Category Archives: mind of Christ

April 16, 2016 · 3:11 pm

Exploring the Mind of God–His Love, Purpose, and Plan

Distilling the mind of God into the ink of a single page is like trying to put a cloud burst into a coffee cup. After the torrent, we see a bit of the water of heaven captured in a small finite vessel, a symbol of the moisture poured forth on the thirsty land.

That cup of truth may satisfy the parched souls of only a few pilgrims who stop for refreshment. Hopefully this cup of rain reminds them of the firmament from which it fell.

The mind of God. How do we begin to consider and relate such ethereal thoughts? Perhaps when our finite minds decrease and His infinite wisdom increases in them.

The Hebrew God has left us a record of His thoughts that emanates from His mind as revealed to His prophets of old. This record of His thoughts were written down and miraculously preserved through the millenia for us in the last days. They are called the “scriptures of truth,” or the writings of truth.

Thousands of years ago, God spoke His mind to His people using the prophets, who wrote it down. Now God speaks to us by His Son, the heir of all things, the King of God’s Kingdom (Heb. 1: 1-2). The prophets knew the mind of God because the “Spirit of Christ…was in them” (I Pet. 1: 11). These prophets “spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (II Pet. 1: 21). They had the Spirit of Christ in them and were longing for our day, the day when the Spirit of Christ is multiplied and reproduced into a body of “many sons [and daughters] unto glory”–right here on earth!

The Spirit of Christ in the prophets of old longed for that time about 2,000 years ago for the Father Yahweh’s Son to come on the scene. For with His arrival, the Seed Son then could be planted in the earth. They knew that there could be no great harvest without the planting of the Seed Son into the earth. Christ, reflecting on His date with death, said, “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain” (John 12: 24 NKJV).

Without Christ’s death and resurrection, there would be no harvest of “grain,” no reproduction of seed. By definition, grain is reproducible seed. And in this case, Christ is teaching us that by believing Him, we become just like the original Seed that was planted. The harvest is not a harvest of little immature seedlings. No. It is a harvest of seeds, like the original, ready to be planted for their own harvest.

With Christ’s planting of Himself literally in the tomb in the earth, we have the inevitable harvest of Seed just like Him! That is what He said. And He is speaking the mind of God. He is speaking the thoughts of God about His purpose, which is this: God is reproducing Himself in a group of people called and chosen for this purpose.

That is worthy of repeating over and over in our finite minds. God is reproducing Himself in a body of people from all over the earth. He is calling them and choosing them. It is all His doing. It is all Him. They did not work for this honor. To the contrary. He has chosen the weak, the foolish, the low, and the despised of the earth to bring to nothing the world and its thinking (I Cor. 1: 27).

The Plan Is Found in the Scriptures

If you peel back all the layers of the Seed, you will find the seminal heart to be Unselfish Love. God is Love, and Love cannot by its very nature do anything but share. God is sharing Himself.

And in the very beginning, God, of course, realized this about Himself. He knew that the wonderful thing that He is is Love, and Love shares and magnifies and expresses and ultimately reproduces itself. That is what unselfish love, the love from above, is.

So this reproduction of Himself, which is Love, became His Purpose and Life. In His Mind of Love He created thoughts comprised of words. And with these words and thoughts He created the Plan to make His Purpose happen.

Using His thoughts, comprised of words, He created the concept of “seed time and harvest.” And He made the original Seed His Word, and He made it incorruptible (I Pet. 1: 23).

We must pause a moment and realize that this whereof we speak was in the beginning before this dimension in which we breathe existed.

God created the Plan to carry out His Purpose of Reproducing Himself (Love). And this Plan is laid out in the scriptures of truth. To the prophets and apostles He revealed a precept here and a precept there, but we now have the privelege of seeing all the pieces to the puzzle spread before us. And with the Spirit of Christ within us, we through His help can comprehend the mysteries of God’s Plan.

His Plan, which is expressed in words, becomes the Word, the Logos. And this entire Plan of His Purpose of Reproducing Love is all poured into the Son of God. “And the Word (Logos) was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory…” (John 1: 14).

The Plan and Purpose is all in the Seed, who is the Word, who is the Son of God. The Father, whose thoughts we have endeavored to explore, poured His everything into His Son–His very nature, His purpose, His plan. It is all there in Him. That’s the reason the apostle Paul says, “He is before all things, and by Him all things consist (Col. 1: 17-18).

And Christ is our Head, and we are His body. He now needs His body to agree with His Mind, the Mind of God. And God’s Mind becomes our mind when we agree with His thoughts. Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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Tagged as death of self, Holy Spirit, kingdom of God, sons of God, the manifestation of the sons of God

April 2, 2016 · 5:09 pm

Christ’s Promise of a Great Destiny for Us

Christ makes an astounding promise to His followers. “To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne” (Rev. 3: 21; vs. 14-22). Overcome what? A whole list of shortcomings that future monarchs must change in their lives to be holy enough to be trusted with the King’s business.

But the point here is that somebody–possibly somebody you know, maybe even yourself–somebody will be sitting on the throne alongside Christ during the Thousand Year Reign! In fact, several overcomers will be granted this precious destiny.

