Self Governing

Churches in the home should be self governing, self propagating, and self supporting. We learn this from the work of Dr Wierwille and Henry Venn, primary shapers and movers of recent outreach movements who taught God's word in meetings at their homes. God's plan for his people in the Age of Grace is to teach and minister in our homes. To be successful, each home church is to be self governing, self propagating, and self supporting. Let's look at each of these, beginning with self governing.

First of all, what Dr Wierwille and Henry Venn meant by self governing was that each home church was to conduct its affairs from within, not allow itself to be governed by outside councils of men. Self governing, by definition, requires breaking away from the restraints and control of central governing councils of men.

Self governing, by definition, implies that home church leaders govern their home churches, and they can only do that effectively if they walk by the spirit with Christ as their head instead of men. Following the direction of a council of men which teaches that God is giving them all the revelation regarding how the word is to move within the entire body of Christ is deceptive, manipulative, and contrary to God's word. We are not to follow councils of men, we are to follow men and women who lead by example, and we can only do that if those leaders are actually part of our everyday lives. This can only be realised in home churches.

God's people don't need any more patriarchs stuck away in ivory towers, they need real examples to follow in real life so they can learn to walk by the spirit for themselves. That's how you edify and build up the body of Christ.

I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day; I'd rather one should walk with me than merely tell the way. 
The eye's a better pupil and more willing than the ear; Fine counsel is confusing, but example's always clear; 

And the best of all the preachers are the men who live their creeds; For to see good put in action is what everybody needs. 
I soon can learn to do it if you'll let me see it done; I can watch your hands in action, but your tongue too fast may run. 

And the lecture you deliver may be very wise and true, But I'd rather get my lessons by observing what you do; 
For I might misunderstand you and the high advice you give; But there's no misunderstanding how you act and how you live. 

When I see a deed of kindness, I am eager to be kind. When a weaker brother stumbles and a strong man stays behind 
Just to see if he can help him, then the wish grows strong in me, To become as big and thoughtful as I know that friend to be. 

And all travellers can witness that the best of guides today, Is not the one who tells them, but the one who shows the way. 
One good man teaches many, men believe what they behold; One deed of kindness noticed is worth forty that are told. 

Who stands with men of honour learns to hold his honour dear, For right living speaks a language which to every one is clear.
Though an able speaker charms me with his eloquence, I say, I'd rather see a sermon than hear one, any day. - Edgar Guest

Now, where did Henry Venn and Dr Wierwille get this stuff about every home church being self governing, self propagating, and self supporting? From the word, obviously. From what we know about the Age of Grace and the word specifically addressed to the church of God, we must look at Paul's epistles to see it, as well as the book of Acts which documents the rise and expansion of the church in the 1st Century.

At the very start of this administration on the day of Pentecost, there were just twelve men who had the gift of holy spirit, the twelve apostles. They didn't know the Mystery because it hadn't yet been revealed. They didn't know much about the Christ in them, the gift of holy spirit, because the details of the Mystery had not yet been given to Paul. That day about three thousand souls were added to the church. Those people also knew nothing of the Mystery and had their heads full of the Law Administration. Therefore, it is understandable that the 1st Century church continued to apply Law Administration standards for a time into the Grace Administration until God was able to gradually reveal the details of the new Administration. The book of Acts records this transition.

As an example, remember that although it was God's plan for the Gentiles to be a part of the body of Christ immediately, it wasn't until Acts 10, some 15 to 25 years after the day of Pentecost, that God was able to get through to Peter to take the word to the Gentiles. The book of Acts records this transition from Law to Grace, and we have to understand that it took time for the 1st Century church to change and to adapt to the principles of the Grace Administration. Therefore, it is of no surprise to see patriarchal aspirations and leadership struggles within the book of Acts during this administrational transition.

The point is, you can't look at these leadership struggles and teach that God supports a patriarchal system controlled by a central governing body of men. Paul very clearly taught that God does not dwell in temples made with hands. It's just a pity that he ran off to Jerusalem in Acts 21 to try to save the 'ministry', the very thing he had been teaching against, when God had tried so hard to stop him from going. Just as Peter had not seen the depth of the truth regarding the Gentiles, Paul simply had not seen the depth of the truth that God no longer lived in temples made with hands. God wanted Paul to stay with the Gentiles, but he ran off to Jerusalem to try to save a ministry built by men. There is no future in man made temples. There is no future in the vatican, there is no future in Protestantism, there is no future in the Way International, in fact there is no future in any religion. God does not want us wasting our time with man-made temples anymore than he wanted Paul to go to Jerusalem. Stay with the people in your home church, show them how to walk by the spirit and teach them that God does not dwell in temples made with hands. God's people now and in future generations must be taught to avoid going to churches constructed by men.

