A man of God uses God’s power to do God’s work

God upholds a man of God. That is, God gives the man of God the necessary power to accomplish what God has chosen him for. This is made clear in Is 42:1.

Is 42:1 1 "Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations.

To be upheld by God means to have God’s support in what you do. God gives the man of God the necessary wisdom and resources to do a good job.

Whatever a man of God touches, God will bless.

There are a number of interesting things to point out in this verse.

First, notice the word ‘behold’. A man of God needs to understand that people observe him. Therefore, he needs to be careful to live a transparent life. If he has a double standard it will soon become evident and his life will bring disgrace to God. Our prayer should be that we would rather that God never uses us rather than God use us for a while and then later we bring disgrace to God.

Second, notice the phrase ‘My chosen one’. You see, a man of God has to be chosen by God. You or I cannot suddenly decide to be a man of God and begin speaking for God. Neither can some administrator in your church or Christian organization select you. God has to choose you and the members of the church can only recognize and affirm that God has chosen you.

When God chooses, He chooses not just you, but He chooses you for a particular ministry in a particular place and at a particular time. He is not going to uphold you if after He chooses you, you decide to do what you want where you want and when you want.

You have to be in the place that God wants you to be and be doing the thing that God wants you to be doing, in the time that God wants you to do it. When God chose Moses, Moses couldn’t ask God to wait a few years. Nor could he focus on converting the Midianites. Nor could he go to Egypt and try to convert the Egyptians. No – he just had to deliver the Jews from the Egyptians.

Third, notice the phrase ‘in whom My soul delights’. You can’t be a man of God if your life is not pleasing to God. That is, you have to be one in whom God’s soul delights in.

For example, if you are spreading strife among your brothers so that you can gain an advantage, you are doing something that God hates.

Prov 6:16-19 16 There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19 a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers.

A person who wants to be a man of God must know what pleases God and what displeases God, and he must be careful to do what pleases Him and not do what displeases Him. And if he messes up, he must repent and seek forgiveness. You can’t be a man of God if you have a bad conscience.

David was a man after God’s own heart. But there were times when he did things that displeased God. During those times God opposed him. He had to repent and be forgiven before he could be a man of God again.

Sometimes, people start out well, and then they go astray, and they are too proud to repent. When that happens even though God used them once upon a time, He stops using them. They may still continue in ministry, but they have lost the anointing and God does not uphold them anymore.

It seems to me that such a thing happened to Miriam. She was used by God (see Exodus 15), but then she became proud and opposed Moses (see Numbers 12). And when God pointed it out, she did not repent. Even after God made the whole thing public she did not repent. After that incident the next thing you hear about her is that she died (see Numbers 20).

Such a thing also happened to Solomon. God was pleased with him initially, but he made God angry by marrying foreign women who turned his heart away from God. And therefore, God no longer upheld him and his kingdom was split.

1 Ki 11:10-13 10 Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD's command. 11 So the LORD said to Solomon, "Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. 12 Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen."

Fourth, notice the phrase ‘I have put My Spirit on him’. A man of God accomplishes things for God from a position of weakness. Although he himself is weak, he is successful because that which is accomplished is accomplished by the Spirit of God.

Zech 4:6 Then he said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel saying, 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD of hosts."

Mic 3:8 On the other hand I am filled with power – with the Spirit of the LORD – and with justice and courage to make known to Jacob his rebellious act, even to Israel his sin.

The position of weakness keeps him humble.

2 Cor 12:7-10 7 Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me – to keep me from exalting myself! 8 Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. 9 And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.

The reason why God does this is to prevent us from touching His glory.

1 Cor 1:27-29 27 but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, 28 and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, 29 so that no man may boast before God.

God allowed Joseph to be sold as a slave and to be in prison for many years so that Joseph would not depend on himself but on God to uphold him.

Even Daniel began as an immigrant to Babylon, under the mercy of a foreign king, so that he could learn to depend on God.

Joseph and Daniel learned to give glory to God. And then, whatever Joseph and Daniel touched, God blessed.

God let David run for his life in the wilderness for many years. It was in this way that God perfected David in learning what it means to be upheld by God.

When God gave Moses the task of delivering the Jews God put Moses in a position of weakness in speech but promised to uphold him.

When God gave Paul the task of preaching to the Gentiles God put Paul in a position of weakness in speech and stature but upheld him with power.

2 Cor 10:10 For they say, "His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible."

So when you face a troubling boss or troubling coworkers, consider that God is teaching you to let Him uphold you.

Don’t ever trade such upholding by looking for men for support. Today’s Christianity has drifted so far away from such a standard.

And if you receive a ministry from God, let God uphold you, not a bunch of rich believers.

Do you sense God upholding you?


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