The seven elements of the new Church paradigm

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In part 4 of discovering the new Joseph, Esther and Daniel paradigm, we will study the 7 characteristics of Daniel’s life. The book of Daniel holds lots of secrets about the end of days. I believe one of these secrets is how we will learn to operate like Daniels in Babylonian environments as devout believers.

Nebuchadnezzar beseeched Jerusalem and charged the master of eunuchs to find among the Israelites ‘Children in whom was (1) no blemish, but (2) well favoured, and (3) skilful in all wisdom , and (4) cunning in knowledge, and (5) understanding science, and such as (6) had ability in them to stand in the king’s palace, and (7) whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans.’ (Daniel 1:4)

We will not deal with these seven characteristics, although I believe they refer to the mountains of influence in society. Notice that this king did not look for men filled with the Holy Spirit and with a seminary degree. He looked for those characteristics that the world is looking for. We will discuss seven other elements that Christians need to integrate in their life’s to fulfil their destiny in these last days. Those elements can also be seen in the life of Daniel in Babylon.

1. Do you have the ability to stand in the King’s palace?
What are we preparing our children for? Do we tell them that they will stand before kings? Isn’t it interesting that Proverbs states that you need to be excellent in your natural profession to gain access to kings? For Proverbs 22:29 states: ‘Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.’ Are we preparing our people for the rapture, or for dominion and influence? Are we happy if they say their prayers, or do we help them to excel in life?

2. Do you speak the language of the world and read their books?
When we started to sell secular books in our bookstore in the church, some people were upset. But how can we relate to the world if we don’t know what is on their minds? How can we talk to the world, if we don’t speak their language? Besides, a lot of knowledge in the world is not evil, but good and some of it is even divine. God is more involved in the world than you think. He started it, He is committed to it, He loves the people in the world. But if you think any engagement with the world is contaminating your walk with the Lord, you are wrong. I recommend every Christian to read both anointed Christian books and books with the wisdom that is in the world!

3. Do you have names that are relevant to society?
They gave Daniel and his friends Babylonian names. They became one with them. I am not saying it is wrong to call your child Metusalech, or some other Biblical name. Just don’t expect the name to make him or her more spiritual. Focus on building his identity in Christ, rather believing that if you give your child a biblical name will make him holy. That is why I also asked people not to call me pastor anymore, because that is not a custom in the Dutch society. That is why the name of our church and ministry is not First Anointed Holy Ghost Word Confessing Overcomers Church, but Life Connexion.

4. Know when to fit in, and when to stand out.
Daniel fit in with the rest, fellowshipped with the rest, but knew when his conscience did not allow him to follow the rest. At times he requested permission to abide by Jewish customs. This bold stance was not his custom, but an exception. And when he did, like when he wanted a different diet for 10 days, God granted him favor. When Daniel was put in a position to compromise his inner personal life of worship, he knew that that was not to be compromised. The devil is afraid of people that have a life of worship, not an outer form of worship. He can’t handle the power of people that don’t compromise when it comes to their walk with God. He did everything to get Daniel to compromise but he ended up seeing the entire setup turn against him. The same thing happened when Daniel’s friends were forced to worship the image of the King. The fiery furnace did not cause them to compromise and a great victory for their God was wrought.

5. We think Hebrew and talk Babylonian, which makes us sharper than the rest
Daniel 1:20 reads “And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, that the king enquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm.” In all matters these Hebrew boys were smarter, wiser, more creative than any other men in this kingdom. Not only spiritual matters, but also in the field of business, or biology, environment, etc. The reason being that they were programmed from a different paradigm of thinking, they thought Hebrew, they applied Hebrew principles, they use Hebrew logic, and it caused them to always come up with better solutions. That is God’s picture for the Church. We should think Kingdom, and it should make us the wisest, most creative people on the earth. It should cause kings (influencial people) to come to us for answers.

6. We have a supernatural connection.
Not only are we programmed to think differently, so that we have brilliant solutions to everyday issues. We have a supernatiural connection that kicks in when needed, especially in times of crisis. When nobody had the answer to the kings nightmare, Daniel knows how to turn to God: “Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon: he went and said thus unto him; Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will shew unto the king the interpretation.” (Daniel 2:24)

7. We have an inner life of prayer, that causes persecution and deliverance
Daniel nor his friends, were ever intimidated by the King’s decree. They put worshipping their God as something that can’t be compromised. This resulted in severe persecution, which was only a setup to great victory for God to show His power and Glory. Daniel was thrown in the lion’s den, the other Hebrew boys in the fiery furnace. But because of their walk of obedience and intimacy with God, great diliverance always took place!

None of these characteristics is referring to preaching to anybody, but simply showing the power of your spiritual life through the fruit of your life. That is the mandate of the Church in the post Christian era, we will still preach the good news to the poor and needy, bringing them hope and salvation, but we will not preach to the kings, but simply shine Gods light before them.

