Comments and Expositions by Sister Kim Frey

Culture Study 8

In current society seems to be in a constant deterioration from God’s intended order and culture. We are a people ruled by pride, which masks itself in many different ways. Having only a vision of the earth realm(things in the flesh), we tend to interpret things according to our own needs, interests and understanding. This ultimately leads to a culture where everyone “does what is right in their own eyes”. This way of thinking not only permeates our inner man, but in turn affects the way we relate to our families, communities and other nations. So, we must reevaluate the framework of how to rightly relate to one another.

A generational change must occur to dig out the root of pride and learn how to rightly relate to one another. This change must begin within ourselves, in the cultivation of our own character. This work can only approached through the enlightenment and leading of the Holy Spirit. From Him comes the renewal of our minds, the perfection of knowledge. Without this spiritual enlightenment, we look and do not see, we hear and do not understand; we eat and do not know the taste of what we eat.

But, as a son of God, we are shown a higher realm of thinking within the structure of discipleship. For wisdom cannot be attained independently. It’s is a collective asset whose purpose is to reconcile the loving and merciful God with the just and righteous God. True peace cannot then merely be attained within ourselves, for it is a result of mutual respect and honor for each other.

What does it look like to build a culture of mutual honor within fallible humans?

The Lord gave us laws for enlightenment and corporate blessing. He has always longed for a people in which He can intimately know and be known. So, as we evaluate those who have gone before us (our spiritual fathers) we should view them in light of God’s purpose and order. The order of His government(culture) was always intended to flow from honor and respect first to the deity of our High King, and then with a perspective that goes beyond self and fulfills the greater intent and purposes for mankind.

In the family of God, we have each been strategically placed under the leadership of certain individuals. This starts with our own parents who have been given a special endowment by God to shepherd their children. They serve as a spokesperson of God in a natural hierarchy in terms of authority and entrustment; just as kings were chosen and honored and given the right to rule all those in their kingdom.

Discernment must always come into play when evaluating human relationships. We are all fallible and capable of making mistakes. However, each person was created in the image of God. His holy standard is how we measure all things. Even in mistakes, we honor because we are honorable sons of The King. We can learn to see the God given, beautiful aspects of others, without the mark of sin. For, every human was made in the image of God. All good things in us are from Him. As a son, we can see the restoration work that God is doing and will do. We can learn to be a people who see the design and beauty of God in others, applaud those things, thank Him for His finished work and pray fervently for the things that fall short of His glory.

I love the way God set up a blueprint for this evaluation process through the feasts. We look to those who have gone before us, events, times and communal responses. We honor them by remembering these testimonies. We are inspired to cultivate these things that God accomplished through them and pass that heritage to future generations.

For this to take place, this culture cannot just be an inflow of endowment, but also an outflow of the wisdom attained. One where not only we honor the spiritual fathers or elders that have been placed in our lives, but also become one who serves others by also leading others into this spiritual wisdom. Any cultural endowment is for something greater than ourselves. So, the very essence of kingship and priesthood is service. The more we are given, the more we are expected to give. This becomes a living reality of mutual honor and respect.

As we are led and overcome, we then become leaders who serve in this same way. In complete submission, we must step outside any personal ideal. The Lord needs a people who are willing to lay down all forms of self and only do the Father’s will.

The high priest Aaron had to learn this concept the hard way. He had to be stripped down and humiliated before becoming a high priest, just to illustrate this very point.

But, if we view others in light of mutual service and honor, we will see that all relationships serve a higher purpose. We look to the goodness, strengths and abilities in others and honor those things. Being that we all represent a piece of His body, we need each other to represent the fullness of His glory. Submitted under His Lordship, everyone is given exactly what they need for their assignment in the body.

This mutual service and servanthood brings a higher order to relationships and communities in general.

As we learn to engage in this way generationally, we will see a restoration of relationships and faith.

Malachi 4 speaks of this restoration of God’s holy people. Generations join hands restoring hearts of fathers to children and children to Fathers and the curses over the land are broken.