Jesus gave you authority!

Many people today think that the authority spoken about in the Bible was only for the Apostles and doesn’t exist today. Some churches want you to believe you can’t go to God directly but through a priest. I want to give you some clarity and bring you out of your baby pool faith. Let’s start with Hebrews 5:12-14 “For though by this time, you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” I don’t know about you, but I was ready to start eating solid food and stop playing in the baby pool. I wanted to take my faith into the deep! Some of this might be difficult for you to digest at first. I get that. It was hard for me to digest too. So let me start breaking this down for you. You believe in the Bible, right? You believe what’s written in the Bible is true and the word of God? I’ll assume you all said, yes. If you didn’t then stop right now because you need a different lesson entirely. When you became a believer, Colossians 1:13 tells us we were delivered from the power of darkness. You were delivered from the power or authority of darkness and into God’s kingdom. You now have entered into God’s authority because we are “in Him”. Jesus succeeded in securing all power by going to the cross, dying a horrible death, suffering the penalty for sin, and defeating Satan in the pit of hell. He came to earth as a man for one reason: to re-capture the authority that Satan had stolen through Adam’s disobedience in the garden. (This is after Jesus was resurrected and he was speaking to the Apostles about US as believers). Mark 16:15-20 (you might want to read this a few times) “And he said unto them, go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.” (don’t go drinking poison by the way!)

We have authority to stand against satan and his minions! He is nothing to us. Christians who are saved can NOT become possessed. You can become oppressed, but you can’t become possessed. One of the most vital areas of the believer’s authority is his power to successfully stand against Satan. Ephesians 4:27 says, neither give place to the devil. In the sixth chapter of Ephesians, the Apostle Paul describes the armor that we as believers are to wear in combat against Satan. He explains each piece of that armor. It is the armor of God. But not once does he say that God will put the armor on you or that God will fight the devil for you. YOU are the understood subject of these verses. He says, “YOU be strong in the Lord. YOU put on the whole armor of God that YOU will be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. YOU take the whole armor of God that YOU may be able to withstand in the evil day; and having done all, YOU stand.” God has given you the power and the authority to stand against Satan and his destructive works. He has provided the armor, but it is your responsibility as a believer to put on that armor and stand against the devil. James 4:7 says, YOU resist the devil, and he will flee from YOU. The armor and the weapons are at your disposal. God is there with you to back His Word; but all is worthless unless you take your position of authority and assume the responsibility to use what He has provided. You have the power and the authority to take the Word of God, the name of Jesus, and the power of the Holy Spirit. You need to speak directly to Satan yourself and stand your ground firmly.

Colossians 1:9-12 “And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.”