FIVE SMOOTH STONES - The Five Ascension Gifts in the Heavenly Shepherds Bag

FIVE SMOOTH STONES — The Five Ascension Gifts in the Heavenly Shepherd’s Bag

By carefully looking at what the Spirit has recorded for us we can see that there are a few elements which are necessary for a group or a gathering to be called a biblical ekklesia or Church. From this record we can deduce that the required elements are simply recognized leadership which is followed, and a clear vison or plan to be carried out. Nothing more, nothing less. Through this simple transformation the saints in Ephesus became the mighty Church of Ephesus whom Paul ordained elders over, and the apostle John later wrote to through the revelation received on the isle of Patmos. Understanding this seemingly simple principle has helped to transform many informal gatherings of Churches around the world into corporate ekklesias which the Lord is using to extend His kingdom upon earth. While each Christian has a measure of authority to fulfill the calling and commissioning of God, there is a corporate anointing available which multiplies the effect of the faith of the members to greater than the sum of all the saints together. God allows a corporate anointing when a group becomes united as a corporate group, a Church. This multiplied anointing is available regardless of meeting times or meeting places. It is the elements of a Church that allow the multiplied corporate anointing to come, not the time or the place or the numbers. Why is it important for us to understand this principle? So that we can receive all that is available from the Lord to accomplish our calling upon the earth and within the kingdom. The authority held by a Church is more than the sum of its parts. Without leadership and common vision, there is no addition of authority as each member is added. With recognition of leadership and a common vision, there is a multiplication of authority. (See Appendix B) ENDNOTES: 19 I have an example of a faithful group of five families of saints in an Asian country to whom I shared some of these principles. They had faithfully stood for the Lord, preached the gospel, and even had the word confirmed with signs and wonders. But in fifteen years’ time, they were still only five families. After spending a few weeks with them, setting a clear vision before them, and setting leadership in place - within one year they had grown to over one hundred. In a few years their Church had grown to many hundreds and they were training up and sending out leaders to other

1