In the principles of serving God, when the Lord wants to choose a worker, the person must be patterned like Jesus. The Lord Jesus had a double identity. He was son of man, and he was Son of God.
SONSHIP
As Son of God ; as you work on your relationship, your work grows.
As son of man ; as you develop your relationship with a man, your service grows. Starve that relationship, and the work dwindles. Remember, a sword for the Lord, and a sword for Gideon. This is critical.
You can leave Yaounde with all the externals and not thrive. You can be like Gehazi – he had the externals. You are sent to raise the dead – dead in their trespasses, to new life in Christ. You go and all you do is carry out the externals. Gehazi carried out all the externals as was instructed, but it did not give the life. Your externals will also not produce life.
Jesus was Son of God and he was son of David. The three lines or strings of God’s eternal purposes flowing from the Old Testament are rooted on son-ship, and from the covenant with Abraham, where God’s blessing flows, regardless of time.
OTHER EXAMPLES
Priesthood was by sonship.
The kingdom was by sonship.
The spiritual dynasty of Jehoboam, as anti-Christ, was also by son-ship.
The prophetic ministry was same.( Elijah, Elisha – Gehazi.)
Jesus was adopted by Joseph, but naturally born through Mary. He was son of Nathan and David. The author of Hebrews argues that he was of Judah, how then does he enter into the priesthood? But then he is priest for ever according to the priesthood of Melchizedeck.
SUBMISSION
He went to John the Baptist to be commissioned – in the type of the prophets – so that God in accepting us remains faithful to all the ancient covenants. He told John that being baptised of him had nothing to do with greatness, it was to fulfil the righteousness of God.
Submission is not establishing inferiority. Those who think that way miss God’s purpose for themselves. See Luke 7:30
The Lord promised – I will bless you through Abraham. Those who bless Abraham are blessed, those who reject him are rejected. Notice that Jesus’ first message is a continuation of John the Baptist’s. He adopted the same practices, but as a beginning of the manifestation of God’s purposes through Him.
The Thessalonians offered the apostles something to thank God for. If right here you are not giving us something to thank God for, what guarantee is there that such will come in the future ?
