Multiply: By Tim Kernan

Genesis 1: 26-28
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, [b] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

Genesis chapter one is a great place to start any discussion on biblical principles since all powerful biblical principles can be found threaded throughout the entire bible. Here God is commanding Adam and Eve to grow numerically as the very first command He gives to mankind. Isn’t that amazing? God existed for infinity before mankind and had all the time in the world, literally, to think about His first words to mankind and those first words were to go out and increase in number! God wanted more people, more babies, and more souls to seek Him.

Gods will (John 6: 40) and Gods work (John 6:29) is that as many as possible come to Him to be unified in love forever. Are you multiplying and increasing in number or are you stagnating in your faith? As disciples we are students of a master who multiplied himself… that means we need to multiply ourselves.

How are your convictions on the biblical principle of multiplication? Its amazing how God has been asking His people to multiply since the very begining of mankind! Take a look at this history of God commanding us to grow in numbers:

After the flood, when God wiped out mankind except for the family of Noah, he gives these instructions to the survivors: (Genesis 9:7) “As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.” God has not given up on lots of children who will seek Him and His healthy, spiritual and amazing ways. In fact, once again, its the first thing he says to the freshly disembarked passengers on mount Ararat in modern Turkey. Their mission was to multiply!

Many years later, God once again begins to work through a small group of people lead by Abraham. After testing him thoroughly and beginning to draw up a covenant and a set of laws God promises to grow a chosen tribe that will again increase in number. Look at God’s dream for Abraham:

Genesis 22: 16-18
“I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring [b] all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”

As God promised, the people grow in the land of Gershon in Egypt and eventually become the slaves of the Egyptians (Exodus 1:7). God sends Moses from the burning bush and Moses brings the people to the eastern side of the Jordan. Later, Joshua leads the people in the conquest of the land. They fail to take over the land (Judges 2) as they were commanded (Deut 20) and God sends a series of Judges to protect and grow His people. Finally the Judges give way to Kings and prophets (1 Samuel:12). However God who is not happy with the Kings. They were not protecting the flock or growing it… but was still dreaming of a people who will be His very own, and will increase in number!

Jeremiah 23: 1-4
“Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the LORD. 2 Therefore this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the LORD. 3 “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4 I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the LORD.

Of course we know that the Kings do not listen to God and as a consequence the people are pulled off into exile. As God promised He eventually brought them back to Jerusalem where under Nehemiah, Zerubabel, and Ezra (Nehemiah 4), once again, a small number of committed souls sets out to grow in number! Are you seeing a patern here?

After the prophets of that time passed away; Malachi, Haggai, etc. God sent a time of silence for 400 years…

Then, a light dawned on the sea of Galilee (Mark 1) and Jesus began once again to gather and increase. He began to gather a small number of committed disciples who would grow! He ordered a handful of students to become his “fishers of men”. It blows me away how much God has gone through to reach mankind…

In time after Jesus had trained his apostles he brought them up to a mountain where they would be able to look down and remember many of the places where they had spent time together. Once again God sent a small number to multiply!

Matthew 28:18 “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Christ called every disciple to create more disciples! Also, every generation of new disciples would be called to the same standards as the apostles! There would be zero decline, degeneration or deterioration allowed.

The book of acts is full of their heroic deeds as they increased GREATLY in number!

Years later, within weeks of the death of one of the greatest apostles he wrote a letter to his young acolyte and it said:

2 Tim 2:2 “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”

In a single phrase Paul outlines for Timothy the plan for 4 generations: Himself, Timothy, reliable men, then next generation. Do you have a plan for four generations?

I’m so proud of the disciples in London… God has truely blessed us with a multiplying group of leaders. In only two years Lianne and I are now blessed to mentor disciples, who mentor disciples… who now mentor disciples! 4 generations! Its incredible to see the leaders effectively discipling small groups of disciples who then disciple small groups of disciples in turn… The relationships are really getting richer and richer, closer and closer, and more and more effective! It hasnt been easy to get there!

As disciples each of us is called to participate in this incredible legacy and dream of God: to multiply! Do you know about it… Or do you have a conviction about it?

You’ve seen the history… but now your making the history.

Go for it!

Love,

Tim