RISE Training Series Call May 18, 2015 - Kingdom Leadership and Prophetic Companies in a Movement of Hope

Kingdom Leadership – Part 2

by Duane Huck

• In this session we will continue to look at some of the key attributes of Kingdom Leadership
• Last time we talked about how, as leaders, we are influencing those around us and that we want to make sure we are having a positive influence on those we are leading
• And we talked about as kingdom leaders, we need to have Godly character…and that our character is further defined each time we make choices in life.
• When we are faced with adversity or tough situations, will we make the right choice and refuse to compromise? Even if it’s not the popular choice or if it’s a choice that will cost us?
• Kingdom leaders refuse to compromise and in particular they refuse to compromise the truth of God’s word and what He has to say about the particular situation you are dealing with.
• I believe another key element to Kingdom Leadership is Servanthood.
• When the world thinks of Servanthood, or the condition of being a servant, they often think of someone in a lower level position serving someone in a higher ranking position. And while this is certainly one aspect of serving, it’s not the only form of it.
• Jesus teaches us about Servanthood in the book of Mark when two of his followers, James and John, came to him with a request to sit in places of honor next to Jesus on his glorious throne…and Jesus basically said, “You’ve got it all wrong”.
• Picking up the story there in the book of Mark,  we read this:

Mark 10:41-45New Living Translation (NLT)
41 When the ten other disciples heard what James and John had asked, they were indignant. 42 So Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 43 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

• And so we see Jesus saying, if you want to be a leader, start serving those around you, those you are connecting with.
• Jesus modeled servant leadership during his ministry on earth. He was always looking for opportunities to serve and pour into the lives of those around him.
• Jesus’ words to his first followers, Peter and Andrew, were “Come follow me, and I will SHOW you how to fish for men.”
• Jesus was saying I’m going to share with you what I know; I’m going to teach you, I going to help you understand how to live the abundant life that God desires for you, so you then can pass this on to others.
• Servant leaders stay in tune with those they’re leading, are aware of their needs and desires, and are available to help them or get them help when needed…and they do this without expecting anything in return.
• When serving others, don’t look at it as just an act of helping someone else, but also see it as an opportunity to connect with that individual and further develop your relationship and influence in their lives
• Sometimes leaders, especially those of us who are task oriented like myself, can miss the whole point of servanthood. We can just go through our daily “to do” list and check things off and feel as though we’ve accomplished everything and in the process we’ve served those around us as well.
• We need to broaden our focus to be not only on the tasks but also on the people we are leading…allowing time for those divine appointments.
• Servant leaders are willing to do anything and everything that he/she would ask those they are leading to do…and they’re not only willing to do it, they actually do it.
• They don’t just say things like, “Well I could do that, but that’s why I’ve got you.” – Instead they recognize opportunities to “pitch in” and help others when they need it.
• Status and position are unimportant to a servant leader, and a true leader has a desire to serve others and put their interests ahead of his own…they serve out of love for others…servanthood is not motivated by manipulation or self-promotion.
• A servant leader will not use or abuse power to advance their position in an organization.

Philippians 2:3-4New Living Translation (NLT)
3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

