I would like to submit some thoughts that I believe the Lord
has given me understanding in. In relation to things pertaining to life in the
kingdom. These things have been stirring in my spirit for over 30 years until now, yet,
with more intensity than ever before.
Let me also state here, seeking first the Kingdom of God is not a separate act from seeking also His righteousness. Seeking first His righteousness is inextricably linked to seeking His Kingdom. They are inseperable.
Much of the content here arises from listening to and
reading the thoughts of other believers. Things that have borne witness in my spirit. More so, seeking the Lord, reading the scriptures and getting
the witness of the Spirit of God.
This is by no means an exhaustive writing,
but rather an exhortation to create awareness in what is on the heart of God for us as individual believers and as the corporate ekklesia of God. At the end of each section are scripture references to that section. Please look the references up and do the research.
UNITY
/ DIVISION
We need to have a clear understanding that the
unity mentioned here, is not, ecumenical or manmade. Unity presented in scripture, is never amongst different faiths or belief systems, but the one faith, which was once for all delivered to the saints. ( see Jude 3 ) The opposite of unity is division, factionalism, sectarianism, Our divisions and denominations, the
walls of distinction we have erected amongst ourselves are a blight on the reputation of the body of Christ. We cannot grasp the unity of the Spirit and not acknowledge our divisions. We cannot see the future glory of the church without acknowledging its present state. The process of restoration always requires a process of breaking down, even removal of what is not original.
Apart from having and being in a right relationship with
the Father through Jesus as the Head of the ekklesia; this issue of unity is foundational
and of utmost importance. The unity of the Spirit is as fundamental and foundational to the Faith as Christ is foundational to our faith in Him. The scriptures speak bountifully on unity or oneness
or being in agreement from both old and new covenant writings. They also speak
about the negative condition of division and its effects on the authority, life
and witness of the ekklesia.
We somehow think that God has given us carte blanche, the
authority to divide the body of Christ at random, as we see fit. We segregate
ourselves by our denominations which number in the thousands. This in itself
should speak to our shame, a people who profess a unity with our mouths but
live in the contrary. It does not matter what our reasoning is to try and
justify our denominational divisions. There are NO GROUNDS to divide the body
of Christ on the basis of denominational names which arise from differing
opinions of doctrines. The facts are, we are divided over this minister and
that minister, we gather for ourselves those whom we prefer over the other and
we build “churches” and give them names to define us as separate from other
believers of the same household of faith.
Brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus, these things
ought not to be. The Corinthian believers / ekklesia were rebuked by the
apostle Paul for their division and segregations, preferring one minister over
the other. This was dealt with in no uncertain
terms by Paul in the authority of the Lord Jesus, that, no divisions or
dissensions or factions be formed amongst them. Paul castigated the Corinthians believers for their
childishness and carnal behaviour.
Choosing one leader over another ultimately
leads those who do these childish, carnal things, to also separate and segregate
over doctrines. Invariably, one leader will disagree with another over respective
issues of doctrine. This too was rebuked by the apostle Paul and he told the
childish, carnal Corinthian believers to think and speak the same things and
have the same opinions and judgements being in full harmony in what they say.
This would clearly relate directly to matters of the faith.
Jude was compelled to tell the saints who were separated
for the Lord Jesus, to contend for the faith that was once and for all
delivered to the saints. The apostle Paul urged the church in Phillipi to live
in unity, be of the same mind and purpose, have the same love for one another, and
do nothing from factional motives. Can two walk TOGETHER except they are in
agreement?
I say to you in the Name of the Lord Jesus, if Paul or
the Lord Jesus Himself were to tell the ekklesia the same things again here and
now, we would most likely stone them with our words in rejection or at least
chase them away and accuse them of heresy. We have built for ourselves our own
little houses at the expense of THE HOUSE OF GOD, not a physical house of brick
and mortar but a HOUSE MADE OF LIVING STONES. We have opened bank accounts in
these names of division, we have adorned them with all the pleasantries that
appeal to the eye and pride of life and we encourage people to come to them as
if that were the church.
Be ashamed and appalled at this wickedness that we
perpetuate by our rebellion and pride. Our denominations and divisions are
little towers of Babel being built up that testify to our own pride and we love
to have it so.
These systems of men know no boundaries. Regardless of
what name they go by, what the creeds and statements of faith are used; they
are ALL, each one, works of the flesh. The ruling spirit that dictates to these
systems is the spirit of Babylon, the mother of ALL harlots and she has many,
many offspring, all birthed out of and from the same spirit that rules over
her.
Understand this well, coming out of this harlot system
and starting a fellowship with much the same structure and agendas with titles
and names that identify us as separate from other believers is to merely change
one snare for another. One brother likened this mother of harlots to an octopus.
You break free from one tentacle and are then ensnared once again by another. Once
again, hear in no uncertain terms, OUR DIVISIONS AND DENOMINATIONS ARE THE
WORKS OF THE FLESH, PREDICATED UPON LIES AND DECEITS OF DEMONS THAT MEN TEACH.
There is a pattern of lifestyle and structure that is
recorded in scripture, starting from the Life of Jesus as the Chief pattern,
through the book of Acts and other apostolic writings. When attempts to
introduce another way started to arise, it was quickly challenged and dealt
with by the authority of the Lord Jesus. As generations have come and gone
until today, ferocious wolves have arisen from among the ekklesia and have come
in from the outside and have preached a gospel that is other than THE GOSPEL that was proclaimed by the
Lord Jesus and His first apostles.
The Lord Jesus said, “A house divided against itself
cannot stand”. Never has a truer word been spoken. This is true of families,
businesses, political parties, governments and entire nations. It is very, very
true of the ekklesia, the household of faith. The “Christian church” has in
excess of 35,000 denominations worldwide, an indication in itself of its
grievous divisions. The issues can vary over small things leading to larger
things, differing opinions over this teaching or that teaching, over this
leader or that leader. We choose to follow our man made ways instead of abiding
by the apostolic teachings and practice shown in scripture.
Leaders insist on
being bible based, the word of God as the only acceptable authority we adhere
to, yet, when it comes to our denominations and divisions, a different code of
practice is adhered to. They choose rather to be divided over teachings and
practices, rather than forsaking their pride and rebellion, abiding by the
writings of new covenant life.
Let’s be frank and open regarding what we read in the
writings of the life of the early ekklesia and what we see in the life of the
ekklesia today. What contradiction, what division, what lack of corporate
authority. Is this an exaggeration or a misrepresentation of the facts?
God gives us the freedom to choose to forsake our pride
in our denominations and divisions. He has long been merciful towards us in the
hope that we will willingly turn away from our carnal, childish behaviour. Many
have done so, but His intention is for ALL those who are called by His Name to
break free from the harlot system which separates His people on carnal grounds.
Christ came to tear down the wall of animosity, the walls
of division in and amongst Jew and gentile. But we have erected walls again
amongst ourselves, the ekklesia. This is an affront to Him. The consequence of
our continuous pride and rebellion is that we have been given over to the
bondage of the harlot system. But the time is here, yet has been, for those who
have had ears to hear, to come out of the harlot system and live our lives as
believers together under the Headship of the One Head, namely Christ, in the
unity of the Spirit in the peace that binds us together, and the unity of the
faith where we all believe the same thing, speak the same thing; where there is
no difference in doctrine. Does this astound and shock you that we are to ALL
be one in doctrine, the unity of the faith? Our experience of the requirement
does not negate the requirement. We have believed the lies of demons and what
men teach as truth instead of the requirement of God.
In spite of our failings, such as our divisions and
denominations, these things, unity of the Spirit and of the faith shall be so,
it is written, UNTIL WE ALL COME INTO.....then we shall no longer be tossed
backwards and forwards by changing winds of doctrine inspired by demons, taught
by unscrupulous men in inventing errors to mislead. We can give ourselves over
to Him willingly to accomplish His purposes in and amongst us or we will be
thrust into it and even then forcefully so.
The body of Christ will come together as the Head so
desires it to be. The Lord Jesus prayed and asked His Father that we
should be one as He and the Father are one. Can you imagine, for even a
brief millisecond that there is any kind of division amongst the Godhead? AS
THEY ARE ONE, we are to be, and it shall be so, in every respect that this
unity is required of us.
The following are scriptures that relate to the above.
Psalm 133, Haggai 1, Amos 3:3, Matthew 18:19-20, John 17:21, Acts 2:1, 42-47, 1
Corinthians 1:10-13, 1 Corinthians 3:1-10, Philippians 2:1-4, Ephesians 4:1-16,
Philippians 1:27, Jude 3.
THE KINGDOM WAY / CULTURE.
When we repent and are born from above, we come under and into the
kingdom of God and His righteousness. It is inferred here and hoped, that the gospel that was proclaimed and we heard is
the very gospel that the Lord Jesus proclaimed, the gospel of the kingdom of
God.
