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Posts Tagged ‘Body of Christ’

What Apostolic Teaching Are You Following?

Posted in Body of Christ, tagged , , , , , on October 19, 2018| Leave a Comment »

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Scripture reading:  Ephesians 4:11-13

God has put a picture in the Bible of the Body of Christ into the Tabernacle of Moses. Do you know that the Outer Court church is not the Body of Christ? Let me describe a picture to you of the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies as it is recorded in Exodus 26. The structure is made out of twenty boards. The boards on the corner of the end are double. There is one bar going right through the whole side. The bar is held by rings, golden rings. The boards are made of wood and gold. The gold covers the wood, so that the wood does not show at all. Wood means humanity and gold means divinity. So you see, it is God’s idea that our humanity should be covered by His divinity so that we would not have a human organization, but a divine organization. Human beings cannot organize a divine organization, so we have to be organized by God.

Let us read what God says about the five bars. All the bars are held by three golden rings through each board. It is the boards that hold the bars, and the bars keep the boards. These five bars represent five ministries. The long one is the apostles, and the shorter ones represent prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers. We are not talking about pastors, because the word pastor is Latin. In Latin, it means that you can keep cows, you can keep hogs, you can keep goats, or you can keep sheep. But in the Greek rendition of the word, you can only keep sheep as a shepherd. So, Jesus said, “I am the good Shepherd” (John 10:11).

Let us look at Ephesians 4:11-12, And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, shepherds and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. It said the ministry is given for the perfecting of the saints. God is saying that He has set a ministry in the world to perfect the saints. Now, if you give the saints wrong doctrines and dogmas that are made by man, instead of perfecting them, it will kill them. So, it depends upon what apostolic teaching you are following – that is what decides whether you are in the Body of Christ or not.

Let us take some of the teachings that have turned away from God. What about communion? When you bless the bread, does it become meat? When you bless the wine, does it become the Blood of Jesus Christ? The answer is NO. So, if you have a doctrine that when a person takes the bread and the wine, it makes him holy, it is a false doctrine. Therefore, the true apostles of God must teach the truth to bring people away from these lying doctrines. Let us consider the doctrine of rapture. If you teach the people that they are going to be raptured from the world and taken away to another place, it is a false teaching. The people need to know that they are going to have to overcome here on earth and don’t feel that they are going to escape the tribulation while all the other people have to go through it. We saw the Chinese church destroyed because they believed they were going to fly away, and Jesus didn’t come and take them away out of their tribulation. The people of God must understand that God wants us to overcome. Therefore, the church must go through the tribulation. Also, the idea that only the ministry is hearing from God and that you only have to listen to what the ministries say, and not hear from God for yourself is indeed a wrong doctrine. There are many, many other doctrines that we would need to go into, but God promises us that He would bring the truth to us in the end time.

(Excerpt from Keeping in Touch, September 17, 2006, pg. 5-6)

Thought for today: Let us be careful what teaching we are following as it determines whether we are a part of the Body of Christ or not.

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Everybody Must Have a Head

Posted in Body of Christ, tagged , , , , on October 18, 2018| Leave a Comment »

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Scripture reading: Matthew 23:8-11

Jesus called some fishermen and a few learned men. He selected twelve of them and called them the “apostles of the Lamb.” These twelve people were people who God chose from the foundation of the world to become apostles for all time and eternity. Anytime anything would happen to one of these apostles, God would put in another apostle. We find out that when Judas betrayed Jesus, God called Paul and put Paul into the apostolic ministry. The brethren didn’t get the message because they had a ballot, voted and put in a man named Matthias. And from the time that they put in Matthias, we never hear another word about him. But God selected Paul and put him in as an apostle to fill the place of Judas. So, that apostolic thing was closed. You cannot have an apostolic ascension that is like, when the king dies, his son takes over. Therefore, when the church begins to appoint their own apostles, they are going against God’s divine order.

I want to make it scripturally clear. Turn your Bibles to Matthew 23:7-8, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. 8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. We don’t really call anybody Rabbi in English, but we do call them Master. And what about Doctor? Nowadays, all the preachers are Doctor So and So, and Doctor So and So. It means that these people are saying that they are Doctors of the Word of God. When you are sick, you go to a doctor, sure. And there is no problem about being a Doctor of Philosophy, but a Doctor of Theology is an offense before God. Therefore, you don’t call anybody Master. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven (Matthew 23:9). Now, I had a father, and you have a father, and I called him father, but that was my natural father. It wasn’t an offense before God. But if I began to call Brother John, “Father John” or “Father Smith,” then you would know that we are way out of God’s order. So, one of the problems is not only of those who are called Father, but also for those who call them father.

