This might be a slightly shorter blog because I have been spending all my time finishing my Article called “Women in the Church, getting it right” which you can find on this site in the Articles section. There are helpful summaries at the end of each section if you just want to get an overview.
At the start, I was writing about Adam and Eve and how God gave them a mandate together to be fruitful, subdue the earth and rule over it, and defeat the works of the enemy.
They were given this mission together, and Satan’s first response was to attempt to drive a wedge between them, so he approached Eve. The rest is history. The result was the temporary dislocation of God’s plan to once and for all deal with Satan – a plan that had Adam and Eve at the centre. Adam and Eve sinned and that gave Satan a hold over them and all their descendants. The other result was that Adam and Eve were no longer ‘as one’, their relationship was skewed.
The Cross is the point where all that was reversed. Before the Fall, Adam and Eve were human but with the ability to function in the spiritual realm as well. They carried God’s authority wherever they went. He had given it to them. The relationship between Adam and Eve was not marred or strained in any way. They enjoyed unity of relationship, of calling and purpose.
Because of the Cross, we too are men and women with the ability to function in the spiritual realm. We carry God’s authority.
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28v18-20
Jesus is saying “I have all authority in heaven and earth, and I am giving it to you as I send you out…..” The Cross literally reverses the Fall, and we pick up the mantle that Adam and Eve dropped. We are the new fighting force (whether we feel like it or not)
One of the key things about Adam and Eve as a fighting force, was their unity. They were together until Satan intervened. In the present moment that we all find ourselves in, due to government rules and regulation, we have been separated from each other to a degree. (Hear me right – I am not saying the government is satanic!).
Many of us will be feeling weary, worn down, isolated and lacking in enthusiasm. My job as carer for Toby, which in itself is a delight, has been made much harder by the fact that he has been sent home to isolate for ten days, three times now because of positive tests in school. And I know there are many other people who have far worse problems to cope with. When we step outside we see many people who, behind their masks, are in enormous fear – absolutely not helped by media’s doom laden portrayal of events. Life is hard at the moment and it can wear us down.
I came across a question the other day – ‘are you a conduit or a container?’ Someone else once said, ‘Holy Spirit in you is meant to be a River, not a Lake’. As we think about that, we might think “that’s all very well, but I have nowhere to be a conduit to, I have no outlet for the river to flow to”. Like the disciples on the mountain with the hungry crowd, maybe it’s time to see how many loaves and fishes we have, and what we can do with them.
If a person is bed-bound, their muscles atrophy – they lose mass and strength. For some of us, our spiritual muscles may be in danger of wasting. It’s time to rise up. It’s time to strengthen ourselves by turning to the source of strength and then finding an outflow for what we receive from God.
In 1 Samuel 30, David’s camp had been raided by the enemy and everything precious to him and his men had been taken away. Verse 6 says, David was greatly distressed, but “David found strength in the Lord his God”. The next thing he did was to ask God for direction and the result was that he recovered everything that the Amalekites had taken (v 18). Inflow followed by outflow – result! It’s time to find strength in the Lord our God
- It’s time to push deeper into Him
- It’s time to ask Him for new direction
- It’s time to connect with others more
- It’s time to strengthen relationships
- It’s time to ask God for prophetic words or a verse for someone
- It’s time to ask someone what to pray for them
- It’s time to ask someone to pray for you
- It’s time to stand up and fight together
- It’s time to let loose what’s in you
- It’s time to be a blessing wherever you go
This is not ‘ten ways to get through lockdown’. This is remembering who we are called to be and being just that. We are not completely restricted at the moment, but the time when restrictions do lift is not the time to think about getting fit and building relationships again. Now is the time for that. I believe that God is saying it’s time to get ready. This season will pass. It’s time to get ready.
Church is out there 