• Servant leaders are always finding ways to make sure others know they are valued, appreciated, and important by being willing to serve them and meet their needs.
• Leaders are able to serve others because they are secure with who they are…they are able to love others because they love themselves.
• Insecure leaders are continually looking for validation, acknowledgment, and love...and they become wrapped up in this cycle of trying to find security, rather than instilling it in others.
• Insecure leaders have a hard time celebrating the successes of others and giving power to others.
• On the contrary, leaders who are secure are able to believe in and bring out the best in others because they believe in themselves.
• Servant leaders are good listeners; as John Maxwell states in one of his books on Leadership: “A good leader encourages followers to tell him what he needs to know, not what he wants to hear.”
• A secure leader is not afraid to hear the truth and make adjustments when necessary to better serve those they are leading.
• Servant leaders go out of their way to connect and listen to what their followers have to say and in the process a relationship of mutual respect is developed.
• Secure leaders are not concerned with getting “credit” for successes and are willing to support and encourage the ideas of others…and they give credit where credit is due.
• The great Industrialist Andrew Carnegie said this: “No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit for doing it.”
• Kingdom leaders are first and foremost concerned with giving God credit…giving Him the glory that is due, recognizing that He is the one that brought the idea that led to the success in the first place.
• And if an idea that someone else has is put into place and it fails, the Kingdom leader is quick to extend grace…not blame, not pointing a finger…but rather, they’re able to say, “You know what, that didn’t work out so well, but at least we know what not to do next time!”
• Kingdom leaders refuse to “throw others under the bus” for the sake of saving their own reputation…they’re willing to take responsibility, even if they’re not at fault…they’re determined to put things in place so that the same failure doesn’t keep happening again and again.
• Kingdom leaders are able to make others accountable and hold them responsible for their actions without condemning them…they do it in a loving, restoring manner…they don’t discard others when mistakes are made, but rather come alongside them and help them move forward.
• Kingdom leaders serve other well when they don’t make excuses and they never embrace a victim mentality…they recognize that each individual chooses whether to be responsible and accountable for their actions.
• Responsible leaders are willing to “go the extra mile” to get the job done…they are motivated by excellence, which means doing things to the best of their God-given ability…and they finish what they start...they persevere to the end.
• Just as our heavenly Father refuses to leave us in the state that we’re currently in, and is constantly leading us to grow and mature, Kingdom leaders refuse to leave others in their current state…they are always looking for ways to further develop those they are leading.
• Servant leaders must be aware of burn-out…where they are constantly giving, serving, and pouring out into others, but never really taking time for themselves…just as everything else in life there has to be balance.
• If you’re constantly serving others while neglecting to take care of your own needs, then eventually you will burn-out, your passion to serve will dry up, and you’ll have nothing else to offer.
• Jesus understood the danger of burn-out during his ministry on earth…we see in Luke chapter 5, after Jesus had healed the man with leprosy and large crowds were gathering around to hear his teaching and receive healing, that Jesus found time to get away…

Luke 5:16New Living Translation (NLT)
16 But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.

• If Jesus “got away” often, then this means it was important to him and he understood the need for times of refreshing, of renewal, of receiving from the Father.
• And so Jesus once again is our example of how to maintain balance in our lives as servant leaders.
• Servant leaders inspire those they are leading to serve others as well…to see the best in people, to help them reach their God-given potential…to make a difference in their families, their organizations, and their communities.
• Respect is earned when a leader keeps the interest of others in mind…when a leader’s focus is on what can be put into his people, rather than what can be gotten from them, they’ll not only respect you, they will be better positioned to help you and your family, your business, your church, or whatever it is you’re leading reach its full potential.
• Serve… Lead…Influence

"Recovering the Prophetic Company in the Movement of Hope"

by Eric J Lynch

2 Kings 6:1-7 states, "The company of the prophets said to Elisha, 'Look, the place where we meet with you is too small for us. 2 Let us go to the Jordan, where each of us can get a pole; and let us build a place there for us to meet.' And he said, 'Go.'

3 Then one of them said, “Won’t you please come with your servants?” “I will,” Elisha replied. 4 And he went with them. They went to the Jordan and began to cut down trees. 5 As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron axhead fell into the water. “Oh no, my lord!” he cried out. “It was borrowed!” 6 The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick and threw it there, and made the iron float. 7 “Lift it out,” he said. Then the man reached out his hand and took it.

We discussed in the last RISE conference call the importance and role the prophetic company plays in the movement of hope. However, we must go beyond talking about its importance, and begin restoring it within the body of Christ.