Isaiah 60:1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. 2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

How to join God’s special forces

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In the entire book of Esther there is no mentioning of God, Jehovah, Lord or anything. It is, however, a story that clearly shows God’s providence; God just stays under cover the entire book. That is what we need to learn as well. In order for a secret agent to get deep into the territory of the enemy, he needs to be under cover and even pretend to belong to the enemy’s camp.

Some Christians are criticized for not witnessing and promoting Christ all the time. But in some cases God has instructed certain people to not be outspoken about their faith, so they can enter deep into the influential regions of the entertainment industry, or at political places of power. Once they are there in their position of power, they can influence society in a much greater way than by simply giving their testimony to one or two people that might become hostile and block their promotion. The author of the Toy Story Movies was a Christian that noticed all the garbage in movies for children and decided to get to a place where he could influence the movie industry. That’s what God wants to do in these days. The darker it gets, the more we will shine our lights with great impact, provided we don’t shine too early and blind people.

Just take a brief look at Esther. What an ungodly and vain thing to do, to enter a royal beauty contest, one might say. But no one could have known the impact of her entering this contest. Nobody knew this was actually the Lord using the unique desire of Esther to save her people. We can condemn singers from entering the X-factor and similar shows. Sometimes we find out much later, after the show is almost over, that they are Christians. But what would you have said if you lived in Esther’s days? God enjoys using less conventional ways than most people expect.

I want to conclude this post with a remark that sets us up for my next artice. The fact that God launched Esther, Joseph and Daniel into the secular world, and the fact that He uses many people in worldly environments, does not mean that you are fee to join all the worldly events. You need to be called for all the things that cause you to enter the territory of the enemy. Next month we will discuss the seven components in Daniel’s life, that need to be present in ours before we can safely enter our position as His secret agent. This is not a day to copy some other person’s calling, but to discover your unique calling!

Your destiny is not in the Church, but in the world!

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It is time for the Church to wake up and realize their approach is not working. When a company is not growing, they change their strategy. It seems that when churches don’t grow, they come together to mourn at the secularisation of society. Last time we talked about the Joseph, Esther, Daniel paradigm. Let’s get a little bit deeper into this, for it is crucial that churches learn to apply these principles to maintain their right to exist!

True impact

Joseph was send to Egypt and became so Egyptian that his brothers did not even recognize him when they were talking with him. Joseph did not try to maintain his Jewish image on the outside, but he did remain true to his Jewish identity on the inside. He continued to walk with God and was used mightily to save the entire world from starvation! God sent Joseph to rescue the people of Israel, and it resulted in a great deliverance for the entire world. That is what will happen in these last days with mighty men and women that know their God! They might not have the typical image of a committed, Spirit filled, holy church member, but they have a rich and deep walk with their Saviour. It will not be the typical pastors, prophets and apostles that will be the world shakers, but men and women at places that you did not even think were suitable for God’s people. If your purpose in life is to be holy and you withdraw yourself from the world and live as a monk, you will definitely miss your destiny! The days of monks and nuns living in a monastery, trying to impact the world from a distance, is over.

Genesis 45:7 And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 8 So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

Father to Farao!

Here is one of the most amazing principles: God raised up Joseph to be a father to Pharao! This tells us that there are world shapers, influential people (so called kings), that are looking for spiritual guidance, for spiritual fathers! They do not know what to do, and they are not looking for a preacher, but for a person they can relate to. God is raising up present days Joseph’s, with wisdom for economic problems that can’t be solved without the wisdom and anointing of God. They will end up as fathers of kings and rulers of companies, industries, and other arena’s in life!

Post Christian Society requires a different Church Paradigm

Posted by Gertjan Goldschmeding in Spiritual | 0 comments

For many years I had the privilege of pastoring a wonderful church family. We taught the uncompromised Word of God and saw people grow in the Lord. But something happened that changed the course of our ministry dramatically. We had a serious collision with the Dutch society, the authorities, the judicial system, the Child Protection Services, the public opinion and the national media. Much can be said about the origin of this collision, but we found out that in order to avoid more collisions, we had to change our approach to ministry. So are we now compromising? you might ask. I am totally convinced we are not compromising, but we have found out the there is a new mandate for the Church in post Christian communities and nations.

Let’s first address the significance of the term ‘post Christian society’. It refers to a society where Christian norms and values, biblical views on issues, were once seen as the norm, but not any longer. We don’t have to get scientific about this, most people can tell that the norms and values in today’s society are shifting. Things that used to be regarded as abnormal or morally wrong, are now totally normal and granted legal protection.

We can not expect society to accept Christian norms and values, without accepting Christ. That’s why the mandate of the church shifts from preaching the norms and values of the Bible to society, to showing society the eternal principles that are laid out in the Bible. If we don’t build a platform by being relevant to the people, nobody will hear what we are preaching.

