Lesson: The Authority of the Believer
I. We must have an understanding of who we are in Christ.
A. The authority of the believer belongs to every Christian.
1. The devil doesn’t want Christians to learn of their authority.
2. If Christians do not know what belongs to them, it won’t do them any good! (Hosea 4:6; John 8:32)
II. What is authority?
A. Authority is delegated power.
B. God Himself is the power behind our authority. The devil and his forces are obligated to recognize our authority!
C. The believer who thoroughly understands this can exercise his authority and face the enemy fearlessly. (1 Peter 5:8-9; Ephesians 6:10; 1 John 4:4)
III. Our authority comes from Jesus. (Matthew 28:18)
A. When Christ ascended, He transferred His authority to the Church (The Body
of Christ) Ephesians 4:7-10
B. When we realize that the authority that belongs to Christ also belongs to us,
our lives will be revolutionized. Ephesians 1:18-23
IV. We have the power and authority to destroy the authority of the devil. (Remember the devil has a certain amount of power / authority as mentioned in Luke 10:19)
A. Our contact with these demons should be with the knowledge that Jesus
defeated them (Colossians 2:15). Now that Jesus had dethroned them, we can
reign over them. 1 John 4:4
B. How to deal with the devil.
1. The most effective way to pray is to demand your rights.
2. We’re not demanding of God when we demand our rights; we’re demanding of the devil.
3. John 14:13-14
C. We must use our faith to win.
1. When circumstances don’t change immediately, some people become
discouraged. They start talking disbelief and they defeat themselves.
They give the devil dominion over them.
2. We must stand our ground until we win.
V. We must practice using our authority in every area of life.
A. We must recognize spiritually and mentally that Jesus gave us all authority
on this earth. Luke 10:19; Ephesians 1:22-23
The Authority of the Believer: Page 2
B. Spiritual authority is much like natural authority. We must use what we’ve
been given in order to get results.
C. Although we have authority over demon spirits, we do not have authority over
our fellowmen.
1. They have their own wills, which will control circumstances.
D. We’ll only defeat the devil in combat when we’ve got a foundation of God’s Word and act upon it.
VI. We are risen with Christ and are to reign as kings.
Romans 5:7; Colossians 1:15-20; Colossians 2:12-15
A. The church world has understood that Jesus Christ is the Supreme Head of the Church.
B. It has not understood that the Head is totally dependent on the Body for
carrying out His plans.
C. The exercising of authority over the powers of the air has to be through the
Body.
D. “Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever
ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”. (Matthew 18:18)
VII. We have been given spiritual armor and weapons.
Ephesians 6:10-18
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
Hebrews 4:12
