Assignment Alignment

When God created man he was very specific regarding the function and the role that man was to fulfil in the earth.

Genesis 1: 26 – 28

26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

 Man was given dominion and sovereignty over the natural order in the natural realm.  God retained dominion and sovereignty in heaven which is the supernatural realm.  In many respects man was on earth what God is in heaven.  However, man was never supposed to live independently of God but was actually designed to live dependent upon the supernatural assistance and intervention that only God can supply.

 The supernatural is always superior to and supersedes the natural just as God’s position and authority is always superior to and supersedes man’s position and authority.  Since the fall of man the law of sin and death has been operating in the earth, but now the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus is available to restore fallen man and supersede the effects of the law of sin and death!

The natural world requires a supernatural word to maintain its alignment with God’s will and purpose.

When man fell he lost the dimension of relationship with God that enabled him to live in perfection but he retained the dominion that he was originally given because according to Romans 11: 29 the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable.  That is why Scripture states clearly in Romans 13: 1 – 3 that every human authority to govern comes from God.  And so, any legitimate change to a despotic, dictatorial regime must come through the people of God coming to him and asking him to intervene supernaturally.  This is what happened in Egypt when God heard the cry of his people and came down to deliver them from their oppressors.

However, he had to first of all find a man who would submit to the authority of heaven and as a consequence supersede and challenge the authority of Pharaoh.  He needed someone who would speak a supernatural word into the natural world so that supernatural order could restore the natural order that is aligned with God’s will and purpose. The prophetic voice is what is missing in the earth today, the voice of God speaking through a man or woman who is submitted to the authority of heaven!

The church, which is God’s kingdom embassy in the earth, is always supposed to be built apostolically and prophetically if it is going to fulfil its function and release heaven’s influence into the earth!

In this month’s New Wine for New Wineskins I want to employ two words to help us grasp our purpose in being alive at such a time as this.

1. ASSIGNMENT

God’s gifts and calling are irrevocable.  God has never changed his mind regarding the assignment that he gave man, which is to have dominion in the earth and to exercise his sovereignty over natural circumstances and situations.

Towards the the end of 2010 I awoke early in the morning with these words ringing in my spirit, “Tell my people that they have the authority to say, ‘STOP!’ ”

We have been given dominion over sin, sickness, oppression, poverty, recession, etc.  We have the right to say, “STOP!”  The Lord basically gave that instruction to Cain, in the second generation of mankind, as he warned him that sin was out to get him, but that he should rule over it!  Paul reminds us in his letter to the church in Rome that sin should not have dominion over us!

We need to understand that the Cross is heaven’s ultimate STOP sign!  Jesus came to earth with an assignment, and that assignment could only be fulfilled by stripping himself of everything that made him God and taking on human flesh along with all the natural limitations of that flesh.  Jesus lived for thirty years exercising the natural dominion and sovereignty that all of us have been given over sin, sickness, etc.  He used the right to say, “STOP!” in his life.  Jesus always had authority because he was always under authority.  He took “It is written” and created a shield of faith around his life that the enemy couldn’t penetrate.  Adam could have stopped death entering his life if he had stayed under the authority of the word he had been given regarding the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  Thankfully, the second and last Adam exercised his sovereignty and chose life and blessing over death and the curse!

Jesus gave us an assignment.

Matthew 28: 18 – 20

18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

In Matthew 17 we see Jesus taking Peter, James and John up a mountain.

Matthew 17: 1 – 2

1 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; 2 and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.

The word translated “transfigured” here is the Greek word “metamorphoo” that is translated as “transformed” in Romans 12: 2 and 2 Corinthians 3: 18.

1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

It is the Greek word from which we get the English word “metamorphosis” that is defined as “a change of the form or nature of a thing or person into a completely different one, by natural or supernatural means”.  It is the kind of change that takes place when a caterpillar changes into a butterfly.

