Coverings

– Pastor Rusty – July 14th, 2026

“For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” I Cor. 4:15.

I lost my dad in 2011. I did not realize at the time what a spiritual void it would create for me by losing dad. I was 51 and I had moved out of home when I was 18, but dad was always a big part of my life. He was a guide, a mentor, an advisor, and a father. He loved me and prayed for me and supported me all those years from the time I was born till the time he left this earth. He was a covering!🤔 I did not realize at the time of his passing how losing him would effect me spiritually the way that it did. I didn’t realize what it was going to be like to lose a covering that my father had provided for me in my spiritual life. But God in His wisdom and in His mercy sent me a spiritual father in the form of Jack Taylor. Papa Jack brought healing to my “orphaned” spirit along with Kingdom identity and a father’s covering.🤔

He took ownership of the outcome.🧐

The tabernacle of Moses had four coverings. These represented the Spirit, the Blood, the Father, and Kingdom government. Many in the body of Christ function with substitutes for these and subsequently remain “institutionalized orphans”. They substitute Kingdom identity for denominational covering. What’s the difference? One is man made, the other has its’ origins in heaven 🤔. There is no substitute for a father’s covering. This is why fatherhood in the body of Christ is the mirror of heaven. We are the FAMILY of God not the institution of God. This is why Church paradigm produces more orphans than it heals🧐. Kingdom paradigm is relational. 🤔 “For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers.” You cannot be a true covering for anyone without fatherhood. Taking ownership of the outcome🧐.

In ancient Hebrew culture great emphasis was placed on fatherhood. Insomuch that the Old Testament never used the word for Grandfather🤔. It was always Father Abraham or “like his father David” even though they were six generations removed. It was kinda like, “once a father always a father.” Oft times even their name brought identity through their father. Abigail in the Hebrew means “Father’s joy”. Anytime you see the prefix “ab” (or suffix) in a person’s name in the Hebrew, it is a reference to their father. The word “abba” in Romans 8 is a reference to your “daddy”.🤔 Romans 8 reveals that the Holy Spirit in you gives you identity that causes you to recognize that God is your father.🧐 He is your covering! You need a father’s covering in your life. Many of you have a spiritual father in your life and you don’t even know it🤔. Think about it and I’ll get back to you on this. Pastor Rusty.

Image created by Belinda with AI