Subtle But Significant- A History of Control Article 002- October 2019

The cult of personality and the theology of control is ancient but alive, and all believers should know how it
entered and still exists in many churches all across America. Here is just one of many stories.

There was a gentleman named Edward Irving (1792-1834) who was a Scottish Clergyman in the Church of
Scotland and he preached in several different churches for several years. Irving was a highly-skilled,
charismatic preacher who became agitated that the church was not teaching and operating in the “apostolic
and prophetic” properly, so he decided to form his own church. He also believed that the physical return of
Jesus was going to happen at any minute and the church at-large was not ready. He felt that the church was
out of control, and he did not think that believers were able to have their own individual, unsupervised
relationships with God. They needed “covering, boundaries, and alignment” through a pyramid-style
leadership concept.
In his agitation (never a good way to start a church),
Irving left his church after a long trial where leadership Quote from the trial of Edward Irving by the London
addressed his alleged heresies. He started a new Presbytery
church and founded what was later called The
“Irving’s natural-talents brought the high-regard of
Catholic Apostolic Church. He decided to give himself
men. This placed him in a spiritually-vulnerable
the title of “The Angel” of his church and then he
circumstance wherein his opinion of himself climbed
found 6 friends and commissioned them to be along with his elevation by others. In his immaturity
apostles. He wanted 12 apostles, but he died before he could not perceive that he was trusting in flesh;
he could get the other 6 on board. After his death the human strength and human eloquence. Those who
other 6 were “selected by prophecy.” He taught trust in flesh occupy a position of abhorrence before
everyone that the return of Jesus was just around the God:”
corner and that He and the apostles would be the
LAST and ONLY apostles on the earth before Jesus Thus says the LORD; “Cursed be the man that trusts
showed up. (Spoiler alert: They ALL died and Jesus did in man, and makes flesh his arm and whose heart
not appear) departs from the LORD. Jeremiah 17:5

Irving then invented the “four-fold” ministry. The priesthood government of Jesus (See: The entire book of
Hebrews) was not enough for him, so he reinvented Paul’s teachings in Ephesians Chapter 4 regarding gifts
to the church. He turned the beautiful gifts of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers into a
pyramid-like governmental hierarchy. He thought using Ephesians 4:11 to re-develop the church into an
Egyptian-like “government” would get the church back under control and ready for revival, awakening, and
the return of Jesus. The Four-fold hierarchy he designed was (Apostle or) Elder, Prophet, Evangelist, and
Pastor (or Teacher). Five positions in four folds. (This is where today’s “Five-Fold” government concept came
from) Note: He was not part of the four-fold because he was an “Angel.” There were absolutely zero women
involved in, invited into, or assigned to any leadership position whatsoever within Irving’s pyramip structure.
In Irving’s new church hierarchy system, there were also other angel and priest ranks. There were angel-
prophets, angel-evangelists, and also priest-prophets, as well as priest-elders, deacon-pastors, deacon-
prophets, and so on. Again, Irving believed all of this was needed to keep the church aligned properly until
the physical appearance of Jesus, which was prophesied to occur at any minute, so he was doubling down
on his man-made theology.
Well, needless to say, Irving died. The other apostles died. The other angels died, and the immature co-
dependent church that could not operate under the Egyptian pyramid controlled by man-made apostles also
died. It died because there were no more apostles, angels, or controlling leaders to lead his churches and
tell everyone what God was saying. The church died because Jesus was nowhere to be found in the
leadership structure. For them, Jesus was a far off entity that was on His way, and they believed men needed
to keep people under governmental alignment until He returned. So, after all of this craziness, the saints
moved on, and the buildings and properties were sold or leased to other churches or businesses.
(This same storyline plays out over and over again, even today!)
Fast- Forward

The Four-fold and five-fold control-based theology died off for many years and there was little talk of Irving’s
misguided understanding of the Kingdom leadership under Jesus.
But then:

