For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:17 (New King James Version)
And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
Revelation 5:9-10 (King James Version)
Let’s close our eyes and imagine what it would be like to be king for a day. I mean it. Close your eyes and imagine what it would be like to be the absolute sovereign ruler. What would that be like? What does it feel like? What do you see yourself doing? Where do you live? How do you think? What is the speech that comes out of your mouth? Do you fear anyone or anything? Is there any power in the land greater than you? What are your responsibilities? Imagine the fate of the entire kingdom rests on your decisions. You have at your command the power of life and death. You may take life or you may spare life. It is in the power of your word to do so.
Solomon wrote in Proverbs 18:21, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." Believe it or not, we are kings and not just for the day. We already have the power to destroy or to build. And it is as near as our mouth. Remember the scriptures declare, “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it." (Deuteronomy 30:14). Not only is the word “very near” and “in [our] mouth and in [our] heart.” But, we are also assured that we “may (we have permission to) DO” the word.
God gave us five commands in the beginning. They were - be fruitful, multiply, replenish the earth, subdue it and have dominion. We were ordered by God to have dominion. Why have we not been obedient? Why do we find it so difficult to have dominion? Does the flower have difficulty being a flower? Does an apple have to be reassured that it can do it – it can become an apple? Yet man - God’s highest creation – has difficulty believing (much less having) he can have dominion in every area of his life.
What does “having dominion” mean in the mind of those who live in the west? What does it mean to be the sovereign ruler and to not have our word or decisions denied or challenged? What does it mean to be a king and to have absolute sovereign authority? Do we liken it after the bad images we’ve seen of ruthless dictators who rape, kill and pillage? That is not the dominion we are to have. In fact, it is because God’s man has forfeited his dominion that the man ruled by the fallen heart [nature] has sunken to the depraved depths which he finds himself. Man was not meant to sit in any other throne but that of dominion. And thankfully, to the redeemed in Christ, this is where we are seated ALREADY.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus," (Ephesians 2:4-6)
Man was created to be God’s exact reflection in the earth. What God was in heaven, man was created to be in the earth. That why man is described as “in our [God’s] image after our [God’s] likeness.” (Genesis 1:26)
What was Paul talking about in Romans 5 when he said that through Jesus Christ we “reign in life?” Imagine, reigning in life. Sound good? Why aren’t we doing it?
Those who sang in Revelation 5 as the scrolls were opened and they declared “we shall reign upon the earth” saw something in the spirit that was already finished in the mind of God. What must we do to elevate our song and join with that heavenly choir and sing with all of our might to the One who “has made (this is past tense; finished) us kings and priests?” We must simply believe the scriptures to be true and embrace them as our own.
For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us (2 Corinthians 1:20)
Being a king does not mean owning the most outlandish of goods, but it means having authority, having power, being a sovereign.
We must begin to rule in the environments God has given to us. When Jesus is described as the King of kings and the Lord of lords, who are these kings and lords? He is the firstborn among many brethren and He is a king. If we are among the many brethren, are we not kings also? More to come on this……
Romans 5:17 (New King James Version)
And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
Revelation 5:9-10 (King James Version)
Let’s close our eyes and imagine what it would be like to be king for a day. I mean it. Close your eyes and imagine what it would be like to be the absolute sovereign ruler. What would that be like? What does it feel like? What do you see yourself doing? Where do you live? How do you think? What is the speech that comes out of your mouth? Do you fear anyone or anything? Is there any power in the land greater than you? What are your responsibilities? Imagine the fate of the entire kingdom rests on your decisions. You have at your command the power of life and death. You may take life or you may spare life. It is in the power of your word to do so.
Solomon wrote in Proverbs 18:21, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." Believe it or not, we are kings and not just for the day. We already have the power to destroy or to build. And it is as near as our mouth. Remember the scriptures declare, “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it." (Deuteronomy 30:14). Not only is the word “very near” and “in [our] mouth and in [our] heart.” But, we are also assured that we “may (we have permission to) DO” the word.
God gave us five commands in the beginning. They were - be fruitful, multiply, replenish the earth, subdue it and have dominion. We were ordered by God to have dominion. Why have we not been obedient? Why do we find it so difficult to have dominion? Does the flower have difficulty being a flower? Does an apple have to be reassured that it can do it – it can become an apple? Yet man - God’s highest creation – has difficulty believing (much less having) he can have dominion in every area of his life.
What does “having dominion” mean in the mind of those who live in the west? What does it mean to be the sovereign ruler and to not have our word or decisions denied or challenged? What does it mean to be a king and to have absolute sovereign authority? Do we liken it after the bad images we’ve seen of ruthless dictators who rape, kill and pillage? That is not the dominion we are to have. In fact, it is because God’s man has forfeited his dominion that the man ruled by the fallen heart [nature] has sunken to the depraved depths which he finds himself. Man was not meant to sit in any other throne but that of dominion. And thankfully, to the redeemed in Christ, this is where we are seated ALREADY.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus," (Ephesians 2:4-6)
Man was created to be God’s exact reflection in the earth. What God was in heaven, man was created to be in the earth. That why man is described as “in our [God’s] image after our [God’s] likeness.” (Genesis 1:26)
What was Paul talking about in Romans 5 when he said that through Jesus Christ we “reign in life?” Imagine, reigning in life. Sound good? Why aren’t we doing it?
Those who sang in Revelation 5 as the scrolls were opened and they declared “we shall reign upon the earth” saw something in the spirit that was already finished in the mind of God. What must we do to elevate our song and join with that heavenly choir and sing with all of our might to the One who “has made (this is past tense; finished) us kings and priests?” We must simply believe the scriptures to be true and embrace them as our own.
For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us (2 Corinthians 1:20)
Being a king does not mean owning the most outlandish of goods, but it means having authority, having power, being a sovereign.
We must begin to rule in the environments God has given to us. When Jesus is described as the King of kings and the Lord of lords, who are these kings and lords? He is the firstborn among many brethren and He is a king. If we are among the many brethren, are we not kings also? More to come on this……
