Credentials In The Spirit World

The earthly realm is the chessboard for spiritual warfare. The good news is that the Kingdom of Heaven is growing, and the numbers of the demonic are staying the same. But, not unlike children, demons will do what they can get by with doing. Stewardship of the Kingdom and its progress has been granted to the Church. We expand Kingdom territory by the authority granted to us, not by our own might or power.

Here is a problem. Many Christians do not understand authority. They cannot - or will not - place themselves under the authority of a local church. They've never yielded to discipleship - or a spiritual mentor - or the guidance of a pastor. But this aside, they hope the Holy Spirit will grant them victory in the spirit realm.

The results can be catastrophic, as it very nearly was for the seven sons of Sceva. Acts 19 records the story of these men who were operating out of association, but not operating out of relationship. Had these sons subjected themselves to the authority of the Holy Spirit, they would have had His authority to cast the demons out. It's really a question of spiritual credentials. If someone knocks on my door and says, "You need to come with me by order of the President of the United States.", then I'm going to want to see credentials. If it's my next door neighbor, Ed, with a crayon colored ID tag, I'll probably go back to my knitting. However, if I know Ed works for the President, I'd go.

Demons know your credentials.

God is a god of order. He ordains the order, we follow it. If we do not, it is impossible to be spiritually victorious. IF we are in right-standing with the God and abiding in Him, then we are under His authority, which means we are also accountable to others in our spiritual walk. If our pride prevents us from doing this, it's best to stick with Sunday school hand puppets and stay away from the demonic.