The Administration of God
better titled,
The Economy of God
1 Tim 1:3-4 3 As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, 4 nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith. NASU
Let us pray…
The English word administration found in this passage of Apostle Paul’s letter to Timothy, and in other Biblical passages…wherever it is found…that word administration is translated from the Greek Word oikonomia…which is where we get the English word “economy”…oikonomia - economy
Economy - the agreed-upon, cultural system of exchange
Listen to a few examples of various kinds of economic systems throughout the world…
ANARCHISM: You have two cows. The cows decide you have no right to do anything with their milk and leave to form their own society.
ARISTOCRATISM: You have two cows. You sell both and buy one really big cow - with a pedigree.
BRITISH: You have two cows. They are crazy. You try to sell them in Europe.
BUREAUCRACY: You have two cows. At first the government regulates what you can feed them and when you can milk them. Then it pays you not to milk them. Then it takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and pours the milk down the drain. Then it requires you to fill out forms accounting for the missing cows.
CAPITALISM — AMERICAN: You have two cows. You sell one of them, and buy a bull. The cow and bull have a great love life; you sell the movie rights to Hollywood. Then you go into real estate.
COMMUNISM: You have two cows. The government takes both cows. The government sells the milk in government stores. You can’t afford the milk. You wither away and die.
COMMUNISM — CHINESE: You don’t have any cows. The government sets up a joint venture with McDonald’s.
COMMUNISM — SOVIET: You have two cows. You have to take care of them, but the government takes all the milk. Then the government sends you to prison.
DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. Your neighbors decide who gets the milk.
DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. A vote is held, and the cows win.
DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. They outvote you 2-1 to ban all meat and dairy products. You go bankrupt.
DICTATORSHIP: You have two cows. The government takes both cows and drafts you.
FASCISM: You have two cows. The government takes both, hires you to take care of them, and sells you the milk.
IDEALISM: You have two cows. You get married and your spouse milks them.
LEBANONISM: You have two cows. One is owned by Syria and the other is controlled by the government.
LIBERALISM: You have two cows. You sell both to the rich. The government then taxes the rich one cow and gives it to the poor.
LIBERTARIANISM: Go away. What I do with my cows is none of your business.
NEW DEALISM: You have two cows. The government takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and pours the milk down the sink. The government insists there is a giant storage tank where all the milk goes.
PACIFISM: You have two cows. They stampede you.
BART SIMPSONISM: Don’t have a cow man!
UNITED NATIONISM: You have two cows. France vetoes you from milking them. The United States and Britain veto the cows from milking you. New Zealand abstains. Sweden remains neutral.
Just a few agreed-upon, systems of exchange around the world…listen to this true story…
There were scores of missionaries that had attempted to go into a group of tribal people and share the gospel. They learned the language of the tribes people but the people never ever opened up to listen to what the missionaries ever spoke. Time after time this happened. Each one of the missionaries went into the jungle and every time they were offered a drink of this tribal recipe they would turn it down. The missionaries were unwilling to drink this homemade brew that had had the same affect as alcohol. The way the tribal people made their homemade brew was the women while preparing it would spit in the bowl which would cause the necessary fermentation to happen that would cause the fermentation bringing about in affect, alcohol. Missionary after missionary would refuse the drink, some thought it too gross, others had religious issues about drinking alcohol. It wasn’t until a missionary went in and actually drank the concoction, that the tribal received the words that the missionary had to say, and because of his sharing a drink, an entire village gave their hearts to Christ.
Now, you could take a missionary with a suitcase full of money…millions and millions of dollars…into villages like this all around the world, and that pile of money would get you absolutely nothing. Except maybe a little kindling to get a fire started.
Every group, or every nation, every culture has its own exchange rules. For this tribe that I just mentioned…the exchange was…you drink our homemade spit-concoction, we’ll listen to you! It was the sharing in the homemade concoction with the tribal people that purchased the opportunity to speak about Jesus Christ to these tribal people.
In other countries, the economy system goes like this…when a young man is interested in marrying a certain young woman, he goes to talk to the father of the girl and offers some cows to the family in exchange for the young woman’s hand in marriage. The more beautiful the woman, in the eyes of the beholder, the more valuable the woman, the more cows it would cost to accomplish the exchange.
To understand God’s economic system, we first need to understand that there are 2 administrations coexisting…not coequal, just coexisting…let’s lay a solid foundation regarding the 2 administrations…and then hear about God’s economic system in the light of 2 administrations.
Repeat this after me, will ya?
“God good, devil bad” “God good, devil bad” one more time “God good, devil bad”
Now try this one…
“Health good, sickness bad” “Health good, sickness bad” one more time “Health good, sickness bad”
You guys are doing REALLY, REALLY well! Now, same theme…a bit of a variation…
“Health builds, sickness destroys” “Health builds, sickness destroys” and one more time “Health builds, sickness destroys”
Everywhere there is a destroying effort active, there is a dark administration behind it, implementing that administration’s objectives, and that administration will remain, stealing, killing and destroying, until it is evicted. The good news, the really great news is that this dark administration, the devil’s administration has been rendered utterly powerless to advance it’s cause. God’s desire is for His administration to invade, occupy, rebuild and restore that area.
Isn’t it quite amazing how our society has “progressed”, as some would call it, over the years…
You see, some 2000 years ago, EVERY sickness (say with me every, EVERY) and EVERY disease (say it again, EVERY) was considered the work of the devil.
But because of all of the “wonderful” educational, intellectual and medical advances in our western society, now we’ve surpassed the knowledge and wisdom that even God has…and now, we say that God is actually bringing sickness and disease upon people to “teach us a lesson, or promote the development of character.” Isn’t it amazing how we’ve “progressed”???
It’s quite amazing that while the Scriptures say that Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever…somehow there are pockets of Christians nearly everywhere you go, that believe…”well, yes, Jesus did come and heal every sickness and every disease, but you know…now His job title has changed and He puts sickness and disease on people to teach them a valuable lesson, or to somehow promote the development of character, or to somehow glorify Himself.“
When was it exactly that the devil and God changed job titles???
You see, I truly believe, if we’ll simply humble ourselves to view the world as it was seen in scripture 2000 years ago, where every sickness and every disease was always believed to be the actual handiwork of the devil…and the way God always glorified Himself when faced with sickness and disease was by healing the sick (in other words, demonstrating His power to destroy the works of the devil) rather than putting sickness on people…if we will see our world with a Biblical perspective, we can then deal with sickness and disease the way that God wants us to deal with it. As long as it is something that a “sovereign” God brings upon someone, well, there just isn’t any remedy for that is there? And it sure absolves the church from any responsibility in exercising Her authority in Christ…we can just blame God that way.
The reality is this…there are 2 administrations happening on earth. One administration came to “steal, kill and destroy.” Would you say that with me…STEAL, KILL and DESTROY
Speaking of the purpose of the devil’s administration, Satan’s administration…Jesus said this…
John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy… NASU
That’s the only purpose of the devil’s administration. He doesn’t come to do anything other than that. That’s why one of satan’s names is the destroyer. That is the purpose of the devil’s administration…”to steal, kill and destroy”
Now, let’s try this again…
“Health builds, sickness destroys” “Health builds, sickness destroys” Very good
Jesus made it clear to distinguish what administration He was from…that He was not of that very wicked, heinous, and despicable administration that steals, kills and destroys. Though some accused Jesus of working for the devil’s administration by saying He was doing the works of the devil. In fact, let’s see that…
Matt 12:22-24 22 Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. 23 All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.” NASU
But Jesus clarified that He wasn’t hear to steal, kill and destroy man. Jesus came and successfully fulfilled the mission the Father sent Him to earth to accomplish…to destroy the destroyer! To demonstrate that God’s power to destroy the destroyer, is more powerful than the destroyers power to destroy man.
Luke 9:56 “…for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save (deliver, save, heal, fully restore) them.”
NASU
1 John 3:8 “The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.” NASU
The Son of God appeared to destroy the works of the “other” administration. That was His purpose for appearing! Well, let’s dig in a bit today and discover what the Bible has to say about God’s administration AND His system of exchange…
1 Tim 1:3-4 3 As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, 4 nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith. NASU
I. What is the Administration of God?
Eph 1:22-23 22 And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. NASU
The administration of God includes not only Himself but everything and everyone under His Lordship. Everyone that calls Him, El Presidente, Boss, Lord!
Every administration has administrators…
When people complain about the Bush Administration, they are not simply attacking President George Bush, but the men and women that he has chosen to implement his vision for America. The Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, and the various other advisers and cabinet positions that he installs. The Attorney General, Gonzales is under attack, Condoleeza Rice is under attack, Dick Cheney is under attack…everyone in the Bush’s Administration is under attack. So an administration is not only the head honcho, but the team that the boss has assembled to accomplish His vision. The opposite in this analogy is also true…when people attack Attorney General Gonzalez, they are really attacking President Bush, when they attack VP Dick Cheney they are really attacking President Bush.
John 15:20 …If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you NASU
In God’s administration, Jesus is the Head over the church, all those who are born again comprise the church. He is Lord over the body of Christ. And wonderfully, He fills His Church with His Presence, empowering us with the Holy Spirit to accomplish His vision for His administration.
Now, that describes how Christ relates to His own administration…His wholehearted followers…
But what is His status, His position, His authority and thus, the position of His entire administration in relation to the other administration, the domain of darkness, Satan’s administration? Let us read a few verses before the passage we just read in Ephesians…
Eph 1:18-21 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will 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 surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
“He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.” Now, just like President Bush and every president before him has specifically chosen people to implement their vision of America, Jesus Christ, also has chosen people to administrate or implement His vision for the world…who are the ones that have been authorized and empowered to accomplish the vision of the administration of God?
II. Who Has God Chosen to Administrate on His Behalf?
You’ve heard this quote before, but I believe it is so very life-changing that if you don’t lay hold of it and ask the Lord to adjust your life to what the Lord is saying through T.L. Osborn, you will live your entire life and completely misunderstand the life God has called you to walk in, and the authority you have as a born again, Spirit-filled believer in Christ. Listen to this quote…
T.L. Osborne, a man who spent the majority of his life as a very powerful and a very effective missionary throughout India, Africa, and third world nations throughout the world, leading hundreds of thousands, if not millions to the Lord, and seeing the miraculous occur on an everyday basis, I believe has something to offer the body of Christ. Listen to this word that he speaks to you and to me,
“The primary problem with the church of the western world is that quite often their prayers never get any farther than the ceiling. There are two reasons for this…the first reason their prayers fail to touch the heart of God is, (1) they ask God to do what He has already done, and the second reason their prayers fail to move God is because, (2) they ask God to do what He told them to do.”
Pastor Bill Johnson of Bethel Church in Redding, California, currently pastoring a church of well over 4000 people that experience the miraculous power of God on an everyday basis, he says this,
“How long do you think you’d have a job if you constantly asked your employer to do the things he told you to do?”
In T.L. Osborn’s book Soulwinning: Out Where the Sinners Are he writes this,
“We have made an errand boy out of God. We forget that He is the General Manager. We busy ourselves telling God to do all the nice things which we ought to do — to visit the poor and needy, to pass by and comfort the feeble, to bless and provide for the poor, to encourage the ones in prison, to sustain the weak, to speak to sinners. We want the Lord to do all these things — while we pray.
We have developed such a convenient religion!”
You are God’s administrators here on earth! You are in His administration! You are! He says that you are an ambassador for Christ! He has set you apart and He has sent you into THIS world to further His administration and here’s some really cool news…as a born again and baptized in the Holy Spirit member of the administration, He gives you every bit of necessary authority and power to accomplish the task. Listen to this regarding Jesus’ perception of His own assignment to destroy the works of the devil…
John 19:30 “…It is finished…”
Mark 16:19 So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out… NASU
I’ve never known a conscientious worker, a truly diligent worker, an absolutely top-notch, quality worker that said “It is finished” AND sat down when there was still work for him to do. And Scriptures say 5 times, “He sat down”! Why is He sitting down? Because He has passed on the baton of destroying the works of the devil to you, the baton to do the work of the Father, to you!!! And, as you receive the baton to destroy the works of the devil, which is only available for those that have experienced being born again, and the baptism in the Holy Spirit, now He sends you to do the work…His work, of destroying the works of the devil…as the gospel declares His work, “It is finished!”
So, because Jesus’ work is finished, you are called to implement the vision God has to establish His Kingdom on earth?
Mark 16:15-18 15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned. 17 “These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” NASU
You have been called and chosen…to implement the vision of God and His administration…
It’s why Apostle Paul exhorted the Ephesians, “I implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called…”
III. What Furthers the Administration of God? What Hinders the
Administration of God?
1 Tim 1:4 furthering the administration of God which is by faith
As I was saying at the beginning, there are an abundant number of “agreed-upon, cultural systems of exchange”. Some require you to drink spit, others to have cows, and still others the dollar will do. But in God’s administration…the currency is FAITH.
Which is to say that the administration of God is released into earth and furthered, by your faith! The one thing, the one condition of man that is necessary for God’s Administration, His Kingdom, His Government to advance on earth…is the church’s faith…you are the Church…your faith, my faith, our faith in Him! He has chosen in His covenant with us that when we exercise faith, demons are cast out, the sick are healed, our sins are forgiven, families are restored, and we are blessed….all according to what we have in our faith checking account.
No wonder when Jesus returns to earth…the one thing He’ll be looking for…not love, not joy…
Luke 18:8 However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” NASU
As we actively apply our faith in Him, in His words, that what He has said, and continues to say today, is undoubtedly, unquestionably true, that what He has said and says today about our authority in Christ, and the power that we have already received through the baptism in the Holy Spirit…as we trust or have faith that that is true…His administration, His Lordship, His government on this earth naturally expands, is furthered, is established with greater boundaries!
When He says something in His Word, it IS true! When He speaks to your heart…you can bank on it! We take Him at His Word, and that is called faith. It is fully relying on someone in such a way that all that they say is not doubted. In other words, because He has already said it…we, having been born again and baptized in the Holy Spirit, you and I have every bit of authority and power needed to destroy the works of the devil. Nothing else is needed. When someone either refuses the baptism in the Holy Spirit, or has been baptized in the Holy Spirit but doubts the authority and power given to them…what effect do you think that has on the expansion of the Administration of God? That’s right, it hinders it…James tells us that doubting and unbelieving people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord…
Isa 9:7 Of the increase of His government (His administration) and peace, there will be no end, NKJV
put prophetic word here…