The Local Church
What is God Building?
During a meeting in Birmingham, one of Kenneth E. Hagin’s spiritual sons asked the question, “Dad, I hear a lot of people prophesying about what God is going to do in these last days, but what do you see for these last days?” Kenneth E. Hagin replied “What God wants to do in these last days is build strong local churches that will preach the Word and move with the Spirit.”
Matthew 16:13-19 NASB says, 13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”
In verse 17-18, Jesus said to Simon Barjona, 17 "because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it." What Jesus is telling Peter is that what was revealed to him did not come from him, but it came from the Father, and upon the revelation of who He (Jesus) is, Jesus is going to build His church. Jesus didn’t say he was going to build the church on Peter, Jesus said, “and upon this rock I will build my church." The Greek word petra means rock, stone, or foundation, and what Jesus is saying here is that He is the foundation rock.
1 Corinthians 10 NASB says, 10 For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 and all ate the same spiritual food; 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ. The Greek work rock in verse 4 here is the same Greek word rock that is used in Matthew 16:18. This tells us that the word rock and the word Christ are both talking about Jesus. Remember, Jesus said that He was going to build the church on the rock, the revelation of who He (Jesus) is.
Deuteronomy 32:1-4 AMP says, 1 Give ear O heavens, and I {Moses] will speak; and let the earth hear the words of my mouth. 2 My message shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distill as the dew, as the light rain upon the tender grass, and as the showers upon the herb. 3 For I will proclaim the name [and presence] of the Lord. Concede and ascribe greatness to our God! 4 He is the Rock, His work is perfect: for all His ways are law and justice: a God of faithfulness without breach or deviation, just and right is He. In verse 4, it says He is the Rock.
John 1:1 AMP says, 1 In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself, and in verse 14, it says, And the Word (Christ) became flesh, and lived among us; and we [actually] saw His glory, glory as belongs to the [One and] only begotten Son of the Father, [the Son who is truly unique, the only One of His kind, who is] full of grace and truth (absolutely free of deception).
The disciples at that time in Matthew Chapter 16 were just learning from Jesus about the church. The word church in the Greek is (ekklesia) which means "called out ones". You may ask, "Called out of what?" It means all people that are called out of the world and to God Himself. 2 Corinthians 5:19 NASB says, 19 namely, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself,” and to His eternal Kingdom. The outcome of all those who believe on His Son, Jesus Christ, are the church.
The church is also called the body of Christ. 1 Corinthians 12:27 in the AMP says " Now you [collectively] are Christ's body, and individually [you are] members of it [each with his own special purpose and function]. And Ephesians 4:12 AMP says ”[and He did this] to fully equip and perfect the saints (God's people) for works of service, to build up the body of Christ [the church]."
From these Scripture references we can see that Jesus is the Rock, the Christ, and The Word (The Logos), and upon Himself, Jesus is going to build His people. We are the Church.
Spiritual Fathers
Getting Divinely Connected
God has a divine plan for your life. It is His will for you to live a blessed life. In order for that to happen though, it is going to require you to be divinely connected to a pastor and to you being pastored. In Matthew 9:35-36 in the NASB it says, "35 Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. 36 Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd."
1 Corinthians 12:18 NASB says "But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired." God wants you to be divinely connected to a Local Church that preaches the Word, and moves with the Spirit of God. The word divinely means by the power of God and in a very pleasing and delightful way. Hebrews 11:6 NASB says, And without faith it is impossible to please Him. So, God would only want you planted in a church that preaches faith. More over, He wants you connected to a divine supply that comes through a spiritual father, or spiritual father and mother, or you could say a pastor or pastors. I believe that everyone still alive on the earth today needs a pastor, and to be more specific, the pastor or pastors that God desires for you.
Jeremiah 23:3-4 NASB says 3 “Then I Myself will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and will bring them back to their pasture, and they will be fruitful and multiply. 4 And I will also raise up shepherds over them and they will tend them: and they will not be afraid any longer, or be terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord. Part of being divinely connected is in verse three, where God says He will bring them again to "their" pastures. In the KJV, instead of pasture it is translated with the word folds, which in the Hebrew is defined as a flock in the midst of a pasture being fed. In the personal sense, it would be the believer being fed knowledge and understanding in the local church, as a pastor or pastors preach the uncompromising Word of God. Then it's up to the believer to follow their pastor by (being a doer) of the Word that they've heard, taking the Word of God and applying it to their life.
Two of the benefits that God promises by being properly connected to the local church is that you would be fruitful and mulitiply. This means that you will begin to mature, grow, and increase in every area of your life. You'll see fruit in your family, in your marriage, and in your children as they begin to increase. You'll begin to see increase in your finances and how you think about spending money or not spending money. Your body will also begin to experience healing and you'll have more soundness in your mind, as well as peace, joy, love, kindness, gentleness, and all the fruits of the spirit as they begin to manifest in your life.
Now, in verse four, God said He would set up shepherds over you which shall tend them, or feed them, as it is written in the KJV. My pastor said "The first thing you need as a born-again christian is the Word of God". 1 Peter 2:2 in the Amplified says "2 like newborn babies [you should] long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may be nurtured and grow in respect to salvation [it's ultimate fulfillment],. God gives you a pastor in a local church to feed you the Word of God, to nourish you up with the things that you need to grow into all the things of God.
As a born again christian, as you begin to place yourself under your pastor or pastors, and attend services regularly according to Hebrews 10:25 AMP (25 not forsaking our meeting together [as believers for worship and instruction], as is the habit of some,...), God promises you that three things will happen. The first two are that the fear and the disappointments of life will begin to disappear. My pastor said, "As long as you continue to look at your past, you'll never be able to see into your future." Thirdly, as you begin to increase in confidence and boldness, the limits are removed, and you'll be able to do anything and everything that God has called you to do. And finally, in verse 4 it says "neither will any be missing, saith the Lord." This is a promise from God that you will no longer be of the lost, or missing. You will no longer be without, having need, or want, or care when you choose His plan for your life, Amen!
One of the greatest gifts that God gave us to help in our christian walk is the Gift of a pastor, however, it's not one that many have come to value or take advantage of. If you are not currently attending a local church in your area, I would spend some time in prayer and ask God to show you where He wants you to be planted. When you find your pastor, it will bear witness with your spirit according to Romans 8:16, you'll know your home. Get planted and get involved and watch your life begin to flourish.