DeclaringBy Mike Tummillo
Christians are notorious for making declarations. For instance, we declare that the Bible is the Word of God. We declare our faith in Jesus Christ. We declare that Jesus is Lord of all. We declare the sanctity of marriage, the sanctity of life. We esteem our nation’s Declaration of Independence.
The Bible’s Old and New Testaments have over 500 references to the words declare, declared or declaring including, “You shall declare a thing and it will be established for you,” Job 22:2.
Romans 4:17, though it does not include the word “declare” or any of its variations, says, “He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed–the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.” If that’s not referring to a declaration, I don’t know what it is.
WATCH WHAT YOU DECLARE!
We already go about declaring things. Have you ever murmured, “I’m so stupid!” or heard a parent scold a child with words like, “You’ll never amount to anything!” Another scathing remark is, “You’re just like your daddy,” referring, of course, to “daddy’s” worst character traits.
We should be more careful about that which we declare or speak over another person. Often, without even meaning to do so, we are pronouncing a curse over them. You see, when we say things that line up with what only Satan has to say about them, the Law of the Power of Agreement comes into play. You don’t REALLY want to form an alliance with the devil, do you?
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue,” Proverbs 18:21.
“You are snared by the words of you mouth,” Proverbs 6:2.
Now, I’m not preaching some New Age doctrine here. Nor am I to be considered a “Power of Positive Thinking” preacher… though that’s much better than encouraging people to continue to exercise the power of NEGATIVE thinking, something we’re already quite proficient at doing.
Mankind has been given dominion over all things (Gen 1:26).
As New Covenant Christians, we are a kingdom of priests and kings. Jesus, of course, is the King of all these kings, the King of kings. The same Spirit that raised Him from the dead dwells within us (Romans 8;11). Our bodies are the Temple – literally the Holy of Holies – of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19). In other words, God lives in us; He lives in YOU! Jesus confirmed this when He said, “The Kingdom of God is within you.” (Note: He wasn’t talking to Christians when He said that.) The Kingdom is not a place for He also said, “The Kingdom does not come with observation.” The Kingdom (Gk:basileia) is actually referring to the dominion of the King, not a castle on a hilltop, not a building and not a distant, celestial place called Heaven.
Second Corinthians 6:16 reminds us, “For you are the temple of the living God. As God has declared: “I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” Taking all these truths into consideration, one can confidently conclude that we, as kings and priests ourselves, can – and should – actually declare things…GOOD things… as the Spirit leads us, and expect them to come to pass.
WHAT THEN SHALL WE DECLARE?
For starters, we should ONLY declare that which the Holy Spirit leads us to declare, things that either line up with
Scripture or that He has laid upon our hearts. Rather than begging and beseeching God to do things for us, DECLARE
those things as done, in Jesus’ Name. In other words, declare those things that line up with the character and teachings of Jesus Christ. For example:
We can declare healing.
We can declare unity within the Body of Christ (power comes only by unity)
We can declare truth to be revealed and released.
We can declare peace…whether it’s to a household, a workplace or a nation at war.
We can declare freedom to those who are oppressed by the devil.
For those who fear that they might not be “anointed” enough, may I remind you that The Anointed One – Jesus Christ, for “Christ” means “the anointed one” – dwells within you. Yes, you’re anointed, trust me. He said, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me for He has anointed me…” The anointing always went upon the head. Jesus is the head, the already-anointed
King. The Body was never anointed anywhere in Scripture. You might notice that even the anointing oil that was poured
on Aaron’s head (Ps. 133:1-3) never touched the flesh of his body. Anointed flesh does nobody any good at all.
Start declaring things in Jesus’ Name and watch as stuff starts to happen. In my own life, I have declared healing to people and animals and have seen it take place. Not every time and not always instantly, but it HAS happened. Jesus Himself could do few miracles in his own hometown. Other miracles manifested healing instantly while others required more prayer and manifested gradually (the blind man upon whose eyes He placed a muddy compound and the ten lepers who were healed “as they went,” are two examples).
I have also declared peace to storms, as the Spirit urged me to do so, and have seen some pretty undeniable things take place. Those who know me know that I am quite an EXTRA-ordinary guy. By that I mean that I’m as ordinary as they get…and then some. But this one thing I know: If we, The Body of Christ, do nothing, NOTHING will ever happen. Who better to take such radical steps of faith? The Muslims? The Satanists?
Are you kidding me?
DECLARE SOMETHING TODAY!
If I know people, the tendency of many will be to misconstrue what I’m saying here and start declaring themselves to be
wealthy. They’ll declare that they will win the lottery. They’ll declare that they’ll get married. One can practice that sort of
nonsense if they wish – bordering on witchcraft, if you ask me – but when the thing declared does NOT manifest, don’t blame the Lord!
Those who know His voice will declare when and where the Spirit leads. Hint: Generally, it is that which will build God’s
Kingdom, not that which will pad our bank account or appease our lower natures. Truth is, if one TRULY desires peace and joy in their lives, they’ll take the time to get to know the God of the Bible, establish that most important of all relationships, and follow His leading from that point forward.
Fear will keep many Christians from daring to step out in faith in this way. Don’t forget that “without faith it’s impossible to
please God,”(Heb 11:6).
We are either afraid we won’t know God’s voice from others.
We’re afraid of being ashamed.
We’re afraid of what others might say about our declarations.
Don’t be! Though I know NOTHING about how to heal anybody, I DO know the One who heals people. He’s a great King and He DOES know how to run His Kingdom and that includes the welfare of His people. Whether a person is healed or a storm is thwarted is not because of anything I, or anybody else, might do. But we must take these steps of faith and become DOERS of the Word.
Christianity is so much more than merely sitting and listening to a sermon in a church building. It’s SO MUCH more than that. There’s a Kingdom to advance and it most certainly doesn’t occur from an army of Hearers only.
Frankly, serving God in this way is more exciting than anything I could have ever imagined.
Michael’s mission is to bring Discipleship and Encouragement to the Body of Christ. Since 1999, he has broadcast nearly six hundred inspirational articles and a dozen booklets on subjects that will interest the thinking Christian, all designed to accelerate the process of spiritual development in God’s people.
