The Evangelicals, Pentecostals & Charismatics including mainline churches don’t have the government of God over them. In this new season, the Church (Ekklesia) can only be defined in the context of churches having apostolic oversight and counsel. Churches that do not have apostolic oversight over them can never truly fit into the definition of Ekklesia; Apostolic Architecture, as defined by New Testament theology. (Matthew 16:18, 1 Corinthians 12:28).

Leadership training must be taught within the context of how the Church (Ekklesia) is to be built. Ekklesia is Greek word used in Matthew 16:18 to describe “church” and it means “the called out ones”, i.e. “church” comprises of believers who have “come out of” their sins by accepting Jesus as their Lord and they have forsaken familiar surroundings and are making progress in their spiritual journey towards spiritual maturity. Jesus introduced the word “church” in Matthew 16:18 and said He will build His Church, but he did not explain how. However, Apostle Paul received the revelation to build the Church as a “wise master builder”. (1 Corinthians 3:10). So Paul received the blueprint on how to structure the Church and in 1 Corinthians 12:28, Paul gave us the apostolic architecture of how the corporate Church should be built. 1 Cor 12:28 says, “And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues.”. For reformation and transformation to come to the Body of Church, apostles must come first, prophets come second and teachers (referring to evangelists, pastors and teachers) come third. This is how God administrates His corporate Church globally, nationally and locally.

Now this lays the foundation for what I’m going to say next regarding John Maxwell and Jim Collins. These two men operate under the Evangelical and/or Pentecostal church which preaches well on Sundays, and this is where they derive their leadership grace from, however, their local churches DO NOT have a local government that is scriptural. That is, they don’t have an apostolic oversight presiding over their churches which is what is stated in 1 Cor 12:28. Basically their churches need authentic apostles to preside over them. We are now in the Apostolic Season. God has moved on and we need to follow Him. The introduction of apostles and the apostolic oversight they provide to local churches literally affects the type of leadership model/pattern we adopt and live out in our churches.

The concept that God creates evil is grossly misunderstood. This thinking is mistaken for three reasons. First, if we interpret this verse as meaning that God brought evil into existence, it goes against the theology of evil taught elsewhere in Scripture and everything we know about God (e.g., God is good and there is no darkness in him—1 John 1:15). It would render the Bible incoherent. Although non-Christians might level such a charge, this post is not intended to address the coherence question since it is directed to believers who already accept the inspiration and coherence of Scripture.

Second, the Hebrew word translated as “evil” in the above King James translation is translated as “calamity” (NASB, ESV) or “disaster” (NIV) in other major translations. Even the updated New King James translation renders it as “calamity.” That’s because, like any word, it can have multiple meanings, and it’s usually the context that determines which meaning was intended by the author. That brings us to the final point.

Third, the context of this passage (and the message of the prophets of the Old Testament in general) is about blessing those who are faithful and punishing those who disobey (Isa. 45:9, 24). It’s within this principle that God declares that he creates “well-being” and “calamity.” He’s responsible for bringing prosperity to those who are faithful and calamity to those who rebel. That’s even consistent with his treatment of his own people—Israel. He rewards them when they obey and punishes them (e.g., slavery, exile, etc.) when they disobey. In that sense, yes, it is God who creates calamity.
God didn’t bring evil into existence. It’s the result of sin and our fallen world. God, however, does bring instances of calamity on people. In fact, it’s his prerogative to do so. Even in these cases, though, it is good for him to render judgment on guilty people. Though we might subjectively not like the calamity we face, it is objectively good to punish those who do wrong. Present-day justice systems operate in a similar fashion. Prison is subjectively a bad experience for prisoners, but it is an objectively good thing for justice to be rendered. The same is true for God. Isaiah 45:7 was a reminder that God blessed those who honored him and brought calamity upon those who disobeyed.

The real contention with the prosperity gospel propagated by the Charismatic Movement lies not in denying God’s desire to enrich our lives physically and financially but in the problematic perspective it promotes: pursuing God not for His essence but for the benefits He provides. True faith prioritizes seeking the Giver of blessings, not merely the blessings themselves.

Many spiritual leaders in the nation are still promoting and erecting the altar when they should be focusing on the Word of God. They say, “God inhabits the praises of His people” and put emphasis on worship. This emphasis was introduced in the early 1980s and has already expired in 1990s with the emergence of the Apostolic Season yet many continue to indulge in it. There is no true worship without the revelation of the Word of God. We must understand that the rhema Word (spoken revealed word) creates the atmosphere of worship. The days of altar worship is long gone. Our emphasis must be on the development of the Word of God not on erecting altars. Do not focus on the effects (erecting altars) rather focus on the cause (having access to the rhema Word).