In 2 Kings 6, we see a company of prophets who are in need of a more spacious meeting place, so they set out to begin building. While chopping wood, an axhead flies off the handle and into the water. Similarly, the body of Christ has recognized the need to build up a larger movement of hope, however, in the process it seems the axhead of the prophetic and true prophetic companies has become lost. It has been lost to pride, it has been lost to new age mysticism, it has been lost to pastors who refuse to embrace its full operation within the church. Despite all of those things, in this hour God is desiring to recover the axhead of true prophetic ministries/companies in the body of Christ, and the movement of hope.

A crucial part of seeing anything restored requires something to be built and constructed, so I want to discuss for a moment how to establish and construct prophetic companies.

 The general structure of the prophetic company includes anywhere from 5 to 15 leadership and service positions, and I have selected 6 to highlight in particular:

1. Apostles

2. Senior Pastor

3. Overseer of the Prophetic Company (the prophet who is most matured and experienced)

4. Staff Prophets (the company of prophets)

5. Prophetic Worshippers/Singers (those who are gifted to prepare at atmosphere of worship, where prophecy can flow easily)

6. Intercessors

When structuring a prophetic company, it is important that the number of service positions and prophets is proportionate to the level of ministry work needed. If the ministry assignment/mission is smaller, then having around 9 prophets on staff (for the purpose of being able to rotate from service to service in groups of 3) is sufficient. The main thing is that you don't want the company to be so large that it ends up taking away from the effectiveness ministry that could take place.

Next, I want to discuss preparing an individual to serve (in some capacity) on the prophetic company:

1. Training: Once an individual is selected by the existing senior leadership (i.e. apostolic leadership, senior pastor, or the prophetic company overseer) they need to begin taking whatever prophetic training/teachibg that church or ministry has in place.

2. Teamwork Mindset: Becoming a part of a prophetic company requires that each individual be willing to set aside being a loose canon, and wirk in unity with the rest of the company.

3. Accountability & Screening: The integrity of the prophetic ministry taking place is non-negotiable. 

Therefore, those who are serving as staff prophets, as well as the prophetic worshippers and intercessors, should be willing to share the words God gives them with the senior leadership before releasing them in a corporate setting. This helps protect the integrity of the whole team.

Lastly, when we talk about constructing a prophetic company, I want to briefly outline the general responsibilities the team/company carries out:

1. Prayer: The prophetic company coming together for regular, set times of prayer as a group is very crucial to its ongoing success and effectiveness as a ministry team.

2. Counsel: As a part of the initial training, each person serving on the prophetic company should be equipped to help counsel various members of the congregation they are serving. This prevents all the responsibility for counseling falling onto the senior pastor or apostolic leader's shoulders.

3. Mentoring: Each member of the prophetic company should be equipped to both identify potential individuals who could serve on the company in some way, and help mentor those who come onto the team (i.e. current intercessors helping mentor new intercessors, current prophetic worshippers helping mentor new prophetic worship leaders etc.)

4. Prophetic Ministry: I believe it goes without saying that being that it is a prophetic company, each service position whether an apostle or intercessor, prophet, or prophetic worshipper should be trained and equipped to know how to tap into the prophetic and prophesy whenever and wherever.

God is restoring the axhead of tge prophetic company and it begins with being willing to take the time to establish a well-trained and mature prophetic company. The prophetic company is essential to the movement of hope, and it is time for prophetic companies to take their place again within local church bodies across the nation and the world.

Prophetic Insights to Consider

A few weeks back, I reached out to a few connected with RISEmovement who are prophetically gifted to share what they are hearing from Father.  Here is some encouraging insight for you to pray over and use in your advancement.  



From Elexio Baillou of the Bahamas

Hope is Here

God’s Movement amongst New Covenant Leaders

There is a continual progression and penetration of God's truth throughout the Western church, particularly within the North America Christian community. With teachers echoing the message of God's grace and the New Covenant within every arena opening up to them, we are being made once again to adjust to and accept what the Lord is clearly saying to His churches.

