Revelation
“Beyond the Eastern Gates was a beautiful garden, from which came wonderful fragrance of many flowers, mixed with the smell of a strong fire.
This very much attracted others to see what was in this garden. But few could get into this garden, as the Angels of God stood there and watch those who wanted to enter this garden – they saw their hearts and motives.
Some who were not allowed into the garden tried to climb over the fence, but were badly burned, because inside the garden, around the fence, everything was on fire, which they didn’t know. But those who entered the garden were transformed and seemed to dissolve in the garden, they seemed to merge with many fragrances”.
Revelation
“I saw the man of God standing on a huge white eagle and soaring high. The eagle flew at great speed and was like an arrow. Wicked people tried to bring down the man of God. But the eagle and the man of God were one. They tried to strike the eagle, but the eagle was as if made of impenetrable iron. The man of God boldly and directly looked in the direction, where the eagle flew”.
Recently, we often hear words about the eagle. In the book of Ezekiel, one of the four creatures is an eagle. This is one of the dimensions, facets of God’s nature. God created all things that are in heaven out of His own nature. All that is now in heaven is the nature of God, which He imparted to creation.
Fallen nature is of those who didn’t keep their dignity, and their victims. This is the animal world, the world of plants, water and earth. It is poisoned and defiled by sin, the fall of man, to whom God gave power over creation. Therefore, creation also received retribution, retribution because of man.
But in the heavenly realm, things preserved in heaven, and the Angelic world in particular, – it preserves the nature of God. All that is holy and high in God in the third heaven has a Divine nature, a Divine continuation.
One of the dimensions of the apostolic and prophetic ministry – although all these beings carry this dimension – is the eagle. This is a high walk in God. He soars, and soars high.
Today there is a great need in the Church, in the world international Body – this is the view of an eagle and its cry. The eagle not only sees, he also speaks and also moves. There are forces that oppose the eagle, they try to bring him down, but they can’t destroy him. It bothers them, they try to do it. But this is impossible unless the eagle itself surrenders.
Embrace this understanding and dimension of the soaring eagle and become part of the nature of that eagle!
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Today I want to talk about the nature and arrangement of the Mantle of the brethren.
It’s not an easy, but very important topic. Let’s adjust our lamps to understand this revelation.
“Our feet have been standing within your gates, O Jerusalem! Jerusalem is built as a city that is compact together, where the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, to the testimony of Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord. For thrones are set there for judgment, the thrones of the house of David.” Psalms 122: 2-5
This is the revelation of the heavenly city, which is connected with the understanding of the earthly city, the house of God, that it is a city compact together as one, where the tribes of the Lord ascend. Here Jerusalem symbolizes the mantle. The tribes of the Lord symbolize the churches of Christ. These are the tribes of the Lord that ascend to praise the Name of the Lord.
There are thrones of judgment. Not just one throne. The local church must become empowered in the Spirit and stand before God so that it can be said that there are thrones of judgment in it.
Which church among us can boast that it has reached the throne of judgment? And this is the Word of God.
My prayer is that we will come out of “kindergarten” and establish thrones of judgment in our communities. Where there is righteous judgment, there is punishment, and there is mercy, and there is just justification. These three dimensions must be carried by the church, as it was by the Apostles when they shook off the ashes.
Apostle Paul moved with the mantle. This is prophetic terminology, and we need to reveal the understanding of it. He was under the Apostolic mantle – the supreme Apostles, whom he obeyed, gave account, he appeared before the Apostles, and seemed to come there already as a co-worker.
And also he had his mantle in the churches among the Gentiles that he had planted.
He writes that he has daily gatherings of people and concern for all the churches. Naturally, he means the churches that are under his mantle. There were also their Apostles and their shepherds, like James, Peter and others, later also like Thomas, who went to India and other Apostles.
He also says: “I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read to all the holy brethren.” This he writes to the Thessalonians. He writes to the church that he had planted. And he says that the message that they received, they read to all the brethren that they have access to. Naturally, the authority that he uses, that Word, was accepted. This is not about one church, but about a network of churches under the mantle.
