By Randal W. Deese (8-4-2026)

We believe that Scripture contains no command or example of the apostles or early believers attempting verbally to “bind” Satan or demons. This practice misapplies biblical passages concerning binding and loosing, Christ’s victory over Satan, and the restraint of spiritual powers. Although Scripture clearly teaches the reality of Satan, demons, spiritual warfare, and deliverance, it does not teach believers to address Satan with formulas such as “I bind you,” “We bind the spirit of fear,” or “Satan, we bind your power.” Biblical spiritual warfare is practiced through submission to God, resistance to temptation, faith, prayer, truth, righteousness, the proclamation of the gospel, and—when confronting an evil spirit directly—commanding it to depart in the name of Jesus Christ.

The Biblical Meaning of Binding and Loosing

Jesus’ statements concerning “binding” and “loosing” are frequently removed from their contexts and treated as instructions for restraining demonic spirits:

“Whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:19; cf. 18:18).

In Matthew 16:19, binding and loosing are connected with the “keys of the kingdom of heaven.” In Matthew 18:15–20, the same language appears within Jesus’ instruction concerning confronting sin, establishing testimony, and making congregational judgments. Neither passage mentions Satan, demons, territorial spirits, curses, sicknesses, or unfavorable circumstances.

The language of binding and loosing concerns the exercise of kingdom authority in accordance with heaven’s judgment. It describes declaring or applying what heaven has already determined, not believers independently creating spiritual realities through verbal declarations. These passages, therefore, provide no biblical foundation for saying, “I bind Satan,” or for attempting to bind particular demons through spoken formulas.

Jesus’ Binding of the Strong Man

Another passage commonly used to support this practice is Jesus’ illustration of binding the strong man:

“How can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?” (Matthew 12:29; cf. Mark 3:27).

Jesus was not instructing His disciples to repeat the words, “I bind the strong man.” He was explaining the significance of His own ministry. His authority over demons demonstrated that He had invaded Satan’s domain and was plundering his house by liberating those held under demonic oppression. The binding of the strong man is an illustration of Christ’s superior power, not a verbal formula prescribed to believers.

Jesus cast out demons by commanding them to leave. He did not repeatedly announce that He was “binding” them:

“Be silent, and come out of him!” (Mark 1:25).

“You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again” (Mark 9:25).

Christ’s authority was demonstrated through direct command and actual deliverance, not through the use of specialized binding language.

The Apostolic Pattern

The book of Acts contains numerous confrontations with Satanic activity, persecution, sorcery, deception, and demonic spirits. Yet the apostles are never described as verbally binding Satan.

When Paul confronted a spirit of divination, he did not say, “I bind you.” Rather, he commanded:

“I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her” (Acts 16:18).

When the apostles encountered persecution, they did not conduct ceremonies to bind territorial spirits over Jerusalem. They prayed for boldness to continue proclaiming God’s Word:

“Grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness” (Acts 4:29).

When Satan hindered Paul, he acknowledged the opposition but did not claim to bind Satan:

“We wanted to come to you—I, Paul, again and again—but Satan hindered us” (1 Thessalonians 2:18).

When Paul instructed churches concerning spiritual warfare, he never commanded them to bind Satan or demons. Instead, he taught believers to stand in God’s strength by putting on the armor of God:

“Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” (Ephesians 6:10).

The armor consists of truth, righteousness, readiness produced by the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, the Word of God, and persevering prayer (Ephesians 6:14–18). These are the biblical weapons through which believers stand against the devil’s schemes.

Scripture Commands Resistance, Not Verbal Binding

The New Testament repeatedly tells believers how to respond to the devil:

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion. . . . Resist him, firm in your faith” (1 Peter 5:8–9).

Resistance begins with submission to God. It involves steadfast faith, obedience, vigilance, prayer, and refusal to yield to temptation or deception. Neither James nor Peter defines resisting the devil as verbally declaring Satan to be bound.

Jesus likewise taught His disciples to pray:

“Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6:13).

The biblical response to spiritual opposition is dependence upon God—not confidence in a spoken formula.

