3. Chapter 1 Cosmic Chaos - The Plot of His Story

Chapter 1

Cosmic Chaos – The Plot of His Story

The first spoken word of God recorded

Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3) NKJ

It is the first spoken word of God recorded in the Bible.

When we speak, the words that are carried by the sound of our voice are trying to communicate to the audience what our inner heart and mind want to express. We are communicating our intent.

Likewise the phrase “God said” is God wanting to communicate what is in His heart and mind. It is the expression of His intent that God has purposed beforehand in His mind. It expressed His revealed intention.

When God said; there is a voice from heaven but many people only pay attention to the sounds, but not the Word (which is the intent of the Heart and Mind of God). John the Baptist was a voice in the wilderness and many heard the sounds of his voice and followed him, but they did not understand that he was pointing to Jesus. There is a difference between purpose and intent. Many have focused on the sounds or the signs but have not understood the purpose or intent of God. Remember the spiritual principle – ‘the sign always point to something ahead!’ John was the voice but Jesus is the Word. Many have ears to hear but they only hear the 'sounds' of the voice and not the 'Word' of the voice. John 12:27-31 highlights how God speaks through His voice, which is heard through sound, and how receiving God’s word leads to understanding His intent and His heart.

John 12:27-31

27 "Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say?'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour.  28 Father, glorify Your name. "Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again." 29 Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him." 30 Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.” 

God spoke--> voice --> sound --> word --> intent--> Heart & Mind of God

Why God said what He said?

The use of the conjunction in the phrase “‘then’ …God said” indicates that there is a cause and effect as to why God is saying what He is saying!

Two questions arise:

1.     What is this ‘light’?

2.     Why God said so?

The answer to the first question is easy because scriptures interpret scripture – Jesus the Christ is the Light (John 1:1-13). Jesus Christ is the manifested embodiment of God’s intent. He is the fullness; complete expression of God’s original purpose (John 1:1-5). Jesus the Christ is the only single objective why God began the creation acts in Genesis chapter 1 (Col 1:16-18). The Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms (i.e. the Old Testament) are all about Jesus the Christ (Luke 24: 44-45)

John 1:1-5

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

Col 1:16-18

16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

Uncovering the Plot of His Story

The answer to the second question requires a build up of understandings of certain concepts to uncover the concealed intention of God; indeed it uncovers the plot of the whole Bible story.

The Bible has only one storyline and it is unfolded historically in the Scriptures by the development of rich diversity of supporting theological themes such as covenant, salvation, redemption, sin, love, atonement etc. Seeing this unity within the diversity enables us to see the ‘big picture’ that the entire Bible is moving according to a common purpose and toward a common goal.

It is like a ‘fishbone’ diagram, also known as ‘cause and effect’ diagram used to identify possible causes to an effect. It is made up of a central backbone which joins the fish tail to the fish head, and many supporting bones attached to the backbone which holds the entire framework.

In our regular contact with the scriptures (for exhortation on Sunday services, for personal devotion, for a topical study of a theme as in systematic theology, for a character study of a particular person, or for a biblical study of a certain book of the Bible in our Bible study), we often focus on individual passages of Scriptures by itself. While this method of reading allows us to see what God is saying at that point of time, it limits our understanding of how it contributes to the whole picture, the complete purpose and intent of God as from the beginning to the end. It is like looking at one particular supporting fine bone of the fish skeleton but not seeing the fish. It is like the story of the blind men and the elephant, where a group of blind men touch an elephant to learn about it. Each one feels only one part, a different part such as the side or the tusk. They then compare notes and learn that they are in complete disagreement as to what an elephant is.

With the progress in Biblical Theology scholarly work, God is releasing understanding for ‘Revelation Equalisation’ to the Body ‘till we all come to the unity  of the faith and of the knowledge and understanding that Jesus the Son of God processes, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Eph 4:13).

Interestingly the Bible begins with ‘light’ (Gen 1:3) and also ends with light (Rev 21:23, 22:5)

Rev 21:22-24

22 But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.

Rev 22:5

5 There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever. 

From cover to cover, the Bible is the historical record of God’s revelation and His redemption acts unfolding progressively. The progressive revelation of God reveals things seen not as clearly earlier in His time. History is ‘His Story’…it is the story about light!

Jesus is the Light but what is this ‘light’ all about?

We know this ‘light’ is Jesus Christ but what is this ‘light’ all about?

In this book I am illuminating what this Light is all about - it is the intent of God to reform and replace the old government body of His Kingdom in heaven with a new governing body by preparing a new priesthood for the new Kingdom of God, which is ‘already and not yet’ here. We (as the New Creation or a new breed in ‘Christ’) are being fashioned, formed, and fully matured. This is done according to the Pattern in Jesus Christ in his life, crucifixion, death, resurrection, ascension, exaltation and enthronement. We are being moulded into the new governing Priesthood of the order of Melchizedek in the image of the perfect man Jesus Christ.

A.   UNDERSTANDING THE KINGDOM OF GOD AND WHAT IT INVOLVES

1. Kingdom of God involves ‘God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule’. 

Dr. Graeme Goldsworthy in his book ‘The Gospel and Kingdom’ [1]states in simple term, the Kingdom of God involves “God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule”.

It is called a kingdom because God is the Creator of all things and He is rightfully and appropriately titled “King” because He created all things and all things belong to Him. He is the absolute ruler of all. His ownership of the kingdom is absolute, uncontested and eternally sovereign.

The Kingdom of God is in heaven as God rules His angels in heavens; His Kingdom is also in Eden as God ruled Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; and His Kingdom is over Israel as He ruled the Israelites in the Promised Land. We can see consistently this structure of the Kingdom of God in heaven, in the Garden of Eden, and in the Promised Land; though the word ‘Kingdom of God’ is not mentioned in the Old Testament but the pattern is there all the time.

2.  The Kingdom of God involves good government

A kingdom requires an effective governing body for rulership and administration of the kingdom. A good governing body ensures the proper functioning of the Kingdom. The Bible mentions of angels. God created and uses a body of angels to govern and administer the Kingdom in heavens. This body of angels are organised into different groupings and of different rankings.

3.  The Kingdom of God involves a state of  rest

In the political world, whether in a monarchy or democratic rule, the ruler must be good and benevolent and must have an effective and efficient, competent, and corruption-free government agencies and services to administer a country. For a country to enjoy peace, prosperity and progress, it requires a proper functioning and harmonious relationship between the government, the agencies, the people and the land (environmental) in tandem with each other in an ordered system. When there is no disturbance, disorder, unrest, chaos or disaster, and when proper governance functions can be administrated as per normal, the country or kingdom is at ‘rest’ or in peace. A state of ‘rest’ implies that there is no disorder and it is peaceful for normal activities to function. The concept of Sabbath and Jubilee is centred on this truth of freedom! (Lev.25) ‘Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called sons of God’ (Matt 5:9).  And by Him (Christ) to reconcile all things to (God) Himself, by Him (Christ), whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross (Col. 1:20)

4. The Kingdom of God involves each component to function  properly individually & corporately

A fully functioning Kingdom of God involves “God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule by God’s priest”. An effective governing body in exact representation of God’s image and likeness will enable proper function and good rulership of God’s rule resulting in rest or peace for the Kingdom, i.e. there is no disorder but efficient and effective function of each part contributing to the common good together.

Firstly, each component involved in the Kingdom of God must be functioning well by itself. Secondly, they must be joined and knitted closely together to each other. Lastly, they must work effectively with each other by doing their part and contributing to one another. These three rules of function and order, if followed, lead to  synergy  and  increase of the Kingdom of God in the body, resulting in rest or peace in the Kingdom (Eph 4:16). Each component is likened to a cog and proper functioning in an ordered system contributes to the rest or peaceful state.

