The kingdom you live in is not of this world, and that is a good thing.
You see, the kingdoms of this world like to immortalize themselves in statues of stone and bronze. Those who live in the kingdoms of this world strive to be successful enough to cast themselves in an immortal pose that others can stare at years and years to come. Those who live in the kingdoms of this world look up at the stones of the huge temples and marvel at the skyscrapers that demonstrate the power and wealth of corporations, cities, and nation states.
But you, people of God, are not a part of the kingdoms of the world. The kingdom in which you live is not of the world, and that is a good thing.
The kingdoms of this world seek the truth. And, the worldly kingdoms usually find their truth in some sort of philosophical or political ideal to which people hold fast.
Some hold to the ideals of trickle-down economics, and others the shared nature of the ideal communist community; some to the tried and true values of rural life, and other the progressive, accepting nature of the urban life; some to the inherent constitutional rights of the 2nd amendment, and others to the protection of the innocent by good regulation; some to the stabilizing effects of strict parenting, and others to the creative formation in a child stemming from free-range parenting; some to the grit forming character of an individualistic “work hard” ethic, and others the community formation of the team mindset; some to the character that forms when much is expected, and others to the love that is formed when all are accepted; or a million other ideals and truths by which people strive to live in this life and hold dear to their hearts.
Those who live in the kingdoms of this world hold to these ideals as if they are the truths woven into the foundations of creation themselves. They will even stick to these ideals as “the gospel truth” even if they may not be found in any of the four gospels in the Bible. They will hold to these truths so tight that they may even give their lives defending them, but we have someone who gave his life for us.
You, people of God, are not a part of the kingdoms of the world. Your kingdom is not of this world. Your kingdom is not something that can be immortalized in stone. Your kingdom is not an ideal toward which you strive. Rather, your truth found in your kingdom died for you on the cross.
Your truth, your God, so loved the world that God gave God's only son so that all who trust in him will not perish but will have eternal life. In the kingdom in which you live, the truth is not an ideal to which you cling, rather in your otherworldly kingdom the truth is a person. Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, is the truth. And, when you follow the truth, you follow Jesus.
In other words, when the people of Jesus’ kingdom forgive someone who committed a great sin, it is not because they believe in the ideal of second chances, it is because Jesus forgave seventy times seven times.
Do you see the difference?
When the people of Jesus’ kingdom stand up to the powerful in order to protect the weak, it is not because they believe in the anarchy of rioting, it is because Jesus stood up to the powerful and called them out and it cost him his life.
Do you see the difference?
When the people of Jesus’ kingdom bless marriages it is not because they believe in the ideals of marriage, it is because Jesus blessed the wedding at Cana.
Do you see the difference?
When the people of Jesus’ kingdom strive to learn the sciences…strive to learn biology and the scientific method in order that disease might be cured, it is not because they believe in science, it is because Jesus healed the sick.
Do you see the difference?
When the people of Jesus’ kingdom say “Merry Christmas” it is not said in order to win the culture war over holiday words used in department stores, it is because God came down to us in Jesus, and that is a happy thing to share.
Do you see the difference?
The people of Jesus kingdom do not strive to follow worldly ideals, rather they strive to follow Jesus.
The great thing about following the truth rather than learning the truth is that you do not have to be smart to live in Jesus’ kingdom, though you might be. You do not have to be rich to live in Jesus’ kingdom, though you might be. You do not have to be literate to live in Jesus’ kingdom, though you might be. You do not have to have your life all put together to live in Jesus’ kingdom, though you might be. You do not have to be perfect to live in Jesus’ kingdom, though you might…no, no you are not perfect.
But, you do not need to be. You do not need any of these things. If Jesus claims you as one of his children, you are part of his kingdom and you listen to his voice. Jesus said outright, “Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."
Notice that he did not say it the other way around. Jesus did not say, "Everyone who listens to my voice belongs to the turth." Rather, he said, "Everyone who belong to the truth listens to my voice." You have been made a child of God...a member of Jesus' kingdom because God chose you to be a part of that kingdom. That is not an accomplishment, that is a gift.
And, this kingdom in which you live is not of the world, and that is a good thing.
Take John for example. John was a plumber. John’s story is a true story by the way. John was a plumber and he loved being a plumber. He helped people out of tough situations because he was a plumber. He supported his family because he was a plumber. He worked long, hard hours away from those he loved because he was a plumber. You might be catching the drift of what’s going on here; John’s life was wrapped up in being “a plumber.” And, then he retired.
For the next year no one in the community heard from John or saw John. No, he was not in the Caribbean relaxing after all of his years of hard labor.
Sadly, John had locked himself away in his home because he did not know how to live a life outside of being a plumber.
His kingdom was of this world. It was the plumbing kingdom. Unfortunately, because of his retirement, his kingdom no longer needed him. Jon no longer had a kingdom. John did not survive beyond a year of retirement.
Why relate such a sad story? Because the kingdom in which we place ourselves matters. If we live in a kingdom of this world, we will die by the kingdom of this world. But, if Jesus sets us free to live in his eternal kingdom, we will be free indeed.
You, people of God, are a part of Jesus kingdom. As Jesus told Pilate, Jesus’ kingdom is “not of this world.”
You do not need to cause bloodshed or enter into a spiteful war of words in order to defend Jesus and his kingdom; it is not of this world.
But, we do belong to it none-the-less. We do belong to Jesus’ kingdom, and because Jesus placed us in his kingdom, we listen to his voice.
Jesus is the truth, and it is a true gift to follow the ways of the truth.
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