Lesson 12. Confessions Work for You. A school from “Faith and Confession” that lays an amazingly deep foundation in the Word of God. Charles Capps teaches how to activate the power of God in your life.
God tells us to remind Him of what He has said (Isaiah 43:26). Not because God has forgotten what He said—no, He wants you always to remember and not forget. Discipline yourself to confess the Word of God; it is for your own good.
God gave Joshua some good advice:
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, so that you may carefully observe everything written in it; then you will prosper in your way, and you will act wisely. Joshua 1:8
Notice that Joshua had to observe everything written in this book. In other words, read it, meditate on what is written, and then put it into practice. Only then will you prosper in your way and act wisely.
Prosperity Destroys Fools
One reason people argue about prosperity teaching is that many think prosperity can destroy you. But the Bible says that the complacency of fools will destroy them (Proverbs 1:32). If you walk in God’s ways and confess His Word, then you will prosper in your way and act wisely. Prosperity is a blessing, not a curse, if you apply it according to the Bible.
When you confess the Word of God, you set goals and sow seed in the soil of your heart. This helps you gain direction and know your destination. If you do not know where you are going, how will you know that you have reached your destination? How long will it take you to get there? And when we confess the Word of God, we set goals according to His will and desire.
In my small book “God’s Creative Power for You”, I compiled confessions from the Bible because the Lord told me to begin confessing what God had said about me.
At that time, I was a farmer. I would go to the back of the farm and walk back and forth, confessing what God had said about me. I declared the Word of God very loudly, and it changed my life.
You need to confess the Word of God aloud so that you can hear yourself; faith comes through this, because faith comes by hearing.
Faith does not come from reading, as we once thought. The Bible does not say that faith comes by reading. It says that faith comes by hearing the Word of God.
For many months, I continued confessing the Word of God, and it completely changed my life. When I first began my confessions, I was a very negative person. But within a few months, the Word of God changed me, and it can change you as well.
Discipline Yourself
I want to show you how you can discipline yourself in confessing God’s Word about you. When you begin saying what God has said about you, it may seem as though it sounds like a huge lie coming from your mouth. But God said it, and He believes that this is exactly who you will be. He looks at you and sees you not as you are, but as the Word sees you.
Let us look at several passages of Scripture. They have been selected to convince you to think about yourself the way God thinks about you. I like what Paul says in Romans chapter 3.
What then? If some were unfaithful, will their unfaithfulness nullify the faithfulness of God? Absolutely not! Let God be true and every human being a liar, as it is written: So that You may be justified in Your words and prevail when You judge. Romans 3:3–4
You can look at your life and the circumstances in it and say, “Well, it is difficult to believe that all my needs are met according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Whether you believe it or not, this is what the Word of God says, and you need to obey the Word of God. So why not agree with what God says? What is written in the Bible will not be fulfilled in your life simply because it is mentioned there. It can be fulfilled only when you agree with God and with what He says about you.
Confession in the Present Situation
The confessions discussed below are not templates; you can create your own in the direction in which God is leading you in a given situation. My confessions are examples for you; you can use them in various forms.
I am a member of the Body of Christ, and Satan has no authority over me; I overcome evil with good.
(Reference: 1 Cor. 12:27; Rom. 12:21)
This confession is based on Scripture. I am the Body of Christ. Paul said, “You are the Body of Christ.” The Church is the only Body Christ has on earth today. Confess this, because you are the Body of Christ.
I am of God, and I have overcome him (Satan), because the One who is in me is greater than the one who is in the world.
(Reference: 1 John 4:4)
This will help you renew your mind.
I will not be afraid, because You are with me, Lord. Your Word and Your Spirit calm me.
(Reference: Ps. 23:4)
You can formulate them however you wish—as a prayer or as a confession. It is difficult to imagine the impact this can have on a person's spirit until you do it every day for several weeks.
I am far from oppression, and fear will not come near me.
(Reference: Isaiah 54:14)
Someone may object: “But I’m not that far from oppression, and fear is always with me.”
This is another reason why you should confess that you are far from oppression. This is what God says about you. Fear leads to oppression, so you need to confess: “I am far from oppression, and fear will not come near me”.
You can change circumstances that do not agree with God’s
Word
A person living in fear and oppression will surely say: “I am lying if I say that I am far from fear.”
But this is exactly what God said. James 3:14 says: …do not lie against the truth. There are many different circumstances in your life that do not agree with the Word of God. You may actually be living in fear and oppression, but do not lie against the truth of what God says about you. The Word of God is true. God said that you are far from oppression and that fear will not come near you, so this is exactly how God sees you. The Word of God is true even before this happens.
There is a difference between circumstance and truth. Confess that fear and oppression cannot come near you.
Someone may say: “You will be a liar if you say this while you are actually living in fear.”
No, I am speaking the truth. Perhaps it is not yet true in my life, and that is precisely why I declare it. I call into being what must come to pass. This is what confession is really about—calling nonexistent things as though they exist.
No weapon formed against me shall prosper, because my righteousness is from the Lord. And whatever I do will prosper, because I am like a tree planted by streams of water.
(Reference: Isaiah 54:17, Psalm 1:3)
You may feel that what you are saying is far from the truth, but it is the truth. Perhaps the circumstances of life do not align with this truth. And if that is so, you have a reason to confess this truth, because this is what God says.
