Office

On the Left you see an officer of the Roman government and on the Right you see the officers of the Kingdom of God.

The word officer today can mean someone in power either over people or things for which they are responsible. It has been defined as "a holder of a public, civil, or ecclesiastical office."

We see a word in the Bible's New Testament translated officer some 11 times but also translated servant and minister. The word is huperetes which can refer to an assistant to a judge, or a soldier or police officer or anyone who serves someone else.

The word is often translated officer when referring to the government agents who opposed Christ but servant when used by Christ or his followers to reference ministers of the Church or the Kingdom of God at hand.

This practice of translating the same Greek word different ways might lead some people to think that Jesus did not appoint officers. He clearly did appoint men to take care of the business of the Kingdom of God at hand and He called those men the ekklesia or church. He also restricted them from exercising authority one over the other.

Christ was appointing a kingdom to His little flock.

The word huperetes was from the word eresso meaning to row. We all know we are to live by faith, hope and charity and the perfect law of liberty. Which means that we need to take care of one another by love not by force like many governments were doing before John the Baptist.

That caring for one another is what Religion use to mean before Modern Christians allowed the word to be redefined as what they think about God.

Pure Religion was taking care of the needy of society without the covetous aid of the Benefactors and their officers of the World nor the Fathers of the earth who exercised authority one over the other through their public officers.

Abraham, Moses and Jesus knew what it takes to maintain a free society especially when hard times come. Which is why there were instructions about choosing Seven Men in the Old Testament's Ecclesiastes 11:2 and we see the apostles doing the same in Acts 6.

There have been many groups of seven men. They are either going toward the kingdom or away from it. While the previous groups gathered for their own profit and gain, there have been groups that were seeking a direction more toward the kingdom and the purposes of the seven men chosen to serve tables of Christ in Acts 6:5.

When Jesus came to the world Rome and Judea had already shifted from free societies and a Republican form of government to centralized socialist welfare states.

Jesus said that their Corban system of welfare made the word of God to none effect. Children were not taking care of their parents but expected the government to do that through the treasury of Corban. So He took the government from one group who were not bearing fruit and gave it to another hand chosen group called His Little flock... as he foretold in Matthew 21:43:

• "Therefore say I unto you, The Kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof."

Of course at that time those Pharisees were ruling over the people with an exercising authority one over the other which is why they were not bearing fruit.

The Covetous Practices of Socialism or even the slothful practice of forsaking to come together and form that network of charity "corrodes not only the economy but the human spirit itself"

We again see in Luke 12:32 Jesus tells His little flock that He would appoint them the kingdom.

"Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Luke 12:32

When we say the word government or office or officer we think of something or someone who exercises authority over other people.

These officers or servants of Christ's appointed government were not to be like other governments so we should not assume they are the same nor doing the same as other governments. The word government is defined as "the governing body of a nation, state, or community" but does not have to include the idea of ruling over the people which Jesus made abundantly clear.

• Luke 22:25 And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. But ye [shall] not [be] so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve.

The word chief in this verse is the Greek word hegeomai which is more often translated count, think about, or esteem. It is not the Greek word archon which means a ruler who can force compliance with authority.

The phrase "But ye [shall] not [be] so" does not mean there is "no formal government offices or officers." But merely that what they received was freely given. This made His government a true government of the people, for the people and by the people.

The early Church was called a viable Republic in the heart of the Roman Empire by historians but at one time a “republic” was defined, “A state or nation in which the supreme power rests in all the citizens… A state or nation with a president as its titular head; distinguished from monarchy”. In this definition, we see again that the supreme power is in the hands of the citizen, who is entitled to vote.

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The early church had its own system of social welfare called Pure Religion which they practiced when they met:

“And the wealthy among us help the needy ... and willing, give what each thinks fit; and what is collected is deposited with the president, who succours the orphans and widows and those who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and those who are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care of all who are in need.” (Ch. 65-67) AD 150, Justin Martyr on the early Church.

Clearly he appointed "formal government offices or officers" but he allowed the people to fund those offices by a freewill choice, leaving the power of government in their hands.

In fact what he says and what we see says there were those who where "chief among them" and you knew who they were by how they served a body who did not forsake the gathering together.

We see them appoint other men with the laying on of hands and when the people need services they look to the people who were the little flock. What did they do? They said:

• Acts 6:3 "Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business."

Note they did not say we will appoint someone.

They said you pick them and we will appoint them.

That was because they were "formal government offices or officers." but did not exercise authority over the people.

These men were appointed to offices of service and we see them appointing others. They were not a scattered flock.

Jesus said to his little flock, not to the people in general That he would appoint the kingdom to them.

Luke 22:29 And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me;

It is absolutely clear that there were leaders and bishops and ministers by the text and the historical record says so too.

But he took no right or responsibility away from the people by creating that office. In fact the Church could not do its job without the blessings freely given by the people.

They did do a job of serving people in a vast network as the Roman system fell.

Some day all over the world there will likely be chaos with millions of people needing to move or need assistance because of man made and natural disasters. To not have the foresight and wisdom to seek a network of caring people who love one another in good times nor neglecting to serve one another in free assemblies would be foolish and slothful.

Apathy or failing to gather together and heed the wisdom of Abraham, Moses and Jesus is certainly not as wise as the serpent nor as harmless as a dove.

Real Christians obeyed the commands of Christ, gathered together in a vast network and attended to the Weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith which include caring for the needs of our neighbors and the widows and orphans of our society through Pure Religion in matters of health, education, and welfare. We are NOT to provide for the needy of society through the Covetous Practices and the men who call themselves benefactors but who exercise authority one over the other like the socialists do.

The Way of Christ was like neither the way of the world of Rome nor the governments of the gentiles who depend on those fathers of the earth through force, fear and fealty who deliver the people back in bondage again like they were in Egypt. Christ's ministers and true Christians do not depend upon systems of social welfare that force the contributions of the people like the corban of the Pharisees which made the word of God to none effect. Many people have been deceived to go the way of Balaam and the Nicolaitan and out of The Way of Christ and have become workers of iniquity.

The Christian conflict with Rome in the first century Church appointed by Christ was because they would not apply to the fathers of the earth for their free bread but instead relied upon a voluntary network providing a daily ministration to the needy of society through Faith, Hope, and Charity by way of freewill offerings of the people, for the people, and by the people through the perfect law of liberty in Free Assemblies according to the ancient pattern of Tuns or Tens as He commanded.

The modern Christians are in need of repentance.

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"Follow me!" —Jesus the Christ.

• One of the most important things to do is to become involved in a network of Charitable Practices. Everyone should want to join a Living Network of Love and Charity.

• If you think you have a calling to be a Minister of God or you might want to dedicate your life to Christ as an Ordained Minister of His Holy Church, contact us to start the process of discipleship and become the benefactors who exercise only love, NOT authority.

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