Four-Fold Principle
The
Four-Fold Principle is a reflection of God’s four-fold nature in His Word. By understanding God’s four-fold nature we
will understand our own nature, which is also a four-fold nature since we are
all made in God’s own image. Here are
some examples.
The Exodus: When it became obvious that Moses could
not lead so many people alone, God gave Moses a four-fold leadership plan that
reflected God’s own nature.
1. Moses.
Moses was the ultimate leader and the final decision maker. Every
organization needs to have someone where the buck stops. That was the roll of Moses! Every family
needs to have a Patriarch to make a final decision.
2. Aaron.
Aaron was the leader of all the Levites and the Tabernacle. He was the religious leader of the
Israelites. The father is the family priest and he is the one to make the
religious decisions of his family.
3.
Levites. The Levites did all of
the work of priests in the service of the Tabernacle. They did all of the work of Tabernacle
service. All of us need to pray and attend church service and support the
church.
4. Elders.
The Elders made all of the small decisions for the people. They handled
all of the secular, tribal, and personal issues with the people. The Patriarch
of our families need to make any decision that cannot be resolved among the
family members.
When Israel
camped and rested for the night, they were guarded by the four primary tribes;
Judah, Reuben, Ephraim, Dan.
Four tribes of Israel.
The four trees of Israel- Judges
9:7-15: The four trees referred to-
the Fig-tree, the Olive, the vine, and the Bramble- are the four which are used
to combine the whole of Israel’s history.
1. Fig-
tree. The Fig-tree represents the National position of Israel, from which
we learn (in the Synoptic Gospels) that it withered away and has been cut down.
2. Olive tree.
The Olive tree represents the Covenant privileges of Israel (Romans
11): which are now in abeyance.
3. Vine.
The vine represents Israel’s Spiritual
blessings, which henceforth are to be found only in Christ, the True Vine
(John 15).
4. Bramble.
The Bramble represents the Antichrist, in whose shadow they will yet
trust, but who will be to Israel a consuming fire in the day of “Jacob’s
trouble”- “the great Tribulation.”[1]
Ezekiel’s vision: The prophet Ezekiel was active during the
Babylonian captivity of the Jewish people.
He had seen a vision. He had seen
a whirlwind, and out of this whirlwind he saw the likeness of four living
creatures. This was a picture of the
nature of God and the nature of the coming Christ, who is God in the
flesh. Well, that living creature had
the likeness of a man (Ezekiel 1:5).
Everyone had four faces and four wings (Ezekiel 1:6). They had four faces in four different
directions. They each had a set of wings
for each direction.
The four living creatures had four faces. The face of a man, lion, ox, and eagle.
These faces
represent the four natures of God. Let’s
take a look at the four faces that Ezekiel had seen.
1.
Man. This is the face of
humanity. When Jesus Christ arrived, He
was God, but He was also at the same time a man. He loved, He cried, He hurt, He felt
hardship. He felt and experienced all of
the emotions we feel every day. God set
the ultimate example for us in His humanity.
God understands our human nature.
2.
Lion. This is the face of
authority. God welds authority over
Satan, demons, angels and mankind. God
is our ultimate judge. Through Jesus
Christ He is our ultimate Redeemer as well, but He will judge mankind the next
time He arrives. The lion is the “king
of the jungle.” A lion has
authority. God rules and judges like a
lion. So, should we as well.
3.
Ox. This is the face of
labor. God works to guide us, He worked
to redeem us from our sins, and He will work with us to the end of the age. We
as Christians are also to work in the Kingdom.
The ox is a beast of burden. The
ox is an animal that works a plow or carries a load. The ministry in the Kingdom is also work and a heavy load.
4. Eagle.
This is the face of spirituality.
Eagles are birds that soar high in the sky. They are admired that they live higher than
any other creature. They are also birds
of prey. Eagles have always represented
Spirituality and a higher spiritual order.
