Commissioning of Leadership
Introduction:
Take your Bibles please and go to the book of Acts. When you hear about the heart of leadership and the heart of outreach. The heart of leadership and the heart of outreach all comes from the greatness of the integrity of the Word that men and women must know before they could put it into practice.
We were talking this afternoon a little bit about, or maybe was later this evening, about how our ministry has stirred up such a beehive among the different denominations. On the college campuses, Campus Crusade just loved us and some of the rest of them. They have such a fantastic respect and this became so vividly real to me because of a government situation this past week where one of our believers was witnessing and that individual just loved our way person until they got to the subject of finding out that this individual was a Way believer and he had heard that we did not believe that Jesus Christ was God. Up until that time, he thought that that individual was the most wonderful Christian he had ever met. But in a matter of a few seconds, his whole attitude changed because he found out that individual belonged to the Way ministry and he had heard by the hearing of the ears, or something, that we did not believe Jesus Christ was God. You see, if you love someone, that doesn’t change that quickly and if you really understood. But the problem is with those people and the denominations, you can just give up. They can fight, they can throw us in jail, they can raise hell, do anything they want to. Jesus Christ was never God, never will be and anyone who believes that Jesus Christ is God is living in idolatry.
So the Word has to live, the
Word is what sets the truth for men and women.
So we come back to the Word, not a man’s theology. June 3, of course, is Pentecost which is the
greatest day of the church here because that’s when it all happened. The great thing that God
had kept secret from before the foundations of the world came into concretion. They didn’t understand what they had but they
utilized. I’ve been with Mrs. Wierwille 40 years, I
don’t understand her either, but we’re still living together. The point is on the day of Pentecost, they
began to utilize something. Later on,
God made this whole mystery known and it’s written in the Word in the
epistles. But you see I said the greatest day
of the year is Pentecost. That’s true to
a degree and yet it isn’t. To this
extent, you couldn’t have Pentecost without the ascension,
you couldn’t have the ascension without the ministry of Jesus Christ. You couldn’t have the ministry without the
birth, so really the whole thing wraps up in a beautiful package. You have to have the birth, you have to have the
whole life of Christ, and before Pentecost of course, is the day of the ascension,
which is, this year, we should recognize as the 24th of May, 3rd
of June, 24th, would that be right?
Yeah that would be close enough wouldn’t it? Ten days before the Day of Pentecost, the
Ascension. And on that beautiful day,
they will be going on that tour. And
they’re going to be in
TEACHING:
But the book of Acts sets all of these great truths for us. And I just want to begin tonight to hit a few of these things with you and perhaps we can touch on the greatness of these truths just to bless you a little bit.
The former treatise, verse 1 of Acts 1. The former treatise. A treatise is somewhat more extended, more detailed in different facets than just an epistle. The word epistle means a letter. Now a letter, the old usage of a letter is an epistle. Today when we think of a letter as an epistle, we think of somebody that writes me 8 pages or something. That I call an epistle. But it’s not technically true.
An epistle is a letter, the former treatise is the book of Acts. The book of Acts is the treatise of the rise and the expansion of the Christian church. The former treatise is the gospel of Luke. Luke wrote the gospel of Luke. But he also penned the book of Acts. Acts is the rise and the expansion of the Christian church. It is that outreach of the Christian church. But the gospel of Luke is the treatise and it’s a beautiful treatise. I was so blessed yesterday again when Walter handled that Scripture from Luke where he declares that he had perfect knowledge, perfect understanding of all things from the very first which we know needs some working because it’s not that he had the perfect understanding, he had perfect understanding from above.
God gave it and when God gives you something, that is perfect understanding. The former treatise, the former treatise is the gospel of Luke. And I was so blessed also yesterday when someone made a statement or came in my presence. I read it in a letter, I guess from one of my corp kids. I was a little behind on letter reading. The statement or the essence of it which triggered in my mind was that from the 40 days after the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ to the ascension, all of that Jesus Christ did was witness. The first thing Jesus Christ did after God got him up was witness. It said he went to the imprisoned spirits that had caused the first overthrow, the flood, and he witnessed, he witnessed, witness is the text. Isn’t that something? He went with witnessing in his resurrected body. Well, he’d been witnessing while he had the other body, but the moment he got up, God got him right back to doing the same thing, he went out witnessing. And that record in Luke about the Lord Jesus Christ and his ministry of witnessing is absolutely fantastic. And that former treatise, the gospel of Luke covers what the first verse of Acts 1 says. Of all that Jesus began both to do and what? Teach. Do it before teaching. He did it. He did it. Anybody can teach, but it’s the doing of it that’s important. We used to say if a fella couldn’t do it, then give him a professor’s job. You know, let him teach.
