The Elma HOP Plays a Major Role in 1Church1Day Over the years I've discovered several keys to building our Father's house of prayer. But today I am going to share a key that I've never seen addressed. It has to do with the role of the kings and priests. It's based upon a pattern King David first modeled. It's the blue print for our strategy. By 2012 leaders from over 38 nations had reported it had been responsible for establishing 31 houses of prayer from which 40+ churches were birthed. However, there have been hundreds if not thousands of places un-impacted because the did not follow the pattern.
I'm going to share it today and risk offending you because I love my heavenly Father, I love His Church, His people, and the world. David's pattern is the key to the end time harvest of souls. So with that in mind...
Every reformer in scripture followed King David's plan for inviting God's abiding presence on MT Zion. What King David did on Zion in his tabernacle provides us the keys. It is the pattern and that is why God says through Acts 15:16-17 that in the latter days David's tabernacle would be restored. What is the purpose? So that the rest of mankind can seek the Lord.
Who are some of the reformers? Solomon, Asa, Josiah, Ezra, Nehemiah and Hezekiah! What is the pattern?
Kings Initiated the Building of God's House!
The pattern begins with kings, not priests, who initiate building the house of God. King David's first decision as king was to invite God's abiding presence through 24/7 prayer, praise and worship (1 Chronicles 13:1-2). That decision included the king inviting other leaders to join him. The priests were charged with overseeing the building of this house of prayer and the kings and leaders gave first to this effort. In other words, they put their money where their mouth was. There was action behind their words that God and men could see.
In 2 Samuel 6 we find his David's first attempt failed as they began with music and moving the Ark of the Covenant (type of God's presence) on a new cart. Uzzah died when he touched the ark so the move of God had to stop. It spent 3 months in Obededum's house before David discovered the proper way.
David discovered that the ark had to be carried on the shoulders of the Levites which are a type of the fivefold ministry today (this topic is addressed in "Addressing the Issue of Pay to Pray). The next key was modeled in 2 Samuel 6:13. They took six paces and then sacrificed offerings.
Offerings are worship and one of the important signs of covenant to God from man. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The passion for God's presence will be reflected in your giving of time and your monies. These actions reflect what is really in your heart. Jesus says in John 15:13 that greater love has no one than this, than to lay his life down for his friends. Then Jesus proceeded to the cross. He love and He gave. Bottom line, love gives their life and this includes time and money.
I'm going to share it today and risk offending you because I love my heavenly Father, I love His Church, His people, and the world. David's pattern is the key to the end time harvest of souls. So with that in mind...
Every reformer in scripture followed King David's plan for inviting God's abiding presence on MT Zion. What King David did on Zion in his tabernacle provides us the keys. It is the pattern and that is why God says through Acts 15:16-17 that in the latter days David's tabernacle would be restored. What is the purpose? So that the rest of mankind can seek the Lord.
Who are some of the reformers? Solomon, Asa, Josiah, Ezra, Nehemiah and Hezekiah! What is the pattern?
Kings Initiated the Building of God's House!
The pattern begins with kings, not priests, who initiate building the house of God. King David's first decision as king was to invite God's abiding presence through 24/7 prayer, praise and worship (1 Chronicles 13:1-2). That decision included the king inviting other leaders to join him. The priests were charged with overseeing the building of this house of prayer and the kings and leaders gave first to this effort. In other words, they put their money where their mouth was. There was action behind their words that God and men could see.
In 2 Samuel 6 we find his David's first attempt failed as they began with music and moving the Ark of the Covenant (type of God's presence) on a new cart. Uzzah died when he touched the ark so the move of God had to stop. It spent 3 months in Obededum's house before David discovered the proper way.
David discovered that the ark had to be carried on the shoulders of the Levites which are a type of the fivefold ministry today (this topic is addressed in "Addressing the Issue of Pay to Pray). The next key was modeled in 2 Samuel 6:13. They took six paces and then sacrificed offerings.
