THE MANTLE OF POWER

 

(c) Morris E. Ruddick

 

"From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force." Matthew 11:12-13

 

In the clash between good and evil, the crux pivots on the pursuit and wielding of power.

 

In its purist form, power is a gift of God. The power from God creates, innovates and builds. It serves to replicate itself and multiply. It is the source of blessing. Yet, since the fall of man, power has undergone debasing perversions.

 

Without God, the basic nature of man corrupts power. Despite the best of intentions, arrogance defiles the purity of the power created by God. Greed pollutes it. Deceit distorts it. Given full reign, manipulation and charm becomes the seedbed of sorcery. Sorcery releases embedded evil that serves to systematically pervert and undermine the power and authority established by God.

 

Sorcery is the ultimate counterfeit of God's power. It usurps and tears down. The bottom line evidence of God's power is life. The evidence of the devil's power is death.

 

The Power to Govern

Over the centuries, the conflict between good and evil has seen shifts in the "governing" power between those holding military, economic and religious rule. As such, government has been defined as the organizational structure through which a ruling unit exercises authority and performs functions usually classified by the distribution of power within it.

 

One of the most potent Messianic scriptures, Isaiah 9, states that "the government shall be on his shoulder." Revelation 3 unveils to a segment of the Church at Thyatira that they will rule over the nations. As the balance in His creation is restored, the expectation is for God's Kingdom rule to manifest through those representing His elect.

 

This restoration of God's rule and authority has systematically been evident through chosen instruments of His purpose. Noah's obedience to the voice of the Lord showed that God's power would not be mocked. Abraham demonstrated the powerful impact that resulted from believing what God told him, while modeling the elements comprising God-centered governance. The Torah outlined the principles on how to run God-centered entrepreneurial communities.

 

God's Kingdom Power and Strategy

Jesus announced His earthly ministry with the words: " The Kingdom of God is at hand." While training a small and unlikely band to follow His footsteps in demonstrating the principles of the Kingdom and its power; Jesus released the strategy to close the gap in restoring God's authority and rule to the earth.

 

The opening scripture in Matthew 11 describing the dynamic of power operating since the time of John concludes Jesus' basic teaching on the Kingdom, which was followed by Him imparting power to his disciples and sending them out.

 

Its context is summed up in Matthew 9 with the Lord demonstrating the first steps of reestablishing God's Kingdom rule, by reversing the bondage of corruption by "healing every disease and sickness among the people." At that juncture, Jesus called the disciples together and equipped them with the authority to do what He had been modeling.

"When He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of sickness and disease." Matthew 10:1

 

Jesus' instructions to His followers were to give first priority to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and then:

"As you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give." Matthew 10: 7-8

 

Jesus made it plain to those called, that there would be confrontations and division.

"Behold, I send you out as sheep among wolves. So be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Be wary of men who will betray you. You will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them." Matthew 10:16-18

 

The Mantle of Kingdom Messengers

For those carrying the message of the Kingdom, Jesus made an amazing statement about those who receive the ones He has sent with His authority:

"He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones a mere cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, I assuredly say to you shall by no means lose his reward." Matthew 10:40-42

 

In a word, the sequence of steps outlined by Jesus in Matthew's gospel were first to receive His Kingdom transforming power, then to go, preach the Kingdom and reverse the curse that came from the fall of man. Then in staying the course in confronting the opposition and establishing His Kingdom rule, He indicated that those who receive His ambassadors, by embracing the Kingdom message, will receive Him.

 

The Shift

This portion of scripture continues by saying that when He finished instructing His disciples that He went out to teach and preach in the cities. The cities represented the next step in Jesus' progression of confronting the rulers of darkness. At that point, word came from John the Baptist whose confrontation with the authorities had landed him in prison.

 

Jesus sent word back to John that, in short, told John to hold steady to his course, that the "shift" of power had begun. Then in commenting on John, Jesus said there was none born among women greater than him, yet whoever was least in the Kingdom was greater than John. That statement was then punctuated by the words:

"From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force." Matthew 11:12-13

 

What Jesus was explaining lies at the heart of being a vessel of God's power. Serving as an instrument of God's power means that evil will attempt violence in its attempts to retain its hold on power. Yet, cracking the stronghold of the bondage of corruption involves the demonstration of God's goodness in the face of evil. The principles of God's Kingdom operate with faith and the Kingdom principles reflecting God's nature: wisdom is derived from simplicity; greatness is founded on humility; leadership comes from service; gain is achieved by giving; we live by dying; order evolves from change. These principles are the foundation of God's transforming power. They embody the mantle of power.