This penetration of our Christian church world with a once lost truth and kingdom reality has been a source of controversy, confusion, and confrontation to say the least. It is not unusual to see the names of men and women who have been mandated by God to carry this banner being persecuted, maligned and unsupported on one hand while being accepted and embraced on the other.

This is because whenever God begins to speak in this manner within His Church, there is a dividing that ultimately occurs. Like the children of Israel who were promised that they would possess the promised land, there are those who are willing to move forward with the Lord no matter what, and there are those who are more committed to their religious ideals and self-righteous disciplines, and would thus reject anything “new” the Lord speaks if it goes against their pre-conceived ideals and Christian paradigms (even if they are in fact based on scriptures taken out of context and doctrines of devils.)

Nevertheless, HOPE is HERE! HOPE being JESUS unveiled and manifested in the midst of this generation in a way that we have not seen before in previous eras. With the continual proliferation of who HE is to US and in US NOW, we can be assured that there will be a progressive and permanent shift in God' Body here in our part of the world as more and more people are liberated by the knowledge of who they are in Him and what He can do through them.

That being said, it is my intention to now provide you with brief insights into what I believe we can expect because of what God is speaking now (on a macro-level/large scale). My statements are both prophetic as well as predictable, as our Father has a way of doing things and His Word contains trends and typical results that can be seen wherever Jesus is unveiled and His people are freed from the demonic ideals enforced upon them by unknowing spiritual leaders and Christian culture that is not rooted in the nature of Christ.

Essentially, whatever we saw in the life and nature of Christ and the ministry of Paul will be seen in us. The world will see Him in us!

That being said, it is my hope that you understand that the following trends are consistent with “Normal Christianity”, because God’s agenda is to realign and restore Kingdom Normality within His Church until it is a beautiful reflection of that which is happening in heaven. Therefore, understand that that which we have attempted to accomplish through our own power will now occur because of the Lord Jesus Christ working in and through us in this hour!

Here is what I see occurring amongst New Covenant Leaders in this Hour

1.       Access into organizations, leaders, and individuals of high influence that were previously unreachable.

The Apostle Paul was able to take the message of God’s Kingdom into some of the most unusual places. Armed with revelatory truth regarding the person of Jesus Christ, he stood before men and women of great influence and power within today’s world and presented the gospel with great persuasion and compassion until even the most ungodly of leaders were forced to listen and consider the words he spoke.

In this hour I perceive that God will grant those who preach this truth access into the hearts and lives of men and women who possess great influence in order that they may understand the power of God to change and work through them, enabling them to lead their organizations, churches and corporations with a level of wisdom, revelation, and power previously unseen through them. Truly the power of Christ to change will be seen.

2.       Special administrations and demonstrations of God’s power in signs, wonders, and miracles.

There must be unique manifestations of God’s power to confirm His Word through New Covenant Leaders. Therefore, we will see the kinds of healings, miracles, and deliverances that set Paul apart from the other apostles. It must occur otherwise many within the Body of Christ will perceive that which we speak to be simply another “good message” or passing truth, which will soon fade away as another fad.

Yet, when the “hand of God” is seen in tangible ways there will be increased influence and notoriety to those graced by God to walk in this way. We will see the Lord confirm and endorse His servants work in such ways.

3.       The declaration of mysteries and revelatory truths that confound the hearts and minds of hearers.

Those leaders who function with a New Covenant mentality will begin to understand the deeper things of God’s Word, and declare the mysteries of the Kingdom as shown through the breadth of the entire Word. We will listen as they show us Jesus again and again throughout the Word of God and unlock before us mysteries that will cause us to be confounded and left amazed at the wisdom of God in His dealings with humanity. Truly we will begin to comprehend the height, width, depth and breadth of the love of God for us.

