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CHAPTER 18
THE AUTHORITY OF THE BELIEVER
Introduction
God has given the believer certain commands. Along with
God's commands, he has delegated authority to the believer
to fulfill those commands. With this authority comes
responsibility. And with responsibility comes accountabili-
ty. The believer will be held accountable for obeying God's
commands on that day when he stands before the Lord Jesus.
In traditional Christianity, some of God's commands
have been taught to the exclusion of others. Furthermore,
the authority of the believer has not been taught properly.
There are two words in the King James Version that seem
to translated inconsistently. The Greek words EXOUSIA and
DUNAMIS are both sometimes translated "power." It would be
more accurate to translate the word EXOUSIA as "authority,"
and the word DUNAMIS as "power." The New American Standard
Bible and the New International Version both translate
EXOUSIA as "authority" whereas the King James Version
translates it "power" in the Great Commission. (AN EXPOSI-
TORY DICTIONARY OF NEW TESTAMENT WORDS 1966 ed., s.v.
"Authority" and "Power").
The difference between the two can be illustrated by a
common situation. The scene is a traffic intersection and
a policeman is directing traffic. The policeman holds up
the palm of his hand, signaling a large semi-truck to stop.
The driver stops the truck. Why? Because the policeman
has the power to stop the big "rig?" No! The trucker knows
that he has the POWER in his control to run over the police-
man, but the policeman has the AUTHORITY to arrest him!
Likewise, the believer has been given authority (EXOUSIA) in
several areas where he would normally be overpowered.
First, let us first look at the source of the
believer's authority.
God is the Source of All Authority
The Great Commission has been given to all believers.
Jesus states that he has been given all authority:
"Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority
in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of
the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them
to obey everything I have commanded you. And
surely I am with you always, to the very end of
the age." (Matthew 28:18-20, NIV).
Jesus received this absolute authority in three ways.
Jesus received authority on the basis of his INHERITANCE:
The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the
exact representation of his being, sustaining all
things by his powerful word. After he had pro-
vided purification for sin, he sat down at the
right hand of the Majesty in heaven. So he became
as much superior to the angels as the name he has
inherited is superior to theirs. (Hebrews 1:3-4,
NIV).
Jesus received authority by BESTOWAL:
Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and
bestowed on Him the name which is above every
name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and
under the earth, and that every tongue should
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of
God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11, New American
Standard Bible).
. . . . This power working in us is the same as
the mighty strength which he used when he raised
Christ from death and seated him at his right side
in the heavenly world. Christ rules there above
all heavenly rulers, authorities, powers, and
lords; he has a title superior to all titles of
authority in this world and in the next. God put
all things under Christ's feet and gave him to the
church as supreme Lord over all things. The church
is Christ's body, the completion of him who him-
self completes all things everywhere. (Ephesians
1:19-23, Today's English Version).
Notice that Jesus is over both good and bad angels as
well as human beings. And timewise, his authority extends
through this age and the next age.
Jesus received authority by CONQUEST:
And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he
made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over
them by the cross. (Colossians 2:15, NIV).
In this verse, Paul is comparing Jesus' defeat of
Satan and his demons with a Roman triumphal procession. In
this procession, the victorious Roman general would return,
leading his officers and men, with captives and sometimes
animals peculiar to the area of victory.
When Jesus' work is completed, he will return this
authority back to the Father, ushering in the Dispensation
of the Fullness of the Ages:
Then the end will come, when he hands over the
kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed
all dominion, authority and power. For he must
reign until he has put all his enemies under his
feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
For he "has put everything under his feet." Now
when it says that "everything" has been put under
him, it is clear that this does not include God
himself, who put everything under Christ. When he
has done this, then the Son himself will be made
subject to him who put everything under him, so
that God may be all in all. (1 Corinthians 15:24-
28)
Delegation of Authority
INITIALLY, JESUS DELEGATED AUTHORITY TO THE TWELVE. He
commanded them to perform certain tasks and with that
commandment gave them the authority to do it:
When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he
gave them power and authority to drive out all
demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out
to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
He told them: "Take nothing for the journey--no
staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra tunic.
Whatever house you enter, stay there until you
leave that town. If people do not welcome you,
shake the dust off your feet when you leave their
town, as a testimony against them." So they set
out and went from village to village, preaching
the gospel and healing people everywhere. (Luke
9:1-6, NIV).
As the disciples obeyed, exercising their newly receiv-
ed authority, God backed their speech and actions with
power!
SECONDLY, JESUS DELEGATED AUTHORITY TO THE SEVENTY-TWO. He
sent seventy-two other disciples on a mission:
After this the Lord appointed seventy-two
others and sent them two by two ahead of him to
every town and place where he was about to go. He
told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the
workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest,
therefore, to send out workers into his harvest
field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among
wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals:
and do not greet anyone on the road.
