The Hope of Postmillennialism: The Power of the Kingdom

proverbs 21:15 “When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers.”

Intro

What impact will the gospel have on the world?

What will happen as the Kingdom of Christ grows in the world from a small stone into a great mountain that fills the whole earth through the preaching of the gospel?

What will the world look like when the gospel leavens the world and all the ends of the earth remember and turn to the Lord (Psalm 22:27), and the knowledge of the glory of God covers the earth like the waters cover the sea (Hab. 2:14)?

The gospel has the power to change the world.

That’s really the hope of Postmillennialism.

Now every Christian believes that the gospel can change the world and it will change the world to some extent or another.

Every Christian believes the gospel has the power to save sinners.

But the Postmillennialist says that so many people will turn to Christ that every single aspect of life and culture, in other words the world, will be changed by the gospel.

Isn’t that what the Great Commission is all about. Go and turn all the nations, turn the whole wide world into followers of Christ?

Baptize them and teach them to obey everything Christ commanded.

Bring the gospel to bear on every aspect of life and and teach them how to live for Jesus?

That’s the mission. Change the world with the gospel.

All power and authority has been given to me. Go therefore and make that power and authority a reality in all the nations.

And as we carry out the Great Commission, and more and more people get saved, what impact will the gospel have on the world? What will a Christian world look like?

Like Jesus said, The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened (Matthew 13:33).

The whole wide world and every aspect of life will be touched and impacted by the power of gospel. By the power of the death and resurrection of Christ to save sinners.

And here’s ultimately what I’m trying get at. What I really want you to see.

We might not ever get put in the history books or remembered as one of the great Christian saints.

But we are apart of something glorious.

Everything we do for Christ, no matter how small, is part of God’s plan to bring healing to the nations and exalt the name of Christ.

So let’s start with point number 1...

I. The Gospel Will Change the World

Foundations

Now before we can start talking about what a Christian world will look like, I want to take a second to remember some of our underlying assumptions that we’ve already worked through in this sermon series.

Number 1: Christ is on the throne. He is ruling and reigning today as King of kings and Lord of lords. The promised Son of David who would rule the earth and lead all people to worship and glorify God.

Number 2: Satan has been bound. He was bound in the first century through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

In Matthew 12, Jesus said if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.

The Strong Man is Satan and his house is the world. And Jesus said He bound the strong man so that He may plunder His house.

So that He may take all the nations as His inheritance.

Here’s how Hebrews 2:14-15 describes it: Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

Satan’s binding does not mean He is absolutely powerless or that He is not at work in the world or at work in the Sons of disobedience.

As Peter says, Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).

But John says Jesus took on human flesh, suffered, died, and rose again to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).

And Paul says on the cross Jesus triumphed over principalities and powers, including Satan himself and exposed them to open shame (Col 2:15).

The Bible is not contradicting itself.

What his binding means is that Satan is defeated, the serpent’s head has been crushed, and he is absolutely powerless to keep the gospel from going forth. He can do nothing to stop Christ from plundering His house and saving His people.

And that takes us to our third underlying assumption. The gospel will overcome the world.

Through the preaching of the gospel, prayer, and the power of the Holy Spirit, the Great Commission of the church will be so successful that it will lead to worldwide conversion.

That a vast majority of the world will be saved and God will give Christ the nations as His inheritance and the ends of the earth as His possession (Psalm 2:8) because He has promised to bless all the families of the earth in Him (Gen. 12:3).

After all, did Christ not promise to be with us to the end of the age and what can possibly stop the One who has all power and authority on heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18-20).

So all that begs the question: as the church marches on behind Christ and under the banner of His Kingdom to overthrow the Kingdom of Satan and make disciples of all nations, what will that world look like?

What is Christ building, and how do we start laying some bricks?

Edwards

Now this poses a bit of a problem for me. Because we are going to look at a lot of Scripture today, and some of the things I’m going to tell you, some of the prophecies we are going to look at are almost too fantastic, too amazing, too glorious to believe.

So I think it would be wise to use somebody else’s weight to talk about what will the world look like when the gospel has permeated all things like leaven.

So we are going to turn to Jonathan Edwards.

Jonathan Edwards was an American Pastor and theologian who lived from 1703-1758 and is regarded as the greatest American theologian to have ever lived on par with John Calvin or John Owen.