4.       Affliction and Great Challenges

With great revelation comes great controversy and challenge. We will see how those who speak His Word in this way are once again maligned, disrespected, rejected, and dishonored by many, even within His Church. However, this will be the minority, though I suspect that it will come from those who are in leadership and would rather uphold their Biblically-errant truths rather than humbly admit their own faulty understanding of God’s Word. Instead, we will see how even in the midst of such “warfare” the Lord will cause His servants to shine and rise above the waters sent by the adversary to overwhelm them.  The demonic forces that rule in concert over entire communities, organizations, churches, and corporations will be forcefully overthrown as God’s truth penetrates and transforms His people.

It is for this reason that we must “count the cost”, we must recognize that what we are called to do is unpopular, sobering, necessary, and challenging. We will be made to love those who have made it their agenda to afflict and curse us for preaching that which they consider heresy. Do understand my friends that JESUS revealed in this way will is not simply another truth, it is THE TRUTH. Thus, we must move forward knowing that ours will be a path of great joy even in the midst of great challenge.

5.       The birthing, establishing, and progressing of a new order of churches.

Apostles and 5-fold leaders functioning in the New Covenant will establish a new culture and Christian community. Therefore, we will see a different model of churches established. We will see Antioch type churches that are in fact hubs where people can come to receive from the Lord and experience His changing love and power. We will see churches that function based upon relationship and honor, not authoritarian hierarchies and religious ideals that burden God’s people and keep them forever in need of another message from their pastors, like heroin addicts craving the next “hit”.

6.       The manifestation of creativity and innovation to reach this culture.

Jesus was and is creative in nature; in fact He is the CREATOR. Therefore, it goes without saying that out of our community there will be the manifestation of the spirit of innovation and creativity where our works will be relevant to our world and not simply those who flock to our centers.

We will see men and women who have truly interacted and engaged the angels of heaven and the Spirit of Revelation to such a degree that they will create films, engineer technologies, and invent products that are of great benefit to mankind. For it is the nature of God within us to lead in every field and industry. Therefore, we must not be surprised when it happens.

7.       The fruit of the Spirit.

Sexual misconduct and shameful behavior will decrease. As we discover more of who we are in Christ and who He is in us, we will see holiness demonstrated through the lifestyles of New Covenant believers in a phenomenal. We will be living expressions of the person of Christ, without even attempting to do so. Among us there will be a radically decreased level of scandal, hypocrisy, and evil behavior. Instead, we will  stand as lights in a dark world, beacons of hope, people marked by pure motives, Christ-like character, and humble spirits who function as servant kings.

     

       God will be seen through us and be evidenced through our lives.

8.       A renewed passion for prayer, worship, fasting, and the study of God’s word.

Constantly we are told that as believers we MUST pray, we MUST worship, we MUST fast, we MUST study the Word of God. Yet, such activities have become unattractive, boring, and ritualistic as they have been taught to us.

However, I sincerely see a time in which we will find doing all of the above no longer a burdensome task, but rather actions of our affection for the Savior. They will flow out of lives given to Him and hidden in Him. We will do them all with great fervor, passion, excitement and joy not to attain something or attempt to appease the Lord. Rather it will because of how He works through us and in us as we do so.

Essentially I believe that the Father is pressing on us in this way and will NOT be stopped, all that we must do is allow Him to do what HE must and watch as the tide shifts in the Body of Christ in our era and the next!

From Michelle Harding of Easton, MD

                                               Politics or Governance?

In light of recent events flooding the news, social media, and many conversations with other Believers, I came to a place in prayer that led to a very interesting question being stirred in me by Holy Spirit. "Is the mandate from heaven to the church a political one or is it spiritual?"  "Of course it's spiritual", we say! We know that the mandate is to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8), preach the gospel (Mark 1617) and to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:19-20).  But, I wonder, have we exchanged the centrality of the Gospel to a broken world for the idea that we can create a better society through politics and legislating morality? The responsibility of cultural reform lies upon the Church and her ability to transform humanity through the power of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and our representation of His love through our love for Him, one another and our world. Anything less than that falls short of our call.