Sin means ‘missing the mark’, meaning a component is missing its proper function in itself, leading to the breakdown of the whole. Each component has its form or physical manifestation, and function. However, it is difficult to define the Kingdom of God by its form. Ontology is a philosophical term used to define the terms of existence – ‘what does it mean for something to exist?’ In our contemporary thinking, something exists because it appeals to our five senses physically by its form. However, a dead person no longer exists; the physical form may still be present but the person is no longer functioning. Hence, function precedes form when something is said to exist. The Kingdom of God exists not by its form but by it functions within an ordered system.[2]

Government of the KOG

5.      The Kingdom of God involves the Temple of God

In the Bible, the concept of the Temple of God means a state of rest and peace in the Kingdom because the rulership is fully functioning and there is full obedience in compliance and implementation of God’s rule. The presence of God sitting in the Throne before the subjects of His Kingdom gives a picture of His sovereign authority and power, and epitomises His full rulership over the entire Kingdom with a fully functioning Kingdom with its resultant peace and rest.  

Ownership and Rulership of the Kingdom

A kingdom is made up of two words: King and domains. Domains are spheres where his rulership exists.  The King’s ownership of the Kingdom is over all things, but the existence of rulership of the Kingdom is only when all the components involved are functioning properly in their designed purpose and place in an ordered system; that is in obedience and compliance to His rulership. For example, a democratic nation has a legally elected government but a group of militant rebels are forcefully fighting against it. The rulership of the lawful government is not able to function in those rebel-held territories and harmony and peace is destroyed. But if there is willing and trustful submission to the lawful and benevolent government, and when it is so, the Kingdom of God is present in that nation because there is an harmonious functional relationship as each part effectively works and does its share, causing growth of the nation for peace, prosperity and progress for the country men (Eph 4:16), resulting in righteousness, peace and joy (Rom 14:17). Similarly, the degree of the presence of Kingdom of God is determined according to the godliness, or obedience, of a nation.

God sits on His Throne as King. His Throne is the seat of government, the symbol of the centre of His authority and the power of His rule. The Temple of God is as to the palace of a king or the parliament house of a government. It is the highest legislature assembly where the affairs of the Kingdom are reported and presented to God by His governing representatives. (Heb 12:23, Job 1:4) The Temple of God reflects the state of His rulership in the Kingdom. In the wilderness journey from Sinai until Zion, the state of God’s rulership over His people was still in a process of formation and it was represented by the Tabernacle of Moses. It was in the reign of King David that the theocratic rulership of God was fully established in the Promised Land indicated by the Tabernacle of David. The Temple of Solomon replaced the Tabernacle of Moses as a permanent structure to indicate the full establishment of the rulership of God in the kingdom of Israel. Its definition is: “The Temple of God is where God is present and sits on His Throne to rule His Kingdom through His governing body who is a full representation of His Image and Likeness resulting in the state of rest as God's people in God's place are well governed and functioning well.”

The Temple of God is not a building. Solomon also acknowledged that the temple building he built is not able to contain God (2 Chronicles 6:18). The Ark inside the Temple was symbolic of the presence of seat of rulership of God or His Throne (Ps 11:14); that is God’s ruling presence. In the Tabernacles of Moses and David and Temple of Solomon, the Ark represents the footstool of His Throne in Heaven on His colony on earth, meaning His authority, power and rulership is extended down from Heaven to Earth[3].

Jesus is the living Temple of God. The building of the 'Temple of God' (the rulership of God) within us is an arduous task. It takes many years of nurturing and development until His seat of government is fully installed in our heart (c.f. John 17 on the oneness of man and God as Temple).            

6. The Kingdom of God involves proper functions in an ordered system.

The Kingdom of God involves:

1. God’s Throne – His Throne as the seat of government, the centre of authority and power 
2. God’s Rule – representing God’s total ownership and complete rulership over all the domains of the Kingdom.
3. God's High Priest / King - our Lord Jesus Christ
4. God's Princes - Huious or matured sons like Jesus Christ the High Priest in Cabinet roles.
5. God’s Priest – the Governing Body in ruling and administering the Kingdom as representative of God in His Expression and His Representation.
6. God’s People – the King’s subjects or God’s creations
7. God’s Place -  the place or domain where God’s authority to rule is established

Each component in the Kingdom must function properly according to its divine order in its designed function, and in its designated place in an ordered system. The existence of a kingdom is determined by its functionality. Its functionality is determined by the rulership of the king.  When something is not functioning to its designed capacity in the divine ordered system, the rulership of the Kingdom is affected. As explained earlier about the ownership and rulership of a kingdom, until and unless the function of a particular component within an ordered system in the Kingdom is restored, the rulership of the King is not fully established inside the Kingdom.

The ability to function in its designated place or role is determined by the content, capacity and capability of the component that was designed for that particular function. In Hebrews 1:4-5, Jesus has an inheritance and was given the name as 'Son of God'. Since the very beginning Jesus has the identity as the unique Son, He had the name, He had the title, He had the rank, and He had the role; but He emptied Himself and because of His triumph on the cross, He had the content, capacity and capability to function as God functions and therefore received the name 'Son of God' as an inheritance. Jesus as the 'Son of God' in Heb 1:5 is now identified as the One who is able to function as God functions. Dr. D.A. Carson in his lectures on the Book of Hebrew states the notion of sonship in Scriptures has much less to do with genes and DNA than it has to do with function[4]. Therefore the requirement to function as God’s priest is different from functioning as God’s people but the purpose of God is His rulership, namely ‘the Kingdom’ is established for righteousness, peace and joy to come to all.  

Iniquity has distorted and degraded the functionality of the old governing body of the Kingdom of God. The state of rest in the Kingdom is greatly affected and there is no peace. For example, a handphone is designed for a specific function. If the handphone is not working properly, it will give the user problems and frustrations. Sometimes it works and sometime it doesn’t. It will result in the ineffectiveness in its function and purpose, and it will disrupt the peace and the normal state of life. It causes unrest. The handphone functions within an ordered system. Even if the handphone is not defective, should its battery be drained and require charging, should there be no electricity, or should the data signal repeater station be defective, the handphone is still not able to function properly and fully.

In a dysfunctional family every person suffers. A man, who is not able to function as a godly man, will not be able to function as a godly husband and a godly father. He will not be able to provide godly headship to rule and govern the family.

A dysfunctional family suffers unrest because one person within the ordered system fails to function properly. As such, the Kingdom of God in that family or on that territory or domain suffers violence and malfunction. There is a defect or deficiency within the Kingdom in that domain that prevents designed operations to proceed normally on a continuous manner. Harmony is disrupted and the state of ‘rest’ is disrupted. Peace is affected. Prosperity and progress will terminate. Decline, degrade, decay, destruction and death will set in. In the Book of Leviticus, the priesthood is required to be ritually pure, which is a state  of you separating from anything related to death like touching diseased skin, dead body and even certainly bodily fluids.

If the function of one component within the ordered system has a weakness with the potential of a catastrophic impact, then that entire ordered system is unstable and that unreliable component must be removed and replaced with a better one.

“God meant man to live in a garden; sin has sent him to the slums. The Gospel is the power of God for salvation from sin…and its consequences as well.”[5] Sin deteriorates the creation’s original ‘God’s kind of life’ in mankind to the reverse of God i.e. a ‘dog’s kind of life’! Salvation is about the process of restoring back the original function of each part and its designed role and purpose in an ordered system. The Gospel of the Kingdom is good news because of this process of salvation. In our contemporary world, we see that the fully functional Kingdom of God, in a person, a family, a community, a business, etc, will result in peace, progress and prosperity in righteousness, peace and joy. But if there is not a functional Kingdom of God existing; decay, decline, destruction and death occurs.

