Hope through Association - David Mitts
A Song of Ascents. Of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon, descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the Lord commanded the blessing-- Life forevermore. (Psalms 133:1-3)
For the last couple of sessions, we have been looking at the key of image and vision in the activation of hope as an abiding reality in the pursuit of God’s destiny for our lives. The foundation stone revelation is that God created us in His image as a plural creation. Fundamentally, this means that we are created to express relationship. Reviewing:
God expresses as plural by declaring that we are created in “our” image. The name of God in this verse is Elohim. Elohim is a plural noun of the singular El. The image of God is plural. Man, in the image of Elohim, exists as plural. To me what I am trying to say, is that we become who we are truly called to be in relationship because it fulfills the image of our creation, the blueprint.
To unlock the promise of our destiny, the power of hope, we need to pay attention to the nature of our relationships, our associations. We are defined by the company we keep, as the saying goes.
Agreement, as we stated the last session is a design criterion. We are engineered for agreement. Yeshua declared this is Mathew 18:19-20
"Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them." (Mat 18:19-20)
Agreement brings Elohim into the equation because it is the image, the vision.
We cannot escape the need for agreement, it is our design. So then when we realize the critical nature of agreement, we realize the power and importance of association.
In the 1950s after the horrors of World War 2 and Nazi Germany, a group of studies were conducted by a Psychologist, named Solomon Asch which looked at what he called conformity. In these studies, there were a series of line segments shown which were the be compared with a segment that one of the 3 would match in length. In the studies which were done in groups, the study had participants who were in on the study, who would incorrectly select a line segment which was clearly not a match and declare it a match. The study found that when the subjects who were in on the study selected the incorrect segments 75% of the time the test subjects would also conform to the error and do likewise.
This demonstrates the power of agreement and the inherent dangers in the beliefs of those we associate with.
The tower of Babel account demonstrates the truth of this reality in the Bible.
Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. They said to each other, "Come, let's make bricks and bake them thoroughly." They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth." But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. The LORD said, "If as one people speaking the same language, they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other." So, the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it was called Babel--because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth. (Gen 11:1-9).
He *said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"(what is the agreement?) Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus said to him, "Blessed( the sign of agreement) are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven." Then He warned the disciples that they should tell no one that He was the Christ. (Mat 16:15-20)
Speaking reveals the “knowing” of the heart.
"The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart. (Luk 6:45)
When Yeshua asks, “who do you say that I am?”, He is not asking for an opinion. He is asking what is the agreement in your heart about who I am to you? Simon Peter’s response is the covenant heart agreement of Messiah, the Son of the Living God.
Think of the conversation like an inquiry about marital status, embodied outwardly by your wedding ring. Someone could be asking you whose are you? You respond, I am my beloved’s and He (or she) is mine. This is the agreement in our heart, the covenant. So, Peter’s response is You are my Messiah, my savior, and Your identity or name, is the embodied “Son” of the Living God.
This is so powerful that this agreement moves heaven. Yeshua then declares this heavenly decree by saying that the source of this covenant agreement is from heaven, not earth. The Father reveals the Son. Agreement comes by revelation. We see, then we can agree. We have the term, “I see what you mean”. This means we now understand what the other person’s perspective is and can then agree.
Revelation which brings agreement then becomes the rock that builds the church. The gates of Hell are the opening that brings disunity, breaks the agreement. There is a place literally called the gates of hell in the north of Israel, where the tribe of Dan ruled. It is interesting to note that Dan is omitted from the 12 tribes named in Revelation. Their name means judge and it may prophetically refer to the role that judgments bring in causing division.
I don’t know clearly the answer to all of these things but I do know that revelation and agreement establish truth and move God. This makes our association supercritical. We tend to associate with people we share agreement with. Agreement is like a magnet and pulls people together which solidifies the agreement as their language anchors their agreement.
So if we want to change our future, increase the pull of hope in our life, we need to become intentional about the agreement that defines our life. How do we do that? Well, there are many ways, but the key is the openness and the hunger in our heart to improve our agreement.
Often, we think that agreement has to with an alignment of thoughts or beliefs. While this is certainly one level of alignment, a deeper level and more powerful is an alignment of spirit.