"When you enter a house, first say, `Peace to
this house.' If a man of peace is there, your
peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to
you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking
whatever they give you, for the worker deserves
his wages. Do not move around from house to house.
"When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat
what is set before you. Heal the sick who are
there and tell them, `The kingdom of God is near
you.' But when you enter a town and are not
welcomed, go into its streets and say, `Even the
dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe
off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom
of God is near.' I tell you, it will be more
bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"He who listens to you listens to me; he who
rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me
rejects him who sent me."
The seventy-two returned with joy and said,
"Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name."
He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning
from heaven. I have given you authority to trample
on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the
power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. How-
ever, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to
you, but rejoice that your names are written in
heaven." (Luke 10:1-12, 16-20, NIV).
Jesus stated that the authority delegated to the
seventy was not withdrawn after their first mission--the
commission and delegated authority remained.
THIRDLY, JESUS TRANSFERRED AUTHORITY TO ALL BELIEVERS. He
stated this in Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) quoted
above. Closely associated with Jesus' delegated authority
to all believers is the Father's exaltation of the believer
in this life:
But because of his great love for us, God, who is
rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when
we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you
have been saved. And God raised us with Christ
and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in
Christ Jesus. . . . (Ephesians 2:5-6, NIV).
It is true that through the sin of one man [Adam]
death began to rule because of that one man. But
how much greater is the result of what was done by
the one man, Jesus Christ! All who receive God's
abundant grace and are freely put right with him
will rule in life through Christ. (Romans 5:17,
Today's English Version).
If one is reigning with Christ in this life, he is no
longer dominated by enemies, but rather rules over them.
What are some of the believer's enemies over which Jesus has
given him authority?
Areas of Authority
OVER SATAN AND HIS FALLEN ANGELS. The devil has been defeat-
ed by the Lord Jesus and the believer is no longer under
Satan's lordship:
For he [the Father] has rescued us from the
dominion of darkness and brought us into the
kingdom of the Son he loves. . . . (Colossians
1:13, NIV).
Paul states that by not yielding to sin, we do not have
to be controlled by the Devil:
No more lying, then! Everyone must tell the
truth to his fellow believer, because we are all
members together in the body of Christ. If you
become angry, do not let your anger lead you into
sin, and do not stay angry all day. (Ephesians
4:25-27, Today's English Version).
James tells how to overcome the destructive attacks of
Satan:
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the
devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7,
NIV).
Peter clarifies how one resists Satan:
Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the
devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking
for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm
in the faith, because you know that your brothers
throughout the world are undergoing the same kind
of sufferings. (1 Peter 5:8-9, NIV).
One resists Satan by standing firm in his faith!
Not only has Satan been defeated by Jesus, but Jesus
has placed Satan's subordinates (demons) under the believ-
er's authority:
He [Jesus] said to them, "Go into all the
world and preach the good news to all creation.
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved,
whoever does not believe will be condemned. And
these signs will accompany those who believe: in
my name they will drive out demons; they will
speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes
with their hands; and when they drink deadly
poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will
place their hands on sick people, and they will
get well." (Mark 16:15-18, NIV).
Demons are illegal holders of authority and take advantage
of the believer who does not know the Word of God. [Kenneth
E. Hagin, AUTHORITY OF THE BELIEVER (Tulsa: Kenneth Hagin
Ministries, 1979), pp 15-17]. This chapter was based largely
on Hagin's work].
All sinners are under some degree of Satan's control.
Not all are possessed, but most are at least under some form
of delusion:
In the past you were spiritually dead because
of your disobedience and sins. At that time you
followed the world's evil way; you obeyed the
ruler of the spiritual powers in space, the spirit
who now controls the people who disobey God.
Actually all of us were like them and lived
according to our natural desires, doing whatever
suited the wishes of our own bodies and minds.
In our natural condition we, like everyone else,
were destined to suffer God's anger. (Ephesians
2:1-3, Today's English Version).
Satan "baits his hook" with the desires of the flesh,
mind, eyes and pride of life (see 1 John 2:16). The person
caught by Satan thinks he is "doing his own thing," when in
reality he is being manipulated by the devil:
The Lord's servant must not quarrel. He must be
kind toward all, a good and patient teacher, who
is gentle as he corrects his opponents, for it may
be that God will give them the opportunity to
repent and come to know the truth. And then they
will come to their senses and escape from the trap
of the Devil, who had caught them and made them
obey his will. (2 Timothy 2:24-26, Today's English
Version).
The believer must take authority over evil spirits
(fallen angels) who hold sinners in bondage. The sinner
will then be able to make a free choice to accept or reject
Christ as Savior. When one sees the truth he will usually
choose Christ. Jesus said that when the prodigal son "came
to his senses" he returned home (Luke 15:17, New American
Standard Bible). The believer does not have authority over
human spirits--he cannot force sinners to accept Christ.