Offerings are worship and one of the important signs of covenant to God from man. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The passion for God's presence will be reflected in your giving of time and your monies. These actions reflect what is really in your heart. Jesus says in John 15:13 that greater love has no one than this, than to lay his life down for his friends. Then Jesus proceeded to the cross. He love and He gave. Bottom line, love gives their life and this includes time and money.
What Happens when the Workers who Manage the 24/7 Prayer are Neglected?
In Nehemiah 12:44-47 we find the governor ensuring that the distribution of resources to the priesthood was set up according to David's pattern. Then he departs the city to go and report to the king. Upon his return he finds the "house of God forsaken" (Nehemiah 13:11). How does he know this? It is because the Levites and the singers had returned to their fields so they could feed their families (Nehemiah 13:10).
Haggai was one of the prophets who spoke to the rebuilders King Cyrus sent to restore the temple with Ezra. The consequences of neglecting God's house is underlined. Haggai 1:7-11 "Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified,” says the Lord. “You looked for much, but indeed it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why?” says the Lord of hosts. “Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house. Therefore the heavens above you withhold the dew, and the earth withholds its fruit. For I called for a drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain and the new wine and the oil, on whatever the ground brings forth, on men and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.”
The Warning
I believe the result in Haggai is also related to Jeremiah 22:13 which says, “Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness And his chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor's service without wages And gives him nothing for his work." This is a warning, for those who want something for nothing.
The bottom line, God's house will be built when leaders realize how important God's presence is to their success and the blessing upon their people. The righteous leaders will take action to ensure those they ask to oversee the building of our Father's house have the resources and cooperation necessary to build and sustain it.
Important New Testament Concepts
First, every believer is called as a king and a priest (Revelation 1:6 and 5:10). Kings make decisions and make war (Revelation 19:11-15) while priests worship with tithes and offerings and made intercession (Hebrews 7:8-25). King Jesus serves as the pattern for both these roles.
Today, every New Testament believer is called to be like Jesus. We are all called as both kings and priests and to perform the tasks of a king and a priest. However, I'd like to make a distinction here and apply the terms broadly like this. I'd liken the kings to those who serve and or make their living in six of the seven mountains of society.
In the Old Testament there was the Aaronic priesthood and the Levitical. Today every believer can act like a son of Aaron and go directly into God's presence. The Levites were given as a gift to assist them (Numbers 8:14). We see that same pattern in the New Testament. Today, there is a special class of minister who was given to serve, equip, mature and oversee the Church. We find it in Ephesians 4:7-11 where God says the five-fold ministry of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, were given as gifts. The working relationship between Israel, the sons of Aaron and the Levites were a type and shadow of what God intends for the Church.
In Numbers 18 God says the tithe belongs to Him and He choose to give the tithe to the Levites as their inheritance. God set up a distribution system through Moses and it was also practiced by King David in his tabernacle. These ministry gifts are few in comparison to the rest of the Church are authorized to make their living via the gospel. 1 Timothy 5:18 says don't muzzle out the ox and the laborer is worthy of his wages. These serve primarily at the altar of the Church. They are responsible for overseeing the building of our Father's house.
Honor of God's word requires these men and women who serve in this fashion also care for their families and meet their financial obligations. They are the builders overseeing the work in God's house. If they have to go to work back in the fields so to speak, the work needed to maintain the 24/7 prayer, praise and worship like David desired in his tabernacle will suffer.
There is a Cost to the Cross
Building a house take time, skills, efforts and resources. Once built it must be maintained. Consider Luke 14:28-30 which says: "For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it— lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’"
Take a look at the context for Luke 14:28. Luke 14:27 says: And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. So the context of counting the cost requires taking up YOUR cross. In a sense, King David took up his cross. The governor Nehemiah took up his cross.
There is a cost to building our Father's house of prayer. It is a personal cost and their is a corporate cost to. You can tell when God's house will be built. It will occur when leaders from the 7 mountains decide they want God's presence bad enough to act like David did. Their actions and giving of their time, efforts and monies will reflect truly where their heart is. They will worship the Lord motivated by love with their tithes and offerings. They'll encourage an honorable distribution among those who do the work to build and maintain God's house of prayer. They will be real leaders who lead by example. Therefore, they are first to give and the first to stand their watch in the house of the Lord.