Therefore, from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. (2Co 5:16)
What does it mean to not know someone according to the flesh? It means to “know” someone according to their spirit. The spirit of an individual is what is born again. It is also under development in its operation through the leading of God’s Holy Spirit. What we call gifts of the Spirit are different areas of spiritual development or ways that an individual’s spirit becomes more imbued with God’s Holy Spirit.
Keep in mind that our existence is relational, and so the gifting that shapes our spirit is for the whole, not the parts, the echad.
There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. (1Co 12:4-11).
We can call this the anointing of the Holy Spirit to function in the Body and as an expression of the Body to the world.
But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. (1Jn 2:20-21)
Association then is a spiritual tool to connect with the anointing of the Holy Spirit that is present in those we align ourselves with. Our hope and our future destiny rely on the anointing which comes through association. The association we have in our lives reveals the truth we have in those areas of our calling. There is a truth that transforms but it will challenge the lies we believe about ourselves and our lives.
However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. (Joh 16:13)
Click here to listen to "Hope through Association"
For the last couple of sessions, we have been looking at the key of image and vision in the activation of hope as an abiding reality in the pursuit of God’s destiny for our lives. The foundation stone revelation is that God created us in His image as a plural creation. Fundamentally, this means that we are created to express relationship. Reviewing:
Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all [2] the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth." (Gen 1:26-28)
God expresses as plural by declaring that we are created in “our” image. The name of God in this verse is Elohim. Elohim is a plural noun of the singular El. The image of God is plural. Man, in the image of Elohim, exists as plural. To me what I am trying to say, is that we become who we are truly called to be in relationship because it fulfills the image of our creation, the blueprint.
To unlock the promise of our destiny, the power of hope, we need to pay attention to the nature of our relationships, our associations. We are defined by the company we keep, as the saying goes.
Agreement, as we stated the last session is a design criterion. We are engineered for agreement. Yeshua declared this is Mathew 18:19-20
"Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them." (Mat 18:19-20)
Agreement brings Elohim into the equation because it is the image, the vision.
We cannot escape the need for agreement, it is our design. So then when we realize the critical nature of agreement, we realize the power and importance of association.
In the 1950s after the horrors of World War 2 and Nazi Germany, a group of studies were conducted by a Psychologist, named Solomon Asch which looked at what he called conformity. In these studies, there were a series of line segments shown which were the be compared with a segment that one of the 3 would match in length. In the studies which were done in groups, the study had participants who were in on the study, who would incorrectly select a line segment which was clearly not a match and declare it a match. The study found that when the subjects who were in on the study selected the incorrect segments 75% of the time the test subjects would also conform to the error and do likewise.
This demonstrates the power of agreement and the inherent dangers in the beliefs of those we associate with.
The tower of Babel account demonstrates the truth of this reality in the Bible.
The conversation here is about one language and what is translated as “common speech”. The Hebrew words are “devarim ehadim”. Another way of translating this would be to say that they had unity in the utterances of their heart. They were one, in their heart and speech. Their unity wasn’t under God, so the power of association became destructive to their destiny. This illustrates the importance of not only being united but being united under God’s unity. But it also shows how incredibly powerful association is, either for good or for not good as was in this case.
Our nation has the motto, “one nation under God indivisible with justice and freedom for all”. I believe this is the spiritual source of our prosperity and achievements. This is unity with divine alignment.
Yet within the freedoms accorded us, we still have the responsibility to choose wisely who we make a part of our associations. Keep in mind that agreement is what moves heaven on our behalf. As we mentioned last week, this is tied to the terms binding and loosening, which are terms of agreement. When we agree, we are strengthened in that agreement, which is called binding. When we disagree, we loosed from the strength of agreement.
We see this understanding when we speak of a woman with no covenant who is aggressive in her use of her sexuality in an immoral way. We call this having “loose” morals. What is loose is the lack of covenant agreement and is correctly seen as a danger to the covenants or agreements around. Yeshua used this picture regarding our salvation, which is a covenant with Him. Look at Matthew 16
Our nation has the motto, “one nation under God indivisible with justice and freedom for all”. I believe this is the spiritual source of our prosperity and achievements. This is unity with divine alignment.
