Establishing a Public Platform in the Spirit of Humility
by Mica Olinghouse
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“So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men, women and all who could listen with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month.Then he read from it, in front of the open square which was in front of the Water Gate, from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and women, those who could understand; and all the people listened carefully to the Book of the Law. Ezra the scribe stood on a [large] wooden platform which they had constructed for this purpose.”
-Nehemiah 8:2-4 (AMP)
n this technology-driven day when it seems like platform building is all the rage, it can be especially challenging for godly voices to maintain pure motives when establishing a public platform. The lights, retweets, likes, shares, website hits, invitations, and constant popularity affirmation can often sidetrack well-intentioned ministers and pull them off course. Before long, the humble-spirited man or woman who was never moved by the praise of others now regularly seeks glory in the limelight. We’ve seen it happen time and again to so many of our brothers and sisters in the Lord--and if we’re not careful, it can happen to any one of us.
As a professional communicator and young minister, this dilemma has been something I’ve been extremely cognizant of in recent years. My professional background has trained me to communicate messages to others through books and media, but my spiritual upbringing has taught me to keep my heart from the pitfalls of pride. It almost seems as if the two are contradictory, but I can assure you—there is a delightful balance if we’ll keep in line with the Word of God.
ezra’s example of platform building
A few years ago as I was researching the essentials of platform building, I found a passage in Nehemiah that crystalized this matter for me in absolute brilliance. I had been drawn to the story of Ezra for sometime, undoubtedly because he was anointed as both priest and scribe, a rare combination for writers and ministers. I instantly clicked with his backstory and with his ultimate purpose in life, which is summarized so eloquently in Ezra 7:10: “For Ezra had prepared and set his heart to seek the Law of the Lord [to inquire for it and of it, to require and yearn for it], and to do and teach in Israel its statutes and its ordinances.”
Ezra’s life-long intentions were clear: All he wanted to do in life was to study, do, and teach the Word of God. His character and understanding of God’s Word was formed by his constant priestly studies and scribal duties. As he matured in the laws of God, the Lord released him to teach his own people so they could understand and do the Word of God. Ezra was simply a student and teacher of the Word who lived it in his own personal life every single day.
During the rebuilding phase of Israel’s history under the leadership of Nehemiah, the King commissioned Ezra to help restore the temple in Jerusalem. When he arrived in the city, he gathered the people together for a time of reading the Book of the Law. During this great assembly, he stood upon a wooden platform that enabled him to be seen and heard by all the people.
As Ezra began to read from the Book of the Law, something powerful happened…People were so convicted by their years of negligence of God’s Word that they began to openly weep in the assembly! The reading of the God’s Word brought deep repentance among the people and ushered in a great return to the ways of the Lord.
Now this is what’s interesting—if you read this passage carefully, Scripture notes that the “platform was made for this particular purpose.” The platform wasn’t made for Ezra’s glory or status; it was made so that people could hear and receive the Word of the Lord--actions that resulted in a powerful move of repentance and restoration.
Platform building in the Kingdom of God has two unique purposes—to amplify God’s Word and to provide a vehicle for God’s Spirit to move among the people. If our platforms are built with wrong motives or for self-glorification, we’ve missed the whole point! Building a platform is critical to being heard, but it must be done in a way that brings glory to God and not to self.
If you’re an author, a minister, or a Christian business person, just like Ezra, you must have a platform to be seen and heard above the noise of the crowd. However, in order for God’s purposes to prevail, the purpose of your platform must align with His will and not your own. For the spirit of humility to reign in your public life, it must begin in the private recesses of your own heart.
Refusing to be lifted up in pride is a decision all of us must make on a daily basis. Sometimes it’s not easy to say no to the flesh, but we have the Holy Spirit inside us empowering us to live in a way that’s pure and pleasing to the Lord! A spirit of humility not only pleases God, but it is also possible for every born-again believer.
To help you build a platform that remains uncontaminated from pride and slothfulness, I have three essential guidelines that will encourage and strengthen you along your journey. By cooperating with the Spirit of God and pursuing excellence in both practical and spiritual matters, you can successfully establish a public platform in the spirit of humility!
1. know the purpose of your platform
The word platform stems from two words: “plate” and “form.” And do you know what’s interesting about the word plate? It’s an item on which you serve food to others.
If you’re planning a huge dinner party, what’s the number one item you’ll need to serve your guests all the wonderful, tasty entrees and courses? Why plates, of course! Even finger-foods need plates to hold the treats.
When it comes to building your platform, keep that simple origin in mind. At its very core, a platform is built to serve something to others that nourishes them, feeds them, and fills them. If you’re building your platform for the sole purpose of feeding others the Word of God, you’ll have no problem staying free from self-glorification!
2. LET GOD LIFT YOU UP
While you are pursuing your call or dream, remember that in the end it’s God that lifts you up. All the marketing in the world will never push a man or woman forward into God’s purposes if God has not called them. What man builds, man maintains. But what God builds, God maintains. Let God build your platform for you instead of forcing your own way into the limelight.
How often we’ve forgotten that God’s Word declares He resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. A prideful person will force his way to the top, take all the credit, and refuse to submit to authority or correction. But a humble person is content to let God position him in His will in His time in His way. A humble person yields to the process of growth and maturity, all the while remaining faithful in the places God has put him. He knows his time of promotion comes in due season—after he’s proven himself faithful and ready.
3. STEWARD YOUR RESOURCES PROPERLY
While stewardship is a key Biblical principle, it isn’t a word many Christians are familiar with these days. Stewardship is the essence of taking care and responsibility of what God has entrusted to us in order to use it for the Kingdom. If God has given us natural resources, time, finances, opportunities, and abilities, He expects us to steward them properly. A waste of these things is a belittling of God’s investment in us.
Stewardship relates to both the practical and spiritual aspects of life. And when it comes to platform building, proper stewardship determines how we are going to use our natural wisdom, knowledge, opportunities, time, and resources to move forward in God’s purposes for our lives. For example, if a person feels called to write a book but doesn’t do his due diligence to write, hire an editor and designer, build a website, utilize marketing channels, and distribute the final product, his book will never materialize. It takes a lot of work to put feet to our dreams! And while God does the promoting, He does expect us to cooperate with Him by stewarding the time and resources He’s given us. Without proper stewardship, we will never progress into our public life and ministry.
As we’re approaching the end of 2017 and preparing to embark upon a new year, I encourage you to examine your platform building strategy. Are you building with the right motives? Are you forcing your way into something that God hasn’t permitted you to do yet? Are you stewarding the resources God has already entrusted to you? If you will take these things into consideration and adjust accordingly, God will begin to establish your platform and promote you in His time. And when you build your platform to fulfill God’s will and not your own, not only will your platform sustain outside pressure, but it will also provide the necessary conduit for ministry. God can use your platform to minister to people and usher in a move of His Spirit in these last days!
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