We are transformed by changing the way we think which results in a change in the way we speak and act.  We stop thinking in line with what the world says and we start thinking in accordance with what the word says!  The centurion whose servant was sick recognised that Jesus had authority because he was under authority, and that the authority he had placed him over sickness!

Remember, Adam had a word that could stop death, and Cain received a word that he could stop sin.  Whenever we receive a word from God it places us over something.  We can only truly exercise the dominion that we have been given in the way that God intended us to exercise it when we are doing so in accordance with his word which will always result in the fulfilment of his good, acceptable, and perfect will!

Jeremiah 1: 9 – 10

9 Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me: “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. 10 See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.”

The word of God sets you over and equips you with the authority to say STOP to all of the stuff that has been a hindrance to God’s plan and purpose, and gives you the opportunity to invite him to come and help you begin to build and plant according to his blueprint!

When Jesus went up the mountain to spend time in the atmosphere of heaven (nothing to do with  altitude but everything to do with attitude) the word that was in him was being recharged by the Holy Spirit and he was being encouraged in his assignment by fellowship with Moses and Elijah.  Every one of us also need like-minded people around us who will encourage us – people who are on the same page and who recognise the importance of, and are committed to, the same assignment.

 The problem that Jesus had was that the disciples weren’t at that place yet and so he had to have Moses and Elijah show up and encourage his humanity.  After all, Moses is the guy who said STOP to the Red Sea among many other miraculous things,  and Elijah is the fellow who said STOP to the rain for three and a half years!  They knew that when you take God’s word in your mouth it works, and that it sets you over every natural obstacle!  Maybe on another day Joshua, who said STOP to the sun, or David who said STOP to Goliath were part of their fellowship.

If we are going to fulfil our assignment we need that level of relationship with the Lord and with other like-minded people who we spend time with, fellowship with, draw from, learn from, and receive insight, encouragement, accountability, impartation, and when necessary, even rebuke and correction from.

We need to link up with other ministries and churches that we can relate to and mutually benefit from.  Sometimes I read something or hear something from another minister, or a recorded message and it really engages my spirit at a deep level and I know that I am being fed with truth that is high-octane and that really me you up to a new place of understanding.  Other times I hear or read something and I really wish I had been discipled with that truth by those responsible for my training in righteousness while I was a young believer.

We need to recognise that there are things that have never been part of God’s will – like sin, sickness, oppression, poverty, etc – and yet they have become established as a legitimate aspect of life and experience and have even been accepted by many as an expression of the will of God.  That is why we are told that our warfare involves pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ!

A stronghold has been defined as “a mindset impregnated with hopelessness that causes the believer to accept as unchangeable something that is contrary to the will of God.”

When Peter, James and John saw what was happening with Jesus on the mountain Peter started babbling.  But as he is still speaking a bright cloud overshadows them and a voice speaks from the cloud.

Matthew 17: 5

“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”

When they come down from the mountain they enter a situation where the other disciples are trying to minister deliverance to a young boy. The pressure is on the disciples to perform but they are failing miserably. Sound familiar?

In Mark 16 Jesus rebukes the disciples for their unbelief and hardness of heart, and then he re-commissions them.  He refreshes their assignment and tells them to go preach.  He tells them that signs will follow those who believe.  They will cast out demons but it won’t just be to prove that God has power over demons but because God has incredible compassion for people who are tormented by demons.   It is the same with everything else.  Any other motivation for seeking signs will either produce a faith accident or end in miserable failure.  Jesus explained to his disciples that some things are only shifted as a result of prayer and fasting.  Prayer and fasting represent time spent in the presence of the Lord and denial of self in order to make room for compassion for others, which perfectly leads us to the second word.

2.    ALIGNMENT

Jesus taught us the kingdom prayer of alignment – “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven….”

Luke 12: 32

32 “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

He is giving but in order to complete the transaction we must take what he is giving!

Matthew 11: 12

12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.

He is giving it – but we must take it!