Now, what about the Great Father? In other words, it is wrong to call a man Father, spiritually Father So and So. But what about calling him the Great Father? Papa? Pope? That is entirely out of God’s order. So you must not call anybody Father; you must not call anybody in the church, spiritual Father or Pope. So, what about those that do call themselves Father and Pope? It means that they are not hearing from God, and it means that you cannot hear from them.

At this hour, the Body of Christ is being put in order. Everybody must have a head, and Jesus Christ is the Head of the Body of Christ. When we gather together, we gather together to hear Jesus and we recognize Jesus Christ as the Head. We want to hear what Jesus says. If someone gets up and prophesies in the name of any other name besides Jesus, he is a false prophet.

Now, how do you identify a false prophet? Can you figure it out? How would you identify a false prophet? The main identification of a false prophet is that he has a false spirit. He does not speak from the Spirit of God. His spirit is not of God, it is of the devil. His duty is to deceive, to disrupt, and to destroy. What does God say about true prophecy? It is given for exhortation, edification, and comfort (1 Corinthians 14:3). So you have to learn to recognize true prophecy – true prophet, different from false prophet.

When we look at Ephesians 4:11, we see that it says that God has set in the church apostles, prophets… Now, if somebody else sets a ministry in the church, then it is not the Body of Christ. It is the ministry that makes the Body either the Body of Christ or not the Body of Christ. Let us look at the departure, when we began to depart from being the Body of Christ to be different denominations. We departed with the appointment of ministers that were appointed of men. The seven churches of Asia rejected Paul as a minister of God. From the time that they rejected the ministry of Paul, they began to get into false doctrine. Let us make sure that we are not among those who reject the ministry that God has set in the church.

(Excerpt from Keeping in Touch, September 17, 2006, pg. 4-5)

Thought for today: At this hour God is putting the Body of Christ in order. Make sure that you are not among those who reject the ministry that God has set in the church.

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Divine Order or Man’s Order?

Posted in Body of Christ, tagged , , , on October 17, 2018| Leave a Comment »

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Scripture reading: Ephesians 4:1-6

Let us talk about the Body of Christ today. How do we become the Body of Christ? How do we know that we are in the Body of Christ? There is only one God, one Church, one Body. When you read Ephesians 4:1-6, you will find out that it is very dogmatic. Anyone who tries to change these scriptures is not of God. If we do not belong to the one Body, then we are not of God. We were not of God before we were of God. Therefore, if we find out that we are not of God, we only have to repent, and be of God. There are many bodies in the world, so what makes us so sure that we are in the right Body?

The church was captured by the Roman Catholic system, back in the second century. The Catholics took the church and they immediately created a hierarchy. That means that they had to reject the ministry that God had set up in the world. We call the ministry that God set up in the world divine order. The order that was set up by the church is called man’s order. Now, let’s look at the difference between divine order and man’s order. Divine order is in Ephesians 4:11. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers. It says here pastors, but in my Bible, it is crossed out and it says the word shepherds and teachers as it is in the Greek original version. You know, the Word of God is correct, but the translations are not correct. So, the Spirit of God in the people of God will correct the translations of man. Amen.

Now, we don’t have the order of man in the Bible, but we can at least talk about it. In the Roman Catholic Church there is a Pope. The Bible says that we should not have a Pope. Let us turn to Matthew 20:20-26, Then came to him the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshiping him, and desiring a certain thing of him. 21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom. 22 But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able. 23 And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. 24 And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren. Here we see a rivalry begin to take place. They wanted position now. They were about to start church politics.

25 But Jesus called them unto him, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. The word dominion means having a big boss. So, it means that Jesus is saying that is a thing of the world. In the world you have the big boss and the little ones coming right down in the hierarchy position. 26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister. Those of you who are reading the King James Version of the Bible, if you have a pen on you, cross out the word minister and put servant. The Greek says diakonos (Strong’s Concordance #G1249) and it means servant. The minister is the man with the collar and the head of a church. In Latin, minister means servant, but the church changed it to mean the man who is the head of the church. And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your slave (Matthew 20:27). I am reading the Greek. It says doulos (Strong’s Concordance #G1401). Doulos could not be anything else but slave.

