THE COAT MY FATHER GAVE ME

Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age and he made him a coat of many colours.

And when his brethren saw that the father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him and could not speak peaceably unto him (Gen. 37:3,4).

Joseph was the son of Israel's (Jacob's) old age, bom to his beloved wife, Rachel. Israel favored Joseph above his brothers and made him a gorgeous, multicolored coat. The coat caused Joseph to be the target of much jealousy, but he wore the coat with confidence because his father had given him the coat.

OUR COAT COMES FROM HEAVEN

Every one of us has been given a "coat" by our beloved heavenly Father. I want to ask you a question: what coat are you wearing? You see, all of us have a choice; we can wear the coat our father has given us or we can leave it off. But we should not criticize or condemn others because they choose to wear their special coat. The coat is not our choice, but God's choice, and He is the One Who gives it to us.

YOU CAN CHOOSE YOUR COAT

I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live (Deut. 30:10 NKJV).

The choice is yours! The coat of life or the coat of death. I have had to personally come to a decision that I cannot back down from, no matter what anybody says about me. I've decided what coat I'm going to wear; I'm going to wear the coat my Father gave me!

When you choose to wear the coat your Father gave you, it may cause a stir. Some people will get upset and maybe even your brothers will get upset.

CRITICISM OF YOUR COAT

"How dare you wear that coat? Who do you think you are, prancing in here with that coat?"

"Look at all those colors! Who does he think he is? Why doesn't he just wear an ordinary coat?"

"You don't want to go overboard; you shouldn't wear that tonight. You know that people are going to get upset if you walk in there wearing that coat."

Those are the kinds of remarks you might hear. But what are we supposed to do, go get a sack out of the barn and wear it? There are many believers walking far below what their heavenly Father has for them because they are afraid of what other people are going to say. So instead of wearing the coat their Father gave them, they hang it in the closet and wear some old tattered, raggedy piece of sack. But they don't realize that they are cloaked in religion and tradition and although the world may be pleased by their compromise and conformity, they are not walking in God's heart.

Every night they go home and open the closet door and say, "My, isn't that coat wonderful! That's the coat my Father gave me, but I can't wear it because you know what it will do out there; it'll cause a stir."

Joseph did not back down from wearing the coat his father gave him. He made the wise choice. What coat are you wearing? The choice is yours.

You know that even in the natural, you can get criticized for your coat. People say, "Well, look what that person's wearing. Where did he get that? I'll bet he got it down at that big fancy store. Who does he think he is?" As if there aren't enough coats to go around.

WHAT COAT ARE YOU WEARING?

What coat are you wearing? Is it a coat of blessing or a coat of cursing? Some people accept a coat of cursing and try to make it into a coat of blessing. "Look at my coat... I'm blessed." But they have had to return their motorcar because of lack of payments and they are having their house repossessed, yet they say, "My Father gave this to me. It's His will. I'm sick and diseased and my Father did this to me."

If you're guilty of doing this, you had better check out whose closet you've been looking in because you've picked up a coat that doesn't come from heaven. You've picked up a coat from hell. There are some coats you want to lose; there are some coats you wouldn't miss if you lost them. But you want to keep the coat your Father gave you.

When Joseph was in Potiphar's house, he not only lost his coat, he lost everything.

Potiphar's wife grabbed his coat off him and he ran out of the house naked. Now that's the kind of coat you don't mind losing.

A COAT OF BLESSING

Why should you back down from wearing the coat your Father has given to you? His is not a coat of death, bondage, sickness, or poverty, of lack, ruin and destruction, but instead it's a coat of salvation. Listen to me! It's a coat of healing. It's a coat of blessing. It's a coat of provision. It's a coat of joy. It's a coat of all that heaven has. It's a coat of righteousness. Oh, hallelujah!

People of the world are not interested in the coat of religion; they're not interested in the coat of tradition. They're looking for something that's a living reality. You mean to tell me I can't wear the joy because of what somebody thinks? I cannot apologize for it... this is the coat my Father gave me!

