Can Christians Decree and Declare Blessings?

Summary

Summary prepared by Acts 2:38 Life from the transcript below — the preacher’s words follow in full.

An Element of Truth — and a Great Danger

• The question posed: the topic we want to ask you about is what we sometimes call decreeing and declaring. It's this idea that believers have creative power in their words, and they can speak certain things — some sort of blessing, or health, wealth, some sort of material blessing. The idea being that, if they have enough faith, and they decree and declare something, then the creative power of their words can make that a reality. Is there any biblical basis for this idea of decree and declare? Can we decree and declare something to be true?
• This is an important question. And there's an element of truth in this concept — but also, there's a great danger. And I think it has been taken to excess, in the charismatic movement. In fact, this idea is even in other movements, such as Christian Science, where the power of the human mind can cause reality to change. And in fact, there's been some study, that some of the early Word of Faith preachers actually drew from these — you would say non-Christian, or marginal Christian — sources, that deal more with, you know, psychology, or mysticism, rather than biblical Christianity. So there is a great danger there. So let's talk positively. And by the way, let's start — look at the positive, and then we'll look at the negative. And by the way, I do discuss this in my book, Spiritual Gifts. I talk about the important role of faith. So, the positive aspect is: absolutely, we must have faith in God, to receive answers to prayer. God doesn't merely respond to need; he responds to faith. There are many needy people, who never receive a miracle, or an answer to prayer, or supply of their need, because they don't pray, or they don't have faith. And perhaps the number one reason why we don't receive more is lack of faith. That's not the only reason. But so, there are many places in Scripture, that talk about: you must declare it; or you must pray; you must speak it. And there is an amazing power of the human mind, if you believe something, in the natural. But also in the spiritual, there is a connection between your mind and body. So yes, what your outlook on life can affect, yourself, physically, can affect your relationships: you'll have more positive outcomes, just because the way you're approaching life. That's just human psychology. But there is also a spiritual reality: that when we have faith in God, when we pray, when we ask for things, we receive it. James says: 'You don't have, because you don't ask.' Now, that doesn't mean we're creating reality. God creates reality, with his word. When he says, 'Let there be light' — if there isn't light, now there is. But try it for yourself: if you go in a dark room, and just stand there to say, 'Let there be light' — is light going to be created? Well, no. You do not have that type of creative power, with your words. However, yes, when you believe something, that does affect, in the natural, but also the spiritual. When you say something, when you declare, or pray, something, that can have a natural effect, but also can have a spiritual effect.

Scriptures: James (book-only)

'Your Will Be Done' — the Orientation of Prayer

• But notice: that connection is through God. So it's not us, creating our own desired reality. It's us, praying to God, and God answers prayer, according to his will. So, in that sense, our prayers, or our declaration, or our speech — our tongue — can be very powerful and effective, in influencing other people, and in prayer to God. But that's different from saying: we create reality, or that we can just declare something; we can, so to speak, name it and claim it. Because here's the fundamental teaching: the Lord's Prayer — and you can see it in Matthew 6:10. Whether we say this every time we pray, or not, all prayer should be subject to this fundamental statement: 'Your kingdom come. Your will be done.' So it's not just getting up there, and saying, 'I decree a million dollars.' We can pray for God to bless us, but we say, 'Your will be done.' And many times, what we ask for is not what is in our best interest. And that — sometimes I've literally prayed this: 'Lord, please do this. I need this. I want this. Lord, this is what I see as the answer. I'm asking you to do this.' But then I have said: 'Lord, but if there's anything that's not your will, if there's anything that's not best for me, please ignore what I've said, and do what's best for me. You know, I'm praying the best I know, and trusting you. But if anything I've said is not what I need, not good for me, not the right answer — well, please ignore that, and substitute what needs to be.' And Romans 8 tells us: when we don't know what to pray for, as we ought, the Spirit will pray through us, with groanings. So, sometimes, we don't know the answer, but God does, and we trust God. So, the orientation of the Lord's Prayer is very different from decreeing and declaring. It's submitting. And I would argue: prayer is not about creating reality. It's not about convincing God, to do something he's not going to do otherwise. Prayer is really more about aligning ourselves to God's will, so that we understand what to pray for, and that our prayers will be in accordance with God's will, and our prayers will be answered. So it's more about adjusting our attitude, and our understanding — hearing from God, and following what God wants. So the orientation — I march out there, and I make things happen — I think is mistaken. The whole attitude of prayer is: I submit my needs to God. And yes, there's power in making my petition, and making my requests known, and asking God to help me, in certain ways. So, if you want to speak of that as declaring and decreeing — but the orientation is different, because you're trusting God to do the work. You're not the one who does the work. You're humble. You're having faith in him.

