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The Ministry of Healing: An Evidence of the Kingdom of God, Pt. 1 By John Hairston Abstract concepts of the Kingdom of God have only served to confuse and further divide the Saints of God, giving way to a "new age-gnostic" type gospel that comes equipped with spells, incantations and Harry Potter styled spiritual warfare. In Part 1 of this article, I first want to lay out a foundation of what the Kingdom of God is, so that we can understand and fully grasp why healing is so important to the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. The Misconception I have done ample research concerning what the Kingdom of God is, and the significance of the concept as taught in the churches today. I have found a misconception hiding in the cracks of the teachings of many of today's leaders; no matter what book you read a majority of publications will repeat the following: "The Kingdom of God is the Sovereign rule of God as initiated through the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ." This concept is enforced by the notion that there was no specific concept of the Kingdom of God taught in the Old Testamant, and that Jesus initiated His earthly ministry with the words, "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand..." (1) If the Kingdom of God is the Sovereign rule of God, then we have to recognize that God has always been sovereign, for God is ETERNAL, and so His sovereignty was expressed in Genesis 1:1, when he made the sovereign decision to create the heavens and the earth. And, if we properly apply the doctrine of Christ, then we know that Jesus Christ, according to scripture, had a pre-existent ministry. Lets allow the Bible to speak for itself: "1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God.3All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made." (2) " 5And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was." (3) " 16For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17And he is before all things, and by him all things consist." (4) " 2Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;" (5) The above scriptures clearly place Christ working and administrating long before His earthly ministry, which clears up any misconception of the Sovereignty of God being expressed through the work of Christ Jesus. So, we can conclude that if the Kingdom of God is the Sovereignty of God expressed, then the Kingdom of God began at the event of creation, and not Christ's earthly ministry. Please understand that there can be no Sovereignty in actuality until there is something to rule over. With this being stated, we can see the manifestation of the Kingdom of God with the first inital creation event, when God said, "Let there be light." (6)
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The foundation laid scripturally, we can begin to give light to the Kingdom of God being manifested in the first chapter of Genesis. Understanding What the Kingdom of God Is Many theologians argue that the Kingdom of God is invisible, but fail to inform the researcher that the Kingdom of God hasn't always been "invisible". In fact, the Kingdom of God was once very visible, with a geographical and tangible location, just as it will be again during the Millennial reign of Christ. The Kingdom of God has, both, visible and invisible qualities and character. Now, the Kingdom of God is only characterized by His sovereignty, but the actual Kingdom is a PLACE and LOCATION. In the beginning the entire creation was the Kingdom of God, all of it-the Heavens and Earth; so, when we read the first two chapters of Genesis we are actually given the construction and the manifestation of the Kingdom of God. Let's look at a very significant scripture: "26And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.27So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 28And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." (7) The word "dominion" in these verses, is the translated term for the Hebrew word, radah, and is an ACTIVE VERB, which implies that the object of this verb was an active participant; in other words, man[both male and female] were active participants in the Kingdom of God. The word, radah, means RULE, and tells us that the Sovereignty of God was transferred to Man over the earth. Sovereignty and Kingship must have an object, the object of Sovereignty and Kingship was Heaven and Earth; because God chose to extend a portion of the Kingdom to man, we know that Man was an active participant in the Kingdom of God. So, we can now begin clearing the smoke from the erroneous concepts of the what the Kingdom of God is, and begin to conceptualize the Kingdom of God as it is. (8) Now, dominion, is defined: "do•min•ion \də-ˈmi-nyən\ n [ME dominioun, fr. MF dominion, modif. of L dominium, fr. dominus] 14c 1 : domain 2 : supreme authority : sovereignty 3 pl : an order of angels — see celestial hierarchy 4 often cap : a self-governing nation of the Commonwealth of Nations other than the United Kingdom that acknowledges the British monarch as chief of state © 2010 - 2010 Anointed Fire Magazine- AnointedFire.com
5 : absolute ownership syn see power" (9) And, a domain is: "do•main \dō-ˈmān, də-\ n [alter. of ME demayne, fr. AF demeine, fr. L dominium, fr. dominus] 15c 1 a : complete and absolute ownership of land — compare eminent domain b : land so owned 2 : a territory over which dominion is exercised 3 : a region distinctively marked by some physical feature 〈the domain of rushing streams, tall trees, and lakes>" (10) So, a domain is a region, territory or land where DOMINION is exercised, and this is exactly what the earth was, a territory under the rulership of God, and God extended this dominion to Man, so that man could relate (in the context of RELATIONship) to God. (11) The Purpose of Creation Now, why did God create? God wasn't homeless or bored, why did He create anything? "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 10That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:" (12) 1 John 4:8 says that God IS Love, and the very nature of love needs to be expressed, and it was from this attribute of God that He made the Sovereign decision to create man. Ephesians 1:4 says that He/God chose us before He created anything; God desired a RELATIONSHIP, He wanted an object to love on, He wanted to share himself with Man. This is of immense importance in the understanding of the Kingdom of God. It places in perspective the purpose for creation and inevitably the Kingdom of God. He didn't create the Heavens and Earth for mere recreation or practice, He did so with a purpose: " For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else." (13) Again, God didn't need an earth or a heaven to reside in, for He is SELF-SUFFICIENT, and has need of nothing. So, He created earth for something else; according to the above scripture He created the heavens and the earth to be INHABITED. If we align this with Ephesians 1:4, we begin to see that God created Man for a relationship, and the earth was the environment that this relationship would take place. So, the Heavens and the Earth, which in all actuality is the Kingdom of God, was the place where God chose to place the object of His intended relationship in. The Earth was created FOR MAN, as a gift, where He could enjoy an intimate and eternal relationship with God.
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So, The Kingdom of God is, in all actuality, the entire creation, the Heavens and the Earth. And, the Earth is the Dominion of Man where God and Man shared an eternal, intimate and personal relationship. Man Forfeits His Dominion So, at this point it is important to review what we have established as scriptural and evident: •
The Kingdom of God was and still is the entire creation-the heavens and the earth
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The Kingdom of God is a physical location as well as a spiritual jurisdiction
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The Kingdom of God is a place where the relationship between God and Man is active
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The Kingdom of God was and is eternal, and has existed ever since the creation
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The Kingdom of God was extended to Man through his dominion of the earth
Now, Man was given a Free-Will, and this is a very important point, because it explains so much concerning Man, his dominion and the dramatic transfer of authority over the world that took place in the Garden of Eden. God, in His infinite wisdom wanted a relationship with Man, that He may express and pour His Love on him. But, in order for the relationship to be meaningful, it was necessary for both parties to be consenting. It made no sense for God to create Man for a relationship and then FORCE him to participate in it. So God gave man a free-will, where Man could make the voluntary and conscious choice to participate in that relationship. There is NO RELATIONSHIP if there is no choice! Free-Will also distinguished man from any other part of creation, because it made him able to reflect the mind of God, He could make choices and have dominion through his free-will. There is too many scriptures that give light to Man's Free-Will to argue or debate the Calvinist doctrine here. We know that there can be no choice without Free-Will, as there can be no Free-Will without a choice. God knew that Man could not have a Free-Will without a choice to exercise his free-will, and so God placed the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in the midst of the Garden, along side the Tree of Life. This was so that man would always be confronted with a CHOICE, because choice was the fuel that gave life to free-will, which was an integral element for the relationship. (14) Yet, God, in His infinite wisdom, also knew that a free-will to choose came equipped with the possibility to act in defiant disobedience as well. So, God knowing the end from the beginning (15), made a strategy that would remedy this ability to willfully disrupt what God has purposed, the relationship. (16) That Plan is what we call, The Plan of Redemption. And, so as scripture reveals, man chose to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and thus forfeited his dominion of the Earth, a portion of the Kingdom of God. Now, many will ask the question, if the earth is a part of the Kingdom of God, how can the devil be god or ruler over part of the Kingdom of God? (17) Because the earth was FOR MAN, it was the part of the Kingdom of God that belonged to man, and so Man has responsibility for it, and when he/man chose to disobey God, and disrupt the perfection of the © 2010 - 2010 Anointed Fire Magazine- AnointedFire.com
Order of the Kingdom, he forfeited control over HIS PORTION of the Kingdom of God; this is how the devil became the ruler of this world-not by force or take over, but because he was given power through the access into the Kingdom man gave him/devil. The Redemptive Plan and the Restoration of the Dominion and Kingdom with Man Man's dominion was attached to the free-will choice to maintain and preserve the relationship with God. This is the importance of Free-Will, it is through obedience or submission to the rule of God, that the Kingdom of God is present and operating in the Earth. It was all in the Redemptive plan. Why didn't God just take the dominion of the Earth back from Satan and give it back to Man? "For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us."(18) " Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:11Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it." (19) All of this declares that not only is God sovereign, but He is Just in His sovereignty. If God has purposed a thing within the counsel of the Godhead, then He will not violate the order of things, He won't violate the free-will of Man. If it is a choice that gave away dominion, it will be a choice that will restore the dominion and the Kingdom of God to Man. You see, God hasn't lost the Kingdom, Man has willfully gave up his access to it! Now, with the redemptive plan in place, and the rebellion in effect, God set out to restore the Kingdom back to man, using the same cause that ceded dominion, Choice. God chose a People that came through the seed of Abraham, that would be His dominion in the earth, and they were the Children of Israel. I want to present a very powerful scripture that gives light to the fact that God began to use Israel as a physical manifestation of the Kingdom of God in the Earth. " 25Then Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the LORD. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house." (20) The scripture is in the context of Israel requesting a king they could see. They were the People of God, and God was coming directly to the People through the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies, but the People of Israel wanted an earthly king as they saw other nations had. God consented and gave them Saul. Prior to Saul there was no ESTABLISHED KINGDOM in the Earth, so the question is: How could Samuel tell the people the MANNER of the KINGDOM, if there was none established prior to this time? and where did he receive THE MANNER OF THE KINGDOM that he wrote in the book? Samuel was the Prophet of God, and Israel's first Prophet, He received it from God, Himself. God gave Samuel the manner of the Kingdom, as a pattern, just as He gave Moses the Pattern of the Tabernacle. (21) And from that point, the Kingdom that God established and covenanted with Israel became the physical and earthly representation of the Kingdom of God. But of course, disobedience caused the rule of Israel
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to be ceded to foreign and hostile nations, just as disobedience placed restrictions on the access of Adam to the kingdom when he disobeyed. Jesus the Fulfillment of the Redemptive Plan and Restoration of the Kingdom to Man Jesus is referred to, by Paul-1 Corinthians 15:45-as the Last Adam. And, this is a significant reference to Christ, because of who He was and what He represented for the whole of Humanity. Jesus represented and embodied the Kingdom of God being again accessible to Man, through surrender of the Free-Will to the Sovereignty of God, that God's sovereignty may reign in the earth through our submission to the relationship with Him. Jesus shared an unbroken relationship with the Father, He said, He and the Father were ONE. He became a door for the Kingdom of God to come amongst man and operate in the earth. It is our freewill choice to believe in Christ that places us back in union/relationship with God, and restores the Kingdom of God to us. Now, because sin has tainted and defiled the earth, all Prophetic events must play out so that the earth and heaven may be renewed. But the Kingdom of God, until the Millennial Regin and Restitution of All Things, is the Authority and Sovereignty of God operating in the believers and the Church, through the Holy Ghost. We have received the dominion back, which is our right to rule, but the earth must be renewed before we can enjoy dominion over the earth as a physical kingdom on earth. Next Month we will enter into the segment of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. For any questions concerning this article please contact Pastor John L. Hairston at 206-240-7133 or johnhairston@revolutionaryministryconcepts.org. Please visit the website www.revolutionaryministrycponcepts.org John L. Hairston has also authored the book, He That Warreth: The Restoration of the Office and Ministry of the Intercessor, which is available in paperback and pdf form on the website. References: all scriptural references are from the KJV 1.) Matthew 4:17, cf. Mark 1:14-15 2.) John 1:1-3 3.) John 17:5 4.) Colossians 1:16-17 5.) Hebrews 1:2 6.) Genesis 1:3 7.) Genesis 1:26-28 8.) Psalm 103:19 states that God has prepared His THRONE in Heaven, which indicates that where the throne is, there the kingdom is also. Yet, we understand that the entire creation was the Kingdom of God, and He extended an active participation in that Kingdom to Man. 9.) Merriam-Webster, Inc: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. Eleventh ed. Springfield, Mass. : Merriam-Webster, Inc., 2003 10.) Merriam-Webster, Inc: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. Eleventh ed. Springfield, Mass. : Merriam-Webster, Inc., 2003
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11.) The image and likeness of God is also the dominion that Man possessed, He had a sovereignty through his FREE WILL. 12.) Ephesians 1:4, 10 13.) Isaiah 45:18 14.) Genesis 2:16-17 15.) Isaiah 46:10 16.) Isaiah 46:11 17.) 2 Corinthians 4:4, cf. John 12:31 18.) 2 Corinthians 1:20 19.) Isaiah 46:10-11 20.) 1 Samuel 10:25 21.) Exodus 25:9
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