Servanthood - The Law Of Thinking

Transcription

Servanthood
by Bishop E. Bernard Jordan
Copyright O 1996 by Biihop E. Bernard Jordan, Zoe Ministries,
4702 Farragut Road, Brooklyn, New York, 11203. All rights
reserved. No part of thii book may be reproduced in any form or
by any means, mechanical or automated, including photocopying,
recording or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the author.
Printed in the United States of America
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from
the King James Version of the Bible.
In Gratitude
Thank you for your support. Withotit you,
this book will not be placed in the earth.
Cnrla L. Coles
Gerald Watkins
Deacoi~essAnnie Reed
Deaconess Board of
The Clturclz of New York 1
Zoe Ministries
Deaconess Hope Tltompsoi~b
Cynthia Cnrby
Gloria Patterson
Joyce Lee
Mary Ayeni
Monica Keise
Shirley B~crke
Deaconess Ovella Davis b
Deaconess Madge E. Boyd
Delores Ford Edwards
Elder A. Fitzgerald King
Elder Donald J. b Rose Anderson
b The Faitlz Comnt~lniftJ
Fellowship Church
Pastor William b Jane Dam'snw
Franklin b Rose Stnitlt
Jenniit Waldron-Reid
Min. Joseph &Justine Siinmons
Mins. David b Ruth Woodfork
Pastor Connie Miles
Pastor Jack D. Ullom
Pastor James b Donna Dlotcan
b Family
Pastor James b Sandra Lilly b
T l ~ Eagles'
e
Szrmmif Cllristian
Fellowship Church
Pastor Katie Peecher b
Deaconess Michelle Siiilii~ons
Pastor Richard Ebmgn
Pastors Benjamin b
Mercedes Williains b
The S~lccessWorld
Outreach Ministries
Rev. b Mrs. Kwesi Newinan
Rzttll Ma y Bean
Sheila Byrd &Harriet Btrslz
Wendy Pelfew
By embracing our vision, you have already captured a
key to mentorship demonstrated by Aaron and Hur when they
held up Moses' arms. Know this: what you make happen for a
man of God, God will make happen for you. May God's anointing that is upon this book be upon you!
In His Love and Service
Bishop E. Bernard b Pastor Debra Jordan
In Dedication
This book is dedicated to Joshua Nathaniel Jordan,
my firstborn male child who will carry the mantle
of his father to hture generations.
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:
Ministry brings with it an inherent exposure and notoriety. Many become
enamored with ministry, being mesmerized by the "crowd." Their egos become
inflated, tides bestowing imaginary importance abound and all too many lose
sight of the true calling towards ministry. Jesus invites us all to come and
die....that He may live.....that He may be seen..... and that He might be glorified.
We're called to the lowly path of a servant; to willingly abase ourselves "for
the joy thereof." We're called to empower those we are called to serve; called
to become "dream-makers" for others, allowing the serpent of personal ambition to die until God resurrects and restores that which has been permitted to
die.
The true servant is becoming an oddity. Many despise the walk of a servant, and with today's strange doctrines, many reject the validity of the humbling experience of servanthood. Yet the Word of God urges us to become disciples; disciplined followers of those to whom He assigns us, and delineates the
reward of the Lord that comes to a faithful servant.
The walk of a servant will lead you to the path of greatness, for it will bring
elevation into your life. There is no greater calling, for God calls servants, and
servants become leaders. There are no short cuts. This book will help you to
discover the joy of serving; allowing your hean to he purged of vain imaginations and untamed ambitions. This hook will bring a visitation ofchange in your
life as you step towards becoming like Jesus ...for He was the greatest Servant of
all. He served mankind through His death, and ever liveth to make intercession.
How are you sening mankind, and what are you ever living for? Something to
think about, as you sojourn through SERVANTHOOD.
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
V
PART I
Semant Leaders
a
PART 111
The Power of Service
35
PART !Ill
Cbg.listBe Fomed 18 You
60
PART IV
The M i ~ & t vof An Echo
81
PART
"GodMakes Servants
And Servants
Become Leaders!"
-
Bkhop E. Bernard Jordan
PART
Exodus 1:12-21
"But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the
children of Israel. And the Egyptians made the children
of Israel to serve with rigor: And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in mortar, and in brick, and in all
manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein
they made them serve, was with rigor. And the king of
Egypt spake to the Hebrew midwives, of which the name
of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah:
And he said, When ye do the ofice of a midwife to the
Hebrew women, and see them upon the stools; if it be a
son, then ye shall kill him: but if it be a daughter, then she
shall live. But the midwives feared God, and did not as
the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men
children alive. And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said unto them, Why have ye done this thing,
and have saved the men children alive?
SERVANT LEADERS
And the midwives said unto Pharaoh, Because the
Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian zuomen; for they
are lively, and are delivered ere the midwives come in unto
them. Therefore God dealt well zuith the midwives; and
the people multiplied, and zuaxed very mighty. And it
came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he
made them houses."
One of the things we must realize is that this society
has become the antithesis of the Word of God. A society
that is permeated with rebellion becomes a self-centered and self-gratifying society that will hurtle into the
judgment of God. If a society allows for the erosion of
God's purpose for the offices of manhood and womanhood, then we are faced with a tradition of thought that
will create demands upon both genders that were never
intended for them to fulfill.
The pressures that have been placed upon black
women in particular come as a result of deliberate
WHEN WE BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND
THE FORCE OF OPPRESSION, WE CAN
SEE ITS DEVASTATING REALITY
WITHIN OUR SOCIETY,
SERVANTHOOD
BISHOP E. BERNARD JORDAN
oppression that started during slavery and has perpetuated itself through the destruction of the family unit.
Black men have been subversively trained to
become weak in the areas of family management, and
through their weaknesses, have abdicated their role to
their wives. This has placed a tremendous weight upon
the shoulders of black women; one they were never
intended to carry. Perhaps this strain has fostered the
deep resentments that many of our women carry
towards men. Their pain views their God-given command of submission as an enemy and an affront to their
daily reality. The gospel of Jesus Christ-the good
news- is that God wants to restore that which has been
robbed from His people.
Jesus Christ the Liberator desires to bring His
women into a place of true liberation, which can only be
found as they move in the power of submission. Rather
than women continuing in a course that criticizes and
~ P P R E S S I O NIS A DEMONIC
FORCE THAT HAS PURPOSED
TO METHODICALLY
DESTROY YOUR SOUL.
SERVANT LEADERS
denigrates men, God wants His daughters to move in
an aspect of the office of womanhood that will lead
them to fear God and save their men. When women are
in alignment with the will of God, then the scripture
shall fulfill itself ..."God shall make for you houses."
Because the midwives feared God, God prospered
them, and He made them houses.
When we begin to understand the force of oppression, we can see its devastating reality within our society.
Zechariah 9:s
""And I will encamp about mine house because of the
army, because of them that passeth by, and because of him
that returneth: and no oppressor shall pass through them
any more'for now have I seen with mine eyes."
Zechariah 9:s (Living Bible)
""AndI will surround my temple like a God to keep invad-
G O D CALLS MEN AND ESPECIALLY
QUALIFIES THEM TO REBUKE
TYRANTS WHO ARE
OPPRESSING HUMANITY.
SERVANTHOOD
BISHOP E. BERNARD jORDAN
ing armies from entering Israel. I am closely watching
their nzovements and I will keep them away. No foreign
oppressor will again overnaz my people's land."
When we begin to look at the word "oppression,"
we discover the Hebrew word "nagash," which means
"the oppressed or exploited." It is an indication that
someone is trying to profit through the dehumanization
of another. Those who have been oppressed are afflicted; they live in a permanent state of anxiety as they
carry out the orders of their oppressors. When you start
to deal with the oppressor, the first discovery that you
will make is that you are now dealing with an enemy of
your soul.
Oppression is a demonic force that has purposed to
methodically destroy your soul. The enemy seeks after
anointed individuals to bring distraction and destruction upon the horizons of their lives. The devil understands that if he can snuff out the anointing in your life
YOU MUST SPEAK THE TRUTH
I
TO YOUR OPPRESSORS
WHETHER THEY LIKE IT OR NOT*
SERVANT LEADERS
or uproot the seed of faith within your heart, then he
can successfully disqualify your charge as a deliverer.
God calls men and especially qualifies them to rebuke
tyrants who are oppressing humanity.
Let me suggest to you that God is raising up deliverers to address specific situations, but most folks are
afraid of telling the truth in the face of their oppressor.
They've become complacent and silent from the intimidation of their enemy. When you gain an understanding
of the Kingdom of God, and the purpose of the anointing, you'll realize that God has anointed you to tell the
truth. You're commanded to tell the truth whether it
feels good or not.
You must speak the truth to your oppressors
whether they like it or not. God anoints you to upset the
apple cart! God will send anointed vessels with revelation and clear insight into the purpose of the future who
shall reveal the power of God in the courts of his
IT IS OUR DUTY TO DEMAND THE
FREEDOM OF THE OPPRESSED.
SERVANTWOOD
B I S H O P E. BERNARD JORDAN
oppressor. I believe this nation is not only waiting for
voices to emerge, but waiting for the voices that will
produce miracles.
It's one thing to spew the engaging rhetoric of the
enticing words of men's wisdom, but its a whole new
dimension when one is an anointed orator that can
speak in the power and demonstration of the Holy
Ghost. God is searching the earth for people who can
speak in His Name and reveal His glory.
It is our duty to demand the freedom of the
oppressed. When you see a captive individual, it is
your right and your duty to demand his or her freedom.
You must be willing to use stringent measures to obtain
this freedom by any means necessary. We must be fired
with a holy courage and go forth as angels to snap the
fetters of the bondsmen and bring them into liberation.
SERVANT LEADERS
Notice that when God raises up a man, He will usually assigns a companion to that man. Jesus had John
the Baptist, Moses had Aaron, Naomi had Ruth, and
Paul had Cyrus. We must learn to embrace the covenantal bonds of relationshp that preclude competition and
insecurity. When relationship is flowing properly, no
sacrifice is too great to make. There will be a discerning
of purpose that will not allow anything to sever the
bonds of unity.
We discover, in the relationship between Moses and
Aaron, that absolutely nothing severed their tie. There
was a willingness on both their parts to embrace the
fullness of their destiny, regardless of the price they
may have had to pay. They loved not their lives unto
death. Whenever you begin to place demands on the
oppressor, the struggle will begin!
Rebuking a tyrant is an especially difficult matter if
he occupies the seat of a high social position. You are
WHEN IT'S REALLY TIME FOR
YOUR LIBERATION OR FOR YOU
TO DELIVER, THE PAIN BECOMES
ALMOST UNBEAUIBLE.
1
SERVANTHOOD
always threatened by the fact that a tyrant can use his
seat of power to wipe you out. Therefore, you must
know the reality of God's Word: "Greater is He that is in
me, than he that is in the world."
Your reward comes from God. One will experience a
peaceful soul of which the outward clamor and catastrophes of t h s world cannot disturb. The joy of the
Lord shall surely become your strength.
When a righteous man rebukes a tyrant, the tyrant is
often stirred to a greater degree of animosity. Don't
deceive yourself; it never gets better....it only gets
worse! It's comparable to giving birth. You may feel
nauseated the first three months of your pregnancy; by
six months, you'll start feeling clumsy and awkward.
By the end of nine months, the pressure is overwhelming. By the time of delivery, you start feeling the intensity of pressure. When it's really time for your liberation or for you to deliver, the pain becomes almost
IFTHERE IS NO
CRY, THERE WILL
BE NO DIVINE INTERVENTION,
SERVANT LEADERS
unbearable. When your pain increases, it may be a signal that your deliverance is right around the corner.
When the pain increases, God is preparing you for the
explosion. Pain is a signal that breakthrough is coming.
Pain is the signal of the dawning of a new day.
God sends His anointing and empowers you to
stand against your oppressors, but He will not absolve
you of your responsibility in the matter. He will allow
the tyrants to pursue their course of cruel oppression
without interruption until you begin to produce a cry. If
