In Exodus Chapter 3, God shows up to Moses in a burning bush. He waits on Moses to respond by coming close, and then He calls out his name. God has a mission for Moses. This mission is no small task. He is to gather the elders of Israel together and tell them that God has seen their misery. He is now going to take them from their captivity and bring them to a land of milk and honey. There are 2 problems: 1) Pharaoh isn’t going to let them go, and 2) how are they going to defeat all the nations in the promised land. God says that He is going to stretch out His hand and strike Egypt until the king releases them and lets them go. This leaves with how they’re going to go in. Moses is overwhelmed and asks God how are they going to believe him. He has nothing to prove that God is in this and that he has the power to accomplish all that he has said. Then God asks Moses, “What is it that you have in your hand?”
We all know the story of how God using the rod of Moses ultimately brought the children of Israel out from Egypt, and with the same rod, parted the Red Sea and brought them through on dry ground to their deliverance. The story tells us that God can do all things, but it also tells us that God uses us with the authority that He has given us to see deliverance for ourselves and bring others out of Satan’s kingdom and into the promises of God. In this blog, I would like to touch on a few of the areas that we, as Christians, have been given in order for us to exercise the rights and authority of God’s kingdom.
[1] Faith
In Mark 11:22, Jesus says, “Have faith in God. For assuredly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, Be removed and be cast into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.” The greatest element of our authority is our faith. Nothing pleases God without faith. Here we see that faith in all that God is becomes a rod of authority that we possess to accomplish all that God needs us to do. The word is whosoever, not just a select few. This means that the authority of faith belongs to every believer. Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. We have the authority to act on everything God says. This is our parameter to believe and to use that faith that we stand in to speak to the mountains that are standing in our way. But, like all authority, you have to use it or it’s useless to you.
[2] Authority over Satan’s Kingdom
In Mat. 10:7-8 Jesus says, “And as you go, preach saying ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.” Jesus gave us the right and authority to exercise the kingdom of God. In Mat.16:19, Jesus said, “And I give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Moses parted the Red sea with his rod of authority, but we, by the exercising of our faith, bind devils and cast out diseases, and move the kingdom of God forward. In Luke 10:17-19, the seventy that Jesus had sent out came back rejoicing that even the demons were subject to us in His name. Jesus said, “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.” We have no reason to fear. We have greater authority through Jesus Christ than all of hell combined.
[3] Weapons of Our Authority
In John 1:12, John writes, “But as many as have received Him, to them He gave the right (authority) to become the children of God, to those that believe in His name.” When God gives us the authority to move in His kingdom and confront all that opposes us, He must give us weapons. 2 Cor. 10:3-6 Paul writes, “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.” The gifts and anointing of the Holy Spirit are the manifestation of the authority that we, as believers, possess. As we saw in the scripture above, we have the authority to confront everything that stands in the way of the Gospel. For every thought and argument that challenges the word of God, there is a manifestation of the Spirit to confront it. We, as believers, lack no good thing in our battle against the kingdom of darkness. Ephesians 1:3 states that we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. This gives us everything we need to win every battle. So we need to trust and use the gifts that God has given us so we can stand in the authority that allows us to be the overcomers that God intended us to be.
[4] Demonstration
In Acts Chapter 3, we have the story of Peter and John going up to the temple at the hour of prayer. A man is there who has been crippled all his life, and he is now 40 years old. In the natural, there is no hope. But this is where the rod of authority that we possess comes in. Peter, looking at the man, tells him to look at them. Then he says, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do possess, I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.” At that moment, all the authority that we possess came into view. The man was miraculously healed. We find that God has not only given us the authority to exercise His kingdom, but He has given us everything to demonstrate the very said thing. Believers, we have a rod of authority to exercise all the kingdom of God against the kingdom of darkness. It’s time for us to step up and take our place. Let’s move hell out by bringing heaven in.
Blessings,
Pastor Giovannetti