Anyway, back to the twelve apostles on the day of Pentecost. This was the start of the rise and expansion of God's church in this Administration of Grace, so it's understandable that in the beginning these twelve men were looked up to as a leadership system by the people. As the numbers of believers grew and multiplied, it wasn't long before the word was spilling out of Jerusalem into Judea and Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the world. With this rise and expansion came squabbling and bickering over who would be the patriarch among them, the big boss, their president. When Paul came along, the revelation of the Mystery was given and the details of the Grace Administration were taught. One of the things Paul confronted was patriarchal thinking in the minds of the church.

1 Corinthians 1:11,12
For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.

Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.

Isn't this remarkable? The 1st Century believers bickered over who was the president of their ministry. Look, the way is not a temple made with hands run by a patriarch, Jesus Christ is the way. That's what Paul was confronting. I don't follow Martindale, or the dalai lama, or Muhammad, or the pope, in fact, from now on I will never follow any man ever again unless he is my home church leader. Is this starting to make sense yet? Do you really think God gives other people, people you have never even met, people thousands of miles away, all the revelation regarding what you should teach as a home church leader in your area? Better wake up dude.

According to God's word, who and what is the way? Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. Is the way then some religious man made temple over in America? No, it is not. Am I the way? No, I am not. Jesus Christ is the way. Am I setting up another temple made with hands here? No, I am not, I am showing God's people how to establish churches in their homes and move the word. I am showing God's people how to walk by the spirit with Christ as their head and not men. The Lord Jesus Christ is the way, and a follower of the way is a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is someone who walks by the spirit with Christ as their head and not men. If you think otherwise, you are not rightly dividing God's word, you have been deceived. In the book of Acts, the believers were referred to as followers of the way.

Acts 9:2
And [Saul - later the apostle Paul] desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way [the way], whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.

Acts 19:9
But when divers [many] were hardened, and believed not, but spake evil of that way [the way] before the multitude, he [Paul] departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the school of one Tyrannus.

Acts 19:23
And the same time there arose no small stir about that way [the way].

Acts 22:4
And I [Paul] persecuted this way [the way] unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.

Acts 24:14
But this I [Paul] confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets:

Acts 24:22
And when Felix heard these things, having more perfect knowledge of that way [the way], he deferred them, and said, When Lysias the chief captain shall come down, I will know the uttermost of your matter.

The believers in the 1st Century were known as followers of the way. This is beyond dispute. What is questionable is what is the way today? Is it a temple made with hands? No it isn't, not any more than it was then. A follower of the way is someone who follows the Lord Jesus Christ. How you follow the Lord Jesus Christ is by energising the Christ in you and walking by the spirit, not joining some dead religious temple constructed and maintained by men. Come on people, wake up! If you think the way is a religious organisation with its headquarters in America, you are deceived. If you want to walk with Christ as your head, get out of the world's man made churches, energise that gift of holy spirit within you and learn to walk by the spirit.

Paul concluded his reproof in Corinthians with this.

1 Corinthians 1:30,31
But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

How are we in Christ Jesus? It's referring to the Christ in us, the gift of holy spirit. Christ in you is what you receive at the time of the new birth. You in Christ is you learning to energise that spirit and walk with Christ as your head.

Colossians 1:27
To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

The riches of the glory of the mystery is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It's Christ in you. When we are born again and receive the gift of holy spirit, we receive Christ in us, the hope of glory. We can do all things through this Christ in us, through this gift of holy spirit.

Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth [endunamoō - enables, empowers] me.

Who strengthens us? Christ strengthens us. How does Christ strengthen us? Does Jesus Christ personally come down to earth, knock on your door and hand you a magic pill? No, this is a reference to the Christ in you, the gift of holy spirit which we all have.

Endunamoō means to empower. How does Christ empower us? How does Christ enable us? By following councils of men and attending temples made with hands? No, a thousand times no. If you want power, you are going to have to energise that Christ in you, and that starts with speaking in tongues. You are to make Christ your head, so get out of those damnable churches and ministries and religions, energise that Christ in you and walk with power in your life.

So who then is our big leader? Who is our head? The bible says it is Christ, that Christ is our head.

Ephesians 1:22
And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him [Christ] to be the head over all things to the church,

God made Christ our head. He is the head over all things to the church. He is, not some man or woman. When I am born again, I become part of the church, the called out of God, and Christ becomes my head. Christ is the head over all things to the church. Now ask yourself, does God give all the revelation for the church to just one person at the head of a ministry, or to a council of men? No, God never made councils of men or a patriarch to be head over his church, he made Christ to be head over all things to the church. We all have Christ in us, and how we make Christ our head is by learning to walk by the spirit of God born within us, that Christ in us.

