Statement of Agreement, and conditions of use.

The information contained in this book remains the property of Hands For Jesus, Inc. You may E-Mail this file to your friends, neighbors, or whosoever you desire. They also must agree with the following conditions concerning reproducing this book in any other form than this original form. No copy of this book is to be used for any type of profit, monetary or non-monetary, exchange, or other.

No copy of this Free Book may be reproduced "in any other form or any type of profit, monetary or non-monetary, exchange, or other." It is only to be used to teach, edify, build up, and encourage yourself and others. You may reproduce it "in this form (as it is)" with the following agreement of Hands For Jesus, Inc. Any other use is in violation of this agreement.

This agreement allows you to produce, for your own learning and teaching, One (1) copy. You may produce twenty-five (25) additional copies for teaching purposes where you are involved.

If for some reason you feel you need more than twenty-five (25) additional copies of this Free Book, you must contact us by mail at Hands For Jesus, Inc. P.O. BOX 18655, MILWAUKEE, WI 53218-0655. You will receive a reply by Mail.

Every copy you print out of this Free Book must include, on the first pages, this entire agreement statement. Plus it must include your statement of intention of use and your full name. Any copies of this book without this agreement on the first pages, including your statement of intention of use and your full name, will be consider a violation of your rights.

Include below, your statement of intention of use. Also include your complete name (signature). This must be included in every copy you download and print out from Hands For Jesus, Inc.

Full Name:

Intention of use:

Thank you for helping us to share the gospel of our LORD Jesus Christ.

All Scripture quotations are from the Authorized King James Version of the Bible unless otherwise indicated.

November 25, 2008

The

Local

CHURCH

Part 2

Published for:

HANDS FOR JESUS

P.O. BOX 18655

MILWAUKEE, WI 53218-0655

For Free Books by downloading,

Visit our Web sites at:

www.handsforjesus.cc

www.handsforjesus.org

2008 by Merle E. Koepke

Introduction

Part 2 of "The Local CHURCH," is a continuation of Part 1. Therefore, being that some who are reading this Part may not have read Part 1, some things will be repeated in this Part.

In Colossians 1:18 it says, "And he (Christ) is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead..." The "body of Christ" is called the Church. In 1 Corinthians 16:19 it says, "The churches of Asia salute you. Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord, with the church that is in their house." Therefore, "the Church" includes where Christians gather together to come before the LORD to worship Him and receive from Him, even in small groups such as in houses.

By this we see the LORD has set in the body of Christ, "Churches" where Christians gather together "For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ" (Eph. 4:12). Within these local churches the LORD "...gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers" (Eph. 4:11). The Holy Spirit (Who carries out the works of God here on earth) "...hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues" (1 Cor. 12:28).

The Holy Spirit established an order in the Church by which He is in control of what happens in "the Body of Christ" (which is the Church). It is important that Christians understand the order which God (The Holy Spirit) established in "the Local Churches."

At this time it is important that Christians understand the position of the Holy Spirit in the Churches. When Jesus ascended to be with the Father, He sent the Holy Spirit to prepare Christians for eternal life in heaven and also prepare the way for the second coming of the LORD (This information is all contained in seven mini-books "THE KINGDOM," soon available on Hands For Jesus, Inc. Web sites).

Jesus is the King of kings and the LORD of Lords, but the Holy Spirit is God in "the Kingdom of heaven" and "the Kingdom of God" here on earth (all of this is easily seen in John 16:7-15; Acts 1:1,2; 13:2-4; 16:6-10). We are now living in the time when the Kingdom of God is here on earth, and the Holy Spirit is in control of what happens in "the Kingdom of God," and what happens in "the body of Christ" (which is the Church).

It is important to understand the order which God established in the churches. Simply because, those who obey the order of things that God has set up, will also spend eternity with God. By obedience to God's plan for mankind we reap the rewards in heaven.

What happens in the body of Christ here on earth is a type and shadow of greater things to come in eternity. The glory is in heaven where those who do the will of God will spend eternity. Yet, not everyone will inherit eternity in heaven, only those who do the will of God the Father will spend eternity with Him in heaven. Jesus said in Matthew 7:21, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."

