A Nugget from New Life Network
Scripture for the Day (May 12, 2016)
And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes. (Mark 1:22)
Do you know that you have been given authority by Jesus Christ himself? Do you know what that means? Do you know how and when to use that authority?
The definition of authority in Webster’s New World Dictionary is as follows: the power or right to give commands or take action. For the most part, Christians today do not have a clue the power and authority available to them. The Gospel has been so watered down by powerless preaching and teaching that Christians have become sitting ducks for the enemy.
Let’s look at this situation from a natural standpoint. If you are a parent you instinctively know that you have certain authority over your children. Let’s say your ten year old son comes into the kitchen one morning and starts cursing at his mother. What are you going to do? Hopefully, you are going to take authority over that situation and it is not going to be a good morning for that son. Now, apply that to the spiritual. You should have the same reaction when you are attacked by the enemy. You have been given spiritual authority over Satan but you have to take action and give commands.
Your enemy knows who you are, but do you know who you are? If you do not know who you are in Christ then you are not going to have the confidence to speak and act with authority. You have to be clad with the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:13-18) and be willing to go to war with the enemy. He is a bully and he will run over you with his lies and fear tactics unless you know the truth (which is in the Word of God) and know the authority that God has invested in you.
Satan fears our discovery of God’s Word, because our ignorance of it is the most effective weapon he can use against us.
Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases. (Luke 9:1)
Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. (Luke 10:19)
For the Son of Man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. (Mark 13:34)
The enemy can tell, just like people can tell, when you have the authority we are talking about. They can also tell when you don’t have that authority.
And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them. Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. (Acts 19:11-16)
NEWSFLASH: The enemy knew who Paul was, not just Jesus! Paul was a born again spirit filled believer and the evil spirit recognized him. The sons of Sceva were just pretenders, and it did not go well with them.
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; (2 Corinthians 10:3-5)
