Biblical Examples
Rahab was a woman on the enemy’s side who became the help of the Israeli scouts.
Esther was a beautiful young lady. She was the salvation of all of Israel. If you didn’t receive her ministry, you would die.
The same applies if you didn’t receive Elijah and John the Baptist with their strange dressing and unconventional ways…
It really does not matter what the circumstances may be; we must receive those who come in the name of the Lord.
The Receiver’s Checklist
We are not to receive those who claim to come in His name. To properly discern the Body and receive properly, you need to:
1. Inquire: A big duty we have is to ask the Lord if a person is sent by the Lord. That is the first imperative.
2. Humble yourself: When the one sent by the Lord comes, you must practice humility.
Watch out for this!
The humility it takes to receive them is another imperative. The Lord often creates circumstances that will make it hard for you to receive them.
If you find yourself open to receiving someone too easily because the person is impressive in some way, be careful; you are likely failing a test.
Many people are receiving people whom God did not send to them — people who are not representing the Lord in their lives. This is because the person looks, talks, and dresses impressively.
He is outstanding. Everything in you wants to submit to such a person. You are proud of them. In every way, they look worthy of submission. Yet, that does not make them the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Look at John the Baptist, at the Jordan River. He was the one given the message as the forerunner of Christ, but he did not look good. He was a wild man, then a prisoner, and was beheaded at the instance of a woman.
Look at Paul and the manner he went to the people he was sent to. He was humble-looking and unimpressive in speech, but he was the one sent to the Gentiles. If they did not receive him, they would have lost out on their access to God’s kingdom.
God will continually do things to test people’s hearts. He will bring the word of God to them through messengers who are not impressive.
If you look at the person or people God has given to lead you and they are humble, do not order your around, command, or treat you brashly, or according to what you deserve, they were sent to you.
Many struggle with this, (especially those who have come across authentic Christian messengers), because they are used to being crushed and ruled over by tyrants like the Assyrians.
That is how the kingdoms and benefactors of this world rule; the greatest among them stand out. But the Lord said in Matthew 23:11, “The greatest among you shall be the least.”
[To be continued…]
