The Practices of True Discipleship wk 4

Good morning, CHURCH!

Welcome to FFM where we love God, and we love people.

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Today we are continuing down the path of our series.

The Practices of True Discipleship

Week 4

True disciples understand their authority in the Spirit.

True disciples act like they understand who they are in the Spirit.

True disciples talk as if they know who they are in the Spirit.

Question?

Do you talk as if you know who you are in the spirit?

Today’s message title is:

Your Words Reveal What You Truly Believe

It is not enough to have heard about who you are in Christ.

You must fully understand your identity and authority in Christ, which will cause you to speak from your true in-Christ identity.

For many confessing Christian's, there is a gap between their position and their confession.

Sure, many a Christian has quoted Ephesians 2:6.

Ephesians 2:6 ESV

by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated, us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

This is not just something good to quote.

This is legal spiritual reality.

This is not just symbolic language.

Do you know what this phrase meant in the ancient times?

Being seated with a ruler meant:

*Joint participation in that leader’s authority!

*Delegated power to act on that King’s behalf!

*Equal access to the throne and its resources!

If believers truly understood they are seated with Christ, their words would never express fear, hopelessness, or defeat.

Many Christians also quote 2 Corinthians 5:17.

2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

But what happens when adversity hits?

Sickness attacks, finances struggle, or the enemy pushes back at their confessions!

Their words sound more like they are victims of their circumstances, rather than victorious in Christ.

A new creation means:

*A new spirit

*A new nature

*A new authority

*A new way to speak

When a believer still talks like the “old man,” the issue is not salvation – it’s revelation.

They are saved, but they don’t yet know who they have become.

They are born again, but they don’t know the ways of the family they are now apart of.

Let me give you some examples of old creation language vs. new creation language.

The old creation language is:

*” I can’t make it, I’m sick as a dog.”

*” This fever is killing me.”

*” I don’t know how I’m gonna survive this.”

*” The devil is really kicking my tail.”

The new creation language is more like:

*I don’t feel good, but I am more than a conqueror.” (Romans 8:37)

*By His stripes I am healed. (1 Peter 2:24)

*Greater is He who is in me. (1 John 4:4)

*The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. (Hebrews 13:6)

Do you see how your words tell whose identity you believe more – the old you or the new creation you?

Have you ever attended a prayer gathering of Christians?

First of all, to get Christians to show up for prayer meetings is like pulling teeth.

So, those who show up are either tremendously in need or tremendously committed to prayer. (So, I am in no way trying to bash the few the proud the prayer team.)

But uninformed Christians pray as if Jesus is still on the earth in bodily form, performing miracles like he did over 2,000 years ago.

(They’re waiting on Him to pass by)

Our prayer meetings should consist of Christians speaking and acting as those to whom Jesus gave His authority.

Listen to this truth;

Your words reveal your theology.

*Your confession reveals your beliefs.

*Your language reveals whether you see yourself as defeated or seated.

(Defeated by what’s happening in the natural or seated with Christ in victory!)

Today’s message is intended to help you see that many times what comes out of your mouth exposes that you don’t yet believe what Scripture says about who you are.

Your new family is Now, not Future

When I grew up in church, Christian’s were always waiting on a future time in heaven.

Matthew 28:18-19 ESV

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Question?

Jesus gave us His authority, right?

Here is another one.

Mark 16:17-18 ESV

And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

Question?

Is this a future authority or a present authority?

The early church never begged Jesus to come back and exercise His authority again.

They spoke in His name and expected heaven to back their words.

Today, many Christians pray like this:

“Lord, I need you to come down from your Holy habitation and heal this sickness.”

“Lord, I have a serious problem, and I need you to fix it for me.”

 “Lord, my cousin has a demon in him, I need you to take it out of him.”

The Lord that you are asking to do it, gave you the authority to do it.

Use it!!!

Our words are betraying your prayers

Proverbs 18:21 ESV

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.

Matthew 12:34 ESV

You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

Your mouth always leaks your theology.

Your speech always reveals belief.

What’s the point of shouting on Sunday about the authority we have in Christ, if Monday we’re telling our co-workers, “I just can’t shake this cold,” or “This old body of mines is just breaking down with old age.”

And don’t misunderstand me. The issue is not just what you say, the issue is what you believe.

So, even if you are confessing the new authoritative language, but you doubt it will really work because you haven’t seen it in the natural yet, you will get the same results of someone who doesn’t even use authoritative language.

Jesus showed us how to use our words.

Mark 11:23 ESV

Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.

Notice Jesus did not say, “Whoever prays for God to move this mountain.”

He said:

Whoever says to it.

You gotta speak to it.

Authority is exercised by speaking, not begging.

Satan deceives humans into misusing their words

Satan has no authority over a believer.

So, he tries to influence your thoughts and your speech.

He wants you to:

*Curse your own health with your words

*Speak defeat over your finances

*Talk fear into your situation

*Repeat the world’s language instead of the Word’s language

He tries to keep you in alignment with the old you and not the new you.

He knows the authority of the believer is released with words or restricted with words.

I call all disciples of FFM this day to align your speech with your new identity.

If you are seated with Christ… your words must sound like someone who sits with Him. If you are a new creation… your words must reflect your new nature. If you have authority… your words must exercise it.

When believers speak from identity, they stop crying for victory and start speaking from victory.

In closing:

We are not waiting on heaven to move.

God is waiting on His sons and daughters to speak with the authority He placed within them.

You will have what you say, when what you say lines up with your new identity and your belief in it is no longer swayed.

What is Holy Spirit saying to you?

Thanks for tuning in and we’ll see you next week.