There are topics where a plethora of books are written to provide assistance to others. We see this in the secular world and in the church. There are books that are helpful in pointing us back to understanding a specific Biblical topic more clearly. Then there are books laying claim to new divine revelation, hidden knowledge that is provided by God through an angelic visitation, a dream, or a vision. There are numerous books surrounding the topic of demonic deliverance. In fact, if you were to quickly do an advanced search on Amazon, you would find ten thousand books listed under the keywords “Christian deliverance”. It is an ocean of information and alleged divine revelation, and many are intrigued by such teaching and fresh insight.

Recently, I read a book discussing the topic of Christian deliverance called The Secrets to Deliverance: Defeat the Toughest Cases of Demonic Bondage. The author of this book goes by the title of Apostle Alexander Pagani, and he has stated both in writing and in interviews that he received the initial revelation concerning this book in a dream or a vision from an angelic being. In his book, this individual was a well-known minister. Despite the discrepancy in the account, a small book was placed in his hands with a glowing blue cover and The Secrets to Deliverance in gold lettering. Since that dream, he alleges to have received numerous downloads from God concerning the contents of this book. In one interview, he even states that an angel has been assigned to his deliverance ministry.

There are two main points in this book alleged as the foundation of new revelation regarding Christian deliverance. According to Pagani, the Holy Spirit showed him and told him hidden meanings in Scriptural passages concerning Solomon’s Temple (1 Kings 6) and demons lodging in ninety rooms of the believer. He also provided insight and instruction as to demons abiding in body parts, writing prayers to pray over each body part in order to cast out demons. He referred to the book of Ezekiel and to the passages concerning the temple, stating that his book was written to continue the mandate of Ezekiel and the ministry of deliverance from demons. He also briefly alluded to the winding staircase in Solomon’s Temple, posing the question of demons potentially lodging within the DNA of believers and in the bloodlines of family members.

Having read this book, it is safe to say that there are no secrets to deliverance, and the claim to such things implies that Scripture is insufficient to provide all the instruction we need. It also leads people to believe that God left the church deficient in freedom and understanding and that these types of books are necessary in order to walk in true freedom. But it is not freedom. It is spiritual bondage and mythology. The realization that such claimed revelation would be devoured by the masses is saddening. When Scripture is not enough and more is desired, these types of teachings rise to the surface and are accepted as divinely inspired.

It is also worth noting that the claim to hidden or secret knowledge revealed by God is on par with Gnosticism. The fact that claims are made in saying that God is providing this newfound revelation creates authoritative instruction that is on par with Scripture. This is stated otherwise, but we have no examples of God speaking unauthoritatively in Scripture. On numerous pages of this book, statements were made that the Holy Spirit told him the things he was writing. If these are new revelations from God, then we are obligated to obey them.

The freedom that comes through understanding what God’s Word has to say is far better than any book on a best seller list. There is this beautiful and glorious truth for us to understand as believers in Christ: salvation is deliverance. We have been delivered from the penalty of sin, we are delivered from the power of sin, and we will be delivered from the presence of sin when this life is finished. To believe that we as believers are in need of continued demonic expulsion from “rooms” in our soul, body parts, and our DNA leads to bondage and an absence in understanding sanctification in our lives. It affirms the same rebellious nature seen in the account of the garden after the fall; the blame is shifted to demons for sinful ways. These teachings make little of Scripture and its sufficiency. There has to be more. The Word of God will be used to try and justify these teachings, and a new revelation will be claimed, but great caution should be exercised. Biblical discernment should be practiced.

The Word of God provides all we need for understanding deliverance. Nothing new or fresh is required. The gospel of Jesus Christ is sufficient to set the captives free. From justification, we grow in understanding sanctification. We are both comforted and convicted when reading the epistles and the instruction given to fellow believers not to continue in the works of the flesh or the old self, but to put on Christ and to cultivate the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-6:5, Ephesians 4:17-5:21, Colossians 3:1-14, 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12). There is no instruction for Christians to cast demons out of other believers. It may not sound glamorous or exciting according to the world’s standards or to our preferences, but we don’t need entertainment or imposter manna. We need Biblical discipleship. We do not need new revelation. We need illumination of what God has spoken through His Word by His Spirit so that we can submit to His instruction rather than to our wants and understanding.

Dear Christian, you need not fear demons lodging in your body parts and the cells of your body. Look to Christ. Abide in His Word and continually be sanctified by the Holy Spirit inspired truth it contains.

Listen to this episode as I discuss this book and the teachings in it: The Lovesick Scribe Podcast: Are There Secrets to Deliverance? on Apple Podcasts