Sermon - April 18, 2010
From Here to
Kingdom Come 2: Turf Wars
Genesis 12:1-4, Luke 12:29-32
Last week we launched this sermon
series on the Kingdom of God: Jesus compared the kingdom to a treasure
hidden in a field, or a pearl of great price worth everything we've got
to joyously receive. But how many
of us, born under the wings of democracy, know what a kingdom really
is? The very word Kingdom might conjure a stodgy court in England,
or the fantasy realm of fairy tales. What makes for a
kingdom, and what distinguishes the Kingdom of God from all other forms
of earthy governance?
In his book, Rediscovering
the Kingdom , Dr. Myles Munroe writes “The original concept of
kingdom as introduced by God Himself, stands alone as the perfect
prototype of government built on righteous judgment. All kingdoms of
the earth were mere attempts to imitate this perfect Kingdom.” (pg.63)
He also notes that no form of government – not even democracy – can hope
to achieve the effectiveness of the perfect kingdom without the
essential factor – the Holy Spirit.
There are elements that all kingdoms, and all forms of government must
have to function. First, a leader, a president, a chairman, a dictator,
a king. The Kingdom of heaven is ruled by God as Sovereign. A king is
not voted into power or impeached out.
A King cannot be a king unless there is a realm, territory –
a kingdom, or “king-domain”. The King is the embodiment of the kingdom's
glory and nature. The constitution of the kingdom expresses the mind and
will of the King for His citizens. Our Bible is the documented
constitution of the Kingdom of Heaven because it expresses the mind and
will of God our King.
The Kingdom must have citizenry: a community of subjects.
Citizenship is not a right. It is a privilege, and the King's choice.
Our Lord Jesus said, You did not choose me, but I chose you and
appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father
will give you whatever you ask in my name. Jn 15: 16. The king's
responsibility is to personally provide and protect the citizenry from
His wealth and in His strength.
A few weeks ago I watched a delightful movie made in the fifties:
the Mouse that Roared. In this minute kingdom ruled by a
gracious benevolent queen, all the subjects looked similar. (Peter
Sellers played three very different parts including the queen) And they
were all related by a common ancestor, the founder of the dutchy. In the
kingdom of God, all of the citizenry are related: we are the children of
God. When our risen Lord met Mary Magdalene in the garden, He
instructed her to tell His brothers, the disciples, I am returning to
My Father and your Father, to My God and your God. Jn. 20:17. By the
blood of Christ we are family. There should be a family resemblance in
our aspect and demeanor. We are not only to resemble our Lord, but to
rule with Him.
Every Kingdom has laws established by the King Himself. These Laws
hold for foreigners and visitors as well.
If I go to England and drive on the right as we do here,
instead of the left as they do there, I have broken their law and am
subject to the prescribed penalty. In the Kingdom of Heaven, the Word of
the King is law for all in His domain: all heaven and earth. We are
subject to God's law, whether or not we acknowledge His Kingdom or His
sovereignty. The apostle Paul tells us in his letter to the Philippians
Chapter 2: 9,10, ultimately every knee shall bow and every tongue
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
To those who receive Christ, God gifts the Kingdom with all its
benefits and privileges: a life made abundant through the Spirit, access
to the throne for all needs and concerns, fellowship with the King
himself now and forever. Jesus said it this way, “And do not set your
heart on what you will eat or drink: do not worry about it...Your Father
knows that you need them. Lk. 12: 29. From
the same passage we learn our prime directive: Seek first His Kingdom
and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.
Lulke 12: 31.
What are the earthly benefits to being a
citizen of God's Kingdom. We have heard a great deal about the Health
Care bill. God has his own health care plan: it's called Healing. April
15th reminded us again that Government takes money: a tax
system. The Kingdom of God is financed by the Tithe, only ten percent,
considerably less than our government requires. The central
communication system of the Kingdom of God is the Holy Spirit through
prayer and through gifts of the Spirit.
God's economy is hands down greater and more efficient than
any on the face of the globe. He gives abundantly to us and we give
generously to others – then He gives even more so we can give and do
more. Remember this: Whoever
sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously
will also reap generously. 2 Cor. 9:6 . We receive blessing to bless
others. The Kingdom of God has a diplomatic corps:
we are ambassadors of Christ. And the Administration of the
Kingdom is the ministry of the Spirit through us as Christ's body, the
Church – the outpost of the Kingdom on earth.
A Kingdom has a code of
ethics: acceptable conduct of citizens representative of their kingdom:
moral standards, relationships, personal conduct and attitudes, attire
and manner of life. Once while traveling with my folks through Colorado
we stopped for lunch at noon. There were only a few people in the
restaurant, which seemed strange at the height of lunch hour, but we
figured we would be served right away. False assumption. Not only was
the service slow, but the waitress was owly. Our orders were wrong or
incomplete. Although everything appeared clean and orderly, the
atmosphere was unpleasant. The manager strode past us, and yelled at the
waitress, yelled at the cooks, and probably kicked the dog at the back
door. The establishment reflected the management. That is true of the
Kingdom of God. Citizens should by all means reflect in our demeanor and
life the nature and glory of our King.
Finally
every kingdom needs an army. God has the heavenly host, an army of
mighty angels. The Church is not identified with the Army, but as a
family of sons, and a nation.
Ladies, the sons of God are not gender specific. We
share in being sons and our counterparts share in being the Bride of
Christ: the Church. It is through God's Army that enemies will be put
down, and the Kingdom will be forever established as a new heaven and
new earth: Jesus said of Himself, “So it will be at the end of the
age, the Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will weed out of
His Kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.” Mt. 13:40.
The Bible makes it clear
that it is God's intention to fully restore His Kingdom on earth. That
doesn’t mean to patch up, fix up and make do.
Restore means to return to original
pristine condition, to make new again. A frame off restoration on an old
clunker means to replace and refurbish with new original parts and
paint. The apostle John proclaims in Rev. 21:1, Then I saw a new
heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had
passed away.”
God's Kingdom is not the
only spiritual realm in the neighborhood. There was a disturbance in the
force. Ever since he was cast down from heaven with a 1/3 of the
heavenly host who followed him, Satan has amassed a counterfeit kingdom
with the sole purpose of robbing God of His. Since the Adam and Eve
caper, Satan has had a hey day distorting, deceiving, and destroying. He
is at war with God and the battle ground is earth; the casualties all
who dwell upon it. Jesus called Satan the father of lies, and the prince
of this world.
In the Bible darkness is a symbol of ignorance – of not knowing God's
truth. Satan lies, deceives and blinds minds, keeping his subjects
ignorant of God's kingdom, and true intent and purpose of life. The
god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that cannot see
the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of
God.” 2 Cor. 4:4. Satan's tactics have not changed. He attempts to
make us doubt the goodness of God, and His love for us. For example, God
tells us repeatedly in His Word, “You are my child, I love you.” But
Satan may tempt us to believe, “You are worthless.” When we are
burdened Jesus implores us, “Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy
laden.” Mt. 11:28. But the devil whispers, “You don't need no body. You
can handle this on your own.”
Think of yourself as a country estate managed by you but owned by God.
Christ has already purchased the deed with His blood. Every time we give
the messages of this world – ruled by the Prince of darkness – credence
over the Lord of life, we parcel off a bit of ourselves to the god of
this world.
God's kingdom is a kingdom of light and life because Jesus Christ to
whom the Kingdom belongs is both light and life. Apostle John
proclaimed: In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. He
would not have you be deceived nor victimized by His enemy, threaten you
peace, we have a mighty ruler who loves us, provides, and protects us by
His own decree. Bow to King Jesus. Know that with Him in your heart,
dear child of God's Kingdom, “Greater is He who is within you than He
who is in the world.” Know who you are – a citizen of the Kingdom of
Heaven and child of the the Most high God. Read the Constitution -the
Bible. Converse with the King.
God knew
the plans he had for Abram, and for Abram's descendents through David,
and Jesus, up to every soul that is adopted into the family of God
through His Son. He told Abram, “Get out of your country and from
your father's house to a land I shall show you.” Genesis 12:1 In
the name and power of our Risen Lord Jesus, God calls “get out of your
country confounded by the tricks and tactics of the devil, to a land I
shall show you: the reign of God in your heart and life: the Kingdom of
God within you.” Amen.
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