Luke 10:19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Luke 10:20 Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.
Read it carefully. Jesus emphasized the last line. He said, “Rejoice, because your names are written in Heaven.” We must not dilute the primary. The last line is the premier of all primaries! Heaven is the goal. This world is not my home. There is a mansion prepared for me, just over in the glory land.
Now, after I catch my breath from the awesome thought – “O Lord, let it be that my name is written in Heaven!” – there is gifting from Jesus to the saints. It is power to tread on all the power of the enmeshed. We have authority through the name of Jesus to overcome the demonic spirit world. Jesus was leading His disciples toward the ultimate end, but He included an authority in the spirit world. True Apostolic authority is exercised through the power of the Holy Ghost. It begins with the power to be a witness and the power to live a new life. It also includes power to overcome the enemy which would disrupt and destroy the Faith of the Believer.
These subjects are often lofty thoughts. They seem spiritualistic in some sense; perhaps from some other time. However, if you will pause for a moment, you will know that the world is changing quickly. America itself is in a cultural crisis. Christianity is being redefined in a way that distorts the holy scripture. We are being ushered into the age of the antichrist as “serpents and scorpions” advance against the holy things of God. These are part and parcel of what we know as the “spirit of the age.” They are powerful, corrupt, and altogether evil. The wickedness of this world will grow worse and worse. It has been prophesied in the Bible. However, we have been given power to tread. While our priority is Heaven, Jesus has allotted to the Church a distinct power to overcome the spirits which are poised against it.
This is a spiritual battle. It demands unity in the church; Submission to spiritual authority; Intercessory prayer and sacrificial steps. This is no time to live half-hearted or on the peripheral. This is the time to be consumed with the work of the Kingdom, the church, and with worship.
Pastor Jeffrey Harpole