“Distribution becomes the key.” Those are the exact words the Holy Spirit spoke to me as I was waking up this morning. I don’t know why, but this seems to be one of God’s favorite times to drop a word on me. It’s right at that point where I’m walking up the trail from wherever I was in the middle of the night, but have not quite reached that place where I’m actually awake yet. Then, Boom! The Holy Spirit speaks and my eyes are wide open.

“Distribution becomes the key.” This confused me. I jumped out of bed, quickly did my jump out of bed in the morning things, and headed to my “chair of prayer” where I bury my face before the Lord and things usually get clearer. All the while my mind was racing as I tried to figure out what this meant because it was so clearly spoken.

Before I got to the “chair of prayer” I had already come up with a ton of possibilities. I thought, “Maybe this has something to do with business. Maybe God is going to give me a product to distribute in some massive way and by it He will fulfill a promise of abundant provision to me.” I think it’s a great idea and could be true, but that wasn’t the point.

I thought about it in the context of multiplication and mentoring others in either a business or spiritual practice. God knows there is a crying need for that among people with gifts. “Maybe God wants me to train others in what He’s teaching me and multiply the power of it.” I thought. It’s probably true, but that wasn’t the point either.

I guess my mind was already filled with too many things because the “chair of prayer” didn’t help me focus things much. That is except for the fact that I came away knowing “Distribution becomes the key” still had something to do with spiritual warfare. I knew the Lord wasn’t done teaching me about being a warrior in disrupting spiritual oppressions of darkness in people’s lives.

I was reminded again, EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS SPIRIT and what we see on the screen of reality is simply the product of what is at work behind the scenes in the invisible, spiritual world. The activity of the Holy Spirit of God at work in a person’s life creates one kind of result, and dark spirits at work in a person’s life produces another kind of result. It all comes down to what “broadcast station” our own spirit is tuned into and only through Jesus can we tune into the Holy Spirit’s radio broadcast.

Jesus is the secret decoder for the Holy Spirit signal. Without installing the Jesus translator system as the central receiver in your life, the Holy Spirit is clearly speaking to you, but you don’t have a chance in hell of hearing what He would like to say within your own heart. As a side note, this is why God has chosen the “foolishness of preaching” to bring people to Jesus. The initial preaching of the gospel to people AS AN OUTSIDE VOICE is letting people know the decoder is available to them as a gift of grace so they to can begin to unscramble the things the Holy Spirit has for them. It’s really a great station with sounds that will blow your mind. It’s like listening in on heaven itself!

So, not having any clarity on what the Holy Spirit was actually trying to say to me, I walked around all morning repeating to myself, “Distribution becomes the key” and turning it over and over in my mind. “What does that mean?” I kept asking. “Distribution becomes the key.”

Then, as I was walking around muttering to myself, I remembered the word “distribute” was used in the New Testament and thought there might be some clue there. That was kind of a “duh!” moment. The Bible is like the Holy Spirit’s autobiography. Quite often keys to what He is saying can be found in its words because what He has said throughout the ages is what He is still saying today. His central message to man has always remained the same throughout the ages, its just that it gets updated and defined specifically for us as we moment by moment tune in and listen to Him speaking. As we commune with Him in our spirits, He applies the words of eternity to each and every moment of our lives.

“Distribution becomes the key”, I said and opened my copy of Vines Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words to the word “Distribute”. It says there are three words translated into the English word for distribute, but I didn’t have to go far to find the one the Spirit wanted me to find. The first word I came to is the Greek word “diadidomi” (die-ah-did-o-me). It actually comes from two separate words that paint a great picture. The first word is “dia”, and means “through”. The second word is the word “didomi”, and means “to give”. The idea is not just giving or distributing, but to give THROUGH another and to transmit a thing to one person by means of another person giving it to them.

Wow, that’s cool! And it is precisely the way Jesus works. He ascended on high and gave gifts to men. Then He tells us, “Freely you have received, freely give”, (Matthew 10:8). The kingdom of God is this way. Jesus gives through those to whom He has already given. To some are given spiritual things of one nature or another to give, and to some are given material things and other gifts but they are given to each person in His kingdom for the purpose of distribution to others.

