There is a lot of crazy teaching in the church these days. What we might call deceptive spirits. People are believing all sort of wacked out things, like Replacement Theology which teaches that God has replaced Israel with the Church. This is so wrong because the covenant God made with Israel was permanent and everlasting, meaning that it’s still in effect today. Another crazy teaching (which has been around for a long time) is what has been labeled Positive Confession. The adherents of this teaching believe that because we are made in the image of God, and because God spoke things into existence, we have the same power. You may have heard people say… “I declare my healing.” “I decree that my prodigal return home.” They believe that words have power and that their words, plus enough faith, will make it happen. There is power when we speak truth - the truth of Scripture - though.
So, why is this teaching so wrong? Let’s start with “being made in the image of God.” Being made in the image of God does NOT mean I have the same abilities as God, but as a Christian I share in His attributes, like wisdom, truth, holiness, love. These things allow me to have spiritual fellowship with Him and to bear witness of who He is. Being made in the image of God means that I reflect God’s attributes.
When positive confession is your approach to God, then you are in essence trying to force God’s hand to do something, demanding what you want. It puts your will above God’s. Hence, you have become God. Proponents of this theology may not think that’s what they are doing, but they are. They believe that their verbal declaration, coupled with God’s power and authority within them, will guarantee what they want.
Does the Bible teach this? No! In fact, our key verse today comes from Jesus’ prayer in the Garden just before His arrest and crucifixion. He shows us that it’s okay to ask for deliverance as He did, but in the end, we should pray in submission to His will. Throughout the Bible, we see the people of God crying out to God, but those who were truly blessed are the ones who humbled themselves before the Lord. As Christians we should want God’s will above ours because God’s will is always best for us. Absolutely pray for deliverance or help. But couple that with, “But Lord, I want Your will to be done in my life.” Let’s make sure we are not following deceptive spirits, but that we are adhering to the full counsel of God’s Word.