Say What?
Ever get so angry, thoughts just start swirling around in your mind? Thoughts that just keep coming, weaseling their way into the forefront even though you try to find distractions? Yep, me too. Usually it’s a serious problem, and by that, I mean, a heart issue on MY part that I need to surrender to God and yield to His molding and shaping process and SOMETIMES AFTER that process (note, I said AFTER), I need to have a respectful heart-to-heart conversation with another person. But recently, something made me mad that I didn’t believe to be sourced in some way by my own selfishness and pride (maybe God will reveal something later, so, we’ll leave it at TBD for now).
What happened? I happened to be in a room where a preacher was on the TV, and, to my shock, he was delivering a word on the EXACT SAME topic that I had just ministered on. Curiosity piqued, I tuned in. What I heard made me so mad.
First, in all fairness and before continuing, I should first make it clear that I only heard an excerpt of the sermon. So, it is quite possible that other points were made that would have brought balance to his message. Now, what made me mad?
He was speaking about receiving blessings in our lives. That’s great! He said that God loves to bless people. Yes, I agree. God LOVES to bless His people, just look through biblical accounts, and you will find example after example of God lavishing blessings, both tangible and intangible, on His people. But how do we receive His blessings in our lives? THAT’S where we differed.
He taught that we receive God’s blessings by being shrewd in the way we network with other people. What?!!! I receive something from God because of showing favoritism toward people??? I need to determine who is “blessed” and then make sure I find ways to connect with them while ultimately rejecting others because they lack a certain status??? Seriously?! That is NOT the heart of God!
If anything, the Bible warns against favoritism and social networking simply for an advantage. Yes, the blessings on blessed people spill out onto those around them; there are plenty of examples in the Bible that demonstrate that. Not to mention, God Himself tells Abraham that He is blessing him SO THAT Abraham will be a blessing to others (check out Genesis 12:2). While what I’ll call the blessing spillover principle is a principle that I embrace given biblical proof and precedence, at the same time, we shouldn’t strive to design networks in our lives in order to receive something someone else has! Abraham didn’t do that! Neither did Joseph or David. How did these men live in a way that released God’s blessings on them?
They pursued God with all their hearts. They had unwavering faith in God and His promises. Their lives exhibited their trust in God through their acts of obedience. And God responded. God responds to faith and obedience.
Now, why did this difference in teaching make me mad? I mean, there are many ways to interpret the Bible, and typically, if I disagree, it doesn’t make me mad, I just…disagree with all due respect. Why was this different?
Well, God LOVES to bless His people! I have had multiple visions about God releasing a new level of blessing on His people, in both tangible and intangible ways, which tells me that this is something He wants to do in the near future. This, of course, requires a response on our part in order for us to align with Him and position ourselves to partake in the promise of this prophetic word. The problem is, if people take his message to heart and apply it, they WILL NOT receive God’s blessings for themselves. Instead, they will work hard, carrying a burden they weren’t meant to carry. What his message did was force labor on the people when the effort is SUPPOSED to be God’s. The application of this message will get people to do something, with their focus on another human being, in order to receive something that only God can give. The release of the blessing is supposed to be God’s work, not ours.
Perhaps by striving to create their intricate networks they will receive some measure of increase, after all, we do have the cliché It’s not what you know, it’s who you know for a reason. But the problem is that by only implementing these action steps, they won’t be cultivating the intimate relationship with God they need to release His lavish blessings directly onto their lives. Why?
The secret is that GOD HIMSELF IS the blessing! Any blessings able to be observed by others are merely external evidence of the personal, spiritual blessing of having the presence of God in our lives. By refocusing the flock onto their own efforts and onto other people, this message was essentially short circuiting the listeners’ blessings and increases the risk of putting them into bondage to “religion” and perhaps also promoting jealousy rather than facilitating a deeper relationship with the Father. Heartbreaking. And angering.
See, religion says, “I need to do something to create XXX,” and tricks us into thinking that it’s our effort that produces something that only God can give or that we need to add to God’s effort. Think: Apple in the garden—Eve needed to take the apple to make herself like God. In contrast, relationship is abiding with God and from that position we experience growth. Think: Pre-fall Eve was already made in the image of God, was perfectly unified with God, and would have continued to grow in that position had she not eaten the apple. And of course, we know the end result of Eve trying to take matters into her own hands and accomplish what only God could do…not exactly a picture of blessing. Religion is a poor substitute for a real, vibrant relationship with God. One produces frustration, a lot of wheel-spinning, heavy burdens, and no growth (religion) and the other produces life (relationship).
No wonder we are ALWAYS to test a word. Always take a sermon or a prophetic word back to the Bible in prayer. If a word doesn’t focus us onto Jesus, be careful. If a word doesn’t line up with biblical principles, watch out. We need to use discernment and make wise choices when it comes to both teachings and prophetic words; we do this by making sure they line up with what’s in the Bible. And for the record, I am NOT passing judgment on this particular speaker’s heart and intentions. I am merely taking a delivered word and putting under the lens of Scripture. We are not called to judge each other, but we ARE called to take every word and message and make sure it aligns with the Bible. That being said…
Armed with the Bible and on our knees, we can make wise choices that will release God’s truth, life, and blessings into our lives. Yes, we should choose our friends wisely, but we should never use them or choose them for our own personal promotion. We should never look at what someone else is or has and try to rub elbows with them in order to somehow get what they have for ourselves (that would fall under the umbrella of coveting). Neither of these are sourced in faith and love for God and others but in selfishness (aka love for self).
Instead, we should love God and love people. We can show our love for God by pursuing intimacy with Him through reading the Bible, prayer, and worship as well as through humility and actions of obedience to His leading. We can show our love to others through kindness, generosity, and humility. And THAT’S how we release God’s blessings in and through our lives: love God and love others. It’s as simple as that. Let’s live in the blessings of God!