But it is imperative that we do give what we have been given, because whatever gift(s) we have received from God, if we don’t disperse it to those in need (those who the Lord brings into our paths) the purposes of God are not forwarded by us. The flow becomes blocked and the bottom line is, people’s lives are not impacted by the kingdom of God to the measure they could have and should have been. “Freely you have received, freely give.”

Jesus ascended up on high and the treasures of heaven that He pours out on earth are done so by pouring them into men and women. It is when these men and women surrender their souls to Jesus, and continue to do so daily to His Spirit, that these great gifts flow out through them. As surrendered souls pour out their gifts into the lives of others the very glory of God is revealed in the earth, and men praise God and believe in Him.

This is the point of Jesus teaching about taking up your cross every day you live. Jesus explains it in Luke 9:23-26, “And He said to them all, ‘If any man will come after me, let Him put aside his own purposes, and take up his cross DAILY, and follow Me. For whoever will cling desperately to his own life will find that he has actually lost it: but whoever will lose his own life for My sake will discover he has actually saved it. For what advantage has a man actually gained if he procures everything in the entire world and yet is void of his own purpose, and in the end is cast away as worthless? For whoever is ashamed and turns away from Me and My words (to him), the Son of Man will likewise be ashamed and turn away from him, when He appears in His own glory, and in His Father’s glory, and that of the holy angels.”

The underlying current of shame and turning away is fear. At one time Adam and Eve were naked and NOT ashamed and then at another time they were naked AND ashamed. When God came to speak with Adam he said to God, “I heard your voice (words) in the garden and I was afraid…”, Genesis 1:23, 3:8-10. That fact that people fear to surrender to Jesus appears to be an issue in life. Why are we afraid to follow through on His words? Jesus acquaints this with being ashamed of Him and His words. Could it be that the standard by which we examine God’s guidance is that of the mortal world and not the standard God measures by? In the fall, Adam had adopted a new standard for measuring things and they were not those of heaven.

“But the world says I should act this way.” Oh, really? And what do the words of Jesus say? “But the world says this should be the way I live.” Oh, really? And what measure of value is the Holy Spirit speaking to you about? “But my friend said this and all the wise people of the world say this is the acceptable way.” Oh, really? So you will accept that and be ashamed of the purposes of Jesus? “But my dad, my mom, my brother, my sister, my….” Yes, I see what you’re getting at.

We make our choices don’t we? What does it profit a man if he were to gain the entire world, but in doing so he rejects the eternal purposes of God in his soul? “A certain ruler came to Jesus and asked Him saying, ‘Good Master, what should I do to inherit eternal life?’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call Me good? For there is none good except for One and that is God. You know the commandments…’ And he (the ruler) said, ‘I have kept all of these since I was a boy.’ Now when Jesus heard these things He said to him, ‘And yet there is still one thing you lack: sell everything you have and DISTRIBUTE (diadidomi) it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven: and come, FOLLOW ME.’ And when he heard this he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich”, Luke 18:18-23.

You see it was God’s intention in this mans life to give through (distribute – diadidomi) him into the lives of others, in this case to the poor. The wealth that had come to him was not intended to be a stopping place but a distribution point. How many of the poor wept and went hungry every night because this one man was not passing on the gifts of God that were sent him? How many people are NOT affected by God’s love and power if I do not pass on the gift of God he has distributed to me? “Freely you have received freely give”

The Holy Spirit said, “Distribution becomes the key.” It becomes the key to impacting the world for the kingdom of God. It becomes the key to overthrowing the reign of spirits of darkness as they blind people and bind people. But a gift undistributed has no power to accomplish anything in the lives of others.

The words are interesting to me because it doesn’t say, “Distribution IS the key”, but “Distribution BECOMES the key”. Why is that? It is because the distribution of what we’ve been given leads to a much bigger reality. By the distribution of our spiritual gifts, ministries and what we’ve received of the Lord, we engage in spiritual warfare. By distributing these things we literally become spiritual warfare in action.