The Kingdom of God brings forth the church[6] but the church is not the Kingdom but in a process on entering the Kingdom.  She is on an ongoing process of restoring the ability to function, so that rest can be achieved when the Kingdom of God exists. The Kingdom is working inside the church and through the church. The church as a community emphasizes strongly on relationship, meaning salvation is restoring back each individual in that community; for them to be able to function and relate and supply to each other in an ordered system (1Cor.12, Rom 12, Eph 4). Salvation is restoring his or her original function in accordance to the purpose of God’s original design and place and position in His designed ordered system. It requires nurturing and developing his or her content, capacity and capability. The community has many relational problems because individuals do not understand their function, purpose, place and divine order.  

Relationship requires proper function in an ordered system. It requires maturity filled with wisdom, understanding and skills. The Kingdom of God is being continuously established in the maturity of the church and the journey toward the eschatological end is attainable (Matt 24:14, c.f. 1 Cor. 15:24-28, Rev 11:15-19). Apostle Paul received 'the right hand of fellowship' by the ‘pillars’ of the church in Jerusalem when they perceived the grace upon Paul, who by then was matured, experienced, full of wisdom, understanding and skill in cross cultural communication. Both Paul and the leaders of the church in Jerusalem understood their function, purpose, and place in their divine order. Sadly, during my cross cultural ministry, I had to remind people that I am friendly, but I was still not their friend. Being a friend entails higher commitments, respect of each other’s boundaries, and an understanding of each other’s function, purpose, and place in their divine order. We cannot simply assume and presume these understandings.

The function of the old governing body in the Kingdom of God in the heaven by angelic beings has an imperfection (Heb 7:11). That imperfection is iniquity. The result of that imperfection is manifested in the physical realm on earth in pain, destruction and suffering. We can see its consequences. The ‘anointed cherub’ who covered the Throne of God (Ezek 28: 14) was found with iniquity within. The Kingdom of God in heaven was at risk of a cosmic chaos. When Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5 – 7), he was replaying the scene of the giving of the Ten Commandment at Mt. Sinai (Ex 19); but the emphasis is on the spirit of the Law instead of the letter of the Law. It deals with the innermost part of our hearts in order to eradicate iniquity. There is a reformation of the priesthood in the Kingdom of God with the renewal and replacing of a new priesthood – the New Creation in Christ (Heb 9:1-10), the Christ in us the hope of glory (Col 1:27).

7.  The Kingdom of God involves a perfect priesthood

The priesthood is the governing body of the Kingdom of God.  It must be a perfect priesthood who is entrusted by God for the proper functioning of the Kingdom. The priesthood must be perfected within with no iniquity, unlike ‘the anointed cherub’ who seeks self gain, self promotion, and self glorification. The priesthood must also be perfected in righteousness and skilful in rulership, fully representing God in His Image and in His Likeness.

On Earth, we witness all the disharmonies, difficulties and damages because what was designed to function by God did not do so because of sin. Romans 3:23 ‘for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’…remove sin from this formula and the restored function is functioning again, the glory of God is fully restored!

B.   UNDERSTANDING THE STRUCTURE OF GOVERNMENT IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD

The Kingdom of God requires good government. A kingdom requires an effective governing body for rulership and administration of the kingdom. The Bible mentions angels. God created angels, and He uses a body of angels to govern and to administer the Kingdom in heaven. This body of angels is organised into different groups and ranks.

Ancient writings[7] suggested that there are nine orders of angels divided into three hierarchies, each of which is divided into three orders; the highest, the intermediate, the lower. There is however, no concrete Biblical proof of the exact ranking order or the importance of the different angel groups.  The hierarchies are:

          i. The first hierarch, the highest and closest to the Throne of God consists of:

a.   Seraphim

b.   Cherubim

c.   Thrones

          ii. The middle hierarchy also consists of three orders:

d.   Dominions

e.   Virtues

f.    Power

          iii. The lowest hierarchy also consists of three orders:

g.   Principalities

h.   Archangels

i.    Angels

Seraphim, Cherubim and Archangels are identified in the Bible and we can know some of their characteristics and duties, and some of their responsibilities and rankings in Heaven. As for Thrones, Dominions, Principalities, Powers (Col 1:16-17), we cannot be as certain about. At best, we can examine the meaning of the words, and deduce the characteristics of angels in those ranks. This Scripture suggests that there is both a visible and established government on earth consisting of thrones, dominions, principalities and powers, and that there is an invisible but just as established government in Heaven, consisting of the same type of administration.

1.   The Throne of God

The Throne Room of God (Rev 4:2) is where the seat of government is, the centre of authority and power of His rulership.  It is where the government officials and subjects of the kingdom present themselves before the LORD (Job 1: 6, Heb 12: 22-23, Rev 5: 8-14)

The Bible identifies clearly that in the Throne room of God are the Seraphim, Cherubim and Thrones (Rev 4, Isa 6:2, Ezek 1, Dan 7:9, Isa 11:16).  These high ranking angels were involved in the government of the Kingdom of God.

From descriptions found in it, the Seraphim (singular "Seraph"), mentioned in Isaiah 6:1-7, means "flaming” or “the burning ones" because they emanate pure holiness of God; “for our God is a consuming fire.”(Heb 12:29).

The cherubim (singular “cherub”), mentioned in Gen3:24; Ex 25:17–22; 2Chron 3:7–14; Ezek 10:12–14, 28:14–16; 1 Kg. 6:23–28; and Rev.4: 6–8, are many-eyed and always radiant with the light of the knowledge of God, with the knowledge of the mysteries of God and the depths of His Wisdom; being themselves enlightened, they enlighten others. Their name "cherubim" in translation from the Hebrew language, means: "great understanding" or "effusion of wisdom", because through the cherubim wisdom is sent down to others and enlightenment of the spiritual eyes is given for the seeing of God and knowledge of God.

The Thrones are where God makes His righteous judgement. Therefore through them the justice of God is pre-eminently manifested; they serve His justice, glorifying it and pour out the power of justice onto the thrones of earthly judges, helping kings and masters to bring forth right judgement.

2. The three arms or branches of Government: the Legislative, the Executive and Judicial

Through examining the meaning of their name, their descriptions and functions, it is suggestive that this highest hierarchy of Seraphim, Cherubim and Thrones collectively form the highest governing body of the Kingdom of God. Their functions seem equivalent to the three branches[8] of government, namely, the legislative, the executive and the judicial.

Could it be that the Seraphim passionate on the holiness of God serve the function of judicial branch of the government and is equivalent to the function of the prophet? The Cherubim are enlightening the light of the knowledge and wisdom of God, could they serve the function of the legislative branch of government and be equivalent to the function of the priest? Likewise the Thrones are about the righteous judgement of God, could they serve the executive branch of government and be equivalent to the function of the king?

3. The three arms of Government in the Old Testament – the Priest, King, and Prophet

In the Old Testament (which contains the types and shadows of the spiritual things God was revealing), we see that the king, the priest and the prophet were anointed to function as the three branches of the government. Collectively, they are the highest governing body of God and they must fully represent the two dimensions of God (His Image, and His Likeness) to the subjects of His Kingdom. This will result in righteousness and peace in the Kingdom. The two dimensions of God are:

•      His Image, which is His Expression, ‘Who He is like’ is mirrored in the priestliness of the office and  function of priest and
• ·    His Likeness, which is His Representation, ‘Ways He acts or functions’ is seen in the righteousness and wisdom of the executive office and function of king in his dominion.

Jesus Christ performed these three functions in his earthly ministry – that of prophet (Deut18:14-22), priest (Ps 110:1-4) and king (Ps 2). These three fold anointing was also upon men like Moses, Samuel, Daniel and David the Old Testament.

4. The three folds anointing

Under the old covenant, men who were set apart to fulfil one of three specific offices were anointed with oil to signify their ordination to that role. The priests, kings and prophets were anointed with oil. The appointment of someone to any of these three positions could be indicated by anointing him or her by pouring oil over the head. Thus the term messiah, meaning "anointed one", is associated with the concept of the threefold office. 

