Rhema Ehiemere - I Understand How This Works

The kingdom of God is a system that works on the divine principle of delegated authority. It is dangerous to have power but not be under any authority. A lot of people want the privilege of power but they cannot handle the responsibility that comes with authority. Authority is when you have the right and permission to use power assigned to you. In Luke 7:1-10, Jesus was surprised at the faith of the Centurion because He understood this kingdom principle, and no one else did. He told Jesus there was no need to come to his house to heal his servant and all He needs to do is speak the word because as King, He has delegated authority from His father in heaven. In the kingdom, when you speak, you speak with all the backing of the government you represent. But if you are not under anyone, you cannot be over anything or anyone successfully.

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On your way to your seat, look at those around you and tell them, «I understand how this works.» Did they smile? I was like, «Pastor, can you tell this person has not smiled for the twelfth time? You’ve been telling us, and they don’t want to smile!» If you have a neighbor like that, just let me know, and we can have them move. Someone’s raising their hands—actually, I’m just joking! Okay, I understand how this works. We’re going to continue our series on the Kingdom, and I thought about this sermon. It dawned on me that one of the most popular designations used to describe our relationship with Jesus, or as followers of Jesus, is the word «Christian.» It’s easy—once I say, «Are you a Christian?"—to understand what I mean. You have a picture of who a Christian is.

The word «Christian» was first introduced in Acts 11:26. It was first used in Acts 11:26, but it was not used by those who followed Jesus to describe themselves; it was actually a name or designation given by pagans and people outside the faith to describe what they noticed about the lifestyles of those who followed Jesus. So, it’s interesting to see that, even though we all understand what the word «Christian» means in the first century, and it is very popular in Scripture, the word «Christian» was only used three times. As popular as it is, most of the time in Scripture, the followers of Jesus were referred to using words like «disciples» in the Gospels, «Brethren» or «Beloved» in the epistles, or «citizens» or «ambassadors.» The word «disciple» was used over 250 times, and «Brethren» was also used over 250 times. In fact, the one I love so much is the word «Saint.» Paul used that a lot in his epistles, and it was used over 90 times to describe the relationship we have with God.

If you’re here, say, «I hear you!» I did a study on what the word «Christian» means, and I didn’t want to make any assumptions. The Cambridge Dictionary states, «A Christian is someone belonging to the religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ.» On the surface, that seems like a perfect definition. The word «Christian» itself isn’t bad; it means «like Christ.» But here lies the problem: «Christian» is a religious term, while Jesus is not a religious leader. He did not come to establish a religion; He came to restore a Kingdom. So here lies the disconnect: we are described and designated with a label that does not fit who we are or our role.

Among all the names used to describe us in the Bible, I love two because I have been studying them; the two are «Citizen» and «Ambassador.» Stay with me. Let’s start with «Citizen.» Ephesians 2:19 says something powerful: «Now therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens in heaven.» This type of stuff you’ve got to take in, because it’s a lot; it’s heavy.

You are a citizen. I wish I could take what’s in my head and download it into your brain because that statement is loaded! You are acting like a member when you are a citizen, because religion will produce members with rules and regulations, but the Kingdom will produce citizens with rights and responsibilities. You are a citizen of a country, and the last time I checked, citizens have rights, and you don’t beg for your rights; you have them. You demand your rights. You don’t beg to vote; you don’t fast and pray to vote—you just vote, because it’s your right. So what is a right? A right is a privilege. Watch this: it’s a privilege that is protected and guaranteed by the Constitution. We will sing Hallelujah.

Listen: the right is protected by the Constitution. In this Kingdom, our Constitution is the Word of God. Just before I came to church this morning, I checked the Constitution, and it said to tell you that you are healed, and there’s nothing anybody can do about it. The Constitution declared that you are blessed and highly favored. The Constitution states that goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of your life. So when things begin to happen in your life and people ask you what is going on, tell them, «I’m just a citizen following the Constitution.» I’m just a citizen obeying the Constitution.

When things begin to happen in my life, just tell them, «I’m a citizen.» Look to your neighbor and tell them, «I’m a citizen; I’m just obeying the commands. I’m just following the Constitution.» I could preach on citizenship all day long. I remember I was in Nigeria once, and I went to the U.S. Embassy. You should see how I was walking—like I wasn’t even Nigerian! I said, «I’m an American; can you open the gate?» They said, «Sir, what do you mean?» You know Nigerians—they don’t even care—that’s a different conversation. The guy said, «What do you mean?» I said, «I am a U.S. citizen; can you please open the gate?» There was this boldness that came with being a citizen.

As wonderful as the word «citizen» is, the one I love so much is «Ambassador,» because it takes this whole Kingdom concept to another level. 2 Corinthians 5:20 states, in the New King James Version, «Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ.» I told God I would take it easy this morning; He says, «Let’s see how that works for you.» An ambassador is a representative of a Kingdom’s rule and reign.