We all pray for God to turn up the power, but do we live our live's in a manner that qualifies us for more power? Are we doing what the men and women of God before us did to see the manifestations of the mighty, miracle working, power of God in their lives? I don't think so.
The first part of this series is something the Lord has been ministering to me for quite a while now. It is simply called, "The Honor and Power Connection." Now, when He first spoke it to me, I was a little confused, and I didn't quite understand the meaning behind it. Thankfully, He is a patient teacher, and He is showing me what I needed to know.
So, the first thing we have missed in the church is giving God honor. There is a severe lack of reverence in the church today. I'm sure we've all seen services where people are on their cell phones, texting away, or something to that extent. I was even at a meeting, and during the ALTAR CALL people we're streaming for the exits-just because the wanted to leave the service. A few nights later at this meeting, one of the ministers stood up there, and told people this altar call isn't time to leave, it's time to pray, because people are being ushered into the Kingdom of the Almighty God, and people still left.
It saddened my spirit greatly to see people treat such an important event so lightly.
Reverence is very important, and it's something we've lost in the church. I was having a conversation with my friend, Brother Jeff Weber, and we were discussing some of these things, and he made this statement, "Reverence is appropriate activity in the Presence of God." That blessed me so much Brother Jeff (and if you're reading this now, thank you).
Let's look at a view verses that examine this subject of honor. In 1st Samuel, chapter 2, we find the Lord talking to Eli, the chief priest of Israel. If you read the surrounding verses, you find that Eli's sons we're wicked, evil men; stealing offerings from the Lord, and slept with the women who came to the tabernacle. Now, Eli was told about this, but didn't stop it, or remove them from the ministry. Verse 30 says,
"Therefore the LORD God of Israel says, 'I said indeed that your house and the house of your father would walk before Me forever.' But now the LORD says, 'Far be it from Me, for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.'"
Let's break apart that word, 'despise'. It doesn't mean to hate, or detest, or some of the strong meanings we have put on it today. In the Hebrew text, it means, "to treat lightly, and as of no importance." So, if we treat God's things lightly, and as if they have no importance, He has to treat us the same way. It's in His Word, and He is bound by His Word, to the point that He has exalted His Word even above His Name!
But now, look at this, did God promise Eli and his family that they would walk before the Lord, and be His priests forever? Yes. However, Eli and his family's lack of honor caused the Lord to then go and remove them from that position.
Is honor important to God?
If we honor God, He will honor us.
If we treat His things as light, unimportant, trivial, a waste of time, how is He gonna treat us? The same way.
He gives us the honor that we give Him.
Romans 13:7 tells us this,
"Render therefore to all their due, taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor."
So, if we are commanded, by Scripture, to give honor to whom honor is due, shouldn't God be getting honor? Shouldn't we be glorifying Him in all that we do, not just in the church, but in our everyday lives? Shouldn't we allow Him to speak to us at all times, keeping an ear open to Heaven? And when we hear His voice, shouldn't we listen to it, and do what He is telling us to do?
I think the answer is quite clear-the power is connected to the reverence, and to the honor, and to the Glory we give to Him.
We haven't been giving Him enough.
In our next post on this subject, we're going to examine how to turn up the power, and what happens as the power is turned up. I'm excited for where God is taking this!