there is no cry, there will be no divine intervention.
God's ears were always attentive to the cries of His
people. In order for you to have the kind of breakthrough that you're going to need in life, you're going
to have to make a sound.
In order for you to experience the degree of glory
that has been destined for you, you're going to have to
INTERCESSION AND STANDS
IN THE GAP BETWEEN
OPPRESSION AND LIBERATION.
SERVANTHOOD
make some noise! In order for you to see God move in
the way you need Him to move, you've got to get to the
place where you begin to say, "Enough is enough!" God
will cause that cry to begin to well up on the inside of
you.
When you get tired of the situation of your own people and develop an appetite for change, you're going to
have to begin to cry. If you're tired of your family living the way that they're living, may I suggest to you
that you're going to have to lift your voice to heaven
and let out a cry. If you want to experience true deliverance, somebody's going to have to make some noise.
There's a progression that signals deliverance: oppression, the cry, and then, liberation. The cry becomes your
mediator. The cry becomes your intercession. Somehow,
your cry stands in the gap between oppression and Iiberation.
WHENBETTER IS AVAILABLE, YOUR
GOOD IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH.
SERVANT LEADERS
Could it be that the reason some of us haven't seen
our breakthrough is because we've adapted to the
mediocrity in our lives? Could it be that some of us
have become complacent in our circumstances?Are we
afraid of the upheaval that change will bring? If you're
not willing to change, then you forfeit your right to
complain. If you find that you're feeling powerless and
victimized, then I've got news for you! It's time to get
upset!
Tlus saying has become a living reality in me:
"When better is available, your good is not good
enough." Some of you have succumbed to normality.
You're learning to deal on the level called "average."
You've got to move beyond the safety net of average
and open your mouth. God cannot do anything for you
while you're in bondage as long as you keep your
mouth closed. Freedom is costly, and you must be willing to pay the price to obtain it.
YOU MUST RETAIN THE ABIILHT'Y
TO STOOP AND SERVE, FOR THAT
IS THE CALL OF GOD THAT IS
UPON ALL OF OUR LIVES.
SERVANTHOOD
The difference between the cry of a man and that of
an animal is that though an animal roars in protest to its
treatment, it must submit. An animal's shout is not a
call for a savior. A man who is in covenant with God
becomes a prophetic voice heralding the move of God.
The cry becomes the voice of God. Why? Because the
great cry making itself heard on the earth is the voice of
God protesting the unjust oppression of God's people.
This is why we must be touched with the infirmities of
others.
We must learn to walk where people are walking.
You may need to walk the streets of your city and talk
to the homeless. All of them are not on drugs; nor are
they psychotic. Some of them are very educated and
hold several degrees. And remember, "There, but for
the grace of God, go I." Even as you read this book,
some of you are one step away from living in a shelter.
None of us can hold ourselves in such high esteem that
we forget what it is like to live through hard times. You
A MINISTER SHOULD NEVER
I
BE FOUND BORROWING MONEY
FROM PARISHIONERSI FOR IT IS
AM ABUSE OF THE OFFICE.
I
SERVANT LEADERS
cannot allow prosperity to desensitize you to the needs
and the pain of others. You must retain the ability to
stoop and serve, for that is the call of God that is upon
all of our lives.
What does it really mean to serve? What does it really mean to stoop? What does it really mean to function
as a minister? A deacon? A deaconess? What does it
really mean to answer the call of God?
The call of God is a call for service. It is not a call to
be served. Often, individuals looking at the panorama
of ministry will begin to formulate an erroneous picture
of ministry in their minds. They become enraptured by
the thought of being seen, or being addressed by a title,
or by wearing distinctive clothing. Yet you must know
that whatever talent God has given you, He put it there
so that you can serve in greatness. This gift of prophecy that God has given to me wasn't placed in my life for
me to enjoy it, but to serve others. Sornetimes, leaders
I
I
THEHIGHER YOU GO IN
MINISTRY/ THE LOWER YOU
I
I
SERVANTHOOD
have the wrong impression of ministry. They think ministry is to be served, but ministry is to serve. Ministry is
never self-serving, but willingly embraces the burdens
of others. Ministry embraces the responsibility of intercession. You will be compelled to labor and walk the
floor until you get a breakthrough on someone else's
behalf.
My job is to walk the floors until I can get a solution.
The Bible speaks of those who labored in prayer
(Epharoditis). Regardless of the office that you occupy,
your primary function is to serve. Therefore we need to
understand as ministers, leaders, care group leaders,
that our function is to serve. The office of ministry was
never meant to become a license to abuse the people of
God. A title was never meant to empower a minister's
intimidation tactics. A minister should never be found
borrowing money from parishioners, for it is an abuse
of the office. If anything, a minister should be found
empowering others and rescuing them from the dilem-
EVERYFOUNDATION
MUST BE WALKED UPON,
SERVANT LEADERS
mas of life.
Service has got to emanate from a love that never
tires. Service will compel you to go the extra mile to
make things happen, even when they shouldn't happen. Service will cause you to pursue excellence in
order to give people the quality of life they deserve. As
a bishop, my service requires me to continually dig
within the scriptures for revelation to strengthen and
capacitate the people of God. We are called to serve one
another. It should not be a strange thing to see ministers serving in the choir. No one should ever become so
big that he or she cannot be seen singing. Regardless of
whether you like the robes, you should be willing to
serve.
Zoe Ministries' choir wears a red cassock with a
white surplice. Esthetically, the robes may not be fabulous in the eyes of most spectators, but they are meant
to be garments of hmility. The white linen represents
LEADERSARE TO BECOME THE
PRIME E?UMFILE OF SERVICE HN
THE HOUSE
OF THE LORD,
SERVANTHOOD
righteousness, and the red cassock represents service.
Each time choir members don robes, they are reminded
of their high calling in Christ. They cannot meditate on
the greatness of sound, or boast in who they think they
are. Nor can they ever allow themselves to embrace the
accolades of men. But they must always remember that
the righteousness of God has been imputed to them,
and their ministry of song must always arise before the
Lord in humility.
The Bishopric is frequently misunderstood. People
see the ornate garments and think that the bishop is
boasting of his princely stature in Christ. This is what
makes most people leery of the word "bishop". Yet each
garment that is worn by the bishop represents his service. A cincture is tied around the waist of the bishop,
signifying that he is encircled with the strength of God.
He is reminded to imitate Jesus girding Himself with a
towel, while bending down to wash His disciples7feet.
The higher you go in ministry, the lower you are
FAELON THE ROCKAND BE
BROKEN, RATHER THAN HAVE
THE ROCKFALL ON YOU
SERVANT LEADERS
required to stoop.
Jesus said those who desire to be greatest must
become the servant of all. A person with the heart of a
servant will do whatever it takes to assure that the job
gets done. A servant isn't concerned about blame. If
something didn't go right, a servant will take the blame
and find a solution. He'll find a way to bring compensation for an error, and will not rest until the need is
met. When you say that you're an apostle or a prophet,
this is the reality of those two offices. Your life is not
your own. You become foundational ministry, and you
must become the floor for the feet of people to trample.
Every foundation must be walked upon. You'll
experience identification with Christ in many realms;
you'll be spat upon, talked about, misjudged, misunderstood, criticized, abused and betrayed. Yet you will
find that the grace of God will ever be present so that
you may smile and continue to serve, for your purpose
IF THE SHEPHERD CANNOT
BE LOCATED THEN THE
SHEEP WILL BE LOST.
SERVANTHOOD
is to become a foundation in the House of the Lord.
Jesus was God manifested in the flesh. And though
His purpose was to serve God, He was also found sewing man. He could wash the feet of the lesser. He wasn't so big that He couldn't handle and smell the offensive parts of men. He was God, but He wasn't so big
that He couldn't wash the feet of the lesser. Pride goes
before a fall. When you feel that your title precludes
your sweeping a floor or cleaning a toilet, you can consider your ministry corrupted by your conceit. Leaders
are to become the prime example of service in the
House of the Lord.
There is a level of elevation that God desires to bring
many into, but He wouldn't be able to stand many of us
if He did. We'd get so grand and high-minded thdt we'd
be better off broke! If you find yourself recoiling when
someone asks you to do a menial task, then you need
deliverance. If you're insulted when your name isn't
HAVETHE HEART TO MENTOR
OTHERS AND SHOW THEM THE
ROPES THAT YOU BURNED
YOUR HANDS CLIMBING,
SERVANTHOOD
is to become a foundation in the House of the Lord.
Jesus was God manifested in the flesh. And though
His purpose was to serve God, He was also found serving man. He could wash the feet of the lesser. He wasn't so big that He couldn't handle and smell the offensive parts of men. He was God, but He wasn't so big
that He couldn't wash the feet of the lesser. Pride goes
before a fall. When you feel that your title precludes
your sweeping a floor or cleaning a toilet, you can consider your ministry corrupted by your conceit. Leaders
are to become the prime example of service in the
House of the Lord.
There is a level of elevation that God desires to bring
many into, but He wouldn't be able to stand many of us
if He did. We'd get so grand and high-minded that we'd
be better off broke! If you find yourself recoiling when
someone asks you to do a menial task, then you need
deliverance. If you're insulted when your name isn't
HAVETHE HEART TO MENTOR
OTHERS AND SHOW THEM THE
ROPES THAT YOU BURNED
YOUR HANDS CLIMBING.
SERVANT LEADERS
called, or angry if you're asked to wash dishes or move
boxes; if you feel insulted if someone asks you to do a
task that will dirty your hands, then you need to beg
God for deliverance! You need to desperately search for
deliverance; go find some toilets and clean them with a
toothbrush. Separate the garbage and treat yourself to
a smelly mess! Fall on the Rock and be broken, rather
than have the Rock fall on you and be crushed!
What have you really given back to your community or society without looking for a reward? What are
the motives that are lurking in your heart? God wants
to push you into greatness. But He also knows that
before we can come into greatness, He has to break us.
Your ability to be humbled determines the elevation
into which you may come. When two of Jesus' disciples
became overtaken by ambition and their mother tried to
manipulate them into the two choicest seats at Jesus'
WHENYOU ARE IN TOUCH WITH
THE SOURCE
AND SUBSTANCE
THAT CAN PRODUCE WEALTH IN
A HEARTBEAT, THEN YOU WILL
NEVER BE FEARFUL OF GIVING.
I
SERVANTHOOD
right and left hands, He replied, "But whosoever will be
great among you, let him be your minister."
Can you afford to have your phone number listed?
Or do you keep it unlisted because you don't want to be
bothered? Perhaps you're hiding something ....or are
you simply hiding? W h e n I tell great men and women
o f God all across the country that m y phone number is
listed, they're amazed. I've told many that i f the sheep
cannot find the shepherd, then there is no need for the
shepherd to be the shepherd. I don't care where I move
or wherever I go, m y sheep will know m y voice.
There are demands upon the shoulders o f every
level of ministry. Those called into the office of the
prophet face a unique set o f demands. They must be
able to tell the truth and speak forth the word o f the
Lord. Jesus trained His disciples daily. They ushered
and handled the needs o f the people. They did not
preen before the people in grandeur, boasting o f their
GODSENT YOU INTO HISHOUSE
SO THAT YOU CAN EXPERIENCE THE
ABASEMENT OF SERVANTHOOD.
SERVANT LEADERS
proximity to Christ. Instead, they easily lead through
their service. Their example was one that the people
could admire. When they were elevated as apostles, I
don't believe that the people resented their selection. I
believe that the people could agree with the will of God,
and attest to their character and servanthood in their
midst. They had been fed naturally at the disciples'
hands, and thus had no problem eating their spiritual
truths.
The disciples cleaned after meetings, served as
bodyguards to Jesus, and kept the crowds from thronging Him. They served as chauffeurs; they drove and
steered the ship. God somehow hand picks individuals
and enrolls them in The Lord's Academy of Service.