Men in the Old Testament like Moses, Samuel and David carried dimensions of the threefold anointing of priest, king and prophet in them, signifying the total government of God is completely installed and fully functioning in a person,:

a.   Priest – which is the legislative arm

b.   King – which is the executive arm

c.   Prophet – which is the judiciary arm

The Old Testament shows the governed, the government and Jerusalem or Zion as the world center of God’s theocratic government. It shows how each branch of the government function and its impact on the people and the land of the kingdom. The spiritual decline of either the priest or king results in the decline in the wellbeing of the nation of Israel, and incurred the prophet being sent by God to warn of the dire consequences and the cry to return to the covenant walk with God. The Tabernacle, which was the temporary Seat of Government, took on permanence in the Temple of Solomon when the Kingdom of God was fully functioning in the reign of King David, and the glory of God’s Kingdom was finally manifested in the time of King Solomon in, grandeur, splendour and wisdom.

5. Melchizedek – the king of righteousness and priest of God Most High

The first time the word ‘priest’ appeared in the Bible is also the first revelation of priest in the Bible. It was far earlier then the Levitical priesthood of Aaron and his sons.  He is Melchizedek, the king of Salem and the priest of God Most High (Gen 14:18). He is both the king of righteousness and the king of peace, and also the priest of God Most High in a secular world. God’s image and likeness were manifested in Melchizedek the king and the priest of God Most High. He fulfilled the two dimensions of the priest and the king, which is the governance of God.

The common understanding is that the priest acts an intermediary between man and God in religious functions like offering sacrifices and intercession. This understanding is derived from the Tabernacle of Moses, which served as type and shadow to teach us, but the original priesthood is part of God’s governmental structure in its legislative function. It concerns the holiness of God. It was after Aaron’s sons offered profane fire before God and were killed immediately (signifying the seriousness of misrepresentation to God’s rule) that God told Aaron directly the purpose of the priesthood:

Lev 10:9-11 (c.f. Ezek 44:23)

It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, 10 that you may distinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, 11 and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.

Unlike the Aaronic Levitical Priesthood that performed and taught the requirements of the holiness of God to the people, the Melchizedek Priesthood after Jesus Christ actually live imputed holiness of God in being and deeds, and were able to govern themselves and their domains in  righteousness  and wisdom to see the manifestation of the Kingdom of God.

All the instruments and seven furniture in the Tabernacle of Moses were to point the way into the Melchizedek Priesthood. When King David brought the Ark back to the land of Israel, the Tabernacle of David had nothing except the Ark. David was a realization of the desire of God’s Heart and Mind for the Melchizedek type of priesthood as the priest-king of righteousness. God said of David as a man who truly was after what is in His Heart. David understood what is in God's Heart and Mind (Acts 13:22 c.f. I Sam 2:35).

C. UNDERSTANDING THE CAUSE OF COSMIC CHAOS IN THE HEAVENLY KINGDOM BEFFORE GENESIS 1

The Bible tells us of the creation acts of God in Genesis 1 but prior to that, the Kingdom of God was in Heaven since eternity past.  Before God extended His invisible heavenly Kingdom to the visible Earth, the Kingdom of God was present in the heaven or spiritual realm as ‘God’s angels in God’s heaven under God’s rule by the ministry of His governing body of high ranking angels’.

1.The governing body of high ranking angels and its weakness

In the Bible, there are many mentions of angels and cherubim. It discloses different kinds of angelic beings e.g. seraphim, cherubim, arch angel, angels.  It also indicates a hierarchical structure among angelic beings, for example in Jude 9 Michael the archangel dared not bring against the devil (who was a fallen anointed cherub in  Ezek 28:14 ) a reviling accusation.

The word ‘Cherub’ (singular) appears 30 times in the New King James Bible, cherubim (plural) appears 66 times. Cherub is high ranking angelic being found around the Throne of God.

The Scripture records ‘an anointed cherub who covers’ in Ezekiel 28:4 and this cherub was ‘the anointed cherub’, indicating that he had pre-eminence over all other cherubim and the rank and file angels as the cherubim are already among the highest order of angel. In other words, he had pre-eminence over the entire angelic host.  He was the vice regent of God.

The ‘anointed cherub who covers’ shows that he was especially endowed by God for his breathtakingly glorious role positioned over the throne of God. The other cherubim were placed under him, covering the glory of God. ‘Every precious stone was your covering’ (Ezek 28:13) stated that this anointed cherub who covered the glory of God reflected the luminous splendour of the divine, heavenly glory of God. The Latin word ‘Lucifer’ means ‘the shining one or the light bearer’. It is the title of office and function of the vice regent, or the high priest of God.  The duty of Lucifer as the office bearer of vice regent of God is to fully represent God in His Image and in His Likeness, in expressing and executing God’s Rule in His kingdom in the exact representation of His Heart, Mind, Spirit, Nature and way.

Ezekiel 28:12 - 18 tells us of this powerful cherub who was the office bearer of ‘Light Bearer’ or Lucifer. This principality or ‘the highest dignitary of the kingdom’ was an anointed cherub highly favoured by God, who was especially created with the seal of perfection - full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. A constant companion of God, in Eden the garden of God, this ‘anointed cherub’ was covered with the brilliance and magnificent glory of God shining on his body and reflecting and bouncing off him, as pictured by the brilliance of precious stones in his covering. He was in the holy mountain (congregation) of God, walking among the multitude of angels, as the show piece of God’s love and favour, the masterpiece and symbol of God’s glory and majesty among His subjects.

God is love (1 Jn 4:8). His selfless nature of agape love is to share His glory with the one He loved. He wanted to glorify and exalt this angelic being by letting him reflect God’s glory while God takes the ‘backstage’. God was secure and selfless in His Spirit and in His intent but this vice regent ‘missed the mark’; in short, he sinned! To sin essentially means to "miss the mark." We all miss God's mark of righteousness (Rom 3:23). God gave this angelic being the highest of position, prestige and power so that through him and through the dynamics of their relationship, the angels of the Kingdom can see and enjoy the beauty and magnanimity of God’s love and follow this example of God, and have this same spirit of God.

But this highest dignitary of the kingdom did not understand the spirit of selfless love that only God is capable of giving. He did not carry this spirit within and turned the platform God gave to him to be a pedestal for his self glorification and self promotion. Discontented playing second fiddle (with a mentality of “why should I”), iniquity was found in this angelic being and he was defiant to God with the five “I will” (Isaiah 14:13-14). While still reflecting the glorious light of God’s glory from his body, looking magnificent and glorious in external form, he was consumed with deceit, darkness and decay on the inside. He was 'offering profane light while standing before God (Lev 10:1-3). As a result, deception crept in and truth was not distinguishable in its form and in its essence, and the subjects of the Kingdom were not able to discern the difference. There was the danger of deception creeping in and destroying the Kingdom with disorder and chaos. This deception had happened in the history of the Church and it is still deceiving many and it will deceive as indicated in the Book of Revelation regarding the ‘Beast from the Earth.’

This was the reason behind the first spoken word of God recorded in the Bible, "Let there be light and there was light!" (Gen 1:3)

Matt 24:4-5

4 And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you.  5 For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many.

2 Cor. 11:14-15

14 And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his (Satan’s) ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.