 Azusa Street Revival 1906- After this revival, there was a call by several church leaders to “restore
the five-fold” to govern the churches. It faded as quickly as it came.
 Latter Rain Movement 1948- Five-fold re-emerged again under “The New Order of The Latter Rain”
which was going to restore five-folds to prepare for “The manifestation of the sons of God” on the
earth. Under this movement, a spiritual father/spiritual son theology emerged where everyone had
to get a father so they could have a “covering” in order to hear God correctly. This all faded away
again.
 In the 1970, 80s, even into the early 90s, the church experienced several movements including the
Shepherding Movement and a few others, where the spirit of control and manipulation had another
shot at the church. A new understanding of “Spiritual Families” and “Spiritual Fathers” emerged and
was placed on the church. Under this new hierarchy paradigm, believers needed to find spiritual
parents who would stand between them and Jesus and provide them with, “permissions, coverings
and hedging.” A few years later, C. Peter Wagner decided to do the exact same thing Edward Irving
did. He made himself an apostle, made some of his friends into apostles, and decided the church
needed “alignment, submission, and government” above
A writer offered this observation about and beyond the Priesthood and Government of Jesus. He
Irving after the trials: created a “New Apostolic Reformation” to restore “the
“One unique and insidious aspect of pride five-fold government.” (Wagner’s theology is still limping
is that it is a difficult-fault to turn back along in many churches, but Saints are opening their eyes
from. To turn-back contemplates an and ears to hear what Jesus is saying about this.)
admission of being wrong and having been
in some way foolish or derelict. The proud Today, the “five-fold government” hierarchy nonsense has
person cannot do this without being been reconstituted, rehashed, revised and recreated over
humbled first. Having achieved celebrity- and over again in many churches in many very creative
status in London as an acclaimed-orator ways. Nonetheless, it was and is still lipstick on the pig
and theological-prodigy, Irving’s inclination created and re-created by Irving and other dysfunctional
upon being challenged in his doctrine was church leaders. Many church leaders to this day try to
(rather than to resort to Scripture), to create “spiritual legacies” by anointing and commissioning
immediately put up a defense and to each other into all types of “government offices” in order
fasten himself more securely to the
to ensure that there is a man-made chain of command and
objectionable-doctrine.”
“spiritual legacy” controlling churches and people.
The reason this deeply flawed theology always comes, goes, and then dies; the reason the five-fold theology
turns into a tool for control, manipulation, insecurity, co-dependence and dysfunction each and every time
is simply because it is NOT the theology of Jesus Christ. In Ephesians 4:11 Paul was teaching about PEOPLE
GIFTS, not government offices. Paul was speaking to a single church; the church of Ephesus about what they
needed at the time he wrote the letter. He wrote this letter 55-60 years after the upper room inauguration
of the church. If Paul were teaching about the foundational governmental system needed for the church of
Jesus Christ to operate effectively, do you think he would have taught it just a little sooner? The church
would have been operating for years under faulty government. The fact is that the church of Paul’s time
knew God’s government simply as a priesthood (us), led by a King (Jesus), period. Ephesians 4:11 reads, “He
Himself (Jesus) gave SOME to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and some
teachers……. The SOME are His priests, and HE is the one who gives out the gifts. We must get this deep
inside our spirit so we do not fall for false teaching; Jesus gives people (who are gifts to the church) to the
church. These people are given gifts (apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, teacher, counsel, administration,
finance, mercy, teaching, hospitality, grace, and many others). There are TWO types of gifts operating here;
people-gifts and Jesus-gifts.

If we read ALL of Paul’s letters, he speaks to several different churches about several different gifts, based
on the need at the time, in each specific church. He assigned key leadership roles to both men and women,
and he in no way believed that God distributed spiritual gifts by gender. Today, we take ALL scripture to
shape doctrine, not the scripture we feel will control people. In Paul’s letters to all of the churches, you will
find more than 20+ gifts Jesus gave to the church, but there is only one King who gives them out! No one
else assigns gifts. We recognize and honor these gifts in one another by evidence called fruit, not man-made
commissioning, anointing, and bizarre passing down of legacies. We recognize an evangelist when we
experience a priest (you) operating effectively in the evangelist gift, period. And the evangelist does not
need to check in with the prophet (in accordance with the misguided understanding of Ephesians 4:11
hierarchy) before evangelizing! We do not need to check credentials, see who one-another’s covering is, or
find out if someone has a man-approved spiritual father, who can be traced to another spiritual father going
back four generations. MEN DO NOT COPY and PASTE, RECREATE, TRANSFER, OR MULTIPLY JESUS’S GIFTS.
Jesus assigns them all by Himself.

Believers (priests) who are given gifts (Apostle, teacher, counselor, evangelist, etc.) enjoy a Kingdom where
there is a fellowship of friends (the last thing Jesus called His apostles. John 15:15) who operate in
multiplicity, mutual submission, and equal honor for one another, with no Egyptian pyramid hierarchy
needed. That is the Church and Kingdom of Jesus and the Church Paul “apostled.”

Beloved: Know what kind of theology you are seated in, where it came from, and
where it is headed.

Mike Eckerd –October 2019