Scriptures: Matthew 6:10; Romans 8

Strong Statements — Read with the Whole of Scripture

• So now, let me give you an example, that none of this is denying the importance of faith. But there's some very strong statements in Scripture. Matthew 21:22: 'If you ask anything in prayer, believing, you shall receive.' That's a very positive statement. Now, if you just — and I preach from that — have faith; receive a miracle; receive healing; receive forgiveness; receive the Holy Ghost — it sounds unqualified. But you have to look at the whole of Scripture. Another example is in John 14:14: 'If you ask anything in my name, I will do it.' Very positive. It sounds absolute. But again, you have to take into context. In this case, 'you ask anything in my name' — there's a clue, right there. It's implied, that you're subject to the lordship of Jesus Christ. You're subject to his will: 'Your kingdom come. Your will be done.' Okay. But even the positive statement that I quoted from Matthew 21 — let's look at another passage: 1 John 5:14-15. It uses almost the same language, but it gives a little more nuance. So, 1 John 5:14: 'Now, this is the confidence that we have in him: that if we ask anything, according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us, whatever we ask — same type of language — we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of him.' So, in Matthew 21:22, it says, if we ask anything, whatever we ask; 1 John 5:14-15, same thing, but inserts what is assumed in Matthew — because if you've read Matthew, you've already read the Lord's Prayer — but it's explicitly stated here, in 1 John: according to his will. So it's not a cart blanch, that, well, if you're a Christian, you can just ask for anything you want. You know, the people that teach that — they don't really believe that. Because why ask for mega offerings in the mail? Why not just go out every morning, and claim $100,000 for the day? You know, obviously, there's a little more qualification than what they have expressed.

Scriptures: Matthew 21:22; John 14:14; 1 John 5:14-15

When God Says No: James, Hebrews 11, and Paul

• But also, you see this in Scripture. So, Acts 12: two of the apostles were arrested, Peter and James. I'm convinced the church prayed for both, with equal faith. James was beheaded. Peter was set free. I don't think it was a lack of faith, a lack of decreeing. Did they decree Peter's release? Actually, not really. They prayed, but when Peter actually showed up at the door, they didn't believe it. So it wasn't their great faith. Yes, they did pray, and God used their prayers. But can we say they decreed Peter's release, and that's why he was released; and they didn't want to decree James's release, so they let him be beheaded? No. I think you're missing the whole point. I think they probably had the same type of prayer, with the same type of faith — both having faith, and yet lacking faith. But God was the one who, for his own reasons, decided to let James be killed, but to let Peter be released. So you see this throughout Scripture. Hebrews 11, the great faith chapter, gives example, example, example, of miracles, deliverance, victory — they decreed it, apparently. But then it concludes by saying: there were others, who didn't accept deliverance; that they were persecuted; they were killed; you know, they were beheaded. They had the same — and they died in faith. So you can't just reduce everything to a faith formula, that if you say the right words, then what you want is going to come to pass. No. You pray, but sometimes there's a great victory; but sometimes the Lord allows you to undergo suffering, or even death. But his grace is sufficient. So, another example: 2 Corinthians 12. If anyone was in the will of God, in the Bible, I think it was the Apostle Paul. If anyone had faith, I think it was the Apostle Paul. He wrote, you know, much of the New Testament. He was the greatest missionary of the early church, etc., etc. But yet he had an unnamed condition. Many think it was a physical condition. But whatever it was, it was a thorn in the flesh: a messenger of Satan, sent to attack him. Three times he prayed for deliverance. Three times God said no. But here's what God says: 'My grace is sufficient.' So God chose not to answer the prayer, the way Paul asked. So here's an example: if he decreed it, God said no. Okay. So there's no indication: 'Well, Paul, if you'd only decreed it, it would have happened. You just didn't say it positively enough. You didn't declare it boldly enough. You didn't actually say it.' There's no indication that his prayers were deficient. He prayed in faith, but it was the will of God. God said no. Another example is healing. Because we do believe in healing — divine healing — but we're not going to have perfect healing until the resurrection. You know, all the benefits that are promised to us are given to us in part now, but the fullness is going to await, through resurrection. So you have ministers of the gospel — Paul's companions, in Scripture: Timothy had a stomach weakness, that wasn't healed. Epaphroditis almost died. Trophamus — he left in Myitus, because he was sick; didn't take him on his trip. There's no indication these people lacked faith. They didn't decree it. They didn't name it and claim it. No. This is the course of life. Now, Paul prayed for their healing, and requested prayer for their healing. But the point is: it's not just a formula. It's not just automatic.