In order to be prepared for this high calling, one must be taught about kingship and how to rule in righteousness as one of God’s kings. He did say that He is the “King of kings” with a little “k.” Did we honestly think that we would just wake up one morning and mystically know how to govern with the Spirit of Christ fully formed in us–us just hitting the ground, magically knowing how to be a king in His kingdom? But then most Christians have never pictured themselves sitting on that throne with Christ. Most have never heard it preached. Most just see themselves going to heaven with no further responsibilities. Really? Is that all there is?

How do I know this to be the case? Because no one ever talks about this destiny of kingship. Once you see it, you will begin to speak excitedly about it.

Much to Learn

There is such a learning curve. We future kings must know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God. We must understand His secrets, mysteries that not just anybody can know. He only reveals the secrets of His spiritual governance of the universe to his servants the prophets. “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but He reveals His secret unto His servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7). Prophets? He wants us to be His prophets?

Yes. We are to be His mouth to utter His thoughts, His purpose, and His plan to this last day generation. That is what a prophet of God does. “But the wise shall understand” (Dan. 12: 10). The wise are those in reverential awe of God and His purpose and plan.

We are talking about the deep things of God, the things kept secret from the foundations of the world, even the hidden mystery, hidden from “ages and from generations,” and that mystery is “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Matt. 13: 35; Col. 1: 26-27). Christ formed in us. Love fully formed in us (Gal. 4: 19).

There is much to learn to fulfill this destiny–to have the Spirit of Christ fully formed in us, with Him using our bodies to teach, minister, rule, heal, and administer righteousness in His kingdom of righteousness. There is much to learn.

Prince Charles of Great Britain has been preparing to become king for decades. How much more should the future overcomers be educated and prepared to rule with Christ?

We must learn the mysteries of the parables, which contain the aforementioned secrets of how God will reign in His kingdom. And to learn them we need one of the offices of God to instruct us. We need a teacher of God who is specifically trained for imparting this knowledge (Eph. 4: 11).

After all, we needed our elementary school teachers to teach us the fundamentals of reading, grammar, composition, math, history, and science. How much more do we need a teacher, ordained and sent from God, to teach us the foundational teachings that will prepare us in humility to be elevated to such a high position in His government.

Yet, most people know very little about His kingdom, which happens to be the true gospel (Mark 1: 14). God’s people are “destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hos. 4: 6). Most only believe what they have been taught: get saved, escape hell, and go to heaven, and try to tell others the same.

This limited vision of the kingdom of God closes up all the secrets and mysteries of God from entering one’s mind. Vast passages in the Bible are closed to the people because of this narrow conception of God and His rule. It is difficult for them to conceive of this truth elucidated in the scriptures: Jesus Christ (Yahshua), the Son of God, the King of the Kingdom of God, is coming back to rule for 1,000 years–right here on earth. And some of His followers will be ruling alongside Him.

Nevertheless, for some, this message will resonate with hope in becoming one of His rulers sitting on the throne with Christ. Some it will not. Christ did say, “He that has an ear to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says” (Rev. 3: 22). If a person is able to comprehend this message, then let that person do it.

The point is this. No matter what one’s spiritual growth is, no matter how far they are destined to grow spiritually in Christ–God’s plan and purpose is for them. It is bread and meat for the hungry soul. And so let those so inclined eat at the Master’s table and learn of Him. And it all starts with knowing His eternal purpose of reproducing and multiplying Love, which is God, and knowing His plan to implement this purpose.

But His plan is not for just our little life, but for the whole universe. For this is His vision, of His plan, to fulfill His purpose, comprised of His Thoughts from His Mind, and poured into the Word, and translated into the Seed. And the Seed was made flesh and dwelt among us. And the Seed was God, and the Seed was Love. And the Seed germinated in the fertile soil of good and honest hearts, and it grew as a tree and grew and grew until it filled the whole earth with Love. And this is all contained in the Mind of the Son of God. Hallelujah! Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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Tagged as love, mysteries, mysteries of God, sons of God, spiritual growth, the mind of Christ

March 3, 2016 · 8:26 pm

In the Beginning Was the Seed, the Word

Faith is likened to a small seed that germinates and grows into a large tree. Because the words “faith” and “belief” come from the same Greek word, we see then, that “belief” is like a seed (Matt. 13: 31).

Belief can only happen when the thing to be believed is put into words. “In the beginning was the Word,” the Logos. God formulated and then spoke words in the beginning outlining just what His eternal purpose and plan entailed. This is the Logos; this is the Thought-of-God. This is the Mind of God, and these words detailing His plan in all phases is the Word. And this Word, expressed in words and actions is what is believed.

These words of God include His promise to His people, who are the human beings that He created for His pleasure. The Word is the Son of God, who is the Seed, who first fell into the ground and died and then was raised up 72 hours later (John 12: 24).

The Son of God is the living Word. He is the embodiment of the Plan and Purpose that was created as thought in the mind of God and later written and spoken millennia ago. He is the “express image of the invisible God, the Father, His Father, and our Father.

