By Sebastien Richard, Author and Bible teacher,
Thriving on Purpose Ministries: https://www.thrivingonpurpose.com/
Our earthly dominion mandate
Today, we are beginning an important journey together.
We believe this journey will:
Open your mind
Open your eyes
Strengthen your faith
Boost your confidence
Sharpen your mindset
Bring blessing to your life
Enable you to let go of false religious thinking
Bring you to expect miracles in your life
Fifteen years ago, when Liz and I began this journey into biblical understanding, it changed our lives.
We believe it will change your lives as well.
There is a text on my wall that I have read many times in my own life. The text contains a powerful prayer. I have prayed this prayer many times. The text is the following:
“My journey out of deception began with a prayer,
an innocuous prayer that hardly seemed life-changing in its scope.
In fact, at the time, it hardly seemed much of anything at all.
“Dear Lord,” I prayed, “If I am believing any lies in my life,
or am deceived in any areas of my Christian life and what I believe,
can You show me? I want Your truth at all costs,
even if knowing it destroys my entire world.
Oh, and I mean it Lord, even if part of me doesn’t and is scarred.”
That was the prayer; the prayer that changed my world and set me free.
In retrospect, it was a silly child-like prayer, but God honored it.”
It takes guts to pray this prayer. I believe, however, that it is a necessary one for believers today. Many of us have been ensnared by religious teachings and bound by dogma. And these teachings are keeping us not only in the dark… but enslaved and fruitless as a result.
It’s nothing new. Remember what Jesus told the Pharisees in Mark 7:6-9:
“Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!” (ESV)
The Bible also says in Job 36:12: “But if they do not listen, they perish by the sword and die without knowledge.” (ESV)
And in Hosea 4:6: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.”
God doesn’t want any of us to be in ignorance. Just like Paul told the Athenians in Acts 17:30:
“The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.”
Much of the plight of believers today comes from a misunderstanding not only of His Word, but also of how His Kingdom operates, of who they are in it, and how they should operate in it.
This misunderstanding of God’s truth, God’s plan, and how they fit in it has led many in bondage:
Emotional bondage
Doctrinal or dogmatic bondage
Falsehood bondage
Religious bondage
Financial bondage
Yahushua, Jesus, came to set the captives free. And the truth, His truth, will set you free.
And the main message He came to teach was about a gospel, which means ‘Good News’. But not just any good news or gospel… the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.
The word ‘Kingdom’, or term ‘Kingdom of God’ or ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ is mentioned well over 100 times in the New Testament - especially in the synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
Go re-read the gospels and you will realize that the ‘Kingdom of God’ was the main message of Jesus during His ministry, and after His Resurrection. You could even says it was what He was most passionate about.
One Bible teacher put it this way:
“The mission of Jesus was to establish God’s Kingdom on earth in the hearts of men.” ~ Myles Munroe
In Luke 4:43, Jesus said to his disciples:
“I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.”
And after His resurrection, he appeared for forty days to the disciples, and the Bible says:
In Acts 1:3, we read…
“After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.”
Since it was evidently so important to Jesus to teach about the Kingdom, one question remains…
Why are we seldom taught about the Kingdom in Church?
Well, we won’t get into that today. But, suffice it to say: If The Kingdom of God was Jesus’ main teaching, shouldn’t it be ours as well?
This is a rhetorical question of course.
We cannot undermine the importance of teaching and learning the Kingdom of God and everything pertaining to it.
It is vital to every believer to understand these matters.
Just to be clear, although I am happy to share what I do know, I am still learning. I will learn till the day I die. I urge you to verify and test what I will say today. Don’t just gobble it up - but seek it out for yourselves. Get confirmation from God on all matters.
So, the title of this very important teaching today is:
God’s Kingdom Purpose for Man: Our earthly dominion
Okay… so, to understand God’s Kingdom Purpose for Man, it is only fitting that we start at the beginning… In Genesis.
Modern evangelicals give so much importance to the book of Revelation - to the END. And yet, our understanding of the beginning is so flawed.
As believers, we cannot possibly grasp the end, unless we fully understand the beginning.
Seventeen years ago, I had become arrogant and complacent in my walk with God. I believed I knew my Bible very well - better than most. The Lord showed me the folly of my way. He brought me back to the book of Beginnings, of our genes… a.k.a. Genesis. He showed me a verse in there that completely baffled me, and then He said to my spirit: “You see, you don’t even understand the first book. So, how can you pretend to understand the rest of the story.”
From that moment, I was humbled and became a committed lifelong student of the Bible… especially Genesis.
So, this is where we’ll start.
…
When God created the earth realm and man, He had a very special mandate for him.
You see, the earth realm was a very special realm in God’s creation. It was to be a realm of carbon based beings with bodies differing from those found in heaven’s realm.
This earth realm was made for a specific type of creation and specific types of being.
It was the realm of organic bodies. Notice how the plants, the trees, the birds, the fish, all the animal, and man… all have organic bodies.
The earth realm is specifically designed to harbor and benefit beings who are alive and organic. This was a first in God’s creation. And this is very important to note. We will see that later.