The Missed Revelation of Pentecost
There is one element of Pentecost that many miss. Acts 1:14 says "they continued in one accord and in prayer...". Continued in the Greek means they waited upon, they continued, they preserved in prayer continually. That points to 24/7 prayer like David set up on MT Zion.
Acts 2:29-30 reveals even more saying, “Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne.
So David being a prophet foresaw Christ would sit on His throne. So what did David do? He set up teams of Levites to coordinate 24/7 prayer, praise and worship. That's what our Lord wants done today. Through 1Church1Day we help churches build our Father's eternal house of prayer using David's pattern.
A Summary of the Keys
Those Who Wish Talk & Those Who Lead Walk the Talk!
I've seen many leaders from the 7 spheres/mountains of society say how important prayer was mixed with their favorite Christian cliche. But in fact, their actions betray them.
In practice, prayer was an after thought. Their actions portray an attitude like, prayer is something "the intercessors did." You know, people who are called to pray which implies, not them. What their statement really meant based upon their actions was that they thought that prayer was important for others to do for them. I understand that attitude from an unbeliever or a heathen like King Cyrus, but I do not understand that attitude from a believer who seeks to be like Jesus or model the heart like King David did.
Which kind of king do you want to be?
There are three kinds of kings.
Those who desire the benefits of God's presence but do not give of their time, efforts nor monies to building our Father's house of prayer are those "who wish" for the benefits but contribute nothing. They deceive themselves. Those who do this might as well say they want to be like King Jeroboam. It's foolish to expect a house to be built with nothing. Godly leaders don't just wish for prayer lead by example. They walk the talk.
Which kind of king do you want to be?
There is a concept all through Deuteronomy beginning in Deuteronomy 12:11 which says,
"then there will be the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. There you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offerings of your hand, and all your choice offerings which you vow to the Lord."
God wants us to take our giving, which is worship and a sign of covenant, to the place where He chooses to make His name abide. That means you ought to be asking God where He wants you to take your worship. It's best to take it where His presence abides. It was King David who hit the mark with this. That is why God says in Acts 15:16-17,
‘After this I will return
And will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down;
I will rebuild its ruins,
And I will set it up;
So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,
Even all the Gentiles who are called by My name,
Says the Lord who does all these things.’
So what's my advice? I encourage you to pray and obey. Take your time, tithes and offerings to the place where God chooses to make His name abide. It could be your local church or it might be a house of prayer. I urge you to give of your time and worship there.
In years past, I've heard of businesses hiring an intercessor. This is good, but I submit to you, that covenanting with a Church or ministry that is actively building our Father's house of prayer is better. It's more powerful.
I would also like invite you to pray and obey about working with us. Our whole mission is equipping and uniting the Church to employ David's pattern in churches, cities, regions and states. You can join with us in this holy assignment and:
In Nehemiah 12:44-47 we find the governor ensuring that the distribution of resources to the priesthood was set up according to David's pattern. Then he departs the city to go and report to the king. Upon his return he finds the "house of God forsaken" (Nehemiah 13:11). How does he know this? It is because the Levites and the singers had returned to their fields so they could feed their families (Nehemiah 13:10).
Haggai was one of the prophets who spoke to the rebuilders King Cyrus sent to restore the temple with Ezra. The consequences of neglecting God's house is underlined. Haggai 1:7-11 "Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified,” says the Lord. “You looked for much, but indeed it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why?” says the Lord of hosts. “Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house. Therefore the heavens above you withhold the dew, and the earth withholds its fruit. For I called for a drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain and the new wine and the oil, on whatever the ground brings forth, on men and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.”
The Warning
I believe the result in Haggai is also related to Jeremiah 22:13 which says, “Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness And his chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor's service without wages And gives him nothing for his work." This is a warning, for those who want something for nothing.
The bottom line, God's house will be built when leaders realize how important God's presence is to their success and the blessing upon their people. The righteous leaders will take action to ensure those they ask to oversee the building of our Father's house have the resources and cooperation necessary to build and sustain it.
