Kingdom Relational Gatherings
By Ron McGatlin
In a general sense it is time for many kingdom people to come together in larger relational gatherings from a broader geographical sphere in addition to the small living room size groups. God, by His Spirit, will lead groups of kingdom people to seek to host gatherings on a more regional or larger basis connecting more closely with other kingdom groups and individuals.
Barbara and I have observed that prior to a winter storm, we often see many birds gathered closely together on power lines. I have no idea why that seems to be the case. However, as I pondered what the Lord was saying about gathering, I was reminded of the birds gathering closely in large numbers before a storm.
At this point the fullness of what God desires for these gatherings is not given to me. However, there are some things being made clear at this time. God has in mind KINGDOM gatherings of kingdom builders and seekers under the headship of Christ Jesus by the Holy Spirit. He desires gatherings in Christ bringing many parts together joined by the Spirit in love – bringing all the spiritual gifts and assets of each person and group into ligament type connections causing the strength of the conjoined gatherings to be greater than the sum of the strength of the individuals or small groups.
We are experiencing a new beginning - the beginning of the real body coming together. The many parts are NOT knit together through an apostle or an organization or any one person. The growing connecting or networking together is group-to-group or person-to-person led by the Sprit under the headship of Christ Jesus. These gathering are not the same thing as the highly promoted conferences gathered around personalities. These will be grassroots ground level gatherings between groups and individuals to connect with one another in Christ. These gatherings will not do the same work as the high impact, one-time prophetic and worship conferences but will establish personal spiritual connections and continuing relationships between kingdom people.
Many elders with apostolic gifting, along with elders with all the other grace gifts, will be involved by connecting with one another and connecting individuals and groups to one another. The gifted apostolic elders will not be connecting the people unto or under themselves or anyone or anything other than Christ Jesus and His kingdom. Every person is to be directly connected to the Head, Christ Jesus, by the Holy Spirit.
Many have tried in the past and will try again to connect improperly by some form of natural human or religious initiatives without the full leadership of the Sprit and will fail to achieve a living kingdom-of-God experience. God’s people and groups will seem to gather by the Spirit as naturally as the birds seem to gather before a snow storm.
Gifted elders will be moving about group-to-group within a region, village-to-village, and city-to-city. People of one group will be led to contact and connect with people in groups near them. Soon natural spirit-led relational networks will exist at ground level without a visible head. Grassroots levels of communication will carry fresh word from God and the news of what God is doing including news of gatherings. Communication will spread rapidly from person to person through multiplication as one tells two or three and each of them tells two or three more and so on. This will not be done by design but from the excitement and prompting of the Holy Spirit.
The great and powerful natural multiplication of human communication led by the Spirit will only be exceeded by the developing supernatural communication of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit can at one time communicate instantly with every believer on earth who has ears to hear. As the spiritual body begins to function in Christ by the Holy Spirit, supernatural communication becomes more normal and natural to us. Spiritual impressions and clear directions will be felt or heard more clearly as we have our spiritual senses honed by exercise through experience.
God is building a spiritual kingdom to order a natural world.
Christ Jesus is the author and finisher, the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end of the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven.
Religion has for many centuries replaced Spirit order with natural human order. The systems, organizations, and structure of rituals and programs have sought to order spiritual things. Secularism or secular humanism is a powerful religion that replaces God with man and seeks to order the world with human reason apart from God. Western society and the current “Christian” religion are significantly infected with secular humanism.
God has called out and is calling out a people to be reformed into vessels suitable to carry the life of Christ Jesus, and to order the world under Christ Jesus. Like clay vessels being returned to the potters wheel, we have been and are being broken to pieces, re-moistened by the Holy Spirit, and pressed back together into a fresh lump of clay to be returned to the hands of God shaping us into clean fresh vessels of His design to carry the life of Christ to order the world to the kingdom of God.
From start to finish it is the work of Christ Jesus. We are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus. Christ in you is the earnest expectation of glory. The whole earth shall be full of His glory and the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God.
“The LORD will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you.”
"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!"
Keep on pursuing love. It never fails and His kingdom never ends.
Ron McGatlin
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