Kenneth Copeland - The Christian Chain of Command
Hello, everybody. I’m Kenneth Copeland. This is the Believer’s Voice of Victory Broadcast. But it is also in class at Kenneth Copeland Bible College. So let’s give the Lord a praise this morning and welcome him here amen, we knew he came. We are going to be discussing this week the Christian chain of command. And let’s open our Bibles to first Corinthians 14:40, «let all things…» How many things? «Let all things be done decently and in order». Decently and in order. There’s two words there.
So 15th January 1957, earlier the morning of the 14th, I left the railroad station here in Fort Worth, headed for Fort Bliss, Texas. And it was not a diesel. It was actually an old train. I don’t know where they dug that thing up, but it was older than the hills. But it was a troop train and they started it in Tennessee, came through here and they stopped in different places between here and El Paso to take aboard troops. Anyway, it was late when we got there. But went all the way into orientation, made up all the information for dog tags and everything. And by the time we got through it was past midnight that night.
But I want to say this… Officer in charge said, «Everybody raise your right hand and repeat after me. I Kenneth Max Copeland, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and orders of the officers appointed over me. According to regulations of Uniform Code of military justice. So help me God». They didn’t ask me whether I liked the President’s politics or not. In this case it was Dwight Eisenhower. So I breathed easy. But that didn’t matter. I don’t care how you got there.
I’ve been watching presidents since Franklin Roosevelt. There’s been some good ones. There’s been some stinkos. And then there’d have to be another president come in and straighten out what the other one did. But that’s the history of a democratic republic. So if you’ve got a bad president, that’s the fault of the people, not the president. So where’s the chain of command… Now, I did not start Eagle Mountain International Church to give George a place to preach. I didn’t start it, Jesus did. I’m just the responsible person here. You follow that chain of command. Bill Johnson’s got a great church in Redland, California. His church has a different mission than EMIC… but two powerful missions. But he didn’t start that church, Jesus did. He is the commander in chief of the body of Christ. And he’s ignored far too much as commander in chief and following that pattern.
Now, let’s look at, well, for the sake of time, let’s turn to Second Thessalonians one or First Peter too… Well, let me ask the boss. Father, I would go from… Okay, I’ll just refer to that. More than once we could just go through particularly the second covenant, we could go through the writings of Paul, Peter, John, James and find they did not obey the Gospel. If you have a Bible, there’s no excuse… just because you felt like it, you probably already know, but in case you don’t, listen up. The devil’s most successful weapon… Now, I’m not even going to touch on the business world, but it’s the same thing there. I mean, the unions are fighting the bosses and there’s a lot of strife.
Look at the strife in this nation right now. If we go to the writings of James, which we will before this is… Well, let’s just go there now. Go over to the Book of James. Just go to the book Hebrews, and turn right. And look at this third chapter here. And it’s talking about taking boss over your tongue. It does not say that it cannot be tamed. The Spirit of God is saying here it cannot be tamed with natural force the way you tame an animal. You don’t have to be a Christian to train a horse. It helps, but it’s natural training. But to tame this tongue is a spiritual force, and it takes the Word of God to do it. And most people have not taken advantage of that revelation.
Now, notice this. He goes all the way through this, verse 14. «But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth». Keep your mouth shut. «This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy». That’s the Word of God.
So even here you see it break down and in command form. That’s the Gospel. That’s the Gospel right there, it is to be obeyed. To violate it, just because you don’t know it’s there is no excuse. No excuse for that, because this takes priority over all. And I’ll go back to aviation. When we were training on jets at flight safety. They let you know right quick if there is any difference in their material and the manufacturers material, then the manufacturers material takes precedence over their training material. It has command authority because it came from the manufacturer. So this is top of the chain of command, because this is God, this book. Amen.
So now then, let’s go to Matthew, chapter 1, excuse me, 7:1. This really starts over here in this sixth chapter. But notice what he says here. Now, you notice this is red. This is orders that have come down from on high. Amen. These are command orders, «Judge not». All right… Yes sir. Enough said, but he doesn’t stop there. He never does. And he didn’t say that judge not… No, he said, «Learn of me. I am meek and lowly of heart,» that didn’t mean he didn’t raise his voice from time to time. But even when he did it, he did it in love. Hallelujah. The Lord didn’t instruct me to start KCBC so Greg Stephens could have something else to do, he was busy already. I didn’t start this. I drug my heels on this because I hadn’t quite heard from heaven. But Terri had, and I was waiting.
I want to hear the boss say it. I want to hear my commander say it. He had already said it, and I hadn’t quite caught on yet. And then she said, «Dad, what about every available voice»? Sir, yes sir. That came way back. I already had my orders concerning this college. I just had to be reminded of it, are you listening to me? «Judge not that you be not judged for with what judgment you judge, you shall be judged and with what measure you measure, it’ll be measured to you again». That’s decent and in order. Don’t do that. Most members of the Body of Christ never stop to think about what judging is. Case in point, Jesus was preaching in the house, so he was in his house and it was full. They came in there from all around the whole countryside.
