Believers’ authority is a vital New Testament subject and present reality of believers in Christ. It is a subject that is closely tied to the gospel. The good news of Jesus is incomplete without the subject of believers’ authority. So, the subject of this article is an extremely important one to the life in Christ.

The believers’ calling through Christ is to a life of victory. 1 John 5:4 says, 

“For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.” 

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:57:

“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

God didn’t call us to a life of weakness and defeat. All of us in Christ are given the legal rights to walk in victory. Sadly, many don’t know this vital truth of believers’ authority, or how to use it for victorious living. As a result, they are trapped in fear, weakness, and defeat.

In this article, we want to study the rich truth of believers’ authority in Christ, and 7 essential truths you should know about it.

Believers’ Authority: What It Really Means

The subject of believers’ authority is not motivational rubbish or an abstract concept that has no real life effects. It is a vital, present reality of all who believe in Jesus. It is a vital truth that radically transforms a person from being fearful, weak, and dominated to being bold, strong, and dominating. The gospel radically transforms those who receive it. And, the believers’ authority is a crucial aspect of the gospel.

The Bible teaches that through Christ, believers have authority over sin, demons, and all of their works. And, understanding this truth is not optional—it is essential for victorious Christian living.

Understanding What Authority Is

A dear friend once shared a story from his childhood, which aptly captured what authority is. He wrote that as a child, he marveled at how traffic officers stopped vehicles with just their hands raised. He wrote of a particular officer who was smallish. But when he raised his hand, big vehicles would stop.

But when he became older, he understood that it wasn’t the officers that the drivers were obeying, but the authority behind them. They had no physical power to stop vehicles, but they have delegated authority from the government. They are representing the government in that capacity. Therefore, vehicles of all sizes stop every time they raise their hands. 

This story accurately captured authority. Authority is the legal rights conferred on someone to do a thing. Authority is bigger than power. Power is the ability to do a thing, but authority is the legal rights, or authorization to do the thing. Power might be present do something, but unless authorization is granted, doing it is illegal. You can’t just stand in the middle of the road to control vehicles because you have long hands. Only authorization by the government makes doing that legal and effective. 

Believers’ Authority: A Legal Rights

There are two very crucial characteristics of the believers’ authority. First and foremost, believers’ authority is the legal rights which God, b Christ, confers on everyone who believes in Jesus for a victorious life. The Bible is replete with this truth. 

Luke 10:19:

“Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” 

Believers’ authority is the legal rights—authorization from heaven’s government to represent it on earth. For believers’ authority to be legitimate, it must be conferred legally. 

In my country—Nigeria, people love to dress up for roles they have no legal rights for. Often, we see some civilians in military uniforms, moving about like military officers. Being dressed in military uniform attracts respect here. But it is illegal. They have no authorization to wear such, because they don’t belong to any of the military forces. Therefore, when the real military guys apprehend them, they beat and humiliate them. 

Now, we have an apt example of trying to use spiritual authority illegally in the Bible. In Acts 19:11ff, some men wanted to use the name of Jesus to cast a demon out. They saw Paul do it. Thus, they thought it is for anybody. But while Paul had the legal rights to use the authority in Christ, they had no legal rights to. Because they did not belong to Christ. The demon knew it. It said to them in verses 15, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?”

Believers’ authority is only legitimate to those who belong to Christ, the Source of the authority. I will show you shortly that believers’ authority is also a delegated authority. But, first, it is the legal rights conferred on believers to empower us to reign in life. I wrote an article Believer’ Kingship: 7 Essential Keys To Reigning in Life. The purpose of our authority in Christ is to enable us to reign over demons and all their powers and works.

Mark 16:17-18:

“And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues…”

All believer have the legal rights to use the authority in Christ. When you declare Jesus’ name over situations in your life and around you, you are acting legally. Because you belong to Christ. Therefore, you will have what you say—not minding whether your English is bad, or you are not rich. Spiritual operations are never based on any natural factor. God shows no favoritism (Acts 10:34).

Whether you are ugly, beautiful, poor, or rich, as long as the legal base—relationship with Christ—is covered, the authority will work wherever and whenever. 