This is what brings balance to the message of prosperity. If your character is shady, money increases what you
really are. If you're selfish, money will magnify your
selfishness. If you lust after power, money will turn you
into a self-serving dictator. If you're not broken inside,
A TRUE SERVANT DOESN'T
HAVE ANY
OTHER DESIRE EXCEPT TO SERVE
HE LACKS A JOB DESCRIPTION.
-
SERVANTHOOD
BISHOP
E. BERNARD IORDAN
you can't handle wealth. It will destroy you. It will
magnify the perversion of your character. If you've forgotten who you really are, you need to come in touch
with reality. Go to your local psychiatric ward and talk
with people whose minds are gone. Then when you
come back into the house of the Lord, it will be easy for
you to praise God. Perhaps you need to work in a shelter one day a week, and share what you know with
someone who was less fortunate than yourself. Don't
be so proud that you can't go back and reach for others.
Have the heart to mentor others and show them the
ropes that you burned your hands climbing.
Until we can understand what it means to go without, what will sacrificial giving ever mean to us? If we
were living in the book of Acts, would we have been
ready for an Acts chapter 5 offering? Could God entrust
us in 1996 to sell our houses and land and lay it down
at the Apostle's feet? We frequently stand in the Lord's
Presence and utter these words: "Lord I want more of
GODMADE PROVISIONS FOR
YOUR PAIN - HE EQUIPPED YOU
WITH THE WEAPON OF CRYING.
SERVANT LEADERS
You. I'll do anything for You; You're my Lord." Most
of us will find out that we've been lying, for when the
Lord answers, "Eat of My flesh, and drink of My
blood," we cringe and act like we don't know what He's
talking about. He wants to know if you can walk away
from the riches that have come into your possession the
same way He walked away from His.
Can you walk away from your great possessions the
same way you did 10 years ago when all you had was
$loo? Can you walk away from ten thousand today? He
is the same God that moved upon you ten years ago for
$100. Can you hear His Voice today concerning $10,000?
If He brought you to your present level, can't He do it
again?
This is a test to know if you've really mastered prosperity; when you can have it all and give it all away.
Masters of prosperity know that if all is emptied, they
can refill again because the laws of God are everlasting
IF YOU FALL UPON THE LORD,
HE'LLBREAK, MOLD
AND HEAL YOU.
SERVANTHOOD
BISHOP E. BERNARD IORDAN
to everlasting, and will continually produce after their
own kind. When you are in touch with the Source and
Substance that can produce wealth in a heartbeat, then
you will never be fearful of giving.
What does it profit a man to gain the whole world
and lose his soul? Where am I called to serve? How am
I to serve? Some of you need to renew your commitments. You must go beyond your feelings and understand your calling. Your wealth is not coming through
your job, but your wealth is found in your vocation.
When I say "calling", don't associate that with ministy;
get that out of your mind! Many are called to sing, teach
or dance. You may be called to establish a school or
become a scientist.
You must move beyond the job that "pays your
bills" and discover your calling. Understand what you
are called to do, and focus upon your target. The
Scripture speaks of Joseph the dreamer. He had the
DONOT BECOME STAGNANT
-
AND TOXIC MOVE BEYOND
YOUR POINT OF PAIN.
SERVANT LEADERS
innate ability to dream and interpret dreams, yet the circumstances of his life caused him to interpret the
dreams of other men and serve them while he himself
laid in a prison state. He could have become frustrated
like many of us would in this generation, and resented
his predicament. He could have become angry with
God and listed all his valid reasons of complaint. "God,
You've done me wrong! Look what my brothers have
done! After being made a slave, I finally got some recognition at Potiphar's house, and his wife lied on me. And
now, I'm in prison. My whole life is ruined, and it's all
Your fault! I'll show You! I will not prophesy, and I will
not interpret another dream."
If Joseph had harbored this type of attitude, he
would have remained in jail all the days of his life, and
would have discovered his answer in eternity. Can you
imagine how he would have felt if God said, "Joseph,
you were just two dreams and an interpretation away
from a palace experience."
AN EXCUSE IS NOTHING
BUT A GUARDED LIE.
J
27
SERVANTHOOD
Why did God call you to serve? Why did He send
you to your local church? You may have thought you
were sent to prophesy. Maybe you thought He sent you
to receive some good teaching, because after all, you've
got "ministry" to fulfill. But I've got some news for
you: God sent you into His house so that you can experience the abasement of servanthood.
Many people are so busy chasing their own dreams
that they're missing the dream that God is calling for
them to catch. God's dream is the one that you're supposed to chase and unlock, for hidden within is the
door that you'll walk through in order to come into
your own inheritance. God continually intervenes in the
hope that you would catch the revelation. Some of you
were supposed to be fired from your jobs, but God's
mercy kept you there. He said, "I'll keep them there for
my servant's sake, because I know they'll be faithful in
giving." Others remain under His eye; He watches to
see when you are going to allow the talents He blessed
EGOTISTICAL
PEOPLE ESPECIALLY
HAVE A HARD TIME SEEING THE
TRUTH ABOUT THEMSELVES.
SERVANT LEADERS
you with to be expressed in the House of the Lord. He's
especially watching those that will audition for the
world, yet refuse to be seen within the ministry of arts.
What has God given you that you're rejecting?
What gift do you give in the House of the Lord with
strings attached to manipulate and control others?
what is your motivation? A true servant doesn't have
any other desire except to serve. A true servant lacks a
job description. A servant will do his or her work, and
everyone else's work, too. A servant will desire to meet
the need; even at the risk of doing the wrong thing. A
servant will say, "Scream at me for doing the wrong
thing, and teach me to do the right thing. I just want to
serve to the best of my ability."
Could it be that some of us are trapped in a groove
of life like a scratched record because we have not been
able to move past the scars of an old wound? Could that
be why you refuse to serve another? Could it be that
A SERVANT SHOULD CONSTANTLY
SEEK TO SERVE TO THE
BEST OF HIS ABILITY.
SERVANTHOOD
God called you to serve in an area, but you're so busy
petting your fears and insecurities that you've aborted
several different assignments ...including those from the
last church to which you belonged?
All the world is waiting for the rest of the music of
your life to play out, but you're caught up in a scratch.
Why do you think that your pain is so exceptional?
We've ALL been hurt at one time or another! The
moment you came out of your mamma's belly, the doctor hit you on your backside to let you know that you
would always encounter pain.
God made provisions for your pain; He equipped
you with the weapon of crying, but He also made sure
you would feel the sting. We fear the repetition of pain,
and buiid walls to protect ourselves from any reoccurrence. But the law of God built into the universe is that
you can't run, and you can't hide. The cycle is bound to
repeat itself!
IF YOU LUST AFTER POWER,
MONEY WILL TURN YOU INTO
A SELF-SERVING DICTATOR.
30
SERVANT LEADERS
Even if you leave your current church and come
here to Zoe, you're going to run into your pain again
until you master what you're called to master. If you
had a fallout with your last pastor, and come to Zoe
looking for refuge, I can guarantee, when the honeymoon is over, you'll have a fallout with me, too!
Your song of woe will begin again! Many people
think they're singing a new song, but they've forgotten
the beginning stanza because they've been caught in the
groove for so long. It's time to move beyond your hurt,
beyond your pain, and exchange the song of woe for the
song of praise! It's time to confront and deal with situations. It's time for you to rest in the grace of God, and
see things from His perspective.
You need the grace of God to surrender to His dealings in your life. As I said before, fall upon the Rock
before the Rock crushes you. If you fall upon the Lord,
He'll break, mold and heal you. But if you persist in try-
YOURWEALTH IS NOT COMING
\
THROUGH YOUR JOB, BUT
YOUR WEALTH IS FOUND
IN YOUR VOCATION.
I
SERVANTHOOD
ing to avoid His dealings, the rock will fall upon you
and grind you to powder.
Sometimes, we've wondered what happened to certain people in the course of their lives. Some people
seem to have become stagnant and toxic; they never
seem to have progressed beyond their point of pain.
They seem to be broken by life; never entering the
realms of mastery to which they had been called. They
covenant with mediocrity, which engulfs them in a
cloud of death that consumes their spirit. They refuse to
be broken by an act of their own will to see themselves
though the mirror of truth and fall upon the Rock.
One of the most traumatic things an individual can
ever experience is to see himself through God's eyes,
where all the deceit of the heart is exposed and you see
yourself as God sees you. All the wickedness and evil
that lurks within is brought to the surface, so that you
can understand the sacrificial blood of Jesus that was
shed to cleanse you from all sin. Egotistical people espe-
MANYPEOPLE ARE SO BUSY CHASING
THEIR OWN DREAMS THAT THEY ARE
MISSING THE DREAM THAT GODIS
I
CALLING THEM TO CATCH.
I
SERVANT LEADERS
cially have a hard time seeing the truth about themselves. The power of denial will allow you to repeatedly lie to yourself, finding excuses and blame for your
failure in life. "It's my mother's fault." "My Daddy was
abusive." Remember, excuses are guarded lies, protected by your lofty opinion of yourself that is seeking to
hide from responsibility.
Now the way of God is this: He may not come today
or tomorrow; as a matter of fact, He'll let you keep on
going in your own way. He'll allow you to continue in
error. He'll allow it to become so visible that other folks
will discern your mess. Then, He'll bring a day of visitation when He simply falls on you and says, "OOPS!
There it is!" And He'll leave you right where you are as
a sign from which others wiil lea;. Ask ~ o what
d He
has placed within you that He desires for you to give
unto others. What part of you is supposed to be spent in
service to fulfill your destiny? It is vital that you fulfill
your purpose, because if you don't, you will incur a
costly penalty that will echo the voice of regret in your
ears for the rest of your natural life.
"OurWorld Is A College,
&ventsAre Teachers9
Happiness is the Graduating
Point, Character is l"he
Diploma God Gives Man."
P A R T II
Luke 9: 57-62
"And it came to pass, thnt, as they went in the wny, n certnin man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee wlzithersoever thou goest. Aizd Jesus snid unto him, Foxes have
holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man
hntlz izot where to lny his hend. And he snid unto nnother, Follow me. But he snid, Lord, suffer mefirst to go and
bury m y fnther. Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bttry
their dead: but go thou nnd prench the kingdom of God.
And nizotlzer also said, Lord, I will follow thee: but let me
first go bid them farewell, which are at home nt m y house.
Aizd Jesus snid unto him, No mnn, hnving put his hand to
the plough, nnd looking bnck, is fit for the kingdom of
God."
I cannot stress enough that servanthood, costly
though it may be to your own persona, can never be
looked upon as demeaning. No matter how great a
stature of elevation comes to you in life, you must
always exemplify the heart of servant. No matter how
blessed you are, no matter how rich you become, you
must always be able to stoop down and wash your
brother's feet. If our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,
could stoop and serve, how much more should we?
Even the world understands the power of service. Walt
Disney built an empire on the foundation of service.
Each of his employees must learn the techniques of service, and in doing so, keep the legacy of his dream alive.
We who serve in the House of the Lord have an even
greater legacy; the vision of the Lord has been entrusted unto us. What will we do with our charge?
Peter was a good adjutant and an excellent deacon,
but could not see beyond a positional Jesus. He was so
enamored with Jesus' status that He missed the Lord's
function. He tried to refuse Jesus' stooping, saying,
"No, Lord ...You don't have to wash my feet." And
Jesus replied, "Well, if I wash them not, you'll have no
SERVANTHOOD,
COSTLY THOUGH
IT MAY BE TO YOUR PERSONA,
CAN NEVER BE LOOKED
UPON AS DEMEANING.
SERVANTHOOD
B I i H O P E. BERNARD jORDAN
part of Me." Our Lord was trying to show them all that
even after you've worked miracles, walked in the glory
of God and received the accolades of men, you're never
too good to serve.
This is the essence of Christianity. We are to serve
the world, and impact our communities. But we cannot
entertain a global vision if we cannot serve those who
are rigfit at our door. Stature and position should never
overshadow the call to serve. Don't allow a title to limit
