“And Jesus came and spoke to them
saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and in earth. Go
therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all
things that I have commanded you and lo, I am with you always, even to the end
of the age.’ Amen.”—Matthew 28:18-20
The believer is joined to the Lord in covenant agreement the moment that
they accept Jesus, “But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him” (1 Corinthians 6:17), and from that moment they possess delegated authority. You see Satan usurped Adam and Eve’s
authority when he deceived them in the Garden of Eden. Satan lies to cover-up the truth that his
power was stripped from him by Jesus Christ, “Having
disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it” (Colossians 2:15). Jesus Christ’s
death, burial and resurrection assure the believer that she or he has authority
over the enemy.
John A. MacMillian writes in his book The
Authority of the Believer, that, “When
the Lord Jesus, the Captain (Archegonn, Prince-Leader) of our salvation, was
raised from the dead, the act of resurrection was accomplished through ‘the
exceeding greatness of his [God’s] power [dunameos], to usward who believe,
according to the working [energeian] of the strength [kratous] of His might
[ischuos].” He went on to say that, “In this working there was such a putting
forth of the divine omnipotence that the Holy Spirit, through the apostle,
requires four words of special significance to bring out the thought.” (These Greek words are included within
the brackets). The use of these four different
powerful words relates to us the powerful significations of the resurrection of
the Lord Jesus; it was the mightiest working recorded in the Word of God.
Christ Jesus was raised from among the
dead and exalted by God to His own right hand in the heavenlies (Ephesians
1:20). You see the resurrection had been
opposed by the tremendous “powers of the air”:—“all
principality, and power and might, and dominion, and every name that is named,
not only in this world [aion, age] but also in that which is to come” (Ephesians
1:21). It is important for you to
understand that the risen Lord has been enthroned “far above” them, ruling with the authority of the Most High. And that you, His chosen child, have been
elevated to a place—“and raised us up
together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus”
(Ephesians 2:6). To share a throne
means without question to partake of the authority which it represents.
This authority can only be exercised
to the extent of a believer’s spiritual apprehension. The war is and has always been in the
heavenly realm; however, the believer must take the time to study and receive
illumination (revealed truth) from the Holy Spirit to be able to exercise their
authority over the principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, and spiritual
hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places and over the conditions which those
powers have brought about on the earth.
Prayer—Father
I thank You that You are all powerful and that Jesus Christ has defeated the
enemy. Thank You Lord that I am joined
to Christ and as such You have given me authority over all the power of the
enemy. I ask you to increase my
spiritual understanding of Your Authority and Your Power, Might and Strength in
my life, in Jesus Name. Amen.
