From Believing to Perceiving by Kenneth Copeland

Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

Romans 8:37

The Bible calls us kings and priests (Revelation 1:6) and world overcomers (1 John 5:4). But for most of us, those are just phrases. They haven't become real to us. That's why the devil's been able to hoodwink us into living lives of defeat. It hasn't actually dawned on us who we really are.

If you'll look in 1 Chronicles 14, you'll see that David had a similar problem. He'd been anointed king by the prophet Samuel when he was just a teenager. He'd known for years that someday he'd rule over Israel. Yet somehow, it hadn't really sunk in.

But look what happens in verse 2: "And David perceived that the Lord had confirmed him king over Israel, for his kingdom was lifted up on high, because of his people Israel." Finally, it dawned on him! David perceived that the Lord had confirmed him king. I can just imagine David saying to himself, I'm king. I'm actually king! I am king! At that moment, being king ceased to be something David had only thought about. It became something he really was. He could see himself king.

What does that have to do with you and me? Much like David, you and I have been given a royal office. We're just having a hard time believing it. But until we do, we cannot exercise the power or authority that goes with that office.

Say, for example, you're sick. You can yell, "By His stripes I'm healed," 50 times a day. You can hope for healing. You can try to believe for healing till your hair turns gray. But if you don't really perceive yourself as whole and healthy in Christ Jesus, if you don't see yourself as "the healed" instead of "the sick," you won't get any supernatural help. Yet once that realization hits you that you are, in fact, "the healed," no one—not even the devil himself—will be able to keep you from getting well.

Don't let the devil hoodwink you any longer. Step over the line from trying to believe to actually knowing by dwelling on the Word of God. Read it and think about it. Practice seeing yourself through the eyes of the Word until the reality of your royalty in Christ rises up in you!

Scripture Reading:
Ephesians 1:3-23