When We Believe

When we really believe the words of the Word, who is the Logos, then that Seed, which is the Word, germinates in our hearts. It springs forth in our inner spirit and in our heart, and this belief of the Truth/Word/Seed engenders a light that is switched on in us.

Through believing, we at once become one with the Author and Writer of the Play. We find ourselves on the same page with our Creator, who is the Word, and the Word is comprised of a detailed description of what the Son of God has done, is doing, and shall do in the future.

When we believe the words of the Logos, the Word, we cease fr0m our own works for our own little selves and rest in Him. We are not fighting against the truth anymore; we are engendered by the words of truth about Him and His Plan, and we are begotten from above. The Word through His words about Himself and us–that Word begets us with that creative power that was in the beginning. By believing the Word’s words, we are “born again,” which in the Greek means “born from above,” or engendered from heaven or born from the beginning. It is only in this state or spiritual transformation that we can “see” and “enter” the kingdom of heaven, which is the environment of His Plan.

The Seed Reproducing Himself

The word of God is the incorruptible seed (I Pet. 1: 23). “Logos” means “Word” in Greek. So, the Logos = the Son = the Seed = the Word = the Eternal Plan and Purpose = God Reproducing Himself. That is His Plan. Always has been.

If there are any doubts about this, we need to ask ourselves one question: What is a seed for, except to reproduce itself? Christ is the Seed Son. He said, “Except a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abides alone. But if it die, it brings forth much fruit.” Reproduction of Himself. Just look at Peter, James, John and Paul in Acts.

In order to reproduce Himself, God would have to decree just what He wanted to do. He outlined His Plan that would enact and realize His Purpose of Reproduction. Since He cannot fail, He set it in motion.

He created the worlds as the setting for His grand plan of Self-reproduction. He established Laws to rule the environment and milieu we find in our present dimension. He laid it all out and manifested it in His Son, who is the Seed, the Word, the Logos made flesh.

The Father then created the earthy medium for the Seed/Word to grow in, which, of course, is the human being. He created us with just the right amount of nutrients and intelligence in order for us to believe the Word-made-flesh and the testimony Christ would give us.

But He also allowed us first to fall into a wretchedly sinful condition so that we would recognize that we have need of a Savior. Then He called out other humans to tell us about the Savior and His love for us in promising us that if we would just believe the Word-Logos-Plan-Purpose of God that is encapsulated in His Son, then we could not only be delivered from our sinful state, but be able to grow up to spiritually be like Him. We could receive immortality and become just like the Son Himself. In fact, He would actually call us “His body” with Him living His life through us by His invisible Spirit of Love. Hence, God reproducing Himself.

He just asks us to believe the witness of the Word-made-flesh, which is the Logos, which is the Plan and Purpose of God.

These are His thoughts out of His mind. This is His Plan to fulfill His Eternal Purpose. His thoughts on how He will accomplish all of this is the Word (the Logos, the logical plan He has to do it). All of this is a mystery to most, but it is now being revealed to those who have eyes to see and ears to hear. These are the mysteries of God that many prophets and kings have longed to see and hear but it was not time. These are the mysteries of the kingdom of God, encrypted in the parables of Christ and contained in His Wonderful Heart and Mind.

And these things above shall come to pass, according to His word, written down by His prophet Isaiah: “The LORD of hosts (Yahweh) has sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand” (14: 24). Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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Tagged as belief, eternal purpose, faith, plan of God

January 23, 2016 · 4:49 pm

“Thy Kingdom Come”–His Kingdom Is the Gospel

Sometimes we just do not know what we should pray to the Father about. “We know not what we should pray for as we ought,” but the Spirit is there to help us (Rom 8: 26). And He helps us to know through the ideas presented in the “Lord’s Prayer.” Christ’s example prayer presents the thoughts of the Almighty Father. We are to understand its precepts and communicate with God accordingly. We are not to use the “Lord’s Prayer” as an exercise in rote regurgitation–no matter how sincerely it is repeated.

“Thy kingdom come” is the next precept Christ is teaching us from His example prayer. What is the Father’s kingdom? Is it just when we on a personal level are “born again”? Is that the extent of the Father’s governance in the earth? Personal salvation is wonderful and is truly the seed beginning of His kingdom in this earth. But that seed grows.

In fact, “the kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed…which indeed is the least of all seeds, but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof” (Matt 13: 31-32).

The parables reveal the secrets and mysteries of the Father’s kingdom (Matt 13: 11). And the big secret revealed in the mustard seed parable is that the Father’s kingdom grows into a gigantic spiritual and political entity that is so powerful that the other nations (birds of the air) seek shelter in its branches.

This is the same government originating from heaven that Daniel saw in the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. The king had a terrifying dream that showed the fall of all the satanic governments of the world, caused by the coming and full fruition of God’s government, the kingdom of heaven. Daniel told him that “there is a God in heaven that reveals secrets and makes known…what shall be in the latter days” (Dan 2: 28).

The latter days. That’s our time. The world Gentile empires are coming down, brought about by the coming of “the kingdom of heaven” to this earth. We know the dream with the great image of gold, silver, brass, and iron, signifying the four world empires in history. And there came the stone kingdom from heaven that smashed into the feet of the image, and it came crashing down. “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever” (Dan 2: 44). The Father’s kingdom is not just an invisible feel-good-in-the-Spirit kingdom, but it is literal and political, as well as spiritual. It is a government ruled by a benevolent Monarch. It is coming to earth in the latter days–in our time.