your role of a servant. In other words, you may be a
minister's wife, and asked to sing in the choir. If you
think that all you can do is sit on the sidelines and
flaunt your position, then you've missed the purpose of
God for your life.
All true servants will cover the leader. Servanthood
must be the order of the day, or the church will erode
into a social club where the "haves" are separated from
the "have-nots." The "haves" will sit with their noses in
NOMATTER HOW BLESSED YOU ARE
OR HOW RICH YOU BECOME, YOU MUST
ALWAYS BE ABLE TO STOOP DOWN
AND WASH YOUR BROTHER'S FEET.
L
the air, marking their seats like wild animals, while the
"have-nots" will creep through the doors, doomed to
the sting of continuous rejection. If your Christianity is
only about obtaining the riches of this world, then it is
shallow, indeed.
Are you looking at the ministry to see what you can
get, or do you embrace the pain of denial and lay down
your life for another? Many have looked at the reward
of the priesthood, but never examined the price that
was paid. The anointing is costly. No amount of finery
and no amount of wealth can ever fully compensate
them for the degree of sacrifice and immolation that
they wear as the yoke of ministry.
Jesus said, "My yoke is easy and My burden is
light". The term "easy", is the Greek word "chrestos",
which actually means "employed, useful in manner or
morals". It is derived from the word "chraomai", which
means "to furnish". When Jesus said that His yoke was
ALLTRUE SERVANTS WILL
COVER THEIR LEADER.
SERVANTHOOD
"easy", He didn't mean that you wouldn't ever have
any problems. But what is implied is that once you
become employed by the Lord, everything you need to
become useful in manner or morals will be furnished
through the grace of God. The "burden" [Gk. "phortion"] of the Lord refers to "an invoice" or "service."
When we accept the substitutionary work of Christ in
our lives, we are placed in the position of being
invoiced. There is a debt of gratitude that cannot be
repaid. We actually become the temple of the Lord. This
is why, in Romans 12:1, the Apostle Paul said, " I
beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,
that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service."
Servants understand the necessity of covering. They
do not seek to unveil the weaknesses of others, nor do
they compete for power and prominence. And above
all things, a servant doesn't become entrenched in intercultural racism. Servanthood will test to see if
IF YOUR CHRISTIANITY
IS ONLY
ABOUT OBTAINING THE RICHES
L
OF THIS WORLD, THEN IT IS
SHALLOW, INDEED.
Christianity has taken root in your life or not. Let me
ask you a provocative question: Have you possessed a
"White" Christ or a "Black" Christ? Have you possessed the truth or a lie? A "Black" Christ compels service, while the image of the "White" Christ seems to
empower oppression. Does your Christianity sanction
haughty attitudes that sneer at the weaknesses of others? Do you feel justified in turning away from those
who differ from you?
Luke delineated three essential elements of servanthood. These are the preliminary registration forms that
must be completed before you can enroll in the Lord's
Academy.
1.One must count the cost.
2. One must follow immediately.
3. One must not look back.
A lot of folks are looking back at what they could
SERVANTS
DO NOT SEEK TO
UNVEIL THE WEAKNESS OF
OTHERS, NOR DO THEY COMPETE
FOR POWER AND PROMINENCE.
SERVANTHOOD
have had in the world. But you can't look back! Regret
will cripple your development and freeze your progress
through life. Lot's wife turned into a pillar of salt when
she allowed her longing for "what could have been" to
overshadow her desire for the journey ahead. Jesus
said that when you look back, you're not fit for the
Kingdom of God.
Many of you can't press forward because you're
busy looking back. You need to stop driving from the
rear view mirror. Some of you are on the highway of
life, refusing to look through the windshield. You're
about to have an accident. You can't see where you're
going. You're so busy driving in the past that you cannot embrace your future. You're operating by a backwards perception that keeps you thinking backwards.
Some of those who become victimized by this type
of thinking become deluded by the lust of their own
desire. They take it upon themselves to move from one
position to another without telling anyone they are
going. They become like Gehazi, moving independently from their leader and eating of the same curse of leprosy. A true servant waits until a mentor releases him or
her from an assignment. The parable of the prodigal son
shows us the error of demanding a premature inheritance. Now the prodigal tapped a revelation that the
substance was there and accessed it, but in a way, he
divorced himself from his father and that is why his
substance was wasted.
The elder son who stayed at home was like a lot of
folks who just sit at church. They'll see the blessings
coming upon different individuals, and get mad at God.
"You never did this for me. You gave Bishop a Benz but
you never gave me one. You blessed him with a house
and I'm still in an apartment." And God is saying,
"What's the matter? All that I have is thine." Many people have been like a person with Alzheimer's; they're
walking around, but they remain out of touch with real-
You CAN'T
LOOK BACK! REGRET
WILL CRIPPLE YOUR DEVELOPMENT
AND FREEZE YOUR PROGRESS
THROUGH LIFE.
SERVANTHOOD
BISIIOP E. BERNARD JORDAN
ity. They have not let the same mind be in them which
was also in Christ Jesus.
You may be asking for your inheritance, but moving
yourself is a sign that you're not ready. If you were
ready, leadership would see you. Maturation can be easily detected through the eyes of a leader. Your leader
knows you're anointed, knows you talk in tongues,
and knows you can speak in several dialects. Yet your
leader remains unimpressed. You cannot see what your
leader is looking at; if you could, then God would have
made you the leader!
God anoints, but you don't move until man
appoints! Your assignment is not legitimate mtil a man
points his finger and commands your movement from
one place to the next. Don't take it upon yourself to
move yourself. Some have missed the whole purpose
of God because they've eyed a place of preeminence.
They've made moves and changed assignments with-
A TRUE SERVANT WAITS UNTIL
A MENTOR RELEASES HIM
OR HER FROM AN ASSIGNMENT.
out consulting authority. And because the consultation
was evaded, the wisdom that was needed for that season was missed. Perhaps you thought that you were in
a season of escape. Yet God may be getting ready to
send somebody through the back door. Your harvest
may be growing in the season that you hate.
Have you moved yourself? Have you become tired
of a situation because you've been resting at Gilgal,
going around in circles and drinking the wine of boredom? Whenever you decide that you don't want to
serve anymore, and take it upon yourself to quit your
assignment, you move yourself from your place of
feeding. One must count the cost of discipleship.
A man offered to become a follower of Jesus and he
made an unusual promise that he would follow Jesus
wherever He laid. Many people are attracted to ministries for the same reason. No doubt, this man enjoyed
the Presence of the Lord and His followers. He saw that
YOU MAY BE ASKING FOR
YOUR INHERITANCE, BUT
MOVING YOURSELF IS A SIGN
THAT YOU'RE NOT READY.
SERVANTHOOD
God had anointed Jesus. He watched the disciples and
admired how the people responded to them. He saw
the power of honor in action. He was motivated by the
Lord's teaching, and stirred by His wisdom. He appreciated the good the Lord did. It sounded quite noble to
want to follow Jesus wherever He went. But Jesus wasn't impressed. His reply to the man was, "Count the
cost." Jesus did not offer the man luxuries or material
comfort, but instead offered him a life of self-denial. He
didn't offer him a paycheck, nor did He promise the
man a retainer. All He held out to the man was the office
of servanthood.
How many of us have come to Jesus for the things
that we can get? How many of us are guilty of grasping
the prosperity message to satisfy our own lusts? How
many of us truly have the furtherance of the Kingdom
upon our hearts when we give expecting to receive?
Now we can understand why it's easier for a camel
I
YOURASSIGNMENT IS NOT
LEGITIMATE UNTIL A MAN POINTS
HIS FINGER AND COMMANDS
YOUR MOVEMENT FROM ONE
PLACE TO THE NEXT.
to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to
enter the Kingdom of God. The camel will willingly
unload everything and walk through the path of leanness to pick up its abundance on the other side. A rich
man frequently has trouble, because he develops a fear
of loss. His heart also becomes impure. Your money is
tied to your heart. Wherever a man's treasure is, that's
where is heart is.
I have watched God challenge many people to enter
new realms of giving, and frequently watched conviction, doubt and hesitancy smother the directives of the
Lord and rob many of their miracles. Sometimes I could
hear the argument, "God, I can't give that to You! I can't
afford it!" But what deceit of the heart does this excuse
cover? If you're honest with yourself, perhaps you can
admit that it really wasn't an issue of money; after all,
you find the money to do anything else that you REALLY want to do. Was it really that you couldn't afford it,
or was it really that you didn't want to move into self-
YOURHARVEST MAY BE GROWING IN
THE SEASON THAT YOU HATE.
SERVANTHOOD
denial? Were there certain luxuries that you cringed at
the thought of doing without? Were you refusing to surrender? We all must realize that seeking thiigs will
cause us to miss God and abort our purpose. If we seek
the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness, then things
shall be added unto us.
Jesus was the prime example of self-denial. He sacrificed all that He had, and gave all, unto His life, to
serve mankind and reconcile them back to God. Selfdenial is never easy. It will always challenge your commitment and require the sacrifice of what you may have
a right to possess.
What you walk away from determines what you
will come into. You may look at some individuals who
walk in a certain a anointing and may crave to walk
under that same mantle. Before you lust after their
anointing, you need to discover the price they had to
pay. Maybe you have to ask that powerful woman of
WHEREVER
A MAN'S
TREASURE
IS, THAT IS WHERE HIS HEART IS.
God how many beatings she had to endure from her
husband before her alabaster box oozed that precious
anointing. How great a weight of crushing rejection did
that man of God endure in order to walk away with
such a tremendous mantle? How many times was he
lied about? Misunderstood? How many times did he
have to smile when tears were filling his soul?
Some of you don't know my testimony. I was kicked
out of a church that accused me of operating by familiar spirits. The prophecies were coming to pass, but
when I started prophesying and dealing with some
things in their lives that were out of order, all of a sudden the Holy Ghost had departed and now I was possessed by demons.
I became the target of sermons that were unleashed
to retaliate against the prophetic word. Teachings were
initiated that said "God never gives a prophet a word of
impending judgment. Prophecy is only for edification,
IF YOU SEEK THE KINGDOMOF
GOD,AND HISRIGHTEOUSNESS,
THEN THINGS SHALL
BE ADDED UNTO YOU.
47
J
SERVANTHOOD
exhortation and comfort." These teachings are correct
when you are referring to laymen's prophecy. They are
incorrect when you are dealing with the governmental
office of the prophet. If you don't t h i i so, fool with
God and watch Him raise up a prophet in your life who
brings the decree, "Thus saith the Holy One of Israel:
Set your house in order, your days are numbered."
We are entering the days where we are going to see
the moving of God's hand upon His prophets in an
undeniable fashion. You better make sure that your
Christianity is real. If there's something growing in
your heart that's not God, you better root it out now
before it chokes you. If something has you bound, you
better let it go. If your feelings are easily wounded and
bruised in the House of the Lord, you better say, "Walk
on me some more. I'm not broken yet."
If you're in a state of continual pain that prompts
you to withdraw from people, grow up, and push your
SELF-DENIAL
ALWAYS CHALLENGE
YOUR COMMITMENT AND REQUIRES
THE SACRIFICE OF WHAT YOU MAY
HAVE A RIGHT TO POSSESS.
way through your pain so that a root of bitterness cannot grow within you. If you have a problem with an
individual, don't avoid him; sit next to the person and
allow that individual to become the sandpaper that will
perfect the diamond of your life. You need to be crucified and your friends cannot do it. The difficult individuals in your life come to nail you to your cross. Don't
think that you can have the ecstasy of glory without the
agony of the cross.
It's amazing how many of us want the blessings of
the Lord, but don't want the sacrifice that comes along
with it. Many people resent the compensation of ministers, because their public appearances just give a
glimpse of their service. Those who labor in the gospel
get very little rest. Their life is not their own. I often tell
people that if they ever had to keep the kind of hours
