“Ask of Me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession” (Psalm 2:8)
The world is our parish
-John Wesley
Taking new territories and expanding the frontiers of God’s rule and kingdom has always been the undying purpose of God right from creation. Adam and Eve were not to settle in Eden. Eden was the take off point from which new frontiers and the whole earth would be conquered for God. The Bible says, “Then God blessed them and God said to them, be fruitful and multiply; FILL THE EARTH and subdue it…” (Genesis 1:28).
In God’s order of things, our localities are not settling points but take off points and beach heads for conquering the whole world for his Name and Glory. The glory of God is at stake in the matter of taking new territories and frontiers for God. The glory of God is so immense that even the heavens and heaven cannot contain all His glory: “…. The heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee” (1 King 8:28). Our filling the earth and taking new territories therefore makes further room for His glory. Therefore, His glory must fill the earth as the waters cover or fill the sea. Those who are jealous for His glory will heed the command to fill the earth and spread out. The Bible says, “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14). Our expansion and new frontiers therefore opens spaces for the containment of His glory in the earthly dimension.
Even when the human race was destroyed with the flood and God had to start all over again, the command to Noah and his generation was the same. God has remained and will always remain committed to the command to fill the earth, conquer new frontiers and territories for His name and glory.
The Scriptures say, “And God blessed Noah and his sons and said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply and FILL THE EARTH” (Genesis 9:1).
The first organized haters of God settled instead of spreading out and taking new territories. Clustering and settling is satanic and rebellious in nature. The first men who opposed God in a global scale chose to settle and cluster instead of spreading out and conquering new lands and territories for God. The foundational thinking of the men in opposition to God (The Tower of Babel) was clustering. They decided to settle instead of spreading out:
“And it came to pass as they journeyed from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and THEY DWELT THERE ……LET US MAKE A NAME FOR OURSELVES LEST WE BE SCATTERED ABROAD UPON THE FACE OF THE WHOLE EARTH” (Genesis 11:2-4).
As we can see from the Scripture above, they started journeying and at some point they settled; deciding to make a name for themselves instead of expanding and giving room for the glory of God. We can either make a name for ourselves or give glory to God. Settling is a decision to make a name for ourselves. It attacks the glory of God. God will never share His glory with any man (Isaiah 42:8). God had to arise and scatter them. The Bible says, “So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of the ALL THE EARTH” (Genesis 11:8). Clustering invokes the scattering of God. Spreading makes room for His glory. May we not settle but arise and be territory takers, spreading out and making room for God’s glory as the waters cover the sea.
In our dispensation, God is even all the more committed to taking new territories and frontiers for Him. The Bible says, “Go therefore and make disciples of ALL NATIONS…” (Matthew 28:19). The Lord did not say make disciples of one or some nations. He said all nations. The world therefore is our parish and it our duty to make sure that every nation is taken and conquered for His name and glory. The Lord will not be satisfied so long as there are territories or nations that are yet to be taken for Him.
Territory taking and spreading out is also enshrined in the very purpose for which God sent the Holy Spirit: that we should be witnesses for Him beyond our Jerusalem: “But you shall receive power when the HOLY Spirit comes upon you and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
Clustering therefore places a limitation on the operational scope and intent of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The intent of God is that we see beyond our Jerusalem: The Holy Spirit will honour and find greater expression in a mission that sees beyond Jerusalem and has a territory taking and spreading out focus.
The early church tried to settle after explosion in numbers in Jerusalem: Jerusalem had become comfortable. The settling mindset creeped in but God who has called us to fill the whole earth was not going to have it. They remained in Jerusalem and had forgotten about Judea and Samaria. God used persecution to scatter the clustering church: this opened the way for the gospel to get to Judea and Samaria.
The Bible says, “Now Saul was consenting to his death. AT THAT TIME A GREAT PERSECUTION AROSE AGAINST THE CHURCH WHICH WAS AT JERUSALEM; and they were ALL SCATTERED throughout the region of JUDEA and SAMARIA except the apostles…. Therefore, those who were SCATTERED WENT EVERYWHERE PREACHING THE WORD. Then Philip went down to the city of SAMARIA and preached Christ to them” (Acts 8:1-5).
Clustering always invokes scattering and trouble. The church had settled in Jerusalem whereas their mission was beyond Jerusalem. They were to go all out to take further territories for God. May we see the implications of spreading out and taking new territories for God. Could our churches be troubled and in much suffering because we have narrowed our outlook? God will always scatter what is clustering be it in Babylon or in Jerusalem. God is totally committed to territory taking and may He open our eyes to see the implications of territory taking and may we partner with Him in this glorious enterprise. We can do so in several ways: we can go, give financially or adopt a missionary to sponsor or commit to pray for a particular missionary or mission field or in whatever way the Lord leads us to partner with Him. God bless you as you co-labour with Him and us in this great and glorious task. Amen
Dr. Christian Ezeudemba
