“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Phillipi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”
”But what about you?” He asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven.” Matthew 16:13-17 (NIV)
Like the disciples, there comes a time in our lives when Jesus asks us, “What about you? Who do you say I am?” (as found in Matthew 16:15 NIV). When our hearts were pierced by the realization that Jesus is God’s Son and our Redeemer, we gave our lives to Him by faith. He continues to grow that knowledge in us as He leads us revelation by revelation. In water baptism, we learn how we are reborn as a new creature in our faith in Christ’s death and resurrection. We begin to understand that Jesus Christ has eternal authority, and, since He is in us, we now carry that authority as His representatives in this world.
It seems to defy logic, but remember that God’s ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8 NIV). Like hand in glove, we are to live wearing Jesus’ righteousness and carrying His authority, to fulfill His mission to “Go into all the world” to bring redemption through salvation and Kingdom advancement through discipleship. Think about that for a moment. In this exchange at the cross, Jesus died paying for the world’s sins so that we could inherit His unblemished righteousness and carry the same authority that raised Jesus from the dead and seated Him on the throne of authority in Heaven.
Our authority is a very real treasure that we generally talk ourselves out of believing. Unfortunately, we are still hanging on to our old sinful nature. As sinners, we had no right to such a precious gift. However, when we became saints in Christ, that treasure became our tool for completing Jesus’ mission of the Kingdom coming forth and God’s will being done on earth (Matthew 6:9-10 NIV). Our royal identity in Christ makes us Kingdom Ambassadors. Faith and walking in our identity pleases God, equips the Christian for good works, and accomplishes Jesus’ Great Commission (See Matthew 28:16-20 NIV). Jesus even told His disciples in Luke 17:6 (NIV): “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.’”
Like muscles, our authority in Christ must be exercised to become effective. It’s easy to sit back and pray, “Lord, would you do this or that?” and assume our authority means that He joins us when we note a situation that needs Heavenly input. This is a reversal in prayer partnership in the Heavenly Kingdom. Instead, the Lord makes us aware of a spiritual need and prompts us to pray in accordance with His ways by inviting His Lordship into the need. We pray scripture and declare the necessary change in Jesus’ name. Since we are exercising authority in Jesus, a prayer of request might go like this: “Lord, You have revealed Yourself as Jehovah Jireh, our Provider, as in Exodus 22. We bind lack in Jesus’ name and invite Your blessing of provision now to meet this need, too. We give thanks and praise You, Jesus!” Note that in John 14:13-14 (NIV) Jesus assures His disciples, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”
Another prayer we often need is to silence and remove the enemy, who is sending fiery thoughts into our minds. We use our authority to say, “By the power and the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, I command, I don’t suggest,As a child of God, I command any and all evil to be silenced and leave my presence in Jesus’ name, and now go to the feet of Jesus for Him to tell you where to go. My mind is a quiet place for just Jesus and me.”
In both types of prayers, you proclaim your right to invite Jesus to move in His power. He, alone, holds all power, but you have inherited His authority backed by His power. To walk in the power of a Kingdom Ambassador aligned with Jesus, recognize Jesus’ position and yours achieved by the work of the New Covenant, at the cross. Remember that it is not our will, but His, that we are to pray for and ask Him for guidance on which scriptures or His promises to stand on. When unsure, you ask Him what His will is in the situation.
So, power up your prayer life this year by walking in the authority the Lord has given you to access His power and partner with Him in bringing Heaven to earth!
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