HONOR GOD WITH YOUR COAT

People may look at you and say, "You're wearing that coat out of pride; who do you think you are?" It is not out of pride; I am wearing this coat out of respect for my Father Who gave this coat to me. This is the coat my Father gave me! My Father gave me this coat and I'll wear it out of respect for Him because I wouldn't want my Father to look at me and wonder where the coat is, the coat He gave me.

I could tell Him, "Dad, I'm sorry; I'm ashamed to wear it because when I wear it, my brothers attack me, so I have hidden it away in a back closet and I'm wearing this other coat. I don't know where I got this coat but I'm going to wear it now because it feels safe and it's comfortable."

I'm telling you right now, out of respect for my Father, I'm going to wear the coat HE gave me. Oh, hallelujah!

"Well, what will people think?"

Who cares what people think? It's the coat my Father gave me! How can I get the message across? What part of "the coat my Father gave me" do you not understand? My Father gave me this coat because He loves me and out of respect for Him, I'll wear the coat.

COAT THIEVES

Oh, you'd better watch out for those people who come along and want to steal your coat. Beware of the coat stealers! Oh, they don't want to wear it themselves; they just don't want you to wear it.

"Well, we just think you're too healed."

"Yeah, that's right. I haven't been sick."

"You're too healed."

"I'm sorry; I need to be sick more."

"You rejoice all the time; you need to be more depressed."

"I'll be honest with you; I've had it just too good lately. I tell you ... I should be more depressed."

"Your marriage is just doing too well. You know it's not going to last; you know that."

"Your children are serving God? All of them? Ah, just watch; one of them will stray off. You watch."

We're not in heaven yet, you know. So watch out for the coat stealers. They'll start pulling the buttons off at first; they may not be able to get the whole coat but they'll start pulling the buttons off. The button of blessing. And then if you're not careful, they'll steal one sleeve, and then another, until they have robbed you of your coat.

"Just look at those people down there at that church; do you see those coats they're wearing tonight? Who do they think they are? They shouldn't wear that coat every day. Some days they need to put on those old tattered coats."

NOT ONE OF THE CROWD

Have you ever walked into a place and known immediately that you were overdressed? You were all dressed up because you thought the occasion was formal, and everyone else was casual. Suddenly you loosen your tie, rip your collar open, roll up your sleeves and try to dress down. You might even take your shoes off and walk barefoot. Why? Because you want to blend in. You don't want to stick out.

By the same token, have you ever walked into a place underdressed? Everybody's all dressed up but you are extremely casual. It can make you feel very ill at ease.

How many of you know that Joseph stuck out? You didn't have to sit and think, "Hmmmm. I wonder who the father loves."

"Where did you get that coat?"

"My father gave this to me."

"Well, who do you think you are?"

"There he goes again, wearing that coat."

I can just imagine the comments.

Actually, it's not out of pride that we wear our coats, it's out of respect. But it IS out of pride that a lot of people DON'T wear the coat the Father gave them. Some people's pride causes them to walk in a false humility. They are not humble—they just want you to think they are. Their pride manifests itself as the fear of man.

"Well, let's just have a big family fight so everyone will think we're normal."

"Let me just take a few days' sick leave so people will think I also get sick once in a while."

JESUS' COAT CRITICIZED

These critics were right there with Jesus when He was walking around on the water. In fact, some of them were His own brothers. True, nobody's life depended upon His walking on the water; it seems to have benefited no one but Himself. But I believe that I know why He walked on water; He walked on water to get away from people. All ministers need to get away from people occasionally.

Imagine the Pharisees coming to Him and saying, "We forbid you to walk on water anymore. Just walk like normal people, on the ground. You're abusing the power; you're using the power for your own gains. Who do you think you are, walking on water while we earthlings have to walk on the ground?"

You see, jealousy will come against the supernatural. Jealousy will come against the coat your Father gave you, because it's that coat that will set you apart. It's that coat that will be a sign that there's something different about you; you're not just normal or ordinary. There's something different about you; the Father has chosen you; the Father has laid a special blessing upon your life.

COAT OF SALVATION

I want you to know that salvation is for all and when Jesus comes to you with a coat of salvation and puts it upon you, you have access to the same blessings that were purchased on the cross of Calvary 2000 years ago and every one of you can boldly stand up and say, "This is the coat my Father gave me; it was purchased by the blood of Jesus and I'm going to wear it and I'm not going to hide it in the cupboard somewhere just so I can become acceptable to certain groups of people. I'm not going to wear it out of pride because I think I'm something great. I'm going to wear it out of respect because this is the coat my Father gave me." Hallelujah!

Masses of people are hungry for God to touch their lives with His Spirit.

Hundreds come to surrender their lives and make Jesus their Lord and Savior as a result of the preaching of the Word.

HUMBLY WEAR THE COAT

You have to come to that place of humility. You may say, "This looks too good on me; I couldn't wear it." That's pride; it sounds like humility, but it's pride. "Oh, I just couldn't be this blessed. Not me. I just couldn't be so blessed."

You have to come to a place of humility; you have to come to a place of realizing that you didn't do anything to deserve the coat. You couldn't have done anything to deserve the coat; it's all because of what Jesus did 2000 years ago and IT'S FREE! IT'S FREE!

You have to come to a place where you say, "Not my coat, but Thine. Not my coat, but Thine."

GOD GAVE ME A CHOICE

I remember in 1982, I was in a certain town in South Africa, sitting in a bungalow (a small, one-room house) studying God's Word ten hours a day, preaching at a Bible school with 20 students. I was just there for a six-week period.

The man who started and ran the school went on an overseas trip, and he had asked me to teach the 20 students every evening, for six weeks, in his absence. I was the only lecturer and I taught three courses a day.

I had nothing to do and nowhere else to go, so I spent each day studying God's Word for hours and hours. Some of the Bible students were also studying at a local university, but the others were either housewives or recovering drug addicts and alcoholics.

Sitting in this little hut one day, I suddenly became aware of the presence of God which covered me just like a coat or a blanket. It felt like God walked in and wrapped Himself around me and began to speak to me.

"Son!"

Suddenly I looked at my hands and realized that His power was flowing in me. I suddenly realized that His blood was flowing in my veins, that I was part of the Royal Family; I was part of His family. To become a president, to become royalty on this earth, actually is to step down from what you are as a born-again, blood-washed child of God.

The Lord spoke to me audibly, and I'll never forget it as long as I live. He said, "Son, if you want to stay where you are and carry on the ministry as it is for the next 40 years, you can. If that is acceptable to you, that will be acceptable to Me. I'm going to let you do what you want to do."

I began to weep, sobbing like a baby. He continued, "I'm going to let you do what you want to do because you are My child and I love you. BUT if you want to shoot for the highest in Me and you want to step out into all that I have for you, I'm going to let you do that, too. Because I love you and you are My child."

BLANK CHECKS

That day I realized that God had given me a blank check and that blank check had three signatures on it. Most business checks require two signatures but this one had three signatures on it: God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Even though I was ecstatic over that blank check, over the years I've come to realize that He did not give me just a blank check but He gave me a blank checkbook ... signed. Why? Because He loves me. Why? Because I'm His child.

MY CHOICE

The choice is mine. The choice is mine to wear the coat my Father gave me. The choice is mine to hide the coat He gave me in the closet and wear the coat of religion, the coat of tradition, the coat of respectability, the coat of men's acceptance.

That day I wept from inside my innermost being. I said, "God, do you mean to tell me that You'll let me do whatever I want to do in the Kingdom of God? If I want to believe You for big things and trust You for great things and see nations shaken ....?" This was 1982, friends. I had been in full-time ministry for three years. The Lord said, "Yes." And I asked, "Why?" He answered, "Because I love you ... because you're My child."

I wept; I sobbed. I'll tell you this: from that day, I have had all kinds of people try to take the coat away from me. I'd pull it out just a little bit and wave a little bit of the sleeve and they'd smack me upside the head, "Put that thing away!"

JUST WEAR THE COAT

But over the years I've just started to get a lot bolder. "Bless God, I'll wear the sleeve." Then I started putting the other sleeve on; then I started putting the whole coat on. Now I've just decided and determined that I'm going to wear the whole coat, nothing but the coat, so help me God. And whenever somebody comes to me and says, "Who do you think you are?" I have an answer.

"I don't think I'm anything; what do you mean by that question?"

"Well, who do you think you are to wear that coat?"

"Ah, this coat?"

"Yes."

"Do you like it?"

"Well, yes, but it's too good for you."

"It doesn't matter what you think. It's the coat My Father gave me!"

SUPERNATURAL COAT

Why was it that the woman with the issue of blood came and touched Jesus' coat? Why? Because she knew that He was wearing something that didn't come from down here on earth. It was not Jesus' natural clothing that healed the woman. It was the anointing which rested upon His life and ministry which flowed from Him to her. The anointing is the clothing of the Holy Spirit.

JESUS WORE HIS COAT

When Jesus read from the Book of Isaiah in the synagogue (Luke 4), the people were impressed. But when He dared to say that He was the fulfillment of that scripture and that they had not honored Him as such, they were infuriated and tried to kill Him. Jesus could have backed down from His coat of anointing and said, "I'm just Joseph's boy, this is My mother Mary, and these are My brothers. The Spirit of the Lord is supposed to be upon Me, but I won't talk about it if it upsets you. He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor, but I won't minister to anyone unless I have your permission. I'll just read from the Book of Isaiah where God tells you that many, many years from now the Messiah is coming."

But He didn't do that; He boldly put that coat on; He boldly stood there and said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon ME; He has anointed ME to preach the gospel to the poor ..." and as He began to declare it that day, He began to put the full coat on.

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon ME; He has anointed ME; He has sent ME to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. TODAY ... I will wear the coat tOdAY. "

TODAY I tell you this scripture is fulfilled. TODAY you can go free. TODAY no more bondage. TODAY you can be healed. TODAY your marriage can be healed. TODAY you can have peace of mind. TODAY you can be set free from the lies of the devil. TODAY! Not because of me but because of the coat my Father gave me! TODAY! NOW! NOW!

THE COAT TRANSFERRED

Why did Elisha follow Elijah? He was waiting for the coat! Hallelujah! Something more than a mantle was passed on that day—it was the anointing and power of God. When Elisha stood by the Jordan River and he took the coat that had fallen from Elijah and smote the waters ... the waters went the same place for Elisha as they had for Elijah.

The sons of the prophets that were standing there said, "The spirit that rested on Elijah rests on Elisha." He didn't go hide the coat and say, "Now, I'll part the water a little different way than Elijah did because I don't want them to think that I'm copying him. I won't be bold; I won't take my coat. I'll not smite the waters; I'll just wave the coat."

No, he got bold with that coat. "I saw Elijah do something and I'm going to test it. If God is with me, it'll happen for me just like it happened for him."

WALKING IN YOUR COAT

I'm telling you right now, when you wear the coat your Father gave you, you can go up to the sick and say, "Be healed in Jesus' Name." You can go to the blind and say, "Eyes, be opened, in Jesus' Name." You can go to the dead and say, "Arise, in Jesus' Name." You can go to those that are lame and say, "Take up your bed and walk, in Jesus' Name." You can go up to someone and say, "Your sins are forgiven you, in Jesus' Name."

Who do you think you are? It's not who we are; it's not who I am; it is My Father who gave me this coat. Hallelujah! I'm wearing the coat My Father gave me. I can't not do the works of Jesus. I'm wearing His coat.

It's a coat of healing, a coat of protection, a coat of provision. It's that coat! What coat are you wearing? Are you wearing a coat of depression? A coat of unforgiveness? A coat of bitterness? A coat of jealousy?

I remember that old song:

The windows of heaven are open; the blessings are falling tonight.

There's joy, joy, joy in my heart since Jesus made everything right.

I gave Him my old tattered garment, He gave me a robe of pure white.

I'm feasting on manna from heaven and that's why I'm happy tonight!

Let Him take that old tattered coat and get you a new one. You are going to have a brand-new coat, the coat your Father has given to you. Hallelujah! Tomorrow if anybody says anything to you about your new coat, just look at him, smile, and say, "This is the coat my Father gave me!"

Remember this. They rejected Joseph, and Joseph was a type of Christ. And when Jesus came, they rejected Him, too.