Scriptures: Acts 12; Hebrews 11; 2 Corinthians 12

Needs, Not Luxuries — and Contentment

• So I believe that we should strongly preach and teach faith. We should certainly believe that our prayers make a difference. But we should emphasize that all prayers are subject to the will of God. And even — I'll just give another example — because the name it and claim it also deals a lot with getting material blessings. But here's the thing: God has promised to supply our needs. And again, the Lord's Prayer: 'Give us this day our daily bread.' Not necessarily everything we want; not necessarily our luxuries; not everything we would desire. And so, if you just take some statements — you can have whatever you desire — but again: subject to the will of God; subject to what God thinks you really need, as opposed to what you want. So, the idea that you'll be material blessed, you'll be rich — well, that may work in modern American middle-class culture, or Western culture. But there are many people across the world, who live in poverty, who live in adverse circumstances, who live in persecution. I'm talking about fellow United Pentecostal believers. They have just as much faith. They believe the gospel just as much. But by our Western standards, they live very simple lives — even deprived lives. But yet, they're blessed. So you cannot equate God's blessings with materialism. And that was the error that the Jews of the first century commonly made. Even the disciples were susceptible to this, because Jesus remarked, how difficult it would be for a rich man to go to heaven. Well, the disciples were shocked, because that contradicted their theology. You know, they thought: well, if you're rich, that's evidence that God has blessed you. And who wouldn't want to be rich? And we want to be rich. What do you mean, we can't go to heaven? And he says: well, with God, all things are possible. So it's possible. But it's hard, because you have many distractions, temptations. So he's saying: don't desire to be rich. Desire to have your needs met. However God wants to bless you, then that's good. But it's not part of something you should decree, or name, or claim. And if you read Philippians 4, the Apostle Paul gave the same thing. He said, you know: 'My God will supply all of your needs, according to his riches and glory.' He said: 'I've learned, in whatsoever state I am, with that to be content. I know how to abound; I know how to obey.' So, if I'm blessed, with a lot of blessings, I can rejoice in that, and enjoy that. But if I'm deprived, if I suffer, if I sacrifice for the gospel, if I'm persecuted — I know how to go with that. I've learned, in whatever case, I'll be content, because I'm in the will of God. So I think that this whole idea of decreeing gets off track. The valid point is: we must have faith in God. We must pray. We must ask God for what we need, and what we desire. That is true, and good. But the other side is: we can't manipulate reality. We can't create reality. We shouldn't try to do so. But we trust God. We pray, in accordance with the will of God. And at the end of the day, it's God who does the work, in our lives.

Scriptures: Philippians 4

Scripture index: James (book-only); Matthew 6:10; Romans 8; Matthew 21:22; John 14:14; 1 John 5:14-15; Acts 12; Hebrews 11; 2 Corinthians 12; Philippians 4.