What authority can we take over the enemy?
Discussion question for March 19, 2010. No meeting on March 12.
How does authority work in the spiritual realm? How do authority and free will interact? Where does authority come from? What does it mean to you and I about how we live?
Here’s my summary of our discussion.
At the time of creation, God gave man authority over all the earth. This is explained in Genesis, and recounted in Psalm 8. The lists of things “under his feet” comprise of created things, such as birds and beasts and fish. It does not specifically include demons or the devil in those verses.
In Luke 9, Jesus gives authority to the disciples over demons and diseases. When they return from their mission with great testimonies of that authority, Jesus explains that they also had authority over “all the power of the enemy” in Luke 10:19. This conferred (transferred) authority from Jesus is complete and powerful. It is the basis upon which we take authority “in Jesus’ name.”
After His resurrection from the dead, Jesus again confers authority on His followers. Matthew 28:18 records His confession that all authority in heaven and earth is given to Him. Through this transfer of authority, we have power to exercise control in earthly and heavenly realms, through “Jesus’ name.”
Having been created in God’s image, and with free will, we have control over our circumstances by choices we make. Since the introduction of the enemy in the form of a serpent in the Garden of Eden, deception has been his ploy to thwart the authority we have. Sadly, we can choose to abdicate our authority. The devil offers a quick or selfish solution, salted with fear and pain, and pounces on our weakness. He will exploit any open door and influence or control us with deception.
Deception works against us only because it “could be true.” So, blame shifting tempts us to accuse God of being the source of pain or death. Job’s “greatest fear” was allowed by God. Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” was allowed by God. The risk is that we assign similar value to consequences of sin, consoling ourselves that they are allowed by God. Since it “could be true” we may be tempted to accept the role of victim instead of fighting against it.
We guard ourselves against temptation by focusing on our relationship with God. It is more important to realize what we are being tempted from (relationship) and less important to try to guard against what we’re tempted to (sin). The enemy will deceive us “to” anything as long as it moves us “from” God.
We should be quicker to see through the deception of implied authority used by the devil. It is tantamount to impersonating an officer. The authority is only as real as I allow it to be – and when my discernment comes from the source of Truth (God), I am not subject to the enemy’s ploys.