Proverbs 31:4-11 are direct instructions from Lemuel’s mother to him on how to conduct himself as king. There are only a handful of kings ruling at any point in time so is this portion of scripture only applicable to an elite few or is there some wisdom to be gleaned from it? Is there any precedent that would make these verses applicable to us ordinary people, both men and woman?
Romans 5:17 For if because of one man’s trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God’s] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One). (AMP)
In this verse it clearly says that we are to reign as kings in life; this life. We are called as children of God to reign as kings and not just after death but right now in our lives. Whenever we are commissioned or commanded by God to do something He always shows up with a bag of tools to get the job done. He doesn’t do the job for us, we are to get up and do it but He gives all we need in order to it.
I often hear people saying that they are just trusting God to solve a situation or for God to move and they sit and do nothing in the meantime. A few years ago my husband had a decision to make concerning his business and he was unsure on what route to take. We spent time praying and seeking God because we really want to live in His will for our lives. I heard absolutely nothing from God on the matter. Then one morning while my husband was praying God very clearly said to him, “I’ve given you a brain, use it and make the decision.” We learned an invaluable lesson from this. We are equipped to live our lives. We do not need to rely on God to tell us what to do for every move we make and every decision we take.
When we were children our parents directed our lives down to the last detail. As we grew we started to make more and more decisions until, hopefully, by the time we reached twenty-one we were mature enough to live on our own and make good, sound decisions without needing to constantly run to our parents for guidance. The same principle applies to us as Christians. We are to grow in maturity. We are called to reign as kings in our lives. Kings make decisions with confidence using their knowledge, wisdom and skills. We are to do the same in our lives. We are to grow up in Christ, know the Word, be confident of who God is and live with the authority that a king would.
It is daunting taking responsibility and it is so easy to pass the buck and blame others for the state of our lives. God has given us what we need to reign and reign successfully right here and now. A lot of children’s stories revolve around a superhero who saves the day using his super powers. The super hero still has to face the impossible situation, he still is challenged, he uses his wisdom, knowledge and skills as well as his super power to overcome evil and triumph. We have the equivalent of his super power. We live life with an unfair advantage. We have God’s favour and we are clothed with His free gift of righteousness and then when we put that together with our skills and live life through Jesus Christ we reign as kings!
God’s bag of tools contains even more for us to use. He has also given us authority and power to trample upon serpents and scorpions, and [physical and mental strength and ability] over all the power that the enemy [possesses]; and nothing shall in any way harm you. (Luke 10:19) (AMP)
So we have His favour, we are in right standing with Him, we live through Jesus Christ and we have authority, power, physical and mental strength and ability. We are superheroes! I recently had to apply for a new passport but as I do not live in the country of my citizenship it is rather a process. On the spur of the moment I decided early one Monday morning to get all my paperwork ready. I then read on the High Commission’s website that they only take applications on Mondays so I hurried along to get everything in order. The Commissions closes at 12:15 and by the time I had all the paperwork ready it was 11:15. I decided to take a chance and went along. While I was driving there I remembered what I had written earlier in this chapter and made an out loud declaration that I had the favour of God and my confidence was suddenly boosted.
I parked and walked inside. The waiting room was empty except for one other couple completing a form. I walked straight to the counter and was immediately given the necessary forms to complete. I started to complete them and each time I had a question I popped my head around the partition to the lady at the counter and she gladly answered all my questions. Once I was completed I handed her all my forms and she asked me for my proof of payment. I did not have one as I had expected to pay cash. I have never before paid anything to any government agency electronically. It was 12:00 by now but I had the favour of God so I asked if I could make payment right there on my phone and email her the proof of payment. She thought about it for a moment and then said, “Yes.” I made the payment, I emailed the proof, she went to her computer and printed it out for me and attached it to my application. By 12:15 my application was completed, my fingerprints taken and I was amazed at how smoothly it had gone. Anyone who has experienced any government department will know that this is not the norm. Frustration and being turned away are the order of the day but that day I had the favour of God. I knew I had His favour and I expected it all to work out for me. In my spirit being I stood up confident and with authority and enjoyed being a superhero.
Seeing God manifest in our lives, more often than not, occurs when we live according to His principles and confidently in the authority He has given us. We give Him permission to act in our lives by doing this. I have seen many times in my life that when I step forward into something God has asked me to do He then starts to move on my behalf and obstacles get moved. Just as a superhero needs to face the unsurmountable situation so have I had to face the situations before me but equipped with all that God has given me.
In all the superhero stories there is always a villain with superpowers too but he has chosen to use his for evil and not for good. It is all well and good to walk confidently knowing we have God’s favour and are clothed with righteousness but ‘superpowers’ need to be wielded with care and wisdom.