1 Corinthians 11:3
But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

The head of every man, not some men, all men (which is an inclusive noun and includes women) is Christ. When a woman marries, her husband then becomes her head. This does not mean she doesn't walk by the spirit, it means that God gives specific revelation regarding that marriage and how it should move to the husband, not the wife.

Obviously, the head of Christ is God. So when we walk by the spirit, by that Christ in us, we are walking with Christ as our head. So for me to make a man (or woman) my head would be to contradict God's word. We are not to follow the direction of a board of directors any more than a married woman is to follow the direction of men who are not her husband. The way tree is God to Christ to you, not God to Christ to a patriarch to a board of directors to a limb coordinator to a branch coordinator to a home church leader and then to you. There you go, I've just documented the way tree from the scriptures addressed to us in the church, and if you don't like it I don't give a fuck. Go and quote your old testament garbage at God and argue with him all you like. God no longer honours old wineskins and he will not work with them. God no longer dwells in temples made with hands.

Colossians 1:18
And he [Christ] is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

Christ is the head of the body, the church. The church, the body of Christ is made up of PEOPLE, men and women from among both Judeans and Gentiles who are born again. It is absolutely not any religious organisation or ministry constructed by men. Anyone who has Christ in them is part of the church of God. Ministries or religious organisations constructed by men which claim to be the body of Christ are liars.

Colossians 2:18,19
Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.

To be vainly puffed up by your fleshly mind would be to walk by the senses, not by the spirit. Seeking wisdom from councils of men is seeking senses fleshly wisdom, not walking by the spirit. Sure, we all need each other and the body of Christ works together, but that does not negate your responsibility to walk by the spirit. Picking up a telephone to seek wisdom from men thinking that God gives them revelation for you is not how God set up revelation in this administration to work. You are to make Christ your head and learn to walk by the spirit for yourself.

The manifestation of the gift of holy spirit is your operation of the abilities God gave you, starting with speaking in tongues. Instead of thinking telephone when you need help, think God and energise that Christ in you. Why do you think God gave it to you anyway? So you could run to a telephone for help? If a telephone has become your very present help in time of trouble, then you're no different to someone who has made the government their god and relies on the government to supply their need. If you put men first before God, you are walking by the senses. God gave us the ministry of reconciliation, committed to us the word of reconciliation, and made us more than conquerors through the Christ in us, so do your job and energise that gift of holy spirit.

Now yes, when people are taking their first spiritual breaths having just been born again, they are going to need looking after. Think of this in terms of a family. When you teach and minister the word, you are responsible to look after the people God entrusts to you by teaching them and showing them how to walk by the spirit for themselves. They don't know the word and they don't know anything about spiritual matters, so they are going to continue to walk by their senses for a while. It's your job to look after them, teach them the word, and show them how to walk by the spirit. That doesn't mean you're a patriarch and you're going to run their lives for them, it means you look after them until they grow up and learn to walk by the spirit for themselves. God is their father, their parent, but you are to look after them and care for them until they are spiritually mature and can look after themselves.

Children eventually grow up and become responsible for their own lives, but when do you know when God's children grow up spiritually? This is a family thing. Parents just know when their children are mature enough to live their own lives. This isn't difficult to figure out. There comes a time when children grow up into adults and become responsible to live their own lives. The same is true spiritually. Once someone can walk by the spirit on their own, they are to make Christ their head and take responsibility for their own lives and then help others do the same. It isn't difficult to know when someone is walking by the spirit.

Can there be any doubt that the church of God is not any man made religious organisation or ministry? No, this is indisputable. I really don't care how right you think you are or how right you think your ministry or church is. Whether you are a catholic, a Muslim, a follower of the Way International, a Buddhist, a protestant or any other brand of religion, if you think the man made church you belong to is the church of God, you are wrong and you are teaching other people to be wrong. You are the blind leading the blind and you're both in the ditch. The church of God, the called out of God, the ekklēsia of God comprises both Judeans and Gentiles who have received the gift of holy spirit and have Christ in them. Being part of the church of God absolutely does not involve anyone joining a church, ministry or religion, understand?

