Spiritual Authority

Please take a minute to read this letter I recently received from a 19-year-old girl.

Dear Mr. Wommack, I realize that you must receive frequent letters regarding your ministry. But even with that knowledge, I feel compelled to write. I’ve just finished listening to your audio series entitled “Spiritual Authority,” and it has changed my life.

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When I was in junior high, I became involved in Wicca, or Paganism. For two- and-a-half years I toyed with the powers of Satan, calling on numerous demons to do my bidding. Not only was I demon possessed, but I was heavily into drugs and alcohol. A few months before I became a Christian, I began to realize that I was no longer in control. In fact, I was the one being controlled. My free will was so entangled with Satan’s deception that I lost the ability to think for myself.
On August 29, 1996, I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior. At the moment I confessed my sin and gave my life to God, He delivered me from the demons, drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, and sexual relationships I was involved in. I thought I was rid of Satan’s power for good.

It wasn’t long before fear started to overcome me. The demons I once fellowshipped with tormented me day and night. I could see them in the corner of my room while I was trying to sleep. When I was outside at night, I could feel their presence. After a while, I began to cope with it, and it became an everyday part of my life. I knew they couldn’t touch me, but I was terrified nonetheless.

Almost four years after my conversion, I was still dealing with these demonic forces. It was only when I listened to your series that I understood the power and authority I have over them. Instead of literally hiding under my blankets at night for fear of the demon in the corner of my room, I smile, say a quick prayer of praise to God, and fall asleep.

Your illustration of how we sometimes picture demons was of particular interest to me. You say that we picture them as towering beasts with claws and such, when in reality they are sniveling, little things. That is so true! The only power they have is the power we give them. What a blessing to finally realize that! My outlook on life has totally changed, thanks to your willingness to be used of God. If it were not for the godly truths of your ministry, I would still be enslaved by my fear.

I am now actively pursuing the calling God placed on my life, a calling to ministry. I am excited and anxious for the future and the things that God will be able to accomplish through my obedience. My Christian walk is stronger than ever before, and my friends constantly ask what’s different about me. They don’t seem to grasp that a nineteen-year-old can be so in love with God that it’s physically evident.
Again I thank you for your willingness to step out in faith and be used of God. God, through you, has touched my life and, I’m sure, the lives of countless others. I’m looking forward to listening to your other teachings.
Tori from PA

Isn’t that awesome! Praise the Lord for the power of the truth and how it sets us free (John 8:32). The only power that Satan has is the power of deception, and the worst thing about deception is that you don’t know you’re being deceived. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be deception. Once the truth is received, deception loses all its power. Therefore, Satan loses all his power when we know the truth.
Many people don’t know the truth about Satan’s defeat. In fact, many Christians are the very instrument the devil is using to foster the deception that he is still a powerful foe.
“Spiritual warfare” is one of the hottest topics in the church today. People are expending great amounts of energy constantly battling the devil in ways contrary to Scripture, but in reality, Satan has already been defeated. We don’t need to defeat him again.

We need to believe that Satan has already been completely destroyed (Heb. 2:14) and simply enforce his defeat. The only power he has is the power to deceive. Our battle should be against the wiles (trickery) of the devil (Eph. 6:11), not the devil himself. Any other approach is actually giving the devil authority and power which he doesn’t have, and he uses that to intimidate us.
The only weapon Satan has is the power we give him when we believe his lies.

Warfare only takes place between two undefeated foes. Once an enemy has been conquered, the war is over. Satan is a defeated foe.
Colossians 2:15 says, “And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” The archaic meaning of the word “spoiled” here is “to plunder; despoil” (American Heritage Dictionary). This means that after Jesus defeated Satan, He stripped him of everything he had, specifically the keys of death and hell (Rev. 1:18). Satan has no power to imprison anyone.

The Greek word that was translated “shew” in this verse (Col 2:15) is “deigmatizo” which means “to exhibit” (Strong). This comes from the root word “deigma” which means “a specimen (as shown)” ( ibid. ). Satan is like one of those bugs we had to capture for biology class. We caught it and then impaled it on a board with a little pin to exhibit it. You need to picture the devil nailed to the cross of Jesus like a bug on display. Hallelujah! Take that, Mr. Devil! Continue Reading