In Matthew 4:18-25, we discover that the Lord did n0o miracles until he had settled with Satan. You must have victory over Satan before you can move on to a miraculous ministry. You have to conquer Satan. In Matthew 4:11 , Jesus Christ dealt with Satan in the wilderness and get victory over him.
In other words, before he began his miraculous ministry, Jesus had gotten victory over Satan. The following are steps that Jesus took to his miraculous ministry.
#1 Baptism in water
This represents our own conversion and baptism in water. Jesus needed not to repent because he never sinned.
#2 Holy Spirit Baptism
As He was coming out of the water after being baptized in water, heaven opened and the Holy Spirit came upon him and he was baptized in the Holy Spirit. This represents our baptism in the Holy Spirit. It is the same spirit that baptised Jesus Christ that baptised us.
#3 He fasted and had victory over Satan
The Holy Spirit directed Him to the wilderness after fasting for 40 days and 40 nights to be tempted by Satan. This implies that the disciple must have his flesh crucified .
Also, if there is a need for deliverance , the disciple must undergo deliverance. The disciple also must be sanctified in order to live a life of holiness. After these three steps, miracles can then begin to follow your ministry.
All the miracles Jesus performed were related to the temptations. He overcame in the wilderness. There are three major temptations the devil brought before Him.
For example:
In Matthew 4:3-4, the devil had told the Lord to satisfy his fleshly desire by turning stones to become bread. and the Lord declined . In Matthew 14:13-21, the same Jesus who refused to turn stones to bread was able to multiply 5 loaves and 2 fishes to feed multitudes.
2. In Matthew 4:5-7 , the devil asked the Lord to defy the law of nature by jumping down from the pinnacle of the temple. This particular law of nature was the law of gravity. Our Lord Jesus refused, he passed the exam.
But in Matthew 14:22-23 , the same law of gravity was set aside when Jesus had to walk on water to meet his disciples on the other side of the shore. There is a link between the temptation to defy the law of gravity and Jesus walking on water.
In Matthew 4:8-10, the devil asked Jesus Christ to worship him. The Bible tells us that the devil was the one who had power over death. The one who had power over death said to Jesus “bow down and worship me”. Jesus said “No way”.
But in John 11:41-44, when the time came for Jesus to raise Lazarus from dead. Because he had not bowed down to the power of death, he was able to defeat death. When Jesus Christ called Lazarus to come out of the tomb, he simply said , “Lazarus, come forth”. He did not say “death, leave my friend alone”. He ignored death.
Later on, Satan through Peter tried to dissuade Jesus from dying for us. In Matthew 26:29,42 Jesus yeilded to His Father’s will. Jesus Christ gained complete and perfect victory and control over Satan because he did His Father’s will in dying for us and was raised from the dead.
According to Hebrews 2:14-15, because Jesus tasted death for every man, He is able to deliver those who are in the bondage of fear and death. Revelations 1:18 tell us that Jesus not only defeated Satan by submission to his His Father’s perfect will which cost Him his life but took all authority from Satan. For he said that He now has the keys of death and of hell. He is the one who was dead but is now alive forever more. Amen. He has the keys of death and of hell. A key is a symbol of authority.
Matthew 28:18, says that all powers in heaven and on earth has been given to him. This means all authority, all ‘ecclesia’ (Greek) has been given to him. This is why Philippians 2:8-11 is forever settled. This speaks of how God highly exalted Jesus, giving Him a name that is above every other names, that at the name of Jesus, every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
In Luke 13:11-16, we see that because the Lord refused to submit to Satan , Jesus was able all the time to command Satan to loose all his victims. If he had submitted to Satan, he would have become the slave of Satan and a slave cannot command his master. That is why in John 8:36, the Bible says that whosoever the Son shall set free shall be free indeed. jesus gives physical and spiritual freedom.
Before Jesus was able to perform all these miracles , He had to conquer Satan first, which he did. He conquered him for the masses. He conquered him over the question of gravity and so could push aside the law of gravity by walking on water. He refused to bow down to the one who had the power of death and was able to raise the dead anytime he wanted to. And because he is not a slave to Satan, he could command the devil to loose all his captives.
The question now is “what about we disciples?” The Bible says that our victory had been handed over to us by Christ. According to Romans 4:7-8, 5:1-2; 4:24-25, the Bible makes it clear that we can claim all the victory that Jesus won by faith, because he is our champion. And if your champion wins you have won, if he loses you have lost.
The Bible also tells us in Colossians 2:10-15 that we are complete in Christ. Through him and through his blood we are complete. We have a direct link with the Almighty God. In other words , I can tell Satan that I am a victor because my Captain has defeated him. Likewise I have defeated him.
In 1 Peter 3:18, the Bible says:
“For Christ also has once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust that he might bring us to God , being put to death in the flesh, but quickened in the spirit”.
He has already suffered for our sins. As many of us that had received him and are washed in his blood, we have already been brought into direct contact with God.
Anytime you want to perform a miracle and the devil questions your authority and ability, tell him that by the special grace of God, you have won the same victory that Jesus Christ won. The three steps he took before he performed these miracles have also been taken by you. You are born again and baptised in the same spirit that baptised Jesus, and you have overcome the devil because your captain vercame him.
PS: I know you might agree with some of the points that I have raised in this article. You might not agree with some of the issues raised. Let me know your views about the topic discussed. We will appreciate it if you could drop your comment. Thanks in anticipation.
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