Today the time has come when we can teach about this, using the terminology – the network, the sum of the churches, the mantle.
Paul says that the epistle he read to the Colossians was also used in the Laodicean church. And the one from Laodicea, you read it also. Here we are talking about the mantle of the churches of Apostle Paul. It was normal, it was a tradition of the Apostles – when they lived by one Word.
“All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any”. We do our best to keep the truth, carry it with a certain responsibility and “feed” our mantle. And there’s nothing wrong with that—when the prophetic word goes to all, and all obey that Word—because it’s under the mantle, I don’t boast about other people’s lot. We do not take power over someone else’s lot.
As many those do who don’t have churches of their own, but teach other churches.
We preach for all, but even more so for those who are of the household of faith. There is nothing wrong with this if we feed our churches that have come out of the Eastern Gates. It’s right to feed God’s people under the mantle. Therefore, whoever opposes this doesn’t know God’s ordinances. He doesn’t know such things. So today we want to reveal it.
You don’t have to argue about it, you have to abide in it. We don’t preach against other preachers, we preach against false teachings that loosen the Cross of Christ, which lead people away from the Cross into selfishness – into service to themselves, and not to people. That is why I defend this position today. I present to you the Word of God and the example of Apostle Paul, how he served and fed the churches in which the Lord appointed him as an Apostle.
And the Word that he sent – it was passed on from church to church, so that everyone would be fed by one Word, so that those who are from the Gentiles would praise, so that the Gentiles would understand that God is not somewhere far away and you have to bring Him down from heaven or from the dead to raise up, but He is in us, “Christ in you is the hope of glory.”
Paul spoke these mysteries that Israel and the Gentile church would become one. Paul taught the Gentile church these truths of God.
There are principles for building up the brethren, churches under the mantle of Apostles. Paul took authority over his own churches, and he didn’t take it over other churches. So people who walk high with the Lord, they don’t argue. They walk with God and join with each other there according to the spirit of holiness. If you’ve gotten on a “scandalous territory” – leave it, because Jesus never “scandalizes”. Jesus is in shalom and says, “Receive my peace.”
What is a mantle?
The Apostolic mantle has a paternal nature. The Apostolic church has the nature of a father, not a mother. And the pastoral church is the mother church. The mother can never fulfill the function of the father, because the father has another dimension.
And in the family there are sons and daughters, so are the churches – there are sons and daughters. The sons type of the church have an apostolic nature. And the daughters – a pastoral one. Both are important and necessary.
There is no need to be ashamed of pastoral work – this is a high ministry. A shepherd is in a place of honor. Jesus is called the Chief Shepherd. He is also the Shepherd of our souls. Such a church carries warmth, care, love.
There is a wrong understanding of the mantle. Some people think that the mantle should “serve” you. But it’s the local church, which should serve. The Apostolic Church shows the general highway, gives a vision which is taken by a huge flock, it flies in one direction. But every sheep needs to be fed, cared for by local shepherds, in every local church.
The mantle should not carry ministry of local nature. The Supper must be served in the local church. Local meetings should be held by the congregation itself. The entire weekly life should be spent in a rhythm that you have to find in God, which leads you to growth, and not “comforts your flesh.” The responsibility for growth in the local congregation lies with itself, not with the father church. The paternal church guards, protects, watches over. But no one will do your work for you.
Spiritual gifts work locally through people. You must seek your spiritual gifts in God and use them for your neighbor, for the building up of the church.
Pastoral care is done locally. Pastors are in charge of the people in the local community personally. The pastor is responsible for the holiness, godliness and life of his laymen.
There is an example of Jacob and Israel. These are different dimensions. Jacob is a man from the third generation of Abraham. And Israel already comprises all the tribes – in the fourth generation. Understand this difference. We can live either in Jacob or in Israel. But we need to move on and become the Israel of God. When God says Israel, it means that all twelve tribes are with Abraham. That’s what the Mantle is. Israel symbolizes the mantle of God’s people in the covenant. And those who rebel against God’s order, they don’t understand – we can’t enter by ourselves, but together with our sons and daughters. Israel is from Abraham to the last child – Manasseh, Ephraim, etc. – all should be there.
