Dan

Dan

Rachel finding herself in a situation where she is incapable of having children decides she wants children through surrogacy. She gives her handmaid, Bilhah, to her husband so as to have children by her. This ancient form of surrogacy wasn’t without precedent, Sarah had utilized the same concept with Hagar. To anyone the act undoubtedly is less fulfilling than actual childbirth, nursing and rearing one’s own child. Consider that Rachel would have been incapable of even nursing these children. There are portions of the church that seem content with only surrogacy and have no reproductive capabilities. Because whole portions of the church have never been involved in the birthing process, they lack natural affection for their children. They see only their God given right to claim and name other peoples children. We call this process to proselyte. Rachel’s handmaid Bilhah did conceive and as she gave birth to a son Rachel declared, “God has judged my case; and He has also heard my voice and given me a son.’ Therefore she called his name Dan.” (Gen. 30:6).

The word dan in the Hebrew means to judge. It is taken from the Hebrew word diyn which means to rule. Not withstanding the Holy Spirit has birthed in the church the ability to judge and discern. The apostle Paul says in I Cor. 2:14 and 15, “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. Nor can he know them, for they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one.” The Lord spoke a word to me a few years ago concerning elders. It was taken from Lamentations 5:14 which says, “The elders have ceased gathering at the gate, and the young men from their music.” The prophet Jeremiah had been surveying the city and lamenting the conditions after the destruction of Zion. He takes note that the elders no longer sit at the gate. The Lord said He would restore the elders in the gate. I simply took it to mean that he would restore true elders to the body of Christ. The church has long since replaced true elders with a carnal political system usually referred to as a church board or deacons. Now these carnal replacements who lack true discernment often stand in the way of God’s agenda. These religious bean counters often stand in the way of whole congregations and fellowships from receiving vital nourishments from the Father. But the Lord is raising up and restoring true elders to the Kingdom. Much teaching and prophetic emphasis has been placed on the restoration of the watchmen and their ability to see what’s coming. But God is also restoring elders in the gates. Men who function with discernment and authority concerning all commerce and business transactions coming into the city (Zion). Men and women who are able to discern and judge whether good or evil is coming into the gate. Men and women who can judge and discern the will of god in matters. It is this lost art of judgment that the Holy Spirit is restoring and birthing in the church. Gamaliel type judgments on matters of the Spirit.

As the Hebrew words diyn (to rule) and dan (judge)

Are derived one from the other so is authority derived from judgment. When we are able to discern the will of God in a situation we are able to pray and intercede with confidence.

In I Cor. Chapters 5 and 6 Paul marveled at the church’s inability to function in krino. Krino is the Greek word for judging. There is a spirit of divination that has come against the church at large and has impeded it’s ability to function in krino. We have adopted world views on many issues such as abortion and the homosexual agenda. It has left many in the church without any legitimate ability to function in krino.

The concept of Dan goes much deeper than political/moral issues. Dan allows us to discern the will God in any matter. It allows us to discern motives, pure or impure. It allows to discern “thoughts and intents of the heart.” It allows us to discern ourselves our motives and to distinguish between the “soul and the spirit” and what’s truly at work in our lives. It is much easier to see “motes” when you have removed “beams”.

Dan birthed by the Holy Spirit also allows us to discern spirits. In a meeting in Nicaragua, a young woman came to a service. The place where we were meeting was full of women and children and the young woman was standing with a group of pastors to my left. My wife leaned over to me and said, “There is something wrong with that woman.” I didn’t think much of her statement at the time, thinking that the woman was probably just inappropriately dressed or just looked out of place, but as we began to praise the Lord in the service, demons began to act up in the woman and she fell into the floor convulsing. I leaned over to my wife and said, “ There is something wrong with that woman.” My ability to discern what was happening did not take place until there was physical manifestation of the demonic, but my wife knew in advance. In dealing with the demonic I have relied on my wife’s judgment time and again especially when demons go “dormant.” That’s the term I use when demons stop manifesting but they are still there. The young girl explained to us that she had ulcers in her stomach and she suffered from epileptic seizers. She said she needed money for medicine. We told her we could help her but we needed to pray for her first. She agree and when we began to pray with her the demons immediately began to act up and she threw herself onto the floor and began to convulse. When we rebuked the spirits in Jesus name she went limp. I looked at my wife and said, “They’re still there aren’t they.” She said, “yes.” We sat the girl up again told her we were going to pray again. As we began to pray the demons immediately began to act up again and once again she went limp and the demons went dormant. We repeated the process a third time. On the third time the demons acted out as violent as ever but this time their power was indeed broken the young girl rolled and vomited some ungodly goo out on the floor and she began to cry real tears as she exclaimed, “No mas dolor! No mas dolor!.” No more pain. She said the pain had left her stomach. She was completely set free! We prayed with her as she received Jesus Christ as her savior. We gave her money to buy food and she left us rejoicing.

Dan goes beyond discerning of spirits. It is based in the wisdom of “legitimacy”. When you possess true love. You naturally recognize what true love is not. When you have the real you easily recognize the counterfeit.

When you walk in truth you easily recognize the false. But if you practice deceit you will be deceived. Walking in truth is not just embracing correct doctrine. It is literally dispelling darkness from your life. (I Jn. 1:7). It is de-leavening your life. (Cor. 5:6). If you walk in light you recognize darkness. This is discernment 101.

Satan offers many near facsimiles. From healing (touch therapies) to deliverance (psychotherapies). All these and more try to function in the church. But none of these are a substitute for the shear dunamis of God. There is a restoration of Dan to the house of God in our generation. Like the spirit of Daniel tremendous discernment and judgment is being given unto the church.

Written by Rusty Owens

click here to view all portions of this series released so far.

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