A Higher Form of Power

by Kenneth Copeland The kings heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will. Proverbs 21:1 What I have to say to you today is simple. And it is quite serious. Your response to it will not only affect your life and mine, but many thousands of others. It is a messageno, a commandall of us have no doubt heard before. But by and large, we have ignored it. We have thought somehow we could get by without it, that we could let it slip without paying a price. But we have paid. Our nations have paid. One look at any newspaper will give you an idea just how dearly. The command Im talking about is the one found in 1 Timothy 2:1-2. There the Apostle Paul says: I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. That verse is clear, isnt it? The instruction is plain. Yet even in these tumultuous days when our nations are so desperately in need of Gods guidance, most of Gods people dont do what that verse commands. Why not? Is it because we dont care? Is it because were unwilling to invest a few minutes of prayer in the future of our nation each day? No. I believe its because most of us are overwhelmed by the problems we see around us. How could my prayers make a dent in the national debt? we think. How could my faith affect foreign policy? In other words, we fail to pray because we fail to realize just how powerfully our prayers can affect our countries. 1
A Higher Form of Power 1988 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries A Prayer for the Government 2011 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries

So I want us to look at some scriptures and find out what The WORD of God has to say about the subject. First, lets look at Romans 13:1. There, the Apostle Paul writes: Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. It amazes me how little attention is paid to this very important scripture. In fact, when you get right down to it, most Christians dont even believe it! You can tell just by the disrespectful way they talk about their leaders. Well, if those leaders are ordained of God, you may say, why dont they act like it? Because the believers they govern arent praying for them! You see, if by prayer we will invite God into our governments, Hell take control of those whove been put in positions of authority. As Proverbs 21:1 says: The kings heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will. Think about that for a moment! God has reserved the right to override the will of a nations leader, if need be, to see that His people are governed according to His will. Whats more, God will hear the prayer of any government leadereven if hes the worst reprobate in the whole world. He heard the prayer of old King Nebuchadnezzar. And believe me, that means Hell listen to any leader! When you have time, I encourage you to go to Daniel 4 and read the account of Nebuchadnezzar because it is a powerful example of what were talking about here. You see, Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. He was an ungodly ruler of an ungodly nation. He had taken captives, however, from the land of Judah. He had some of Gods people under his authority. So God began to deal with him. Again and again, God warned him, Nebuchadnezzar, youre going to lose your mind if you dont straighten up. But Nebuchadnezzar refused to listen. And sure enough, he went just as crazy as could be. He stayed that way for years too. Ran up and down through the woods like a wild man. Then one day he cried out to God and God heard him.

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A Higher Form of Power 1988 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries A Prayer for the Government 2011 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Despite his status as a heathen king of a heathen nation, God intervened repeatedly in Nebuchadnezzars life and heard him when he finally cried out for help. Why? Because he had Gods people under his control! That same principle still holds true today. If well open the way through prayer, God will deal with our leaders! Hell turn the hearts of everyone from the top office on down to make sure His children are governed justly. In fact, if wed just be obedient to 1 Timothy 2:1-2, theres no council of any kind on earth, no king, no president, no congress, not anyone who could overthrow Gods purpose for His people. The Constitution of the United States is a tremendous document, a Holy Ghostanointed document in its original form. But, Im telling you, it doesnt hold a candle to The WORD of God. The Bible is heavens constitution! And if well start believing it, praying it and acting on it where our nations are concerned, its power will whip our countries back into line with the will of God. And there wont be anything or anyone on earth that can stop it. But if were ever going to see that happen, were going to have to take The WORD of God and go to war in prayer and in faithful intercession. Unfortunately, most of us dont know the first thing about fighting such a war. For, as Ephesians 6:10-12 says, its not a battle of flesh and blood, but of the spirit. In fact, lets look at those verses and see exactly what they say about this fight:

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Read that last verse again. Most believers are so earthly minded (or carnally minded) they never even realize where the enemys attacks are actually coming from. They blame circumstances and people, and they waste their energy fighting natural conditions instead of supernatural causes. We need to wake up to the warfare thats going on in the heavenly realm! 3
A Higher Form of Power 1988 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries A Prayer for the Government 2011 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries

We can get a glimpse of it in Daniel 10:12. There, we find Daniel had been fasting and praying for 21 days, awaiting a word from The LORD. Then an angel appeared to him and said: Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. This angel had left heaven with the answer to Daniels prayer on the first day he prayed. But he didnt arrive for 21 days. What took him so long? Look at verse 13. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. Then later in verse 20 he says, and now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come. These scriptures are clear examples of the activity and warfare going on in the heavens. Sometimes when I talk about the warfare that takes place in the heavens, people get confused. Heaven? they say. I thought the devil was thrown out of heaven. What they dont realize is this: Throughout the Bible, we are taught there are three different areas called heaven: 1. The heaven where God resides 2. The stellar heavens (what we call outer space) 3. The heavens around this earth (the atmosphere surrounding this planet) This last heaven is where spiritual war takes place. (Thats why Ephesians 2:2 calls Satan the prince of the power of the air.) It is where wicked spirits such as the prince of Persia operate. From there, they attempt to rule the nations to which theyve been assigned. And they will rule them unless the prayers of Gods people keep them from it. Do you remember what Jesus said in Matthew 18:18? Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. The heaven Jesus was talking about there isnt the heaven where God resides. Nothing needs to be bound there. He was talking about the battle zone, about the heaven where Satans forces are operating. 4
A Higher Form of Power 1988 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries A Prayer for the Government 2011 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries

He was telling us we have been given the authority to pull down the strongholds of Satan (2 Corinthians 10:4). He was telling us God has given us the power to bind the wicked spirits in heavenly places and to loose the angelic powers of God to work on our behalf. Jesus told Peter in Matthew 16:19: I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. The Greek text of that scripture would literally read, I give you the keys of the kingdom. Whatever you declare locked on earth is locked in heaven and whatever you declare unlocked on earth is unlocked in the heavenlies. Daniel couldnt do that. He didnt have the authority of the Name of Jesus. All he could do was hang on for 21 long, hard days until the angel of God could get through to him. But praise God, you and I, as believers and as children of the Most High God, dont have to wait 21 days. We dont even have to wait 21 seconds for the angels to begin their work on our behalf! Philippians 2:9-10 says we have been given a Name which is above every name, and at the Name of Jesus every knee shall bow in heaven, in earth and under the earth. That covers it all! As believers, we have total authority over the powers of Satan. We can take authority over the evil spirits that are trying to destroy our nations. We can take authority over them in the Name of Jesus and pull down their strongholds. Its time we began to realize how important we are to world affairs. Since the day Jesus gave us the Great Commission, the life or death of the world has been in the hands of the Church. We are the ones who have the mighty Name of Jesus and the awesome strength of the gospel to bring life and abundance to every creature. We are the ones whose prayers can change every office of authority in our lands. Every few years, national elections take place in many nations. If we want nations of godliness and honesty, its up to us to begin to intercede right now and use the power God has given us. Right now, you need to be praying for all of the candidates. You need to find out who they are and then go to The LORD and ask which ones Hes chosen. Dont just make 5
A Higher Form of Power 1988 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries A Prayer for the Government 2011 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries

your decisions by what the media says. Go to God. He knows the heart of each man and woman whos running for office. Hell give you supernatural guidance. Be willing to set aside old ideas and past prejudices. I dont care if everybody in your family has voted Democratic ever since the Depression. I dont care if youve always voted a straight Republican ticket. If your country allows voting, vote Holy Ghost this time, OK? Vote however He says. (If you cant vote, you can still pray and have great effect.) Did you notice what I just said? I said, VOTE. The vote is a God-given privilege, a gift The LORD has given us. Dont throw it in His face by failing to take advantage of it! In the last U.S. presidential election, there were millions of born-again, Holy Ghostbaptized, professing, believing Christians who werent even registered to vote. Just think what a mighty army for God we would be if we all went to the polls during the next election. We could determine the outcome of elections with our votes if we only would. God has called us to intercede. He has commanded us to pray for those in authority. He has given us His WORD, His power, His Name, His authority and His faith. We have all the tools necessary to pray effectively for our governments and their leaders. Lets band together as never before in intercession for all the nations of the world. We are Gods people, called by His Name, and we can stand in faith before Him for the healing of our lands. Again, I urge you. If you havent already registered to vote, do it today, right now. It is your responsibility as a believer to get involved in the affairs of your country. God wants these great lands of ours, and the only way Hes going to get them is through His ambassadorsyou and me. If youve already registered, then come Election Day, make sure you go to the polls! Dont let the affairs of your life sway you from the voting booth. And dont let anyone but the Holy Spirit tell you who youre to vote for. Start preparing yourself now by praying about the candidates and listening for the voice of The LORD. God has an army marching in this earth. If we band together, we can prevent the wickedness in high places from ruling our nations. The time has come for us, as believers, to be counted both in prayer and at the polls. So let your voice be heard!

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A Higher Form of Power 1988 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries A Prayer for the Government 2011 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries

We may all come from different lands with different backgrounds, but we all have one thing in commonJesus Christ is our LORD. And that alone is enough to alter the spiritual complexion of this earth.

A Prayer for the Government

Father, in Jesus Name, I give thanks for our country and its government. I hold up in prayer before You the men and women in positions of authority. I pray for all people in authority over us in any way. I pray that the Spirit of The LORD rests upon them. I believe that skillful and godly wisdom has entered into the hearts of our leaders and knowledge is pleasant to them. Discretion watches over them; understanding keeps them and delivers them from the way of evil and from evil men. Your WORD declares that blessed is the nation whose God is The LORD. I receive Your blessing and declare with my mouth that Your people dwell safely in this land and that they prosper abundantly. It is written in Your WORD that the heart of the king is in the hand of The LORD and that You turn it whichever way You desire. I believe the heart of our leader is in Your hand and that his decisions are divinely directed by You. I give thanks to You that the good news of the gospel is published in our land. The WORD of The LORD prevails and grows mightily in the hearts and lives of the people. I give thanks for this land and the leaders You have given to us, in Jesus Name. I proclaim that Jesus is LORD over my country. Scripture References: 1 Timothy 2:1-2; Proverbs 2:11-12; The Amplified Bible: Psalm 33:12; Proverbs 21:1. Also see Jeremiah 1:12.

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A Higher Form of Power 1988 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries A Prayer for the Government 2011 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries