By Jon Witherspoon
There have been two forms of privilege in the news lately. The concept of Executive Privilege in our country is being litigated between the Justice Department and the former president. The dispute surrounds the question of what is the right of the president of the United States and other members of the executive branch to maintain confidential communications under certain circumstances?
With the recent passing of Queen Elizabeth, the concept of Hereditary Privilege has also been highlighted. Unlike an American politician, an English Monarch reigns in a political system based upon the sovereignty or rule of a single person. A Monarch is not voted into office, can’t be voted out and can’t be impeached. The monarch essentially can’t be disqualified once ascending the throne.
The Queen or King is essentially an accident of heredity. A monarch only leaves the throne by dying, abdicating, or being overthrown by insurgents. The late Queen ascended or inherited her throne because her uncle abdicated and then her father died. Upon the Queen’s death, her eldest son immediately became King. No one’s permission needed to be obtained. That right was “baked into” his birth some 73 years ago.
To better understand the 2 concepts, we need to appreciate the more general concept of Privilege. The original sense comes from a word that means right, priority, law applying to one person, or the exemption of one individual from the operation of a law. (My old job!) Seems like a great position to be in if you can get there!
We of course hope that the individuals- whether politicians or monarchs- that are given these special “superpowers”, will use them for the common good. The idea, of course, is that their personal prerogatives and entitlements will be a source of community benefit.
I would advocate that as Christians we possess both Executive and Hereditary Privileges with God.
Today I want to focus only on the concept of Hereditary Privilege. In both his introductions to the books of Colossians and Ephesians, the apostle Paul highlighted the notion of our spiritual inheritance. Colossians 1:9-12 and Ephesians 1:15-20 make it clear that as Christians, certain privileges accrue to us based on a spiritual Hereditary Privilege. These 2 sections of scripture encourage us to both understand that we live as royal heirs, or inheritors, and participate in those privileges now.
However, the enemy tries to convince us that we are disqualified; that our mistakes, failures, and sins have somehow excluded us or made us ineligible. He uses shame and lies to try and convince us our privileges of been revoked, or never even intended for us. Moses could have let stuttering and murder disqualify him. Jeremiah and Timothy could have let youth inhibit them. Abraham and Sara could have let old age restrain their faith.
You would have to try really hard to match king David’s level of sin and occasional depravity. Yet God called him “a man after His own heart”. How does that work?
I encourage you to spend some time reading meditating, and even memorizing the 2 sections of scripture referenced above. The path to living in and experiencing your inheritance begins with understanding what it consists of and then believing that God fully intends it for you. The enemy can’t disqualify us, but he can sure try and convince us to disqualify ourselves and abdicate what is rightfully ours.
Perhaps you are uncertain if you have even been born into the family of God and thus positioned for these inheritances. Our first birth brought us into our natural families and any associated privileges. Jesus said that we need a second birth, a spiritual birth, to become a member of God's family. Romans 10:9-11 describes the pathway to that 2nd birth.
“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.”
Our pastor recently shared a 3-part series on the Battle for the Mind. The 4 key participants in this battle are us, the Holy Spirit, Satan, and our culture. I can’t think of a greater prize or anything more at risk in this conflict than our inheritance. Whether it be where we spend eternity or how we participate in our spiritual privileges in this life, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
Reference Scriptures:
Colosians1:9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you may have full endurance and patience, and joyfully 12giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. (BSB)
Ephesians 1:15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in your knowledge of Him. 18I ask that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know the hope of His calling, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and the surpassing greatness of His power to us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of His mighty strength, 20which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, 21far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. (BSB)
