We live in an era of rebellious Christians, who don't honor authority, and this reminds me of the Absalom story, majority of us might not know this but they are under the spell of Absalom spirit.
The spirit of Absalom is a personification of a malignant usurper.
The Absalom spirit seeks to undermine the authority of a leader, A person with this spirit will come and feed you negative stuffs about your spiritual leader or boss so as to win you over, and stir up enmity between you and your set leader.
Here are some few summary notes on (2 Samuel 15).
An Absalom spirit thrives on hidden agendas, hidden strategies and hidden alliances.
Absalom Believed :
• The authority is not to be trusted .
• The authority is incompetent .
• “ I know the right way to handle this .”
Absalom was all good to the people just to win them over, he went to the extreme to achieve this; When people tried to bow before him, he wouldn't let them. He instead took them by the hand and kissed them. (2Samuel 15:5) and with this he won the hearts of many, and later he overthrown ed the king, and took over kingship.
How can you know if you are under the influence of the Absalom demon? Here are some indicators:
1. Gossip: This should be the easiest indicator, yet even the most seasoned Christians fall victim to the spirit of gossip all the time. I’d discovered that very few really understand what gossip really is.
Here’s my favorite definition: Gossip is any discussion about a person or an entity (such as a church, group or business) that the person or leader of the entity would disapprove of.
Would your pastor approve of your discussion about the church? If not, you are under the influence of Absalom.
2. Right vs. Wrong: Are you living in the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil by attempting to prove yourself right and your leaders wrong? Or, are you living in the Tree of Life that results in honoring and serving them?
3. Contrary Visions: You and others in the church may see the need for something, such as a soup kitchen, small group ministry or evangelism emphasis. While this may be a valid need, you have to ask the question, “Does it agree with the specific vision of my church?” All churches aren’t assigned to have soup kitchens, for example. It’s important to come under the vision of the house and leave other focuses on your shelf until God enables you to run with it.
4. Gathering Others: Are you seeking support for your viewpoint? If you are gathering other people around you who have the same concerns as you, you can know that the same thing happened in the story of Absalom.
5. Stealing Hearts: As you gather others, are you stealing their hearts, or are you affirming the pastor or leader they have been assigned by God to? Absalom stole the hearts of people who were under the care of David by listening to their complaints. Always call people to be loyal to their leaders and to approach them, not you, with their complaints.
6. Disengaging: Are you running strong with the leader or are you shrinking back into a smaller group of disgruntled people?
7. Matthew 18: Are you applying Matthew 18 protocol to situations you are concerned about? Do you approach leadership alone with your concerns, or do you violate Matthew 18 by involving other people and seeking their counsel?
8. Division: Have you considered aborting your assignment in the church God planted you in by dividing off into another church? A lot of churches are born out of rebellion in the spirit of Absalom. Is this a desire of your heart? Or, are you willing to grow through the challenge in your current church?
Absalom spirit absolutely destroy people and churches. The human wisdom that fuels it feels extremely spiritual! The arguments seem scriptural! However, the spirit is deadly.
Here are some few nuggets to always remember.
1. Honor is a 2 way traffic, The honor you give is the same measure of honor you will receive.
2. Its is insanity to discredit/dishonor an authority and expect that when you are in authority you will be honored.
3. The standard you use in honoring others is the standard by which you will be honored.
4. The golden rule: Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. (Matthew 7:12)
5. Don't be misled--you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. (Gal 6:7) NLT
6. You can't keep the birds from flying over your head, but you can sure keep them from building a nest in your hair! You cant stop people from speaking ill of your set authority but you can choose not to participate in it and not entertaining them.
7. Lastly: Above all else, guard thy heart; for out of it flows the issues of life. (Proverbs 4:23) kapish.
