Thursday, September 5, 2013

Calling All Ester(s) 6: Jezreel - A Place of Dominion



In this new unedited excerpt from my upcoming book I want to emphasize the importance for believers to rise up to fight for Israel and to recover the things lost from the church in power and authority and with the Holy Spirit of the Most High God as the captain and leader of this relevant move on the earth on behalf of His people, so we can take dominion in the land He has promised us. This is a season in which it is not enough to seek God for ourselves and the things that only pertain to us. Just like in the book of Esther she came together with Mordecai, the king and the other Jews that joined them to defeat the enemy, we will see this pattern and principle of unity to fight and work to bring about great breakthroughs and victories throughout the Bible. 

For this reason, we need to come together as a body and according to God's direction to fight in unity and for each other in order to see great manifestations of His glory and power to deliver us, expand our territories, and see great victories supernaturally. Jezreel is synonymous with dominion, but this dominion takes fighting and working in unity, so let's take heed of God's call to us in this hour for the Jews and for the church. To Him alone be all the glory.

...the nations of the earth will come to the light of the church that will be exalted above other mountains as the place where the law and the word of the Lord will go forth to teach men His ways. They will follow Him to walk in His light and glory in every area of their lives (Isaiah 2; Micah 4). This is a great example of Jewish and believers being united as God’s peculiar people.

Jezreel
God promises this type of influence in Hosea 2:21-23:
21“It shall come to pass in that day
 That I will answer”, says the LORD;
 I will answer the heavens,
And they shall answer the earth.
22The earth shall answer
With grain,
With new wine,
And the oil;
They shall answerJezreel.
23Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth,
 And I will have mercy on her who had not
Obtained mercy;
Then I will say to those who were not
My people,

‘You are My people!’
And they shall say, ‘You are my God!’”(Bold emphasis, mine).

This promised type of Influence of the church in the land as it was in the valley of Jezreel has been contested for many generations in biblical times. Jezreel means “God Sows”. The valley of Jezreel was named after the city of Jezreel, and it was a northern city in Israel within the allotted territory of the tribe of Issachar. It marked the boundary between Samaria to the south and Galilee to the north, Megiddo and the plain of Megiddo, also known as the Plain of Esdraelon just to the west of Jezreel. There was a lot of traffic going through this valley because it formed an easier route through the Levant (eastern part of the Mediterranean28) than crossing the mountains on either side. It was also the site of many historic battles. One of them was the battle of Megiddo.

Jezreel is said to possess some of the most fertile farmland and wonderful views in Israel making it the agricultural heartland of the country, rich in natural springs. This fertile land made Jezreel a very coveted and contested place and whoever controlled the valley, had also control of the land and the people. One of the battles fought in Jezreel that brought victory to the Israelites was the battle led by Gideon against the Midianites, the Amalekites and the children of the East (Judges 6-7). It also was the location where Saul and his sons were defeated with the Israelites by the Philistines who then came to occupy the land (1 Samuel 31:6-7).

Years later, King Ahab built a summer Palace in Jezreel. Naboth, his neighbor owned a very fruitful vineyard on the land which he had inherited from his ancestors. Ahab coveted the vineyard and wanted to make a vegetable garden in it, but when he asked Naboth if he could buy the land from him, Naboth refused. Jezebel, Ahab’s queen devised a plot that resulted in Naboth’s death so she could steal the vineyard for Ahab. This brought God’s judgment on Ahab, Jezebel and their house that after prophesied by Elijah, dogs licked Ahab’s blood from his battle chariot, and ate the flesh of Jezebel in Jezreel. (1 Kings 21, 22:37-38, 2 kings 9:36).

God has promised to restore Jerusalem and the church to Himself and give them dominion in the land as He is recognized again as their God and all idol worship ceases, causing them to rest from their enemies, and as noted before, they will have the light and glory of the Lord resting upon them which spring forth from an enduring love affair with the Living God.

As stated before, God is a God who plants and He has been planting from the beginning of creation. Genesis 2:8 says, The LORD God planted a garden eastward of Eden, and there He put man whom He had formed.

Isaiah 60:21 also says, All your people will be righteous. They will possess their land forever, for I will plant them there with my own hands in order to bring myself glory NLT.

This is a promise to God’s people as they rise up to fight and work in unity to take dominion over their areas of influence and as they are called, so that His kingdom may be advanced and expanded on the earth. Not one person can do it alone. God is calling us to unify and become kings that extend judgment on the enemy and also become priests that extend mercy and grace to the lost and the fallen so their walk towards restoration may begin.


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