All covering ultimately comes from God. Your armor for instance, that protects you from the dark side of the invisible realm, was prepared through God and is distributed to humanity as they request it. In other words, it's available to all God's family, they can choose to use it or not. In Ephesians 6:11 Paul advises us to put this armor on though, so we can stand against the enemy.

We need the armor covering us to successfully assault the demonic forces of hell through the battle ground of prayer, or to teach, preach and promote the Kingdom. We must aggressively hold these forces back for the Kingdom to advance and birth the day of the church triumphant.

God protects and covers the individual families of Israel through the husband as head of the home. His authority against the enemy flows through the father allowing him to stand between the powers of darkness and his wife and children. If the family is to do anything of importance to assist in the Lord's work, without this covering all would be exposed and vulnerable to Satanic attack.

Notice, Savior of the body. This is God's appointment of men to accept the responsibility as head of the household to guard and protect the wife. If we look back in history to Genesis 6 we will find vulnerable women attacked by angels that rebelliously left heaven with the intent to marry the daughters of man. The covering could not have been there or this event would not have happened and there would have been no need for the flood.

Notice, all they chose. They were not covered. Let us read on in verses five through seven.

Noah, a righteous man, found grace in the eyes of the Lord however and as head of his household, he and his wife, their three sons and their wives, were protected through the destruction. Eight people were saved from one man's obedience. We read nowhere that Noah's wife or his daughters in law were molested by the fallen angels either. They were covered by the head of the family and must have been submissive to his leadership to have been saved through the flood. The rest of humanity perished. What I'm trying to point out is, God guards, protects and leads to safety through the husband and wives must be submissive to this fact to be covered by them. A wife does not want to do things of a supernatural nature independent of her husband.

It is also the responsibility of the father to see to the spiritual condition of his family. He must make sure that they have every opportunity to be all they can be for the Lord, and fight the enemy on their behalf that would try to stop them, through prayer. The individual family roles are intended to be a perfect picture of the church and Christ.

So wives must see and submit to the role God has placed on their husbands thus allowing them to operate according to the word on their behalf.

It is the same situation with the church. God chooses leadership. He does not see gender as in the home. He just uses vessels, male or female does not matter as it is Him, the Father, the greater Husband, through them. Here again, His wife, His Bride, must see Him through these vessels or they will not be protected and covered. Here is a fact. Women uncovered will experience devastation and defeat if the enemy so chooses. This is why God says in the Word that the widows and orphans are to be taken under the wing of the church. They must see it and want this covering however to receive its protection. They will experience much more warfare than if they were under the umbrella of God, especially the covering that comes through the fivefold offices. Exodus chapter fourteen verses thirteen through sixteen is a good example of God working through leadership.

If Israel had been disobedient and ignored Moses as their leader, the outcome of this disastrous situation would have been much different! Another example of God being with His leaders is found in the account of the prophetess Deborah, who ruled Israel for forty years. Let us read

Barak knew God would be with Deborah. She was His chosen leader. Now let us read a little of the victory song sung after the battle.

Barak was not weak. He was the commander of the armies of Israel. In fact, he is mentioned in Hebrews 11:32 as a man of faith. He had faith in God's leadership.

These offices form a spiritual umbrella to shield God's work and His family universally. Local churches in fact, if they want to attain all the Lord wants of them, must be under the covering and protection of the Apostolic and Prophetic. If they do not have people serving in those offices in their midst, they must affiliate or network with a ministry that does have these offices functioning to be blessed with the cloud by day, the apostles, and the fire by night, the prophets, for protection and direction. Unfortunately Satan tries to infiltrate the work of God's people and will do so if that work does not submit to the covering God set in place. I Corinthians 12:28 gives us the order of the church.

God oversees, Fathers the church, or you could say He is the "steersman leader" through the apostles. The Greek word used to describe the apostolic is "Kybernesis", a term borrowed from seafaring and used to designate the steersman or pilot that holds the ship on course. The fiery light of God shines through the prophetic to expose sin and cracks in an individual's life or that of a ministry. It is through His prophets that He pulls down the enemy through warfare praise and prophesies His desires, warnings and direction. Through these two offices, revelation knowledge pertaining to this present age is released so that the church can advance towards being victorious overcomers, the church triumphant. But again, God gave them as gifts to humanity. We can submit to God's provision or not. It is up to us.

This covering is the robe of God. It is made from one thread, with no seam of division. It is the robe of authority, His!

It is not that husbands are better than their wives or that leadership is greater than the people, but God's authority over the powers and principalities, and in fact over all evil, operates in them. The robe, dipped in the blood of the Lamb, is offered for our protection.

It will cover us from the evil ones and safeguard us in the day of God's wrath. The Robe clothes the naked church until the day of redemption and glorification.

If God's people choose to submit to this covering and truly desire the Robe to be wrapped around them, then those operating in this authority must be made aware of the situations that need covering to be able to pray the covering over them. Church leadership does pray and cover the people in general, but not specifically, unless informed. The enemy can see this covering and does not touch it. So, any place you feel the need for the warmth and protection of the Robe, if a wife, look to the husband, as the family of God, look to those appointed among you as leaders.