Let us understand God's order here on earth so we can do the will of God the Father while we are still here on earth. Not our will, but the Father's will must be done.

If you do not have a copy of "The Local CHURCH, Part 1," please get a copy. There is a lot to understand in Part 1, that will help greatly to understand this Part 2.

For those who love the LORD and the Word of God, Jesus said in John 6:45, "It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God..." In 1 John 2:27 it says, "But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him." We must be taught by God if we are to know the truth that is written in the Word of God. We must learn to listen to the Holy Spirit as He teaches from the Word of God (1 John 2:27).

Order is

Established by God

Part 2

When the LORD God created man upon this earth, He established a certain order among people. In Genesis 2:7 it says, "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." First the LORD God created mankind when He formed a body of the dust of the ground and breathed into that body the breath of life and man became a living soul. We all came from one body and one blood which the LORD God formed of the dust of the ground.

In Genesis 2:18 it says, "And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him." Genesis 2:21,22 it says, "And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof...And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man." Out of "one body," the LORD God took a rib and formed "woman" to be "an help meet" to the man. Eve became Adam's help meet.

Then in Genesis 2:24, it says, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." When one man and one woman get married, they become "one flesh." This does not mean one physical body of flesh and bones. It means "one in agreement with each other."

Look what happens after a man and a woman get married? Genesis 4:1 says, "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD." They became one flesh (one in agreement), and they began to have children which form a family. God used the family to set the beginning of all order in this creation.

God's order is, the husband is the head of the family. The wife is the husband's help meet. The children are a blessing from God, but subject to their parents until the time appointed by God.

When the LORD God formed "woman" from the rib of Adam, He was establishing the order of things to come, including the order "in the body of Christ." What happened in the natural in Genesis 2:21-24 is a type and shadow of the Church, which is the LORD's Body.

The husband is the head of the wife in the marriage. Christ is the head of the Church in the body of Christ. Therefore, the same order that the LORD God established in Genesis 2:21-24, is the same order established in the Church in Ephesians 5:22-32. The order the LORD established in the Churches, applies also to all the "Local Churches."

Look at Genesis 2:24, which says, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." This is a type and shadow of the body of Christ and the local Church.

The one whom the LORD has put in charge of the local church must leave the world system (no longer walking after the flesh, but after the Spirit). Galatians 5:25 says, "If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit."

Children are a gift from the LORD. Therefore, God has established the families. First the husband, then the wife, then the children. Likewise, just as a wife brings forth a child in the marriage, "...the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved" (Acts 2:47).

There is an order established in the families and local churches. We must learn God's established order, then we will prosper and be in good health, even as the LORD prospers and is in good health.

When the wife has a child, it is her responsibility to "breast feed" the new born child. The husband does not breast feed the new born child, even though it is his child. The responsibility to do the breast feeding is that of his "help meet."

When a local church receives new members, it is the responsibility of the Pastor and "the elders" to care for the new members. Just as it is the responsibility of the wife (the mother) to care for the newborn children. The elders have an important position in the Local Churches. There are other areas of ministry that are under the Pastors care which include praise and worship, intercessors, ushers, children's ministries, etc. Those who the Pastor appoints to positions are a type and shadow of the older children in a family.

In the family, the mother is not over the father, but she has responsibilities appointed by the LORD and the husband. The older children have responsibilities appointed by the father and the mother. This is the same in the local Church.

The husband does not rule over the wife, neither does the wife rule over the husband, but all things must be done in love, decently and in order. Everyone must prefer others before themselves (Phil. 2:3). "Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing...Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it" (Eph. 5:24,25).

The members of the local church are like the children in a family. There are those who are immature, and those who are more mature. There are lambs and sheep (John 21:15-17). There are babes in Christ, and there are those who are more spiritually mature (1 Cor. 3:1-3). There are children of God and there are sons of God (Rom. 8:14, Heb. 5:13,14).

Those who are mature, must care for those who are babes in Christ. Those who are sons of God must care for those who are children of God. Everyone has a place and a purpose in the local church. Everyone has a responsibility in the local church.

If anyone is a born again Christian they are a part of the body of Christ, and members in particular (1 Cor. 12:12). Each one is important, and none is more important than another.