So, “thy kingdom come.” The Father in Christ is coming back to this earth to govern, insuring peace throughout the far flung corners of the globe for a thousand years. And He “shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” This is the good news. This government, this kingdom brought here by our Father through His Son–this true gospel is the good news of our Father’s government literally coming to fill the whole earth with His righteous ways.

Christ in this section of the “Lord’s Prayer” teaches us the importance of the Father’s kingdom. A kingdom is a literal form of government headed by a monarch. He is the King. Thy kingdom come…in earth as it is in heaven. His kingdom already rules in heaven; shortly it will rule completely on earth.

This is the good news proclaimed in the four gospels in the so-called “New Testament” of the Bible. Many scriptures back this up. “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15). Believe what gospel? The “gospel of the kingdom of God.” He is saying, God’s government is here. Because it is at hand, you need to repent from your old selfish life, and believe this good news of God ruling on earth.

“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matt. 24:14). It is this gospel, this true gospel of the kingdom of God that must be proclaimed throughout the whole world before the end of the age will come. The gospel preached by the vast majority of pastors is “another gospel” about Christ. It is a shallow shadow of the good news. It focuses on “getting saved” and does not mention a peep about the grandeur of His world wide rule. Salvation is precious, but it is just the first step. It is the germination of that mustard seed, but there is so much more after that.

Thy kingdom come. We, then, should pray with this glorious vision that Christ has, when He taught His disciples to pray. His kingdom is a vision of an earth free from corruption and cruelty–free from addiction and selfishness–free from hunger and desperation–free from greedy leaders who cast the poor in chains of lies and deceit–free from husbands and wives betraying those who love them the most–free from broken-hearted children thrown out like trash by selfish parents–free from the evil that pillages every soul on earth–

This is the gospel of the Kingdom of God. This is the good news that will fill the earth when Christ comes back and sits down on the throne of our invisible Father. And His sons and daughters will sit alongside Him in His kingdom right here on earth. And He will dispatch us His princes and princesses out into the ravished earth to rebuild and restore what the evil ones wasted.

“Thy kingdom come” evokes much about the glorious vision God has for His earth. We need to pray toward this end. He told us to not ask for things for ourselves, but rather, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.” Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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Filed under end time prophecy, gospel, kingdom of God, mind of Christ, MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT, Parables, prayer, princes and princesses of God, The Lord's Prayer, vision

Tagged as end time prophecy, Lord's prayer, prayer, tribulation

February 7, 2015 · 5:55 pm

“The LORD Is My Shepherd”–How Does He Shepherd Us?

God is not only our Savior, but also our Great Shepherd. “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want” is famously recited by almost all. We know Him to be our shepherd holistically, however. Most believe that He leads, guides and watches over us, the whole person.

But how does God actually shepherd us? Is it not through our thoughts proceeding from our minds? For example, the act of going to the store begins as a thought. “We are out of milk. Better go get some.” Spurred by this thought, we get up, grab the keys, jump in the car, drive to the store and buy the milk. Where we go begins with a thought. Where we go as the sheep of His pasture begins with a thought, also. It will be either one of our thoughts or one of His thoughts.

The scriptures have much to say spiritually about the mind and its thoughts. In fact, we are to be “transformed by the renewing of our minds” (Rom. 12: 2). Our minds in the Christian walk are to be renewed. This is how we are changed into His image. And we must make no mistake here. We are to be changed so much in our spiritual growth, that eventually we are to become like our Savior. “We all with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory…by the Spirit…” (II Cor. 3: 18 NKJV).

Christ is to be formed in us (Gal. 4: 19). That is God’s thought on the matter. If we don’t believe that this is possible, then we must bring “into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor. 10: 5).

“We are led by our thoughts,” goes the old true adage. Man thinks a lot, and most men cherish their own thoughts. Yet God says, “Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts,” and God will forgive him (Isa. 55: 7). Here we see that thoughts lead to the way a person will go. Thoughts dictate the path traveled.

Consequently, we are to forsake our thoughts, for God says, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways (55: 8).

What then are His thoughts? What is God thinking about? His thoughts are contained in the “mind of Christ,” which we are to have (Phil. 2: 5; 1 Cor. 2: 16). But does His mind and thoughts just come willy-nilly, by just “trusting in the Lord”? No. His mind will come through studying His thoughts, which are the contents of the mind of God.

There it is. So, what is keeping us from receiving the mind of Christ, and along with it His power? It is the old leaven that Christ and His apostles warned us of. We are told to “purge out the old leaven, that the lump may be holy.” But few will do this. Most won’t even look up “old leaven” in the concordance to see what it is. Those that do will see that it is the false teachings about Christ and His gospel. But most Christians do not believe that they have any erroneous concepts to be repented of. And so they go on, stunted in their spiritual growth. Their thoughts about
Christ are, well, their thoughts, and not God’s thoughts. We all must get rid of the false doctrines about Christ and then begin to believe the true knowledge of His thoughts.