I have been delivered from the present evil age, because this is the will of God our Father.
(Reference: Gal. 1:4)
This is God's will for you. That is what the Bible says.
(Jesus) gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father. Gal. 1:4
This is certainly God's will, because Jesus fulfilled it.
No evil will befall me, and no plague will come near my dwelling, because the Lord will command His angels to guard me in all my ways. In my path there is life, and there is no death.
(Reference: Ps. 91:10–11, Prov. 12:28)
Sometimes people are offended because I say that there is no death in my path.
But I am simply quoting the Bible; this is a direct quotation from the Book of Proverbs 12:28:
In the way of righteousness is life, and in its pathway there is no death.
There is no spiritual death in the way of the righteous. I am not saying that you will not die physically before Christ's return. But this is what God has said about you: “No evil will befall you.” This is from Psalm 91. All these passages of Scripture will not come to pass in your life merely because they are written there.
Making Scripture Effective in Your Life
We need to make Scripture effective in our lives. This is exactly what God commanded Joshua in Joshua 1:8: “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth.” The Book of the Law was the Word of God they had in those days. God told Joshua to always have this Word on his lips. In the same way, declarations will work in your life. You declare the Word of God when everything around you appears contrary to the truth.
I take up the shield of faith and can extinguish all the fiery darts of the evil one.
(Reference: Eph. 6:16)
You take up the shield of faith. Some people use the shield of doubt and deflect all of God’s blessings. You have probably done the same, because this is the flip side of the truth.
God wants you to be able to deflect all the arrows of the evil one with your faith.
Call this promise into fulfillment in your life.
Christ has redeemed me from the curse of the law, and I forbid every disease attacking my body. Let every virus or infection approaching my body perish, in the name of Jesus.
Every organ and every cell in my body functions perfectly, just as God ordained it. And I command every malfunction to leave, in the name of Jesus.
(Reference: Gal. 3:13, Rom. 8:11, Gen. 1:31, Matt. 16:19)
“How can you bring yourself to say such a thing?” someone may ask. It’s simple—open your mouth and start speaking.
“Yes, I understand, but what is your basis?”
Mark 11:23 says that you can have anything you ask for if you believe and do not doubt in your heart. If I can have what I ask for, then why not ask for what I need? This is our biblical foundation.
Someone may object: “You cannot forbid anything to anyone. You are not God!”
But Jesus said that whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. You have the authority to bind the powers of darkness. Therefore, I choose to command every problem in my body.
“What if I am already sick?”
Simply do not stop rebuking the forces of darkness. Confess the Word of God, regardless of the circumstances. If necessary, take medication. But every time you take a pill, confess: “I believe that I am receiving my healing.”
I have submitted to God, therefore the devil flees from me, and I resist him in the name of Jesus.
(Reference: James 4:7)
This is exactly what God says about you. You may not feel that the devil is fleeing from you, but the Word of God says so. You need to be in harmony with the Word of God and confess it until your mind is renewed and your heart changes. One morning you will wake up, and when you say, “Devil, I resist you in the name of Jesus!” you will say, “Wow! He really did flee from me!”
I remember the day this happened to me. I thought, “Praise God! There is such power in agreement with God!” But weeks and months passed after I began confessing this. It will not happen in an instant, because it is a process. All you need to do is continue confessing the Word of God in every situation.
Jesus Struck Satan with the Word
Do you realize that it was with the Word that Jesus resisted Satan and overcame him when He was tempted by him? Jesus spoke only what God said. Nothing more. He struck Satan with the Word of God. Jesus thoroughly defeated Satan’s kingdom, leaving it beyond repair. Satan can no longer do anything to Jesus. If you understand this principle and use it, Satan will not be able to do anything to you either. You have the authority to declare these things because they are God’s promises.
Instead of poverty, He gave me wealth; instead of sickness, healing; instead of death, eternal life.
(References: 2 Cor. 8:9, Isa. 53:5, John 10:10, John 5:24) You may be sick and poor, but still confess God’s promises.
Because this is exactly what the Word of God says about you.
There will be no lack, because God supplies all my needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
(Reference: Phil. 4:19)
There may be lack all around you, but still declare what God says about you, regardless of the facts in your life. Take these confessions, go into your room, and begin confessing them aloud. But whisper them. Do not read them to yourself. Quote them aloud, speaking them into your heart.
I saw a woman who really liked this idea of confessions when she attended one of my seminars. She said, “I want to pray and confess the Word of God.” She jumped up and began her confession: “Father, I thank You that my husband is saved and filled with the Holy Spirit. My children are also
saved, and our family is a family of believing Christians!” She continued thanking God, and when she sat down, the woman sitting beside her leaned over and said, “I didn’t know your husband was already a believer!”
What this woman confessed was not yet a reality in this world, but she was calling forth promises that had not yet been fulfilled. The woman beside her misunderstood her; she thought she was confessing something that had already come to pass. That is why you should not confess things in public places. You may be misunderstood understood.
A year later, this woman’s husband became a believer and was filled with the Holy Spirit. She followed God’s method and received what she had confessed just one year later.
Confession is the beginning of the Word of God’s work in your life. I encourage you to make your own list of Scripture-based confessions so that they may change your heart and bring you into agreement with God’s Word.
End of lesson.
Author: Charles Capps
Source: The book “Faith and Confession.”