Important New Testament Concepts
First, every believer is called as a king and a priest (Revelation 1:6 and 5:10). Kings make decisions and make war (Revelation 19:11-15) while priests worship with tithes and offerings and made intercession (Hebrews 7:8-25). King Jesus serves as the pattern for both these roles.
Today, every New Testament believer is called to be like Jesus. We are all called as both kings and priests and to perform the tasks of a king and a priest. However, I'd like to make a distinction here and apply the terms broadly like this. I'd liken the kings to those who serve and or make their living in six of the seven mountains of society.
In the Old Testament there was the Aaronic priesthood and the Levitical. Today every believer can act like a son of Aaron and go directly into God's presence. The Levites were given as a gift to assist them (Numbers 8:14). We see that same pattern in the New Testament. Today, there is a special class of minister who was given to serve, equip, mature and oversee the Church. We find it in Ephesians 4:7-11 where God says the five-fold ministry of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, were given as gifts. The working relationship between Israel, the sons of Aaron and the Levites were a type and shadow of what God intends for the Church.
In Numbers 18 God says the tithe belongs to Him and He choose to give the tithe to the Levites as their inheritance. God set up a distribution system through Moses and it was also practiced by King David in his tabernacle. These ministry gifts are few in comparison to the rest of the Church are authorized to make their living via the gospel. 1 Timothy 5:18 says don't muzzle out the ox and the laborer is worthy of his wages. These serve primarily at the altar of the Church. They are responsible for overseeing the building of our Father's house.
Honor of God's word requires these men and women who serve in this fashion also care for their families and meet their financial obligations. They are the builders overseeing the work in God's house. If they have to go to work back in the fields so to speak, the work needed to maintain the 24/7 prayer, praise and worship like David desired in his tabernacle will suffer.
There is a Cost to the Cross
Building a house take time, skills, efforts and resources. Once built it must be maintained. Consider Luke 14:28-30 which says: "For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it— lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’"
Take a look at the context for Luke 14:28. Luke 14:27 says: And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. So the context of counting the cost requires taking up YOUR cross. In a sense, King David took up his cross. The governor Nehemiah took up his cross.
There is a cost to building our Father's house of prayer. It is a personal cost and their is a corporate cost to. You can tell when God's house will be built. It will occur when leaders from the 7 mountains decide they want God's presence bad enough to act like David did. Their actions and giving of their time, efforts and monies will reflect truly where their heart is. They will worship the Lord motivated by love with their tithes and offerings. They'll encourage an honorable distribution among those who do the work to build and maintain God's house of prayer. They will be real leaders who lead by example. Therefore, they are first to give and the first to stand their watch in the house of the Lord.
The Missed Revelation of Pentecost
There is one element of Pentecost that many miss. Acts 1:14 says "they continued in one accord and in prayer...". Continued in the Greek means they waited upon, they continued, they preserved in prayer continually. That points to 24/7 prayer like David set up on MT Zion.
Acts 2:29-30 reveals even more saying, “Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne.
So David being a prophet foresaw Christ would sit on His throne. So what did David do? He set up teams of Levites to coordinate 24/7 prayer, praise and worship. That's what our Lord wants done today. Through 1Church1Day we help churches build our Father's eternal house of prayer using David's pattern.
A Summary of the Keys
- The first key was the decision to bring back God's presence. 1 Chronicles 13:1-3
- Kings initiated building the house of prayer, not the priests. The kings were the first ones to give and set an example for others to follow. You'll see in 1 Chronicles 29:1-6 how David "set his affection on the house of God" that he prepared "his own special treasure to give" over and above all that he had already prepared. Leaders then the people followed his example with freewill offerings. Other kings followed his example. Why even pagan kings like Cyrus did the same. In Ezra 1 Cyrus issues the decree to build God's house and then he commits to funding it in Ezra 1:4 and invites others to join him. Ezra 6:4 reveals the costs were to be paid by the kings treasury. Why did the king desire this?
- Ezra 6:8-10 reveals the king's motive!