that I keep, they'd thank God for their secular employment of 8 hours a day!
WHATYOU WALK AWAY
FROM DETERMINES WHAT
YOU COME INTO.
SERVANTHOOD
Many
. .judge themselves to be committed, but they're
only committed to that which is self-serving; they make
their arrangements to suit themselves. The man told
Jesus, "I'll follow You, but I've got to go bury my father.
I've got to show up for the funeral." Imagine. Jesus
said, "Let the dead bury the dead. You come and follow
Me". This man had self-commitments. We must realize
that self-commitments stem from :
1. Strong wills
2. Strong determinations
3. Strong discipline
-
Self-commitment is not enough for Christ. There has
to be a total commitment to the Son of man, abandoning
all of self and all of the world. Jesus let us know in Luke
9:23 "....If any man will come after me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross daily and follow me. "
You were not saved to be a "Christian."
Jesus
GROWUP AND PUSH YOUR
WAY THROUGH YOUR PAIN
SO THAT A ROOT OF BITTERNESS
CANNOT GROW WITHIN YOU.
caused you to be born again to make you a disciple; a
disciplined follower. As a disciple, you are supposed to
be caring for and disciplining others. While some are
caught up with the prestige of a title, they refuse to
embrace the responsibility that comes with it.
A pastor is a shepherd, he leaves the ninety- nine
and goes looking for the one. Some of you don't understand the purpose of God. You get upset when you see
your pastor devoting time to certain sheep. You feel like
you're being denied or brushed away. You haven't
ascertained that as a shepherd, your pastor must check
the sheep for ticks and diseases. He may discern the
weakness of a lamb, and bring it a little closer to give
them some special attention; which it needs. But you
can't see the call for service because of your attitude.
The very people that you eye in frustration and jealousy may have been at the point of suicide. But you're
so busy jockeying for position that you've become blind
THEDIFFICULT INDIVIDUALS
IN YOUR LIFE COME TO NAIL
YOU TO YOUR CROSS.
SERVANTHOOD
to a need. And God's looking at you and saying, "Stop
being ignorant. If you want to be great in My Kingdom,
why don't you go somewhere and serve?" The people
that surround you have all kinds of war stories.
Everyone's life is a book. You don't know what area
people are from; maybe the garbage pail was their dinner table. There are some people that you may interact
with who were just moments from being homeless. The
real testimony of the people you despise might shock
you. If you knew, you'd cringe because then you might
realize your portion in ministering to them.
Why does God empower His people? God empowers us so that we can empower others. God gives you
the power to get wealth so that you can establish His
covenant in the earth. But He also wants you to be balanced in your thinking, so that you don't become
haughty and start wearing mink coats in July. God
wants you to be prosperous. When you enter into
covenant with Him, He desires that you would all
THERE
HAS TO BE A TOTAL
COMMITMENT TO THE SONOF
MAN, ABANDONING ALL OF SELF
I
AND ALL OF THE WORLD.
I
become millionaires. The earth is the Lord's and the
fullness thereof; there's enough wealth in the earth so
that everyone could be wealthy. But how many will discover the terms of the covenant? How many will read
and obey the small print? There are those who say millions are not destined for everyone.
The Scripture indicates that they are, but Jesus said
that we would have the poor with us always. Why?
Wealth is a mindset, and everyone is not willing to
renew their minds and make changes. People receive
invitations to leave the "millionaire club" and let the
deceit of this world trip them up. We are living in a day
and an hour where we must be wise stewards, and
embrace our responsibility to prosper so that we can
network and impact our communities.
Christians love to complain about the state of our
public schools. We get upset because of the curriculum.
We lobby for prayer to be restored. But if we were to
I
JESUS CAUSED YOU TO BE
BORN AGAIN TO MAKE YOU
A DISCIPLE SO YOU CAN CARE
FOR AND DISCIPLE OTHERS.
I
SERVANTHOOD
network properly, we would build our own schools.
Our lack of networking keeps us economically unstable
and our children perpetually ignorant. They continue to
hear that Christopher Columbus discovered America
and that they are the descendants of slaves. They continue to be taught courses that never develop their individuality, and the vague sense that they are inferior in
their mental capacity prevails. We must influence the
systems of this world. We may be able to diagnose the
problem, and may even have the right prescription, but
as Ecclesiastes says, "A poor man's wisdom is
despised." Poverty stifles the influence of our words;
therefore, we must prove God and become a sign of His
covenant in the earth, and this can only be done
through the basic principle of giving. While many complain about offerings, they don't realize that God is
preparing the liberation of a nation.
Nations never start with great numbers; rather, they
start with great men. God built a nation with Noah and
IF YOU WANT TO BE GREAT IN
GOD'SKINGDOM
YOU MUST GO
SOMEWHERE AND SERVE.
his three sons. Then He took Abraham out of a nation
and told him, "I'll make a nation out of you." It doesn't
take millions of folks to start a nation. God only needs a
handful of folks that can see one vision and move in
unity. We've never discovered the true strength of our
people because we relish uncovering each other.
The spirit of a nigger dwells within the church. Our
minds need a lot of work. As a people, we devour our
black leaders. We are especially malicious towards our
preachers. Could it be that the preacher in the pulpit
conflicts with the image of God that you have in your
mind? The preacher is supposed to represent God, but
if your image is corrupt, then you'll never associate him
with God. Most people envision God sitting in heaven
as a white man with a long, white beard.
There is a struggle that exists between the black man
sitting in the pew and the black man preaching in the
pulpit. I suspect that the degree of authority that is
GODGIVES YOU THE POWER TO GET
WEALTH SO THAT YOU CAN ESTAB-
SERVANTHOOD
B l l H O P E. BERNARD JORDAN
granted to the preacher becomes a provocation to the
black man in the pew. Perhaps he sees a power that the
preacher seemingly has over his woman. He comes to
church and hears his woman verbally responsive to the
preacher, yet he can't raise a response from her at home.
All she ever talks about is "Tlle pastor said this ...and the
pastor said that ..." Ladies, servanthood even reaches
into the home. Your husband should be made to feel as
though he is the most important man on the face of the
earth. I've made it a practice to send messages home,
like "Tell your husband I said hello, and tell him he's
going to be my next deacon. I'm looking for him."
The enemy sets a trap to play on the insecurities of
men. It's relatively easy for a woman to become a support to the ministry. She responds by nature. Tile commitment is easily formed. She's born to help. A man has
a larger mountain to climb because if he sees God as an
old white Man, he'll see God as his oppressor. As a people, our understanding has been deformed.
WEALTH
I S A M I N D S E T , AND
EVERYONE IS N O T W I L L I N G
T O RENEW T H E I R M I N D S
A N D MAKE CHANGES.
It's hard for a Black brother to serve another Black
brother. We haven't learned to trust one another. The
lack of economic promotion that would bring titles and
prestige within the white man's world is denied the
black men, so the church becomes the place that you can
bargain for power. Then we see the house niggers
offending the field niggers.
Power can be a heady intoxicant, but there is a
power that God desires for everyone to drink their fill
of; and that's the power of the Holy Spirit. And that
power is best expressed through service in the Kingdom
of God. If you want greatness, or if you want power,
you'll have all that you ever craved for if you would just
learn to serve. Do you want the anointing? Do you
believe God called you? Has the work of the Lord consumed you? Are you present every time the doors open
at the church? Are you pursuing study through Bible
school? If you find yourself complaining that you're
tired during the week then you're not ready for min-
POVERTY
STIFLES THE
INFLUENCE OF OUR WORDS.
SERVANTHOOD
istry. There's a teaching that takes place with the multitude. True discipleship is a costly and painful venture.
When you buy into the vision of the man of God, you
must leave all to follow. Jesus' disciples could not leave
His side because they had left all to follow Him. They
had nowhere else to go. They bought into His vision.
Whenever you find that people can uproot themselves and leave a church without a second thought,
you can know that they never bought into a vision.
Your heart will always rest wherever your treasure is
placed. Jesus promised that those who left all to follow
would receive an hundredfold in this life and in the life
to come. The reward of the Lord is sure unto them who
are diligent and obedient to His Voice.
"MostBam'ers To Your
Success Are Man-Ma&
w
,You're
And Most O
fie Man Who Made ?%em."
P A R T !I!
You can only move in true servanthood when you
allow Christ to be formed in you. The Apostle Paul said,
"I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you."
The formation of Christ within you is not a comfortable
process. You must allow yourself to die, and that death
is a process of self-denial. The more you begin to die,
the more He lives in you. The more your flesh is broken,
the more He is revealed through your life. God is in the
process of cracking the alabaster box of your flesh.
One of the prime disciplines that God has set before
us to harness our flesh is the practice of fasting.
Abstinence from food is a time when you initiate a tug
of war between the flesh and the spirit. Paul said that
the flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against
the flesh. The flesh craves food so that it can bury the
voice of the spirit, but when one begins to master the
Christ Be Formed In You
cravings of the flesh, and allow the spirit to have ascendancy, the appetite for God will deny the flesh.
Most of the time, especially in Western society, we
spend more time catering to the gratification of our
flesh, and very little time to the development of our
spirit. But it is vital that we learn to adorn the inner man
of the heart.
There should be a natural desire to grow and
advance in the things of God, but in order to go up, one
must learn to go down. In order to receive promotion
in God, you've got to serve the more. You must go the
"extra mile" beyond your initial responsibility to serve.
The "extra mile" is usually quite difficult with many
challenges for which you could not plan. Many of you
started on the path to promotion, and got a rude awakening as you walked deeper into God. You came into a
rude awakening when you became connected with the
body of Christ.
YOU CAN ONLY MOVE IN TRUE
SERVANTHOOD WHEN YOU ALLOW
SERVANTHOOD
You started mingling with members of the church,
only to find out that God made you a shoulder and set
you right next to an armpit. And you recoiled from the
smell! You continued to fraternize in the body, and
began to discover the uncomely parts, like the backsides. You began to look for a way of escape without
realizing that even though these parts of the body have
a stench, they are still a necessary part of the body.
Realize that the nose and the armpit are not forced into
constant fellowship, but they remain in their realms
with mutual respect for one another.
The Double Allegiance Disease
Verse 59
"And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord,
suffer me first to go and bury my father."
When the call of God begins to manifest in our lives,
most of us are afflicted with the "double allegiance dis-
THAT GODHAS SET BEFORE US
TO HARNESS OUR FLESH IS
THE PRACTICE OF FASTING.
ease." The symptoms are readily detected. When God
begins to place His call, their response is, "Lord, I will,
but if you let me do this, then I'll be able to do that ..."
The disease prompts them to make arrangements with
God rather than just stepping out on His word. They
need to have a list of assurances. "I'll step out, Lord, if
You give me a life jacket."
It's easy to miss God and miss your season. One
must follow the call of God immediately, without looking back. You have to be willing to bum the bridges to
the security of your past and embrace the uncertainty of
a new future. The past must be reckoned as dead, but
most of us lament the past, savoring its memory as fine
perfume. Isn't it interesting that while Jesus is trying to
call us into new realms of the Kingdom, we'd rather sit
and handle dead things? We cling to things that have no
real significance, lamenting over things that will never
move again.
INORDER TO RECEIVE PROMOTION
IN GOD,YOU'VE GOT TO SERVE AND
I
GO THE "EXTRA MILE" BEYOND YOUR
INITIAL RESPONSIBILITY TO SERVE.
1
SERVANTHOOD
Our memories form our traditions. And traditions
are quite powerful; in fact, never underestimate the
power of tradition. And all traditions are not of God. A
tradition that is not of God can make the Word of God
ineffective in your life. You can be locked into a tradition that will resist the leading of God. It argues with