BE BOLD

Let's look at Joseph; he didn't back down one little bit; he never said, "Brothers, listen. I'll give you the coat and never wear it again. Please don't throw me into the pit; please don't sell me as a slave. Please don't go back to our father and lie and tell everybody that I'm dead. I'll do anything; I'll compromise. I'll stay in the house; I'll wear anything you want me to wear."

No, Joseph did not compromise. And we know that years later, all those who had helped send Joseph into slavery were eating right from his hand.

JESUS BOUGHT YOUR COAT

You may ask, "Why should I wear my coat right now?" Because the price has been paid for you to wear it right now. Jesus took our tattered, dirty, sinful old coat to the cross and got rid of it there. He arose from the dead with a new coat prepared for those who would be humble enough to receive and wear it. Jesus paid it all for you and He says, "I want you to give Me what you're wearing so I can give you what I'm wearing. If you put this on, you're going to have life and you're going to have it more abundantly. You're going to have life eternal and you're going to have My healing power. You're going to go in My Name; you're going to cast out devils. These works shall you do and greater works than these shall you do. You're not going to worry about the powers of darkness because, behold, I give you power to tread upon serpents and scorpions and all the powers of the enemy. Nothing will by any means hurt you."

It's time for the church to put the coat on and start to wear it so the world can see. They will come to you and say, "Where did you get that coat?"

"My Father gave it to me; would you like one, too? He'll give you one."

COAT OF MANY COLORS

Let me just say this. That coat is made up of MANY colors; it's a coat of diversity. Some people are going to say, "Well, why can't God make them all look the same?"

No! No! I'll tell you something right now; when you receive something from God, it's going to be different from what your brother or your sister is wearing. You don't have to get jealous about what they're wearing, just as they shouldn't be jealous of what you're wearing, because they're wearing the coat that their Father gave them and you're wearing the coat your Father gave you!

Your coat represents your call, your anointing, your special gifts, given by God to you. You cannot walk in someone else's call, anointing or gifts—only your own. Don't concern yourself with someone else's coat—either to criticize or be envious. Let them walk in their coat.

You can boldly wear your coat—not arrogantly nor timidly, but knowing full well that your Father God is the source of your coat. You don't have to show off your coat, neither do you have to apologize for it. Simply walk in the call, anointing and gifts that God has placed on your life. Do the works of Jesus and walk in the will of God for your life. Put on your coat and don't take it off. Honor God by wearing the coat that He gave you.

Revival Ministries International is a ministry that crosses denominational boundaries and geographical borders to fulfill what the Lord has called it to do— prepare the church for the coming revival.

In December, 1987, Rodney Howard-iBrowne, along with his wife Adonica and

their three children, Kirsten, Kelly and Kenneth, moved to the United States to be a part of what the Lord had told Rodney in a word of prophecy: "As America has sown missionaries over the last 200 years, I am going to raise up people from other nations to come to the United States of America. I am sending a mighty revival to America."

Rodney Howard-Browne and his family have been traveling as revivalists in many countries, as well as North America. The revivals last from one to four weeks and are reminiscent of revivals of the past, with unusual and powerful demonstrations of the Holy Spirit in each meeting.

Dr. Howard-Browne has recently founded The River Bible Institute in Tampa, Florida. The vision for RBI is to train men and women in the spirit of revival for ministry in the 21st Century.

In addition to having a very busy crusade schedule, Rodney and Adonica are now pastors of a thriving church in Tampa, Florida, "The River at Tampa Bay." The church meets every Sunday in the Sun Dome on the campus of the University of South Florida.

The Coat My Father Gave Me

Everyone has been given a "coat" by our heavenly Father. We don't have a choice of coats (that is the choice of the Father), but we do have the right to wear our coat or leave it off.

Joseph was given a coat by his father and he chose to wear it out of respect for his father. His brothers became jealous and abusive but Joseph still chose to wear the coat his father gave him. ^ Jesus’ coat was criticized because His coat set Him apart. Jealousy always comes against the supernatural.    V, >|

Your "coat" will be a sign that somethuferas dif--ferent about you. The Father has laid a special blessing upon your life.

Will you wear the coat your Father gave you? The choice is yours!

-Rodney M. Howard- Browne

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