Believers’ Authority: A Delegated Authority 

The second character of believers’ authority is that it is a delegated authority. A delegated authority is the authorization or permission  to wield another’s authority. Believers’ authority is Jesus’s authority transferred to us to exercise dominion as His representatives on the earth. “Our authority” did not come from us. 2 Corinthians 3:5 says,

“Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency  is from God.”

Now, delegated authority has a way it works. For the beneficiary to continue to wield the authority, and for it to be effective—producing desired effects, he must continue to be subject to the grantor. Think of a President appointing someone an ambassador to represent his government in another country. That person will have huge powers and influence to speak about issues of interest to his country in his assigned country. He and his words will be respected. But, it is not because of him, but his President who appointed him. 

Likewise, the legality of believers’ authority is tied to God delegating His authority to us, to represent Him in the world. But to continue to use the authority, and for it to continue to be effective—able to heal sicknesses, cast out demons, etc., we must continually be subject to God. If an ambassador gets heady because of the power he holds, and rebels against his President, he will be recalled and his powers will be stripped.

The believers’ authority is God’s gift bestowed on us by grace. Thus, when we confront demons, or a sickness, in Jesus’ name, we are acting legally, as God’s delegates. We are falling upon the authority of Christ. We don’t weigh ourselves against demons, or ask whether or not we stand a chance against them. Because, by Christ, they are helpless before us. They know Jesus, and know us (Acts 19:15).

But for our authority to continue to be effective, we must continue to be in subjection to Christ. I don’t want you confused. I am dealing with two issues here—the legality of our authority, and the effectiveness of our authority.

By belonging to Christ, through faith, the legality of our authority is settled. So, when we use the name of Jesus in any situation, we are acting legally. But whether or not our declaring Jesus’ name will be able to heal the sick, or cast out demons, at any point is another issue—which depends on our subjection to Jesus’ Lordship.

We can’t function effectively in spiritual authority without being subject to the Lordship of Christ. God’s kingdom operates a solid line of authority (1 Corinthians 11:3). When we remove ourselves from the structure of authority, it becomes illegal to exercise authority. Darkness will be subject to us only to the degree that we ourselves are subject to God. James 4:7 says:

“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”

Demons are not fools. They know when we are living in obedience to God. And, they know not to touch us. Because they have no legal grounds to touch us. But they know when we are in disobedience to God. And, they love it. Because it gives them the legal ground to afflict us. And, we won’t be able to stop the affliction until we have realigned ourselves with God. You see, believers’ authority is both a privilege and a responsibility. 

7 Essential Truths That Every Christian Must Know About Believers’ Authority

1. Believers’ Authority Stands On Jesus’s Finished Work

Many think believers’ authority comes by prayer and fasting. They are wrong. Don’t get me wrong—prayer and fasting have their roles in the operations of spiritual authority—we’ll get to it shortly—but they are not the source of spiritual authority. 

Believers’ authority wholly stands on Jesus’s finished work, not our own works. It is God’s gift—not a reward for what we do. Through His obedient suffering, Jesus obtained all authority in heaven and on earth from the Father. Then, as His ambassadors, who will carry His message to the world, He gave us His authority (Philippians 2:9–11; Matthew 28:18-19; Luke 10:19). If you are in Christ, you already have this authority.

2. Believers’ Authority Works Through Submission to God

The purpose of believers’ authority is not to make us independent of God. No! No believer should ever strive to be independent of God. The desire to be independent of God, was the first sin in history, which caused Adam, and all of humans in him, to lose the dominion which God gave us in the beginning. Jesus said in John 15:4–5:

“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

I have said that believers’ authority is delegated. And, delegated authority only functions by the beneficiary being loyal to the grantor. James 4:7 says, “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” It is important to note that the part which we all love—putting the devil to flight, is hinged on the first— submitting ourselves to God.

3. Believers’ Authority Is Rooted in Jesus’ Name

Praying in Jesus’ name is not a religious tradition; it is borne out of the Bible’s revelation that believers’ authority is rooted in the name of Jesus. The risen Christ says in Mark 16:17:

“And these signs will follow those who believe: IN MY NAME they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues.” [Emphasis added]

The name of Jesus is the ultimate power behind believers’ authority. The devil and all his forces recognize and submits to the name (Philippians 2:10). The demon in Acts 19:15 said to the sons of Scevas who tried to cast it out in Jesus’ name, “Jesus I know”. Therefore, believers should take pride in Jesus’s name, and use it unapologetically in prayer and confessions of faith. 