The Church needs to apply what I call a JED Paradigm, which stands for Joseph, Esther and Daniel paradigm. These three great people of God were used mightily of God in an environment that did not know anything about God, nor did they accept anything as nomral, that God had commanded His people, the Israelites. These three persons gained tremendous influence without preaching a single word, without condemn anybody or anything. They simply developed an intimate relationship with God in a society that did not want anything to do with that God. That is what God wants to do with you and me in these last days. But we need to understand that this is not a lost situation. Just like Daniel when led into captivity could have given up and mourn about the condition of God’s people. Instead Daniel understood God was going to have a final word in this seemingly lost situation.

I feel like I live in captivity to a certain extend. There are things I don’t preach anymore because they make me irrelevant to society. But that does not mean I compromise on the truth of Jesus Christ. I simply realize that I am send as a sheep among the wolves. I apply the command of Jesus to be wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove. For instance, since calling people with the honorable title of pastor is often misunderstood in our post Christian Dutch Society, I asked people in my church not to call me pastor anymore. But I still believe in the office and the respect that goes with the office. I just learned what it meant when the apostle Paul said:

I Corinthians 9: 19 For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. 20  And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; 21  To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. 22  To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. 23  And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you.

Next post we will dig deeper in the meaning of the JED Paradigm.

Do you know where you’re going to?

Posted by Gertjan Goldschmeding in Business, Spiritual | 0 comments

The reason most of us do not reach our goals, is because we never took time to find them out and get them clear enough so we could see and communicate them. The vast majority of the people just live their lives by responding as best as they can to the opportunities (and threats) that come their way. The best way to describe the lives of most people, is like somebody going on a journey without determining the final destination. At every cross-road they he has to take time to think which way is best. At the same time these people wonder why they are never satisfied and why they feel they are not making any progress.

We should all learn to be like God. He thought everything through before He started the earth and before He created man. He even made a back up plan in case mankind would fail. The Bible tells us that God works backward; He starts at the end and calculates backwards. This is the best way to understand how vital your part in history is. Understanding that God needed you for the final outcome of His plans and purposes, realizing that that is the reason of your existence today, should liberate you from all thoughts of inferiority.

You too should live your life by calculating backwards. Start by determining your final destination, your ultimate goal. It is the key for making the right choices today. Michael Porter’s definition of strategy is “knowing what not to do”. When you know your ultimate goal and destination, it is easy to say no to the things that don’t contribute to you reaching your goal. Your life won’t be hard at every intersection; most of the choices are already made at the beginning of the journey.

It is time for you to become more strategic. Even if you know which way you want to go, take time to think things through. To be a doer of God’s Word doesn’t mean you should not take time to think things trough. God does not want you to just know what to do, but also to know why, how and to what purpose. This is not hard, it just takes slowing down your pace. But trust me, you will reach your destiny a lot faster!

True leaders have no followers!

Posted by Gertjan Goldschmeding in Business, Spiritual | 0 comments

Last week the pastor of the Amersfoort Church (Ben Schmidt) and I took a short mission trip to the Ukraine. Pastor Ben preached the second service in Kiev Good News Church (founded by Rick Renner, pastored by a wonderful Ukrainian pastor David) and I preached the first service. Prior to Kiev we flew to Odessa where the people were so excited and hungry that the pastor announced a spontaneous meeting for all leaders the following morning. Since I did not have time to prepare anything I just started to share about empowering leadership from my heart. I noticed what I shared made a lot of sense to the pastor but some of the Ukranian leaders openly rejected the message a first. During this time of confrontation God showed me how the Kingdom of God is directly opposite of the system of Communism. Unfortunately the so called democratic systems of government in the west are not in line with the Kingdom of God either. But since communism takes away the initiative from the people, it also takes away the responsibility from the people and people slowly die, while remaining alive. When you want to restore the initiative with the people they oppose it at first because the are afraid of the responsibility. When God allowed Adam to name all the animals he did not only give Adam tremendous freedom and room for creative expression, he also gave him an awesome responsibility.

Much of the Church world, including all the new charismatic movements, have had insecure leadership that led to a system where all the initiative and control remained with the leadership. Leaders needed to be respected, honored and submitted to. While all of of that is true and essential in a church, the heart of a true leader should be to give room and responsibility to those he leads. Jesus is not a king of subjects, but a king of kings. We should not be a leader over followers, but a leader over leaders. We should desire, empower and allow our leaders to go beyond where we have gone, to take things to a higher level. Just like God empowered Adam and Jesus empowered His disciples. Remember Jesus told us that we will do greater works than He did? Most leaders are afraid that people under them will do greater works than they. It’s time for the Church to get serious about servant leadership. It is time to really adopt the leadership system of the Kingdom of God! It will require much of leaders and those following leaders. But there is no alternative! His Kingdom will advance, whether you cooperate or not! Become a true leader today, become a leader of leaders!

View a short video of our trip to Ukraine here: