SPIRITUAL WARFARE 2.1

AUTHORITY AND CHARACTER – SECTION 2-1:

*** The Nature of Our Authority ***

Question:
Have you ever wondered
why God hasn’t already taken us to heaven?
    – (Colossians)
      Paul believed that God wants believers
      to work with Him to impact the world.
      He has chosen to involve His children to accomplish His Will.
          – When He wants to save someone,
            He looks for involving one of His children.
          – When He wants to put a marriage back together,
            He calls on a Christian.
          – When He wants to feed the hungry,
            He motivates one of His own.
          – When He wants to impact a nation, He stirs His people.
          – When God moves against the kingdom of Satan,
            He involves His church.
          – Although God could do it without anyone else,
            He has chosen to work through us.

*** We Have Been Given Authority To Cooperate With God ***

– (Romans 8:32)
  Teaches that since God did not withhold the most precious
  possession He had (His Son), then He will give His children
  anything else He has that is needed by them.
      – (Ephesians 2:6)
        Sitting together with Jesus implies reigning on the throne
        with Him. God has actually given us His authority
        (the right to rule with Him).

      Question:
      Do we have authority over the devil
      just as Jesus has authority over him?
          – Yes.
              – (Luke 9:1)
                    Jesus gave His disciples power and authority over demons.
              – (Luke 10:17)
                    The disciples realized they had this authority and power.
              – (Luke 10:19)
                    Jesus confirms their discovery.
              – (Luke 10:21)
                    Jesus thanked God for revealing those things to His disciples.

          Note:
              God made the weak stronger than the strong.
              Those once under Satan’s authority
              now had authority over him.

          Note:
              Since God doesn’t play favorites, what He did for
              the disciples, He has done for us. We have the same
              authority the disciples had 2,000 years ago.

At this point
we could think that authority over the devil means:
    – I can limit the activity of Satan
      by using my authority in Christ.
    – I can protect others under spiritual attack
      through the use of my authority.
    – I can remove Satan’s presence
      by claiming my authority in Christ.
    – Satan must submit to me whenever I tell him to do anything.

Note:
    Authority in Christ creates the possibility of Satan being
    limited, prohibited, removed, and prevented from harming
    others……, but scripture presents us with a paradox.
    Jesus and the saints had authority, but their authority
    didn’t always work itself out in the way we might expect.
        – The same Jesus who said, “Away from me Satan”
          (Matthew 4:10), is the same Jesus who allowed the
          devil to hang around 40 days and then set Jesus on
          the pinnacle of the temple (Matthew 4:5).

        – The same Jesus who cast a legion of demons out of
          a man (Mark 5:8), is the same Jesus who allowed
          that legion of demons to kill 2,000 pigs (Mark 5:13).

        – The same Jesus who healed a girl from severe demon
          possession (Matthew 15:28), was the same Jesus who
          granted Satan permission to sift the disciples (Luke 22:31).

        – The same God who built a hedge of protection
          around Job (Job 1:10), is the same God who
          granted permission for it to be removed (Job 1:12).

        – The same God who promised to deliver one church from
          the trial coming on the whole earth, and make those who
          are a synagogue of Satan bow at their feet (Revelation 3:9-10),
          is the same God who warned another church that the devil
          would persecute them and throw them in prison
          (Revelation 2:10).

        – The same Paul who cast out a spirit (Acts 16:18), is the
          same Paul who was given a messenger of Satan to torment
          him the rest of his life (2 Corinthians 12:7).

        – Many times demonic presences were immediately removed,
          but occasionally the demonic presence remained for an
          extended time (such as the possessed slave girl following
          Paul (Acts 16:18).

        – Sometimes deliverance was immediate;
          at other times, saints were required to endure
          (Romans 16:20, 1 Peter 5:8-10, Revelation 13:10).

Question:
Why was Satan’s presence immediately removed at times,
but at other times, people were required to endure?

1. The people involved had weak faith, or they
   didn’t understand how to use their authority.
   There was some problem that lay with them.

2. We don’t know why things worked out
    that way, but it really doesn’t matter.
    We shouldn’t try to figure it out.

3. Authority doesn’t always guarantee the immediate
    removal of Satan’s presence and activity in our life.

4. A Christian needs to understand the biblical view
    of authority in order to respond to God correctly.

Note:
The correct responses are 3 and 4.

*** The Purpose Of Authority Is To Execute God’s Will ***

(John 10:18; John 5:27,30; John 12:49; John 14:10)
From these scriptures we learn:

    – We do not have the right to choose how we will exercise
      authority. The approval for having authority comes from
      God; we are not born with it. Authority begins with God
      and flows toward humanity.

    – The use of authority must always be in keeping with God’s
      purposes. Jesus knew He could not set a direction different
      from His Father’s.
      Example:
          When someone represents the king, he knows that his
          decisions and actions cannot violate the purpose of the king.

    – Authority is effective only when we are in line with
      the Will of God. The authority we are given is shared.

Question:
What does all of this mean to us?
    – The removal of Satan is not always the Will of the Father.
      This means we do not have the right to exercise power
      over the devil whenever and however we decide.

Many Christian make the mistake of assuming that:
    – Victory in warfare always means the
      immediate removal of Satan.
    – Christians are immune from warfare.
    – When warfare occurs, Christians can always
      rebuke, bind, or cast out Satan to get relief.
    – When warfare doesn’t stop immediately,
      the Christian is to blame…it is his or her spiritual problem.

Note:
    Sometimes God’s purpose is fulfilled by the immediate
    removal of a demonic force, but other times His purpose
    is fulfilled by allowing the warfare to continue.

    Christians are not immune from continual spiritual
    warfare, nor does authority guarantee immediate relief.

    Victory is achieved as a result of obeying God.

Bottom line:
    The focus of a Christian’s authority should not be
    to overpower Satan, but to cooperate with God.
    When we cooperate with God, we have the opportunity
    to experience victory in spiritual warfare.