 I am not saying that we are not to concern ourselves with government, but our focus is not to be upon the politics of our day, but rather upon the governance of God. We, the Church are the Ecclesia, God's governing agents in the earth. Politics brings division, anger and bitterness. Every election cycle I watch my Facebook wall divide right down the middle as the church divides between Democratic and Republican lines. A chasm of political mayhem divides brothers and sisters, churches, and races. All rising from a political spirit rather than the reality of Kingdom governance. Psalm 89:14 says, " Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you." Kingdom governance places righteousness and justice at its foundation and from it proceeds love and faithfulness.

The political spirit that has risen out of the church has made us seem mean spirited, judgmental, and critical. We have a responsibility to speak truth into our nation and to represent the authority of our King and His Kingdom. But it is also important that we speak the truth in love with words filled with grace. It is vital we show honor not only to those we agree with but, also to those we disagree with.  Paul tells the Colossians in Col. 4:5-6, " Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person." The Apostle Peter sums it up well in 1 Peter 2:17, " Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king".

                

Our hearts are right to desire true reform and cultural transformation, but we must reorient our hearts to the throne of God and the plumb line of the Gospel. True reformation and transformation will only come as we win the hearts and minds of men not the power of protest, petition or pettiness. We may have a few temporal victories, but lasting change comes not through legislation in America but through the bowing of hearts to the Lord and King.

                

The reality is, our nation is in the condition it is in because of a culture filled with broken people lost in sin. We must also understand that sin isn't even the real problem. Sin is the fruit of broken relationship with God and the loss of identity which leads to sin. The process of reconciling  men to God awakens them to a life of freedom outside the bondage of sin. Our own salvation experience points us to this truth. First, we are reconciled to God through the spirit of adoption and our spirit cries out Abba, Father. Through Christ we became sons of God, empowered by the Holy Spirit to live righteous and godly lives. The result being, the greater our relationship with our Father grew, the less we sinned. The Kingdom of God is the only kingdom with authority over the hearts of men, and its power doesn't rest within its rules but within its love. We cannot continue to confront the moral issues of our day with the politics of our times, but rather let us look to the governance of God who is our Judge, Lawgiver and King (Isa. 33:22)! "Do not trust in princes, in mortal man, in whom there is no salvation" (Psalm 146:3); "Thus says the Lord, ‘Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind and makes flesh his strength’" (Jeremiah 17:5).

               

I believe the true hope of America is in a Church walking in the revelation of Kingdom governance rather than politics, and a Church walking in her identity as the God-given governmental authority  in the earth. There is a battle for righteousness in our nation, but it's solution is spiritual not political. This of course in no way diminishes our responsibility as citizens of our nation or those called into government. It brings clarity to the call to be righteous and just, and the need to align ourselves with the King, His Kingdom, and His love. This is righteous governance and God says that is what exalts a nation.

Prophetic Word:

God is dealing with the political spirit in the church and it is coming on the wings of social justice, as we awaken to the fact that it is only the Kingdom of God that has authority over the hearts of men.  As we move from legislating in political spheres, as more and more of the Christian or right wing agenda fueled by Christian zealots, continues to be fruitless; we will move to legislating in the heavenlies through prayer and declaration.

Here is where hearts of sacrificial love, like Christ modeled will be brought forth, voices of awakening will move from sounding the alarm of what the enemy is doing to declaring what God is doing.

The court of heaven will begin to shift the laws of men through hearts awakened by love, and things we worked generations for will come easily as we begin to gain the understanding of how Christ, the Apostles, and the early church walked in the midst of a demonized political and religious system. With this let us approach the throne of grace and authority, seek His counsel, hear His words and release His truth in love.

In this season are coming forth carriers of the Father's heart, those who like Jesus will RE-Present a loving Father, it is this that will turn the hearts of men and a nation.