Living The Blessed Life: Agreements In The Blessing

 

Agreements In The Blessing 

The Blessed Amongst Others 

In Agreement 

Amos 3:3

"Can two walk together, except they be agreed?"

No man can live alone like an island. Trying to build walls to keep people away will not change much, you must live with people whether you are blessed or not. It is better to learn how to live with them than to burn bridges that connects with them. Building walls will need people, living within the wall need people whether inside the wall or outside. The blessing will attract people who will want to be partakers of the blessing either as dependants or partners.

It is wisdom to know how to walk and relate with people. Even if you part ways with people, they or you may have some measure of influence. Comments about you by people who knew you can influence a lot about you. One of the many ways to increase your chances of success with your walk with people is your agreement with them. How you agree can make or mar your relationships. Agreement can be deliberate or unintentional. 

Colleagues, friends, neighbors, superiors, family, employees, servants, authorities, service providers etc agreement is part of life. There are terms and conditions, there are deeds of assignments, there are declarations, confirmation, acceptance etc all pointing to boundaries that we have keep to agree with. There is always something to agree with. Two people or group of people must agree before they can have any success in any venture. 

"Can two walk together, except they be agreed?"

Building walls does not stop agreement. People agree to have success in anything they decide to do. Being blessed does not stop agreement. How do we agree? What types of agreement do we have? When do we agree? What makes for a good agreement? Can there be good grounds to break agreements?

Before God, agreement is very important.

Matthew 18:19

"Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven."

The success starts with the agreement. Two people agreeing over a matter is very important for success. You are blessed so that can bear more fruit which may demand that others will be involved.

"...agree on earth as touching any thing..."

The agreement could be to undertake a project, to solve a problem, to be partners, and more. It could be anything. Once there is agreement,

"...shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven."

Jesus referenced this talking about prayers. In prayer, God gives priority to prayers done in agreement. Husbands and wives must agree first before they pray. It is on the platform of agreement that God will move to answer their prayers. There is nothing too big for God to do. Disagreement makes it appear impossible.

When a man is blessed, people will like to make agreements with the man in most cases, for their benefits. Wisdom in making agreement will either bring more blessing or bring to an end the blessing. 

Contracts, covenants and many others are agreements at another level of which adds another layer of commitment on both parties in the agreement. Sometimes agreement can be done by mere word of mouth. In another case, agreement can be done by just walking in obedience to some principles i e when you follow the terms of the principle you are saying in essence that you agree to do your part of the principle with the hope that the outcome will favour you as promised in the principle.

Deuteronomy 28:1

"And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:.."

In this example, the promise is that God will raise you high and set you in that high position above all others if you are in agreement with the terms. How you are going to be in agreement is when you 

"...shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, ..."

So long as you obey the specific commandment, you are in agreement. If you did not obey, you are not in agreement and so what you are saying is that you do not want the blessing to be set high. While some agreements will not have terms and conditions, others will. It like saying, "do this...in this particular way...at this particular time... with this attitude .. and you will get this...". Once you follow the terms by doing it in the particular way described at the time specified with the attitude mentioned, you will enjoy the pinpointed outcome. This particular type of agreement is higher than other types of agreements. It can be done for evil or for good. Agreement with God is always for good. 

Sometimes agreement will mean that you will have to take sides. Once you choose side, you are saying that you are binding yourself to the side you choose while at the same time, your affiliation with the other side is annulled.

2 Kings 18:30-31

"Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, The LORD will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.

Hearken not to Hezekiah: for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make an agreement with me by a present, and come out to me, and then eat ye every man of his own vine, and every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his cistern:"

This is a particular situation where a choice of side must be taken. The  two sides to choose were either to go with Hezekiah or to go with the King of Assyria. If you have is all that is mentioned in the verses above, which side are you going to choose? King Hezekiah or king of Assyria? Look carefully were they stand:

"...Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying..."

Hezekiah was making them to trust in the Lord. Invariably the king of Assyria was making them not to trust in the Lord. This is sufficient information to make a choice. Hezekiah was saying that if they trust in the Lord, 

"...The LORD will surely deliver us,.."

Hezekiah was not saying that his power as a king will deliver them but rather trusting God will bring the deliverance. While on the one hand, the Lord is being lifted and referenced and reverenced, on the other hand, the king of Assyria is being referenced.

"...thus saith the king of Assyria, Make an agreement with me by a present, and come out to me,..."

Will you go with the king of Assyria or with King Hezekiah? Who will you agree with? It is possible for Hezekiah to be talking about God but his heart is far away from Him. That was not the case in this situation. Now, it is enough to say that your choice is Hezekiah or the king of Assyria. If you choose to agree with the king of Assyria, this is how you will do it 

"...Make an agreement with me by a present, and come out to me,..."

A token is involved in this agreement i.e. "...by a present..." and also an action is involved: "...come out to me,...". If you did not give the present and you did not come out to the king of Assyria, it shows that you are not in agreement with him however that does not mean that you are with King Hezekiah. To be on the side of King Hezekiah, you have to trust in the Lord. In this case, it will appear like there is a middle line because you will have to present a gift to king of Assyria and come out to him so that it will be clear that you belong to him while you will have to trust in the Lord to show that you belong to Hezekiah. The middle line is that you do not give the gift and you do not trust the Lord. In reality, the middle line does not exist. Your heart belongs somewhere, the action was to confirm what was in the heart.

Covenants And Blood 

Agreements are in most cases sealed with tokens. Tokens are more like signatures. Covenants are higher forms of agreement which are sealed with blood (in most cases). The blood of Jesus seals the covenant of the new testament with God. Blood covenants are quite strong. Secret societies seal their agreements with blood that is why it is not easy to break. Any agreement sealed with blood must be done thoughtfully. The blessed of the Lord must not go into agreements sealed with blood apart from the blood of Jesus and that it must be in line with the word of God.

Isaiah 28:15,18

"Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:

And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it."

They made covenant with death and hell thinking that the scourge will not come near them but they never knew that they were operating in falsehood. When a higher and more better covenant is activated, however strong the former was, the stronger disables the former. The blood of Jesus is the stronger and till this day, it is the strongest. Whatever agreement(s) you might have made with death and hell in the name of blessing or protection, is cancelled by the blood of Jesus. You have to step into this reality. Step into freedom. Turn your back against error and evil in the name of getting a blessing. Plugin your life into the life giving power of the Holy Spirit of God. The covenant of the blood of Jesus is liberation.

Ephesians 2:13

"But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ."

You are brought near to the blessing by the blood of Jesus. You were once far but no more forever.

People To Agree With 

Agree with People You Default 

Matthew 5:25

"Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison."

In human imperfections, we may find ourselves in situations where we default. When we promised to do things and at the end of the day, we default; when we borrow and cannot pay; when it is our turn to make our contribution but cannot; when we go too fast or too slow causing issues for others etc we default against agreement therefore we need to make arrangements.

"Agree with thine adversary quickly,.."

This agreement pacifies the offended party. There is need for wisdom in this kind of agreement. Some may take undue advantage of the situation and enslave the offender. Agree quickly before it goes out of hand. If you are the offender, take steps to correct the wrong. Agree with the adversary to pacify with the commitment to amend but not to get enslaved.

"...lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison."

Employer And Employee 

The employer makes an offer to the employee. The employee is to work for the employer under certain conditions to be paid a certain amount. Both employer and employee are in agreement. None should default. Both may decide to be generous by going the extra mile either by doing an extra work (employee) or paying an extra wage (employer) but none should go lower than the agreed condition or wage.

Matthew 20:2,13-14

"And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard...

But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? 

Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. "

Employer and employee agreement is sometimes regulated but sometimes it is not. Conscience must come into play. When it is regulated, both need to consider the regulations. Where they choose not to follow regulations but rather follow a different agreement, both employer and employee need to fulfill their part of the agreement.