How does one know which teacher to trust, which evangelist to believe? God will lead to the fountain of truth the sheep who cry and cry for the living waters.

And what are the living waters but His thoughts. He says as much in the remainder of Isaiah 55. His thoughts are “higher” than human thinking (v. 9). Man thinks shallow and self-centered thoughts, small thoughts, wasted thoughts that are unremembered specks of dust in the vaults of time. But God’s thoughts traverse mountains and valleys, crossing all borders as the rain from heaven caresses the earth, and makes it “bring forth and bud [giving] seed to the sower and bread to the eater.” So is His word, born of His thoughts toward us the sheep of His pasture.

These poetically prophetic thoughts speak of Christ’s kingdom age, a thousand years of peace ruled by the Prince of Peace and God’s sons and daughters. As the whole earth and all of its tribes and nations “break into singing” as they think the King’s thoughts, contemplating His merciful ways to all on earth. Everyone shall rejoice that His thoughts will have come to full fruition (55: 9-13).

His thoughts are His gospel, and there is only one gospel, which is His literal kingdom soon to fill the whole earth! This is what an exiled King thinks on! We must corral and expel every thought that is not in agreement with His thoughts and vision. Those who do will have a wonderful future with Him right here on earth in His kingdom (Mark 1: 14).

As we keep on thinking His thoughts, eventually they become our very own thoughts. This is how He shepherds us into His greener pastures. Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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Tagged as gospel, kingdom of God, mind of Christ

April 12, 2014 · 4:26 pm

Having the Mind of Christ–Key to Staying Focused

We know as Christians that we should have our thoughts on the things of God. For “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee,” the Spirit of Christ in Isaiah tells us (26: 3). But, let’s face it, our minds wander to things of this earth, trivial things, things that do not matter in God’s big picture.

How then do we get our minds to think on the things of God? How do we prevent them from wandering? Is there a focal point that will help us?

He admonished us to “let this mind be in you.” And that is the mind of Christ. But what was in His mind? What does He think about? Paul tells us to think on the things that are lovely, just and of a good report (Phil. 4: 8).

Of course, it all starts with grateful thoughts toward our Savior for delivering us from our decadent old lives. What love our God has for us! Beyond our finite thoughts to comprehend such care for us!

Things That Are Just

But does His mind stop with His interaction with us in His love for us in saving us, as wonderful as that is? Or is there more in His mind? Do His thoughts transcend the personal and enter into the geo-political–even into galactic concerns?

We know that He is a just God, a righteous Judge. Justice is His hallmark; fairness is His eternal standard.

As the righteous King, could Christ be thinking about His soon coming return when He will “rule all nations with a rod of iron”? Do not most every earthly king in exile prepare his heart and mind for his return to the throne, his seat of justice for his people?

Of course, they do. Christ tells us to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.” The very first thing that we Christians should be seeking is God’s kingdom. First, we should be studying His word to see just what the kingdom of God is–to see if what we have been taught by the churches about the kingdom is correct. For Christ has much to say about His kingdom.

But we Americans and most people of the world have been too long removed from being a king’s subject. We are individualistic, self-willed, and self-centered. A monarchy is foreign to us after 225 years with our present government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

Of course, our republic is a definite improvement on the despotic king George. However, our experiment in governing ourselves is not the kingdom/government of God that the scriptures speak of.

Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords, is returning to earth and will rule and reign right here on earth for 1,000 years, according to the scriptures. That is the kingdom/government that we are admonished by Him to seek after.

We must simply stop thinking about God’s kingdom as some mystical ethereal heavenly realm that we are going to escape to. No. Christ is coming back to earth for 1,000 years, and sitting on the throne with Him will be God’s royal offspring, the over-comers. He promised, “To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I overcame and am set down with My Father in His throne (Rev. 3: 21). Somebody will fulfill this His promise, for He does not speak idle words.

Help us, God, to let this vision of rulership with Christ permeate our hard hearts. Help us believe and cleave to your promises, for they are your thoughts; they are the creative seeds that emanate from Your mind to us.

We simply must begin thinking in terms of Christ as this regal sovereign Monarch and how He will completely change the geo-political dynamic.

His kingdom is the good news. Personal salvation provided us by Him, though precious, is but a first step that enable us to first “see” and then “enter into the kingdom of God (John 3: 3-5).

Personal salvation enables us to become a “babe in Christ,” but like an earthly baby, a young Christian needs to grow up spiritually into full maturity. Some of His followers will mature into kingship and will sit with Him on His throne.

This is what our exiled King is thinking about. He is all about preparing and then sharing His throne with His elect. Read His words now with all this in mind, and you will see into His wondrous thinking. We should be filling our minds with these thoughts about His return and rule. These are the things that are true and honest and just and pure and lovely and of a good report. And we are to think on these things, as Christ does at this very moment, and “the God of peace shall be with you.” For He is the living Word. And His words to us are the very Essence that comprises His thoughts. And these thoughts of His will keep us focused. Kenneth Wayne Hancock

The Five Offices of God–For Our Perfection

Unto man has God “put in subjection the world to come.” Man. That’s us, brethren. In the world to come, the next age, the time in the history of this earth after Christ’s return to rule it for a thousand years—God has ordained that some of us human beings will be rulers with Christ in the government that He will establish (Heb. 2: 5).

