Honor vs. Pedestel
Bill Johnson has some fabulous teaching on honor... but I won't try to duplicate his ideas even though there is some overlap as I write here just to simply lay a bit of a foundation:
Jesus said to "Receive [honor, take in favorably] the prophet in the name of the prophet to receive the prophet's reward. (Mt. 10:41)" This is such a good passage as it shows the way to receive impartation from others: through honoring the gift of God on their life. The danger is that the breakthroughs we may have sought for quite a while can come into a room (i.e. the person with the gift comes into the room), but because I cannot recieve from them (due to jealousy of what they have, offense towards God that they recieved it ahead of me, having a "prove it" attitude like the theif on the cross ["if you really are the Son of God then save us"], or simply not honoring what God has done in that person and just treating them just like someone else), that I could potentially not recieve the impartation that I may have been desperate to recieve, while someone else with much less maturity, who may not have even been seeking for the breakthrough recieves simply by having the posture of honor towards the person with the gift. Sometimes this can cause even a greater spirit of offense...
However, there is another hindrance to recieving the impartation, and that is to put the person on a pedestel. If I believe what God gave them is only for them or that they are somehow so much greater spiritually than I am, I will not be able to recieve the impartation that I otherwise could. I have to actually believe that I can recieve the prophet's reward rather than cut myself off from it through the warped sense of honor that is putting a person on a pedestel. Elijah's gift would have died with him if Elisha did not believe that the mantle could be passed on to him. Bill likes to mention that there is buried treasure from previous revivalists that is just waiting to find a home on another's life...
Now then, in praying for sick people, I try to study how it is that some get healed and others do not seem to. While I certainly would not claim to have any kind of formula, I do think there are principles we can learn to align to to have greater breakthrough. Bill Johnson likes to talk on the importance of sharing the testimony and how it opens the door for the miracle to be repeated. I also hear people share on the importance of having people take their eyes off of the problem and put it on the Lord - which a testimony also can do. But I think there is a third thing too. When a testimony is shared it generally causes the person who is receiving prayer to honor the gift of God on the prayer servant's life. Sometimes if the person recieving prayer can turn the posture of their heart to a place of honor for the person ministering to them they can recieve their "prophet's reward." In the end of Mt. 13, what kept people from their healing was lack of faith which flowed out of lack of honor and offense. Now obviously anyone whose goal is to get sick people to honor them probably is in the wrong area of ministry... however, this can be yet one more reason that sharing testimonies before ministering to someone can open the door up for their breakthrough.
While this is easier to spot in others when you pray for them, it certainly has been a bit disconcerting to realize how much I am having to grow in this area of recieving from others. The last thing I want is the breakthroughs I need to pass me by because I did not honor the gifting on another member of the body of Christ's life. If Jesus could do very little miracles in his hometown due to lack of honor; the last thing I want is to hinder the Lord from working through other members of the body to impact myself due to my lack of honor in recognizing what God has given to them. Thankfully, He is faithful to grow us!
Blessings to you all!
Oh, and just for fun and since every testimony is an invitation to an impartation: a woman got out of her wheelchair over the phone on Tuesday. She could only walk a few steps out of her wheelchair and that would be holding on to a wall and/or her cane. After a prayer over the phone she was walking around without problems. God is good - and I pass along impartation for you all to see Him do the same through you!
*****************************
Charles Kraft points out in Christianity With Power that Jesus did not see a miracle as something that happened that was out of the ordinary. Rather, they were normal. To NOT have them regularly was abnormal. If our job as Christians is to be conformed into His image, than perhaps our worldview in regards to the supernatural should shift to His. What would happen if our perspective shifted to surprise at a healing not happening because it is normal for them to do so, rather than surprise that one did? I think I'd find I had more faith if I saw things this way because the healing occurring is the most normal thing in the world; not something I had to make sure I had fasted and prayed and done everything well enough for to maybe see something happen.
Jesus said to "Receive [honor, take in favorably] the prophet in the name of the prophet to receive the prophet's reward. (Mt. 10:41)" This is such a good passage as it shows the way to receive impartation from others: through honoring the gift of God on their life. The danger is that the breakthroughs we may have sought for quite a while can come into a room (i.e. the person with the gift comes into the room), but because I cannot recieve from them (due to jealousy of what they have, offense towards God that they recieved it ahead of me, having a "prove it" attitude like the theif on the cross ["if you really are the Son of God then save us"], or simply not honoring what God has done in that person and just treating them just like someone else), that I could potentially not recieve the impartation that I may have been desperate to recieve, while someone else with much less maturity, who may not have even been seeking for the breakthrough recieves simply by having the posture of honor towards the person with the gift. Sometimes this can cause even a greater spirit of offense...
However, there is another hindrance to recieving the impartation, and that is to put the person on a pedestel. If I believe what God gave them is only for them or that they are somehow so much greater spiritually than I am, I will not be able to recieve the impartation that I otherwise could. I have to actually believe that I can recieve the prophet's reward rather than cut myself off from it through the warped sense of honor that is putting a person on a pedestel. Elijah's gift would have died with him if Elisha did not believe that the mantle could be passed on to him. Bill likes to mention that there is buried treasure from previous revivalists that is just waiting to find a home on another's life...
Now then, in praying for sick people, I try to study how it is that some get healed and others do not seem to. While I certainly would not claim to have any kind of formula, I do think there are principles we can learn to align to to have greater breakthrough. Bill Johnson likes to talk on the importance of sharing the testimony and how it opens the door for the miracle to be repeated. I also hear people share on the importance of having people take their eyes off of the problem and put it on the Lord - which a testimony also can do. But I think there is a third thing too. When a testimony is shared it generally causes the person who is receiving prayer to honor the gift of God on the prayer servant's life. Sometimes if the person recieving prayer can turn the posture of their heart to a place of honor for the person ministering to them they can recieve their "prophet's reward." In the end of Mt. 13, what kept people from their healing was lack of faith which flowed out of lack of honor and offense. Now obviously anyone whose goal is to get sick people to honor them probably is in the wrong area of ministry... however, this can be yet one more reason that sharing testimonies before ministering to someone can open the door up for their breakthrough.
While this is easier to spot in others when you pray for them, it certainly has been a bit disconcerting to realize how much I am having to grow in this area of recieving from others. The last thing I want is the breakthroughs I need to pass me by because I did not honor the gifting on another member of the body of Christ's life. If Jesus could do very little miracles in his hometown due to lack of honor; the last thing I want is to hinder the Lord from working through other members of the body to impact myself due to my lack of honor in recognizing what God has given to them. Thankfully, He is faithful to grow us!
Blessings to you all!
Oh, and just for fun and since every testimony is an invitation to an impartation: a woman got out of her wheelchair over the phone on Tuesday. She could only walk a few steps out of her wheelchair and that would be holding on to a wall and/or her cane. After a prayer over the phone she was walking around without problems. God is good - and I pass along impartation for you all to see Him do the same through you!
*****************************
Charles Kraft points out in Christianity With Power that Jesus did not see a miracle as something that happened that was out of the ordinary. Rather, they were normal. To NOT have them regularly was abnormal. If our job as Christians is to be conformed into His image, than perhaps our worldview in regards to the supernatural should shift to His. What would happen if our perspective shifted to surprise at a healing not happening because it is normal for them to do so, rather than surprise that one did? I think I'd find I had more faith if I saw things this way because the healing occurring is the most normal thing in the world; not something I had to make sure I had fasted and prayed and done everything well enough for to maybe see something happen.
posted by Seltzer at 5:23 PM
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