God dwells in a higher spiritual realm and as Christians, so should
we. Eagles have been known to soar to
great heights, high into the heavens. We
Christians are to soar high in our spirituality in revelations, visions, prophecy,
dreams, gifts of the spirit and miracles.
We are to soar high in the spiritual heavens in the presence of God.
The
Coming Christ: The prophecies
concerning Jesus Christ which are recorded in the Old Testament may be classed
under four categories.
1. King-----------Lion----PS 2:6; Is 32:1; Dan
9:25. “Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.”
2. Servant--------Ox-------Is 42:1; 52:13. “Behold
my servant...”
3. Son of Man---Man----Is 7:14; 9:6-7; Dan
7:13-14. “...Behold, a virgin shall
conceive, and bear a son...”
4. Son of God---Eagle---Is 9:6-7; 40:3-9. “...The mighty God...”
The Branch: Jesus Christ is set forth in the Old
Testament as the Branch four different times and for four different reasons.
1. The Branch--King-----Lion---Jeremiah 23:5. “...I
will raise unto David a righteous Branch...”
2. The Branch--Servant--Ox-----Zech 3:8. “...I
will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.
3. The Branch--Man------Man---Zech 6:12. “...Behold
the man whose name is The BRANCH...”
4. The Branch--LORD---Eagle--Is 4:2. “In that
day shall the branch of the Lord...”
Behold: Jesus Christ is introduced four times in
the Old Testament by the word “behold.”
1. Behold, the King-----Lion---Zech 6:12. “...Behold
the man whose name is The BRANCH...”
2. Behold, the Servant--Ox-----Is 42:1. “Behold
my servant...”
3. Behold, the Man------Man---Zech 3:8. “...behold,
I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.”
4. Behold, your God-----Eagle--Is 40:9. “...Behold
your God!”
The
Gospels: The four Gospels reveal the
four natures of God. There is but one Gospel
with four presentations. Four pictures
of one Christ are given. The combined
Gospel records set forth a personality rather than present a connected story of
a life.
1.
Matthew--Christ as King-----Lion---presented to the Jews to reveal Jesus
Christ as their Messiah.
2. Mark------Christ as Servant--Ox-----presented
to the Romans to show them the practical nature of Jesus Christ.
3. Luke------Christ as Man------Man---presented
to the Greeks to reveal the Godly nature of the man, Jesus Christ.
4. John------Christ as
God-------Eagle--presented to the Church to reveal the Divine nature of Jesus
Christ.
Four-Fold ministry: In Ephesians 4:11-12 we see that the
Christian Church is made up of four separate ministries that work together for
the growth and health of the Church.
1.
Apostles. These are ministers
that start new churches in non-Christian lands and strengthen existing
churches. After starting new churches,
they see to it that it grows. This can
also include a church denomination superintendent or other Church leadership
positions, since these positions deal with authority and growth into unchurched
areas.
2.
Prophets. These are church
members who have prophetic gift in order to strengthen an existing
church. Prophets deal with the spiritual side of ministry.
3.
Evangelists. These are ministers
that travel the world and increase the faith and gain new converts for existing
churches. These men and women are the
hardest working members of the Church.
4.
Pastors/Teachers. These are
ministers or members who oversee a church.
Pastors and Teachers do the same ministry. These members deal with people and their
problems. They minister to the human
side of the Church. They teach and
preach the Gospel.
1. Apostles------------Lion---Authority
2. Prophets------------Eagle--Spirituality
3. Evangelists---------Ox-----Ministry
4. Pastors/Teachers---Man---Humanity
Four-Fold
Church leadership: Under the leadership of the Spirit, the apostles
organized the early Church in a four-fold manner.
1.
Bishops. These are male ministers
who had been pastors for many years and are now a leader over several to many
churches in a grouping.
2. Pastors.
These are male ministers that lead a church. They are the final authority of the local
church.
3. Elders.
These are elder saints, men and women, who help the pastor lead a
church.
4.
Deacons. These are men and women
in a church who deal with ministry matters within a church. These saints make the local church operate.
William J. Roop, M.A.B.S.