To rule and reign with Christ in His kingdom/government—that is the high calling. Brethren, are we ready? Have we grown spiritually that we would be strong and pure enough to take on that mantle of responsibility for the King, to be His administrators, His regents, His arms and hands, His heart and mind in the myriad matters of ruling the King’s earth?

To help us fulfill this “high calling” of God, Christ came “that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (2: 9). And Christ will be made complete and perfect by His act of “bringing many sons unto glory” (v. 10). And this glory is us being glorified, which in turn brings final glory to the King and Master. Christ will be fully glorified when He fulfills His final destiny, which is bringing His chosen ones to full spiritual maturity.

He did say, “Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abides alone. But if it die, it brings forth much fruit” (John 12: 24). We are the “much fruit” that He refers to on the road to His glorification (v. 23).

And because we, Christ’s followers, have come out of the matrix of “flesh and blood, He also Himself took part of the same.” Why? So that He could pave the way for our immortality, made possible by the destruction of the devil. Christ destroys the devil when He destroys sin in our life and gives us a new life by faith (Heb. 2: 14). That’s the foundation to build the temple of God on. Since we are His temple,that is where we start.

And Christ brings us to that full mature spiritual growth by sharing His Spirit with His body of believers. He shares His Spirit with His teachers, and they then impart the necessary knowledge to Christ’s brethren, for “He is not ashamed to call [us] brethren (2: 11).

Why God Gave Us the Five Fold Ministry Offices

In fact, Christ set in His spiritual body of believers five offices: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. And Christ established these offices “for the perfecting of the saints [the brethren, us], for the work of the ministry, and for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Eph. 4: 11-12).

Let’s savor this a moment. God has chosen out from among all the Christians in the world a few to be in these offices. Why? What is their purpose? First, they are necessary “for the perfecting” of the members of Christ’s church, which is His body of believers. The Greek word (G2675) translated “perfecting” here means “to be fit, prepared, to be mended and repaired, and ethically, to be complete and perfect, and to make one what he ought to be” (http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/lexicon.cfm?strongs=G2675&t=KJV).

The true offices of God will help us by the Spirit within them to become prepared, ready and fit to assume the duties in Christ’s kingdom—royal duties to be assigned to us of our Father. For this is really the “work of the ministry” that Paul refers to here. The “ministry” of Christ is the administration of His government that will fill the whole earth, according to the prophet Daniel in 2: 44 and 7: 18: “But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.” That’s a long time to be in the presence of the King of kings (that’s us with the little “k”). And we “shall take the kingdom and possess it forever.” We. Us. Ruling with Christ the King.

That’s the gospel, my brothers and sisters. That’s the good news that man needs. Getting rid of the corruption caused by the sinful hearts of the leaders of this present world system and replacing it with righteous rulers who contain the Spirit of Christ in their bosoms. That’s the gospel; that’s the good news. It is the “gospel of kingdom” (Matt. 4: 23; Mark 1: 14-15). But how the gospel has been watered down at best by preaching only a tiny portion of His plan! How it has been poisoned by the preaching of false concepts like the prosperity doctrine! Well did the prophets cry, “Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture, Saith the LORD.” And, “My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray.” But then He promises finally, “I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding” (Jer 23: 1; 50: 6; Ezk 34: 2; Jer 3: 15).

How Long Will They Teach Us?

These Spirit-led apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers in our day will continue to teach “till we all come in the unity of the faith” (Eph. 4: 13). They through the Spirit will teach His pure concepts until we Christians are on the same page, until we have His vision. They will teach by His Spirit until the body has the true “knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man” (4: 11).

They will continue to teach the truth until we are fully grown, walking in the Spirit like Peter, James, John, and Paul did after the Resurrection. “Perfect” here means a completed spiritual life cycle growth. They will teach until we all have the “measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (v. 11).

But don’t just take my word for it. We must prove all things through study and prayer to see if the things expounded here take root and grow in our hearts—to see if this vision of a royal heritage quickens like a seed in warm rich soil which loses its lonely first state and dies, only to be reborn as a green lively plant nourished by the living waters, alive now to reproduce itself, as the Creator has reproduced Himself in us. Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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Tagged as "Kings", Holy Spirit, kingdom of God, perfection, spiritual growth

November 13, 2013 · 1:42 pm

“Let This Mind Be in You”–Thinking About the Lost Sheep

We are told to “let this mind be in you”–the mind of Christ (Phil. 2:5). We are to have His thoughts, to think the way He does, to meditate on subjects that fill His mind. After all, He is the King, and if He is truly our Master, then we will strive to think His thoughts and to have His mind.

So, then, how can we know His thoughts? What is He thinking right now? He is the “same yesterday, today, and forever,” so His thoughts 2,000 years ago are still in His mind today. What are they?

The answer lies in the words He spoke. Whatever thoughts were in His heart and mind, that is what came out of His mouth. And one of those things was His concern for “the lost sheep of the House of Israel.”

