Who Has True Authority in this World?

Authoritive Prayer

In the Bible can be found a kind of prayer which is the highest and the most spiritual, yet few people notice or offer up such utterance. What is it? It is “authoritative prayer.” We know prayer of praise, prayer of thanksgiving, prayer of asking, and prayer of intercession, but we know very little of prayer of authority. Authoritative prayer is that which occupies a most significant place in the Word. It signifies authority, even the command of authority.

Now if we desire to be men and women of prayer, we must learn this authoritative kind. It is the type of prayer which the Lord refers to in Matthew 18.18—“What things soever ye shall bind on earthshall be bound in heaven; and what things soever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Here is loosing as well as binding prayer. The movement of heaven follows the movement of the earth. Heaven listens to the words on earth and acts on the earth’s command. Whatsoever is bound on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever is loosed on earth shall be loosed in heaven. It is not an asking on earth but a binding on earth; it is not an asking on earth but a loosing on earth. And this is authoritative prayer.

Such an expression can be found in Isaiah 45.11 which runs: “Command ye me.” How do we dare to command God? Is not this too preposterous? too presumptuous? But this is what God himself says. Doubtless we should not in the least allow the flesh to come in here. Nevertheless we are hereby shown that there is a kind of commanding prayer. According to God’s viewpoint we may command Him. Such utterance needs to be learned specifically by all students of prayer. . . .

In our day where does such prayer of command find its origin with the Christian? It has its origin at the ascension of the Lord. Ascension is very much related to the Christian life. What is the relationship? Ascension gives us victory. Just as the death of Christ solves our old creation in Adam, and resurrection leads us into the new creation, so ascension gives us a new position in the face of Satan. This is not a new position before God, for such position is obtained by the resurrection of the Lord. Nonetheless, our new position before Satan is secured through the ascension of Christ.

Note these words from Ephesians: “And made him [Christ] to sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and he [Jesus] put all things in subjection under his feet” (1.20-22a). When Christ ascends to heaven He [Jesus] opens a way to heaven, so that henceforth His church may also ascend from earth to heaven. We know our spiritual foe dwells in the air; but today Christ is already ascended to heaven. A new way is therefore opened up from earth to heaven. This way was formerly blocked by Satan, but now Christ has opened it up. Christ is now far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come. This is the current position of Christ. In other words, God has caused Satan and all his subordinates to be subject to Christ; yea, He has put all things in subjection under His feet.

The significance of ascension is quite different from that of death and resurrection. While the latter is wholly for the sake of redemption, the former is for warfare—namely, to execute what His death and resurrection have accomplished. Ascension makes manifest a new position. Thank God, for we are told that He has “raised us up with him, and made us to sit with him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2.6). . . .

What is authoritative prayer?

Simply explained, it is the type of prayer mentioned in Mark 11. In order to see the truth clearly let us read verses 23 and 24 carefully. Verse 24 begins with “therefore”—a connective term. So that the words in verse 24 are joined to those in verse 23. Since verse 24 speaks about prayer, verse 23 must also refer to prayer. What appears strange here is that in verse 23 it does not seem like an ordinary prayer. It does not say to God: “O God, please take up this mountain and cast it into the sea.” What instead does it actually say? It reads there: “Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou taken up and cast into the sea.”

What would the type of prayer be which is so often formed in our mind? We think in praying to God that it should always be: “O God, will You please take up this mountain and cast it into the sea?” But the Lord is talking about something quite different. He does not exhort us to speak to God, He instructs us to speak to the mountain. Not a speaking to God, but a speaking directly to the mountain—“Be thou taken up and cast into the sea.” Lest we might not consider this as prayer, the Lord immediately explains in verse 24 that this is indeed prayer. Here is a word which is not directed to God, and yet it too is prayer. To speak to the mountain and command it to be cast into the sea is unquestionably a prayer. And this is authoritative in nature. For authoritative prayer is not asking God to do something but using God’s authority to deal directly with problems, to get rid of all that needs to be eliminated. Such prayer needs to be learned by each and every overcomer. All who overcome must learn to speak to the mountain. . . .

The church is able to control hell by using authoritative prayer. Since Christ is far above all and the Head of the church, the church is well able to control evil spirits and all who belong to Satan. How could she ever exist on earth if she were not given the authority to control evil spirits—if the Lord has not given such authority to her? She lives because she has the authority over all Satanic forces. Those who are spiritual know we may use authoritative prayer against evil spirits. We may cast out demons in the name of the Lord; we may contain the secret activities of the evil spirits by prayer. . . .

Finally, a serious thing is in order here; which is, that we must ourselves be subject to the authority of God. Except we are in subjection to God’s authority we cannot exercise authoritative prayer. We should be subject not only to God’s authority positionally but also in our daily life and practices; otherwise we will not have authoritative prayer.

Commanding the Mountain

God’s overcomers must learn how to use the authority of Christ and pray authoritative prayer. Prayer in the Scriptures is not only an asking but even more so an expression of authority. Command with authority—such is prayer.

Hence God’s overcomers must on the one hand be faithful in denying their own selves, the world, and Satan; but on the other hand know how to exercise the authority of Christ. We should (1) let God defeat us with the cross so that we may be defeated before God, and (2) defeat Satan by using the authority of Christ so that we may win the victory over Satan. Authoritative prayer is not petitioning, it is commanding; for there are two kinds of prayer: not only the prayer of petition but also the prayer of command: “Command ye me” says Isaiah 45.11. We may command God to do things, and such is commanding prayer.

Commanding prayer commences at the ascension of Christ. The death and resurrection of Christ, as we have seen, resolves God’s four cardinal issues—so that His death concludes all that is in Adam, His resurrection gives us new ground, and His ascension makes us sit in the heavenly places far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named: not only in this world but also in that which is to come. Ephesians 1 is a record of the ascension of Christ who ascended far above all rule and authority. Ephesians 2 tells of our sitting with Christ in the heavenly places. As Christ is far above all rule and authority, so we also are above all rule and authority.

Ephesians 1 tells us that the position of Christ is in the heavenly places. Chapter 2 tells us that our place in Christ is sitting with Him in the heavenly places. Chapter 6 tells us what we do in the heavenly places, even sitting there and praying—that is to say, exercising the authority of Christ and giving out commanding prayers. Ordinary prayer is a praying from earth to heaven. Commanding prayer is a praying from heaven to earth. The prayer in Matthew 6 is petitionary prayer, and hence is upward in direction. The prayer in Ephesians 6 is commanding prayer, and therefore it is downward. Thus we sit in the heavenly places and pour forth commanding prayer. “Amen” in Hebrew means “So be it” or “So it is”—this is command. At the beginning of any warfare Satan tries to unseat us from our heavenly position, which is one of victory. Warfare is a battle for position. Hence victory lies in occupying the right place. Being in Christ and sitting in the heavenly places alone gives authoritative prayer.

The “therefore” in Mark 11.24 shows us that verse 23 also deals with the subject of prayer. Yet nowhere in verse 23 are we told to pray to God. Instead it simply says, “Say unto this mountain”—that is, it is a commanding the mountain. A not speaking to God is also prayer—authoritative prayer. It is not asking God to deal with the mountain, the latter of which represents things that hinder. Only with perfect faith may one speak to the mountain. Now perfect faith comes out of perfect knowledge of God’s will. And thus we command what God has already commanded; we decide on that which God has already decided. Due to the fact of fully knowing God’s will, such faith as this is possible.