Silas
Beloved of All
Thank you for sharing so honestly about what you have been carrying. The harassment you describe, the background in the new age, and the sense that evil influences are at work in and around the people involved, is heavy and distressing, and it makes sense that reaching out to pursue peace would feel nerve wracking and confusing.
You mentioned that God has been showing you the problem of unforgiveness, and that is an important insight. Scripture treats unforgiveness as something that does not stay contained. It eats away at the heart, brings mental turmoil and heaviness, and keeps a person brooding over the injury. To have a forgiving spirit means to release the matter into God's hands before Him, to walk away from the need to hold the debt, and to leave it with Him rather than carrying it. That kind of forgiveness is part of the personal provision God has made for you, along with His guidance and deliverance, and it is first an act between you and the Lord.
Forgiveness and reconciliation are not the same thing. God calls His people to forgive from the heart, but rebuilding trust and close relationship depends on repentance, truth, and safety, and it is not always possible or wise, especially when harmful things have been done on both sides and when people are still unsaved, deceived by false teaching, or behaving in ways that seem driven by evil beyond their normal character. Scripture does show that demonic spirits are real, intelligent beings with power to afflict and to influence people to act in cruel and inhumane ways they would not otherwise act, and even to influence leaders and multitudes. At the same time Scripture shows that their power is limited. They are confined beings who can only go as far as God permits, they cannot ultimately harm those who are sealed in God, they must leave when Christ commands, and no place can hide a person from God but no spirit can overcome the One who dwells in the believer. The promise remains that greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world, and Jesus taught His people to watch and keep their garments clean as they wait for His return.
That is why peace with others cannot be made into a formula for deliverance. God has made provision for reconciliation with Himself through Jesus Christ, who was made to be sin for us though He knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. That is the foundation of all grace and all freedom. Light has no fellowship with darkness and Christ has no concord with evil, so the believer's security is in Christ alone, not in appeasing those who have done harm or in trying to manage spiritual forces by human effort. Seeking to make peace is good when it is done in obedience and humility, but it should not be driven by pressure from others who may not see the situation clearly, nor by the idea that you must earn release from harassment by winning a response from those people. Some who press you may themselves be blind to the spiritual reality, and you are right to be cautious when you sense that others are interested only in public appearance rather than genuine, honest relationship.
Your desire to talk with someone who understands both the spiritual dimension and the practical wisdom needed is a sound one, and bringing this to your pastor and elders for face to face counsel is a wise next step. They can help you discern what forgiveness before God looks like day by day, what boundaries are needed, how to respond if contact is unsafe or unfruitful, and how to pray for guidance and deliverance without brooding over the injuries. Bring the whole pattern to the Lord in prayer, ask Him for provision, for a forgiving heart, for clear guidance on each relationship, and for deliverance from every evil influence, and ask Him to help you keep your walk with Him watchful and clean.
Praying for you that the Lord will guard your mind and heart in Christ, teach you to forgive as you have been forgiven and to leave the burden with Him, give you wisdom to know when to speak and when to step back, protect you from every harassing influence, draw the unsaved people you mentioned toward truth, and surround you with wise and understanding counsel in your church. May He show you His provision for forgiveness, guidance, and deliverance in a very personal way, and keep you in His peace.
You mentioned that God has been showing you the problem of unforgiveness, and that is an important insight. Scripture treats unforgiveness as something that does not stay contained. It eats away at the heart, brings mental turmoil and heaviness, and keeps a person brooding over the injury. To have a forgiving spirit means to release the matter into God's hands before Him, to walk away from the need to hold the debt, and to leave it with Him rather than carrying it. That kind of forgiveness is part of the personal provision God has made for you, along with His guidance and deliverance, and it is first an act between you and the Lord.
Forgiveness and reconciliation are not the same thing. God calls His people to forgive from the heart, but rebuilding trust and close relationship depends on repentance, truth, and safety, and it is not always possible or wise, especially when harmful things have been done on both sides and when people are still unsaved, deceived by false teaching, or behaving in ways that seem driven by evil beyond their normal character. Scripture does show that demonic spirits are real, intelligent beings with power to afflict and to influence people to act in cruel and inhumane ways they would not otherwise act, and even to influence leaders and multitudes. At the same time Scripture shows that their power is limited. They are confined beings who can only go as far as God permits, they cannot ultimately harm those who are sealed in God, they must leave when Christ commands, and no place can hide a person from God but no spirit can overcome the One who dwells in the believer. The promise remains that greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world, and Jesus taught His people to watch and keep their garments clean as they wait for His return.
That is why peace with others cannot be made into a formula for deliverance. God has made provision for reconciliation with Himself through Jesus Christ, who was made to be sin for us though He knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. That is the foundation of all grace and all freedom. Light has no fellowship with darkness and Christ has no concord with evil, so the believer's security is in Christ alone, not in appeasing those who have done harm or in trying to manage spiritual forces by human effort. Seeking to make peace is good when it is done in obedience and humility, but it should not be driven by pressure from others who may not see the situation clearly, nor by the idea that you must earn release from harassment by winning a response from those people. Some who press you may themselves be blind to the spiritual reality, and you are right to be cautious when you sense that others are interested only in public appearance rather than genuine, honest relationship.
Your desire to talk with someone who understands both the spiritual dimension and the practical wisdom needed is a sound one, and bringing this to your pastor and elders for face to face counsel is a wise next step. They can help you discern what forgiveness before God looks like day by day, what boundaries are needed, how to respond if contact is unsafe or unfruitful, and how to pray for guidance and deliverance without brooding over the injuries. Bring the whole pattern to the Lord in prayer, ask Him for provision, for a forgiving heart, for clear guidance on each relationship, and for deliverance from every evil influence, and ask Him to help you keep your walk with Him watchful and clean.
Praying for you that the Lord will guard your mind and heart in Christ, teach you to forgive as you have been forgiven and to leave the burden with Him, give you wisdom to know when to speak and when to step back, protect you from every harassing influence, draw the unsaved people you mentioned toward truth, and surround you with wise and understanding counsel in your church. May He show you His provision for forgiveness, guidance, and deliverance in a very personal way, and keep you in His peace.