We can therefore see very clearly that God is saying you must not have a hierarchical system in the church. So, if you are going to take charge of a church, the first thing that you would have to do is to break God’s divine order that He has put in the church and put in your own order. I am saying this to you, brethren, because if you are subject to any other order but God’s order, you are not in the Body of Christ. God has His order established in the earth in spite of all this confusion that we have in church business.

(Excerpt from Keeping in Touch, September 17, 2006, pg. 3-4)

Thought for today: It is necessary, especially at this time, for the people of God to find God’s order.

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Christ in the Soul

Posted in Growing in God, tagged , , , , , , , , on October 16, 2018| Leave a Comment »

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Scripture reading: John 12:20-26

When we accepted Jesus Christ, we received life. The Blood of Jesus Christ is the life of God. This is what we received in our souls which were dead in trespasses and sins. This life had to help us die to the alien life of sin which had occupied the soul. Then, we had the self-life, which also had to die. So we see that when we accepted Christ as our Savior, it was a matter of submitting to death in order to receive life. When that process is completed, then we begin to enter into Christ. Paul, speaking to the Corinthian Christians in I Corinthians 12:13, declares, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body.”

We are not baptized into the body of Christ until the body of sin and self is given a death-blow. If sin is still reigning in our members, then it was not fully dealt with. The grain of corn cannot bring forth a new life until it has given up its own life. We must die to live and that life does not begin until the death is complete. This is all done by faith.

The divine order of the entering into Christ is shown in the tabernacle of Moses by the three veils. The first veil is called the Gate, the second is called the Door, and the third is called the Veil. The door is Christ, and the entering in is preceded by the washing at the Laver, which is death to self and a complete surrender to Christ. Self cannot be on the throne and, at the same time, Christ be crowned as King. One King must depose the other. Even more than being deposed, ONE KING MUST SLAY THE OTHER so that there is no further possibility of a coup to regain the throne.

THE ENTERING IN OF CHRIST INTO THE SOUL of man is a conscious act of man’s will, which is preceded by the three BAPTISMS of death.

There must be a death before there can be a resurrection. The three baptisms are:

  1. Baptism in water, the baptizer being human
  2. Baptism in the Holy Ghost, the baptizer being Jesus Christ
  3. Baptism into Christ, the baptizer being the Holy Ghost

Christ enters into us, then we begin to enter into Christ. Just as the Holy Ghost enters into us, then we begin to live in the Spirit.

When Christ enters the soul as King, He begins His rule on earth within the individual. HE MUST REIGN TILL ALL ENEMIES ARE PUT UNDER HIS FEET, even death. We see, therefore, that He brings life and immortality to light by the gospel (II Timothy 1:10). The beast nature of man is being changed to the nature of the Christ.

We can see then that we can have Holy Spirit occupying our spirits, but not our souls as the five foolish virgins had in Matthew 25. This stands to reason why, although we receive the Holy Spirit, we still have the power to reject His counsel and have our own way. It also is the reason why we still fall into sin though having the Holy Spirit of God within us. The process of the Kingdom of God gently seeps into every area of our lives with our own free will consent, just as the leaven that leavens the whole three lumps of the woman’s meal in Matthew 13:33.

(Excerpt from The Pattern, pg. 148-149)

Thought for today: Let us give way in our souls to the Holy Spirit so that He may fill our vessel and conquer every sin in our lives.

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Equality with Christ

Posted in Body of Christ, tagged , , , on September 26, 2018| Leave a Comment »

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Scripture reading: Ephesians 2:6

The Golden Lampstand in the Tabernacle of Moses has seven lamps that are on one level at the top which signifies equality with Christ. When man comes forth in Christ, he will sit in an equal place with Jesus Christ as part of the Christ Himself. Ephesians 2:6, “And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” There is perfect equality between the head and the body. Jesus is the head and we are the body, WHEN THE BODY FUNCTIONS IN THE SPIRIT.

It is, therefore, not just a matter of being perfect at some future time, and then gaining equality with Christ, but obeying the Spirit now, operating perfectly now, because we have been given an equal status with Christ. This is not to bring Christ down, but to lift humanity. Jesus said, “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me” John 12:32.

It is necessary for us to understand equality. This is a statutory equality which is different from the position one holds in the body, and the work appointed for each to do.

In other words, Jesus is the head and the different functions are apportioned out to us, the body. We are just as important and equal in the body operation as the head, but, of course, we are not the head. If one part usurps the function of another, then two jobs would be undone. I am afraid that this is the problem of the body today.

(Excerpt from The Pattern, pg. 117-118)

Thought for today: Let us not usurp the function of another member of the body of Christ. Otherwise, two jobs will be undone.

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