NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–Many Christians are struggling in their battle with the world, the flesh and the devil. Yet God has saved them, ordained them and programmed them for victory because God’s children were born to win, Adrian Rogers says in his new book, “The Incredible Power of Kingdom Authority: Getting an Upper Hand on the Underworld.”
Rogers, pastor of the 27,000-member Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova, Tenn., near Memphis, warns readers that Satan does not want them to read his book because Satan and his minions work to keep God’s children from the inheritance that is theirs.
The author acknowledges that Satan even worked against him in writing the book, throwing interruptions, disruptions, trivialities and emergencies at him until at last he dropped to his knees and claimed the very victory he was writing about — Kingdom Authority.
Rogers says he first learned of the principles in the book from “Spiritual Authority,” a book by Watchman Nee, a Chinese Christian who was imprisoned for his faith for 20 years until his death in 1972.
The book was released in September by Broadman & Holman Publishers, the trade book division of LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention.
When Rogers challenges readers to get an upper hand on the underworld, he identifies a cruel world system that wars against Christians’ welfare, happiness and joy. He says that Satan’s hatred against mankind is so great because he failed to overthrow the King and knows he cannot defeat Jesus. Just as crime bosses in the Mafia try to coerce enemies by threatening their children, Rogers says, Satan tries to cripple those whom God loves.
“Be warned! From Satan’s viewpoint you are a pawn in the game of cosmic chess. Plans have already been made in Satan’s underworld to sabotage you, your loved ones and your family,” Rogers writes. “How does he plan to gain the upper hand over you? He uses two chief weapons — the world and the flesh. Together, with his orchestration, they make up a trinity of evil — the world, the flesh and the devil. They are interactive forces in a three-pronged attack.”
He goes on to explain that God has already claimed the eternal victory over Satan through Jesus Christ’s redemptive work on the cross. The same power and authority that God gave Jesus is conferred on all of his children, Rogers says, to enable them to get an upper hand on the underworld — to not be immune from struggle but to gain victory through struggle.
Rogers identifies eight guidelines for Christians’ relationship to Kingdom Authority:
— We must not refuse Kingdom Authority. Though the authority is inherently delegated to God’s children through the cross, they must choose to exercise it in order for the authority to be most effective.
— We must not confuse Kingdom Authority. God’s children must remember that they should not use the authority they’ve been given to command or coerce God or Satan by using such phrases as “in the name of Jesus” or “I claim the blood” or “I command it to be done.” This, Rogers explains, may be akin to magic or superstition rather than spiritual authority. There is mighty power in the name of Jesus and in his blood, but they must not be used like a sorcerer trying to cast a spell, he says.
— We must not misuse Kingdom Authority. “We are stewards. We must use our authority for the purpose it has been entrusted to us,” not for selfish purposes, Rogers says.
— We must not abuse Kingdom Authority. Rogers explains that God’s children abuse Kingdom Authority when they attempt to command God to do their will. Many times Christians make their own plans and then expect God to ratify and rubber-stamp them, he says. Also, “we abuse Kingdom Authority when we order the world to believe us because of our delegated authority, then fail to serve in love.”
— We must use Kingdom Authority. Jesus has given God’s children a mandate for world evangelization in the Great Commission of Matthew 28:18-20. The purpose of the power is to serve a needy world.
— We have his unlimited power. The power that Jesus gave in the Great Commission extends over the angels and the demons, over the earth and over the heavenlies. His is a worldwide domain, Rogers says, and because of that, there is no person he cannot use.
— We have his unchanging program. Rogers reminds God’s children that each one is here to make disciples of all nations. Anything less is unworthy of our Lord, he says. Those who have been given authority are to give first-class effort to first-class causes.
— We have his unfailing promise. That promise is that his presence is with us, his authority is behind us and his commission is before us, Rogers says.
“There is no greater desire that I have for my life, the lives of my family members and for you, dear reader, than that you might discover the truth and experience the vitality of Kingdom Authority,” Rogers writes.
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(BP) photo posted in the BP Photo Library at http://www.bpnews.net. Photo title: ADRIAN ROGERS’ BOOK.
