Greetings;
I have been addressing the need for both that which is natural and that which is of the Spirit in our birthrights and callings in life. We were created to have dominion over the works of God’s hands in this earth so we must be who we are in the substance of the natural and of the Spirit.
Let me present what I believe to be truth in regard to our callings in life. To a large degree we stand in calling. Our calling is part of the journey of what we will be, but authority is always based upon who we are today, not who we are yet to be. In the life of Abraham, he had to first be true to who he was as Abram. His authority began with leaving his old country. Because of God’s call, Abram had the right to leave Ur of Chaldea. His birthright began with hearing God and responding to God’s voice in beginning his journey of destiny. He had to begin his journey by being true to whom he was naturally, and then is faithful to embrace the process of becoming who he was destined to be by the power of God’s Spirit.
How did Abraham have an earthly birthright? Abraham’s birthright was established in the heavenlies. In the natural he was Abram, but God saw him in heaven as Abraham. Abram didn’t know the details of his name change and the process that would take. He simply knew that his name was Abram, meaning “the father of a nation”. He lived in a place called Ur, of Chaldea. In English that would translate to, “burning demons” (The name Ur means, “fire, light, a valley” or “burning”. The name Chaldea means, “as demons”, or “as robbers”). Abram was married to Sarai, a barren woman. Abram’s circumstances of life did not match his calling of destiny. His calling was to be “the father of many nations”, but the nation he lived in offered him no future and the circumstance of his marriage offered him no children. There was another important part of Abram’s calling. He was not just to be “the father of many nations”; he was also destined to be “the father of faith”. Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen (Heb. 11:1). Faith has to do with things that are not seen, heard, or thought before. The opposite of faith is natural sight (2Cor. 5:7), and everything about Abram’s world looked like it didn’t match his calling, but according to the view in heaven it matched perfectly. Abram was qualified to begin a journey of faith. His birthright began with getting out of his country.
Our birthrights are much the same. What God sees about us in heaven is different that what we can see in the earth. Our calling is also a journey of faith. Our natural circumstances and situations will appear to be the opposite of our destinies, but they are really the beginnings of our birthrights in life. Our birthrights begin in God, not in our natural circumstances. We must all be willing to get out of our “old country” in order to find our birthrights in God. God has established who we are to be. Birthright is established in the heavenlies. Calling has to do with what we are yet to be, but birthright has to do with who we discover we are. It has to do with hearing God and beginning a journey of faith. It begins with an appointment by God that leads to the further appointments of our destinies.
There is a difference between blessing and birthright. We can’t have blessing without first having birthright. What God is blessings today is what we have a birthright for today. He is not blessing what is yet to be a birthright in our lives. What do we have the birthright to be? We have the birthright to be who we are called to be when we discover the appointments of who we are today. We can’t have authority without first having birthright.
We all have a general birthright in Christ. As members of the body of Christ we share equally in the corporate testimony of Christ’s will. We share a common general birthright as members of Christ’s body. Each of us also has a specific birthright in that which we are as a specific part of that body. We have do be who we are to become who we are destined to be. Remember, authority does not equal our value. It equals of responsibility for the sake of others. It is the measure given to us that brings life to others for the sake of all that is in Christ. We must each discover who we are and we must each be who we are for the sake of others. It is not wise to compare ourselves with others, because we all share in the corporate glory of Christ as each of us does our share.
I like to call our part the place of God’s favor in our lives. It is the place that God blesses with His favor. It is the place that gives life to others. It is not necessarily your favorite place, but it is your place of bringing life to others. You will have a passion and a love for it. It is what works in your life. It is not merely a place of success that serves you; it is a place of significance that brings life to others. It will make you come alive, but that life is found in giving life to others. It is not a taking attribute, but one of giving to others. Your favored place will make others come alive for who they are. It causes you to work effectively in giving life to others. It won’t cause you to get your needs met because of what you do. It will meet the needs of others. It is a testimony of grace and dominion. Grace is God’s power of Christ in you. Grace destroys death with life. Dominion is the place of truth, were that truth crumbles every lie. Grace and dominion is both progressive in your life and they are a part of your destiny, but these are only accomplished by standing in authority. You must be upright and on the move. You must embrace who you are today for the sake of others and then be willing to journey forward in who you are called to be for the sake of others. It is a testimony of godliness with contentment. You are content to be who you are in every step of the journey, but you are not willing to be slack in becoming all that God has called you to be. Authority starts from the place that you are and progresses forward in the journey of life.
Genesis 13:14,15 And the LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are–northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever.”
The MUNDANE is ours! Our EVERYDAY WORLD is the path of our destiny. God told Abram to lift up his eyes from the place where he was. He didn’t tell him to look forward to the place he was going. He was revealing to him that the future was limitless when his vision of being who he was in that day. This is true for us as well. The land that Abram could see was a land of everyday sand, everyday transitions of tents, everyday camels, and everyday family duties and tasks. He had to see God in his everyday world and he had to see that his everyday world was the land of God’s promise. If we can’t bring heaven into the place we live we won’t bring it anywhere else. It’s not the place we want to be, not the place we think we should be, not the place we think we could have been, not the place we read about and we would like to know more about, not the place we were yesterday, not the place that’s in our hearts to become, but the place where we live today. It’s from that place that God will give us the full destiny that is ours.
When we live in discontentment we are living out of authority. We must lift up our eyes from right were we are. We have to first find out who we are before we can become what we will be. God told Abram to lift up his eyes and look after Lot had separated from him. All that Abram could see was that which belonged to him.
Food For Thought,
Ted J. Hanson
