Not everyone who claims to be a prophet is true, and not everyone who has a word of knowledge is receiving it by the power of the Holy Spirit. Although sometimes the words we hear from people can be accurate, we need to understand that the source they may be using for their information could be tainted. I've heard plenty of stories of witches and warlocks who have infiltrated the church and mesmerized people with their gifts who didn't realize they were operating in sorcery and divination. I recently heard a testimony of someone who received a word of knowledge that the head intercessor at a church was an undercover witch. Although she appeared to be speaking in tongues, the atmosphere she created around herself felt dark. As the minister commanded the woman to speak in English, her tongues ceased, and she spoke out a witchcraft curse over the pastor and the church. Would you be able to discern the source of someone's supernatural gifts?
The word familiar comes from the Latin word 'familiaris,' which means household servant. In the Old Testament, we see the terms medium, divination, sorcery, and familiar spirit linked to one another. In this case, the term familiar spirit is intended to express that some "gifted" people have spirit guides around them who regularly feed them information and manipulate them to obey wicked commands. In other words, a spirit that they are familiar with.
In Deuteronomy Chapter 18, we see that the practice of divination and sorcery, witchcraft, casting spells, and consulting with the dead is considered detestable to the Lord. There is a spiritual realm that is invisible to our naked eye, and on occasion, the Lord will allow believers to see, hear, and feel what is taking place in the spirit so that we can pray, govern, and rebuke accordingly. However, partnering with a familiar spirit to receive otherworldly information or hidden knowledge is also possible but extremely displeasing to the Lord. Yet, for some reason, it has infiltrated the church and the body of Christ, and we have not fully discerned it!
Did you know that demonic spirits gossip and whisper among themselves just like people in the natural world? Only God is omnipresent and can be everywhere at once. For demonic spirits to have any knowledge of something in the natural world, they must communicate. These are sometimes grouped into a term many people refer to as "monitoring spirits."
Jesus says in Matthew 12:43-45 NLT “When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, seeking rest but finding none. Then it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ So it returns and finds its former home empty, swept, and in order. Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before. That will be the experience of this evil generation.”
When referring to deliverance, Jesus mentions that if we are not filled with the Holy Spirit, then whatever has been cast out will come back to what it is familiar and seek to inhabit its previous vessel. However, upon finding its previous vessel to be void of the Holy Spirit, scripture says that the spirit will find seven other Spirits more evil than itself so they can also enter the person. This means that for the seven other spirits to know the afflicted person, the original spirit had to communicate. Demons know how to work together to accomplish vile things. This includes sharing information. Demons will know information about people and situations they are familiar with.
I once encountered a woman who said she was an ex-witch, but I knew for a fact she was still secretly practicing manipulation with low-level witchcraft. She would freely give prophetic words to people, which were mostly words of knowledge, but she was likely being fed by her familiar spirit. It appeared that the demons oppressing other people would share intimate details about the person with her own familiar spirit, which made it appear that she was heavily prophetic when, in reality, she was just listening to demonic whispers. Knowing that I regularly cleansed my apartment and prayed for protection over myself, I felt there was no spirit following me that would be able to feed her any information. I knew that if it truly was the Holy Spirit giving her words of knowledge she would have a word for me. After several weeks of being around her, she finally confided in me that, for whatever reason, she could not prophesy over me and could not receive any words of knowledge about my life or who I was. She worded it in such a way as to make it sound like God was silent about me, but I knew that she was ultimately operating not in a spiritual gift but with a familiar spirit.
Familiar spirits are not just used for divination but can also be used as a form of visual necromancy. This is when a demonic entity visually transforms itself into the appearance of a loved one who has passed on. The spirit may have been familiar with this person's personality and characteristics and took on their form to gain the trust of family members who believe they are being visited by the spirit of their loved one. Let me tell you right now: your deceased loved ones are not showing up at the house to flicker your lights, slam doors, or physically move things around the house. Demons know that if they appear familiar to you, you are more likely to allow them to remain. How many demonic spirits do believers have in their homes because they have not used discernment and truly believe that Grandma and Grandpa are watching over them while they sleep?
I once had a member of our youth group tell me that she could see ghosts in her home of people who used to live there but she never told her mom to pray and kick them out because they looked nice and they never hurt her. She finally confided in her mother, who began to pray over the home room by room, and although these spirits appeared to be harmless human ghosts, they were absolutely terrified of the name of Jesus and eventually fled after the last room in the house had been prayed over. If this truly was a human spirit, why would the name of Jesus bring so much fear? I believe these were familiar spirits imitating other humans and trying to appear friendly so they wouldn't be kicked out of their dwelling place.
Demons may not only mimic loved ones who have passed on but can mimic the very people they are currently possessing. On multiple occasions, I've been in the process of leading someone through deliverance, and they will pretend to be set free and start to whimper and cry and say that we are hurting them. They try explaining that it's just them and the demon is gone and to let them go. The moment somebody mentions that it's the demon still speaking and not the person, they will often laugh and mock, saying that they almost fooled us. This is why it is imperative that we, as believers, carry a high level of discernment. Those of us without discernment may be entertaining demonic spirits and having conversations with familiar spirits without realizing that they are imitating our friends and family. Just because it looks and sounds like someone you recognize doesn't mean it is. You could very well be in the presence of a familiar spirit manifesting in an undetectable way to the naked eye and can only be felt through the power of the Holy Spirit and the gift of discerning.