Now, man, was appointed a very specific status in this new realm called the earth realm.
In Genesis 1:26-28, we read the following:
“Then God said, “Let us make man[a] in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
The two most important words in this whole passage are found when God blesses mankind, in the person of Adam and Eve, and says to them “Have Dominion”.
Have Dominion.
In order to understand what this means exactly, we need a definition of the word ‘Dominion’.
The dictionary tells us that dominion means
do·min·ion
/d?'miny?n/
Noun: sovereignty or control.
synonyms:
Synonyms include:
supremacy, ascendancy, dominance, domination, superiority, predominance, preeminence, primacy, hegemony, authority, mastery, control, command, direction, power, sway, rule, government, jurisdiction, sovereignty, lordship,
So, when God gave man dominion, he made mankind ruler over this earth realm, this ‘Domain’ which is where we get the word ‘dominion’ from.
Notice also, whether it is used as a prefix or suffix, the word ‘dom’ means ‘to rule’
So, it gives better understanding to words like:
King-dom (The domain of the king - where a king rules)
Free-dom (The domain of the free - where the free rule)
So, God assigned man, the rulership of this place called earth… and to all the beings he created and placed on it - man was to rule it all!
The birds, the fish, the plants, the trees, and all the animals and the territory itself was put under the dominion of man.
In Genesis 2:19-20, we read the following:
“Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field.” ~ Genesis 2:19-20
It is very interesting to note the following principle:
Whatever we name, we have authority over.
We name our children
We name our businesses
And yes, we named all the plants, trees, and animals
So, the earth and everything on it was given over to man for him to exercise his authority.
The Bible says in psalm 115: 16:
“The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to mankind.” (NIV)
The Message translates it this way:
“The heaven of heavens is for God, but he put us in charge of the earth.”
Furthermore, just a quick parenthesis here…
I find it interesting to note that God appointing man a dominion mandate makes us understand God’s second commandment even better. In Exodus 20, in the ten commandments, we read this:
“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands[b] of those who love me and keep my commandments.” ~ Exodus 20: 4-6
Isn’t it interesting that God not only wants us to worship Him only, but doesn’t want us to demean ourselves by worshipping images of creatures we were given dominion over?
When we make for ourselves graven images we elevate what we should dominate. It severely demeans our status as rulers.
The Sovereignty of God
At this point, I feel it is necessary to address the subject of The Sovereignty of God.
If you’ve been in church long enough, as I have, no doubt that you have heard how God rules over everything, right?
A main doctrine is the doctrine of the omnipotence of God. Omnipotence meaning that God can do all things.
No one can dispute the sovereignty of God. He is, after all, the creator of all.
So, how can we reconcile man’s rulership of the earth realm, with the sovereignty of God Almighty?
That is a very good question.
Have you ever been asked the childish question: If God is all powerful and can He create a rock that even He wouldn’t be able to move?
I actually have the answer to that cryptic question… the answer is ‘YES’, and He already Has.
The rock that God cannot move… is His own WORD.
You see, the only one who can dispute the sovereignty of God… is God Himself.
The Bible says this concerning God’s authoritative Word:
“Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.” ~ Psalm 119:89 (ESV)
And in Numbers 23:19-20, we read these words:
“God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? Behold, I received a command to bless: he has blessed, and I cannot revoke it.”
Balaam here says, “He has blessed and I cannot revoke it.”
God’s word is irrevocable. His blessing seals the deal.
In Matthew chapter 5:17-19 we read:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Now, remember back in Genesis 1:28? It said
“He blessed them, and said… let them have dominion.”
Here is a very important thing you need to understand about God’s sovereignty:
GOD IS AS SOVEREIGN AS HIS WORD.
Let me repeat that:
GOD IS AS SOVEREIGN AS HIS WORD.
What does this mean?
Simply this: God is bound by His own Word because He is perfect.
God is so good, so just, so Holy, and so perfect, that He cannot break His word.
You’ve probably heard sayings such as:
“My word is my bond.”
Or
“A man is only as good as his word.”
Well, these apply even more so to God. His word, and His blessing are unbreakable.
When He gave man dominion on the earth realm, it was irrevocable.
Do you remember back in the story of how Jacob stole Esau’s blessing from Isaac? It’s in Genesis 27:30-37
When Esau found out, he went and pleaded with Isaac, his father:
“Now it happened, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31 He also had made [d]savory food, and brought it to his father, and said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that your soul may bless me.”
32 And his father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?”
So he said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.”
33 Then Isaac trembled exceedingly, and said, “Who? Where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him—and indeed he shall be blessed.”
34 When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me—me also, O my father!”
35 But he said, “Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing.”
36 And Esau said, “Is he not rightly named [e]Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing!” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”
37 Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants; with grain and wine I have [f]sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son?” ~ Genesis 27:30-37
If the words and blessings of Isaac were unbreakable, how much more the words and blessings of God!!
As you better understand your dominion, may you be blessed in the advancement of His Kingdom!
Amen!
For more content, sermons, and books by Sebastien Richard, just go to: https://www.thrivingonpurpose.com/
