A. Introduction.
Some Christians think that the authority over evil belongs to only a few chosen people who God has given special power. The fact is that it belongs to all the children of God. You have it already.
The devil has succeeded to prevent Christians to learn about the authority of the believer. His aim is, to defeat us. The problem is we do not have much knowledge of the Word of God and what Jesus did for us. The devil knows this because he knows his days are numbered and over when we have the knowledge of the authority. The devil knows that some have the knowledge but do not know how to use it. The devil knows when we use our authority he will be defeated so he pretends to have power over us.
It is time that we know that we can defeat him and that we have the dominion over him. We will have the victory every time when he tries to come against us. We receive this authority when we were born again. As we are made new creatures in Jesus Christ, we also inherit the Name of Jesus, so we can use it against the enemy.
Paul is a great example for us. Paul is the writer of the Book of Ephesians. There is great revelation in each chapter. The authority of the believer is unveiled fully in the book of Ephesians. It was directed to the church in Ephesus, but it is very applicable to us today.
We need to realize that we have authority through Christ. Jesus defeated the enemy for us.
Thank God, we have the authority over all the evil things through Jesus Christ.
B. Understanding Authority.
The issue of authority goes to the heart of your existence and mine. You and I were created to rule. It was God's plan to give mankind authority to rule. The idea is there in Genesis 1. We see it when God gave it to Adam. He even tells them to "subdue" it (Genesis 1:28). After Jesus regained the authority God returned it to mankind again.
Authority is not just power. It is the moral right to exercise power. It is an authorization. You might say that authority is the God-given moral right to make choices. Some have the moral right to make choices (exercise authority) over whole kingdoms, some over the thoughts inside their head. Yet everyone has some authority, some domain they need to rule.
You and I are living in the most intense time in human history. It is no time to cower in fear or even to allow darkness and evil to prevail - it is a time to use the authority God has given us! In Luke 10:19 Jesus told us, "Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you."
I believe there are six things we, as believers, must be aware of:
Believers have to know what authority is.
Believers have to know that authority belongs to them.
Believers have to know when they received the authority.
Believers have to know what the purpose is of this authority.
Believers have to know when to use authority.
Believers have to know how to use authority.
Knowledge is not power. The application of knowledge is power!
C. Authority Was Given to Adam.
Complete authority was given to Adam in the garden.
Genesis 1:26-30 "Then God said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. And God said, See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food; and it was so".
God created everything but as soon as it was done, he turned the keys over to Adam as humankind's representative. In the garden God gave complete authority and control of creation to Adam.
Adam had it, because it was given to him by God. This is also evident in the fact that God brought the animals to Adam to name them. God did it because they fell under the authority of Adam, not God
Genesis 2:19 "Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name".
D. Authority Was Transferred to Satan.
It did not take long before sin ruined paradise. Satan deceived Eve and Adam followed suit in disobeying the one command from God not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Satan lawfully became the rightful owner of the world. Satan used the system that God set up to take dominion and authority from Adam. Authority and dominion was transferred to Satan during the fall.
Adam and Eve knew right away the difference between good and evil. They knew they were naked. God was merciful and loving toward them, protecting them from fully understanding the consequences of their sin.
Genesis 3:15 "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."
God told them the redemption plan was already in place. Jesus was chosen before sin entered into the picture to crush the head of Satan. The plan was already in place to regain full control and dominion of the earth and to reconcile mankind back to God.
Genesis 3:21-24 "The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And the LORD God said, the man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever. So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life".
God banished them from the Garden so that He could send Jesus to restore mankind back to the sinless condition we were in before the great fall.
E. Authority and Dominion Regained By Jesus.
Full authority and dominion was regained by Jesus at Calvary. Jesus came as a human to redeem mankind. The world was given to Adam. When it passed to Satan in the garden, the only way to lawfully get it back under the system that God ordained, was for mankind to win it back.
Isaiah 59:15-17 "Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey. The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm achieved salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him. He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head; he put on the garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak".
God's own right arm, Jesus, was sent to regain what was lost to the kingdom of darkness in the fall. This is why Jesus had to become flesh and blood, so that He was subjected to the same rules that applied to mankind. He had to be born under Satan's kingdom in order to redeem it lawfully. This shows the amazing grace and love that God has for us to subject His only Son to humanity. Jesus came to get it all back!
Jesus regained full authority and dominion from Satan at Calvary. He did this by living a perfect, sinless life. All of the rules that applied to mankind, applied to Jesus and sin never defeated Him. Satan tried to tempt him and cause Him to stumble but Jesus did not fall for it. The goal was to die in our place as the perfect sin sacrifice in order to restore mankind. Jesus became the second Adam. He became mankind's representative before God just as Adam had been initially. The same law that plunged the entire world into sin was the law that allowed Jesus to undo it.
Romans 5:18-19 "Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous".
F. Jesus identified with mankind and overcame Satan.
It was man who had lost his authority therefore it had to be a man to regain it. This "challenger" would have to successfully challenge and cancel Satan's legal claims.
How Jesus identified with man and overcame Satan in order to regain "All authority in heaven and earth".
Jesus came as a man to earth - Philippians 2:5-8, John 1:14
Jesus remained under the Father's authority at all times - John 12:49
Jesus was not subject to Satan in anything.
Jesus fulfilled all of the law - Matthew 5:17-19
Jesus was tempted by Satan - Hebrews 2:18, Matthew 4:3+6
Jesus did not sin - Hebrews 4:15
Jesus was "made sin" for us - 2 Corinthians 5:21
Jesus paid the penalty of sin through His death on the cross - Romans 6:23
Jesus destroyed/disarmed/conquered Satan's works on the cross. Hebrews 2:14 and also Colossians 2:13-15
G. Authority and Dominion Delegated to Believers.
Authority and dominion was delegated to believers by Jesus. Jesus regained the authority from Satan.
Colossians 2:13-15 "When you were dead in your sins and in the un-circumcision of your flesh, God made you[a] alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross".
True to God's nature and character, as soon as the world was redeemed by Jesus and authority and dominion regained from Satan, God once again gave it to us. God returned it to mankind again. This was His original plan.
Matthew 28:18-20 "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."
As believers we now have authority on earth. Believers have been raised and seated with Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:6 "And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus". Now we are co-heirs with Him.
Romans 8:17 "Now if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory".
He has once again has turned over authority on this earth to believers and the church.
What an amazing truth!