Moreover I issue a decree as to what you shall do for the elders of these Jews, for the building of this house of God: Let the cost be paid at the king's expense from taxes on the region beyond the River; this is to be given immediately to these men, so that they are not hindered. And whatever they need—young bulls, rams, and lambs for the burnt offerings of the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the request of the priests who are in Jerusalem—let it be given them day by day without fail, that they may offer sacrifices of sweet aroma to the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king and his sons
- Ezra 6:8-10 reveals the king's motive!
- Matthew 6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. What's the context of this statement? It's from Jesus' sermon on the mount where in verses 6:9-6:14 He had just addressed how to pray. Treasure today is measured in time and money. King David not only initiated bringing back God's presence, but he participated in it.
- The king ensured that those who were overseeing and building the house of prayer received the resources necessary to maintain it. He did this by ensuring the distribution strategy initiated by Moses was followed. Every reformer in scripture followed David's pattern and we find for example in Nehemiah 11:23 - 13:7 that they followed David's plan in distributing the tithes, offerings and firstfruits. But when one corrupt priest disrupted that pattern the Levites had to go back to their fields (Nehemiah 13:10) such that the "house of God was forsaken." It was Nehemiah the civil governor who corrected this. Remember, the Levites are a type of five-fold ministry today.
Those Who Wish Talk & Those Who Lead Walk the Talk!
I've seen many leaders from the 7 spheres/mountains of society say how important prayer was mixed with their favorite Christian cliche. But in fact, their actions betray them.
In practice, prayer was an after thought. Their actions portray an attitude like, prayer is something "the intercessors did." You know, people who are called to pray which implies, not them. What their statement really meant based upon their actions was that they thought that prayer was important for others to do for them. I understand that attitude from an unbeliever or a heathen like King Cyrus, but I do not understand that attitude from a believer who seeks to be like Jesus or model the heart like King David did.
Which kind of king do you want to be?
There are three kinds of kings.
- King David - He gave out of a heart of worship, he decreed, he ensured the Levites had what they needed to build continual prayer, praise and worship and he personally spent time praying, worshiping and interceding himself. Why? Because He loved God's presence.
- King Cyrus - He heard the call of God to restore the house of God and sent the right people to go restore it with enough resources from his treasury to do it. Why? So they would pray for the king and his sons.
- King Jeroboam - This king directly opposed God's house and set up a false altar. It redirects people's time and resources to the false. It is idolatry. Why? Philippians 3:18-19 reveals "For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame—who set their mind on earthly things."
Those who desire the benefits of God's presence but do not give of their time, efforts nor monies to building our Father's house of prayer are those "who wish" for the benefits but contribute nothing. They deceive themselves. Those who do this might as well say they want to be like King Jeroboam. It's foolish to expect a house to be built with nothing. Godly leaders don't just wish for prayer lead by example. They walk the talk.
Which kind of king do you want to be?
There is a concept all through Deuteronomy beginning in Deuteronomy 12:11 which says,
"then there will be the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. There you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offerings of your hand, and all your choice offerings which you vow to the Lord."
God wants us to take our giving, which is worship and a sign of covenant, to the place where He chooses to make His name abide. That means you ought to be asking God where He wants you to take your worship. It's best to take it where His presence abides. It was King David who hit the mark with this. That is why God says in Acts 15:16-17,
‘After this I will return
And will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down;
I will rebuild its ruins,
And I will set it up;
So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,
Even all the Gentiles who are called by My name,
Says the Lord who does all these things.’
So what's my advice? I encourage you to pray and obey. Take your time, tithes and offerings to the place where God chooses to make His name abide. It could be your local church or it might be a house of prayer. I urge you to give of your time and worship there.
In years past, I've heard of businesses hiring an intercessor. This is good, but I submit to you, that covenanting with a Church or ministry that is actively building our Father's house of prayer is better. It's more powerful.
I would also like invite you to pray and obey about working with us. Our whole mission is equipping and uniting the Church to employ David's pattern in churches, cities, regions and states. You can join with us in this holy assignment and:
- Download the app and pray. Take a watch. Pray the alerts and decrees.
- Contribute or partner with us - click here
- Join the Remnant Reserve and help mobilize your community. Click here
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