Satan Is Not Presently Bound in Every Sense

The claim that believers can bind Satan at will also conflicts with passages describing his continuing activity. Satan is portrayed as:

• Tempting believers (1 Corinthians 7:5; 1 Thessalonians 3:5).
• Scheming against the Church (2 Corinthians 2:11; Ephesians 6:11).
• Disguising himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).
• Hindering ministry (1 Thessalonians 2:18).
• Prowling as a roaring lion (1 Peter 5:8).
• Accusing believers (Revelation 12:10).

If an individual believer could completely bind Satan by making a verbal declaration, the repeated New Testament commands to remain watchful, resist him, and stand against his schemes would become difficult to explain.

Scripture does teach that Satan will be bound for a divinely appointed period. However, revelation does not portray believers accomplishing this through prayer declarations:

“Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven . . . and he seized the dragon . . . and bound him for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:1–2).

This binding is performed by an angel acting under God’s authority at God’s appointed time. It is not accomplished by Christians repeating the phrase, “Satan, I bind you.”

The Authority of the Name of Jesus

Believers possess genuine spiritual authority, but that authority is derived from Christ and must be exercised according to Scripture. Jesus gave His disciples authority over unclean spirits and instructed them to cast demons out (Matthew 10:1, 8; Luke 9:1; 10:17–20). The apostles ministered in the name of Jesus Christ because His authority—not the wording of their formulas—brought deliverance.

The name of Jesus must never be treated as a magical expression. The sons of Sceva attempted to use Jesus’ name without truly belonging to Him or possessing His commissioned authority, and they were violently overpowered (Acts 19:13–16). Their failure demonstrates that spiritual authority is not located in merely repeating religious words.

Deliverance ministry should therefore remain Christ-centered, prayerful, sober, orderly, and governed by Scripture. Where an evil spirit is genuinely present, the biblical pattern is a direct command to depart in the name of Jesus Christ—not a speculative attempt to identify, bind, transfer, or negotiate with demons.

Christ’s Victory and the Believer’s Confidence

Rejecting the practice of verbally binding Satan does not diminish Christ’s victory. Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8). Through His death and resurrection, He disarmed the rulers and authorities. He triumphed over them (Colossians 2:15). By His death, He broke the power of the one who held the power of death, that is, the devil (Hebrews 2:14–15).

Believers overcome Satan through Christ’s accomplished victory:

“They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11).

Our confidence rests in Christ’s authority, His atoning death, His resurrection, His present reign, and His promised final victory—not in our ability to restrain spiritual beings through declarations.

Pastoral and Congregational Practice

The Association of Biblical Pentecostals, therefore,e teaches that believers should:

1. Submit themselves fully to God and resist the devil through steadfast faith and obedience.
2. Pray for deliverance from temptation, deception, oppression, and evil.
3. Put on the whole armor of God through truth, righteousness, faith, the gospel, salvation, Scripture, and prayer.
4. Test spiritual claims rather than accepting every alleged revelation or manifestation uncritically (1 John 4:1).
5. Proclaim the gospel, through which people are turned “from the power of Satan to God” (Acts 26:18).
6. Command genuine demonic spirits to depart in the name and authority of Jesus Christ when such confrontation is necessary.
7. Avoid speculative teachings concerning territorial spirits, demon hierarchies, inherited spirits, or binding rituals not taught in Scripture.
8. Refuse to replace pastoral care, repentance, discipleship, medical evaluation, or personal responsibility with unsupported claims that every struggle is caused by a demon that must be verbally bound.

Conclusion

We therefore reject the teaching that Christians are commanded to bind Satan or demons by verbally declaring them bound. The passages commonly used to support this practice do not contain such an instruction, and no apostle or early believer is shown doing it. Binding and loosing concern the administration of kingdom judgments under heaven’s authority; binding the strong man describes Christ’s victorious invasion of Satan’s domain; and Satan’s ultimate binding occurs by divine action at God’s appointed time.

We affirm the reality of spiritual warfare, the present activity of Satan, the authority of Jesus Christ, the power of prayer, and the biblical ministry of deliverance. Believers overcome spiritual opposition not through invented formulas, but by submitting to God, resisting the devil, standing in faith, walking in truth and righteousness, proclaiming the gospel, praying in the Spirit, and exercising Christ’s authority according to the pattern established in Scripture.