House of Hope Online

April 12, 2026

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Last week was Easter Sunday and we talked about how Jesus was One King with all authority.  Jesus said in Matthew 28:18 that all authority had been granted to Him in heaven and on earth.  In Ephesians 1, the Apostle Paul points out that when God raised Jesus from the dead, He seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and He put all things in subjection under His feet.  Thus, the Lord is established as supreme ruler over all peoples and all things in heaven and on earth.

The Bible teaches us a great deal about power and authority, and how all authority is granted and delegated in the earth.  Ignorance of, or rebellion against, these Biblical principles can have a significantly negative impact on our lives.  So, let us dig into what the word of God says about authority.

All Authority Comes from God

All authority comes from God, and any authority established on earth is established by God.

Daniel 2:

 20 Daniel answered and said, “Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever, For wisdom and power belong to Him.

 21 “And it is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives wisdom to wise men, And knowledge to men of understanding.

Jesus made this point clear when Pilate was questioning Him before He was crucified.

John 19:

 10 Pilate therefore *said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?”

 11 Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above;“

Jesus was able to submit to authority that He disagreed with because He understood the principle that no authority exists unless God establishes it.  He did not fear Pilate, nor the consequences of his authority.

Paul, in his first letter to Timothy, taught that proper channels of authority are good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior. 

1^st Timothy 2:

 1 ¶ First of all, then, I urge that entreaties [and] prayers, petitions [and] thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,

 2 for kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

 3 This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior,

 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Notice in verse 2 that authority is a necessary ingredient in leading tranquil and quiet lives.  When authority is disrespected and challenged, as it is in the U.S. today, life is anything but tranquil and quiet.

So, authority is established by God and is necessary in our lives, but Biblical authority must be asserted and spoken forth.

Authority Must Be Spoken

When one has authority, he must speak it forth.  In Matthew 8, the centurion seeking healing for his servant understood the principle of authority, and how those in authority must speak with authority.

Matthew 8:

 5 ¶ And when He had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, entreating Him,

 6 and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering great pain.”

 7 And He *said to him, “I will come and heal him.”

 8 But the centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed.

 9 “For I, too, am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does [it].”

 10 Now when Jesus heard [this,] He marveled, and said to those who were following, “Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel.

Jesus saw that the centurion understood power and authority, and He counted it as faith.  Therefore, He healed the servant without even going to visit him.

Matthew 8:

 13 And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; let it be done to you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed that [very] hour.

In Luke 4, Jesus demonstrated that authority must be spoken forth when He encountered a demon-possessed man in the synagogue.

Luke 4:

 33 And there was a man in the synagogue possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice,

 34 “Ha! What do we have to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are–the Holy One of God!”

 35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in [their] midst, he came out of him without doing him any harm.

 36 And amazement came upon them all, and they [began] discussing with one another saying, “What is this message? For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.”

Note in verses 35-36 that Jesus spoke to the unclean spirits and commanded them with authority to come out.  He exercised the power and authority that was delegated to Him by the Father.  And what is significant for us here is that the demon spirits recognized and obeyed Jesus’ authority. 

That’s a word for us when we encounter demonic activity.  If we speak the word of God to the devil, he will succumb to its truth and authority.

Jesus Delegated His Authority

We said last week that all authority had been granted to Jesus in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18).  But it is important to know that Jesus has delegated that authority to us.

Luke 9:

 1 ¶ And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons, and to heal diseases.

 2 And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God, and to perform healing.

Matthew 10:

 1 ¶ And having summoned His twelve disciples, He gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.

He delegated to the twelve disciples His power and authority over all demons, unclean spirits, and over every kind of disease and sickness. 

So, you might be thinking that was only for the twelve apostles.  However, in Luke 10, Jesus appointed another 70 disciples, and He delegated His authority to them as well.

Luke 10:

 17 ¶ And the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.”

 18 And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.

 19 “Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall injure you.

This is power over serpents, representing the devil, scorpions, which are capable of poisonous infection, and over all the power of the enemy.  We should fear no injury, or sickness or disease.

It is one thing to know what Jesus said about our authority; it is quite another to walk in that authority.

Walk in Your Authority

Immediately before ascending into heaven, Jesus instructed His disciples, and us, to walk in the authority which He delegated to us.

Mark 16:

 15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.

 16 “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.

 17 “And these signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues;

 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly [poison,] it shall not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

 19 ¶ So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.

 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed.] [[And they promptly reported all these instructions to Peter and his companions. And after that, Jesus Himself sent out through them from east to west the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.]]

Notice in verse 17 that Jesus promised that these signs will accompany those who have believed, not just His apostles and direct disciples, but all those who have believed.  That includes us.

And so, in giving us the Great Commission to preach the gospel, He also commanded us to:

• Cast out demons in Jesus’ name.
• Speak in new tongues.
• Pick up serpents, referring to Satan.  In the Greek, this means we are to carry, lift, loose, put away, remove, and take away any demon presence.
• Walk in immunity from all deadly poison.  Again, in the original Greek, verse 18 means that deadly poisons will by no means injure us.  That’s a great immune system right there!
• Lay hands on the sick and watch them recover!

In other words, exercise your authority over Satan whenever you encounter his various manifestations.  Whether he comes in the form of temptations, sickness or disease, or the spirit of fear, you have authority over him, authority that has been delegated to you by Jesus. 

But you must speak that authority, just as the centurion said.  Speak to your circumstances and command them to come into obedience to the authority established by the word of God!

Jesus said these signs will accompany all of us who believe.

Let us pray.

Father God, we thank You that You are a God of order and authority.  We praise You that all authority is granted by You and that You delegated that authority to Jesus.  We praise and thank Jesus that He has in turn granted us authority over demons and all the power of the enemy, including all sickness and disease.  Quicken us, Lord, by the Holy Spirit to speak with authority over all these things, over all our life circumstances, and strengthen our faith to lay hands on the sick that they may recover.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.