How to Exercise Spiritual Authority

Intro:

Today we pick up in part 2 of our series Body Armor. Last week we began with an initial glimpse into the topic of spiritual warfare. I shared with you that the most important initial aspect of spiritual warfare is realizing there is a spiritual war. The war that began between Satan and God shifted to include mankind.

Satans goal was to kill, steal, and destroy. But God in His abundant mercy and through the richness of His grace sent Jesus. So that through His life we would be delivered from the power of darkness.

Colossians 1:13-14 “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.”

Jesus has won the war, but you and I must continue to battle. The great news today is that we don’t have to fight on our own. God has given us the ability to exercise spiritual authority, but we must learn how to use it.

Before we jump further into the message lets pray.

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Submit:

To battle effectively in spiritual warfare we must first understand what position we are battling from. Ephesians: 2:4-6 “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,”

The later part of this verse is huge! We are seated in heavenly places IN CHRIST JESUS! Let’s look at How to Exercise Spiritual Authority.

Principle #1: It is Jesus who has authority over the enemy. Matthew 28:18.

Matthew 28:18 “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”

You will only receive authority when you are under authority. Jesus said all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Matthew 28:19-20.

He then delegates that authority when He says, Matthew 28:19-20 “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.”

Listen, without submission to God you have no authority.

Let me give you an example of this. Acts 19:11-17

“Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.” Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.”

Paul received authority when he came under the Lordship of Jesus Christ in Acts 9. The seven sons of Sceva, and the Jewish chief priest were overpowered, and physically wounded because they had no authority. They were attempting to use new methodology to achieve deliverance outside of the covering and Lordship of Christ.

Victory in battle begins and ends with submission to God. Notice that at the end of the passage in Acts 19:17 it says, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. This friends is the only reason for delegated power to us. That the name of the Lord Jesus might be magnified.

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Apply:

Principle #2: The battle belongs to the Lord. Proverbs 21:31, Romans 8:37.

Proverbs 21:31 says, “The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But deliverance is of the Lord.”

Romans 8:37 says, “Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”

We can exercise authority with confidence when we realize the battle is the Lords. 1 Corinthians 15:57 “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

We must understand today that demons are real, and they have varying levels of influence and power. Ephesians 6:12.

Ephesians 6:12 tells us, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

In life our battle is not with people. It is against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, and spiritual host of wickedness in the heavenly places.

These demonic & wicked forces influence nations, regions, cities, and people. The open door to their influence is through sin. Proverbs 14:34, Proverbs 29:2.

Proverbs 14:34 “Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a reproach to any people.”

Proverbs 29:2 “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan.”

People can also open themselves up to physical possession to a demonic spirit through things like practicing witchcraft, occult, tarot cards, astro projection, and other things like ouija boards. Demonic and unclean spirits aim to control and harm the individual. Mark 5:1-5.

For Example: Mark 5:1-5 “Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.”

With the authority Jesus had He cast out the unclean spirit. (*any spirit that is not from God is unclean)

If the battle belongs to the Lord then we must position ourselves to hear from Him. Our place in the battle is to declare what God desires to be done.

We exercise spiritual authority when we declare what He desires in a situation. It is not about doing our own thing in the name of Jesus. We are to be submitted to Christ while doing and declaring what He wants in a situation. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,”

Key Elements:

We do not war through carnal fleshly ways.

Our weapons are spiritual weapons.

They are mighty THROUGH GOD.

The spiritual weapons have the ability to pull down strongholds (habitual pattern of thought, built into ones thought life: ie. pride, addictions, lusts), demolish arguments that are against the knowledge of God. They confront and overcome the empty philosophies of man. Bringing truth to dispel the lie.

Do you see who these thing are being brought into captivity too? Christ. We exercise spiritual authority when we are in proper submission to God. It is then that we are able to stand against the enemy in the full armor of God as it says in Ephesians 6:10-20.

I encourage you to read that portion of scripture today. Notice as you read whose armor it is.

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Closing:

Principle #3: Submission to God looks like holiness. Colossians 2:11-15, Colossians 3:12-17.

Colossians 2:11-15 “In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.”

Colossians 3:12-17 “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

Satan wars against Holiness through things like un-forgiveness, bitterness, anger, lust, the works of the flesh, the unrenewed mind. His goal is to pull us out of alignment with God so that he might strip us of authority.

A final thought on exercising spiritual authority through delegated authority: God gives delegated authority to people.

Kings have authority over kingdoms.

Leaders have authority over communities, counties, states, and nations.

Within communities people have authority of businesses, organizations, churches.

People have authority over their homes.

Each of these areas has an effect on everyone under their authority. From the nation to the home we must learn to rule, govern, or lead in the fear of the Lord.

When we are in submission to Christ we receive delegated authority.

Example: As a pastor my responsibility in this church is to set the spiritual climate. To seek the Lord and stand in the Gap against spiritual attacks. To lead in a way that glorify’s God and honors His church. Myself, the board of elders, and the staff have delegated authority over this house of worship. We are accountable for that authority. We stand as watchman on the wall, submitted to God, so that His blessing and goodness might be upon His people.

Exercising spiritual authority carries over to your home when create proper boundaries for your family that are rooted in the nature of the new man and life in Christ. By creating a God honoring home environment you are engaging in spiritual warfare.

Those that are in authority will be held accountable for those that God has placed under their care.

My prayer today is that the Holy Spirit would help you to identify if you are under God’s authority. That He would empower you through the Holy Spirit to live a Holy life. So that as you lead and engage in battle you would bring glory and honor to His name!

Let’s Pray!

Salvation: Get under God’s authority

To give us understanding in this area.