A Canaanite woman, who was not of Israelite stock, came to Him and wanted Him to heal her daughter. But He said nothing. She cried for mercy. And kept on so much so that His disciples said to Him, “Send her away for she keeps crying out after us.” Instead of sending her away, Christ says something very curious. “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.” He was saying, First, I’ve got my people who need Me, and they don’t know who they are. They are like sheep without a shepherd, and I need to help them.

Then “the woman came and knelt before Him. Lord, help me!”

And then He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” This bread is for the children, the children of Israel, He was saying. These spiritual gifts are for them primarily.

Then she said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” This touched Him, and so He praised her faith and healed her daughter (Mt. 15:22-28, NIV).

The point: Christ made it very clear who He was thinking about. It was the lost sheep first. That was His primary mission. He was compassionate and honored the faith of the Gentile woman and blessed her. But His main mission was to gather “the outcasts of Israel.”

To solve this mystery of who they are, we must keep an open mind. Hopefully we now have a reason to study a bit of Biblical history in order to unravel the strands. These “lost sheep of the House of Israel” are extremely important to Christ, and now to us. “Finding” these “lost sheep” will uncover one of the secrets of the ages. More later. Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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Filed under elect, eternal purpose, Lost Sheep of the House of Israel, mind of Christ

Tagged as Lost Sheep, mind of Christ, Parables, twelve tribes of Israel

July 18, 2013 · 8:37 pm

Peace and the Mind of God

Peace is the one commodity that is in short supply in this world. For some, peace means no more war. For others it means no more stress.

But one thing is certain; the whole world is crying out for peace. The destroyer is ravaging the land. Mothers are crying in Allepo because their government has just bombed their apartment building. Lives in the third world are collapsing around the globe through war and economic woes, flattening any chance for peace.

Even in Western Europe and North America, peace eludes the people, who, awash in material possessions, do not realize the age old adage that wealth alone can’t bring happiness, that “money can’t buy me love,” that true peace only comes as a spiritual by-product, from a life directed by one’s Creator.

Peace. What does the Creator say about it? Peace is a component of the “fruit of the Spirit.” When the Spirit of God resides in us, we will have peace.

But this peace still remains elusive. What does the Word say about what exactly brings peace—complete and utter peace? “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee” (Isa. 26: 3). First, God keeps the peace there in us. It is His doing. Second, He does this as our minds steadfastly think on Him.

Some will say that this is impossible. How can we think about God all the time? But let’s think about this for a minute. Even though our minds are occupied by a host of thoughts in any given day, the Savior tells us to not think on the earthly things that the masses are pre-occupied with—what to eat, wear, and all the other things like pleasure, jobs, etc. Our earthly life should not be the center of our thinking. It won’t bring peace.

So, what thoughts are we to think and to train our minds to think on? “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things [earthly things like food, clothing, entertainment] will be added unto you” (Matt. 6: 33).

Christ just taught in verse 31-32 to “take no thought” about the earthly things. This tells us that “thinking” turns into “seeking.” So how do we “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness”? We think about them. We meditate on his rule and government that will soon fill this whole earth, and we contemplate on the state of being right with Him.

This is how we seek His kingdom—by thinking about it as much as we can every day.

But there is a caveat in all this. Our thoughts must be based on sound knowledge. If we are meditating on concepts that are in error, do we believe this is acceptable with God? Our thoughts about God must be rid of false teachings, doctrine, and concepts about Him and His plan. He commands us in many places to “purge out the old leaven,” and He many times warns us to not follow false teachers and false prophets (II Peter 2: 1-22; Jude 4-8).

But this is the hard part of the Christian walk—this ridding ourselves of false doctrines and concepts. Difficult, but extremely necessary, if we are to be assured in our hearts and have confidence with God.

How do we know what is false and what is true? Yesterday’s light won’t illuminate the path of the elect in these latter days, so you can’t depend on the light that your parents and grand-parents had, or the light your preacher has, who got it from teachers and preachers who haven’t received anything new in 50 years. Depending on them won’t cut it.

How do we get rid of the false doctrines about Him and His plan? By sincerely praying and asking God to reveal it to us, with a humble and repentant heart. And He will do it. He’ll show us. But we need to break up the fallow ground of our heart knowing full well that when He answers, it will not be what we expected. The elect will find the truth of His plan, if they are willing to lay it all, all prior knowledge under the knife of the husbandman. For “every branch in Me that bears not fruit He takes away, and every branch that bears fruit, the Father purges it that it may bring forth more fruit” (John 15: 2). What is it that the Father will purge or prune out of our minds? He will “purge out the old leaven” of malice, wickedness, hypocrisy, insincerity, and falsehoods (I Cor. 5: 8; Luke 12: 1; Mark 8: 15).

A spiritually young and immature Christian has got a lot of old leaven in there that must be purged by the Father. He will do it, too, but we must submit to this procedure. That is the difficult part.

