The Christian's Inheritance (Part 2)

The Twofold Promise in the Present Tense – for the “Israel of God”

Abraham today remains “the father of all who believe”(Rom 4:11). As for Israel’s acts and rebellions, “these things happened to them as examples and were written as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come” (1 Cor 10:11).

I see the two thrusts of God’s syntheki covenant still thrusting through the church, which is Abraham’s children – the “seed” of genealogy and the “spreading” of geography.

As with Israel, this implies more than making babies and relocating into the world. For it to be God’s inheritance, it needs to include blessing and headship, the presence of God amongst His people and dominion over His enemies.

This is a vital turnkey for us today. If we had to go by numbers of people declaring themselves “Christian”, then USA should be the most blessed and Kingdom-minded nation on earth . If we had to go by geographic coverage, then surely the Catholic Church should be held up as the apogee of Inheritance geographically ?

No, when we speak of “geography and genealogy” or “nations and generations”, it may be better to refer to the words of Stephen Dempster, “Dominion and Dynasty”.

• Dominion – are the nations blessed? Are they being discipled? Is the meal salted and the dough-batch yeasted?

• Dynasty – are the generations surpassing their ancestry? Are our spiritual children mighty, or are they those who, like Israel after Joshua’s death, “took Canaan’s daughters to themselves for wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons, and they served their gods" (Judges 3v6)?
  

So, rightly, God has raised up several, progressive reformations and revivals, all of which have to some measure large or small seen Dynasty restored and the Dominion of Christ and His Church extended.

Small Malady #1 – Excessive Genealogical Focus
When we only see our inheritance as receiving the blessing of the gospel and passing it on to our family, the church introspects and eventually dies. I know of a church in Australia that is now buried in the church cemetery, and the building has been rented out for secular use.
No matter how noble the family intent, the church remains to propagate the power and person of Jesus Christ throughout the earth. As Christ came with a message, so too do we carry the same message for the multitude in the valley of decision .

Small Malady #2 – Excessive Geographical Focus
When the effort is missional more than familial - when the mission becomes a “missional movement” - we spread out but are leached over time of power, testimony and the legacy to keep things going. Churches are planted, but most never quite take root. Fathers are burnt out and gifts become “as sharp as basketballs”. For a few years, the hubris of national and global spread warms the innards with tales and testimonies from jungles to rented school gymnasiums, but eventually the movement dries and withers through rootlessness; through inter-generational failure .

Small Malady #3 – Gravitational Focus
By “gravitational”, I mean that within me that pulls things towards me. The self-focus. Most people love the Kingdom coming when it means blessing, but not when it includes suffering.

Suffering is part of our short term inheritance, in walking as Jesus did, in attaining to the same resurrection.

The Latter Rain movement, also known as Word-Faith, spawned many good ministries, and also definitely stimulated faith in churches. Sadly however, as it became a “movement”, much was directed gravitationally, attested to now by the vast swathe of TV and internet ministries, promising or suggesting blessing, healing and prosperity - if the “faith-formula” is followed. Such a push-button god is not the God of the Bible .

A sector of this focused not so much on wealth, but on doing the miracles of Jesus. Miracles – megas teras – are part of the Kingdom coming, but our founding faith should not be in them, or a lack of them. The focus on “Kingdom Now” (focused on social and national transformation through the gospel) teaching de-prioritizes spiritual ambitions as well as Christ’s return; while “Word of Faith” (focused on doing the works of Christ) teachings still all too often de-deify Christ to the unbiblical single-nature “Man with the Spirit”, thus elevating ourselves to Christ-status, once we have received the Spirit .

The more extreme statements must be contemplated, simply because many of them came from the “founders” of the Word-Fath Movement. To illustrate this de-deification of Jesus, Kenneth Copeland said the following in 1989:

The Spirit of God spoke to me and He said, “Son, realize this. Now follow me in this and don’t let your tradition trip you up.” He said, “Think this way: a twice-born man whipped Satan in his own domain.” And I threw my Bible down, like that, and I said, “What?” He said, “A born-again man defeated Satan, the firstborn of many brethren defeated him.” He said, “You are the very image and the very copy of that one.” I said, “Goodness, gracious sakes alive!” And I began to see what had gone on in there. And I said, “Well now you don’t mean, you couldn’t dare mean that I could have done that same thing?” He said, “Oh yeah. If you’d had the same knowledge of the Word of God that He did, you could’ve done the same thing, ‘cause you’re a reborn man too.” (Substitution and Identification, 1989)

The evangelistic awakening through Billy Graham and the healing crusades of Roberts, Coe and Branham were stirring indeed, and I would agree that millions of believers fly well below the altitude God wants for us. I do believe in miracles to gather crowds for the preaching of the gospel; I do believe in supernatural healing too - having received it from God and seen God give it through my prayers. I do believe in signs and wonders. I want to see more, but my gaze must remain on Jesus, and He remains the Son of God, and I only a son in Him.

One nett effect of gravitational ministry is the formularization of God’s nature, power and dealings with mankind. It also so easily lends itself to guruism (“get the touch; “carry the flame”; “receive my anointing”), imitation and a robbery of the power and romance of each individual journey and calling. I would prefer to aim at something rather than nothing, yet this alone does not protect us from all manner of idolatry in the long run.

In my final blog on the Christian's Inheritance, i want to look at the Christ Hermeneutic as the turnkey to all believers' rewards.

love

Nick