There was a weakness exposed in this priesthood. This highest dignitary of the kingdom was to be the ‘Light Bearer’ of God. He had the ‘knowledge of the light’ standing in the Presence of God. He had ‘the form of light’ reflecting the glory of God that was shining on him. He has the platform, the position, and the personality to attract and fascinate many. However, ‘the life, the essence, or the spirit of the light’ was not in him. He was like the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil but not the Tree of Life. The knowledge without the life caused him to be arrogant and decline from being the Light-Bearer to become Satan (meaning the Accuser). Satan had the knowledge and the form. He also had the position, prestige, and power. However, he did not have the life or the spirit of the Light. He has iniquity hidden in his innermost which is not easily discerned and discovered; having a form of godliness but denying its power! (2 Tim 3:5)

The governing body under ‘the anointed cherub’ had revealed a weakness in that this priesthood served God with the heart of a subject of the Kingdom. They had a servant’s heart. They served because they have to, not because they wanted to! It was shadow and not substance. They had the form but not the essence. They had the knowledge but not the life. They had the position, power and privilege but not the heart. They were the priesthood because they were designated the day they were created, like Aaron’s sons and descendants. In the Old Testament, God used the Levitical Priesthood to show us the weakness of the angelic priesthood of His Kingdom

A. W. Tozer remarks, ‘Self can live unrebuked at the very altar’[9].

To be specific, the self-sins are these: self-righteousness, self pity, self-confidence, self-sufficiency, self-admiration, self-love and a host of others like them. They dwell too deep within us and are too much a part of our natures to come to our attention till the light of God is focused upon them. The grosser manifestations of these sins, egotism, exhibitionism, self promotion, are strangely tolerated in Christian leaders even in circles of impeccable orthodoxy. They are so much in evidence as actually, for many people, to become identified with the gospel. I trust it is not a cynical observation to say that they appear these days to be a requisite for popularity in some sections of the Church visible. Promoting self under the guise of promoting Christ is currently so common as to excite little notice.

Self can live unrebuked at the very altar! Satan lived unrebuked at the very Presence of God. So can we, basking in the very Presence of God with our ‘self’ unrebuked, lifting our ‘holy’ hands before Him!

That is why God was well pleased with Jesus. “You are My Beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:22). God told Abraham “Now I know you love Me; since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me…now I know!” (Gen 22:12). Jesus and Abraham carried the spirit of divine love.

2. Cosmic Chaos and a dysfunctional kingdom in heaven

When the vice regent of God said “I will” five times (Isaiah 14:13-14) in defiance of God, the Kingdom of heaven suffered violence and uprisings that caused the cosmic chaos. The Bible did not tell us the extent of the cosmic chaos but we do know the effect of it.  Evil is present. Decline, decay, destruction, and death are the result of a disconnection from God’s rule. A dysfunctional Kingdom in heaven was present in Pre-Genesis and its present situation is in the following 8 conditions:

    1.   The Temple in heaven was closed – God’s ownership of the Kingdom is intact, but His rulership of the Kingdom is challenged and the state of rest absent and creation is subjected to ineffectiveness (Rom 8:20). The government of the Kingdom of God is not fully functional. Rev 11:19 and 12:5 suggests the Temple is eventually reopened after the condition in Rev 11:15 is achieved. The peace in the Kingdom is not at rest.

   2.   A temporal tabernacle erected by God – This is an interim period of a re-election of a new government, like a parliament in a Constitution Monarchy being dissolved until a new government is appointed. A tabernacle was erected by God in heaven, duplicated exactly on earth (Hebrews 8:2, Ex 25:8-9,40) to show and teach the New Creation and the entire angelic host about the process and requirements of holiness and the qualification to serve in the new government of God’s Kingdom. Only those who have passed and are approved can be appointed by God as the new priesthood. The process established by God within the layout in the tabernacle must first form us, the New Creation, before He put us into the Temple to serve and guard His Kingdom as the new governing body. The dwelling of God in the tabernacle throughout the journey of Israel indicates the process and the state of His Rulership on His people. It finally attained rest in the Temple of Solomon. The Kingdom of God in Israel entered into its fullness and enjoyed peace, glory and honour. Solomon's Wisdom Movement was the sign of the highest form of salvation; which is the restoration of the full function of God's rulership or governance.

   

    3.  The office of the High Priest or vice regency was closed. It was defiled until Jesus became the new High Priest (Heb. 8) in the order of Melchizedek and became worthy to open the scroll i.e. to implement the governance of God over the Kingdom (Rev 5). The new High Priest and King has already been installed but the full company of the new governing body has not yet come into this glorious inheritance (Heb 1: 1-5, Eph 1:18 c.f. Rom 8:18-25). The King and the Kingdom is here but is still waiting for the fullness of us to enter into our glorious inheritance as heirs with Him to co rule and reign in the government of the Kingdom.

   4. God’s Rule is undermined and its restoration is in progress. God is the Sovereign Ruler forever but His rulership is undermined. God’s Kingdom suffers violence by rebelling spiritual forces (Eph 6:12). Its restoration is in ongoing now as God form and placed His New Creation to serve and guard His colony on earth and in the heavenlies. More and more light will displace darkness, both on earth and in heaven.  Therefore the Church must be active and awaken to her destiny. In our Lord's Prayer "Your Kingdom Comes and Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven", our mission is to redeem and restore the redemptive value of a person and his place back to original function in creation divine order so that it flourish again and continue colonising by subtle permeating with His Rulership and displacing the controls and influences of Satan and the forces of darkness. The Body must be equipped and prepared to be the Bride, fit for the King[10] to rule, and fit to reign with the King. A person who truly walks with God is a ‘living Ark’ and is a carrier of His dwelling presence and will carry a powerful governmental anointing for the obedience of faith. The impact and influence of this spiritual dimension of  governmental anointing can be observed in 1 Samuel 7:13-15  as God no longer dwelled in the physical ark but is now dwelling inside Samuel who was  the Living Ark:

1 Sam 7:13-15

13 So the Philistines were subdued, and they did not come anymore into the territory of Israel. And the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. 14 Then the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron to Gath; and Israel recovered its territory from the hands of the Philistines. Also there was peace between Israel and the Amorites. 15 And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life.

Jer. 3:14-17

 I will bring you to Zion. 15 And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. 16 "Then it shall come to pass, when you are multiplied and increased in the land in those days," says the Lord, "that they will say no more, 'The ark of the covenant of the Lord.' It shall not come to mind, nor shall they remember it, nor shall they visit it, nor shall it be made anymore. 17 "At that time Jerusalem shall be called The Throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered to it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem. No more shall they follow the dictates of their evil hearts.

    5.   God’s angels in heavenly realms– Angels loyal to God are ministering spirits sent forth to minister to those who will inherit salvation (Hebrews 1:14).  Angelic beings are created in a perfect world; they have lived in a perfect world since their existence. They cannot comprehend the concept of sin or the consequence of sin. They have not suffered in a fallen world. They do not have the capacity to grasp the length, breath, height and depth of self sacrificial love. They cannot die and have never experienced pain and death. That is why Jesus the Eternal Son must come in the flesh and in the form of a man to be the Incarnate Son to taste and experience what angelic beings are not capable of and to demonstrate the kind and extent of his obedience in his love to God. He suffered and in his crucifixion and death became the Begotten Son. He was raised by God to become the Risen Son and the Exalted Son to rule over God’s Kingdom. Unlike angels, we too as human beings have this privilege to suffer and to be transformed in righteousness through the disciplines of God! Jacob the deceiver was transformed into Israel, the prince of righteousness and he was able to wrestle and prevailed against an angelic being (Gen 32:24-30). After his dead, the spirit of Jacob is resurrected into the heavenly realms as a powerful angel of high ranking (noted that he was able to wrestle and hold an angel down the whole night while on earth). He joined the company of righteous sons with the Exalted Son. The Christians must understand the importance of our journey of earth in developing the Light in Christ Jesus and obtaining the spiritual stature in authority and power in Christ (Eph 6:0).

Eternal Son-->Incarnate Son-->Begotten Son-->Risen Son -->

Exalted Son -->Reigning Son

    6.   The Rebel - God is righteous and just but Satan and his fallen angels were not punished in a cosmic court verdict yet, but only at the closure of God’s redemption plan. Why? Because the verdict of ‘guilty as charged’ will be pronounced when the New Creation, ‘the Christ in us’ has matured and we manifest in the perfected love and righteousness (Eph 3:10). In the mean time, God provide a platform by using the fallen conditions and situations and allows good and evil to train us to be overcomers, to gain knowledge, understanding, skills and wisdom to increase the Kingdom of God, and to subdue and destroy the forces of Satan. The saints are toughened by adversity to become overcomers in righteousness and destroyers of the forces of Satan; “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” In addition, Jesus declared the reign of His Kingdom to increase as ‘Satan falls like lightning from heaven’ (Luke 10: 17-18). Jesus Christ had already disarmed Satan and now it’s up to the Body to mature to the stature and substance of  the Bride to ‘displace him’ (Col.2:15).The purpose is to subdue the forces of darkness but most importantly the intention is for our names to be written in heaven. ‘For this purpose the Son of God was manifested’ in us and through us (the Christ in us, the hope of glory) that ‘He might destroy the works of the devil’ (1 John 3:8).  The demons begged of Jesus "Have you come here to torment us before the time?" (Matt 8:29). The demons were chased back into the ‘sea’ and the land was claimed for the Kingdom of God as His colony increases. We are recreated in Christ to overcome and subdue the forces of darkness and to reveal the glory of God in a fallen world. The forces of darkness are neutralised and are not able to operate when worldliness, flesh and self are subdued under our feet, i.e. submitting to the rulership of Christ and of His God. The Light is life-giving and the last enemy to be destroyed is death. In Genesis 1 creation acts, God created heaven above, the sea and the land and they are  spiritually demarcated spheres (Prov. 8:29). When the Kingdom of God has fully come upon all the lands, the demonic spirits will all be pushed back into the ‘sea’. The last enemy is not Satan and his demonic forces. The last enemy is death and the wages of sin is death and the strength of sin is the law (1Cor 15:24-28, 54-58). True apostolic ministry is not just about establishing apostolic, Christocentric churches but developing the Christ in you! Using a simple illustration; demonic forces are like houseflies which are easily chased away.  However, the problem lies in the rotten flesh and rubbish in our life that continuously attracts them back. When we cleanse all the filthiness within us and our surroundings and put on His holiness and reign in Zion, we shall prevail! In Light there is no darkness! Though the waves of demonic forces toss to and fro, yet they cannot prevail; though they roar, yet they cannot pass over our line!

"Do you not fear Me?" says the LORD. "Will you not tremble at My presence. Who have placed the sand as the bound of the sea, by perpetual decree that it cannot pass beyond it? And though its waves toss to and fro, yet they cannot prevail; though they roar, yet they cannot pass over it. But this people has a defiant and rebellious heart, they have revolted and departed. They do not say in their heart, "Let us now fear the LORD our God" (Jer. 5:22-24)

    7.   The Christ in us, the hope of glory – The saints were fallen men and women in a fallen world, sinners saved by grace, in response to His mercy and love; empowered by the Holy Spirit to learn to suffer in Christ to perfection in love through obedience. We are made lower than angels (Heb 2:5-8) but we shall judge (or rule) angels (1 Cor. 6:3). We are His only hope of glory! What an honour and privilege this is! Could you and I just sit back in awe and ponder on Psalm 8?

    God wants both man and angels to understand the difference between being sons and being subjects of the Kingdom. Satan will be defiant till the very end but the whole angelic host in heaven will glorify God and acknowledge His righteous character when the true sons of the Kingdom, ‘who bear in their bodies the marks of the Lord Jesus’ is revealed, mirroring his righteousness and love (Hebrews 2:5-18, Romans 8:12-39, Gal 5:17).

    

    8.   The Fullness of Christ - A New Day Dawning in God’s Heaven and Earth – The cosmology in the heaven and on earth has pockets of darkness present. It is displaced when light is present. The redemptive process is to cause that Light to come forth in its fullness through spiritual maturity in us (sonship). It is firstly manifested bodily in us in the natural and then the spiritual realm (1 Cor15:35-49). God told Abraham ‘as you are lighted here on earth, it is lighted up there in the heaven.’ Abraham received this profound revelation in Genesis 14:18 – 15:8. It is so important that the Church understands this spiritual objective...as the substance of Light is formed in us and as we displace earth of darkness, more of heaven is lighted until the fullness of Christ  fills all in all.’ God want and wait for the demonic spiritual atmosphere of darkness to be displaced and replaced with the Light in us as stars in righteousness and godliness (1Thess 5:5, Phil 2:15) Jesus was full of joy when the seventy returned with joy, saying ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven’. Jesus revealed that this is the intention of God that many prophets and kings desired to know! (Luke 10: 17-24). There is the cosmic conflict that is on-going to our profit for the maturing of the sons of God in sufferings (Rom 8:13-19), but to displace and defeat them, we must excel in righteousness in stature, substance, and in spirit. God’s ultimate goal is the fullness of Christ fills all in all and the five-folds ministerial grace is to equip the saints for the ministry’s goal that Christ might fill all things (Eph 1:22, 4:10).

D.   UNDERSTANDING THE PLOT OF HIS STORY

God is reforming and replacing the old governing body of the Kingdom in Heaven with the formation of the New Creation for the New Governing Body of Melchizedek Priesthood (the Christ) for the new Kingdom in Heaven. Similarly in the history of the world, we see bad government or regime been replaced, nations been reformed until the righteousness, peace and joy of the Kingdom is restored.

In trying to answer to the second question ‘Why God said, “Let there be light and there was light”?’, I have built a step-by-step guide comprising several concepts to help us uncover the concealed intention of God; which is the plot of His Story as it unfolds in the Bible and in the history of the word.

When the Kingdom in heaven suffered violence, what actually went wrong? The answer is in the government or the rulership of the Kingdom due to a defective governing body caused by iniquity inside the heart. Iniquity leads to disobedience, which causes malfunction, which affects the government or rulership that results in lawlessness and destruction.

Iniquity --> disobedience --> malfunction --> bad rulership -->

lawlessness --> decline --> destruction

As we observed carefully in the Old Testament, the nation of Israel declined when either the priests or the kings distanced themselves from God or His righteousness. True prophets were sent to warn and correct. The priests, kings and prophets were expressing the governing arms of the Kingdom of God. They formed the governing body of the Kingdom. Each time the governing body of priests or kings declined in their relationship with God or their duties, the nation declined.

God wants to restore the dysfunctional Kingdom in heaven back to its state of rest. However, there must be change in the priesthood, that is, the governing body needs to undergo reformation. God is replacing the old priesthood of angelic beings with a new priesthood, but He is also reforming the criteria for this new priesthood to be installed.

Heb 7:11-13

11 Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron? 12 For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law (of requirement of the new priesthood).

Heb 9:8-10

8 the Holy Spirit indicating this, that the way into the Holiest of All was not yet made manifest while the first tabernacle was still standing. 9 It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regard to the conscience —  10 concerned only with foods and drinks, various washings, and fleshly ordinances imposed until the time of reformation.

When God said, “Let there be light and there was light!” God wanted the following:

1.   ‘God said’… (present tense) God is saying what is in His heart and mind and He communicates with His Word. His Word is His intent, God’s original motivation (c.f. John 1:1-18). David understood and was after what is in the Heart and Mind of God. Jesus is the Word became flesh; the intent of God's Heart and Mind was made manifest and revealed fully in the man Jesus in his priestly service as God’s image bearer on earth and on the cross. In Him was life and the life was the light of men…that was the true light which gives light to every man coming into the world. (John 1:4,9)

2.  ‘Let there be light’… (future tense) God wants a full restoration of His Kingdom with a replacement of a new priesthood for His governing body. The earlier government of angelic priesthood had its weakness, appearing as light in form, but not in essence and being. It has its form but not its life. God wants a reformation of the governing body with a new High Priest and a new creational kingdom of new priests (His new governing body) who will have the substance and not the shadow of His light, emanating and radiating from within. Jesus in the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:2), transfigured before the disciples to reveal this New Creation – the new spiritual body is translucence and emanates light intrinsically from its spiritual substance. The countenance and light of the spiritual body is a measure of spiritual maturity, Jesus being the new Seal of Perfection, the new Lucifer; the true Bearer of Light. Jesus was tested, approved and accepted as the new High Priest and because of the approval; God exalted him as the Exalted Son, the King of kings to rule over His Kingdom. The New Creation metamorphosis of fallen men from sinners to saints to sons allows men to become the regal princes of God, the true Israel (Gen 32:28). Jesus Christ is the Perfect Son, and the New High Priest and exalted King in the order of Melchizedek. Jesus Christ is the Pattern for the New Creation – His life, crucifixion, death, resurrection, ascension, exaltation and enthronement is the journey and destiny for all of us in the New Creation.

    3.   ‘And there was light’ – because God is original Light since eternity past. He is the original Source and original absolute Standard. He is Truth. There cannot be a sub-standard copy or clone. The Tree of the knowledge of good and evil wants to be like God and not God-like, whereas the Tree of Life wants to be God-like in order to be like God.

Summary

The key word in this first chapter is ‘function’! (Mankind becomes dysfunctional because of our fallen sin nature(

Our ability to function in His creation original role, position, capability and capacity as God intended for us is distorted by our sin nature with the resultant fracture in all forms of relationship within the divine order. This inability is further complicated and compounded by layers of cultural ‘norms’ of the fallen worlds with its humanistic worldviews, thinking and cultures.

What went wrong in the Kingdom of God in the heaven? Diagnostically…it is ‘dysfunction’! Righteousness is when you are functioning in your designed function and designated role in God’s ordered system. When something or someone is not functioning in its or his designed function in an ordered system, chaos will result. Unrighteousness or lawlessness will create chaos. We are not able to function in our full capability as God designed because of our sin nature and its consequences. The root cause is iniquity. Iniquity is when our will come against the will of God. The Garden of Eden was lost because of the first Adam’s fall but it was restored at the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus rejected his own will and accepted God’s will. Sin causes all relationships in an ordered system to be fractured. Ours is a world outside Eden in which all relationships have been dislocated and distorted. The return back to the Garden of Eden requires repentance, regeneration, renewal, reformation and transformation.

The Bible shows that human history as a whole is linked to the specific history of Israel as the chosen nation. God is shown to be working through Israel to bring all things in creation back into harmony with Himself. 1 Kings 3-10 shows the reality of the fullness of this harmony as we attain Zion. The heart of this harmony is the fear of God - wisdom in the building of the temple and the reflection on the vital role it played in the relationship of God to his people. Wisdom is the pinnacle reality of covenant fulfilment of salvation history and the building of the temple is the pinnacle of Solomon’s wisdom.  

Christianity is not about a religion. It is about the King and His Kingdom. It is about inheritance...both God’s and yours for our succeeding generation! It is about a kingdom and its government. Some parts within the Kingdom are not functioning in righteousness according to the divine order of God.  It is about God looking for a trustworthy, righteous and reliable replacement for the new governing body of His Kingdom in heaven. It is about us as citizens in His colony of earth, in a dysfunctional world with chaos, learning and training to live in and as light and to govern in righteousness in the wisdom and mercy of God in the midst of intense pressure of darkness and ugliness. It is about us as overcomers in Light, destroying the forces of darkness. We are being prepared for our destiny in His Kingdom as part of the Melchizedek Priesthood, the Governing Body in the order of Melchizedek. We are been forged in the furnace of intense adversity, pain and suffering to emerge as pure gold!  It is about our spiritual journey of maturity from the Red Sea to Mount Zion. It is about the spiritual dimension that Jesus as a man carried while on earth and in his continued incarnation in heaven. It is about Resurrection now! It is about being able to live as New Creation on earth with the power of the age to come because Jesus, the firstborn of the New Creation has resurrected and ascended and He is exalted to rule with all authority and power given to him. It is about the Seed in us, as God originally prepared in Adam in the Garden of Eden before the Fall; reproducing after His own kind. It is about the ‘Christ in us, the hope of glory.’

The Body must not remained contented in being justified in His imputed Righteousness, but must also be able to manifest His Light in imparted righteousness as His Lampstand. It must bring His Kingdom down on earth by learning how to subdue, rule and reign and have dominion in the fruit of righteousness. Matt 13:43 Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.

William J. Dumbrell in his book ‘The End of the Beginning’ states the end product of all of History and of all God’s effort is a new government of His Kingdom in heaven, shown in the following:

•      The New Jerusalem – the symbol of government and those governed,
•      The New Temple – the seat of government
•      The New Covenant – the instrument of government 
•      The New Israel – reveals those governed and their role
•    The New Creation – a final comprehensive presentation of both the governed and the Governor

1.   The sad news of the Kingdom of God is that the earlier angelic priesthood had its weakness, having the external forms but not the intrinsic true nature of godliness.
2.     The good news of the Kingdom of God is that a new replacement and renewal of the priesthood is already in place and in progress and we are called and invited to be involved.
3.     The better news is that Jesus had successfully become the High Priest and he has sent us the Holy Spirit to lead us in the pattern and process that He himself had went through(Heb 2:10-18).
4.   The excellent news of the Kingdom is Resurrection! While other religions or gods claim they were able to do good works as well, Jesus in His resurrection did what no other religion and gods could do. The beauty of authentic and spiritual Christian living is that we can now die to the flesh and be connected with the Holy Spirit and the Word of God in resurrection power. In the OT, our impurity defiled and was contagious but in the NT, Jesus received the promise from the Father and now there is a divine purity, the Holy Spirit, who is now able to touch and infuse us with purity from Heaven and transform us (c.f. Isaiah 6:6-7). We can now bring Heaven down to earth and to others as the colonization of the Kingdom advance. It is not utopia yet but we have the power to destroy all the works of darkness and co-create a new world in righteousness of God on the earth. We can now partake of the power of the age to come for those who are spiritually matured (Heb 6: 1-5). Jesus is now at the Throne. We can have His kingdom here in our lives now though we have yet to return to Heaven. The Kingdom is already and not-yet here.
5.     The bad news is that many are called but are not willing to come! They did not see the exaltation of Jesus the Man in Heaven and His enthronement as King. They are not willing to follow Jesus, who saw the joy that was set before them and endured the cross, the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Heb 12:1-2). They prefer a Jesus as their Saviour because it is free but not Jesus as their Lord, for there is a price to pay! They love the ‘ease and please’ gospel and will not endure sound doctrine (2 Tim 4:1-8).
6.    The worst news is that some have offered another Jesus and another gospel and many are misled by it.

Oh, that you would bear with me in a little folly — and indeed you do bear with me. 2 For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. 3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted — you may well put up with it! (2 Cor. 11:1-4)

UNDERSTANDING THE MYSTERY IN CHRIST

Genesis chapter 1 to 3 reveals the action of God’s creation on earth and Ephesians chapter 1 reveals the intention of God’s creation.

Eph 1:3-23

Our Inheritance in Christ

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one (i.e. the Sabbath rest of the Kingdom) all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth — in Him. 11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed (c.f. Rev.14:1) with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

Prayer for Spiritual Wisdom

15 Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power 20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,  21 far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. 22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Eph 2:19-4:1

Citizens of the Kingdom

19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

The Mystery Revealed

3 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles —  2 if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, 3 how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, 4 by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), 5 which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: 6 that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, 7 of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power.

Purpose of the Mystery

8 To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ;   10 to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places,  11 according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him. 13 Therefore I ask that you do not lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.

