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Psalm 2:6 "Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion."
Psalm 10:16 "The LORD is King for ever and ever…"
Psalm 24:1,7-10 "The earth is the LORD’S and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein". "Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah".
Psalm 29:10 " The LORD sitteth upon the flood yea, the LORD sitteth King forever".
Psalm 47:7 "For God is the King of all the earth…"
Psalm 103:19 "The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.
We have to establish that God is in charge. Nebuchadnezzar, the greatest king of Babylon gave testimony to God’s sovereignty over the nations.
"And at the end of the days, I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and noe can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?"
Man was given dominion in Eden
Genesis 1:27-28 shows us that man was to rule the earth under God and in dependence on God. Hence – the tree of life. It was to be a rule based on obedience to the will of God, and on the rule of the Spirit through man. The other tree of knowledge of good and evil fed man’s soul life, with its intellect and emotions and bred independence from God. The fall of man was a fall into his soul life. Jesus requires us to lose our self (or soul) life, and to deny its rule.
Satan the Usurper
Adam transferred his allegience from God to Satan. Romans 6:16 affirms this. "Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servant to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?"
Man came under the domination of Satan,. He was now in the kingdom of Darkness, and by nature the children of wrath. (See Ephesians 2:2-3 and Colossians 1:13). Satan now exercised authority in the place of man, but God was still King over all! The time came however when the serpent’s head was crushed.
The Free Will of Man
Man did not lose his will to Satan. Both in the Old and New Testaments we see that man has the capacity of choice. "Choose this day whom ye will serve" and "I have set before you life and death". Also, in Romans 6:12-13 we read, "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts therof. Neither yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God".
The Blood Covenant
Through covenant God relates to man. Through blood man has access to God and God could relate to men who were living where Satan ruled. God only related to man on the basis of blood covenant. God sets the conditions. We can accept or reject those conditions, but cannot alter them.
God’s first promise to man after the fall was that the seed of the woman (Christ) would come and crush the serpent’s head. This was the beginning of God’s covenant. The Serpent-Crusher came and spoiled principalities and powers, stripping them of their authority, and taking away their armor and weapons, and destroying the enemies "works" (See 1 John 3:8; Colossians 2:15; Hebrews 2:14; Luke 10:18-19; 11:21-22; John 12:31; 16:11).
We begin prayer and warfare from the standpoint of a totally defeated enemy over whom we have power in the name of Jesus. Satan has no defence against the blood of Jesus, the name of Jesus, the Word of God, the Spirit of God and worship. We are more than conquerors through Christ. We are to reign in life through the power of the Spirit.
In Hebrews 2:6-8 we read about the glory, honor and dominion that was given to man. Man lost this through disobedience. ("But now we see not yet all things put under him"). So Jesus Christ came and took our place in death to bring us to glory as sons; in the process of which he (Jesus), destroyed (katargeo = to reduce to inactivity) him who had the power of death. We are now reconciled to God by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and partakers of the heavenly calling, seated with Christ in heavenly places, ruling with Jesus Christ as co-heirs of grace. It is from this position in the heavenlies that we rule with Christ through prayer. It is from this position that we now have power over all the power of the enemy.
Colossians 1:13 "He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of His dear son. (&v.14) In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins".
The Resurrection of Christ
When the Lord Jesus Christ ascended, after his resurrection, he sat on the throne of his kingdom then. Acts 2:29-36. Hebrews 1:1-3, 8-13 shows us that he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. To the Son God said, "thy throne O God, is for ever and ever, a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou art the same and thy years shall not fail. Sit – until I make thine enemies thy footstool".
Daniel 2:35, 44 speaks of Christ’s kingdom as a stone that smote the image (of earth’s kingdoms), became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. Both stone and mountain are subjects that can be explored further in relation to this truth. "these kings" refer to the time of the Roman Empire. Christ’s kingdom is now, not in the future, it commenced when He sat down on the throne on high. His kingdom is not an earthly kingdom, and never will be. Jesus said that his kingdom would not come with observation. Space does not allow us to explore all this section.
The Kingdom Introduced
Mark 1:15 "Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand".
The Church preached the kingdom of God as a present reality. To them, the kingdom of God was in existence in their time. Jesus had spend 40 days speaking about the kingdom of God. It was not in the far future. It was relevant to those early Christians. (Acts 8:12; 20:25; 28:23,31; Colossians 1:13; 1 Thessalonians 2:12; Hebrews 12:28).
We are kings and priests unto God and we shall reign on the earth. We are to reign in life. We are heirs of God, joint-heirs with Christ now. (Revelation.5:10; Romans 5:17; 8:17) Jesus is called, "the prince of the kings of the earth". He is that now. "But truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord". (Numbers 14:21)
Christ’s commission to us
Matthew 28:19 – go – make disciples – teach them (the nations) to observe all that Jesus commanded. His commands relate to His kingdom and he is the King.