But look at the record here. All that Jesus began, not all that he began. That word all does not mean that the gospel of Luke has everything in it that Jesus did. But the treatise is all without any distinction or all that he manifested that God wanted made known in the way in which God told Luke to put it together.
Fantastic difference between the Gospels of Matthew Mark, and Luke and John. I don’t know if you ever get enough time to teach all these things to your people, but boy, the gospel of Matthew, when God gave revelation to Matthew. Matthew wrote the Revelation God wanted written in Matthew’s terminology and he put some tremendous truths in there that Mark does not handle. Then Mark handles some things that Matthew doesn’t handle. Then Luke handles some things that neither Matthew or Mark handles. Then finally John comes along and he puts together some of the great doctrinal, positive believing teaching truths of the entire ministry of Jesus Christ. That’s why the former treatise, the gospel of Luke have I made, O Theophilus. The word Theophilus means ‘beloved of God’. Beloved of God. I do not believe that the book of Acts is addressed to an individual, like the commentaries say. I believe that the book of Acts is addressed to the beloved of God. They use the name Theophilus, you know like someone else may have a name that means something. That would communicate. They use this. The word Theophilus, it’s a way of writing. Shakespeare did it. Other people have done it. Why can’t God do it in His Word? Well He does. And it’s up to us to study to show ourselves what? Approved unto whom? See it. And that the former treatise have I made O beloved unto who? God. O Beloved of God. O beloved of God. You’re born again of God’s spirit. You’re beloved of whom? That’s why the former treatise is for your learning. It’s there for you. Of all that Jesus began both to #1 do, to do, to do. Jesus was a doer. He did. Of all that he began to do, his action.
When I work the Word, I get so
blessed with Jesus. You know if he’d be
God, I’d have problems galore. But if he
is that mediator as I Timothy 2 says, the mediator between God and men, the man
Christ Jesus, then I can identify, I can understand. Cause he makes known
God by his action, by his life. He
teaches me what God is all about. He is
the one who teaches God as a Father. Tremendous truths. Of all that Jesus began both to do, he did it. He did it.
And the reason he did it is so that after the day of Pentecost, it could
be said that it was done. In the old testament, which includes the Gospels, the great Word in
the Old Testament that capsulizes the action of men
is the word ‘do’. Joshua,
children of Israel, Moses, children of
The former treatise have I made, O Theophilas, of all that Jesus began to do and teach. -- Acts 1: 2
All that Jesus began both to do and to what? Teach. Until verse 2. Until the day he was taken up. Until the day he was what? That’s the Ascension. He was taken up. After that, he through (dia - meaning by or preceding from) and right here it must be the giver giving it to Jesus by revelation. You see, in the gospel of John, chapter 3, verse 34 is a fantastic and verse:
For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of who? God. The man Christ Jesus, he spoke the words of whom? So when he spoke the words of God, it was just like God speaking. God is spirit. Jesus Christ was God’s only begotten son and when he spoke, it was like God talking cause he was doing the will of God. Kids, when you work this stuff, it all fits like a hand in a glove. I always do my Father’s Will. I and my Father are what? One. Spoke God’s Word, always obedient to God’s Word. God’s only begotten son speaketh the words of God. For, for, for God giveth not the spirit by measure unto him. Unto him is properly added to make sense.
For
he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for
God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
-- John 3: 34
God giveth not the spirit by measure unto him. Do you know what that means? Everything that was available Jesus Christ had. But Jesus Christ could not speak in tongues because it was not what? Available. He couldn’t interpret it it was not what? Available. But he could prophesy cause that’s Old Testament. That was available. He didn’t give the spirit by measure. On some of the Old Testament prophets and men of God in Old Testament, he gave it by measure.
But on His only begotten son, he did not give it by measure. That means he gave Jesus Christ everything that was available up until that time. That’s why until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through by way of the Holy Spirit which has to be the giver by God, by God, the giver, God the giver, he gave it to Jesus by revelation. Jesus Christ being the mediator, the man Christ Jesus. He knew God, he could only know God by what he learned from the written Word, the scrolls or by what? Revelation. And these commandments that he gave in those 40 days are absolutely fantastic because they are revelation, a lot of it, coming to pass in the future. Jesus Christ made statements about things he absolutely didn’t know anything about. He had not experienced, but he made them because God him revelation and he just declared it. And then later after or on the day of Pentecost, they came into manifestation. You see, God wouldn’t have to give himself revelation. Man, when you look at this how silly this whole thing about Jesus Christ being God is. How absolutely devilish it is. As a matter of fact, it’s the most devilish doctrine the church has taught for centuries. That’s why there’s no power left there’s nothing there because God just has taken his hand off of it. No power, well. That’s verse 2:
Until the day in which he was taken up, all that period of time, he gave what God gave him, commandments unto the apostles whom he had what? Chosen.
