Becoming a Habitation

Transcription

1 Becoming a Habitation The process of mentoring is the vehicle that God has designed to form a covenantal community with relationships that can withstand the pressures of conflict and confrontation. He wants us to endure the irritations that develop in the process of character formation without circumventing His purpose. He does not want us to become "kissers" in the House of the Lord any longer, following after the manner of Orpah, but we are to be as Ruth, and learn to cleave unto our mentors. The Bible tells us that Ruth, Orpah and Naomi were in a foreign land and that they returned to Bethlehem. "Bethlehem" means "house of bread." They returned to Bethlehem because tragedy had visited their household and a new facet of

2 Covenant Relationships sustenance was to be found. Naomi was left with her two daughters-in-law because her husband and sons had died. "Cleavers" can give birth to destiny. When Naomi told Ruth and Naomi that she was returning home to Bethlehem, she began to make excuses for their departure. The "rational" excuse of their day made perfect sense according to their societal structure. Orpah, placing herself in agreement with Naomi's "logic", kissed her motherin-law good-bye, and left, but Ruth chose the way of covenant---she clave to Naomi and defied the logic that would have separated them. Ruth c!ave to Naomi despite the fact that she was a foreigner to Naomi's land. Ruth clave in spite of the fact that Naomi's logic was considered the "norm" for their day. Ruth didn't rely on the power of human reasonings, but rather, she stood on the power of Naomi's God, Whom she didn't know. Ruth was willing to place her life and destiny in the hand's of Naomi's God because she understood covenant. This is why Ruth could utter her magnificent vow of commitment and faith that echoes throughout the annals of time:

3 Mentoring "Entreat me not to leave thee or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest,i will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me. " Ruth 1:16-17 God is not looking for "kissers" who meet to casually attempt the impregnation of ministry, but rather, He desires "cleavers" who can give birth to destiny. There is a clarion call for commitment that is sounding throughout the Body of Christ. The Church is Theocratic--not democratic. God is setting His Divine order and government in the Church. He is exposing the root of rebellion that has infested the core of the local church and He is sounding orders from on High. The Church is Theocratic--not democratic. God rules, and not our insignificant opinions and offenses. We are commanded to flow in His plan; our feet must march to the drum beat of the ministry.

4 Covenant Relationships God wants to come in among us and begin to build the Church. He wants it to operate according to His heavenly pattern, not after our ideas. God wants to dwell in His sanctuary, for this is where He desires to move, bless, and mature His people. God desires to bring us to a place of structure where we will experience His move and His glory in the Holy of Holies where nothing but the Life and Presence of God is discerned. Ruth's vow of commitment is an indictment against every charismatic thrill seeker that runs from place to place looking for the latest "blessing from God." Ruth's vow condemns every believer who deserted the place of their planting by the Lord. Her oath is an indictment against every person that refused to submit to their mentor. Regardless of the conflict, regardless of our logical rationale and vain imaginings, we are called to stand in the crucible of covenant unless we've received our release from God Himself. Some people have become accustomed to using the House of the Lord as a showcase for our talent, but not committing them to the building of the House of the Lord. Some people gain their daily fix of vainglory as their egos become stroked by the praise of men. Our abilities are not to be used for such a mediocre and narcissistic purpose. But

5 Mentoring rather, we are to build the House of the Lord and become a habitation for His dwelling. This will enable us to understand our purpose in the local church. When things begin to come into order in the House of the Lord, then the disorder in our rela tionships will dissipate. There are too many individuals who bombard the gates of heaven daily looking for God to move in their situation. Yet their prayers remain unanswered because they've broken covenant with their divine connection. The Kingdom of God is based on covenant. When covenant is not lived out in our lives, we will not be able to appropriate the blessings of the Kingdom. The Scripture says to "seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you" (pp). When we begin to seek the Kingdom first, we will find that "things" will be running to us. We will not have to seek "things," "things" will seek us. In Hebrew, "covenant" signifies "a mutual undertaking between two or more parties, each binding himself to fulfill his obligations, but it does not in itself contain the idea of joint obligation."

