Are you a DECORATIVE or FUNCTIONAL pillar – Part 5

Proverbs 9: 1 (AMP) says “Wisdom has built her [spacious and sufficient] house; she has hewn out and set up her seven pillars.” I wanted to start out with this verse of scripture, so that we can see that being a FUNCTIONAL pillar does not just happen, there is some work involved in effectively functioning as a FUNCTIONAL pillar. The word hewn means to cut into shape from a stone; and as you know, chiseling anything from a concrete stone is hard work and a lot of preparation; the stone cutters might be able to give us further insight into the process of stone cutting. In my part 4 posts, I attached a photo image of the seven pillars, with each pillar representing a different category. On meditation and looking at each pillar, I realised one particular pillar “Christianity” (Christianity is a way of life) envelopes all the others, and the reason I thought this way was because in Christianity exists all the other pillars; pause and calmly think. All the other pillars are embedded in Christianity. Consequently, let us walk through some scriptural examples.

• Isaiah 9:6-7 (TLB) “For unto us a child is born; unto us a Son is given; and the GOVERNMENT shall be upon his shoulder. These will be his royal titles: “Wonderful,” “Counselor,” “The Mighty God,” “The Everlasting Father,” “The Prince of Peace. His ever-expanding, peaceful government will never end. He will rule with perfect fairness and justice from the throne of his father David. He will bring true justice and peace to all the nations of the world. This is going to happen because the Lord of heaven’s armies has dedicated himself to do it.” In other words, governance and rulership started with the Son, the Son carried the weight upon His shoulders; this talks about nations being governed by Godly and biblical precepts. Can you compare what we see in government today to what the scripture says in Isaiah 9:6-7? There is no comparison. And guess what God did? He elected you and I into office; not through an election we are accustomed to, but through His “election of grace.

• Families are those we cherish and love. Yes we all look and sound different, however, we belong to the loving and caring arm of our God in heaven. Scripture tells us we belong to the universal body of believers, called the family of God.  God instituted the first family when He brought Eve to Adam. Genesis 2:18 (NLT), then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.” Genesis 2:24 (ESV) says “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Ephesians 1:5 (NLT), “God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.” God is very family oriented, hence he sets you and I in the context of families. God is well capable of supporting His family to which you and I belong to, so we have nothing to be worried about., I am resting easy knowing that God in heaven is my Father, and He has chosen before the foundations of the earth to supply all our needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

• Deuteronomy 8:18 (ESV) “You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you POWER TO GET WEALTH, that He may confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.” In other words, God has empowered you and I to function in the business realm and to make a success of it. Genesis 1:26 (NLT). Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” So God created human beings in His own image. In the image of God He created them; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.” Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. And I have given every green plant as food for all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—everything that has life.” And that is what happened.” I am sure, we realize God was giving His creation the blueprint or principles for success in business. The interesting thing is, God did not just give us rulership on earth; He also empowered us to do, hallelujah, glory to God. Here, we see BUSINESS.

• When I think media, I hear COMMUNICATION. The word media is non-existent in the scripture, at least to my knowledge after checking. Christianity’s mandate is to communicate the true message; the gospel. Habakkuk 2:2 and the Lord said to me, “Write my answer plainly on tablets, so that a runner can carry the correct message to others,” and Proverbs 29:18, “without a progressive vision, we dwell carelessly.” Now, if the message of the vision is distorted in anyway or portrayed as false, then the communication channels would be broadcasting fake news, and eventually people might be misled, thus opening a door for evil to prevail. Scripture says, “so mightily grew the word of God in Ephesus and it prevailed.” Here we see the message of Christ, the gospel, the good news, being broadcast correctly over the media, and people responded to the true gospel, hence were not given an alternative gospel, they were given the AUTHENTIC GOSPEL. I see the tablet in the context of various media channels through which news is being disseminated. When you read the 7 deadly sins, our God hates, a lying tongue and a false witness and feet that are swift to trouble, etc, and when media is used to spread falsehood, then evil prevails. Media today seem to be an avenue for the dissemination of evil report or bad news or should I say a message from the dark side painting a picture of hopelessness, fear, death, sickness and disease, hence not a pillar of Christianity, and we can relate to the fact, the 7 deadly sins tend to express what the current media is about. Whereas, Jesus announced the true nature of His vision and communicated the Kingdom as the Beatitudes, and also saying in John 10:10 (NLT) says “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. The message of the gospel is life in abundance, and what the world needs today is news worthy to be called news.

• In Christianity, EDUCATION exists. Proverbs 22:6 admonishes us, “Train up (educate and instill) a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent], and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Isaiah 54:13 ” I will teach all your children, and they will enjoy great peace. Listen to what God said about Abraham and His children, “I have singled him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just…” Education starts at home with the parents, therefore every parent has the duty of care to educate their children and household in the ways of the Lord. So what is the way of the Lord? Galatians 5:22 (AMPC) helps us answer, but the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit [the work which His presence within accomplishes] is “love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness, gentleness (meekness, humility), self-control (self-restraint, continence), against such things there is no law [that can bring a charge]. Education is not about moral relativism, it is about inputting and instilling in people values of respect, honor and love for humanity. Therefore, I would posit, “Christianity offers all forms of education covering every aspect of human life.”

• According to a BBC 2014 report, “CHRISTIANITY is the world’s biggest religion, with about 2.1 billion followers worldwide. It is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ.” Genesis 1:26 (AMP) “God said, Let Us [Father, Son, and Holy Spirit] make mankind in Our image, after Our likeness, and let them have complete authority over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the [tame] beasts, and over all of the earth, and over everything that creeps upon the earth. Christianity is a way of life, and we are encouraged to embrace and mirror our heavenly Father in character, nature and attitude, hence Christianity gives us a new DNA – Divine Nature Attitude.

• When I see arts and entertainment, I hear hospitality, enjoyment, fun, having a good time in the liberty of pure delight. Christianity is not about do’s and dont’s, but about having a loving relationship with our heavenly Father. Scripture tells us to “rejoice always,” and our rejoicing is in the Lord. Jeremiah 9:24 (CEV), “If you feel you must brag, then have enough sense to brag about worshiping me, the Lord. What I like best is showing kindness, justice, and mercy to everyone on earth.” Arts and Entertainment can take on so many form, it depends on what interests you I suppose, and I strongly believe there is a place for arts and entertainment. I personally enjoy watching football, and to be precise, Manchester United, I enjoy playing table tennis, travelling, shopping a bit etc. So ask yourself this question, what thrills and entertains you? Go ahead and have fun in the Lord, you are entitled to.

Paul says in 1 Timothy 3:15 (NIV) “If I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.” If I could re-design the 7 pillars, guess what it will look like? You got it. I have thoroughly enjoyed writing this particular series, it has enlightened me even the more and I am extremely grateful to God that I have the privilege to share my thoughts and insight with you.

We write You read Be encouraged.