In Pentecostal circles we sometimes get a little carried away with “power encounters”. If you’re unfamiliar with the term it means an encounter with a devil in which a Christian overcomes by the superior power of Christ inside of him (short definition that doesn’t really cover the whole meaning but it’s all I have space for now). Power encounters are good. Jesus had power encounters and brought great liberation to many souls through them. We need more power encounters throughout the church as a whole. Too many of our people are left sitting in their pews molested by spiritual forces of wickedness in high places because pastors are afraid to let any weird manifestations start in the church. Just a quick note here, Jesus had lots of weird things happen in his ministry. Isn’t he our model?
While I am of the mind that we should have more power encounters I am also with Neale Anderson (The Bondage Breaker Victory Over the Darkness). We need truth encounters even more. Now a truth encounter is simply an episode where a devil who has a grip on a person’s life is faced down by a Christian who fights not with power but with the truth of Scripture. The devil is defeated because the lies he has used to control his subject are broken by the truth of God’s words.
Today we are going to have a truth encounter!
There is a devil ruling in a high place in America who has gotten control over large portions of the church with the use of lies. Today we are going to destroy one of those lies and so liberate some from that devil’s control.
The lie: CHRISTIANS ARE BASICALLY WEAK INEFFECTIVE SINNERS JUST WAITING FOR FORGIVENESS AND HEAVEN.
Brothers and sisters, nothing could be further from the truth! Christians have immense power available to them on this earth that non-Christians do not have. Listen to the Scripture:
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or are hungry or cold or in danger or threatened with death? (Even the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.” [fn])No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Death can’t, and life can’t. The angels can’t, and the demons can’t. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can’t keep God’s love away. Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35-39 NLT
I love the fact that as Christian we are told “overwhelming victory is ours”, no matter what we face. Look at the list Paul gives in verse 35. He says even when we face these things we still come out as victors!
Listen to the song that the twenty-four elders in Heaven sing about Jesus and about those who follow Him.
“And they sang a new song with these words: “You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seals and open it. For you were killed, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. And you have caused them to become God’s Kingdom and his priests. And they will reign [fn] on the earth.” Rev. 5:9,10 NLT
Look at that last verse, Christian. You weren’t made to be a weakling. You were made to rule on the earth. Christ has given you great authority and when you pray things are supposed to happen on the Earth!
Did you realize you even have power to throw the devil into such confusion that he cannot speak?
“You have taught children and nursing infants to give you praise. They silence your enemies who were seeking revenge.” Psalms 8:1
Now that’s a powerful truth. Even little kids who praise God with abandon can shock Satan into silence. Kind of gives you a new perspective on what we are doing when we sing on Sunday mornings doesn’t it?
Even sin and addiction don’t have power over the Christian.
“Our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin….So you should consider yourselves dead to sin and able to live for the glory of God through Christ Jesus. Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to its lustful desires.” Romans 6:6,11,12 NLT
The NIV says do not let sin reign in your “mortal” bodies. Christian we aren’t supposed to wait for Heaven to be free of sin. We are able to exercise power over it here in this world. That’s how powerful we are. Drug addiction no longer has power over us. Alcoholism no longer has power over us. Pornography no longer has power over us. Hatred no longer has power over us.
The truth is we are so powerful because of the God who dwells inside of us. All across the face of this planet there are people who are possessed by demons. They are exercising great supernatural power by virtue of their spirit possession. They are the witches, and mediums, shamans, and witch doctors that we read and hear so much about. Just as they are demon possessed every Christian is God-possessed according to the Scripture.
“And now you also have heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us everything he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. This is just one more reason for us to praise our glorious God.” Eph 1:13,14 NLT
Christian you actually have a Spirit living inside you. He is the Holy Spirit. The One who was with God the Father in the beginning. (Ge 1:1,2). In age He is far older than any other spirit for He was before time. In wisdom He is greater than any other spirit because he invented wisdom! In power He is mightier than any other spirit because He is the power source. Even Satan has only managed to temporarily steal from the Holy Spirit’s supply ( don’t ask me how that works it drives me a little loopy).
We are indeed mighty and even mightier than this!
Christian you are not weak and there is even greater power available to you! I urge you, to no longer believe the lie of the enemy which has told you that you are less than…
It is time we became more!
Reinventing the We'll 