The Church: The Engine Of God

    Now as I looked at the living creatures, behold, a wheel was on the earth beside each living creature with its four faces. The appearance of the wheels and their workings was like the color of beryl, and all four had the same likeness. The appearance of their workings was, as it were, a wheel in the middle of a wheel. Ezekiel 1:15,16

     The definition of an engine is a machine that converts energy into motion. Many months ago God began to speak to me about the "Engine of God," in other words, how the church is to convert energy into motion.

     The formula for creating motion is: engine + fuel + fire = power, thus creating motion. The only example we have for this equation is the book of Acts and the Revelation of Jesus Christ. The ministry of Jesus on the earth was about building an engine that would convey His body throughout the earth to effectively complete His mission.

     Today, we just talk about power, but sadly there is no forward motion, like a football team gridlocked against their opponent at the one yard line they cannot reach their goal. Always in the locker room going over the play book, but never seeming to figure out what the coach wants them to do. So it is today, always learning but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth, and the truth is the fuel that fills the body that Holy Spirit ignites to create power.

 THE ELEMENTS OF POWER

     Then I looked, and behold a whirlwind was coming out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. Ezekiel 1:4

     The book of Revelation describes a scene in Heaven in which John was asked to come up into. A glorious sight indeed, the very throne room of the Almighty God. Unable to experience the glory, John was taken up in the Spirit to see and hear things that only angels are allowed. The seat of all power was revealed to the lowly apostle, who had been banished to the Isle of Patmos, unaware of what he was about to experience.

     John was given access to the most glorious place in the entire universe, the Holy of all hollies where God's presence dwells and all power originates from. Around the throne were twenty four thrones with the elders of Heaven sitting before the Creator of all things surrounded by angels and creatures of unimaginable beauty, difficult for the human mind to grasp. 

     Twenty-four men of God wearing crowns and seated on thrones around the Majestic seat of the universe, clothed in white before the Creator. I always assumed that these were the twelve princes of Israel and the twelve apostles of Christ until God brought to my remembrance men of great power wrought through their great tribulation in life, but another thing to consider is the fact that these twenty four may be just humble nobodies chosen by the King for their humility and not their acts of power.

     There are two elements that are needed in order for man to receive power from the Almighty, unity and humility. Without these two components what seems to be power from on high is only a fleshly display of human indulgence. Satan takes a man and elevates him, but God takes a man and humbles him. From the beginning of time, pride and arrogance have tried to rule all humanity by elevating man to a position of power.

     In the throne room lightning and thunder and voices saturated the atmosphere, the seven Spirits of God ignited in flames of glory and the living creatures began to worship the God of all gods with praise and adoration: holy, holy, holy they cried in honor of their Creator. The elders fell before the throne, casting their crowns in humility worshiping the Almighty, totally oblivious to the scene around them giving their sacrifice of praise before the throne.

     Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne. Revelation 4:9,10

 HUMILITY

     Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. James 4:10

     Humility is simply being honest about the condition of your heart and not thinking more highly of yourself than God does. If Jesus, the King of all kings came as a lowly servant to be humiliated before His peers and crucified so that mankind could be forgiven, who do you think we should be like?

     Contrary to popular belief Jesus didn't live a lavish lifestyle like most of us do today in comparison to the way they lived in His day. There will never be a great revival or even a Holy Spirit spark given to a man or organization that is arrogant and self seeking in regards to the gospel. If Jesus is not Lord and supreme authority in the church then He is not there at all! If He is not exalted above all else, then who is?

     Even as the dove sent out from Noah's ark refused to land on rotting stinking decaying flesh, so the Holy Spirit of God will not descend on anything exalted by or controlled by man. The fire fell at Pentecost because men and women were sold out, in perfect unity with one another and humbled before God with an honest and pure motive. No one person was exalted because they knew that Jesus was the Chief Shepherd, the King of all kings and Lord of all!

     Satan has incited man to erect the old priesthood complete with priest, temple, tithe and ritual and deceived him into thinking that he is the shepherd of God's people, when at best he is only a sheepdog. God never intended one man to rule over His people and build an empire that separates them from other members of the body. Pride, greed and selfish agendas have destroyed the church of Jesus Christ, leaving His people to wander aimlessly, unable to utilize their gifts and powerless against their enemies.

     "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called 'benefactors.'

    "But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the youngest, and he who governs as he who serves.

    "For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves. Luke 22:25-27

 UNITY

     When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all together with one accord in one place. Acts 2:1

     One hundred and twenty together in unity with one accord waiting on the promise of Holy Spirit, about to descend upon them and birth the New Testament assembly of believers. 

     The word accord has to do with the harmonious sounds of a finely tuned orchestra preparing to play a beautiful arrangement. Everyone was in perfect harmony with one another and not divided over anything, unlike the church of today that is splintered into thousands of little sheep pens of division and doctrine.

     It is amazing to me the unity and focus that the cults of today display in comparison to the modern day church. The Mormons, Jehovah Witness and even Hindu and Buddhist seem to be more unified than we are. Another interesting fact among these false religions is that they don't seem to have any "Superstar preachers!"

     Take for instance the spread of Islam around the world, one of the fastest growing religions on the planet, this legalistic and often times cruel sect appeals to man's need to follow rules and rituals rather than relationship and is taking over entire countries at an astronomically fast pace. What if the church of the Lord Jesus Christ would unify under the banner of the cross and their leaders would come off their thrones of power and influence and cast their crowns before the King?

     Its a stretch, but if Jesus was allowed into His church and acknowledged as the Chief Shepherd, one could only imagine what would happen. Spiritual life as we know it would drastically change, the poor, crippled and blind would be brought in and prayed for, fed and loved and allowed fellowship in His body. The sacred clock would be removed and ministry would take place seven days a week.

     No more walls, nor temples, nor big names, Jesus would be King and would lead His sheep to victory. Men would not be separated by doctrine or denomination anymore with their only affiliation being disciples of Christ. The church of the firstborn would flourish throughout the world as the family of God, harvesting the greatest number of souls since the beginning of time. Whole cities would be transformed by the power and presence of God.

     The fivefold ministry would be raised up functioning in their gifting, training and equipping the new creations for the work of ministry and the entire body would be built up in their new found faith in Christ, thus the process of train, equip and send would start all over again replicating disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.The engine of God would be rev-ed up to optimum RPM and the Great Commission would be obeyed and the earth reaped! What a glorious sight that would be!

     Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the Head-Christ- from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. Ephesians 4:13-16

Your servant in Christ, Timothy Laughlin
   Minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