the comfort of your custom. Jesus called this certain
man to follow Him. When the man yearned to bury his
father in tribute to the customs of the day, Jesus replied,
"Let the dead bury the dead, but go thou and preach the
kingdom of God." Isn't it amazing how many of us will
compromise with the commandment of God? Some of
you let the traditions of the world bring you to a place
of compromise every Sunday. Why do you consent to
work on Sundays, instead of letting the dead bury the
dead? Why not stand in faith and tell your boss, "I'll
work Saturday, I'll do six days for you but I can't work
my Sabbath. That's my day of worship." Will there be
a sacrifice? Perhaps ...you may become the sacrifice!
Though it may seem profitable to handle dead things,
YOU HAVE TO BE WILLING TO BURN
THE BRIDGES TO THE SECURITY
OF YOUR PAST AND EMBRACE THE
UNCERTAINTY OF A NEW FUTURE.
when it comes down to the Kingdom, you've got to be
able to let it go.
Discipleship involves a radical decision. Jesus
extends the invitation. He invited this certain man to
follow Him. There was something very special in the
man that caught Jesus' eye, and He was moved upon to
call him. Whenever God hand-picks you, it's because
He sees something special in you. What is it in you of
which God has taken note?
God calls individuals who are operating under
authority. Elijah was taking care of his father's oxen.
David was tending to his father's sheep. Perhaps, when
Jesus looked upon that certain man, He saw his loyalty
to his dead father, and thought that this man could possibly make good kingdom material if he didn't have the
double allegiance disease. Some of you have some good
things in you, but sometimes you're so stuck on the
good and you miss God, because you cannot see God
WHENEVER
GODHAND-PICKS
YOU, IT'S BECAUSE HESEES
SOMETHING SPECIAL IN YOU.
\
I
SERVANTHOOD
beyond the good. Some of you are caught up in good
works, but not "God works." Some of you are caught
up in good actions, but not God's actions.
It is good to feed the poor, it's good to help the
needy, and it's good to hand out tracts. But then there
comes a time in life when God will call you away from
a good calling and place you within the confines of a
God calling. No longer are you operating out of the
mercy gift that is in your heart, but you are doing what
you're doing because you are moved and motivated by
the compassion of God Himself. When He doesn't
move you, you just let it go. Good works performed
independently of God will cause you to become a
crutch in individual's lives, rather than a help. There are
some cases where people have to take up their own
beds and walk ....without your assistance. As long as
you carry their beds, they will never be able to walk.
Some of you are depending on individuals whom God
is about to remove out of your life.
GODCALLS INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE
OPERATING UNDER AUTHORITY.
<\.
T
Some of you can't see God because of the person
who is eclipsing the face of God. Every person is of
extreme value to Jesus. Therefore the Spirit of God continues to pursue you despite your own selfishness. The
Holy Spirit will keep reaching for you. And you'll find
that He can be quite direct with the standards that He
may give you as opposed to what He may say to others.
You'll often have a case of "Others may, but you cannot."
You may have a penchant for free advertising in
your wardrobe. You like showing some leg here, and
some "V" there. But then the Holy Ghost starts dealing
with you and all of a sudden, He closes your advertising agency. He begins to show you that you have a high
value. If a man doesn't come with the right purchase
price, he won't get the opportunity to come behind the
veil. Common folks are not allowed in the holy of
holies, only the high priest.
THERE
COMES A TIME IN LIFE WHEN
GODWILL CALL YOU AWAY FROM A
GOOD CALLING AND PLACE YOU IN
THE CONFINES OF A GODCALLING.
SERVANTHOOD
BISHOP E. BERNARD JORDAH
And if the high priest doesn't enter in holiness, it
produces death. In other words, the marriage becomes
a living hell. You must understand that your body is the
temple of the Living God. If you understood the compartments of your temple, you would understand that
your temple is filled wit11 a lot of mysteries, especially if
God is walking in you. He chooses to take up residence
in your temple. So there's certain things that you just
can't do. There's certain things you can't permit, and
certain things can't go on because of Who lives in your
temple. There's certain people I don't allow in my company because of Who I am carrying within my temple.
Most of the time, we forget that the temple of the
Holy Ghost is not somewhere beyond the clouds.
Sentimentalism has so shaped our perspective that we
live by erroneous concepts thinking that we know the
Word of God...and God never said half of the things
we've been taught to believe. We look for God in the
great beyond, and God is saying "Christ in you, the
I
LIVES, RATHER THAN A HELP.
I
Hope of glory." When you begin to pray, you can bow
or lift your head. You don't have to speak above a whisper, because He'll even answer beyond your thoughts.
Ephesians 3:20b
"Nozu ~ ~ i z1zii1z
t o tlzat is able to do exceeding nbuizdantly
above all thnt we nmay ask or tlziizk nccordi~~g
to the pozuer
thnt zuorketh in us."
God will do exceedingly and abundantly above all that
you ask or think. Even if you lose the power of speech,
or if you don't know how to articulate what you want,
God understands the language of your heart. He lives
in your temple, and because He's in your thoughts,
He's able to answer your request. If you can only think
about it, you can have it. He's continuously searching
your heart and checking your motives and intents. He's
even dealing with those things that haven't emerged
into your conscious thought. God is dealing within
your deep.
IF A MAN DOESN'T
COME WITH
THE RIGHT PURCHASE PRICE, HE
WON'T GET THE OPPORTUNITY
TO COME BEHIND THE VEIL.
SERVAMTWOOD
That's why the Bible says, "He that is born of God
cannot sin," because His seed is in him. When His seed
is in me, I don't even have an intention to sin. You cannot continue habitually in sin and be born of God. Even
if you slip up and mess up, you are undeniably convicted. The Holy Ghost begins to communicate His displeasure. Christ is being formed in you.
Nobody ever has to explain what you're doing
wrong. Even if you don't know the details, you'll still
know that something's not right. When the seed of God
is in you, you won't need chapter and verse concerning
the tithe. The seed of God remains to witness to you and
say, "Give unto God." The seed of God bears witness to
the truth. He that walks in you begins to move through
you.
One prophet of God gave the Word of the Lord, saying, "I've moved through many, but dwelt in few." Just
because God uses someone doesn't mean that He's
WHENTHE SEED OF GODIS IN YOU,
I
YOU WON'T NEED CHAPTER AND
VERSE CONCERNING THE TITHE.
dwelling in them. He moved through Balaam's jackass,
but that wasn't His dwelling place.
This brings us to the point that there's a difference
between a visitation and a habitation. As Bishop of Zoe
Ministries, I don't want this church saying "We're experiencing a visitation." If we look for visitation, then we
have an expectation for the Visitor to leave at some
point.
Some of you have created an atmosphere for the visitation of God. But then, you're kind of happy when the
Visitor leaves because you want to do your own thing.
You don't want to become a habitation. You're not sure
that you want the experience of visitation to become the
norm for your life.
The Lord's call is to be the primary thrust of a person's life. The man that we see in scripture had divided attention. The call of God came to this man, yet he
THERE'S
A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
A VISITATION AND A HABITATION.
L
SERVANTWOOD
hesitated. And how many times do we hesitate when
God is calling us into something? On one level, we want
to say yes, but our flesh says, "You better not." Yes, the
Bible talks to us in I Timothy 5:3-8 about taking care of
our parents. But one thing we're going to begin to see
is that Jesus is going to test your loyalty. God is really
after the heart.
You're going to have to understand that your work
is service unto God. You don't work for a boss; you
work for God. God just moves through that boss to
reward you for service that has been rendered. When
you're typing, you're working for God. Work is not a
dirty word. God ordained work. Your work reveals
who you are. That's why some of you are frustrated
because you're in the wrong assignment. When you
stop working, you stop living. Why do you think so
many people die right after they retire? To retire means
"to depart," "to abdicate," and "to leave." If you do not
have some form of purpose being expressed, then you
become an easy candidate to relinquish your space in
the earth. You're ready for departure. The earth will
swallow you up. Work was ordained before the curse.
The curse released through Adam's disobedience was
that you would work by the sweat of your brow. But
Adam was assigned work before the curse. He worked
before he began to sweat.
When you begin to move into an understanding of
the Kingdom, you will stop working your behind and
you'll start working your mind. Many people walk
with a man of God for years, but very few will hear
what's really being said. They heard a sound, and they
heard thunder, but they did not hear what God was saying through His vessel. Philip heard thunder. It was
evident when he said, "Jesus, show me the Father."
Jesus said, "If you've seen Me, you've seen the Father."
Philip still didn't understand it, and he went away confused. I like the way Prophetess Connie Williams puts
it: "While people are caught up in translation, they miss
IF YOUR PURPOSE IS NOT BEING
EXPRESSED, THEN YOU BECOME AN
EASY CANDIDATE TO RELINQUISH
YOUR SPACE IN THE EARTH.
SERVANTHOOD
BISHOP
E.
BERNARD JORDAN
the interpretation." That's why I Corinthians 14 refers
to the interpretation of tongues, and not the translation
of tongues.
You will get lost in the Book of Revelation if you try
to translate it. It needs to be interpreted. We've taken
the scripture in Hebrew and Greek translation. That's
why you're messed up concerning heaven because you
haven't received an interpretation. You think God's
home is in a heaven that will allow you to pass Pluto,
Mars, Jupiter, Venus, etc. We don't even have a right
understanding of the devil. The devil is in your mind.
He's taken up residence between your two ears. He is
wrestling for control of your mind. And your mind can
only be renewed through the Word of God.
That's why, when you get married, you better marry
someone with a sound mind. If a person doesn't know
how to use that, they won't know how to use anything
else, either! You can marry a body if you want to, but
"WHILEPEOPLE ARE CAUGHT
UP IN TRANSLATION THEY
MISS THE INTERPRETATION."
-- PROPHETESS
CONNIEWILLIAMS
its mind might be off center. Sexual desire is not in your
tail, but it's in your mind. If his mind is off, his desire
might be off, also! You had better examine his mind!
Some of you won't go to the next level in God until
you disconnect from mindless folks. You keep those
that think on a lower level around you, and while
you're trying to get up, they're keeping you down. You
better know how to shake yourself loose and cut the
ties!
God's bringing us to a place of humility. No matter
how much wealth you accumulate, you never own any
of it. God just puts it into your hand to watch how you
manage it. If things haven't come to you, don't get frustrated. Realize that God didn't mean for you to manage
that yet. When you become mature enough to handle it,
it will come. Sometimes, you'll find that you don't
come into certain things until you're moving out of certain levels.
Mark 10:17-20
YOURMIND CAN ONLY BE RENEWED
THROUGH THE WORDOF GOD.
\
SERVANTHOOD
"And wheiz he wns gone forth into tlre way, there cnine
oize running, aizd kneeled to hiiir, nnd asked lriin, Good
Master, what shall I do tlrat I may inherit eternnl life?
And Ieszls snid zlnto hiiiz, Wlzy cnllest tkozl me good?
there is none good but one, tlzat is, God. Tlrotc kizozoest the
conrinnndinents, Do not coininit adultenj, Do not kill, Do
not stenl, Do not bear fnlse witness, Definud not, Hoizour
thy father nnd inotlzer. Aizd lze nnswered and said unto
him, Master, nll these lznve I observedfioin iny youth."
Jesus is talking to what many would call "the rich
young ruler." Can I suggest to you that he kept the
tithe? He kept all the commandments from his youth
up. He gave his ten percent like you did. Maybe he
gave thirty or fifty percent. All he wanted to know from
Jesus was how to inherit eternal life. Jesus said, "I come
that you might have life and have it more abundantly."
Jesus beholding him, loved him. Jesus doesn't call you
into stuff like this unless He loves you. He loves everyone, but doesn't like everyone. He just likes some of
YOU BETTER KNOW HOW
TO SHAKE YOURSELF LOOSE
AND CUT THE TIES.
1
L
76
"-.- **
you. "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated." This
is all in line with servanthood. If you really understand
servanthood, you really don't have any rights. You're
going to go through some things to see the abundance
of God pour into your life.
Mark 10:21
"Then Jesus belzoldiizg lzim loved him, nizd said ztlzto him,