The prerequisite for entering the kingdom of God is repentance by an act of obedience on the part of the hearers. For one
to even see the kingdom of God, one must be born anew or from above. This is synonymous
with being born of the Spirit. We thus become regenerated from an immortal seed
and origin, that is to say, we are born from God. ( see 1 Peter 1 v 23 )
Repentance and baptism in
water were an act that went together. ( see Romans 6 )
It is here we believe in our hearts and
confess with our mouths the Lord Jesus. It is here that transference from the
kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of Light takes place. It is also here, that we are placed or introduced into the one body of Christ, having been apportioned a measure of grace and faith, to function in that body under the Headship of Christ.
We are sanctified by
the Spirit of God, set apart for His Name and purpose. Yet, this is an ongoing, continuous process. We work together with Christ, by working out
our salvation with fear and trembling. He that has begun a good work in us, will bring it to completion or full maturity right up to the time of Christ's return. ( see Philippians 1 v 6 )
To repent means to turn away from, to turn around from a
particular lifestyle, to change one’s mind. It also means to think differently,
to reconsider. This is something many have not really considered. It comes with
counting the cost, something which the “gospel” that is proclaimed today lacks.
The kind of repentance that is required by the Lord Jesus is much more than
saying sorry for our sins and selfish lifestyles. It requires one to view
things differently. No longer can our world view be the same as it was before
we were born of the Spirit.
This will affect the way we view things now. Especially, our lives together in the kingdom, as members of the body of Christ. We are exhorted to be constantly renewed in the spirit of our minds and not be conformed to this world system. We are to be transformed, by our minds being renewed. ( see Ephesians 4 v 23 and Romans 12 v 1 - 2 )
The apostle Paul told the Corinthian church, “Therefore, anyone
who is in Christ becomes a new creation, the old things; the old way of life
becomes obsolete, look and see, all things become new”. (Paraphrased, see 2 Corinthians 5 v 17 ).
The kingdom of God has within it, it’s own culture, it’s own
way of life, it’s own “world view”. By this, it is meant, God's way of being and doing, His righteousness. We, as new creations in Christ, are to alter and change the way we live by His grace. Our lives before our new birth were governed by the spirit of this age. Our desires were ( maybe still are ) self centered. We were in this world without God. We are now, because if our new birth, to live unto Him, therefore, as a result of relationship with God, we live for one another
out of love and selflessness. See John 13 v 34
Our opinions and judgements can no longer be
based on what we formerly believed, but on what the Spirit of God teaches us.
This is why there needs to be a new birth take place; the old way of life is
totally contrary to the new way of life. Many of us still live by the old ways;
we may not swear, or get drunk or commit lewd practices etc; but the way we
think, and live our lives as individuals, is still for ourselves. All too often
our lives are our own, we demand our own space, we go and do what we want when
we please. Remember, we no longer belong to ourselves, we belong to another, we were redeemed, bought with a price. See 1 Corinthians 6 v 19 - 20.
We need to get a revelation of what it means to be placed into the
body of Christ, how the joints and ligaments are knit together to form a WHOLE.
Individualism has no place in the body of Christ. In the Kingdom way, God's way, we live by the Life of Christ, Who lives within each one of us. We are to grow up TOGETHER into Him. We are believers TOGETHER in Christ, Who is our Head. See Colossians 2 v 19. Our individuality is really only realised, as we grow up TOGETHER into Christ, by a new life lived for Him, according to His way.
The
beginning chapters of the book of Acts declare a different spirit and grace
amongst the believers. Ask yourself this question, “what was it that changed
the early believer’s lives so radically when the Spirit was poured out upon
them on that day”? The Holy Spirit poured out upon those believers, resulted in an inward reality that manifested outwardly by actions amongst the brethren. What was it they clearly had, that we seem to be far
from? They lived the Life of Christ in reality in their daily lives TOGETHER. They
lived and moved and had their being in Him but also towards one another. The book of Acts, is not merely a book of history, but was intended to be a continuum of Life in the Spirit for all believers right up until Christ's second coming.
Turn to Acts 2 v 42 - 47. Pay
careful attention to what is written. “They continued
steadfastly is more than just a casual get
together once or twice a week. It means to adhere to one, be his adherent, to
be devoted or constant to one, to be steadfastly attentive to, to give
unremitting care to a thing, to continue all the time in a place, to persevere and not to faint, to show one’s
self courageous for, to be in constant readiness for one, wait on constantly.
When we wander away from the spirit, life and love for one another that was so clearly evident in the early church, there will invariably and inevitably be a deviation from
kingdom authority that comes from continuing steadfastly. The authority of the kingdom issues
out of a lifestyle born of the Spirit of God in corporateness”.