The Pastor is chosen and anointed by God to be the Shepherd of the church. When Christians look for a church, they should look for a Pastor who has the anointing for the position. If there is no anointing, it is questionable if the LORD called that Pastor to that position.

If you are in a church where the Pastor does not have the anointing, pray for the Pastor, that he receives the anointing. Otherwise, do not die in a dead church. Pray that the LORD will lead you to a church where the Pastor has the anointing.

How do you know if the Pastor has an anointing? Jesus said in Matthew 7:16, "Ye shall know them by their fruits." When you see a banana tree, you know it is not an apple tree. You can tell a tree by its fruit. You can tell a Pastor by the way he lives and by the works he does.

Jesus is the Chief Shepherd, and all Pastors are to follow the example of Jesus. All Pastors need to be anointed with the same Holy Spirit that Jesus was anointed with. All Pastors should do the same works that Jesus did (John 12:14).

Local Churches

Every local church should be a type and shadow of a Christian family as set forth in the Scriptures. Every family should have a good father who loves his wife and his children. A good father who will set his own desires aside to supply the needs of his family. A good father who is taught by God, and obeys the LORD in his position. This same order applies to Pastors of local Churches.

In the local Churches, the Elders are in the same position as the wife in a marriage. It is the Elders responsibility to teach and train the members in the things of the LORD, according to the New Testament, not the Law of the Old Testament. We are not under "the letter of the Law," we are under "the Spirit of Grace" (Heb. 10:9). We are a part of the Kingdom of God. Romans 14:17 says, "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." Where the Spirit of the LORD is there should be love, grace, mercy, and forgiveness.

When a new member joins a local Church, the Elders should welcome that new member. They should care for that new member. They should do all they can to make sure that new member becomes a welcomed and loved member of that local Church. Every member should love a new member, just as a family loves a new born baby born into the family.

Local Churches that say "welcome" to new members, and then wait and see what happens are "cold churches." The love of God should never grow cold (Matt. 24:12, Rev. 2:4). In a local Church the love of God and love for its members should never grow cold. Just as little children love a new born baby in a family, so should the members of a local Church love their new members. In 1 Peter 4:8 it says, "And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins."

The Elders should make it a point to become friends and helpers to new members, even to the extent of inviting them into their homes for fellowship (not to have fellowship with the things of this world, but fellowship in "the Word of God," which is able to supply all our needs in Christ Jesus).

Christians who say they love the LORD and do not love the Word of God are liars, to say the least. The LORD and the Word of God are one, you cannot separate them (John 1:1,2; 1 John 5:7).

Elders should always be ready to pray for those in need. James 5:14,15 says, "Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord...And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him." If the Elders cannot pray for the sick, they should not have the position of an Elder in a local Church.

Elders who do not show the love of the LORD in their concern for new members of a local Church are like a mother in a family who does not care about her children.

ATTITUDES

IN THE CHURCHES

The attitudes in the local Churches should be like the attitudes of Jesus (in the Gospels) and the Apostle Paul after his conversion (written in Acts and the Epistles). Jesus said in John 13:16, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him."

In Job 1:6 it says, "Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them." In some of the local Churches today, Satan has tempted those in the ministry the same way he tempted Judas Iscariot. Luke 22:3 says, "Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve."

Judas Iscariot was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. God the Father gave these twelve disciples to Jesus in the beginning. Jesus said in John 17:11 "...Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me..."

Judas Iscariot is called "the son of perdition," in John 17:12. Jesus said, "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled." Satan came among the twelve disciples of Jesus and entered into one of Jesus very own disciples. Judas Iscariot was a thief, yet he was one of Jesus' very own disciples.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12 there is a warning to those called into the ministry. (Note: this chapter in the Greek is not in the singular form, but in the plural form. It should have been translated "sons of perdition." Judas Iscariot is "the son of perdition," (John 17:12). These who follow "the spirit" that tempted Judas Iscariot are called "sons of perdition."

In 2 Thessalonians 2:3-13, it is not speaking of an antichrist spirit as some teach. An antichrist spirit is not truly a Christian (1 John 2:18,19). A son of perdition is "a spirit" within the body of Christ that betrays the LORD "for money."

