Bought with a Price
By Shirley Mitchell
“Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on Saul's head and kissed him, saying, ‘Has not the LORD anointed you leader over his inheritance?’…
When Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. Then he brought forward the tribe of Benjamin, clan by clan, and Matri's clan was chosen. Finally Saul son of Kish was chosen. But when they looked for him, he was not to be found. So they inquired further of the LORD, ‘Has the man come here yet?’
And the LORD said, ‘Yes, he has hidden himself among the baggage.’ "
1 Samuel 10:1, 20-22
“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.”
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
God gave me the most precious word this summer. It was a hard word. Actually, it was a rebuke. After I finished videotaping Jesus Lives, I knew that God was leading me to study Elijah and write a study. However, I still had to edit the printed version of Jesus Lives, write two devotions a week, tend to the things that I neglected for four years, and learn a new role at work (development cryptography manager – yeh, hard enough to pronounce, imagine how many brain cells it took to learn about that subject!) All of these required a step back into my home and out of the public teaching ministry. It has stunted my progress in the writing of Elijah.
I felt like I was David who had been anointed by the prophet Samuel as directed by the Lord, but then he returned to tend to his father’s sheep in Bethlehem. No one knew he would be the king of Israel someday. No one knew that he was going to be the greatest king of Israel and the lineage of the Messiah. Let me clarify, I am definitely not the greatest teacher or writer, nor am I seeking a large ministry or a name for myself. However, I could feel the parallels in my life. I felt like an ordinary sheep tender again. I had plenty of sheep to tend. My daughters were in desperate need of my attention and my instruction. I believe they are the primary ones who must take my time and I must teach. I focused on some precious friendships and on my relationship with my husband.
At the end of the summer, God gave me the most precious word. He said, “Shirley, you are not acting like David. You are like Saul. You are hiding in the baggage. Get out there, and be who you are in Christ.” When Saul hid in the baggage, he was in denial about his anointing. He was afraid of this new identity. He knew that he was not a king inside. Saul’s entire reign was a series of his mistakes. He never became the king that he could have been because he never learned to set God as first in his life. He didn’t seek the Lord. He was God’s anointed. However, without a sold-out dependency on God, he remained what he was without God – a quivering wimp who made very unwise decisions. If he could have seen what he would do in the future, then he was right to hide in the baggage that day.
I knew my body was resting from the intensity that the Jesus Lives videotaping required. However, I was also hiding in the baggage. I was not embracing my identity in Christ. I am the LORD’s anointed. No one can take that from me. The evil one can’t tell me any lie that makes me believe otherwise. I don’t need anyone to tell me that any longer. The LORD has told me that in His Word. I am His anointed. Maybe my purpose is not the same as others’ purposes and manifests in different ways, but I am His anointed. He anointed me to do this ministry, to share with you everything that I know about him for His glory. I am still anointed to teach, and it won’t go away.
Then God told me, “You have been bought with a price.” I have been bought with a price (1 Corinthians 6:20a). My life is not my own. I have slipped back into living like my life was my own. God had to jerk me out of unpurposeful living. I was neglecting my calling. However, I’m not my own. I’m a servant, doulos, to Jesus Christ. He is my master. I’m not calling the shots. Additionally, I have obligations to my God to fulfill. I have works waiting for me. I have people waiting on me to minister to them. I needed to get over my exhaustion. I needed to get over my lack of direction. I needed to get my intensity back. I needed to be compelled and driven again by the love of Christ. My life isn’t mine. I no longer live, but Jesus lives in me. “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me (Galatians 2:20).” Jesus lives in me. Jesus commands my destiny. The life I live in the body is not my own. It is all for Him.
What about you, beloved? Do you need to remember that you are the Lord’s anointed? If you are saved, then you are part of a royal priesthood. You are royalty. You are the daughter of the El Shaddai, God Almighty. He anointed you with joy. He has anointed you with His Spirit. The Spirit of God lives in you. Your life is not yours. He paid for you. He purchased you and me with the highest price that could possibly be paid. He bought us with the blood of the Son of the living God! It was the most extravagant payment of all times. You and I have a promise. We have been bought with a price. We can’t slow down. There are more mountains to climb. There are more times to see God. There are more times to exalt His name. There are more times to honor Him. Oh, precious, precious one, let’s give it all we’ve got! Let’s do this life right! Let’s give Him everything! Hallelujah and glory to God!
Pray with me: Almighty God, we praise You! We lift up Your Name. We raise our voices and our hands in adoration of You! You have done great things! You hold all power. There is no one, no not one, like You. You are one of a kind. You are the only God. You are holy! You are good! You are loving! You are our strength and our shelter!
We have been bought with a price. You bought us with the blood of Your Son. Thank you, Jesus! You paid the ultimate price to gain us. You have everything else in the world; yet, all that you wanted was us. You want our hearts, our emotions, our thoughts, our actions, and our lives to belong to You. We respond by declaring that we are Your servants. Our lives are not our own. We no longer live, but Jesus lives in us. You call the shots. You set our direction. We will do our Master’s bidding.
Without You, Lord, we might as well hide in the baggage. Our lives will be rough, and mistakes will be plenty. People would suffer. However, when we set our hearts on You, then we can live out our identity. Just like David sang about You, we sing praise to You. Great is the Lord and worthy of praise. We will make Your Name known among the nations. We will honor You with our lips. We will serve You for all of our days - even the days when we are “sheep tenders” on our way to the palace. We will cherish those days and give each one of them to You. Hallelujah! Praise You, praise You, Father! It’s in the Name above all names, in Jesus’ Name, Yeshua’s Name, I pray. Amen.