- Choices, Part 11
We are told in I John 3:8 Jesus was sent to “destroy the works of the devil.”Jesus also prayed to the Father concerning His disciples: “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world” (John 17:18). So, it is also our assignment to destroy the works of the devil. Acts 10:38 explains how Jesus did this, which is how we are called to do it: “God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil…” Of course, “doing good” included preaching the gospel of the kingdom and continually teaching.
It is so wonderful to see people’s joy when they are healed or set free by God. To be healed by Him is one of the greatest experiences, not only to be relieved of the affliction but also to know God cares enough to touch us. This can be an even greater healing of the heart. Yet as awesome as this is, to be used by God to heal or deliver someone can be an even greater joy.
I am blessed by God to have been allowed to accomplish all my biggest dreams to be a pilot and to serve Him in ministry. I have traveled the world and met and have known some of the world’s most interesting and successful people. I have a great family that is close. My life has been so good, I really can’t think of anyone, living or dead, with whom I would trade my life. Every decade of my life has been better than the previous, and since the encounter I had with the Lord in 2014, every year has been better than the previous. I am living the greatest adventure and most fulfilling life I could imagine, yet I have not found anything more exciting or fulfilling than to be used by God to help someone in need, whether by healing, a prophetic word, or the myriad of other ways the Lord uses us to touch people.
There are so many wonderful ways the Lord can use us to “do good.” When He does, we experience His love passing through us. Except for some encounters or prophetic experiences with Him, no other human experience compares to being used by God to do His works. This also changes us. As we learn to abide in Him and be used by Him, the fruit of our life increases.
As we see in the Gospels, many healings are deliverances. Jesus gave His disciples authority over demons. This is a basic authority we too are given when He sends us to do His works. Isn’t that why the Lord told His disciples it was better for them that He went away, so the Holy Spirit could come and live and work through them? So, He is now with us in an even more glorious way than when He was here physically. So, walking with Him today should be even more exciting than when He walked the earth as a man. If our Christian walk is not that exciting, it can and should be.
One reason all Christians do not experience this greatest of all adventures is they have been told God only uses the most mature leaders in this way. That is not true. Every true disciple of Christ has this authority. Maturity is not required. However, faith in His authority is. In Luke 10, the Lord sent His disciples to heal the sick, cast out demons, and preach the kingdom. In Luke 11, the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. So, they were given authority to heal, cast out demons, and preach the gospel of His kingdom before they were taught how to pray!
We may wonder how the disciples prayed for people to be healed if they did not yet know how to pray. But if they followed Jesus’ example, they didn’t pray. They simply commanded people to be healed or commanded demons to leave in the Lord’s authority. He does the works when He sends us in His authority to do His work. We don’t have this authority because we have a seminary degree, maturity, wisdom, or righteousness. We have this authority because we are His body, His temple, which He abides in and manifests Himself through. That is why we are called to be His disciples.
The question is not whether we have authority to do these works but whether we are His disciples. The multitudes that followed Jesus believed in Him and His works but did not actually become His disciples. Believing in Him does not make us disciples. Being followers of Him is wonderful and has many benefits, but being His disciple is far better.
To be a disciple of any great teacher in Israel was considered the highest honor and greatest commitment one could have. To be a disciple one had to abandon every other devotion and give themselves completely to their teacher. Most teachers required their disciples to be single since they were not allowed to have anything in their lives that could distract them. How much more ought we be single-minded to become a disciple of God’s Son?
How did Jesus describe our commitment to be His disciples? If we read Jesus’ definition of a disciple, we might think we have never met one. Yet the Great Commission is to make disciples, not just believers. True disciples are rare, and anyone who desires this and is willing to comply with His requirements may begin to live the greatest adventure in this life for the greatest cause.
We will cover more of this in the coming weeks.
© 2022 Rick Joyner. All Rights Reserved.
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