Until the day in which he was taken up after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen. -- Acts 1: 2
And their of course is the great
stopping point because Luke
Now this Ascension, we go to Luke. I want to just show you these verses
tonight. Last chapter
of Luke. I remember one occasion
we were in the Bible lands. We were up
there on the mount of
Olives to the west side just where you start down through the
brook Cidron and cross up back into
Chapter 24 of Luke. The last thing that he said to them and he must have had this by revelation, verse 49.
And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: you, how many ‘yous’ would have been there? 12 Judas was one of those ‘yous’. Now that alone stops me in my tracks because if Jesus Christ said that God his father would send the promise upon you. Then Judas Iscariot could not have been born of the seed of the adversary. Otherwise, your Bible falls to pieces. Then, if Judas had been born of the seed of the adversary, born of the seed of the devil, then he could never have been present to hear that promise. For God said through Jesus Christ all by revelation, remember I read you that. John 3: 34 you see, if you’re born of the seed of the serpent, he couldn’t get born of another seed, right? Then he could not have received the promise of the Father. That’s how I also know, among other things, that Judas was not born of the seed of the serpent.
Well, he said tarry ye, talking to
the 12 apostles, in the city of
And,
behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of
He led them out as far as to
what? Bethany, Bethany,
Why
And he
led them out as far as to
And it came to pass while he blessed them, while he was blessing them, what a tremendous thing, while he was blessing them, God lifted him up - the Ascension. Wouldn’t that be a great way to the see Jesus Christ go? I can picture it in my mind. I can see how this thing happened. While he was blessing them, he was parted from them and carried up into heaven.
And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. -- Luke 24: 51
And they worshiped him, not as God,
but as the son of God. They respected
him and worshiped him, recognized him for all the greatness of what he had
accomplished. And they returned to
And
they worshipped him, and returned to
And that of course finally ends up at Pentecost. But in Acts then again in chapter 1.
Given of commandments unto the apostles whom he had
chosen. -- Acts 1: 2b
To whom also, verse 3, to whom, the apostles whom he had chosen, all 12, he showed himself alive after his passion, after his death and the resurrection, after his passion. The word passion includes that whole period, 3 days, 3 nights. He showed himself alive by many infallible proofs. What’s an infallible proof? A proof that has no holes in it, it’s not fallible. It’s infallible. He showed himself by many infallible proofs. Being seeing of them, the 12 apostles 40 days and during that period of time, he spoke to them regarding the things pertaining to the kingdom of what? God. Why didn’t he speak to them about the church of the mystery? He didn’t know. That was the mystery that was hidden in God kept secret from before the foundations of the world. He didn’t know it was hidden in God. Well if he didn’t know and it was hidden in God, then Jesus Christ could not be what? God.
40 days, 40 days, 40 days he moved
among the people in his resurrected body.
The type of body that we will have, fashioned like unto his body as it
says in the gathering together.
Tremendous themes of teaching, yet so many things you don’t fully understand. It’s not made known but he moved among the
people for 40 days. And then came the Ascension. Ten days after the Ascension, the day of Pentecost. And this Ascension occurred in
Well, that’s all I’m going to do
tonight. But maybe we can start with
verse 4 next Sunday or something. But
isn’t that Word thrilling and exciting and it answers your questions. It meets your hearts needs. It’s the Word that satisfies, or anything
else, not TV. It’s the Word,
people. And once you have the rightly
divided Word, at that point, you will never hunger or thirst for righteousness
again. Once you know the truth of one,
Word of God, one Scripture even, at that point of that truth, you will never
hunger again. But you may have hunger
and thirst at other places because you don’t know. But at those places where that Word of God is
fully expounded and made plain and clear, at that point, you will never thirst
again. Jesus Christ said that once when
he was at the well, I think. If you
really drink of that water of life, you are never thirsty and that’s what the
Word does. At this point like tonight
when I’m teaching, I have absolutely no thirst.
I have a great thanksgiving in my heart for the truth of the Word. My only thirst is like
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