“If we can establish the crop well in the first 8 weeks they are 80% of the way there to harvest. Even if that harvest is months away, in terms of carrots.” The farmer spoke to the circle of people gathered under his big jacaranda tree, the wind blowing softly, the sun making patterns on the ground.
Another farmer, shared of walking his crops, checking the corn, a tiny little leaf poking up from the stalk, like a hand outstretched in praise to the Lord, the carrots, releasing praise through the stalks, from the roots, and the leaf of the bean the shape of a heart. Established. Giving praise.
Many other things were shared from the book of Romans, but the rest was lost on me. That word establish burrowing deep into my brain for over twelve months; and these farmers should know, they grew hundreds of thousands of carrots, onions, corn and beans every year.
Being involved in two churches that are big on discipleship in completely different ways, I wondered if that could be a parallel in the spiritual as well? If we can establish new believers in loving community and the Word are we 80% of the way to harvest? To them becoming truly established for years. Disciple them, not just convert them?
I think of some little trees we planted a few weeks ago. Dug deep holes for them, planted them in, watered them, put mulch around them and we do it over and over, day after day. The growth might be imperceptible to begin with. It might be a few years before they begin fruiting.
And then if you think about a tree that is established, the roots go so deep, it doesn’t need watering every day, it can reach down deep into water tables that saplings don’t even know exist. It bears it’s fruit in season and it’s leaves do not whither.
And I began on a quest to see what God had to say about the word establish, establishes, and established. In the NKJV there were 149 references to those words.
The first instance of that word in the NKJV is God saying to Noah
Gen 6:18 But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark—you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.
There are four instances one after the other where God is saying to Noah, I will establish My covenant with you and I will do this, and I will do this and I will do this.
And then God put the rainbow in the sky to confirm it.
A fun song showing God’s character is Rainbow in the Sky by the Cageless Birds.
And while the Bible doesn’t specifically use the word established, we know that God had covenants with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And these were established by the spilling of blood from an animal. Some Hebrew scholars say that God would introduce himself with a new name, revealing a different part of His Nature each time. To Hagaar crying in the desert after being abandoned by Sarah, it was El Roi, the God who sees. To Abraham about to offer up his long awaited son it was Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides, as there was suddenly a ram caught in the thicket to take his son’s place on the altar.
And I can appreciate that as the generations continued and God would introduce himself by a new name, those names and attributes would be passed down to the next generation to meditate on.
It is absolutely worth studying out the covenants that God made with these people, because many of those things flow over into our covenant with Him today and yet in Hebrews 8:6 it says, “But now He has obtained fa more excellent ministry, inasmuch as he Is also Mediator of a better covenant which was established on better promises.”
Ten years ago, I joined a writing challenge where we were to write every day for 31 days on a topic of our choice. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was meant to write about communion and to dig into testimonies of people who had sudden dramatic breakthroughs as they did so. I’ve since condensed that study, cut the waffle, and you can find one of them here.
In Job it says
Job 22:28
You will also declare a thing, And it will be established for you; So light will shine on your ways.
I think there’s a parallel to the Scripture in Psalm 119 where it says, “Thy Word is a lamp onto my feet and a light unto my path.”
What is it about declaring God’s Word over our lives that causes light to shine on our ways?
I think about Scriptures like, The blessing of the LORD makes one rich, And He adds no sorrow with it. Proverbs 10:22. That’s a powerful word to light up our path, or from Psalm 103, Forget not all His benefits who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, or from Psalm 91:16, With long life will I satisfy you and show you My salvation.
“And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. Duet 8:18
It is fascinating that remembering the Lord our God, is tied to Him giving us the power to get wealth which is tired to His covenant with us.
I have also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, in which they were strangers. Ex 6:4
We read in 1 Samuel 14:47 that Saul established himself as king where as David was established by the Lord.
So David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel, and that He had exalted His kingdom for the sake of His people Israel. 2 Sam 5:12
The Old Testament goes on listing the kings with God establishing this one, and yet this other one establishing themselves.
What does God have to say about us being established?
Psalm 7:9
Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, But establish the just; For the righteous God tests the hearts and minds.
He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps. Psalm 40:2
And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, And establish the work of our hands for us; Yes, establish the work of our hands. Psalm 90:17
It appears that God has placed a desire in us to be established.
His heart is established; He will not be afraid, Until he sees his desire upon his enemies. Psalm 112:8
Establish Your word to Your servant, Who is devoted to fearing You Psalm 119:38
Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established. Prov 4:26
And wisdom has been established.