And his sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God sparked the Great Awakening. One of the great American revivals that brought many to faith in Christ.

During his ministry, Edwards preached 30 sermons which later became a book called The History of the Work of Redemption that traces God’s plan of salvation from the Fall all the way to eternity in heaven.

And in chapters 7 and 8 of that book Edwards describes how the Kingdom of Christ will overthrow the Kingdom of Satan and dominate the world before Christ returns through the preaching of the gospel which will lead to the salvation of all nations.

Now if you read those chapters, you’ll see that Edwards held a Historicist interpretation of Revelation meaning he sees the book of Revelation progressing all throughout the church age.

I don’t hold that view because I believe Revelation primarily focuses on the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, but the point remains.

The gospel will flood the world. It will permeate and leaven all things.

What will that look like? What impact will the Kingdom of Christ have on the world?

This is where Edwards is so helpful.

Listen to how Edwards talks about the gospel dominating the world.

The visible kingdom of Satan shall be overthrown, and the kingdom of Christ set up on the ruins of it, everywhere throughout the whole habitable globe. Now shall the promise made to Abraham be fulfilled. That in him and his seed, all the families of the earth shall be blessed (Gen. 12:3) and Christ now shall become the desire of all nations (Haggai 2:7)…Now the Kingdom of Christ shall in the most strict and literal sense be extended to all nations, and the whole earth (Edwards, “History of Redemption,” Works Vol. 1, 608).

Now This does not mean every single person will one day be Christian or that sin and wickedness will cease to exist. The wheat will grow with the tares.

Edwards says Not that there will be none remaining in a Christless condition; but that visible wickedness shall be suppressed everywhere, and true holiness shall become general, though not universal (Edwards, “History of Redemption,” Works Vol. 1, 609).

But, the kingdom of Satan shall be overthrown and the kingdom of Christ set up on the ruins of it.

The gates of hell will not prevail against the Church (Matthew 16:18).

Satan still has strongholds in the world. Strongholds of false religion, man-made philosophies, and wickedness and sin.

Everywhere you look left and right, we see strongholds. This is not denying that Satan and his kingdom are still at work in the world.

But here’s what we are saying. Because of Christ all of those strongholds are broken. All of their defenses have been torn down and given over to destruction.

Every stronghold of Satan’s Kingdom is another Jericho ready to have its walls fall down by the preaching of the gospel.

So here we go. What will this Kingdom look like. Edwards doesn’t tell us in a neat and tidy format, but I’ve basically boiled down what Edwards believed the impact of Christ’s Kingdom would be on the world into in three main categories.

First, True Religion Over all the Earth.

Second, Justice and Peace Over All Nations.

And third, the Blessing of God Over All of Life.

I want to use Edwards weight and theological gravitas.

I am a nobody and he is a big-time-somebody. One of the greatest theologians this world has ever known.

How did Edwards believe the gospel would change the world?

And this is where we need to buckle up and engage because we are going to fly through a lot of Scripture because I want you to hear just how loud the chorus is singing the gospel’s impact on the world.

So let’s start with...

1. True Religion Over All the Earth

Now religion is usually thought of as a dirty word today, but when I say true religion I’m talking about the true worship of the One True God in all of life.

And true worship, Jesus said, is offered to God in spirit and in truth.

In spirit meaning it is spiritual worship that is from the heart. We don’t just follow religious rituals or go through the motions but we worship God and love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Paul says our spiritual worship is offering our bodies as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to God (Rom. 12:1). Meaning we worship Christ with all of our heart and all of our life.

And in truth means that we worship God for who He is according to His Word.

He is Holy, Just, Righteous, and Good. Gracious. Merciful. Slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

And the only way we draw near to Him is through the sinless life, sacrificial death, and bodily resurrection of Christ.

He died on the cross in our place for our sins and it is only through Him that we can be reconciled to God.

And this kind of spirit and truth worship, this true religion will flood the earth as the waters cover the sea (Hab. 2:14) because God promises in Malachi 1:11 For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering. For my name will be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts.

And along with this true religion, every false god and false religion will be destroyed.

Jeremiah 10:10-11 But the Lord is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King. At his wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure his indignation. Thus shall you say to them: “The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.”

Islam will be torn down. Mormonism will be torn down. Catholicism, Jehovahs Witness, Buddhism, Secular Humanism and every pagan other god will fall to Christ for He must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet (1 Cor. 15:25).

As Zechariah 14:20 says even the bells of the horses, the most trivial, inconsequential details of life will be inscribed with “Holy to the Lord.”

True religion will cover the earth and all things will be done to the glory of God in Spirit and in truth.

Psalm 22:27 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.

Jonathan Edwards says “Doubtless one nation shall be enlightened and converted, and one false religion and false way of worship exploded, after another” (Edwards, “History of Redemption,” Works Vol. 1, 605).

Number 2...

2. Justice and Peace Over All the Nations

Psalm 72:8-11 May he have dominion from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth! May desert tribes bow down before him, and his enemies lick the dust! May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands render him tribute; [that’s talking about the farthest reaches of the earth] may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts! [These are rich and wealthy nations. So the Psalm’s point from the farthest reaches of the earth to even the greatest earthly Kingdom] May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him!

This Psalm is a prayer for the King who reigns on David’s throne.

According to Acts 2, Jesus reigns on that throne today. Psalm 110:1 The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.

So Psalmist is praying that all the kings of the earth would bow down to Christ.

That they would all submit to Him, and rule according to His will.

And Isaiah tells us this will happen.

Isaiah 49:23 Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you, and lick the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.

Speaking of this verse, Jonathan Edwards says “In that day, such persons as are eminent for true piety and religion, shall be chiefly promoted to places of trust and authority. Vital religion [meaning true religion that is alive] shall then take possession of Kings’ palaces and thrones; and those who are in highest advancement shall be holy men.” (Edwards, “History of Redemption,” Works Vol. 1, 610).

And here’s what Edwards says Isaiah is promising: “Kings shall employ all their power, and glory, and riches for the advancement of the honour and glory of Christ and the good of his church” (Edwards, “History of Redemption,” Works Vol. 1, 610).

Kings and the nations under them will serve the glory of Christ, and ultimately this will result in the justice and peace of Christ ruling over the earth.

Justice

We all want justice don’t we. We all want everything to be put right.

The world today cries out for justice. All of us know everything is broken and all of us want it somehow, someway to be put right.

When we are talking about justice we are talking about right and wrong and how to make wrongs right. That’s what we are getting after.

Equal weights and measures. Just punishment for the crime. Everyone loving their neighbor as themselves.

But who gets to define justice? Who gets to say what is right, what is wrong.

The world says we do. And the world says justice is whatever we think, say or feel is right.

But that’s not justice because. We don’t get to define what is right and wrong. That was the very first temptation all the way back in Garden of Eden that broke this whole world in the first place.

You will be like God knowing good and evil (Gen. 3:4).

So no. We don’t define what is right and wrong. God defines what is right and wrong, and He says what is right and wrong so through His Law. Through His commands.

So the sad irony is when the world is crying out for justice, what they really want is God’s Law. They want His kingdom cause our tower of Babel is falling apart.

But here’s the problem. We are all lawbreakers. And in our sin, we all hate God’s commands.

So If we want justice to roll down like waters and righteousness like and ever-flowing stream (Amos 5:24), then instead of crying out for justice what we should be crying out for justification.

We should be getting on our knees in repentance asking God to forgive our sins for breaking his law and give us new hearts that love to obey him.

For God to take out our heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh that loves God and Loves...Gods...Law.

We will never have justice without Christ. It can’t happen.

If justice is only found when we obey God’s Law and submit ourselves to how He has made the world to work It will never come without the gospel.

Without turning from our sin and rebellion and saying, “God, we are not like you. We do not know good and evil. Will you forgive us and will you show us.”

And then, only then, Under Christ and His gospel will justice flow down because righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne (Psalm 89:14).

Isn’t that what we all want. We hate injustice. Its like a rot in our bones.

We are all looking for someone to establish justice in the Land even the lost who are far from God because they know something is broken here because we don’t want to admit it but there is something broken in us.

But look at the glorious promise in Isaiah 32:1-2.

Isaiah 32:1-2 Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule in justice.

The King is Christ. And the princes are all the kings of the earth who bow down before Him.

And under Him, the princes will rule according to His will. They will rule in justice. They will rule according to the Word of God.

Then...

Each will be like a hiding place from the wind, a shelter from the storm, like streams of water in a dry place, like the shade of a great rock in a weary land.

Each - all the rulers and princes under Christ from the first to the last, will be a shelter from the storm. A stream in the wilderness. And shade in the desert sun.

That’s the justice we are all hungry for.

And through the gospel Jesus will reign in righteousness and all His princes will rule the earth in justice.

They will rule according to the Word of God for the glory of Christ the King.

Peace

And when the gospel dominates the world that justice, that love for God and love for His Law, will lead to world peace.

We all know Isaiah 2:2-4 In the latter days, in the days of Christ’s Kingdom, all the nations will flow up to the mountain of the Lord to learn His Law.

That’s the gospel at work in the world. That’s where justice comes from. All the nations will have new hearts that want to obey God’s Law through the transforming power of the gospel.

And then it says He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.

World peace.

But we all know that verse and we’ve dealt it before, so I let me show you another one.

Zechariah 9:9-10 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Now let me ask you. When was this fulfilled? When Christ rode into Jerusalem a week before His crucifixion.

So this prophecy began to be fulfilled 2000 years ago in Christ’s incarnation.

Now what does the very next verse say?

I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.

Where did we hear that before? Psalm 72!

So the King comes on a donkey to bring salvation, and then as King he speaks peace to the nations.

And I want you to see the connection here.

Christ brought salvation sitting on a colt. In His death, burial, and resurrection Jesus saved sinners. That’s verse 9.

Then the King ascended to sit on His throne. And from that throne, He speaks peace to the nations.

This prophecy is still being fulfilled today through the preaching of the gospel.

Everywhere the gospel goes, Christ’s Kingdom is growing from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.

The Gospel is changing the world.

And it will happen. Christ’s justice and peace will rule the earth because God has promised it.

Isaiah 9:7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

This puts us squarely before Christ’s return and the eternal state because His Kingdom does not grow in heaven.

And God promises to grow Christ’s Kingdom to fill the earth.

And to guarantee that promise God says the zeal of the Lord of Hosts will do this.

The fiery passion of the Lord of Heavens armies will conquer the kingdoms of men and bring them into His Kingdom.

Finally...

3. The Blessing of God Over All of Life

Blessings come with obedience. And when True Worship, and True Obedience covers the earth as the waters cover the sea through the preaching and power of the gospel, so will a flood of God’s blessing and favor cover every aspect of life.

Jeremiah 31:12 They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion, and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord, over the grain, the wine, and the oil, and over the young of the flock and the herd; their life shall be like a watered garden, and they shall languish no more.

Going back to Psalm 72, that prayer for the King...

Psalm 72:6-7; 16 May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers that water the earth! In his days may the righteous flourish, and peace abound...May there be abundance of grain in the land; on the tops of the mountains may it wave; may its fruit be like Lebanon; and may people blossom in the cities like the grass of the field!

When all things are done for the glory of Christ, even the bells on the horses, the blessings of Christ will flow over every aspect of life and culture.

Law. Government. Art. Music. Food. Technology. Business and Economy. Education. Family. Medicine.

Imagine the blessings that will flow when all things are done for the glory of Christ in obedience to His Word.

The days of Solomon where the people of God had rest from all their enemies and every man sat under His own fig tree were just a blurry picture of the blessings of the Kingdom of Christ (1 Kings 4:24-25).

Summary

True Religion, Justice and Peace, and the Blessing of God . That’s what the Kingdom of Christ will bring as it grows from a stone into a great mountain that fills the whole earth and overthrows the kingdom of Satan.

And that’s what we are praying for in the Lord’s Prayer when we pray Thy Kingdom come, they will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

We are praying, God, let the gospel go forth. Save us from our sins. Turn the hearts of the world back to you, and let your Kingdom rule.

Why would Christ command us to pray for something that wouldn’t actually happen? Because that prayer is not just about eternity or heaven because Jesus says on earth as it is in heaven.

Society

Here’s what I am saying. The gospel has the power to change the world because the gospel has the power to change lives.

Think of it like this.

The world is made up of Nations and Kingdoms.

Nations and kingdoms are made up of cities and cultures.

Cities and cultures are made up of households and families.

Households and families are made up of individual men, women and children.

The world wastes all its time trying to fix the problem of sin and groaning of creation with top down solutions.

Bigger government. New program. New initiative.

Jesus knows if you want to change the world you have to start small. You have to go at the foundation. You start with a mustard seed.

The gospel goes out from the church, the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes (Rom. 1:16).

And as the gospel goes out, men women and children believe.

They repent their sin. And the power of the gospel changes their homes and their families.

And from there, the gospel goes out more. More households are changed.

And as more households are changed, cities and cultures are changed.

Van Til said it best. Culture is just religion externalized. Culture is the common way of life we build around the God we worship.

If that God is Christ, what will that culture look like.

And as cultures are changed entire nations and Kingdoms are turned upside down by the gospel.

His Kingdom shatters every kingdom and reduces them to dust.

This is what was happening all throughout the book of Acts. The enemies of the gospel would bring Christians before the Authorities shouting These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also!” (Acts 17:6).

And that’s all we are saying, the gospel has the power to turn the world upside down.

The world, when you get down to is made up of nothing more than one person here and one person there.

And If the gospel has the power to change one person’s life, and then another, and another, and another then of course it has the power to change the whole world as more and more people turn to Christ.

How can it not? It brings repentance from sin and life from the dead.

The gospel will change the world one person at a time because we cannot say it enough: the gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.

This takes us to our last point. The gospel will change the world because Christ will build His Kingdom.

II. Christ Will Build His Kingdom

Isaiah 42:1-4 Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law.

In Matthew 12, Matthew quotes this passage and says its all about Christ. So what is Isaiah saying.

Well the word justice is used 3 separate times telling you that this is the Big IDEA of what God has sent His Servant Jesus to do.

By bringing forth justice God is promising that Christ will raise up and establish the Word of God over all the earth.

And lest we forget, that only happens through the gospel. That only happens when God writes His Law on the hearts of His people.

Christ will set right what is broken and establish God’s will on the earth.

Then verses 2 and 3 tells us how Jesus will bring forth justice.

He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street. A bruised reed he will not break and a faintly burning wick he will not quench.

Now we have all heard these verses before but what exactly do they mean.

This is Jesus gentle and lowly. He does not establish His Kingdom by force.

Remember when Jesus said my Kingdom is not of this world. He wasn’t saying, my Kingdom has nothing to do with this world.

He was saying My Kingdom doesn’t get its power and grow its borders like the Kingdoms of this world.

My Kingdom is a spiritual Kingdom. Jesus said If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews (John 18:36).

So Jesus doesn’t establish His Kingdom with a top down show of force. He establishes His Kingdom and brings forth justice by changing hearts from the inside out.

The Kingdom grows spiritually. It grows from people being born again left and right through the preaching of the gospel.

That’s why it says a bruised reed he will not break and a faintly burning wick he will not quench.

He will heal bruised reads rather than breaking them and he will fan into flame a flickering candle rather than blowing it out.

Let me put it to you this way: No one is too far gone for Christ.

He will forgive anyone that trusts in Him.

He did not come to break, shatter, and snuff out sinners. He came to save them by God’s amazing grace.

And that means the Kingdom grows slowly and gradually which is why verse 4 finishes He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law.

Now the coastlands is another way of saying the farthest reaches of the earth. And literally you could translate this has Hope in His Law. Stake their life on it. Depend on it.

They have turned from their idols to depend on God alone and submit to His Kingdom.

This again is the power of the gospel going out to the farthest reaches of the earth.

And Isaiah says He will not grow faint or be discouraged.

Why would Christ ever grow faint or be discouraged?

What Isaiah is saying here is that this is a long road. It won’t happen overnight. The Kingdom is like a mustard seed and like leaven.

This is one of the reason why I’m postmillennial. Christ will establish justice, the word of God in the earth and he will not grow faint or be discouraged until He’s done so.

And here’s something really cool.

The root words for grow faint and be discouraged are the same root words for faintly burning wick and bruised reed.

So Isaiah is using a play on words to say Christ will not break like a bruised reed or die out like a smoldering wick before he has established justice in the earth and the coastlands wait for His Law.

