Sharing a parable from Matthew a couple of weeks ago, I noted to our small group that the Kingdom of God must have value for today. If it is only future tense, then there is no reason to live under the rule and reign of Christ.
The way we frame salvation only places the true value of Gospel, and the Kingdom of God, in the future. We also limit the Kingdom’s effectiveness by how we frame salvation. We frame salvation as getting out of hell and getting into heaven. Doing so means that salvation has little impact for our lives today; it is not something to place a lot of value, time and effort into.
So what value does the Kingdom of God have for you? And why should that even matter?
1. We sacrifice everything for that which we place high value.
Our family. Our job. Our stuff. We place high values on them, do we not? We have insurance in case our stuff gets destroyed, we spend most our time at work, and what little time is left we spend it with our family. We sacrifice so our kids can get braces, go to the best school and have all they need (or better yet, all they want).
But answer this question…What have you sacrificed for the Kingdom of God? Have you left family, friends, and your possessions for the Kingdom of God?
2. It is obvious what we value, because of the sacrifice we make for it.
Isn’t that what I just said? Probably, but I want to frame it a different way. It is not what you say that demonstrates what you value; it is what you do. Most pastor types sacrifice all for the church. Most pastor types want their lay people types to sacrifice for the church, and one church particular.
But the church is not the kingdom. It is not our responsibility to build the church. Let me say that again: It is not your responsibility or my responsibility to build the church. That is Christ’s responsibility (Matthew 16:18). It is not even your church. It is Christ’s church (Matthew 16:18).
If we de-emphasize the church and emphasize what we should be prioritizing (Matthew 6:33) then our focus is bigger than the organized church. And the church is able to move out of the institution and into the MIROR-ing.
3. It we emphasize what Christ told us to prioritize, then all that we need will be added to the intimate relationship we have with Jesus.
The food, the shelter, the clothes, they will all be added to the relational rule of Christ in our lives.
How do we return value to the Kingdom?
1. Determine how you spend your time, energy and money. What do you emphasize in your life? Examine your finances. Examine your weekly schedule. Examine what you read. Pastors, examine what you teach and preach and what you model in your life. Examine how you work with other churches and pastors. Examine how your church participates in the kingdom glocally. What does the church spend it’s money on? Where do the majority of its resources get used?
2. Work through the scriptures to determine the value of the Kingdom of God. This is something I am in the process of doing. Find the scriptures that talk about the Kingdom of God and see what value it has for us today. What value does the Gospel have for us today? (Beware, this will change your view of the Gospel. Most of us do not have a proper theology of the Gospel.) If we do not know the intrinsic, personal, and present value of the kingdom, we will not sacrifice for it nor will we emphasize it. Not valuing the kingdom means we will de-emphasize it, and place the emphasis on something else.
I realize the value of the church as it is used by God to build for the Kingdom. But the church is just one tool God will use. If we over-emphasize it, we miss the Kingdom, which is where our priority should be placed, both individually and corporately. And what we value, we will give our all for!
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Tags: Gospel, Kingdom of God, Miror
