Authority of the Name of Jesus
How do we enforce the victory Jesus has given us over sickness? He has given us His name. The Holy Spirit has come as our helper to teach us and equip us with the knowledge we need of God’s Kingdom and how it operates. Jesus’ blood has been shed to wipe away all sickness and disease. When those stripes were laid on His back, Isaiah 53:4,5 tells us that with the stripes that wounded Him we are healed and we are made whole. In 1 Peter 2:24 in the New Testament we read that with the stripes that wounded Jesus we have been healed and made whole (past tense, already done for us). In addition to the name of Jesus, His blood and the Holy Spirit, we have God’s written Word to guide us in all that we do.
Before Jesus left this earth, He gave His authority to the church to use His name (the power of attorney, in other words) to enforce what He had done for His church, the Body of Christ.
In Matthew 28:18-20 we read that all power is given to Jesus in heaven and in earth. He said: You go, therefore, implying that we can have His power to go and do what must be done. We are to teach people all that He has commanded us. He is with us always, even unto the end of the world.
In Mark 16:15-18 Jesus told us that we are to go into all the world and preach the gospel. Part of preaching the gospel is telling people that Jesus has borne their sicknesses and diseases. He also told us that these signs would follow those who believe. That is you and I. In His name we shall cast out devils; we shall speak with new tongues; if a serpent bites us or we drink any deadly thing accidentally, it will not hurt us (Paul proved that when the snake bit him.); and we shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.
What is it about the name of Jesus that gives us the ability to do all these things listed in Mark 16? A person’s name, given to someone to use, is what we call power of attorney in earthly terms. When someone authorizes you or me to use their name, we are basically doing things in their place. We have been given the same power and authority they have to conduct business for them. That is exactly what Jesus has done for His people. He has given us His name to conduct business in the earth for Him while He is gone. Part of that business is laying hands on the sick. He assures us that when we lay hands on the sick in His name, they shall recover. If that sick person is you personally, lay hands on yourself and expect to recover.
In essence we are taking Jesus’ place here on this earth, doing what He did when He was here with the authority of the name of the Father given to Him as power of attorney. Even though Jesus was God, He laid aside His Godly anointing when He came here and took on the Father’s anointing to do what He had to do, in the Father’s name. Now we do what we have to do in His name, with His anointing or power in us to get the job done.
Don’t choke on being like Jesus. He is the One Who gave us that anointing. He is the One Who authorized the use of His name. That is the plan that God set up from the time He created Adam and Eve. When they messed up the plan, God had a way to reinstate His authority and power in mankind through His Son Jesus. Now we have been given the authority of the name of Almighty God to use to receive healing for sickness and disease.
What a beautiful partnership. We get to see the results of the blessing of healing. The Father gets the joy of seeing people set free from sickness and disease. What a privilege to be given the honor to use the name of Jesus while He is away. God thought of everything.