"And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard..."

The agreement must be understood and grey areas made clear. None need to take undue advantage of the other. If anyone chooses to go the extra step to make it easier for the other, it is good but none should go against agreement.

"... I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? ...Take that thine is, and go thy way..."

Both parties should go home satisfied and probably another opportunity will bring them together again.

Husbands And Wives 

Malachi 2:14-15

"Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.

And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth."

The relationship between husbands and wives is a strong covenant. This type of agreement is superior to that of employer and employee also superior to that of parents and children. After the covenant with God, the next level of covenant is that of husband and wife.

"...is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant."

Sexual relationship between husbands and wives must not be substituted with any other thing. This seals the covenant. God sees couples as companions and their agreement to be with one another as covenant. It is not a mere word of mouth agreement. It is a strong covenant. Lack of knowledge and commitment can make anyone of the two to deal deceitfully.

"...whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion..."

Husbands and wives should deal with each other with love and understanding as companions. By loving one another sincerely, no gap is left for disagreement. When there is misunderstanding, both need to do all that is necessary to correct what brought the misunderstanding. 

"...And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit..."

Watch what comes in and out of you in the form of ideas and suggestions from outside. Stay in the covenant. Stay focused. Looking for sexual pleasure outside the marriage opens the door for error. For the meantime, it appears as pleasure, in the future, it will be pain without measure. 

Solomon was highly blessed by God and he had all he would ever need for his entire life and for many generations after him. He could pay for anything that money can buy. He had a wife but decided to have more. Because of the blessing of God, he kept adding wives and all the while, God kept quiet about it. This will appear as if God was in approval. He ended up having seven hundred wives. As if that was not enough, he had concubines. None of them was mistreated by Solomon as the record will show. This will give the impression that he was a faithful husband to many wives but when on a more careful study, unpleasant things were uncovered.

1 Kings 11:4,6,8-9

"For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father...

And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father...

And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.

And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice,.."

Observe these points:

1. Where his heart stood.

Each wife was like a new covenant. Each concubine was another layer of covenant. Each covenant makes a demand on him to do one thing or the other. As the wives increase his mind and heart became scattered. But because he was enjoying pleasure, he did not examine himself.

"...his wives turned away his heart after other gods..."

One man with atleast seven hundred gods. This is another definition of confusion. The wise man was reduced to the level of gods of wood and stones and images. All this because of pleasure.

2. His heart was deviated from God 

What gave him wealth and wisdom was the condition of his heart towards God. He could do anything for God but pleasure made him change. He became a man that could do anything for women.

"...his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God,.."

Divided loyalty can be dangerous. If a man forgets his source, what can you say of the man?

3. God was angry 

When God was silent, it may appear as approval of what he was doing. In fact if God were to send a prophet to warn him, chances are that the prophet might not go home alive.

"...And the LORD was angry with Solomon..."

God broke the silence with anger. If the giver of the blessing is angry, what do you think will become of the blessing? God wants loyalty. He rewards loyalty and faithfulness. Going into covenant relationships that will take you away from God will later hurt you.

Sexual relationships can bind the two parties together even if they meet only once. The two gave consent to the use of their bodies which can bind them together.

1 Corinthians 6:15-16

"Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.

What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh."

Help yourself and have self control. Find pleasure in what will glorify God. Silently, things can creep in and before you know it, you bind yourself to problems that may be stronger for you to handle.

You can break agreements that might have gone into in error. What God has given you can get corrupted because of agreements that does not glorify Him. If you have made a choice to return, the blood of Jesus is your deliverance. You will be free from bondage of wrong understanding and agreement.

Pray 

Father, I pray in the name of Jesus that I find freedom from bondage of wrong agreement.  By the blood of Jesus, I enter into my deliverance. I receive grace to make choices and enter into agreements that will glorify You. I receive wisdom to move forward in Jesus name. Amen!