Okay, now keeping this most basic understanding of the church in mind, that it is made up of those from among both the Judeans and the Gentiles who have received the gift of holy spirit, and that it is not made up of members of any particular brand of religion, let's head on over to Corinthians and take a closer look at the body of Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:13
For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews [Judeans] or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

This one body is made up of Judeans and Gentiles, and refers to the church of God. The church of God, by definition, includes everyone who has the gift of holy spirit and does not refer to members of any religious structure built by men. If you are born again, you are part of the church of God and, therefore, part of the body of Christ. It is the devil, not God, who has built all the world's religions, and he did it with the sole purpose of blinding the eyes of the church and rendering it ineffective and useless. As long as you are giving your life and resources to any religious ministry, group or church controlled by men, you are wasting the life God gave you.

1 Corinthians 12:14
For the body is not one member, but many.

The body of Christ comprises everyone in the church of God. We have all been made to drink into one spirit. We all have that spirit. This is not a patriarchal administration. Christ is our head, not any man or woman. Christ is to lead his church, not any board of directors. How Christ leads his church is by everyone in the body of Christ walking by the spirit. God gives revelation where it is needed, to his people on the ground moving the word, not to some exclusive club at the head of a religious organisation who think God is talking to them on behalf of everyone. No, he is not. If that's how you operate, your wisdom is earthly, sensual and devilish, sought from councils of men and not from the spirit of God. You are walking by your senses and using scripture from the old testament to justify your error.

It is the word that stands, not what you think. Do you really want to build a ministry based on old testament principles implemented during a time when God's people did not have spirit, a time when God's people needed leadership to go to God on their behalf? Well, the epistles have much to say regarding that. You think there is safety in a multitude of councillors do you? I see nothing in the epistles addressed to me about seeking wisdom from councils of men. However, I do see Paul obeying wisdom he received from the leadership of the ministry at that time when he went to Jerusalem and it almost cost him his life. Doing what councils of men have told me to do through the years has almost cost me my life more than once. You are destroying God's people because you are not teaching them how to walk by the spirit, you are teaching them to walk by the counsel of men.

1 Corinthians 12:27
Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

The 1st Century church had problems keeping Christ as their head, and were forever making men their head. That's why Paul confronted them about who their head was. Our head is Christ, not men. How we make Christ our head is not by following men in temples made with hands, but by walking by the spirit and energising the Christ in us. We do what God wants, not what we feel like doing, and certainly not what men tell us to do. God will always talk to you first. It's only when you're not listening that he tells someone else to get involved. God certainly talked to Paul first before sending Agabus the prophet to try to stop him from going to Jerusalem. God tried everything to stop Paul from going to Jerusalem, and he is still trying everything he can to keep his people out of temples made with hands.

Colossians 2:18
Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

It is men who beguile us, who seduce us out of our reward. People are vainly puffed up by their fleshly minds because they follow counsels of men instead of walking by the spirit.

Colossians 2:19
And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.

Our head is Christ, and it is through the Christ in us, energising that gift of holy spirit and walking by the spirit that the body of Christ is nourished and knit together and increases. If we follow men, we will be vainly puffed up by senses garbage, which includes building and maintaining temples made with hands.

Colossians 3:1,2
If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.

Set your affection [your thoughts] on things above, not on things on the earth.

In this Age of Grace, we are to seek things above, and how you seek things above is by energising the gift of holy spirit and learning to walk by the spirit. When you walk by the spirit, God will be there. As you learn to recognise his voice, and learn to walk with him, you will be helping to nourish and build up the body of Christ. That is setting your thoughts, your affections on things above, on spiritual matters. If you set your thoughts and affections on things of the earth, like constructing and maintaining temples made with hands, you will be turned into a blithering interfering religious prick who thinks he knows how to run everyone's lives for them.

God needs people to rise up to oversee churches in their homes and be responsible for the people he entrusts to them. A home church leader is to be responsible for the church in their home, no one else. If any man or ministry tries to interfere and steal those people from you, tell them to fuck off. The love of money is the root of all evil and all they're after is the tithe money those people represent to help them support their garbage man-made temples.

If you run a church in your home, and you are faithful to teach and minister the rightly divided word, God will give you increase, God will entrust you with people to oversee. The home church leader is the one who makes the decisions regarding what is taught, when it is taught, and how it is taught. These decisions are not to be made by councils of men hundreds or thousands of miles away. The home church leaders are the ones God will work with both to will and to do of his good pleasure to give direction on how to move the word in that area.

If you run a home church, you are not responsible to anyone but God. Think of your home church as a small family where God's children can be nurtured from the nursery until they become responsible spiritual adults. God entrusts YOU with his children because he knows YOU are the right person for that job. Don't allow anyone to steal them from you.

This is the Age of Grace, we all have spirit, we all have direct access to God by way of that spirit, and we all have a responsibility to learn to walk by that spirit for ourselves. This is not open to debate. Thus saith God. This is the Way of the 21st Century.

Chapter 47 - Self Propagating