Mark David Shaw

The Government of God: Standing at the Threshold of Divine Presence Mark David Shaw

Since the beginning of time, through the ages, and to the present, man has been seeking to govern himself by his own power. Many of the machinations of man are geared toward structuring a government, whether civil or church, that revolves around either power, safety, or a combination of the two. In the past 2000 years leaders in the Church have rejected a government structure that is based in biblical revelation. Entering the mass of conversation, Shaw reveals a preferred government structure based in the actions of the Creator, both with the nation of Israel and the Church, over a timeline that spans generations. This revelation brings purpose and understanding to the five ministries revealed in Ephesians 4:11-12. All of the five callings are defined so that God's calling would be recognized in His ministers wherever they are. Shaw also deals with the arguments against the apostle and the prophet being viable in the Church today. What about women in ministry? Any treatise on government would be incomplete without dealing with this controversial subject. Are women allowed to hold an office of ministry according to the Word of God or are they forbidden? Shaw treats this subject carefully and with logic rather than with heated passions or preconceived ideas. What is an elder and what is a bishop? Both of these terms have brought confusion to the Body of Christ. The understating revealed about these two words can completely revolutionize the structure of the Church. Coming back to a Hebraic cultural understanding will release us as the Church to look like Jesus in the earth. With all of the various types of government in the Church, it becomes obvious that we have lost information that would keep us in the divine order of God. When we let God interpret to us what He wants, and we follow it, that can only be followed by the manifestation of His presence corporately.