Authority

Matthew 8: 5-10, When Jesus entered into Capernaum a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, Lord my servant is lying at home paralyzed in terrible agony. He said to Him, am I to come and heal him? Lord, the Centurion replied, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I am a man under Authority having soldiers under my command. I say to this one, go, and he goes, and to another, come, and he comes, And to my servant, do this! And he does it.

Hearing this, Jesus was amazed and said to those following Him, truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with so great a faith.

If we understand exactly what these verses  mean, we have a pretty good idea of what we call the authority of the believer. Authority means the power or right to give orders, make decisions, enforce obedience.

Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus came near and said to them, all authority has been given to me in Heaven and on Earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember I am with you always to the end of the age 

As we see in this verse, the Father gave all authority to Jesus. At that point, Jesus would act in God's place on this Earth. He had the power and backing of God His father.

To help you understand the authority if you aren't sure, I will explain it this way, from my own everyday life. When I was working, I was in charge of quite a few people including supervisors. When I gave instructions concerning things at work, everyone obeyed because they knew the company gave me the authority to make decisions.

If my company was involved in business with another company, I discussed any problems with whoever had the authority at the other company to resolve an issue.

When sales people came to sell something to my company, they talked to me, because I was the decision maker.

The Centurion in our story recognizes that Jesus had the power to grant what he wanted. It would have accomplished nothing if he had talked to any of the Apostles.

Luke 9:1-2, summoning the 12, He gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. Then He sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

When Jesus gave us authority over satan in His name, satan regarded it as an order from Jesus, because satan realized Jesus was backing the authority He gave us. Jesus gave believers authority over many things.

Matthew 10:8, Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with Leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you receive, freely give.

God bless you and your family. 

Praise The Lord!

Remember Jesus loves you.

Prayer of Salvation.

Lord Jesus, please forgive all of my sins, and come into my heart as my personal savior. I want to serve only you. 

Praise The Lord! 

Amen