Kingdom
Response to Societal Structures I
Habakkuk 3:2 Psalm 110:3 2 Chronicles 7:14
The mandate God gave to Adam and Eve to be
fruitful and multiply to fill the earth meant increased number of people on
earth (Genesis 1:28). It also was an indication that God had provided resources
which if stewarded properly were enough to care for a population filling the
earth. The prospect of growing numbers of people implied the need for social
structures that would ensure equitable sharing, boundaries and order. Social
structures are built around authority systems that include government,
institutions, leaders, policies, laws, and institutions.
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Godly authority structures
create and preserve social peace and order. Social strife can arise from
perceived infringement on freedoms of some by others and from unequal access to
resources. The principle of common good
requires that all social, political, economic structures, systems and processes
be accessible to all. It requires that all possible measures be taken to see
that there is economic sufficiency and each person’s basic needs are met. Authority sets and enforces the rules for
establishing relationships and boundaries.
Authority affords equal opportunities of for example education,
employment, business, capital, etc sufficiency.
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Godly authority structures
provide protection and treat people justly/righteously. The two primary test
for justice in a society are i) whether authority upholds the sanctity,
dignity, and equality of all human life before God and ii) how the vulnerable
members of society like children, orphans, widows, aliens and the poor are
treated. That was what Old Testament
prophets demanded of authority bearers. Their cry was that the weak and
socially disadvantaged were not being protected from abuse and that the poor
were being neglected (Zechariah 7:9 -10; Micah 6:8).
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Godly authority structures
preserve righteousness. GOD will judge individuals as well as social systems/ Babylon
The Bible provides guidance on how
believers ought to relate with authority and its structures. Authority is encountered and various levels
such as family, church, school, and workplace, social club or state. How one
responds to an authority affects how well one lives and realizes one’s
potential under that authority. The
elementary lessons on responding to authority are received in the immediate
family as a child relating with one’s parents.
Teaching your child to obey you is meant to help them learn to obey
their boss, the police and law of the land, and God. If not grasped at home society has its often-harder
ways to instill discipline and respect of its authorities.
Believers respond to social authority
structures by:
Respecting
Authority: Paul
exhorted believers to submit to authority (Romans 17:1-6). His argument was
that God from whom all authority comes ordains authority. God’s authority
vested in leaders is for good governance that facilitates and rewards good
works and uses the sword to punish evil doers. Therefore, such authority
bearers are not to be dreaded but to be appreciated and given due tribute (also
Matthew 22:21). Interestingly, the Roman
government often breached the divine mandate yet Paul still encouraged
cooperation. He must have been dealing mainly with the general attitude and
with specific issues not contradicting divine authority. The early church
disobedience when it came to threats against preaching of the gospel is well
known. Nevertheless, authority is necessarily. Even if you escape to heaven,
you will still have to encounter authority in the glory of heaven. Authority is
an indispensable asset in the kit to your destiny. In any community of people,
quickly find out the authority structure.
Then know your position/rank and its
privileges and responsibilities.
Ushering-in
a Sweeping REVIVAL through Prayer: Revival is the solution to structural evil and moral decadency in
societies. Revival is a special move of the Holy Spirit. The Bible contains the
principles and examples of revival. Revival is not a series of meetings
organized by people. Revival is a work
of God. It is God on the stage and people in the background. It is not something people organize but something
people receive from God when they meet certain conditions. While miracles are divine intervention in the
ordinary course of natural things, revival is divine intervention in the
ordinary course of spiritual things.
Revival is associated with unusual demonstration of God’s power, big
meetings, great ingathering of souls, and radical transformation in social
structures. All these associations are however not revival by themselves.
Revival happens in lives of believers who have been operating below par. It is
a divine move to refill with the Holy Spirit, renew faith, refresh,
reinvigorate life and heighten zeal for obedience among believers. True revival has happened when all this
overflows to affect the church external environment. Hence, the associations of
many turning to Christ, moral conditions in society raised and evil shaken out of
social structures. Revival is therefore a renewal that happens among believers
but produces something that non-believers cannot help but notice. Essentially,
effective witness for Christ comes not from activities called ‘outreach’ but
from the out/overflow and the visibility of what God has done and is doing
inside the lives of his people. It is when the glory inside manifests
externally in extraordinary practical forms that shake pillars of society for
God revival has happened. Revival is internal spiritual percussion that has
widespread and far reaching repercussions outside church walls.
The primary condition for revival is
humility and thirst in prayer (kneework) and repentance. In Acts 2 the believers prayed in one accord.
Also God promised, ‘If my people , which are called by my name, shall humble
themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then
will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land
(2 Chronicles 7:14). Through prayer
we can change the trajectory from the
past that is pointing away from God. Prayer is not limited by time. It outlives
its maker by continuing to operate and to manifest even after they are long
gone. Prayer reaches places such as
offices, boardrooms, distances, etc to which you cannot be.
The church can expect revival because in
these last days that began in Acts 2, God is pouring out his Spirit on all
flesh. Today is the day of God’s
omnipotent power. God is calling his people to tap into it through prayer. Let
us say to God as in Psalm 110:3, thy people shall offer themselves willingly in
the day of thy power by banding together in cooperate prayer. Pray for God to
revive his work in the midst of the year and remember mercy (Habakkuk 3:2) .
Revival makes things missions and ministry happen
faster than otherwise. Revival is God’s favor poured out. A day of God’s favor
is better in effect than years of labor. When you pray and seek to know the Lord he
prepares your way as the morning. As certain as dawn, things become brighter
and brighter until the full day. Moreover, he comes as the rain to restore hope
and replenish stores with his harvest (Hosea 6:3). The things that have been elusive for a long
time, things that you have been hopeful for but don’t happen when you expect
will happen in revival. The mirage shall
become a pool and the thirsty ground springs of water (Isaiah 35v7).
Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.
Faith
Ministries – Johannesburg
Faith Life
Center
Ground
and First Floors Sunset
Bay Building
204B
Bram Fischer drive,
Randburg,
Johannesburg , South Africa
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