Luke 10: 19

19 Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Is that the truth or is it not?  If is true then why do we so often allow things to hurt us?  If he is giving us authority then we must take that authority seriously and use it!  Fear not, Jesus said!  There is so much religious fear in us!  Fear of displeasing God!  Faith pleases him!

What if I try it and it doesn’t work?  Why not keep trying it until it does work!

The Lord told me to tell you that you have the authority to say STOP!

Hebrews 5: 12 – 14, 6: 1 – 2

12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil….. 1 Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

When we use the authority we have been given to say STOP it is always the first step towards the faith that brings heaven’s power into the earth.  Repentance from dead works is turning away from the works of death and saying enough is enough: STOP!

Then we turn our faith towards God, embracing his life and inviting him to come and do what only he can do!  When we say STOP to everything that is the result of sin it brings us into alignment with God’s good, acceptable and perfect will for our lives and so we can pray the prayer that Jesus gave us – “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven….”

We can say STOP to sin, to sickness, to oppression, to poverty, to the natural elements, etc but the power to save, to heal, to deliver, to prosper, to restore, etc must come from heaven,  and so when we say say STOP we can invite heaven to start!

The dominion and sovereignty that we have been given was only ever supposed to work in alignment with the dominion and sovereignty of God!  When we exercise our dominion and sovereignty by saying STOP to sin, sickness, oppression, etc we are aligning ourselves with the King and so we can invite his kingdom to come and his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Daniel 4: 2 – 4
 
2 I thought it good to declare the signs and wonders that the Most High God has worked for me.
3 How great are His signs,  And how mighty His wonders!  His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And His dominion is from generation to generation.

Matthew 17: 14 – 18

14 And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, 15 “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16 So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.”  17 Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.” 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.

Mark 9: 14 – 18

14 And when He came to the disciples, He saw a great multitude around them, and scribes disputing with them. 15 Immediately, when they saw Him, all the people were greatly amazed, and running to Him, greeted Him. 16 And He asked the scribes, “What are you discussing with them?”
17 Then one of the crowd answered and said, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. 18 And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.”

It is important who we hang out with because we need to be around those who keep us in alignment!

Jesus doesn’t miss and hit the wall in his assessment and appraisal of the situation.  He says, “faithless and perverse generation”. What is faith’s motivation, it’s fuel, it’s driving force?  Love. Love produces compassion. Compassion motivates action. To be perverse is be out of sync, out of alignment, it can be defined as, “contrary to the accepted or expected standard or practice”. The Holy Spirit raises the standard in our hearts when he pours in God’s love that empowers us to fulfil our assignment. The hope that he brings never disappoints because the truth is that there is no “some he does and some he doesn’t ” with him.  That may have been our experience but that had everything to do with us and nothing to do with him.  These disciples had already experienced success in casting out demons but on this occasion they were experiencing failure.

Matthew 17: 19 – 20

19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?”
20 So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. 21 However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”

You can speak about the problem or you can speak to the problem.  The scriptures regarding receiving anything we ask are activated when our sovereignty is aligned with his sovereignty.

Matthew 21: 22;  John 14: 13;  John 15: 16;  John 16: 23

 22 And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive…..13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son…..16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you……23 And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you…..

1 John 5: 15

15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.

We have to get really serious about wanting something to STOP!  Not just talking about it, but talking to it!  This has to STOP!
If we are going to see the authority we have been given become effective then half-hearted and double-minded lip service won’t cut it!  We can’t receive anything from the Lord with that attitude, even though he is giving it!

I have recognised over the years in my own life that the negative attitudes, habits, etc have not stopped until I have determined that I really wanted them to stop!  That decision has then positioned me in alignment with heaven’s throne where I can access mercy and the grace I need to help and restore me.  Say STOP!  Come boldly to the throne!  It’s a partnership!  It is the Father’s pleasure to give you the kingdom but you have to ask and receive!

It’s time to complete our assignment in alignment!