2 Corinthians 5:18-20 - The ministry of reconciliation is given to us and we are ambassadors for Christ. We represent a kingdom – the kingdom of God. We are to plead, "be reconciled".
Romans 1:16 - The gospel is the power of God unto salvation. We need no extras; the gospel is designed by God to change men and nations. We don’t need psychology! Man’s wisdom will negate the power of the gospel. (1 Corinthians 1:17)
1 Timothy 2:1-4 - Prayer and intercession is made for all men, because God will have all men to be saved. He died for all.
Romans 4:13 - The covenant promise made to Abraham, that he would be heir of the world and that all nations would be blessed, is made to us, the seed of Abraham. It is in the redemption of the nations that they find their blessing. It is a blessing of redemption. The way back to God is open through Christ’s finished work of redemption.
2 Corinthians 2:14 tells us, "Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the saviour of his knowledge by us in every place".
Psalm 110:1-3 says, "The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion; rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning; thou hast the dew of thy youth".
These verses tell us that Christ is King now. Zion is the church (Hebrews 12:22). The "rod of thy strength" is our authority as Christians, and we are to rule in the midst of our enemies. We are now living in the day of "thy power". The Holy Spirit is given to us to fulfill the call to take men and nations.
Isaiah 2:2-3 speaks of God’s house being established in the top of the mountains. (kingdoms), and being exalted above the hills, with nations flowing to it. The Word of the Lord is to go forth out of Zion. The invitation of the church to the nations of the world is "come". The same message is at the end of Revelation...
"And the Spirit and the bride say, come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely" (Revelation 22:17).
This is God’s last message to the nations of men, and our commission.
The Law of Prayer
God has established prayer as a means to accomplish his purposes in the earth. Prayer is linked by God to his sovereignty. Intercession puts you into the shoes of the one you pray for. (Relevant to your spiritual area of authority). God uses the exercise of your will for his purposes.
Matthew 6:10 says, "Thy will be done on earth as it is done in heaven". God’s will for man is redemptive, to restore man to fellowship with God and to restore all that man lost in the fall. An examination of the prayers of the apostle Paul, as they occur in his epistles, show us an excellent clue as to how to pray for people.
There is a correlation between man’s praying and God’s action. Prayer is the means by which the will of God is done on earth – the means by which he governs in the affairs of men and nations. We are to change men redemptively, through prayer. By prayer, we rule. God invites us, "ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for your possession…" (Psalm 2:8) Let me rephrase something, by prayer, God rules. Prayer links us to the government of God!
We are not depended on our own resources. An earthly army’s strength is in its men, God’s army finds its strength in its general (Jesus)!
The law of prayer then is a divine arrangement in the moral government of God, designed for the benefit of men and intended as a means for furthering the interests of his cause on earth and carrying out his gracious purposes in redemption and providence.
E.M. Bounds writes:
"Prayer is the condition by which all foes are to be overcome and all inheritance is to be possessed".
"It is true that the mightiest successes that come to God’s cause are created and carried out by prayer".
"The gospel in its success and power depends on our ability to pray".
"The office of prayer is to change the character and conduct of men".
Prayer is a force that is sent out to paralize Satan’s schemes in perditioning men to destruction. It is a force because it is in accordance with the Word of God, and the Will of God. It breaks the back of all opposition to God’s plans for the redemption of the human race. We rule from the heavenlies, that is, the operation of our prayer activities is in the dimension of the spirit.
Prayer strikes a blow against the enemy and binds him up and allows the Spirit of God to move into the chaos of the darkness of men’s lives. Prayer causes the light of the gospel to penetrate the minds of men and set them free.
Prayer is a force traversing the distance between the pray-er and its object. It is carried by the Spirit of God; empowered by the Word and Spirit, and God declared that:
"So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it" Isaiah 55:11.
Angels who are ministering spirits to the church (Hebrews 1:14), are ready to help accomplish the Word of God on our behalf. They excel in strength! (Psalm 103:20-21)
Satan has no power to withstand God-inspired praying. He has no defence against it. God will do in answer to prayer, that which he would not do if prayer had not been offered.
Our apologies to the writer of this study. During our changeover to a new email system, we lost the name and contact details of the writer. If you wrote this study, could you please contact the Doorkeeper.
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Unless otherwise stated, all scriptures quoted in these studies are from the New International Version of the Bible, New York International Bible Society, used by permission. Other versions referred to are: KJV (King James Version), NKJB (New King James Bible), TLB (The Living Bible), Amp (The Amplified Bible) and The Message. All versions used by permission.
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