In the first Kingdom system on earth, God planted a Garden in the east of Eden. A garden is a place of order, unlike a jungle. And the east is the place of the rise of sunlight or revelation.
You know, the Garden of Eden was where the voice of God came walking in close fellowship with mankind. And it was in the east where God revealed Himself.
The picture of the Church
This Garden of Eden is the picture of the church that Jesus builds in reintroducing the Kingdom system.
You know, our dear Jesus told His own ‘apostles’ that He Himself will build His church – Matt. 16:18.
I call this the Kingdom-church because it brings about God’s Kingdom on earth, linking Heaven to earth – Matt. 16: 19. It is a multi-faceted church that is so complex that only Jesus can build it – Zech. 6:12-13.
Now, there is chaos and gross darkness in the world, as it was on earth in the first Kingdom system. But, God builds His church as a place of Kingdom-order in the midst of the religious-disorder among men today.
Beloved, even the orderly arrangement of man is chaos to God.
And, it is only in Kingdom-order that the voice of God or Jesus can come to us even without our ‘looking’ for Him.
The Kingdom-church is the place of fellowship with God that equips you to go into the ‘chaos’ to subdue it and plant more Kingdom-gardens there; after the prototype that God did for Adam to manage – Gen. 2:15.
So as managers, man is to manage or exercise dominion, ruler-ship or Kingdomover the chaos in the world, to bring it into kingdom-order – Gen. 1:26.
The five-fold Kingdom plan
To fulfil this kingdom-purpose, God gave mankind a five-fold Kingdom-plan of being fruitful, multiplying, replenishing, subduing and having dominion over allthe earth.
Five-fold Kingdom ministry
To fulfil this five-fold Kingdom-plan, God finally gave man the five-fold ministry or governmental gifts in Christ, the Last Adam.
Kingdom strategy
God’s Kingdom-strategy is that these governmental gifts of apostles, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher would equip all believers to get back the image of Jesus that mankind lost in Eden, i.e. the image of ruler-ship or dominion over all the earth – Eph. 4:11-16.
Then, these believers can use the same five-fold Kingdom-plan of fruitfulness, multiplication, replenishment, subduing and having dominion, to get to the ultimate place of establishing God’s Kingdom-order on earth, as He first did in East Eden.
With these ordinary believers having practically established God’s Kingdom-order or system, all other men will be inspired by the Light or example of believers to submit to branches of God’s Kingdom-order in their various societies – Mk. 4:30-32.
It will take obedience on the part of the five-fold ministry or governmental gifts, for this Kingdom-strategy (of practically establishing this ‘new’ Kingdom-order or system in the religious arrangement of men) to work – Zech. 6:12-15; Matt. 28:18-20; Mk. 16:15; Matt. 24:14.
Teaching God’s Kingdom-order
It is therefore when we have Kingdom-order in the church that we, as believers, can have the light or revelation of Jesus.
One of the fundamental qualification and work of all the five-fold governmental gifts is teaching – Matt. 28:18-20; 1 Tim. 3:1-2.
For the five-fold govern-mental gifts, one of the greatest ways of loving God’s people is to teach them to fish, not to give them fish. When you give children fish, they will always hail you and bless you as the best thing that ever happened to them.
That does not mean you are doing them good, and God ‘approves’ of it.
Teaching brings maturity
God’s people must not be given the impression that those who focus on imparting knowledge to them do not love or care for them. This is because the best way to bring God’s people to the maturity that He has called all five-fold governmental gifts to bring them to, is to teach them – Matt. 28:18-20,
“…All authority has been given to Me in Heaven and on earth.
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you…”
Dear Minister of God, Jesus was very clear, once again, about how to equip or mature believers. It is by teaching His Words.
And, Jesus taught copiously about the Kingdom of God, both before and after His resurrection.
Yes, there is nothing else you can do to mature the saints, except to prayerfully teach them the Truth in love and wisdom.
And the five-fold govern-mental gifts of Ephesians 4:11 are going to lead in teaching.
Five-fold ministry gifts defined
For example, speaking in general terms:
The main work of an Apostle is to use his grace, to equip believers by teaching them to move into, and remain in the ‘new’ order of God.
The main work of a Prophet is to use his grace, to equip believers by teaching them to know Jesus the Word of God, for themselves.
The main work of an Evangelist is to use his grace, to equip believers by teaching them to be able to lead others to true faith in the Lord.
The main work of a Pastor is to use his grace, to equip believers by teaching them to be able to care for and help one another.
The main work of a Teacher is to use his grace, to equip believers by teaching them the love for the Truth, and the spiritual tools needed for them to mine God’s treasured Truths from the Bible for themselves, so that they walk in the full Counsel of God.
A diffusion of grace
A believer who is exposed to these five-fold ministry gifts receives the graces on them, in order to mature into Jesus’ stature; as all these graces came from Jesus, through these five-fold governmental gifts.
The whole church should receive the diffusion of the grace of the five-fold governmental gifts, that we all, individually and collectively, become “…a perfect (matured) man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” – Eph. 4:13b.
In every equipping there-fore, teaching is critical. People are not equipped when they are given fish, but when they are taught to fish.
Jesus came as the Word of God, and the only way to impart Him, and get people to be like Him, as His matured disciples, is through teaching Him – Col.1:28,
“…Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect (matured) in Christ Jesus. To this end (i.e. to the ultimate aim of maturing every man) I also labour, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.”
The priority of teaching
For a moment, let us discuss the main thing that the five-fold ministry or governmental gifts, should engage in. We will call them five-ply governmental gifts.
Then, the imagery is that of plywood, being made up of different layers of wood, but consolidated into one piece of board, by the glue of Kingdom-love, never to stand alone.
I prefer this imagery because to me, it best captures their oneness of purpose which is: for them all to equip the saints to do God’s work or ministry.
It also captures the oneness of the general method they should employ i.e. to teach.
Again, I prefer referring to them as governmental gifts than ministry gifts. It is because they are actually to form the government of the Kingdom-church.
You will notice that in Eph. 4:12, the word “ministry” is introduced when all saints or believers are mentioned; not when the five-ply governmental gifts are mentioned.
Believers should do the work of the ministry whiles the five-ply governmental gifts equip or mature them for it.
So, the five-ply gifts should agree to primarily equip or mature all believers to dotheir priestly ministry to the unbelieving world – 1Pet. 2:9.
The five-ply governmental gifts need not focus on doing the work of God outside the church.
Beloved, the saints must be equipped or matured to do that.
