development through the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is both the focus and the hallmark of their mission. Read more about them here.

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If you enjoyed the podcast, please rate it on Stitcher Radio and leave a review. If you have a suggestion for a Bible topic you would like to see taught, or if you have a question, please e-mail me at emery@emeryhorvath.com

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What We Learn from Jesus Encounter with An Epileptic Suicide Demon

Matthew 17:1 (NASB95) 1 Six days later Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves.

What Bible Says about High Places

• There is something about mountains.
• There is something significant about ‘high places.’
• The Bible speaks of ‘high places in many places.’
• Why is heaven up but hell is down? High Places.
• Why do the pack leaders in the animal world abide on the higher elevations in oversight?
• We do they fight it out for the highest place in a pack?
• There’s something important about ‘high places.’
• One day Jesus took three of His disciples up to a high place.
• Some scholars say it was Mount Hermon.
• Others say it was Mount Tabor.
• In either case, He took them up.
• Jesus didn’t just climb the mountain just to see the sights.
• He didn’t climb the mountain just to maintain good muscle tone.
• He knew something was up.
• He knew His Father was going to do something.
• His Father, by the Spirit, told Him so.
• There’s a connection between high mountains and revelation in scripture.

Matthew 5:1–2 (NASB95) 1 When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2 He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,

• Jesus, at times, taught from elevated places.
• He taught while sitting on mountains.

Matthew 28:16–17 (NASB95) 16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful.

• As you can see, good God things happen in high places.
• The magnificent God encounter the children of Israel had in Exodus nineteen was on a high place, Mount Zion.
• God could have come down anywhere but He chose to come down on a mountain.

Exodus 19:17–19 (NASB95) 17 And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently. 19 When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder.

• When God speaks there is revelation.
• When Jesus teaches, there’s insight.
• When the Spirit of God uncovers, there’s enlightenment.
• The psalmist goes on to say these words.

Psalm 15:1–2 (NASB95) 1 O LORD, who may abide in Your tent? Who may dwell on Your holy hill? 2 He who walks with integrity, and works righteousness, And speaks truth in his heart.

• Do you desire to dwell in God’s high places?
• It takes something to do that.
• It takes integrity.
• It takes doing right.
• The Hebrew word integrity, in this verse, means to be blameless, to be free of guilt; not subject to blame.
• The blameless person, free of guilt, can abide in God’s holy hill.
• Who is this person?
• In New Testament language, this person is the born-again, the person who is in Christ.
• The person who has received Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord, is free of guilt.
• Because of the blood of His sacrifice, you are blameless before God.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NASB95) 21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

• Step up to God’s holy hill.
• Dwell in the secret place of the Most High.
• Now, you know the enemy is always trying to act like he’s the king of the mountain.
• He still wants to be God.
• You remember Isiah’s description of the dark one.

Isaiah 14:14 (NASB95) 14 ‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’

• Because of this desire to exalt himself above God, he was cast down into the earth.
• But, just because he was cast down doesn’t mean, he lost his desire to be God.
• He still lusts for that.
• You can see it in the temptation account which occurs in the wilderness.

Matthew 4:8–10 (NASB95) 8 Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; 9 and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.’ ”

• Where did the devil take Jesus?
• He took Him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world.
• You see what he tried to do with Jesus?
• He showed Him something on a high mountain.
• Why?
• Because he’s still trying to act like God.
• You know there were many idol temples and places of worship which were built in ‘high places’.
• the Lord knew about these places
• God had some strong words for those who sacrificed to false gods there.

Leviticus 26:30 (NASB95) 30 ‘I then will destroy your high places, and cut down your incense altars, and heap your remains on the remains of your idols, for My soul shall abhor you.

Micah 1:3 (NASB95) 3 For behold, the LORD is coming forth from His place. He will come down and tread on the high places of the earth.

Ezekiel 6:3 (NASB95) 3 and say, ‘Mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord GOD! Thus says the Lord GOD to the mountains, the hills, the ravines and the valleys: “Behold, I Myself am going to bring a sword on you, and I will destroy your high places.

• High places are a big thing.
• They are full of the symbology of authority.
• When Jesus ascended to heaven, He did it on the top of a mountain, the Mount of Olives.
• When He comes back again to rule and reign on planet earth, He is going to touchdown on that same high place, the Mount of Olives.

Zechariah 14:3–4 (NASB95) 3 Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle. 4 In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.

The Transfiguration

• Something awe-inspiring happened while the disciples were with Jesus on the this ‘high place.’
• Jesus had a spiritual experience.
• He was transfigured right before their eyes.
• The Greek word ‘transfigured’ means to be transformed or to be or become changed in outward appearance or expression as manifesting a change in nature or essence.

Matthew 17:2–3, 9 (NKJV) 2 And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. 3 And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him… 9 As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man has risen from the dead.”

Matthew 17:14–18 (NKJV) 14 And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, 15 “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16 So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.” 17 Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.” 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.

• Where was Jesus coming from?
• The word translated ‘epileptic’ means to have seizures.
• The phrase ‘suffers severely’, when you look up the definitions of both words, means to undergo a physically difficult experience in a really bad way.
• The Greek word ‘child’ here is used for a boy who is below the age of puberty and so a young child.
• Now, couple all of this with the added description Matthew gives, ‘For he often falls into the fire and often into the water.’
• The word often means just that; many times, frequently, on many occasions.
• Altogether, these words paint a painfully hopeless picture.
• When this child came into the vicinity of a pool of water or a fire made for warmth and cooking, all of a sudden he would be seized with a seizure.
• Take note of how Jesus successfully defeated this demon.
• The scripture says, ‘He rebuked him.’
• The Greek word ‘rebuked means to express strong disapproval of someone, rebuke, reprove, censure also speak seriously, warn. ¹
• So, the force of rebuking means that the one rebuked has to be able to understand the censure.
• You can’t rebuke a chair or a table or any other inanimate object.
• It won’t respond.
• People try to rebuke their cars all the time.
• Some get really mean about it.
• But, the car’s feelings isn’t hurt because it can’t hear.
• Inanimate objects can’t hear.
• But spirits can hear.
• And so Jesus rebuked this epileptic/suicide demon and it left.

Luke 4:38–39 (NKJV) 38 Now He arose from the synagogue and entered Simon’s house. But Simon’s wife’s mother was sick with a high fever, and they made request of Him concerning her. 39 So He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. And immediately she arose and served them.

• In the case of Peter’s mother-in-law, Jesus rebuked a fever.
• Notice Doctor Luke’s added descriptor of the fever.
• He classified it as a ‘high fever.’
• Being of the medical community, Luke was more precise when describing this sickness.
• Jesus handled this sickness the exact same way He handled the demon of epilepsy the young child had in Matthew seventeen.
• He rebuked the demon.
• He rebuked the fever.
• What does this say about the fever?
• The fever can hear.
• So, fever is a living thing, not an inanimate thing.
• It will respond to your words.
• It will hear your words.
• Speak to sickness.
• Rebuke sickness.
• Do it like Jesus did it.
• So, once again Jesus gained the victory over demon inspired illnesses.
• And that victory is still available today.
• The Name of Jesus will drive out sickness and disease.

References:
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