What was Judas Iscariot's position? He held the money bag, and kept putting his hands in to help himself to the money (John 12:16). What was given to the LORD and His disciples was for the purpose of doing the work that the LORD came to do. It included giving to the poor. Judas kept the money bag and was taking out "for himself" that which was not rightfully his.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:4 it tells us, those who "...exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God..." are being tempted by the same spirit that tempted Judas Iscariot. Those who submit to that same spirit, God could "...send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie...That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness" (2 Thess. 2:11,12).

There are many in the Body of Christ taken in by this same spirit that tempted Judas Iscariot. They are putting their hands in the money bag and taking out for themselves that which was given for the work of the LORD. If they will repent, the LORD will forgive them. But, if they do not repent, God could "...send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie...That they all might be damned...," along with others who hold the truth in unrighteousness.

I thank God that we are not among those. We have a calling to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, "not by our own power, not by our might, but by the Spirit of the LORD" (Zech. 4:6).

The love of money will not bring people into the body of Christ, but the Spirit of God will (John 1:13). The love of money is the root of all evil (1 Tim. 6:10).

There are many in the churches today that say, "we do not love money," but they are liars, and you know it in your spirit. Money is not our source to preaching the gospel, but the LORD working through the Holy Spirit will supply all our needs (Phil. 4:19). There is a purpose for money in the body of Christ and we should all use it according to its purpose.

In giving unto the work of the LORD, we must understand what that entails. When a Christian faithfully gives his tithes and offerings to the LORD, it is then the LORD's responsibility to watch over the money.

Do not come against anyone in the ministry who seems to be using the money for other than what you believe it should be used for. What they do with the money is not your concern. "Judge not, lest you be judged...""...The LORD will judge His people...," (Matt. 7:1,2; Heb, 10:30). If you gave your tithes and offerings to the LORD (putting them in the offering in a local Church), it is no longer yours, but the LORD's.

Paying your tithes is similar to paying your electric bill. When you pay your electric bill to the power company, you do not have anything to say about what the power company does with the money you sent them to pay your bill.

God gave you your life here on earth. God has taken care of you, and watched over you all the days of your life. God is faithful in doing what He said in His Word, now it is up to us to be faithful in paying tithes and giving offerings unto the LORD.

When you pay tithes or give offerings, give them to the LORD for the work of the ministry. In Deuteronomy 8:18 it says, "But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day." See also Malachi 3:10.

Praise the LORD and thank Him for giving you life, and the opportunity to spend eternity with Him in heaven. Obey the LORD and you will prosper in this life and in heaven hereafter.

Watch your attitude! How we treat others in the body of Christ is the way we treat the LORD. Here is wisdom if you can receive it? When anyone comes against another Christian, they are in fact coming against the LORD Himself.

Look at Acts 9:4, where the LORD spoke to Saul, who is now called Paul, saying, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" Who was Saul persecuting, Christians or the LORD? When anyone comes against another Christian, they are also coming against the LORD Himself.

Let us not be judges of others, but judge ourselves, that we be not judged, "For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged." (1 Cor. 11:31). The way we treat others in the Body of Christ has a lot to do with how long we live on this earth. "For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep" (1 Cor. 11:30).

If you appreciate God and what He has done in your life until now, then do not help the Devil by not discerning the Body of Christ as all members of the same Body. Do not raise yourself up and put others down. Do not exalt yourself over another member of the same Body of Christ. No one is greater than another in the Body of Christ.

The LORD has put into the Body of Christ "apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers" (Eph. 4:11). These are in the Body of Christ "For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ...Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ" (Eph. 4:12,13). These are not in the Body of Christ to exalt themselves above others.

These are servants of the LORD, to serve others in the position the LORD gave them. Everyone whom the LORD placed into the positions of authority in the Body of Christ must become "servants unto those who are members of the same body of Christ."

"The LORD will judge His people" (Heb. 10:30). Let everyone love one another and let the LORD, through the Holy Spirit operate in the Body of Christ according to the Scriptures. Those in authority should understand what is written in 1 Peter 5:1-11.

When Christians learn to love one another with the same love that God loves us, then we will prosper and be in good health even as our soul prospers.