But afterwards, “it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness” (Heb. 12: 11). Peace that the Master gives. Peace for us in our spirits, peace as one of the fruits of the Spirit. Peace that comes upon thinking on His wonderful plan and purpose according to truth, after the old leaven is gone. Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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Filed under elect, false doctrines, false prophets, false teachers, fruit of the Spirit, Lost Sheep of the House of Israel, mind of Christ, old leaven

Tagged as false doctrines, false prophets, fruit of the Spirit, old leaven, peace, the elect

January 19, 2013 · 7:33 pm

More on Adding Temperance to Knowledge

In previous posts we have seen that in order to secure “an entrance…into the everlasting kingdom of our…Savior,” we must add certain spiritual attributes to the faith that God has endowed us with [1]. In so doing, we “give diligence” in making “our calling and election sure” [2].

We are told by the apostle Peter to add “temperance” to the knowledge of God and His plan for our perfection.

Since our very spiritual growth in Christ is in the balance here, a bit deeper examination of this word “temperance” is fruitful. It is translated from the Greek word egkrateia (#G1466). Thayer’s Lexicon states that it is “the virtue of one who masters his desires and passions, especially his sensual appetites.”

It is derived from a Greek adjective egkrates (#G1468), meaning “strong, robust; having power over; mastering, controling, curbing, restraining.” So “temperance” is from Greek words meaning “to have control over.”

So How Does the Holy Spirit Help Us Get Control Over Bodily Appetites?

Knowing the truth will make us free, Christ said–of whatever ails us [3]. “Ye shall know the truth…” Know. There’s that “knowledge” spoken by Peter again, as in “add to you faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge…” What knowledge? The knowledge of truth, which is the mind of Christ, simply put. Yes, the mind of Christ–His thoughts, plans, and purposes. He did say, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” [4]. So, first knowing Christ’s thoughts, plans, purposes and His word, and then doing them–this will make us free of and give us control over sensual appetites.

There is another “knowing,” and this one is huge. “Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with [Him], that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin” (Romans 6: 6). Our old sinful self, in God’s eyes, was crucified with Christ on the cross. And our old sin-soaked heart, which was enslaved to sin, is now free from all fleshly pulls. This knowledge, straight out of the plan and purpose and mind of our Savior, is the truth that makes us free from unrighteous haunts. Period.

Now. The ball is in our court. We are forced by Him to either believe this truth, which is His word and plan written down in plain English, and thereby be freed from the slavery of sin and sinning, or we continue on in unbelief. That is the choice. Chosing to believe this truth opens up the way to add these spiritual qualities like temperance, that He has admonished us to add to our faith, thus enabling us to “go on unto perfection.”

Temperance, then, is an integral part of the character of one who is an elder of the body of Christ, one who is mature [5]. This is a description of a temperate man, one who has his earthly body under control, leading him to be able to “hold fast the faithful word as he has been taught.” After adding temperance, the man of God will have the power to not soon be shaken through any temptations of the devil. He will be able to walk in the power of the word of God.

The elect of God will begin to realize that gaining control over the earthly body is a necessary pre-requisite in fully becoming the manifested sons and daughters of God. And because temperance is one of the fruits of the Spirit, the stronger the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, the more temperance we will exhibit (Gal. 5: 22-23). More Spirit in us, more self-control.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance…And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the passions and lusts.” This last sentence is the very next verse, v. 24. Isn’t it astounding that the word goes right back to being crucified with Christ? In another translation we read, “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires” (NIV).

Here it is in plain black and white: There is a direct correlation of having the “fruit of the Spirit” operating in our lives and being crucified with Christ. In fact, the crucifixion with Christ of our old nature is the very key in receiving His Spirit, which in turn yields the fruit of the Spirit in our lives–one of which is temperance or self-control. It is much easier to control one’s self after knowing and then believing that it is dead.

Earlier in his letter to the Galatians, Paul writes, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (2: 20). And there it is. Our bodies live on now, but it is not our old selves anymore living in them. But rather it is Christ’s Spirit that lives now in us. And this life that we live is because of His faith in His own plan, now believed on by us, that by believing that He is raised from the dead, we too are now risen “to walk in a newness of life.”

It is this Rock that we are building up each other as the temple of God in the earth. This is the solid Rock foundation that we must build upon. Because the weather coming soon to this earth is going to shake and crumble all houses not built on the right understanding of His word, plan, purpose, and thoughts. If it is built on a faulty foundation, then the house will come crashing down. Tribulation is coming upon the earth, and it will touch us all. Only He is our safety net–not some imagination of a rapture that someone dreamed up in the 19th century.

The Great Tribulation is coming. We must prepare by first “knowing the truth.” For Satan is going to deceive many in these latter days. “Let no man deceive you,” Christ warned. For the “falling away” or apostacy is already in full odious bloom. The churches have been duped and lied to by false teachers and false prophets. Many pastors are ignorant of this deception and yet, they continue to pollute the flock and inoculate them with poisonous doctrines and concepts. But “the wise will understand” (Dan 12; 10).

[1] https://immortalityroad.wordpress.com/2012/11/27/the-additions-to-your-faith-prerequisites-of-receiving-immortality/

https://immortalityroad.wordpress.com/2012/12/02/add-to-your-faith-virtue-gods-strength-and-power-2-peter-1-5/

[2] II Peter 1: 10

[3] John 8: 32

[4] John 14: 6

[5] Titus 1: 7-9