Kingdom Culture

(Unsplash/Jessica Yong)

For sometime now, we have been fascinated with the key of David.

"The key of the house of David I will lay on his shoulder. Then he shall open, and no one shall shut. And he shall shut, and no one shall open" (Isa. 22:22).

"To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: 'He who is holy, He who is true, He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens, says these things" (Rev. 3:7).

The key of David can't be simply defined or labeled by our mental capacities. Heavenly realities are not a mental ascent. This revelation comes by abiding in the presence of Jesus and allowing the mystery to unfold, to be soaked right into us and then ultimately revealed through us.

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This key will unlock doors over nations and people groups the world wide. It's not only prayer, worship, spoken word and acts of kindness. Although these are all wonderful expressions of His heart, the essence of the key of David is a heart unquestionably fascinated and wholeheartedly in love with Jesus! David encountered this love outside of man-made principles, paths, cultural structures or religious laws. His encounters were tried and true, pure, authentic and intimate. Therefore, no matter the circumstances, whether self-inflicted or not, he could transcendently access heaven. (See Ps. 139.)

Once, when returning from Ziklag (see 1 Sam 30:1-20), David came upon his camp in ruin. It had been burned to the ground, and the entirety of the women and children had been taken captive. The Bible tells us that David's mighty men wept until the point that there was no sound left in them! That certainly was a heart wrenching circumstance. Nevertheless, David found strength in the Lord.

The situation escalated even further. It came to the point that his own men turned on him, then sought to kill him. Notice the profundity of David's response. He (1) encouraged himself in the Lord, and (2) he asked for the ephod, which speaks of the priesthood. The ephod is the priestly garment. His priesthood was the position from which he would minister to Jesus.

Every other king in the Bible who performed a priestly duty was judged. But not David! God Himself said of David that he was a man after His own heart. In fact, David was a king by lineage, but a priest by revelation in relationship. In the midst of horrific devastation, David had a key. He didn't take matters into his own hands. His key became his inner compass by which to access the heart and mind of God. David lived from another realm—a heavenly reality. He took every situation to the Lord.

This inner compass, this key of David, gave him access to navigate from a realm beyond the natural mind. At the time of writing this, it's obvious that the world is in a chaotic state. From the coronavirus pandemic, death, loss, racism and riots, the world was shut down and then lit afire seemingly overnight!

We could easily allow these very real and dreadful events to throw us off course. However, anytime there is chaos of this magnitude happening, there is simultaneously a vacuum or a door, if you will, that opens and invites us to go "up and in" into the knowledge of Jesus. We can then see what He's thinking and feeling and navigate accordingly. The key of David gives us access to that door. Our highest response in these times should be like that of David's: "Bring me the ephod."

There is always a plethora of sounds being released into the atmosphere. It's the key of David—intimate friendship with Jesus that enables us to tune into the voice of truth, the voice of Jesus. Rather than be overcome, oversaturated or over stimulated by the multitude of voices in the world, you too can remain still and confident in the key of David. You too can be covered by the ephod. You too can minister to Jesus from your priesthood. You too can cry, "Bring me the ephod."

Jason Lee Jones and his wife, Regina, are completely ruined for Jesus. The more they encounter the kindness of Jesus, the more they long to be his voice of passion and compassion in the earth. They are internationally recognized speakers, preachers, teachers, authors, poets, songwriters and accomplished musicians and missionaries. To learn more, visit godbreed.org and stay connected with Jason by following him on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook.

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