Shake the dust off
A parable is told of a farmer who owned an old mule. The mule fell into the farmer¹s well. The farmer heard the mule "braying", or whatever mules do when they fall into wells. After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathised with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well were worth the trouble of saving. Instead he called his neighbours together and told them what had happened...and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery. Initially, the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and his neighbours continued shovelling and the dirt hit his back...a thought struck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back.....HE SHOULD SHAKE IT OFF AND STEP UP! This he did blow after blow. "Shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up!" he repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or distressing the situation seemed the old mule fought "panic" and just kept right on SHAKING IT OFF AND STEPPING UP! It was not long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, STEPPED TRIUMPHANTLY OVER THE WALL OF THAT WELL. What seemed like it would bury him, actually blessed him.....all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.
Want to start by making the next statement namely it is time for the church of God to shake off the dust and take their rightful place.
Ecclesiastics 10:5 – 7
BBE: There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, like an error which comes by chance from a ruler: The foolish are placed in high positions, but men of wealth are kept low. I have seen servants on horses, and rulers walking on the earth as servants.
GW: There is a tragedy that I’ve seen under the sun, an error often made by rulers. Foolish people are often given high positions, and rich people are left to fill lower positions. I have seen slaves sitting on horses and influential people going on foot like slaves.
A few things to take note of:
1) There is an evil which is under the sun.
So he is saying something is wrong. In fact it is called a tragedy. Something is not right and that something is called an evil. So it is not just a little mistake.
2) This evil, error, wrong comes from whomever is in charge or rules.
That means to rectify this evil means that the real rulers must start to rule again.
3) This evil = slaves are riding on horses and princes are walking in the dust of the earth as slaves.
This evil = the wrong people are ruling while the real rulers are the slaves.
In the Bible it was always the rulers who were riding on the horses while the slaves were walking but in the spiritual realm this is not happening. In the spirit world this man has seen an evil. Those who are suppose to be the rulers became the slaves.
From the beginning of time it was God’s purpose for us, His children, to be the rulers, to be the kings and princes.
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.
BBE: And God said, Let us make man in our image, like us: and let him have rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every living thing which goes flat on the earth.
We are supposed to be the rulers that are riding on the horses but instead we are the princes that are walking like slaves.
Genesis 32:28
KJV: And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
The day we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, He changed our name and also said that as a prince we have power with God.
Deuteronomy 28:13
AMP: And the Lord shall make you the head, and not the tail; and you shall be above only, and you shall not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you this day and are watchful to do them.
BBE: The Lord will make you the head and not the tail; and you will ever have the highest place, if you give ear to the orders of the Lord your God which I give you today, to keep and to do them;
GW: The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. You will always be at the top, never at the bottom, if you faithfully obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you today.
Ephesians 2:6
AMP: And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together [giving us joint seating with Him] in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
GNB: In our union with Christ Jesus he raised us up with him to rule with him in the heavenly world.
Romans 5:17
AMP: For if because of one man’s trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God’s] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
CEV: Death ruled like a king because Adam had sinned. But that cannot compare with what Jesus Christ has done. God has been so kind to us, and he has accepted us because of Jesus. And so we will live and rule like kings.
Luke 10:19
Revelation 5:10
ALT: and made them kings and priests to our God, and they will reign on the earth."
CEV: You let them become kings and serve God as priests, and they will rule on earth."
GW: You made them a kingdom and priests for our God. They will rule as kings on the earth."
Church it is us that are supposed to rule but we are walking in the dust as slaves. It is time to rectify this evil under the sun.
Isaiah 52:2
AMP: Shake yourself from the dust; arise, sit [erect in a dignified place], O Jerusalem; loose yourself from the bonds of your neck, O captive Daughter of Zion.
ASV: Shake thyself from the dust; arise, sit on thy throne, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bonds of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion.
BBE: Make yourself clean from the dust; up! And take the seat of your power, O Jerusalem: the bands of your neck are loose, O prisoned daughter of Zion.
GNB: Shake yourself free, Jerusalem! Rise from the dust and sit on your throne! Undo the chains that bind you, captive people of Zion!
Three things we need to do:
1) Shake off the dust.
Like the mule. It is time to shake off the dust of poverty, of sickness, of defeat.
2) Arise.
In other words = stand up! Do not sit any longer in your dust. Not only must we shake it off, we also need to stand up from it.
Arise = to become powerful.
Isaiah 60:1 – 2
3) Sit in your rightful place.
It is of no use just to shake off the dust and stand up. We also need to take up our authority again. We need to sit on our seat of power. We need to sit on our thrones. We need to take up our rightful position.
It is time to shake off the dust and become powerful and sit on our thrones.
1 Samuel 14:1 – 2
(Show contrast between sitting in dust and arise. Saul and Jonathan represent two different churches).
1 Samuel 14:4
Bozez = surpassing white; glistening.
Seneh = same word use for the burning bush of Moses.
Both of these places were taken in by the Philistine’s. Both represent that which God has in store for us – His presence and glory. But it was the slaves that were there while the king was sitting underneath a tree.
But thank God for someone that said that it is time to rectify this evil.
1 Samuel 14:6
1 Samuel 14:13
Jonathan decided to shake off the dust and to arise and sit on his rightful place. He was on his hands and feet and still the enemy fell before him because the moment he shook off the dust, arise and sit God made him powerful. And the enemy just fell before him.
Come on let us shake off the dust. Arise. Sit in a dignified place.