However, the believer does have some authority over his
own household. The Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas,
. . ."Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and
you will be saved--YOU AND YOUR HOUSEHOLD [Italics
Mine]." (Acts 16:31-32, NIV).
The writer's brother had drifted away from the Lord and
was "running around" and drinking. The writer broke the
power of Satan over him in Jesus' name and asked the Lord
to bring him back. Later, as he was riding to work with a
recent convert, the young Christian began witnessing to him.
That evening, the writer's "macho" brother "wept like a
baby" in tears of repentance while kneeling by his bed. He
later became a Southern Baptist deacon and teacher.
OVER GOOD ANGELS? Some Christians believe that they have
authority to command the good angels, as long as the com-
mand is in line with God's will. One scripture that seems
to imply this is,
Are not all angels ministering spirits sent
to serve those who will inherit salvation?
(Hebrews 1:14, NIV).
The writer believes that the good angels are commanded by
God through their own chain of command. However, they are
eager to help believers as God commands. Human beings
simply do not have enough facts, intelligence, and wisdom to
command superior spirit beings in their warfare against
other evil spiritual beings.
Because angels are spirit beings, and one cannot see
them, believers tend to forget them. However, angels filled
important roles throughout the Bible and will continue to
fill important roles in the end times. The following chart
of the Old Testament term MALAK and its corresponding New
Testament term AGGELOS gives the words the King James trans-
lators used to translate them and their frequency:
MALAK Aggelos
ambassador 4 angel 181
angel 111 messenger 7
messenger 98
_________________ _________________
Old Testament 213 New Testament 188
BIBLE TOTAL: 401
(Robert Young, YOUNG'S ANALYTICAL CONCORDANCE, Re-
vised by William B. Stevenson, 22nd ed., "Index-
Lexicon to the Old Testament," s.v., MALAK.
"Index-Lexicon to the New Testament," s.v.,
AGGELOS).
Angels are superior to human beings in intelligence and
strength. [A. H. Strong, SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY (Old Tappan,
NJ: Fleming H. Revell, 1906), p. 445]. While the Bible does
not tell the exact number, it is very high. (Ibid., p. 447).
OVER DISEASE. The believer has been given authority over
disease, as the scriptures listed in Chapter 17 teach us.
For the believer who has questions concerning his authority
over sickness, it is recommended that he study the scrip-
tures on healing. Everyone must be convinced in his own
heart.
One of the greatest scriptural apologetics for divine
healing today is F. F. Bosworth's book, CHRIST THE HEALER.
Bosworth also experienced healing personally and was used
mightily by the Lord in the healing ministry.
OVER DEATH. Jesus conquered death, and consequently the
believer is no longer held in bondage to death:
Since the children have flesh and blood, he
too shared in their humanity so that by his death
he might destroy him who holds the power of death
--that is, the devil--and free those who all their
lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.
(Hebrews 2:14-15, NIV).
There are many instances of people being raised from
the dead throughout the Bible. The New Testament records
the following people being raised from the dead by Jesus:
(1) the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11-17);
(2) Jairus' daughter (Luke 8:40-56; Matthew 9:18-
26; Mark 5:21-43), and
(3) Lazarus (John 11:1-44).
There are other instances of the dead being raised in
our generation. Mel Tari tells of a decaying man--he had
been dead two days in a tropical country--raised to life in
the presence of over one thousand witnesses. Over 21,000
people came to Christ as a result of this resurrected man's
ministry. [Mel Tari and Cliff Dudley, LIKE A MIGHTY WIND
(Carol Stream, IL: Creation House, 1971), pp. 66-68].
However, the New Testament does not give blanket
authority to the believer to raise whomever he will from the
dead--there could be some irate believers if they were pull-
ed from the Lord's presence back to the earth! In the matter
of raising the dead, the Holy Spirit will be the judge in
each case. In conclusion, the message from the Lord is that
the power and fear of death is removed from the believer.
OVER CREATION. Jesus is Lord of
DEMONS,
DISEASE,
DEATH and the
DEEP.
"The deep" here means the oceans and includes all creation
by implication. An example of Jesus having authority over
creation is the stilling of the storm:
On the evening of that same day Jesus said to
his disciples, "Let us go across to the other side
of the lake." So they left the crowd; the
disciples got into the boat in which Jesus was
already sitting, and they took him with them.
Other boats were there too. Suddenly a strong
wind blew up, and the waves began to spill over
into the boat, so that it was about to fill with
water. Jesus was in the back of the boat, sleep-
ing with his head on a pillow. The disciples woke
him up and said, "Teacher, don't you care that we
are about to die?"
Jesus stood up and commanded the wind, "Be
still!" and he said to the waves, "Be still!"
The wind died down, and there was a great calm.
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Why are you
frightened? Do you still have no faith?"
