HONOR FALLEN SHORT

 

© Morris Ruddick

 

“ In this manner Absalom acted toward all Israel who came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel .” 2 Samuel 15:6

 

From the time that God has had a people, the evil one has had a parallel quest. That quest pursues the anointing and it targets honor. Undermining both sets the stage for lawlessness. Yet, if he is unable to get them both, the enemy knows he can short-circuit the one by laying claim to the other.

 

The story of Absalom addresses the issue of honor fallen short. It is the tragic story of one with all the advantages, who misapplied them. Absalom was a man whose potential, in life and history, was short-circuited by disorder, manipulation and slander.

 

There is an old country expression that illustrates the misuse of what otherwise might be viewed as positive, developing potential. “ Becoming too big for their britches ” describes a person who has stepped outside of what is appropriate for their sphere. The analogy is based on a corollary expression of “ splitting their pants .” The implication is applied most commonly when “showing off “or proceeding in a manner that smacks of disorder, so what results, the “ splitting of one's pants, ” catches the person short by creating exposure and embarrassment that wasn't expected.

 

Absalom was a man who progressively responded to situations in a manner “ too big for his britches ” by operating outside his sphere and authority. He took bad situations and made them worse. He systematically spread disorder for his own purposes. He manipulated situations to the point of seduction. He ultimately began using his position and the grace of others, together with slander, as a means to achieve his own ends. Absalom not only was a man without honor, his modus operandi served to progressively undermine the honor of his father and king.

“It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes!” Matthew 18:7

 

THE SEEDBED THAT UNDERMINES HONOR

Honor pivots on trust. When trust is extended by honor, there are two basic responses based on the heart of the one to whom honor has been extended. Either it will evoke a response to serve or benefit; or as with Absalom, manipulation for personal advantage will result. When disorder, manipulation and slander collide, honor will increasingly be at risk. When disorder, manipulation and slander are allied, then reality is masked and confusion results.

 

Disorder . Disorder is the seedbed for lawlessness. Those with an apostolic anointing set things in order. That is because it is God's nature to bring order out of chaos, to create and build; while the enemy is the author of confusion and disorder, which ultimately leads to destruction.

 

Manipulation . Manipulation is the devious management of a situation for one's personal advantage. Manipulation operates outside the proper sphere of authority. It is driven by the fear of man, need for approval, lack of trust and loss of control. Manipulation more often than not employs beguilement and seduction to achieve its ends. Seduction is the enticement away from the proper order of things through the use of deception. It operates in darkness and masks reality and truth.

 

Slander . Slander involves false, malicious statements that undermine a person's reputation and honor. Gossip, rumor and bad-mouthing ultimately digress into slander. They undermine relationships. They challenge and are at odds with both blessing and truth.

“ But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you!' Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not understand; and… these are the very things that destroy them. Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam's error; they have been destroyed in Korah's rebellion.” Jude 9-11

 

James 3 lays out the reality of bitterness, envy and selfish ambition being the fertile soil for disorder, confusion and every evil work. Iniquity seduces. The seduction of iniquity is subtle. It entices by degrees. As the grandson of a Syrian king, Absalom's progressive quest for honor, acceptance and power employed disorder, manipulation and slander --- all of which combined to create a counterfeit and throne-of-destruction that put God's purposes at risk.

“Can a throne of destruction, which devises evil by law, be allied with You? They band together against the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. But the LORD has been my defense, and my God the rock of my refuge. He has brought on them their own iniquity and will destroy them in their own wickedness; the LORD our God will cut them off.” Psalm 94:20-23

 

TOUCHING HONOR

Despite David's repentance and the judgment of losing the child he conceived in his tryst with Bathsheba, David bore the judgment of Nathan's prophecy of the sword never leaving his house. Yet, Absalom's systematic manner of presuming to touch, malign and then usurp his father's honor brought a backlash of dire consequences. It illustrates the difference between the one who points the finger in scorn and the one who understands the principle of “ standing in the gap .”

 

Genuine honor, like the anointing, comes from God.

"Blessing and honor and glory and dominion be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever!" Revelation 5:13

 

True honor is a God-ordained recognition and respect. Touching honor involves unrighteously maligning or usurping honor. It is expressed by “doing something that dishonors” a person on whom honor has been bestowed. The cost can be high, when the honor has been bestowed by God to serve to the benefit of others.

 

Dishonor is short sighted. It bruises those in the community that honor was intended to bless. Yet, it relishes in finding the specks in the eyes of others, while being oblivious to the plank in their own eyes. Dishonor is the predisposition to highlight imperfections, while honor is the tendency to perceive and then spotlight God's blueprint in a person or situation.

 

Touching true honor is outside God's order of things. Apostles establish God's order, rule, authority and dominion for the operation of His Kingdom within their spheres. Establishing God's order, assumes the dynamic of honor and the anointing operating together. As such, undermining honor can undermine the anointing and the establishment of God's purposes. Honor withheld is disruptive to God's order.

“ Pay to all what is due them, taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due .” Romans 13:7

 

Like any other stratagem of the enemy, touching honor can take on a life of its own. Disorder, manipulation and slander are the seedbeds that feed on one another in a way that will lead to usurping or undermining honor. In his letter to the Philippians, the Apostle Paul described his struggle with those who sought to undermine his ministry. He marked those in ministry driven by wrong motives, instead of love. Yet, he admonished the Philippians to do nothing out of envy, selfish ambition or vanity; but to serve in humility by considering others better than themselves.