I have been established from everlasting, From the beginning, before there was ever an earth. Prov 8:23
The truthful lip shall be established forever, But a lying tongue is but for a moment. Prov 12:19
Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the multitude of counselors they are established. Prov 15:22
Commit your works to the Lord, And your thoughts will be established. Prov 16:3
Plans are established by counsel; By wise counsel wage war. Prov 20:18
Through wisdom a house is built, And by understanding it is established; Prov 24:3
Old Testament Prophecies
We also have a few Old Testament prophecies that have the word establish woven into them:
Isaiah 9:7
Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
You shall establish yourself in righteousness (rightness in conformity with God’s will and order) you shall be far from even the thought of oppression or destruction, for you shall not fear, and from terro, for it shall not come near you. Is 54:14 AMPC
Ezekiel 34: 23
I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them—My servant David. He shall feed them and be their shepherd.
And while we are hovering in the book of Ezekiel, let’s peek over at the story of the dry bones.
Prophecy is speaking to dry bones and seeing them live.
In the modern prophetic we are often taught to give a word to a person and check in with them and see if it made sense, and there’s wisdom and humility in doing that. I thought it was interesting that Steve Backlund bought out two occasions where prophetic words were given where there was no check in. The Angel of the Lord prophesied to Gideon and even though he seemingly dismissed much of what was said about him, it was enough of a seed to completely change his path in life.
And God told Ezekiel to prophesy to the dry bones and say you will live again. He said to Ezekiel, can these bones live again and Ezekiel said, surely you alone know. I think it’s fine to enquire of the Lord, because yes only He alone does know, but sometimes He’s asking us to partner with him to see that thing resurrected. It’s that declaring of a thing to see it established.
Ezekiel didn’t check in with the bones to see if they could live again.
We don’t just declare anything. We can declare God’s word over a situation, or we can declare a specific revelation that God has given us. God gave Ezekiel that vision, he didn’t just come up with it randomly.
And God has used these 2 stories to show me that even when I’ve humbly, quietly shared a truth with someone that they’ve completely dismissed, it could still be a seed that shifts something in their life.
And I think of so many businesses, and they have the little Est 1991 etc by their name. It’s the beginning, it’s the idea, it’s the seed, it’s the vision, it’s the hope. Are we placing a mark in the ground by daring to declare what we feel God has spoken to us?
Proverbs 18:21 says tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it shall eat it’s fruit.
There’s an amazing key in John 15:7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask whatever you will, and it shall be done unto you.
It’s God’s Word abiding in us that allows us to speak truth and life over a situation, to ask for a good outcome.
It is in being transformed by the renewing of our mind by the Word of God.
And through it all as Kim Walker Smith says, ‘We will fix our eyes on the one who overcame, we will stand in awe of the one who breaks the chains.”
There are multiple Scriptures sharing of how God has established the earth. And while we need to take care of the earth, we don’t need to fear it imploding or running out of resources. We know how the world will end, in due time, when God has decided.
Tremble before Him, all the earth.
The world also is firmly established,
It shall not be moved. 1 Chron 16:30
For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters. Psalm 24:2
For I have said, “Mercy shall be built up forever; Your faithfulness You shall establish in the very heavens.” Psalm 89:2
My children and are I currently studying Isaac Newton. Some would say that he may have been autistic or aspergus and possibly so. One book started with the quote, ‘Of all the men who ever lived probably Newton would consider himself equal to God.’ I turned it off, because I had researched and found so many profound quotes by Netwon himself that showed he didn’t.
“Gravity explains the motions of the planets, but it cannot explain who sets the planets in motion.”
“This most beautiful system of the sun, planets and comets, could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being… This being governs all things, not as the soul of the world, but as Lord over all; and on account of His dominion He is want to be called Lord God Omnipotent or Universal Ruler
And if the fixed stars are the centres of other like systems, these, being formed by the like wise counsel, must be all subject to the dominion of One.”
“Yet one things secures us, whatever betide, the Scriptures assures us that the Lord will provide”
He studied light, and breaking light into prisms. It’s amazing that light is filled with colour, the colours representing rainbow, promises even.
He was the one that discovered that there were so many colours in light. Previously they thought that the prism put the colours into the light.
They thought light was too pure to have colour in it. But there is colour in light and when God shines His light on us, colour comes into our lives.
New Testament References to Establish
These are not all the references to establish in the New Testament as many are quite similar to each other.
Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God 2 Cor 1:21
Rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. Col 2:7
But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. 2 Thess 3:3
But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises. Hebrews 8:6
But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. 1 Peter 5:10
There are some beautiful word pictures of what being established looks like:
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the Lord
for the display of his splendor. Isaiah 61:3
But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever. Psalm 52:8
And finally my favourite from Psalm 1
1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the [a]ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he [b]meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree
Planted by the [c]rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
ESTABLISH SCRIPTURES PRINTABLE
