Kingdom Values

Theological Focus:

Loving money, behaving deceitfully, and living sacrilegiously are all valued by the world and are repulsive to God, while exerting one’s self into the Kingdom by means of the Gospel through faith and repentance is pleasing to God. (Heb. 11:6)

Introduction

In the middle of the 20th century, an Austrian Psychologist name Ivo Kohler involved himself in an experiment in which he had to wear a pair of special engineered goggles that contained specially contained mirrors that flipped his world literally upside down - top becoming bottom and bottom becoming top!

He struggled at first, as you might imagine, with some of the things he enjoyed. When he tried his hobby fencing, he kept jabbing the sword in the opposite direction. When he tried to drink tea, he was confused when he saw the water pouring up instead of down.

But over the next week, he actually found himself adapting! He eventually walk along a crowded sidewalk and even ride a bicycle! Kohler writes that, "after several weeks of wearing goggles that transposed right and left, one person "became so at home in his reversed world that he was able to drive a motorcycle ...... while wearing the goggles".

Now this was all done as an experiment on optics and perception, but it interested me that “he became so at home in his reversed world”.

As Christians we live in a morally reversed world and at times it can be easy to forget what is reversed and what is not and become disoriented.

How nice it would be if we all could discern these things perfectly all the time! The truth is that we can discern truth and error, and we have God’s Word that tells us that which is upside down and rightside up.

So the question before us is: “How do we live as Kingdom citizens in a world with and upside down value system?”

Reference: Luke 16:14-18

Organization: First we will look at the values of the Pharisees, and then the values that should be held by Kingdom citizens.

I. Worldly Values (14-15; 18)

A. Revelation - love of money, deception, acting sacrilegious (about marriage in particular)

Q: How does Luke describe the Pharisees in the opening?

Q: What does this have to do with how they treated Jesus? (in connection with the previous passage)

Q: What kinds of things are said to be an abomination to God?

A: love of money, deception, acting sacrilegious (about marriage in particular)

Q: Why is it important to realize that God knows the true nature of our hearts?

- Note on Divorce in this passage (v.18):

This is not intended to be a comprehensive teaching on divorce

Jesus is merely using it to point out the flippancy of the Pharisees’ view of divorce

In their religious system, a man could divorce his wife for any reason which went contrary to Scripture

B. Relevance (Illustration)

The worldly values in our culture are no different and are also an abomination in the sight of God.

Illustration: Charles Spurgeon once said that breaking moral laws is like breaking natural laws. He said it’s like a man standing in front of a steam engine that is heading toward him at full speed who expects to defy the laws of physics. Such an act is not courageous - it’s foolish!! The consequence of breaking God’s moral laws is infinitely heavier than being hit by a steam engine. Yet, this is the attitude of the world and especially our culture here in 2024.

Q: How are the things exalted / highly valued in our culture today an abomination/repulsive to God?

A: discussion

Transition: Now that we have taken a look at the worldly values displayed, let’s take a look at the Kingdom values set forth in this passage....

II. Kingdom Values (16-17)

A. Revelation - faith, repentance, obeying the Gospel, holding fast to the inerrant and infallible Word of God, love of God, honesty, and honoring marriage.

The Law and the Prophets mean the Old Testament

Jesus is saying that the Kingdom of God has come in fulfillment of the Old Testament and the Old Covenant, which the Pharisees said they embraced

everyone forces their way in by faith, in spite of them - or is urged to come in

Q: What does it say about the Law in relation to the created universe?

A: that it will never fall away

B. Relevance (Illustration)

Q: Why is it important to know that God’s Word will not fail as Kingdom citizens?

A: discussion

Q: What are the Kingdom values in contrast to the worldly values previously mentioned?

A: discuss - faith, repentance, obeying the Gospel, holding fast to the inerrant and infallible Word of God, love of God, honesty, and honoring marriage.

Illustration: There are two options for us in our culture - to assimilate or separate.

- assimilate: is to be absorbed and transformed by the culture.

- separation: example of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the OT who were taken away captive by Babylon. They were determined to obey God out of love for him at all costs - even if it meant their very lives.

All four of them together chose not to defile themselves with the king’s food and customs.

Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego refused to bow down to the golden image, God preserved them from burning to death in a furnace.

Daniel refused to stop praying to the God of the universe even when it was outlawed, in which God preserved him from being mauled to death and eaten by lions!

Likewise, we are to be in the world but not OF the world - yet seeking to ultimately transform our culture by means of the Gospel and Kingdom living.

III. Application - Hold high the ways of the Kingdom - this is the way!

One of the ways we can hold up high the ways of the Kingdom is in our marriages. Within our marriages, we need to foster Kingdom culture especially as we want our kids to grow up and do the same.

So we will be doing a multiple week study on marriage on how to embody kingdom values. By doing this I believe we can strengthen our marriages in the way God intended and for the way he intends to use us in the world.

Illustration: Imagine if more Christian families were to live out their Kingdom values and display them in our society in culture. It is said that families are the building blocks of society, and marriages are the building blocks of society.

Conclusion

So this is how we can begin to turn this upside down world rightside up. By displaying our convictions and values, for living and approving what pleases God and opposing the values of this world that God detests.

What better way can we do this in the immediate context of our marriages and home!? Of course, Satan knows this all too well which is why there is so much attack on the institution of marriage and family today.

Let us cling to the Word of God that can never fail, let it transform you, your marriage, and your family.