 

Gossip, bad-mouthing and participation in the “rumor mill” are base practices and traps that digress into disorder and games of manipulation. Manipulation and deception mask reality and create confusion that send out ripples that undermine God's intended purposes.

“ For I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and set aside the cleverness of the clever .” 1 Cor 1:19

 

There is a false honor. Honor cannot be achieved or bestowed upon one's self. Those who seek honor for their own gain, like Absalom, are skirting the devil's playground. The counterfeit is pride and the power that oppresses and smothers. The world is filled with dictators and oppressors who have laid claim to their positions through deceit, usurping, manipulation and undermining --- as they bestow “honor” upon themselves by force, fear and the power of their position.

 

Contempt and dishonor go hand in hand. Prayers driven by ego, rather than the Spirit are vulnerable to digressing into rants that are aligned with the accuser of the brethren. Mockers and scorners fuel and perpetuate dishonor, while undermining the potential for honor.

“ Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful .” Psalm 1:1

 

THE PATHWAY OF HONOR

True honor treads a pathway of service that doesn't deviate from God's order of things. Honor, integrity and humility go hand in hand. Likewise, honor and favor operate in unison with one another. Genuine honor is far more than one's reputation, although it will certainly reflect reputation. An honorable person is one who can be trusted to do the right thing for others and not compromise or connive.

 

Honor bestowed is a high level of respect and recognition that usually starts due to merit. It is the interaction between the recognition by others of honor operating in a person; and the mode in which an honorable person extends honor. Honor practiced is the result of consistently operating with the type of moral excellence and service that brings result and benefit to others. The one extending honor to others, while building community, is operating with the heart of God.

 

Operating in honor is significant because it is a key launch pad for the release of blessing to others. Honor is never self-serving. It incorporates an authority to build for the benefit of the community. It's always other-directed. It's a Kingdom principle.

“Unto him that much is given, much is required; and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more .” Luke 5:6,7

 

Joseph the Patriarch was recognized as an honorable man, despite his lowly position as a slave in Potipher's house and then as a prisoner in the Egyptian jail. Joseph served and did the right thing. The combination of honor and the anointing paved the way for him to sit alongside of Pharaoh.

 

Honor is not the result of net worth or status, although it may involve these factors. When honor and the anointing merge, the foundation is laid for business as intended by God, with service to the benefit of the community being the linchpin. It is the fruit of the type of leadership that Jesus admonished: that of servant leadership. The mark of genuine leadership combines capability with a fear of the Lord, a heart for truth and a hatred for covetousness (Exodus 18:20).

 

Despite his many faults and transgressions, David was a man of honor. It is why the Word of God describes David as a man after God's own heart. When he had the opportunity to rid himself of his persecutor, King Saul, David's heart reflected an alignment with the heart of God when he turned away and said, “ I will not touch God's anointed .” 1 Samuel 24:6

 

The story of Job is the story of a righteous man, a businessman and community builder, who had blessed many people. God took Job from pride to honor. Not only did that involve an incredible revelation of who God is; but it hinged on Job practicing honor at the highest level by praying for the very friends who had dishonored him; and figuratively had kicked him when he was down, when he needed them the most.

 

Honor will always bear the mark of the wisdom described as from above.

“The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.” James 3:17

 

There is a reason God's Word ordains corporate assemblies beyond that of local gatherings. As we arrive at the time of year marked in His Word as a time of corporate repentance (Yom Kippur), we as a Body have need of examining ourselves. It is for our protection, as well as our release into bearing fruit for the Kingdom. It also involves this issue of honor. We, as a Body, have been dishonored and we have walked in dishonor.

 

Not only do we need to rend our hearts in repentance for our individual thoughts, attitudes, words and actions that have fallen short and transgressed the pathways of others; but we need to examine those areas that have become snares to us as a Body --- that dishonor us as a Body and dishonor the Lord. We corporately need to renounce agreement with and resist disorder, manipulation and slander.

 

The anointing will never be what it was intended by God, without genuine honor. Likewise, without the anointing, honor will fall short. The maturity of the Body spoken of by Paul in his letter to the Ephesians will not happen apart from honor. When honor and the anointing merge within the context of building community, combined anointings that bring transformation will take root. It is a dominion thing. It reflects the way the Lord intended for the Kingdom of God to work.

“ For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.” 1 Peter 2:15

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I previously addressed the issue of the devil usurping the anointing in a post that was titled “Misguided Tongues” at: http://strategicintercession.org/articles/MisguidedTongues.htm

 

For women entrepreneurs and those called into the marketplace: don't forget to mark your calendars for October 19-20 in Denver. For the first time in the US, I'll be imparting the workshop I've put on in places like Russia, Belarus, Israel and Botswana. This business startup program is titled “The Spiritual Business Dynamic in Women.” The gathering will be held at Orchard Road Christian Center at I-25 and Orchard Road. Details and registration site can be viewed at: http://strategic-initiatives.org/pages/Details.htm

 

 

Morris Ruddick is the founder of the God's Economy Entrepreneurial Program, which imparts hope and equips believers in lands of oppression and persecution as economic community builders. He is also the author of “The Joseph-Daniel Calling” and “God's Economy, Israel and the Nations,” each of which address God's mobilization of the economic and community dimensions of His Word. They are available from Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and other popular outlets.

 

2007 Copyright Morris Ruddick — info@strategic-initiatives.org

 

Reproduction is prohibited unless permission is given by a SIGN advisor. Since 1996, the Strategic Intercession Global Network (SIGN) has mobilized prophetic intercessors committed to targeting strategic-level issues impacting the Body on a global basis. ession.org