But they were terribly afraid and began to
say to one another, "Who is this man? Even the
wind and the waves obey him!" (Mark 4:35-41,
Today's English Version).
Another example is his walking on the water (Matthew
14:22-33; Mark 6:45-52). There are modern-day examples of
believers controlling aspects of nature supernaturally, but
this is not a common-place thing in the life of the believ-
er.
Mel Tari states that in Indonesia, God has protected
believers from dangerous animals, countered the effects of
poison taken unknowingly, caused them to walk on water to
bring the Gospel to others, multiplied food, and changed
water into wine when they had no wine for communion.
(Indonesia had no grapes.) [Tari and Dudley, LIKE A MIGHTY
WIND pp. 34-43].
H. B. Garlock, a Christian missionary, was transported
in the Spirit in order to minister to fellow missionaries.
Reverend Garlock remembered walking toward a flooded river
with no way to cross. He then remembered being on the other
side of the river with the only dampness in his clothes be-
ing from perspiration. [H. B. Garlock and Ruthanne Garlock,
BEFORE WE KILL AND EAT YOU (Dallas: Christ for the Nations,
1974), pp. 44-46]. The writer attended Bible college with
Ruthanne (Sandidge) Garlock and her late brother Jerry
Sandidge, and knows that she is a person of integrity.
David J. Du Plessis was also transported in the Spirit
while in Africa. He was urgently needed for ministry and
he and friends started walking together to their destina-
tion. He then found himself at his destination and was able
to minister immediately. Twenty minutes later his friends
arrived. The writer had the privilege of meeting Reverend
Du Plessis in person in Springfield, Missouri about 1981.
[David J. Du Plessis and Bob Slosser, A MAN CALLED MR.
PENTECOST (Plainfield, NJ: Logos, 1977), pp. 84-86].
Jesus is Lord. He possesses all authority and has pass-
ed limited authority to the believer. This is part of the
believer's legal inheritance NOW, but the believer must act
on God's Word by faith for it to become a reality. Kenyon
articulates this point:
Every demon and angel is subject to the
Imperial Name of Jesus and, wonder of wonders, He
gave us the Power of Attorney to use that Name of
Might.
All our Authority is based on His Finished
Work, but it is all enwrapped in His name.
By His giving us the Legal use of this name
He has put omnipotence at our disposal in our
combat with Satanic hosts. [E. W. Kenyon, THE
FATHER AND HIS FAMILY, 10th ed. (Seattle, WA:
Kenyon's Gospel Publishing Society, 1964), p. 195]
All hell knows the power of that Name; they
know our Legal Rights and Authority.
SO THEY ARE FIGHTING TO KEEP US IN IGNORANCE
OF OUR LEGAL RIGHTS; OR IF WE KNOW THEM, TO KEEP
US UNDER CONDEMNATION SO WE WILL NOT DARE USE THEM
[Italics Mine]. (Kenyon, THE FATHER AND HIS
FAMILY, pp. 197-198).
After relating how the believers used the delegated
authority of Jesus in the book of Acts, Kenyon then shares
his own experience:
The writer has seen hundreds healed, soreness
from sprains leave while prayer was being offered,
swelling reduced instantly, ruptures healed like
a flash from glory, and consumption in last stages
healed, all soreness and coughing leaving at once,
broken backs instantly healed, cancers instantly
healed.
Space forbids giving individual cases.
But the authority invested in the Name is as
mighty now as in Paul's day.
We have seen demons cast out, men and women
set free, testimonies restored, power in prayer
given.
We have seen the insane set free instantly.
We have seen whole communities put under the
conviction of the Holy Spirit, so that great fear
was in them all.
We have seen other places set free from
Satanic bondage.
We have seen God set many free from fear and
avarice.
We have seen souls in bondage to habits given
liberty in a single instant.
We have seen the drunkard freed from bondage
and arise free while we were praying.
Yes, we have Legal Rights, Legal Authority;
let us live in it. (Kenyon, THE FATHER AND HIS
FAMILY, pp. 201-202).
Conclusion
Believers need to rediscover their New Testament
authority. The Father longs to minister to us and through
us to hurting people!
As a consequence of the believer rediscovering and
using his God-given authority, self-esteem will rise. Here
is the logic behind that statement: God entrusts the
believer with authority and in doing so, demonstrates that
he TRUSTS the believer to use that authority responsibly.
If God, who is the ultimate authority, shows that he trusts
the believer, then the believer must be trustworthy--God
makes no mistakes! Once the believer realizes that God
trusts him and that he is therefore trustworthy, self-esteem
will rise correspondingly.
ASSINGMENT: MEDITATE ON THE SCRIPTURES QUOTED ABOVE
UNTIL THEY ARE REAL TO YOU. THEN PRAY AND ACT IN LINE WITH
THEM!
END