One tlziizg tlzou lnckest: go thy zuny nlzd sell zuhatsoever
tlzoli lzast, nizd give to tlze poor, aizd thou slznlt knve trensure ilz heaven: nizd conze, take up the cross, and follow
ine. a
Notice this man is asking about eternal life and Jesus is
talking to him about giving.
Verses 22-23
"And he wns sad nt tlznt saying, nnd went away grieved:
for he had grent possessions. And Jesus looked round
nbout, nird snit11 unto Iris disciples, How hnrdly shall they
that have riches enter into t h e k i n ~ d o mo f ~ o d ! "
YOU WON'T
COME INTO
GREATER THINGS UNTIL
YOU ARE MOVING
AT GREATER LEVELS.
77
J
SERVANTHOOD
Some people get tripped up in their servanthood
because they begin to despise their salary. The types of
problems that you solve will determine your salary.
The more you have to be told something, the less your
salary. You'll never come into your own business until
you become faithful in someone else's. The disciples
were astonished at Jesus' words. All of them were rich,
and were disturbed at His saying.
Verse 24
"And the disciples were astonished at his ruords. But
Ieszis nnswereth ngnin, and snith z~ittothem, Children,
how hard is it for them that trzist in riches to enter into
the kingdom of God!"
Never seek after things, but seek the Kingdom first.
If you seek first after the Kingdom, things will be added
to you. Jesus called money a "god." The Bible says you
cannot serve God and mammon. Jesus literally called
WHENYOU TRULY UNDERSTAND
SERVANTHOOD YOU WILL
UNDERSTAND THAT YOU
DON'T HAVE ANY RIGHTS.
money a "master." You've got to make a decision
whether you'll serve God and make Him your Master
and become His servant, or will money be your master
and you serve it? Are you sitting there saying, "Lord,
I'm trusting You, but I've got to go after that money?"
You have to run after God and God will show you
how to get hold of money. Money is not evil in and of
itself. It is neutral. The manner in which it comes to you
will determine whether it's evil or righteous. It's like
electricity. Electricity is neutral. It can give you light
and bring great enjoyment into your life. But if you
mismanage electricity, it will bring immediate destruction.
Jesus warns us not to trust in riches. Our trust must
always be in God, and we must be willing to embrace
the fullness of whatever He places our your hands.
Everything that God gives has baggage connected with
it. That's why He told us to count the cost. When He
WHENYOU ASK JESUS FOR
ETERNAL LIFE HEWILL TALK
TO YOU ABOUT GIVING.
SERVANTHOOD
places the prophetic mantle in your life, there's luggage
that comes with it. When He calls you to become a servant, there's luggage that comes with the call.
If God calls you to serve leaders and walk close
among leadership, you'll be hated by the people. That's
baggage. Some of you prayed prayers to be close to the
leader. God wouldn't answer them because you couldn't handle the baggage that comes along with it. "Lord
make me a pastor's wife." Can you handle being a pastor's wife? She has to carry the luggage of "the mistress
(the church)." Every gift that is given to you has
"another woman" involved with which you must learn
to cope. Circumstances will arise which you must learn
to manage. You must learn how to handle them or they
will handle you.
PART I V
" B e Di$erence Between
Gening Somewhere Alzd
Nowhere 1s The Cozcrage To
Make An Early Start. The
Fellow Vho Sits Still And Does
Just What He Is Told Will Never
Be Told To Do Big Things.
"
PART I V
Joshua 1:l-2
"Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it
came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of
Nun, Moses' minister, saying, Moses my servant is dead:
now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this
people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the
children of Israel."
We must have an understanding of what it means to
be an echo rather than a voice, for this becomes the primary matrix of servanthood. Joshua is an excellent
example of how to serve as the second man.
The Bible indicates that Moses is dead. Moses
served God during His season and led the children of
Israel out of Egypt. Moses was a freedom fighter. He led
the children of Israel to freedom, but he could not take
The Ministry of An Echo
them into the promised land of Canaan. This leads us to
conclude that the one who leads you out is not necessarily the one who's going to take you in. The one who
led you out of the house of bondage will not lead you
into Kingdom building. The one who led you to the
cross of Calvary will not necessarily lead you to a
Kingdom experience. Some of those who led you to
Calvary cannot move beyond the cross. They can't
bring you to a kingdom experience. They fulfilled their
measure, which was to lead you out of Egypt. But most
of your Christian experience has been that of walking
around in circles. You've been stuck in a wilderness situation where you've got to wait for some men to die
out.
The first nine verses of the book of Joshua are an
introduction to the history of war. The book of Joshua
deals with the invasion and subjugation of Canaan by
the Israelites. The Israelites were moving under God's
direct command. But while they were moving under
THEPRIMARY MATRIX OF
SERVANTHOOD IS BEING AN
ECHO RATHER THAN A VOICE.
SERVANTHOOD
God's direct command, they had a welfare mentality.
Some of you, after being born again, joined the welfare
church. Your perception of God turned Him into an
immense Santa Claus or "Big Daddy" who would grant
your every wish and desire. You've been sitting in your
seat for years, waiting for a handout from God to
change your living situation. God had Israel on a type
of welfare. He became their clothing allowance; their
shoes and clothing didn't wax old. They didn't have to
work for their meals. Manna fell from the sky. It just
showed up every morning in their mailbox. All they
had to do was go outside and get their manna.
Some of you like to be pampered like that. You really don't want to exert any effort to achieve anything.
You'd rather be in a position for your stuff to show up.
But if you have an appetite for greatness, you must
know that you will have to work to attain it. Some individuals have a problem with this ministry because we
urge you to give beyond the norm. Welfare churches
THEONE WHO LEADS YOU OUT IS
NOT NECESSARILY THE ONE WHO'S
GOING TO TAKE YOU IN.
i
i
link poverty with some kind of mission of holiness and
those two lines of thought will never agree.
When the children of Israel became bored with
manna, God gave them quails .....and they still didn't
have to work for them! Welfare robs you of choices. You
have to live wherever the system dictates. The children
of Israel didn't have any choices, either. They had to go
wherever the cloud by day and pillar of fire by night set
them. Why? Because when people are released from
slavery, they need to be managed until they can manage
themselves.
That's why some of you can't come into your own
business yet. You have to first learn to be faithful in that
which is another man's. You can't build another man's,
so you can't build your own. Some of you should not
work for anyone else. You don't love yourself. The
Bible says, "Love your neighbor as thyself." So if you
don't fix yourself up, you won't fix anyone else up,
I[F YOU HAVE AN APPETITE
FOR GREATNESS, YOU MUST
KNOW THAT YOU WILL HAVE
TO WORK TO ATTAIN IT.
1
,
.
SERVANTHOOD
either. God desires to effect a change in your life. Your
self-esteem and your attitude must be changed.
Notice that Moses was the servant of the Lord. The
set man was the servant of the Lord. The Bible did not
call Joshua the servant of the Lord, though he was the
second man in charge. Though he was the next man in
line, or the next man in succession to take Moses' place,
Joshua was not called "the servant of the Lord." As
a matter of fact, can I suggest something to you that
might appear slightly heretical? Perhaps God didn't
even speak to Joshua until after Moses was dead. I
know it's a hard pill to swallow, and may be totally
against your theology. But God spoke to one head; He
spoke through His mouthpiece, Moses. You've got to
watch the kind of head you sit under, because if your
head has limited revelation, so will you. That's why if
you, as a woman of God, prepare to marry after coming
into this kind of revelation, you've got to marry a cer-
WELFARE
ROBS YOU OF CHOICES
AND FORCES YOU TO LIVE WHEREVER
THE SYSTEM DICTATES.
86
tain kind o f head. Some o f you have gone into blindness because o f who you married.
Your eyes were open when you were single because
you were hooked u p to a head (fatheror pastor) whose
eyes were open, but because the man you married was
walking in darkness, the light was shut out o f your situation. The light o f the body is the eye. Because o f the
light that comes into the body through the eye, your job
as a woman is to begin to pray that God opens u p the
eyes o f your man. And I'm not talking about his natural sight. Understand that seeing is not done with your
natural eyes, but seeing is done with the mind. Your
eyes are only windows. Until the mind - what the
world would call "the third eye," or what the Bible
refers to as "the eyes o f your understanding" opens you will walk in a degree o f darkness that is so deceptive that even what you see, you won't really see.
IF YOUR HEAD HAS LIMITED
REVELATION, SO WILL YOU.
SERVANTHOOD
BISHOP E. BERNARD IORDAH
Joshua 1:lindicates that Joshua, the son of Nun, was
Moses' minister. As the second man, you never read
that he ever did anything other than serve Moses. As
the second man, he wasn't coming forth with special
revelation from God. He understood that he was Moses'
minister. Most churches are run like a circus. You'll
hear a lot of voices that will compete with the set man
instead of completing him. A lot of people are in the
business of trying so hard to become like the set man
that they don't understand that their purpose is to lift
the arms of the set man. They're called to carry the
weight of glory along with their leader, but they will
never be equal to him.
Often, we develop a wrong understanding of ministry. There are many of you who feel God has called
you to preach. People approach me all the time in such
a frenzy; "God called me to prophesy." "God called me.
I'm supposed to evangelize the world." Well, I have sad
news for you. God doesn't call anybody to preach. You
UNTIL"THE
EYES OF YOUR
UNDERSTANDING" OPENS, YOU
WILL WALK IN A DEGREE OF DARKNESS THAT WILL DECEIVE YOU.
won't even find that in Scripture. God calls you to
serve. If you want to know the truth of the matter,
every one of you has been given the commission to go
into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. There must be an understanding of the Scriptural
pattern of the maturation of ministry. Every individual
that God ever called had the attitude of a servant.
The twelve men that Jesus called had to develop the
ability to serve and to train while serving. God doesn't
make leaders, but God makes servants, and servants
become leaders. If you're walking around with a grand
attitude you will burst like a helium balloon. You are to
think highly of yourself, but not more highly than you
are. When God uses you in the greatest manner, you
better go find somebody's feet to wash. If God gave
you somebody's name in prayer and it was accurate,
you better go clean a toilet. If God is using you to
preach, your attitude better be to find an avenue of service. Why? Because pride will try to creep up. It will
DON'TBE SO CAUGHT UP IN TRYING
TO BECOME LIKE THE SET MAN THAT
YOU MISUNDERSTAND YOUR
PURPOSE TO LIFT UP HIS ARMS.
SERVANTHOOD
make you think that you're above those who are around
you. It will cause you to look down your nose at folks.
Pride will cause your nose to be up in the air. Much
knowledge will cause you to be puffed up, and wealth
will bring a certain attitude. And if you don't watch it,
you'll start coming into the blessing and the glory of the
Lord and miss God because your head is in the clouds
and not in the posture of servanthood.
Moses represented the law, and the law is now dead.
Joshua, whose name meant "Jesus", is now bidden of
the Lord to do what Moses could not. Moses could free
the people, but he could not bring them into the
promised land. That same premise is evident in
America at this time. During the 1960's, we had an
onslaught of freedom fighters. But I see the leadership
for the turn of the century will be Kingdom builders.
There will be a different type of mindset. Servanthood
amongst the leadership will be the thrust to greatness.
If you don't understand servanthood, you'll abuse the
GODDOESN'T CALL YOU
TO PREACH HECALLS
-
YOU TO SERVE.
The Ministry of Bn Echo
power that is put within your hand.
God has created man so that however he thinks will
determine what he will be. As the Scripture saith, "For
as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he," and "Keep the
heart with all diligence, for out of it flows the issues of
life." So whatever is in your heart or whatever is in your
mind determines what flows out of you. Don't get mad
at anyone concerning your situation because you
ordered it all by yourself. There is a law in action. You
thought it and put it on your plate.
You have a duality of mind. You have the conscious
and the subconscious mind. The subconscious is the
dimension of thought that keeps you breathing without
you telling it what to do. It makes many decisions