Birthing the New Creation ‘Christ in you, the hope of glory’

14 For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, (…here Apostle Paul figuratively  took  the position of a mother squatting in a birthing position (in NT biblical times) in birthing a New Creation)   15 from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named (…Name is associated with the nature and character of Christ, the image and likeness of God the Father - the pattern in Paul (Phil3:4, 2 Tim 3:10-17, 1Cor 10:11:1), 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height —  19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (…the dynamics and dimensions in v. 16-19 of the Spirit and Word to produce Light and obtain spiritual illumination to attain Glory)

God who never fail!

20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

The Arena of Contest and the Mission of the Church

The rebellion in heaven has been cast out (Rev.12:9). The Throne Room of God in heaven is the only place in the entire universe that is presently the perfect picture of what would look like that was finally under the reign of God. The Throne Room of God is pictured in the dimensions the Most Holy Place in the Tabernacle and Temple and in the new heaven and new earth in Revelation 21:1 (its length and width and height are equal) and the New Jerusalem.

Jesus Christ has already disarmed Satan, and the mission of the Church is to be formed and matured in Christ by God and be placed by God in a particular place to liberate it and to displace Satan and his forces of darkness by subduing and having dominion, and eventually transforming the locality  by being fruitful and multiplying the Seed through spiritual reproduction by generational succession to extend the colonisation of His Kingdom on earth to fill it and to reflect the Throne Room of God in Heaven on earth. Heaven is invading earth!

The last enemy is not Satan but death (1Cor 15:24-28). Death is the wages of sin and sin is the placing of self in place of God at the centre. The sting of death is sin and the strength of sin is the law (1Cor.15:56). The strength of self is in the subtle deception of the words of God by secular humanism, particularly humanistic religiosity. The last enemy is the big ‘I’ in man![11] Jesus said “It is finished” at the cross and all things needed for our salvation is completed except one! Our own free-will needs to submit and be given to Him in obedience. In the Book of Revelation, the merciless wraths of God are reserved for the rebellious and wicked men.

The ultimate word in the mystery of Christ is:

‘No more iniquity’

in the new heaven and earth’

The only place where there is Life is the Throne Room of God where the Light is. The source of the River of Life begins from the Throne, which is the Temple (Ezek 47). When Jesus mentioned the word ‘church’ (Matt 16:18) it is the Greek word ‘ekklesia’, which has a strong political inference to the Kingdom governance. It is a far cry from our contemporary understanding of a church, which to most of us, is a congregation, or at worst a nice Christian social club!

The Church must understand the three folds of salvation:

1. The Blessing of Salvation – this is where some churches are very comfortable with and familiar at, so much so that the church has individualized the gospel and has become mere consumers of the blessings.

2. The Purpose of Salvation – The main purpose of Jesus dying on the cross was not so that you can go to heaven. The main purpose of His death was so that His Kingdom can be established in you so that, as a result, you can exercise Kingdom authority on the earth (Luke 17:21) and reconcile the world back to Him (2 Cor. 5:19).  The purpose of salvation is for His Kingdom, i.e. life in the Crown, to be established in us, through us and from us to extend the colonisation of His Kingdom by reflecting biblical principles on the people and place that God has placed us in. God is not just God to those in churches but God over all the non Christians in the world. The Church is to grow up in muscles and strength to be producers of the Kingdom and not its fatty consumers. The purpose of salvation is for the Church to be inoculated from worldliness and infiltrate the world with the Kingdom influence. In the past the Church was taught isolation and separation from the world. There is a separation of church and worldliness but there must be no separation of God’s rule and the world. God requires all rulers, bosses and those in authority to be godly and abides by His standard and not to abuse authority and oppress the people for personal gains. The Church had isolated and separated from the world for a long time and had focused on spiritual things so much that she became ineffective to impact and influence the world. There is abundant knowledge of God and spiritual matters but there is a lack of understanding of man and the world. Subjects like government, public administration, politics, public policy, sociology, humanities are foreign to the education system in the Church.

The Cross emptied us of the ‘old man’ and the Crown filled us with Christ. The Church must understand the purpose of salvation is not to seek a utopia on earth but to make it flourish. The key is good and sound government in the Kingdom of God. The nation of Israel was not  perfect but it was great in the days of King Solomon, a fulfilment of Duet 4:6-8 because the people were wise and had understanding. Queen Sheba and nations of the world came to Jerusalem to see the wisdom of King Solomon’s governance and the glory of the Kingdom over the nation of Israel as the fullness of Christ filled all things in the land, in trades, economic, law, infrastructure, environment, urban planning and development, politics, education, medicine, healthcare, the arts, military, science and technology, transportation, communications and public administration, community cohesive, social economic and social justice , ethnic and racial harmony and all of humanities.

3. The Intent of Salvation – God placed His Colony on earth to provide a platform with a process for the preparation of a new priesthood for a new governing body. This New Creation in Christ is put on earth to be formed, trained, tested and approved in trials of adversity. They are trained to be ruled and to rule in His righteousness and wisdom. These are the one “who are blessed and holy and have a part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years” (Rev 20:4-6). In the entire process, the grace of God enable us to be formed more and more like Christ by learning obedience under sufferings (Heb. 5:8) and training in rulership with righteousness and wisdom.

We grow in wisdom and stature as we learn how to make the world a better place. We learn how to be problem solvers, deal with  the works of flesh of those around us, in the family, in the work place, in social community, learning to subdue and to have dominion, to rule in the midst of our enemies (Ps 110:2) by winning in righteousness and wisdom. It requires patience, resilient and perseverance (James 1:2-5, 12, Rom 5:2-5). 

God had placed eternity inside all of us with the desire for a better future but the sin nature in men has twisted this desire to lust for self gains at the expense of others. Wheat and tares will co-exist together and in this dynamics, we learn to prevail and win by righteousness. We become better and beautiful in heart and not bitter by all the mud thrown at us. We overcome knowing we are been groomed to be heirs with Jesus Christ in the priest king order of Melchizedek for the new Kingdom in Heaven. Blessed is he who overcomes!

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[1] Goldsworthy, Graeme, ‘Gospel & Kingdom’ The Paternoster Press. 1981. It was this booklet that started my interest in Biblical Theology.

[2] John H. Walton, The Lost World of Genesis One, IVP Academic 2009, page 24 – I recommended readers to read this book for a fundamental paradigm shift in the creation acts of Genesis chapter 1 and an understanding in Functional Ontology.

[3] 1 Chron. 28:2, Ps 132;7 and Isa 66:1 picture God sitting on his heavenly throne with his feet extending down to the ark and resting on it; c.f. 2 Chron. 9:18 and Jer. 3:16-17

[4] Dr. D.A. Carson, The Book of Hebrews: Part 1 of 4, Lecture Video Transcription, downloadable from internet.

[5] Quote by  Vishal Mangalwadi, an award winner social reformer in India

[6] George Eldon Ladd, The Gospel of the Kingdom, Martino Publishing 2011, p.115

[7] The most influential Christian angelic hierarchy was put forward by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite in the 4^th or 5^th Century in his book De Celeste Hierarchia (On the Celestial Hierarchy).

[8] Readers are encouraged to search the internet ‘The three branches of government’ for further readings.

[9] A.W.Tozer, The Pursuit of God chapter 3 ‘Removing the Veil, public domain book

[10] 35 years ago, forerunner Paul E. Billheimer in his book ‘Destined for the Throne’ (1975) argued that God’s eternal purpose is the preparation for a people fit for His Son. His thesis is that the primary purpose of the universe from all eternity is the production and preparation of an Eternal Companion for the Son, called the Bride, the Lamb’s Wife. Since she is to share the throne of the universe with her Divine Lover and Lord, privileged to judge the world with Him, she must be trained, educated and prepare for her role.

[11] Read ‘The Three -Fold Sin of Society’ (http://www.christlifemin.org/home/blog/articles/the-three-fold-sin-of-society/)