Like Keith Moore said, «The finest donkeys and lambs were parked right out front». I mean, you know, Mercedes donkeys. I mean, the top were there and I used to think that was a hostile crowd, but it wasn’t, it wasn’t in a synagogue. But suddenly somebody started tearing the roof up and Jesus looked up and said, «Cheer up, your sins are forgiven you». What happened? They thought this man blasphemes. They judged him, sat in judgment over him right then. Now he perceived that and corrected it. Nevertheless, they committed it, even in their thoughts. You don’t have to say it, all you have to do is think it and you’re judging someone. You sit in judgment on them.
Well, Brother Copeland, what they did is wrong. Really? How much time do you spend with them? Were you with them last night when there was trouble in the house? God was. But that’s not our prerogative to do that. Now, I had to learn better than that and to do it to be very, very cautious, to take authority over your thoughts and repent over them because they’re judgmental or critical. And one of the big ones. Well, you know how I love Pastor… Here it comes. If you love Pastor, shut up. That’s what the Book says, just keep your mouth shut. Don’t sin that sin and repent because you thought it. But if I had been him, I would never have done that. Now come on Dumb Dumb… Excuse me, Meat Head. Now that scriptural, Dumb Dumb isn’t.
Well, what is carnal minded? Carnal means meat. I’m just messing with you. If you had been him, that’s exactly what you would have done. But without knowledge of why Pastor, who? Where is he in the Christian Chain of Command? Now, wait a minute. I want to know, who are you? Who are you in the chain of command? Are you in the Ministry of Helps? Are you over the Sunday School department? You said Pastor. When you said Pastor, you recognized his authority over you so it’s time to hush. I’m talking about the Christian chain of command. Stop and think about these things and pray about these things. And pray whether or not you should do what the Word says do first.
We’re here in the Book of Matthew, so let’s go over to the 18th chapter, the Great Agreement chapter. But it doesn’t start with the 18th verse. There’s 17 verses ahead of that and it starts out… «The same time came the disciples under Jesus saying, 'Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven? '» Why would they be wanting to know things like that? Now you, second Covenant students, have you come to the realization yet that Jesus was dealing with strife all the time, the whole three and a half years of his ministry, and he could only trust three out of 12. Nine of them fussed all the time. Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration. And two of those are brothers. This says a lot for Mr. Zebedee, this really says a lot. And one of them, Jesus turned his mother over to him.
Now that’s chain of command for you, where did that put him? Whoa, they were fussing right up to the last, what about this guy? I mean, Jesus just turned around and said, «Mind your own business. If I wanted him to live forever, I can do that, not you, just get out of my face». No. Stay inside the chain of command because that’s where decent and in order lies, the chain of command… and someone says, «Well, now, had this been a military meeting this morning»? Of course you were already here, you should have been. Somebody would have been waiting there for me. And they would of said, «Ten-hut founder on deck» and you wouldn’t have said anything or clapped. You would of stood there until I released you.
And you’re not sitting there thinking, «When is he going to let us sit down? what’s the matter with that old man, doesn’t he realize»? That doesn’t come under any of your business. Amen. I’ve used this illustration a lot of times, and, well I’ll wait till tomorrow, I don’t have time to do it today, it’s so vitally important. The reason the Christian chain of command is so important, it was set up before the foundation of the world. You are where you are today because God chose you to be here on this day, in this time, amen. And you can go back down that chain.
My dad had a wonderful job at Drone Business College. But a man from National Oil Line Insurance Company called on him. That had to happen. That was in the plan and it was in the plan for TCU to play Arkansas for the Southwest Conference Championship in 1961. That had been planned by God and it was planned by God that I should go to an after game party and it was planned of God that Wallace Raymond Neece would walk up to me and say, «My daughter is the best looking girl in the state of Arkansas».
And the next day I fell in love with her. And now we’ve been married, well in April, 62 years, that plan had to take place because God planned it. How about the founder of the universe and the fact that he is our very own Father and I’m not going to call him she. Well, there’s a move on right now and it’s been publicized in the Church of England. Well, you know, we don’t want to offend anybody. Well, if calling God he offends you, you got some real problems. And all I can do is pray for you and do the best I can. That problem is the devil. He is always the problem, not people.
Where is he in the chain of command? Way down. He is not in the Christian chain of command. He’s the enemy. My father in law. I have a picture of him in his uniform. Sergeant Major. Six stripes and a diamond, chain of command. That means some time in training and combat… In fact, I know that he was in the battle of the Ardennes. Somewhere in combat, he picked up command some place. One more rank and he’d been a second lieutenant, the chain of command. And we’ll take it up here again tomorrow. Did you get anything out of this today? You better say, «Yes». Well give the Lord a praise of thanksgiving. We’ll be back in just a moment.