It is time for a Kingdom Mindset

Our theme for 2021 is “Redeeming the time.”

We are living in unsettling times. We have the choice of cowering in fear, or hearing God and knowing what to do.

If your confidence is in Our government or our “American” way of life, you are probably disheartened by current events.

But as Christians we are first and foremost citizens of another Kingdom, the Kingdom of God.

What if God intends to expose who is really His and who is actually against Him?

What if he intends for us to look at our own hearts to see where there is hatred, bitterness or the desire for violence?

Sometimes it seems like evil is winning. God let’s things play out much longer than most of us are comfortable allowing.

But I believe God is interested in getting to the heart of the matter. Whom do we really serve?

In my first message of the year I talked about the need for the church to rise up an do what the church is to do, make disciples.

Discipleship, the way Jesus meant for us to do it, is often different from the way we have tried to do it.

I was inspired by “Training for trainers,” a model used in China and other parts of the world where Christianity is growing despite great opposition.

That’s right, the church, historically, thrives in times of oppression.

One of the first things that I learned is that discipleship is not primarily about information, but obedience.

What do you do with what you already know?

I want to continue to explore the subject of Biblical discipleship with a view toward understanding the times and knowing what we should be doing.

I want to begin with the simple concept which Jesus declared that the Kingdom of God has come!

Mark 1:15 ESV

15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

The has come for God’s rule and reign to be restored.

That’s the basic premise of the great commission.

Matthew 28:18–19 ESV

18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Authority is restored in Christ.

That is why we go and make disciples.

We are teaching people to recognize Christ’s authority and to bring themselves and everything under there influence under Christ’s authority.

We sometimes get this wrong because we make it more about us than about Him.

We make it about our church, our doctrine or simply about people liking us and thinking the way we do.

If we get discipleship wrong, it’s because we have got church all wrong.

We get church wrong when we misunderstand our assignment.

We misunderstand our assignment because we fail to recognize who Jesus is and what he came to do.

Getting it right begins with the Kingdom!

Having a Kingdom mindset means its not about how big our church is or how many people we influence. It’s not about getting people to follow us, its about us following God. Its about helping them see that they need to obey Him!

Recognizing the Kings’s rule

Matthew 13:44–46 ESV

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.

God’s rule is a truth that is hidden to most people.

If I say, “God rules!” I doubt most people would have a problem with that statement. But do they even know what it means?

Most people would say that they go to church (even if they don’t) or that they believe in God (even if they never give it much thought.)

We know that God created the world and everything in it.

By virtue of creation, one could say with the psalmist:

Psalm 24:1 ESV

1 The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,

But not everyone believes in creation these days.

The theory of evolution is taught as a scientific fact, thought parts of it can be proven and other parts cannot.

Those parts which can be proven may simply shed light on how God created the world, not refute it.

The point is that many so-called scientists begin with the assumption that the Biblical account is a mere myth.

That’s an interesting assumption given that ancient documents with far less likely authenticity are given more respect.

The denial of God as Creator is a personal choice, because if acknowledged, it leads to a conclusion that is deemed unacceptable.

What is so unacceptable about God being God?

A lot of people worship God, but do they really know what they are doing?

If God rules then He also requires our obedience.

Romans 1:20–21 ESV

20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

If I acknowledge God’s rule, I will have to do everything that God says. (obedience)

I would say that most of us don’t like having rules, but that’s not true.

It seems that most people find some comfort in rules as long at they are made clear and consistent. (f.ex. COVID)

Or perhaps we like rules for other people, but not for ourselves?

If it were just the Ten Commandments that God was asking I think most of us would find that to be simple enough.

But Israel violated the first commandment before Moses was even down the mountainside.

Remember, you grew up with the Ten Commandments, they didn’t.

What the Law shows us is that is is not enough to try obey God, we have to want to.

That’s were we run into a problem, because if we are totally honest, we would rather be God than serve God.

What do I mean? Well, we want to be in control of our own lives.

God created us in His image with a will of our own.

Serving God with our whole heart doesn’t seem like enough of a choice, we are born to rebel.

It’s called the sinful nature and we all have it.

The good news is that God made a way to undo the sinful nature by sending His own Son as a sacrifice for sin.

That’s right - God made the provision to buy back, reconcile and restore that which by rights was already His.

When you think about the cross, it shows the true nature of God, contrasted with our human nature.

Who wouldn’t want to serve a God like that?

Once you know the truth about God, you naturally give your life to it.

The problem is that most people do not really know God as He is.

People say, “If God is loving, why does He allow evil and pain?”

That’s assuming that everything that happens is God’s will.

If God rules, doesn’t that mean He just does whatever He wants?

It does not account for human will and agency.

It’s not God’s fault, it’s ours!

What has God done?

He became one of us.

He suffered voluntarily.

He experienced death.

He rose from the dead.

He sent the Holy Spirit.

God deserves our honor, worship and obedience.

He deserves it first because He is our Creator and He ruled from the beginning.

He deserves it secondly because He made a way for us to be restored after our rebellion unleashed such evil on the world.

He deserves it thirdly because He has a plan to restore all things, and by aligning with God, we become part of the solution to the problem.

Understanding the King’s ways

Isaiah 55:6–9 ESV

6 “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; 7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

The way to know God is to seek God.

When I was a child I would spend hours walking through the woods on our family farm. I would talk to God and God would talk to me. I could look around me and see the beauty of God’s creation. I was aware of God’s presence comforting me and even calling me to serve Him.

Much of my adult life has been spent trying to get back to that child-like faith. I rarely have time now to walk with God, literally, like I used to do. I don’t get out in nature much and it seems to take more to inspire me with that sense of awe than it used to.

But at least I had those experiences and I know what its like. I can’t imagine what I would be like not to have God in my life, not to be surrounded by His goodness and beauty. I can’t imagine what it would be like not to know Him or to hear His voice.

How do you seek God?

I suppose you can go back to those memories, or perhaps even those places where you have experienced God before.

Recall God’s goodness, His presence and the things that you have already learned.

Another way to seek God is to ask God questions.

Name your doubts, fears and the things that have caused you pain.

Pour out your heart to God and expect that God will answer.

Give it some time though, because God rarely answers in the way that we expect.

How will you know when God is speaking to you?

You will know because it’s not you.

You know your own thoughts, what you are likely to come up with.

God’s thoughts are beyond your thoughts.

When you stat to think thoughts that are beyond when you know or could imagine, you might be hearing from God.

Oh, and If it’s God, it has to be good.

God doesn’t tell us to harm ourselves or anyone else. That comes from the other place.

Also, God gives us hope. He doesn’t condemn us or leave us without a way forward.

God will not speak anything that is contrary to His Word.

So ask God for a scripture, a verse to hang on to.

Share was God is saying with others who know God, let them clarify as God speaks through them.

Learn to think like God thinks.

God says that His ways are not like our ways and His thoughts are not like our thoughts.

Some people will read this and immediately come to the conclusion that we cannot know or understand God.

I think rather it is an invitation to think differently - to try to think like God.

Jesus showed us how God thinks and how He acts.

Our challenge is to follow (be more like) Jesus Christ.

How is this possible? It is only possible by spiritual transformation.

The King’s ways are not intuitive, they are not what we naturally default to. They are counter-intuitive. That is, they are not naturally or intuitively understood because they are spiritual principles, not natural ones. - T4T p.65

When Jesus ascended He gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit helps us to think God-thoughts.

The Holy Spirit brings conviction when we are slipping back into the sinful nature.

The Holy Spirit helps us to confront and overcome the obstacles that keep us from doing things God’s way.

The best way to understand God’s ways is to do them.

John 7:17 ESV

17 If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.

We normally want to understand what we are agreeing to before we agree to it.

I realize that there are people who would follow Christ except that they are not sure about what they may be asked to do.

They want to be in control.

That doesn’t work with God.

If you need to be in control then you are God, He’s not.

When you recognize that God is God and you are not it necessitates giving up at least a measure of control.

To some people, that seems like a trick or a trap.

Why is that important?

If you are going to understand the mind of God, you have to do what God does, or what He already did.

God gave up control when He created humans and gave them a free-will.

God gave up control when He entrusted His eternal plan to human beings.

God gave up control when He became a baby in a manger.

God Gave up control when he submitted to death on a cross.

Why would God do that?

God knew that he could not stay dead.

He knew that if He laid down His life we could be free from the power of sin.

He knew that His eternal purpose did not require His control, it required His release.

God releases us, empowered by His Spirit to become who we were meant to be from the beginning.

When we walk by the Spirit, we learn about God and how He works.

We can know how God wants to respond to others because we know His work in our own lives.

What’s more is we are attuned to the Spirit.

We are constantly listening and looking for what God is doing and saying.

God’s ways are often not very religious.

Religion is predictable and loves to control.

It keeps people bound in fear rather than releasing them in faith.

Any attempt to reduce God to a system rather than a living, active relationship is not God’s way.

“If we do not understand the way’s of the King’s reign, we will not welcome it when it starts, nor fan its flames- and we may even find ourselves opposing it!” Ying Kai

God’s ways are dynamic and often surprising, yet as we learn to know God more, they are completely consistent with His character.

Our job is to “keep up” with what God is doing.

Following the King’s command

John 13:34–35 ESV

34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

God rules through love.

You would thing that God, being the rightful ruler of the world and Jesus being God in human flesh would order unquestioning obedience from His followers.

God is not power-hungry and He is not insecure.

Insecure people need to intimidate and prove that they are powerful.

God doesn’t have to prove anything, except what He has already demonstrated in Jesus Christ.

Rebellion requires force, God rules through love.

I know, it’s completely backward from how we think and from what we know.

But that’s because our minds have been influenced by the sinful nature and the world.

Our minds are wired for rebellion. God has to rewire them for submission and for love.

We are wired for self-protection, self-preservation and self- promotion. God rewires us for love.

He only does this with our permission and at our invitation.

There is no greater authority than love.

Who had the greater authority in your home? (Usually Dad)

But who did you listen to? (Mom, because she loved you)

OK, for some it was the opposite, but you get the point.

God loves you and that is reason enough to obey Him.

The obedience that God requires is voluntary but it is not optional.

God will not force you to obey Him, that would be no benefit to Him because everything in the Kingdom operates on love.

You cannot demand love.

Jesus commanded it, but it was only because He first demonstrated it.

But don’t think that you obedience is optional either.

Just because God is patient and kind does not mean that our obedience is any less urgent.

We have to accept that God sees thing we do not see and knows things that we do not know.

Just like Jesus said, when you obey, you will understand.

Our job is to obey what we know to be true, while we wait for the revelation of what we do not yet know.

A Kingdom mindset means that you see the big picture.

I may not know all that there is to know about God, but I know enough to trust Him.

The natural human mindset is to have an intense trust in self.

We tend to trust only to the extent that we can control.

We keep everything close and venture out only were we see the possibility of extending our own influence.

That’s why we keep to our families, our church and our little circle of friends.

In the Kingdom we recognize that God is much bigger than that.

We are not the only church in town.

God is also working down the street and down the road.

I think God wants us to win this town for Christ, but I can’t manage that on my own.

I can’t even manage all of the relationships I would need to coordinate such an effort.

But I don’t have to, because I’m not the one doing it.

God is building His Kingdom and I’m just doing my part.

I can trust Him to work in you as you do your part.

I don’t have to control you; I’m free to release you to follow the Holy Spirit.

I am free to love and to find unity together with those who likewise are serving the King.

Questions for reflection:

Have you found the treasure/ the pearl of the Kingdom? Are you in awe of God; His power and majesty? Or are you wondering what the big deal is about? Maybe you need to be reminded of what you once knew?

Have you sold out to God? Are you seeking God for what He would have you to do? Or is God waiting on you to become willing to do what He has asked you to do?

Do you have a Kingdom mindset? Are you worried about being in control? Do you think God is all about control? What happens if instead of control, you experience God’s release? What can God do with your life for the Kingdom?