The name of Jesus is our guarantee of access to the Father and to answered prayers.

4. Believers’ Authority Works Through Faith

Faith is a necessary tool for exercising spiritual authority. Oh, dear friend, it is! 1 John 5:4 says, “And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”

You won’t feel like you have authority and power. You won’t feel unnecessarily heavy—telling you that you carry the authority and power of the Holy Spirit. You just have to believe—take God’s word for it that you have it. And, then exercise the authority by acting and speaking through faith over  the situations in and around your life where you desire to see change.

When you speak over situations, you won’t feel like you have spoken some powerful words. You just have to trust the name of Jesus in which you have spoken that it is powerful to make your words produce the intended results. Authority must be exercised by faith, not feelings. Doubt weakens its effectiveness.

5. Believers’ Authority Functions Through  Knowledge of the Word

Knowledge—the kind that the word of God supplies—is critical to operating believers’ authority. Hosea 4:6 says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” The believer who is devoid of the knowledge of the word of God will suffer many things that he ought not to suffer— things that Christ has put under subjection to us.

Psalm 82:6:

6 I said, “You are gods, and all of you are children of the Most High. 7 But you shall die like men, And fall like one of the princes.”

I always say that there are two kinds of knowledge that are essential for all believers to lay hold on.

1. The knowledge of who God is (His character, e.g. faithfulness), what God is able to do (His ability), and what God has said (His words).

       2. The knowledge of who we (believers) are in God through Jesus Christ—our placement, rights, privileges, inheritance, etc. 

As we read the Bible, these pictures are imprinted to our minds, and they produce and strengthen our confidence in exercising our authority.

6. Believers’ Authority Functions Through Prayer

Prayer plays a critical role in spiritual exploits through the use of believers’ authority. James 5:16 says, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”

Jesus—our model, wielded so much authority over the devil and his works. But I studied and saw that all of His great works revolved around prayer—either He was coming from prayer before He did them or He retreated to pray after He did them.

Prayer sharpens believers’ authority. Through prayer, our spiritual senses get more sharpened, so that we are able to discern the works of satan more accurately and deal with it with the authority in Christ.

And, through prayer, we enforce heavenly authority on earth. When we pray, we enforce heaven’s authority on our situation or that of those we are praying for.

7. Believers’ Authority Is To Be Used Daily

Believers’ authority is not what we use occasionally, but what we should exercise daily. There will always be works of the devil to put a stop to, whether in our own lives, or the lives of other people around us. There will always be broken and bound people to be freed from the shackles of satan. Therefore, daily, we who God has endued with His authority and power must use God’s grace on us to help people and to enforce the will of God around us. 

In conclusion, believers’ authority is not just a theory but a present reality of everyone who has put faith in Jesus. It is God’s provision to us, to empower us for a victorious life. This article reminds us that every Christian has the right and responsibility to walk in victory.

When you understand and apply the 7 essential truths discussed here, you will be able to:

• Live above fear and defeat.
• Walk in spiritual dominion, which result to physical victory.
• Enforce heaven’s will around you daily.
• Live a life of boldness, faith, and power

Believers’ authority is not about struggling—it is about standing in the finished work of Christ and enforcing the victory He already won. Take your stand today. Speak God’s Word, resist the enemy, and live as the overcomer God has called you to be.

Don’t keep this rich article to yourself. Countless millions also need to understand these essential truths about believers’ authority. So, please help me to share and spread this message. You can also live a comment in the comments section, to share your thoughts, or to let me know if there is an area where you want me to agree with you in prayer. Also, subscribe to this blog so that you can stay updated when fresh articles drop.

I love you with the love of Christ!

Authoritative Sources on Believers’ Authority

👉 Kenneth E. Hagin – The Believer’s Authority (PDF)
👉 Rhema Ministries (Kenneth Hagin’s official site)
👉 Andrew Wommack Ministries – “The Believer’s Authority” Teaching
👉 Christian & Missionary Alliance – “The Believer’s Authority”
👉 In Truth She Delights – “The Authority of the Believer in Light of Scripture”