Jacob must become a worthy son in order to become Israel. This is the task of the local community – to be a worthy son of the mantle.
The local church must reach the dimension of the mantle of Israel. Each son of Jacob received a separate prophecy. But these separate prophecies were given under the same hands of the father. The same hands were on the head of these sons. It is Jesus who puts His hands on our heads and prophesies to us. But we must receive our prophecies.
Each local church must seek its own revelation – both in relation to the calling, and to the strategy of taking possession of the land and nations.
We are all in different places, different cities. Some are in other parts of the world. But we are all under one mantle. And it doesn’t cause any damage – only grace! We are protected, nourished, blessed. What is the point of rebelling against it? This is madness! As we see in this revelation today, those who climbed over the fence, they are destroyed, burned.
What does the mantle do? It sets a model of courage, truthfulness, faithfulness, and love of the church, which is the gateway to the entire mantle. We all need to be equalized. Not like Dina, who separated, left, and got abused. The mantle protects and guards the unity of the brethren. It gives a unified teaching to the Church of Christ. Not that which causes discord, but that which unites the saints, neither tempts nor confuses them, but strengthens them, establishes them in faith.
The mantle gives one teaching. The teaching is one, but the goals are different, since we live in a many-fold world, peoples and cities. The mantle is the calling for which we were sent to this earth, for which we were created by God – for what purposes.
The mantle prophetically represents the doctrine and emphasizes certain things that are relevant in the prophetic destiny for this season.
The mantle makes spiritual breakthroughs for local communities in various areas of society and history, things that were predicted incorrectly, such as Protestantism. We are not protesting against anything. Martin Luther is not a witness from our cloud. We are not Protestants, we are not disciples of Martin Luther, we are disciples of Christ.
The Apostolic church destroys lies. She makes spiritual breakthroughs. She makes her move in history with a purpose from God. This is a soaring eagle that goes over humanity.
The mantle preserves, protects and guides the pastors of the church of Christ. Therefore, the priests under the mantle in the brethren must be subject. It is a blessing; a blessing, not a control. We were raised in a spirit of rebellion. If we don’t like something, we are taught to find something that we like. But this is wrong.
What does the mantle not do? It is not responsible for the growth of the local congregation. The mantle doesn’t pray in her place and doesn’t worship in her place.
The mantle doesn’t replace the fire of the local church with its fire. It does not replace the local church in standing before the Throne. It doesn’t shepherd people personally.
What does the local church do? What must the local congregation do to be a blessing under the mantle? It must be faithful in standing and walking before God, showing true and saving faith in Christ. It must stand in truth. It carries the good news. It keeps the word of patience and keeps the patience of Christ – in the battle with sins, with the spirit of the world. It develops and executes a local plan for taking possession of the land and peoples. It glorifies and exalts God, without belittling her father’s house, she is not a disgrace to the Father, but she assists the father church.
The Apostolic church also has responsibilities, and they are far greater than those of the local church. The local church must rise and become a blessing to the father church. Not only to receive, but to bring into it. We should be a blessing. To labor, to scatter oneself, as good sons and daughters should bring good under the mantle. This is what justice requires.
“Instead of your fathers there will be your sons.” Sons will rise. Sons must become princes, so that thrones of judgment will rise there, to become Apostolic centers under the Apostolic mantle.
Therefore, some of the main tasks of the local church are to evangelize, to keep growing, to spread the Kingdom of God on earth. The blessing of the local church is to be good sons and daughters.
“And of Joseph he said: Blessed of the Lord is his land with the precious things of heaven, with the dew and the deep lying beneath, with the precious fruits of the sun, with the precious produce of the months, with the best things of the ancient mountains and the precious things of the everlasting hills, with the precious things of the earth and its fullness; and the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let the blessing come on the head of Joseph and on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers. His glory is like a firstborn bull, and his horns like the horns of a wild ox; together with them he shall push the peoples to the ends of the earth; these are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh ”
(Deuteronomy 33:13-17)