Demons knowing about you isn't exactly bad, though. Did you know that your name as a powerful, spirit-filled, God-fearing, prayer warrior, tongue-talking believer could be mentioned in demonic circles because they fear you? If you specifically operate in Deliverance Ministry, this may not surprise you. You may have cast out spirits who are already familiar with who you were before you even entered the room.
Acts 19:11-16 NLT "God gave Paul the power to perform unusual miracles. When handkerchiefs or aprons that had merely touched his skin were placed on sick people, they were healed of their diseases, and evil spirits were expelled. A group of Jews was traveling from town to town casting out evil spirits. They tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus in their incantation, saying, “I command you in the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, to come out!” Seven sons of Sceva, a leading priest, were doing this. But one time when they tried it, the evil spirit replied, “I know Jesus, and I know Paul, but who are you?” Then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, overpowered them, and attacked them with such violence that they fled from the house, naked and battered."
Although I feel terrible for the sons of Sceva, who were only trying to do the right thing but were not yet anointed to do so, I'm extremely encouraged by what came out of the mouth of the demonized man. We know for sure that anyone who had a demon that encountered Jesus was set free. We can also see that as Paul walked in a high level of spiritual authority, he, too, expelled every demon he came in contact with. Yet this demonized man, although never encountering either Jesus or Paul, was familiar with their work. The demon inside of this man knew that Jesus and Paul had the authority to cast him out but was also aware that the sons of Sceva were powerless. The Apostle Paul was not one to entertain demonic spirits, and although he had not yet encountered this demonized man, the demon inside of him recognized the authority that Paul carried.
I can't tell you how many times I've been called to assist someone in Deliverance, and the demonized person is making a mess and wreaking havoc, and the moment I walk in the room, it stops and recognizes me in some way, shape, or form. I've cast out demons who knew my name and occupation and even parts of my past that were afflicting people who had no previous knowledge of me.
The main thing we need to focus on is having a high level of discernment and knowing that our authority comes from Christ. When Paul cast out the spirit of the slave girl, she was only shouting that he was a man of God proclaiming the news of Christ. Although the slave girl was not wrong, she was operating in a spirit of divination, and once Paul cast this familiar spirit out of her, she lost her ability to receive words of knowledge from dark forces.
Just like Paul, when we encounter familiar spirits, whether they appear in the form of a loved one's spirit, speak through someone who is demonically afflicted, or manifest themselves as a false spiritual gift within a person, we need to shut them down and cast them out.
How many people today are allowing these demons in their homes because they truly believe it's a deceased loved one roaming the halls? Without discernment, what will the church become? How many people today would hear that same slave girl talking about Paul and Silas preaching the word of God and shout "Amen," call her prophetess, or ask her for a word? Don't be fooled, and don't allow yourself to be manipulated! 1 John 4:1 tells us not to believe every Spirit but to test them to see whether they are from God or not. Be careful what ministries and ministers you receive from and submit to!
2 Corinthians 11:13-15 NLT "These people are false apostles. They are deceitful workers who disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no wonder that his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. In the end they will get the punishment their wicked deeds deserve."
On the bright side, just like spirits can become familiar to us, those who have been delivered from something can sense when these spirits come back or are afflicting someone else. As believers, we understand that our testimony is powerful and can be used to bring someone out of darkness and into the light. On occasion, the Lord may lead you to someone and reveal to you through discernment that the spirit they are dealing with is familiar to you because it was the same kind you had been afflicted by in the past. Sensing a spirit that you know you've crossed paths with before can benefit ministry purposes. Because you know firsthand how they operate, you will have the upper hand in removing their influence over the person they are affecting.
Once again, the important thing is to have discernment and not tolerate darkness. Demons are manipulative and know how to work together and share information to accomplish assignments from the enemy. Familiar spirits are great imitators, but they will never be the real deal of what they are trying to imitate. As the Body of Christ, we must be able to differentiate between what is Holy and what is Hellish, even if they initially look and sound the same.
If you see human spirits running around your home, I encourage you to cast them out and let these things know that they do not belong there. The only spirit that should be dwelling in your home is the Holy Spirit. If you suspect that a minister or someone at your church receives words of knowledge from an ungodly source, ask the Lord to protect you from all forms of divination, sorcery, and familiar spirits. If they suddenly lose the ability to read your spiritual mail, you know that you have come against the familiar spirit they were operating in. And guess what? That spirit will recognize you as someone who walks in power and authority, just like the demonized man recognized the authority of Jesus and the apostle Paul.
The Holy Spirit is the only spirit we should ever desire to be familiar with. Let us seek him, embrace his presence, and recognize when he speaks or moves around us. You may already know someone who is dealing with a familiar spirit. Maybe you suspect someone may be afflicted or oppressed by one. Maybe you're just realizing you may have interacted with one. Either way, ask the Lord for discernment!