 

An Application of Kingdom Transformation

Joseph the Patriarch was a model of rightly wielding the mantle of power to launch a pathway for Kingdom transformation. He was called into a most unusual time in history. The world at the time was facing devastation. Joseph's time in Egypt was marked by the words in Genesis 39 that "the Lord was with Joseph and he was a successful man; and everyone saw that the Lord was with Joseph and made all that he did to prosper."

 

These words reflected the time Joseph was a slave in Potipher's house. Joseph heard God's voice. He walked in humility and served faithfully, with diligence. The blessings and wisdom of God flowed from what Joseph applied himself to doing; and Joseph made clear to those he served that the differentiating factor in him was the God he served. From that, the scripture says that "everyone saw that the Lord was with Joseph and made all that he did to prosper." So it is as Jesus revealed:

"He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward." Matthew 10:40-41

 

Despite a culture in which sorcery was freely practiced at the highest levels, in each stage in Joseph's tenure in Egypt , there came a shift releasing God's authority. When he was in Potipher's house, Potipher saw the blessings and authority of God operating through Joseph. The result was Potipher entrusting Joseph with his authority. Although it initially seemed that Joseph being thrown into prison was a setback, the jailer did exactly the same thing. Joseph was given charge over all the prison.

 

Greatness is born from humility. Leadership comes by serving with faithfulness and diligence. He who loves his life will lose it, but he who holds his life of no account will gain it. Blessing is the response to being cursed. Order evolves from change.

 

So, the pattern followed when Joseph was sent to Pharaoh. The stronghold of sorcery had to bow at Pharaoh's words: "Can we find such a man as this, one in whom is the Spirit of God? Inasmuch as God has shown you all this, there is no one as wise and discerning as you are. You shall be over my house and all my people shall be ruled according to your word." (Genesis 41: 38-39) Pharaoh recognized the mantle of power that operated through Joseph came from God; and in that context, Pharaoh received Joseph.

 

We currently live in a time in history when the level of lawlessness and depravity reflected by the bondage of corruption are such that the establishment of God's Kingdom rule is going to manifest with greater power than in any other time in recent history. It is going to be evidenced through unexpected Joseph-Pharaoh alliances.

 

The Stronghold of Embedded Evil

The struggle and the strongholds of our day have sorcery at their source. Sorcery is normally more subtle in its manifestation at governing levels. Yet, at the heart of seats of power perpetuating the bondage of corruption will be embedded evil crafted by sorcery.

 

The old-Covenant Jezebel was the ultimate example of embedded evil in the place of governance. She undermined and implanted her own agendas into the rule of Ahab. Jezebel became the model of those who tear down and usurp what rightfully belongs to others when through guile, deceit and lies she destroyed Naboth in order for Ahab to yield to his lusts in acquiring Naboth's vineyard. Over time, she diverted the course of Israel by systematically eliminating any threat to her insatiable, perverse seizure of power, until she ran into Elijah.

Ambassadors of Power

God's power operates on the opposite track by reclaiming the dominion that rightfully belongs to God and resetting the course to God's agendas. It involves the influence to penetrate key secular strongholds, not through guile, deceit and manipulation, but those seemingly paradoxical principles of goodness that drive the Kingdom. God's power-shifts manifest more dramatically during unlikely or seemingly impossible circumstances.

 

So it is that today, a parallel is emerging to Joseph's calling that will impact strategic spheres of influence of our day. Joseph's calling could not have been fulfilled apart from Pharaoh. This unorthodox alliance broke all religious tradition. It was a shift of power actuated by the mantle of power that came from the influence of a most unlikely candidate to create a most unlikely alliance with the ruler with the resources to avert disaster and release Life. It was a strategic alliance that was set in motion when Pharaoh recognized the Spirit of God operating in Joseph and received Joseph by yielding his authority to Joseph for the common good. So it will be for those called as the genuine Josephs of today.

 

"He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward." Matthew 10:40-42

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Morris Ruddick has been a forerunner and spokesman for the call of God among business leaders. He is author of "The Joseph-Daniel Calling" and "Gods Economy , Israel and the Nations," which address the mobilization of today's top-down and bottom-up economic and community dimensions of Gods Word. They are available from Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and other popular outlets.

 

Mr. Ruddick is also the founder of the Global Equippers Entrepreneurial Program, which imparts hope and equips economic community builders where God's light is dim. To schedule a speaking engagement, sponsor a workshop, make a donation or to get more information on how you can help, contact Global Initiatives at 303.741.9000.

 

2008 Copyright Morris Ruddick - response@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. For more information on SIGN, check: www.strategicintercession.org