The distribution of our gifts openly challenges the darkness and prevails against it because our gifts flow out of the very throne of Jesus who is the seat of supreme power in all heaven and earth and things under the earth. These gifts we have been given from the throne of God are a greater power than darkness. These are gifts of light and light trumps darkness at every turn.

The defeat of the enemy leads to the spoiling of the enemy. The spoiling of spiritually wicked forces leads to an even greater distribution back to the people of God. Listen carefully to Jesus on the subject of what happens when a evil spiritual force is overcome:

“And He (Jesus) was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spoke; and the people wondered. But some of them said, ‘He casts out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils. And others, putting Him to a test, wanted Him to show a sign from heaven. But He, knowing their thoughts said to them, ‘Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against itself falls. If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? Because you say that I cast out devils through Beelzebub. And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your own sons cast them out? Let them be your judges. But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, NO DOUBT THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS COME UPON YOU. When a strong man armed guards his house, his goods are safe: When SOMEONE STRONGER than he comes down on him and overcomes him, he takes away from him ALL HIS ARMOR that he had trusted in, AND DIVIDES (distribute – diadidomi) HIS SPOILS’”, Luke 11:14-22.

In discussing spiritual warfare Jesus tells us several things:

1. Overcoming darkness is the revealing of the kingdom of God for which we are to pray – “Your kingdom come, Your will be done, AS IN HEAVEN, SO IN EARTH” Luke 11:1-2. His followers are to be the usurpers of darkness.
2. Jesus and His followers ARE THE SOMEONE STRONGER. The apostle John says of spiritual warfare, “GREATER IS HE THAT IS IN YOU than he that is in the world”, 1st John 4:1
3. The GREATER OVERCOMES THE LESSER. James said, “Submit yourselves to God, apply pressure against the devil, AND HE WILL FLEE FROM YOU”, James 4:7
4. The VICTOR BECOMES THE POSSESSOR of his enemies ARMAMENTS (powers of war).
5. The VICTOR BECOMES THE POSSESSOR of all the SPOILS of the enemy.

In overcoming the enemy in a matter, there is a taking and a distribution of all the spoils that were stolen by that unclean spirit. Distribution of our gifts into the lives of others is an act of war and it leads to the enemy being defeated by the greater power of Christ within us, which in turn leads to decimation of the powers and the spoils of that evil force. So, as the Holy Spirit said, “Distribution BECOMES the key”.

Finally, Paul writes to Timothy regarding the gift that was imparted to him by the laying on of hands and prophecy: “Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy, with the laying on of hands of the presbytery. Meditate on these things; GIVE YOURSELF WHOLLY TO THEM; that your profiting may appear to all”, 1st Timothy 4:14-15.

And in reference to the same, in 1st Timothy 1:17-19 he says, “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen. This charge (mandate) I commit to you, my son Timothy, according to the prophecies (words from the Holy Spirit) that were spoken previously before on you, that you by them, MIGHT WAR A GOOD WARFARE.”

Jesus ascended on high and from the highest place of power and authority in the universe, gave gifts to men. Sometimes these gifts come by way of impartation through the hands of others, sometimes by a direct word of prophecy spoken over us, sometimes by the revelation of the Holy Spirit within us, but the fact remains, Jesus gives supernatural powers to those who follow Him. And these supernatural powers are given for the sole purpose of distribution to others in as many ways we can imagine. To use these gifts is to tear down spiritual wickedness and engage in warfare. As we stand against the evil, believing in and employing the pressure of these powers, the evil succumbs and flees before us because a greater power is present in us. We take the enemy’s armaments captive, and God takes of the spoils and makes a further distribution from them. It doesn’t get much better than this. As a good friend of mine Bob McGee says, “All this, and heaven too!”

“For this reason I want you to remember to stir up (fan to flaming brilliance) the gift of God, which is in you by the putting on of my hands. For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind”, (Paul to Timothy, 2nd Timothy 1:6-7).

Randy