6 Covenant Relationships Instead, it essentially signifies an obligtion undertaken by a single person. In Genesis 15, we see an example of a covenant enacted between God an Abraham. "After these things the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. And Abram said, Lord God, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer, of Damascus? And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir". Genesis 15:l-4 During this time, if you did not have a natural child, one of your servants became your heir. This Scripture indicates that Eliezer was to be Abram's heir, yet the Lord showed Abram that his heir would actually come forth from his own seed. "And he said unto him, I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it. And he said, Lord

7 Mentoring God, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it? And he said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not". Verses 7-40 God is preparing to make a covenant with Abraham. Abraham divided the heifer and the other animals in order to offer a sacrifice to the Lord, because the Lord loves the sweetsmelling savour that comes from the blood of sacrifice. When Abraham divided the animals, he didn't use a little knife. I believe that he used an axe to divide them, which would mean that he was covered in blood from head to toe. He was a mess. When we come together at the Lord's table to make covenant with Him, we too are to be covered in Jesus' blood. Christ said, "This is My Body. And this cup is the New Testament of My Blood." This is not a symbol, but it is the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. When we look at the parts of a covenant, we see both male and female. In every seed of man there is always the slaying of blood. At the first

8 Covenant Relationships release of a man's sperm, blood is always present. Before a divorce, the first thing to go out of the marriage is the couple's sexual relationship. This is because the enemy knows that if he can separate the husband and wife in the bedchamber, there will be no covenant or slaying of blood in the marriage. When we examine this, we begin to understand that every woman born in this earth is a sealed package, waiting for the man that is supposed to enter into covenant with her, consecrating their covenant with the slaying of blood. Viewing this from the perspective of the covenant, I believe that every time a husband and wife come together, heaven is happy, because they are acting out of covenant. This is why the Scripture says, "If a man lays with a harlot, he is joined to her." They have cut a covenant. Likewise, this explains why God hates homosexuality. When homosexuals enter into relationships, they have made a covenant that is the antithesis of God's purpose. Their union cannot produce life. The only thing it is able to minister is death to both parties. Once we understand the true purpose of covenant, we see that the coming -together of husband and wife and the slaying of blood that occurs then is an act of covenant. This is why I believe that a man's bedroom should be his holy

9 Mentoring of holies, the place where covenant is made. When the Bible says, "Enter into your secret closet," the Greek word used is "TAMEION", which means, "enter into the bedchamber of the Lord." It is a place where the seed is released and life begins. Every home has an inner and outer court, but the holy of holies is your bedchamber, and not just anyone should enter there. It should be a place where life begins between the husband and wife. Ministry must flow through relationship. God sets the terms of the covenant between Himself and man. We do not set the terms. In team ministry, all ministry must flow out of the Levitical priesthood. Levi means "joined or attached." Many saints want to minister, but they don't want to be Levites, which requires that they become joined, connected, and related. In 1 Corinthians 11:29, Paul is speaking concerning the Lord's Supper: "For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's Body." Discerning the Lord's Body does not mean that we envision His Body on the cross. It means that we discern the corporate body that God has set us

10 Covenant Relationships in with regard to relationships. You are to discern your role as a member of and your function in the house of the Lord. Many individuals are stones gathered, but they are not stones assembled in the temple. As you discern the body of the Lord, you will discover your place: where you fit in; where God has sent you; to whom you are joined; to whom you are related. The body of Christ must become more of a reality than natural family ties, especially when natural blood ties prevent a person from entering into a relationship. If you will go to the place that God calls you, your whole family will enter the Kingdom as well. They may notice that you have sold out, and then they'll wonder why you're so committed. Their curiosity will draw them to see what it's all about, and the Holy Ghost will meet them right there. God only requires that you be obedient, as it will open the door for miracles. Because some people refuse to be in the place where God set them, they are unable to discern His body. "For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep". I Corinthians 11:30 This does not mean that these people go to sleep. Instead it speaks of premature death. When

11 Mentoring you are not in the place that God has set you in, you become weak, sickly, and you will die, because you have not discerned His body, thus failing to be where you should be. Ministry must flow through reiationship. Without discernment of the Lord's body, relationship is not possible and trouble enters. Without relationship, we are not connected to the joints that God has provided as our source. The bones in your body are connected by joints, with marrow flowing from bone to bone. If the bones are not connected, the marrow cannot flow and the growth of those bones is stunted, unable to grow. Within the church, the marrow has been cut off between many, because they are weak, sickly, and eventually die because their life blood is not flowing as it should be. They are under judgment, and God will have to dislocate them so they may be relocated. If your bones need to be reset, they must first break the bone before they reset it. This is a painful procedure. But, if a bone has been set in the wrong place, it cannot grow and must, therefore, be broken so it can heal properly. When God has to dislocate or break you so that you can be relocated and properly healed, the process is painful. You will not likely understand why He is calling you out of a situation that seems

12 Covenant Relationships acceptable to you. But He knows the end of every situation, and He desires to bring you life. Because He is God, you must obey Him and He will work something new within you. Therefore, we must submit when He shows us that we must be dislocated before we can be relocated. In the end, the Lord will again connect us to the joints that will supply life to our bones, so long as we trust and obey His command.