The Lord Jesus said very
clearly, “whenever 2 or 3 are gathered TOGETHER, in My Name, there I AM in the
midst of them”. This gathering together does not merely mean going to the same
place for a meeting, it
implies a togetherness, a being of the same mind, same purpose.
Think of an orchestra playing together in symphony,
finely tuned together. This clearly, needless to say, does not occur with
random get togethers or a once a week or once a month meeting.
It requires an intertwining of lives together on a daily basis. We all need to live out the realities of kingdom life together and
not just give mental ascent to the doctrine of it. We are so accustomed to
living our lives as individuals, by our own rules, wanting our own space. This
is to live our lives by the former order that was devoid of the Life of Christ.
Remember, that it is IN HIM WE LIVE AND MOVE AND HAVE OUR BEING.
If the Lord is the same today, yesterday and forever,
then, His life and requirement of our conduct does not change. His kingdom way
is the same throughout generations. The standard of the early is the standard
of the latter. Our earthly, natural cultures are outweighed and superseded by
the kingdom culture that is initiated by the new birth of the Spirit and entry
into the kingdom of God. We adopt the manner, instruction and wisdom that come
from the kingdom of God. It is a process of change and transformation from the
spirit of this age that controlled and manipulated us from our conception in
the flesh until, the time we repent and are born anew by the Spirit into the
kingdom of God. The Spirit of God is at work within us to transform us; we need
to submit to this working of the Spirit to produce within us the image of
Christ.
The following scriptures relate to the above. John
1:11-13, John 3:5-7, Romans 12:1-2, Ephesians 2:1-6, Ephesians 4:17-25
THINGS RELATING TO THE END TIMES.
It is my firm belief that
all things pertaining to these end times will have bearing directly or
indirectly on us as individuals and as corporate ekklesia. There is no doubt
that we are living in the end times. We are fast approaching that final time
that we know as great tribulation. This will be a time of much testing, a
requiring of many to lay down our lives for the sake of Christ. “ And they have overcome (conquered) him by means
of the blood of the Lamb and by the utterance of their testimony, for they did
not love and cling to life even when faced with
death, holding their lives cheap till they had to die for their witnessing”.
This is not just for those who happen to miss the “rapture”.
I agree
with a brother who said, “We are not yet ready for the second coming of the
Lord, because we have not yet fully appropriated the meaning of His first
coming”. There are “things” that need to be set in order; we need to walk in
the reality of the unity of the Spirit and the unity of the faith. There is the
issue of the ekklesia and Israel as being one in the Messiah, taking into
consideration the making jealous of the Jew by the gentile believer. There is
the issue of coming together into maturity of the ekklesia of God of Jew and
gentile believer into one body of which the Messiah is the Head; this mystery
that was once hidden but is now revealed. A pre tribulation theory does not
allow for this, it does not take into account this demonstration of walking and
living in the reality of the unity of the Spirit and unity of the faith to
principalities and powers. Our divisions and thus denominations are an
indictment against us.
God has
given us, and continues to give us ample time to forsake our pride and man made
ways, but there comes a time when our unwillingness to do His will, will be met
with a thrusting into a life together as the ekklesia of God. I am persuaded to
believe that this tribulation period will be the time that we learn the ways of
God’s kingdom without our pride and we come to walk in the palpable reality of
the unity of the Spirit and of the faith, demonstrating the wisdom of God to principalities
and powers.
Moral
standards are progressively deteriorating and will continue to do so. As
believers in Christ Jesus, our very beliefs are going to be challenged to
accommodate the debauched beliefs of a society that is ever falling away from
the truth of God. It is here that conflict will become even more severe. It can
be seen already that alternate life styles are being accepted and made law in
countries around the world. Any contrary opinions are looked upon as being
unacceptable and an attack on the human rights of the debauched lifestyles.
We ought
rather to obey God than man, was the consensus of the first disciples when
forbidden to proclaim the Name of Jesus. We will be faced with this again and
the life of the ekklesia will change drastically. Herein is a call for the
faith and patience of the saints. Many, if not most believers are ill prepared
for this time. We shall be brought under the constraints of the Spirit, instead
of a weak, immature body of believers; there shall be a body that glorifies the
Head in every aspect of life, one that has gone into and out of a straitening
process that has refined us. Connections amongst the ekklesia of God will be
established as they ought to be, not under any banners of denominationalism or
divisional status, but under the Lordship of Christ as one body in reality.
The
following scriptures relate to the
above, Revelation 12:11, Revelation 13:10, Revelation 14:12, Hebrews 12:5-14, 2
Timothy 3:1-5, Romans 9-11, Ephesians 2-4, Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21, Acts
5:28-29.