Until the gospel has overcome the world. That’s Christ’s goal. And he will not grow faint or be discouraged until its done.

He will build His Kingdom one saved sinner at a time.

Conclusion

The gospel has the power to change the world.

By way of conclusion, I want to bring this down to ground level. What does this have to do with you today?

What difference does this make in your everyday life?

We could do a whole sermon series on reigning with Christ and what that means, but I just want to leave you with two things.

1. Bricks Build the Road to the Kingdom

What do I mean by that?

Everyday you have the opportunity the play a huge part in God’s Kingdom.

This is one of the most encouraging things to me about Postmillennialism.

Did you know every small act of obedience, even the ones that only touch your heart and your thoughts, is another testimony of God’s power to save sinners and another victory in Christ’s work to bring justice to the nations even to the ends of the earth.

How far are we from Jerusalem? And God’s Word is being obeyed here! Christ is doing it. He’s bringing forth justice to the nations.

He is building His Kingdom, and we are a part of it.

Your obedience is about more than just your personal sanctification. It is another brick in the road on the way to Christ’s Kingdom ruling the earth.

Every time you deny yourself and say Christ is King, you lay another brick in the road.

When you come to worship. Christ is bringing justice to the nations.

When you pray with your children. Love your wife, respect your husband, Christ is bringing justice to the nations.

When you work in your job as unto the Lord and pay your employees a honest wage for honest work, Christ is bringing justice to the nations.

And when you share the gospel whether that’s with your son, daughter, spouse, family member, friend, or absolute stranger, Christ is bringing justice to the nations.

Everyday, every choice, every word, thought, action, and deed, can be for something bigger than yourself.

Every aspect of your life really can be for the glory of Christ and another brick in the road to advance His Kingdom.

No one has a small part to play in the Kingdom of God.

Listen Paul might have laid a thousand bricks. Men like Luther, Edwards, Calvin might have laid a hundred.

You and me might get two. But the road isn’t built without every single one of them.

Whether its sharing the gospel. Turning from sin. Discipling your family. Any good work that God has prepared beforehand for you to walk in...

You are playing your part in God’s plan to exalt the name of Christ and fill the earth with the knowledge of the glory of God as the waters cover the sea.

Christ has a spot for every single one of your bricks on the road to the Kingdom.

So wisdom would say, what bricks has Christ given me to lay?

Today? Tomorrow? Five years from now? In my life? In my Family, in my work, in my church?

Where has Christ told me to seek first the Kingdom and turn the world upside down for the glory of His name?

Number 2...

2. The Gospel is the Answer for the World

Here’s what all this is ultimately saying.

The gospel really is the answer. It really is the answer to all the problems, woes, and brokenness we see in the world.

Fatherlessness

Broken marriages and families.

Rampant immodesty

Pornography

Economic debt

Tyrannical government and oppressive taxation

Lies everywhere you look

Abortion

Sexual perversion and confusion

Depression

Drug abuse

Everywhere sin dominates and death reigns...

You name it, the gospel is the answer.

That’s why the church’s mission is to disciple all the nations, baptizing them and teaching them to obey everything Jesus commanded by bringing the gospel to bear on every single aspect of life.

And its the only thing that can change the world because it is the only thing that has the power to save sinners.

We can’t save ourselves. That’s what the world is trying to do. They are looking everywhere but Christ for someone to deal with their sin and fix the brokenness of this world.

Did not Christ say the fields are white for harvest?

Now this can feel daunting. How are we supposed to start tackling all these huge cultural problems? Its enough to make your head spin and make you want to give up before you even start because that mountain just looks to hard to climb.

But remember the leaven. Start small. Play the long game.

Christ is the one who builds the Kingdom. We are just called to make disciples.

One disciple here, one disciple there. One brick after another.

Its not on you and its not on this church to save the world. That’s Christ’s job.

Our job is faith and faithfulness.

Worship Christ and bring the power of the gospel to bear on every single aspect of our life.

Preaching, prayer, and the power of the Holy Spirit. Those are the weapons of our warfare. And they have divine power to destroy every stronghold of Satan and bring the walls of his kingdom tumbling down.

The Gospel. That’s how Christ will save the world.

Let’s Pray

Scripture Reading

Isaiah 42:5-9 “Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it: “I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness. I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols. Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them.””