because it is the seat of your true beliefs. The greater
mind ends up becoming a servant to the weaker mind.
Many of you don't get your miracle because you only
take your conscious mind to the state of mimicking the
GODDOESN'T MAKE LEADERS,
BUT GODMAKES SERVANTS,
AND SERVANTS BECOME LEADERS.
b
,
SERVANTHOOD
Word. You're just like a parrot; "Johnny's gonna prosper. Johnny's gonna prosper." But just like a parrot, you
don't have the slightest idea of what you're really saying.
There's no revelation; that word has not been made
flesh. But your subconscious mind has a way of
responding when your conscious mind begins to renew
itself through the Word of God. The subconscious mind
grabs hold of the Word, and begins to dump it down
into the deep part of yourself. Then, when the subconscious begins to apprehend it as truth, things begin to
happen. This is where faith resides. Faith is so strong
that it takes what is invisible and makes it visible
because faith is literally the substance. Let me tell you
what you're wrestling with. God wants to bring us to a
new level in Him. But your mind must be renewed. If
you can change your thinking, you can change your
outcome.
GETYOUR HEADS OUT OF
THE CLOUDS AND RETAIN THE
POSTURE OF SERVANTHOOD.
Matthew 2436-37
"But of tlznt riny a i d hoz~rkizozueth izo innlz, no, izot the
angels of lzenueiz, b ~ l nzy
t Fnther oizly. But ns the days of
Nonh were, so slznll also the coilzilzg of the Soil of lilniz be.
For ns iiz the dnys that zuere before theflood they were eatiizg nizd drilzkiizg, mnrjiizg and giving in nznrringe, zciztil
the dny tlzat Oize entered into the ark, Aizd knew izot until
tlzeflood cnine, nlzd took thenz all away; so shall also the
conziizg of the Soiz of nlnn be."
Now who did He take away? He took away the
ungodly. We have interpreted that scripture in
Christendom and have said that's the rapture of the
church. He's not going to come and take me away. It's
the removal of the wicked. Jesus is not coming to
remove the righteous.
Proverbs says "the righteous shall not be moved."
The coming of the Lord is to take the wicked away. Get
YOU WON'T
GET YOUR MIRACLE
BECAUSE YOU ONLY TAKE YOUR
CONSCIOUS MIND TO THE STATE
OF MIMICKING THE WORD.
93
J
SERVANTHOOD
that picture out of your mind about cars going over the
side of the road, and planes crashing; scratch it! Get
that garbage out of your mind, and forget it! A matter
of fact stop saying "rapture" it's not even Bible. And
what the church called a rapture is some nightmare that
some girl had about a century ago. ~coffieldand some
other created commentaries around it, forget it. This is
not what Jesus was saying. Jesus was talking about the
coming of the Son of man. I'm going to talk to you about
what happens when Jesus comes in you, if you ever let
him in. Verse 40, "Then shall two be in the field; the one
shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be
grinding at the mill: the one shall be taken, and the
other left."
Now look at this as a type, we have two minds. Paul
spoke about two men, he says every time I want to do
good evil is always present. So the good that I desire to
do, somehow becomes overwhelmed by the evil that is
present. What is happening is that there are situations
THESUBCONSCIOUS MIND GRABS
HOLD OF THE WORD,AND DUMPS
IT INTO THE DEEP OF YOURSELF.
1
94
going on in you where there are two natures present.
There are two men in your field, There are two women
grinding at the mill. There's a virgin and a harlot.
There's a Jacob and an Esau. There's an Ishmael and an
Isaac. There's a Cain and an Abel. There's a warring
going on inside of you with the two minds that are
dwelling in you. When the Son of man comes one of
those men is going to be taken and the other one will be
left. Ishmael will be taken but Isaac will be left. Esau
will be taken but Jacob will be left. Cain will be taken
but Abel will be left. The harlot will be taken but the
virgin will be left. What has happened is that the Son of
man has not come. But, when He comes, one of those
men will be taken.
Verse 40
"Then slzall two be in thefield; the one shall be taken, and
the other left. Two womeii slznll be griizdiiig at the mill:
tlze one shall be taken, and the other left."
IF YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR
THINKING, YOU CAN
CHANGE YOUR MIND.
SERVANTMOOD
Here's a thought: perhaps Jacob wasn't wrestling
with some angel; at least, not in the sense that we've traditionally thought. Let's look at this spiritually, as a
typology. An angel is a messenger. There was one mind
of Jacob that was wrestling with the other messenger.
He was wrestling with the prophet in his mind. The
angel had to go because another day was entering in.
His old man knew that his day was up. But there was a
wrestling for the ascendancy. When the struggle was
over, Jacob the cheater retrieved his real name, Israel,
which meant "I shall rule as God." It was in him all
along, but until he wrestled with himself, he could not
break forth into the fullness of his destiny.
When He comes, one of those men will be taken.
Paul tells us to crucify the old man. You have got to kill
him. The old man has to be taken away so that the new
man can be left.
THECOMING OF THE LORDIS
TO TAKE THE WICKED AWAY.
Now the prodigal son also tapped a revelation that
the substance was there and accessed it, but in a way, he
divorced himself from his father and that is why his
substance was wasted.
Some of you have those two men in the field with
you right now. Some of you have the two women at the
mill within you right now! One man is saying, "Let's go
and give $10,000 to the work of the Lord", and the other
man is saying, "We can't afford it." One man is saying,
"Come on! We've got to get ready to go into the House
of the Lord," the other man is saying, "We're too tired.
Let's not go to church." One man is saying, "You need
to connect with the man of God and serve in the House
of the Lord", while the other man is saying "He's going
to hurt you. Stay away. If you serve him, you'll never
have anything yourself." Jesus wants to come and take
one of those men away.
JESUS COMES INTO YOUR LIFE TO
TAKE AWAY THE OLD MAN SO THAT
THE NEW MAN CAN REMAIN.
SERVANTHOOD
When you begin to be caught up in the cloud and
forever be with the Lord, you're going to be caught in
the glory and one of those men is going to die. And
when you are caught up in the glory, be not conformed
to this world but be ye transformed by the renewing of
your mind. The moment that your mind becomes fully
transformed in an area, you have been fully changed in
a moment. You are heirs of God and joint heirs with
Jesus Christ. You are partakers of His divine nature.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only
begotten Son. God loved you so much that He gave you
sonship. You just don't know your real name! NOW are
we the sons of God! It does not appear what we shall
be, but when He shall appear, we shall be like Him. The
reason why you are still in a struggle is because the Son
of man has not appeared to your unrenewed mind. But
when He shall appear, you shall be like Him. When we
have the mind of Christ, we will take on His nature,
which is nothing more than to serve. As we take the
BE NOT CONFORMED TO THIS
WORLD, BUT BE YE TRANSFORMED
BY THE RENEWING OF THE MIND.
posture of a servant, the greatness of God within us can
come to its maturation. The call of God that has come
unto you is a call for self-denial; a call for perpetual
humility. I pray that you answer the call in the fullness
of the Spirit of Christ, for that is your purpose to be fulfilled in the earth.
BOOKS
BY BlSHOP E. BERNARD JORDAN
M E MAKING OF THE DREAM
Are you ridingthewaver t o an unknown rhoiel Is God's will parring you
by? Is your Gad-given virion a dream or a realql If you aren't sure of
your life's destination then you need to hear 'The Making ofthe Dream!'
here teachings are remarkable because they will assist you in establishg workable goair in pursuit of s u c c a . You God-given dream will no
onger be incomprehenrible, birt % will be touchable, believable and canceivable!
510
M E SCIENCE OF PROPHECY
A clear, concise and detailed expaltion on the prophetic minirtry and
addresser many mirnomen and mirundentandings concemingthe minh y of the New Testament prophet. If you have any questions canceming prophetic minim, or would like t o receive sound, rciiptural
teachings an this subject, this book ii for you! 5 10
- .. -
.. ,
.
8 ' :
1),
nJriLr rg n 11. n rgr of Gcd c,
l e g &"pa n'eo ano aron;?a n a . x a l i paced n rre .,aof p3ien.
i 1 3 1 leaderr GDd r rarCLre olai..hon:) a r o prcioro fcr me pLipore cf
I, j
' ,l,.:'.'
Ine rnalumicn of efecl .e eiaerrnip ir lnorc~gnl, orcurred ana
-paned
Tns b w r 'I hgh, recommended fcr anlone .:no oc e . a
ma!
G m hxr ca co them u, an, 1,or of rn. s i r ) n the Boa, c f Cnnn
?I. . .
,!:
,......
,
,
- MEMORING: M E MISSING UNK
I D s r i.?n ine n c m r l y cf pray
, ,
,
;.,,I,
..:
0,.
lSlO
-
. .;-;
1 :;. . .
-.:
-.
*.
MEOITATION. THE #FI TO NEW HORllONS IN GOD
pmLn of the hon1edp.e of Goa Lona conrtdered ercliv.el, n the
omain of New Aee an; eastern relieiok, meditation is adall; Dart of
the heitape o f ~ h k a n r and
. is to b i an sentid soatt of eve;
~ be~iw~ ,
er's life. k e have been given a mandate to medktte upon the Ward of
God in orderto effectprasperityandwholeness in our lives. Thb b m k
giver some foundational principles to stimulate our traniformation into
the expresr, image of jerui ~ h h s t . 510
~
-
~
-
PROPHmC GENESIS
Explores the realnu of the genesis of prophec/..the beginning of God
cmmuniating t o mankind. The prophetic mini*
ir examined in a
greateidepth, and the impad ofvarious areas such as cuitvre and music
upon prophecy are taught indepth. The prophetic ministry must always
operate under proper alrthorii, and this fador is airo delved into. This
b m k is designed for the mature rtudem who ii ready to enter imo new
dimensions ofthe prophetic realm.
410
M E JOSHUA GENERATION
A bookthat rings with the round of ~onfmntation,ar the Body aiChrirt
is urged t o awaken from parrivitfto embrace the responsibility t o fuihil
the mandate of God in this hour! The JorhuaGeneration is targeted for
thore who are resdv t o look bevood the confines aftradm'on to tackle
) O J i r e a pan
tne negnr 01 cnange Are )CL a p onrer ~t he>%)
of h e ,ornil Genlrallon 1 Th r ooor I for ,o. 4 S I
-
SPlRiNAL PROIOCOL
P a o r 3 e s ;n e*m: mg
, need f c i orerr ana dinp nc 1 tne Roo, oi
.
I Chr.rr B,.aeeies.el, anrcknerherrewcf nocxnoence md la.....sl&%$?%zcmners that bemieater the church. the issue of clove;nmental author* and
accouiitlbility is thoroughly diiirred. This haoual deaiiy identi& the
i.' ddineation ofareas and leveir ofministry, and brings a frerh undemnd.
ing of a j i n o r q and 5.oreq.zrl
r.5m rricn ind the r rnp =I onr lor
Ihderrn p 2 . w n l n rlc-se
~
cl in? Lora Th i r 3 cornprehenr . e n ~ o )
I tna: 1~ .oci B in3p. ciaaq'r e x ~i
omk Yentor np,
" and ~n ;nlr recammended for anyone desiring to understand and aiign himeif with
God's order for the New Tertament Church.
$20
, -.
1
,
,,. .
:
. :: .
a
1
'
.
a
0
,
PWSE AND WORSHIP
the outward mode of exprerrian of an internal relationship Mith God,
and are empioyed by Gad ar an avenue through which He wiii speak
and display Hi Word, and by man ar a loving response to the touch of
God upon his life. This book will compel the readerto deepen his reiationship viith hi Creator. and expiare new degreer of ihmacy with our
Lord and Saviour. Jesus Christ
$20
iir
BREAKING SOUL TIES AND GENERATIONAL CURSES
...
arrs The rim of the fither will aften sitempt t o viit this present generation ...however, thare who understand their authority in Chrirt can
refuse that viiitiotion!! Thb series reveals the methods of identiFjing soul
ties and curses that adempt to reduplicate themselves genedon aher
generation. If you can point to a recurrent blight within your family lin-
pe series ..................
340.00
-tape series..................$40.00
WAITTEN1UDGMENTSVOWME I
Chronides the Word of the Lord concerning the natiom of the world
and the Body of Chrkt at large. Many rubjem are addressed, such ar
the U.S. economy. the progress ofihe Church, the rise and fill ofcer@innations, and Bishop Jordan prophecies over every rtate in America
with the exception of Ohio. This ii not witten for ienrationsliim, bui
to challenee
" the Body of Chrktto bepin to o w concern in^ the chan~es
!hat are to come.
510
" .
WRITEN JUDGMENTSVOLUME II
A continuation oithe Word af the Lord expressed towards the Middle
East, the Caribbean nations. America, and the Body d Christ at large.
Addrerres various issues confroming America such as abortion, radrm,
e c ~ o m i c rand homelerrnerr. A powerful refledion of the judgemenk
of God, which come to effect redemption and resondliation in the lives
of mankind.
510
MINI BOOKS
............................ $1.00
...................$1.00
..................... $1.00
1. The Purpose of Tongues
2. Above All Things Get Wisdom
3. Calling Forth The Men of Valor

Servanthood - The Law Of Thinking

Transcription

Similar documents

Sales Sheet

summer wednesday evening service - First Presbyterian Church of

Recursos para la Parroquia Encíclica del Papa Francisco

12/06/15 Sunday Bulletin

“May the Lord Jesus be always adored in his Sacrament, and be

Here are the songs we sang this Sunday. This shows the song name

June 19, 2016 - Mt. Zion Apostolic Church

Welcome the Lamb

1 – Bread of Life

The Inside Story