RESTORATION OF A HABITATION

And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, - Nehemiah 1:3-4

And so they said…

What was once all together, is now broken and IN great affliction!

In this familiar story, Nehemiah and others who rebuilt the wall of Jerusalem, also speaks of the proper and acceptable way of seeing a God given people restored to a place God has called them to be in.

For the kingdom of God consists of and is based on not talk but power (moral power and excellence of soul). - 1 Corinthians 4:20 (AMP)

God has called His people to dwell in the life style and order of the Kingdom of God! To be known as not just a follower of Christ, but a true disciple and found citizen of His Kingdom only by being born again! Repentance, Water Baptism, and being filled with the Holy Ghost has been a doctrine of truth that has by large within America fallen apart through the mouths of many (not all), but many ministers. These three requirements for a proper born again conception “spiritually”, dealing with Body, Soul and Spirit has not been greatly enforced, thus leaving a people not knowing the benefits or the call of being a Kingdom found and bound citizen in Christ Jesus! A people not laying hold of what Christ has made available and that is victory over sin, a supernatural power over destruction! Christ has called us to inhabit His Kingdom, His power within the earth!

During my travels in the U.S. a question was asked by a minister, “How do we get the power of God within the churches?” Immediately as I heard the question being asked, I also was quickened to the answer.

In 1 Kings 18, a dramatic event was recorded in the scriptures of when Elijah faced the false prophets of Baal. And before the fire came from heaven and consumed the false prophets, Elijah first asked this question and that was this… “How long halt ye between two opinions?” and Elijah continued saying “ if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.”

Obviously Elijah was not addressing himself, because he was not “between” two opinions. He was saying, it is either one or the other, what will it be? God Almighty or a false god? You can’t have both, just the same way you can’t mix light and dark. They are complete opposites.

As we ought to know, the Bible teaches us about living a consecrated life, a holy life acceptable unto God. A type of life which enables us to live victoriously over the flesh and into the spirit. But many of times, within the House of God we see it between two opinions, and that is…between what the world says and what God proclaims. The world having more influence on the house of God and enabling it to be broken and powerless or unfruitful…

I believe the Lord is calling for us to be restored vessels. Vessels that know what it is like to be filled to the brim and ready for use. Like when you first gave your life to the Lord, saying “Hear am I send me!” then as life in Christ goes on and afflictions come, it is easy to engage in the mentality that we no longer inhabit the type of relationship with the Lord as we use to, thus realizing we are disconnected. This usually comes when the place of fervent prayer is no longer obtained in our lifestyle! And then we know that the longer we avoid this type of feeling of righteous dissatisfaction, the more we know we are in need of a restoration of a habitation.

The Lord has called us to be possessors of His spirit, His likeness, and all that it implies. We are the church! Those born again who can and are enabled to see the Kingdom IS the church, because the church (us) are called to be the “embassy” of such a Kingdom, the Kingdom of God! We got to inhabit that realm!

Two things the account in Nehemiah and with Elijah had in common, both were faced with a place or situation turned to rubble and in need of restoration. The purpose? Well in Elijah’s case it was that the power of God might be active and shown before a people and in Nehemiah’s situation, that the city of God might be lived in and inhabited once again by God’s chosen people. Elijah restored an alter before any power, any result was shown and Nehemiah restored a city before it was inhabited. Both circumstances required restoration and both men in this accunt took action keeping in mind a promising and powerful result.

Now, through Jesus Christ, you and I who received the free gift of repentance and have become born again through baptism are God’s chosen people! The purpose of restoration of a habitation is just that! That the city of God, His Kingdom, might be inhabited within us! And also the power of His Kingdom might be operative within and throughout our life! The two go hand in hand when Paul says that the Kingdom of God is not in word, but in POWER! The Amplified says it is in excellence of the soul! I believe this doesn’t mean “excellence of the soul” in any religious meaning, but rather the quality and type of spirit we are called to posses within! An excellent spirit!

Like Daniel, how the Bible records that he was of excellent spirit! A man who fellowshipped with God daily, even three times a day in fellowship with the Lord! He was of an excellent spirit!

So what do we allow to get in the the way of living excellent before the Lord? What do WE, not Satan, but we allow to quench us from living with the Kingdom inhabited within our lives and manifest in power through it? Don’t you deserve an excellent spirit since Christ has made a way to posses it? He is calling for us to be restored in a type of habitation, a type of dwelling in Him! Jesus has made the way! A way to live victoriously over the issues of the flesh and by His grace to live above and beyond “religious” limitation.

Religion is the form of the Kingdom of God by only word or talk, yet it remains powerless. Really, religion only represents their own kingdom. Nevertheless, it involves people that know how to talk the talk but there is no step to their walk. No action (power) taken in moving forward in victory in Jesus Christ.

I encourage us all, my fellow reader, that when we sense that our walk may be going crooked at times, moved by affliction, that we respond quickly and take action as both Nehemiah and Elijah, to restore the habitation of relationship between us and the Lord and allow His power to transform us within and throughout! Let’s not allow the fire of the flesh to consume our place of fellowship with the Lord and His word, but rather to let the fire of the Holy Ghost consume our heart and hearts of all around us!

The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him a habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. – Exodus 15:2

God Bless