Being an enthusiast and active member of a school adventure club in Macpherson Vocational Institute, it had been our custom to engage in regular outdoor mountain-climbing expeditions during our school vacation break.
It was near semester break in Mar 1984 just before my graduation, together with a few senior members of the club, when we led a new group of younger members for our annual mountain expedition to the infamous lightning-prone Mt. Ophir in Johor.
Being a skeptical new believer, I did not quite understand the true meaning of Christianity and who God really is. But this trip to Mt Ophir was an eye opener and turning point in my new found faith in Christ.
Among this new group of young club members, there was a small little young lad known as Joseph who had brought along a yellow paper amulet of peace which his mother had “prayed” to receive from a Chinese temple in Queenstown.
On the first day of our expedition, we were mis-orientated and lost our way and trekked deep into the jungle after leaving the foot of the mountain. Everyone in the group was literally stressed out though we managed to trace our way back to the foot of the mountain. There, we pitched our tents in the jungle for rest just before sunset at about 5pm.
After much discussion among the group leaders, we decided to re-orientate ourselves and found the actual route to bring us to the mountain’s summit by the next day. Then we rested at the foot of the mountain for the night.
Early in the morning before sunrise at about 5am, while it was still dark as we were preparing breakfast so as to embark for our journey, Joseph was found staring at a huge rock and weeping profusely as if he saw something on the rock. We quickly pulled him into the tent. Joseph would at times appeared calm for awhile yet would immediately turn violent by struggling to break free. As we were unsure what to do to Joseph, we desperately hoped that the sun would rise quickly. Joseph could not remember anything when he turned “normal” after the sunrise. We were worried about how to handle him throughout the long night when we camped at the summit.
As we reached the summit near sunset, we met a group of Christians (comprising mainly of Junior College students and teachers) struggling to clear the final obstacles at the summit. As the sun had already set, this group of Christians decided to pitch theirs tents next to ours near the base camp of the summit for the night.
While trying to forget the morning incident concerning Joseph, we tried to encourage everyone to enjoy themselves with singing and laughter, while preparing the camp fire celebration at the summit base camp.
Joseph’s behaviour quickly turned violent at exactly 12 midnight. Together with a few muscular guys in the group, we struggled to hold him tight in the tent. As none of us knew how long to put up with Joseph, we eventually sent for help from the group of Christians who had camped next to ours, after much delay and hesitation.
I remembered a few senior male and female adults (teachers) came over to our tents to offer their help. One of the ladies who went into the tent to pray for Joseph happened to have 6 fingers. She did not carry with her any Crucifix Cross or Bible or Holy Water but prayed in Jesus’ name and commanded the demon (the voice of another man) which was residing in Joseph’s body to depart. The demon refused to obey and leave. There seemed to be a war of tussle in the air as the atmosphere in the tent was severely tense and hostile between that Christian lady and the demon. The Christian lady teacher with 6 fingers would speak in another language which only that demon in Joseph’s body could understand. We were all held in shock to witness a war between good and evil, a war between light and darkness right in the tent.
At times Joseph’s own voice was suppressed by the voice of the demon. Time passed swiftly as the demon still refused to surrender and depart. The Christian lady then asked Joseph if he was willing to receive Jesus Christ as his Savior. Joseph initially declined because his family members who were Taoists would never allow his conversion as he was raised from young to be a Taoist.
It seemed that nothing could be done as the demon defiantly refused to leave Joseph’s body as time dreaded on. But just before the day was about to break, Joseph suddenly claimed that he was willing to receive Jesus Christ into his heart. At this, the demon shouted and screamed loudly as it left Joseph’s body when the presence of a strong light and heat came upon it. It was later revealed that the demon had gotten into Joseph’s body through that yellow amulet as the medium of entrance. It was subsequently taken out of the tent and burnt.
It was an eye opener to me that spiritual darkness is real and so is God, the Light of the world. As a new believer I was deeply touched by the reality of God and His intervention to deliver and save Joseph from demonic possession before our very eyes. Not by any man-made cross, not by Bible or even holy water as depicted in movies but by the authority and power of God in Jesus’s name that all demons have to bow down and submit to His Lordship. Another member of our group who happened to know my new found faith in Christ asked me to show him how to pray to receive Christ after the incident. Praise God!
Although it was a tiring and stressful night, it was indeed a true eye-witness encounter for me to put my steadfast faith in God our Abba Father in Heaven through Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior. For in His name, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
To God be the glory.