Yet within the freedoms accorded us, we still have the responsibility to choose wisely who we make a part of our associations. Keep in mind that agreement is what moves heaven on our behalf. As we mentioned last week, this is tied to the terms binding and loosening, which are terms of agreement. When we agree, we are strengthened in that agreement, which is called binding. When we disagree, we loosed from the strength of agreement.
We see this understanding when we speak of a woman with no covenant who is aggressive in her use of her sexuality in an immoral way. We call this having “loose” morals. What is loose is the lack of covenant agreement and is correctly seen as a danger to the covenants or agreements around. Yeshua used this picture regarding our salvation, which is a covenant with Him. Look at Matthew 16
He *said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"(what is the agreement?) Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus said to him, "Blessed( the sign of agreement) are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven." Then He warned the disciples that they should tell no one that He was the Christ. (Mat 16:15-20)
Speaking reveals the “knowing” of the heart.
"The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart. (Luk 6:45)
When Yeshua asks, “who do you say that I am?”, He is not asking for an opinion. He is asking what is the agreement in your heart about who I am to you? Simon Peter’s response is the covenant heart agreement of Messiah, the Son of the Living God.
Think of the conversation like an inquiry about marital status, embodied outwardly by your wedding ring. Someone could be asking you whose are you? You respond, I am my beloved’s and He (or she) is mine. This is the agreement in our heart, the covenant. So, Peter’s response is You are my Messiah, my savior, and Your identity or name, is the embodied “Son” of the Living God.
This is so powerful that this agreement moves heaven. Yeshua then declares this heavenly decree by saying that the source of this covenant agreement is from heaven, not earth. The Father reveals the Son. Agreement comes by revelation. We see, then we can agree. We have the term, “I see what you mean”. This means we now understand what the other person’s perspective is and can then agree.
Revelation which brings agreement then becomes the rock that builds the church. The gates of Hell are the opening that brings disunity, breaks the agreement. There is a place literally called the gates of hell in the north of Israel, where the tribe of Dan ruled. It is interesting to note that Dan is omitted from the 12 tribes named in Revelation. Their name means judge and it may prophetically refer to the role that judgments bring in causing division.
I don’t know clearly the answer to all of these things but I do know that revelation and agreement establish truth and move God. This makes our association supercritical. We tend to associate with people we share agreement with. Agreement is like a magnet and pulls people together which solidifies the agreement as their language anchors their agreement.
So if we want to change our future, increase the pull of hope in our life, we need to become intentional about the agreement that defines our life. How do we do that? Well, there are many ways, but the key is the openness and the hunger in our heart to improve our agreement.
Often, we think that agreement has to with an alignment of thoughts or beliefs. While this is certainly one level of alignment, a deeper level and more powerful is an alignment of spirit.
Therefore, from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. (2Co 5:16)
What does it mean to not know someone according to the flesh? It means to “know” someone according to their spirit. The spirit of an individual is what is born again. It is also under development in its operation through the leading of God’s Holy Spirit. What we call gifts of the Spirit are different areas of spiritual development or ways that an individual’s spirit becomes more imbued with God’s Holy Spirit.
Keep in mind that our existence is relational, and so the gifting that shapes our spirit is for the whole, not the parts, the echad.
There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. (1Co 12:4-11).
We can call this the anointing of the Holy Spirit to function in the Body and as an expression of the Body to the world.
But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. (1Jn 2:20-21)
Association then is a spiritual tool to connect with the anointing of the Holy Spirit that is present in those we align ourselves with. Our hope and our future destiny rely on the anointing which comes through association. The association we have in our lives reveals the truth we have in those areas of our calling. There is a truth that transforms but it will challenge the lies we believe about ourselves and our lives.
However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. (Joh 16:13)
Activation:
The anointing relies on the Spirit of Truth. Take the areas laid out in 1 Cor 12 and ask the Lord to show you how you can “up your game” in these areas:
Who is your association in:
Wisdom
Knowledge
Faith
Healing
Miracles
Prophecy
Discerning of Spirit
Tongues
Interpretation of tongues
Who is your association in:
Wisdom
Knowledge
Faith
Healing
Miracles
Prophecy
Discerning of Spirit
Tongues
Interpretation of tongues
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