What is "Government" in the Body of Christ?

The most potent and effective restraint for the filthy, beastly nature of man is the world's various religions. Karl Marx was exactly right when he called religion "the opiate of the people". It numbs the perverse spirit of man into submission. Man himself recognizes the importance of the lofty religious creeds which draw men to a nobler plane than mere animalistic desires and behavior. We should all be grateful for the religious systems of government which exist in the world. Without them, man would degenerate beyond reason, and beyond hope. They serve to control the beastly nature of man, preventing him from degenerating to the point that God cannot reach him. All were built up with much labor and good intention, and much will be lost if they are destroyed by anyone other than God. Buddhism, Islam, Shintoism, Christianity, and virtually all others inspire man to aspire to a nobler life than what man is able, alone, to live. Every denomination which speaks well of Jesus is a benefit to the entire human race. However, these are all human systems of religious government, and none of them will suffice for the saving of a single soul. None of man's religions will save man - even those which name "Jesus" in their creeds. Only the way of Christ will do that. Only the TRUE and RIGHT way of Christ will save your soul in the end.

The gospel of Christ is not concerned with restraining the beastly nature of man. It is a way, the only way, of removing the beastly nature of man and replacing it with another, pure nature. Peter said that the saints are "partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." The Holy Ghost takes the commandments of God and "writes them in our hearts", so that the government of God is a government in the Spirit, not in a list of do's and don'ts. Every soul who submits to the truth of Christ and is baptized with the Holy Ghost (with the evidence of speaking in other tongues) is given a new nature. However, it is such a new nature that our minds cannot fathom it. Good government in the body of Christ can make little or no sense to anyone who doesn't understand the miserable nature of man. And good government in the body of Christ can only exist where the holy Ghost is in charge INSTEAD of the nature of man. The ancient prophet, Jeremiah, lamented that the heart of man is "deceitful above all things" (17:9). Jesus refused to put any confidence in those who claimed to believe in him, "for he knew what was in man" (Jn.2:25). Before being given a new nature by Christ, we all, as Paul taught, " were by nature the children of wrath". That is, we were born with a nature which lived in such a way that the wrath of God was inescapable. Man is not basically good. He is basically so wicked and ignorant of God that he thinks he's doing just fine. That is man. He cannot believe that he is so bad, because he cannot believe God. The things of God seem foolish to man, they seem unsophisticated and unworthy of serious consideration. "The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God", wrote Paul, "for they are foolishness to him. Neither can he know them" (1Cor.2:14). The brightest minds on earth, the noblest souls, the highest ranking officials in both the secular and religious realms, all agreed that Jesus of Nazareth, the Lord of all that is good, was worthy of death. This is man, who sees good and thinks it evil. Who sees evil, and is attracted to it. Said King David, "verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity" (Ps.39:5). So far from righteousness is man's nature that Jesus said it is impossible for man to do anything to escape the coming wrath of God (Mk.10:26-27). Only by receiving and obeying the Spirit of God can anyone escape the damnation of hell. Time is required in order for us to understand our calling, to grow in the grace of God, to mature in faith, meekness, and goodness. When we are baptized into the kingdom of God by the Holy Ghost, we become such new creatures that we do not even understand ourselves - and never will unless there is enough order in the body of Christ to give God's children a place of peace where they may grow and learn.

This is a truth that those of us "outside of Christianity" are only now beginning to believe. I thank God for His patience. Pray for the government of the Holy Ghost to be in the body of Christ, my friends. Pray for the government of the Holy Ghost. Pray for a government that rewards righteousness, and condemns covetousness. Pray for a government that inspires faith and denies worldliness. Pray for the will of God to be done in the body of Christ, as it is in heaven. The little ones in the kingdom of God need a place where there is order, not strife, where holiness is the standard and sin is reproved, where sickness is healed and death isn't feared. Pray for the government of the body of Christ to be restored. Pray for the body of Christ to be a place where the saints can come to a knowledge of who they are in Christ, so that they will no longer be used, abused, and confused by entanglements with the religious systems of men.

When we see molested children, we are seeing man as he really is. When we hear of wars, we are witnessing man in action. When we see poisons dumped in our rivers, we see man. When we watch riots by sexually perverted men and women, burning government buildings, we are seeing man. In the heart of every unconverted man and woman is such evil that they cannot imagine it. Murder is in the heart of every human alive, unless Jesus has removed it by the power of the Spirit. The world will crown as King the man who can give them a means to express their horribly depraved nature and - at the me time - justify it. Adolph Hitler was one such man. Seemingly "good" people were persuaded to perform acts of incredible cruelty, not only upon Jews, but mentally retarded people, or anyone else who had no place among the "super race" of Aryans - including Christians who obeyed God rather than Hitler. The world is waiting now for another such man, a man who is able to make cruelty socially acceptable again, and the Bible promises that he will come. And when he comes, there will be such viciousness and brutality that it beggars description. It is in the heart of every man and every woman to behave as a cunning beast, whether you or I believe it to be true or not. It is there. And only the Holy Ghost will get it out. Every good thing comes from God. Every good thing that men manage to accomplish, he accomplishes only with the help of God. "For I know", declared Paul, "that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing" (Rom.7:18). Therefore, good government in the body of Christ can only occur as the holy Ghost is given liberty, otherwise only the carnal nature of man will. If you are in a place now where certain things are prohibited in the Spirit, you do not have government (that will prosper you). You are being ruled by carnal men, and where men rule, chaos will ensue. That is why the children of God cannot get happy anywhere in Christianity. Through it's doctrines, traditions, ceremonies, and works that are not inspired by the holy Ghost, it puts to death any form of government that God would have... replacing it, given enough time, with complete death. Such is the condition of the Spirit-baptized saints EVERYWHERE in Christianity.

If you want "good government" in your life, you must come out. You must come to where Jesus is, and where the Spirit of God reigns. We get asked by many, "where do you go to worship"? They are searching for "government". And what can our answer be? What can we tell those who look in the very place where government is thrown by the wayside? We tell them to come out of Christianity. That truth will reveal what government the child of God really wants. If he wants the confusion of men, he will stay in his denomination. If he wants the government of God, he will come out. So we answer this question today, by leaving another with you: Are you outside of Christianity where the holy Ghost is given the freedom to govern your life? Your answer will reveal how much you love to be governed by the real Lord - Jesus Christ.

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