A COLONY OF HEAVEN

“Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing together with one spirit and one purpose, fighting together for the faith, which is the Good News.”  (Philippians 1:27 NLT)

Paul exhorts the church at Philippi to live as a colony of heaven. The ancient city of Philippi, filled with retired Roman soldiers from the imperial capital, trying hard to be a little Rome far from Rome, knew what it was to be a colony of a great city.

So Paul appealed to the church there to do the same -- to live as a colony of heaven. That’s a timely word for the church today. We live under the reign of a different king -- Jesus the Lord. Our ultimate allegiance is to a different kingdom -- the kingdom of heaven. We are ultimately bound by the laws of our true homeland. In the meantime, we must represent that land well until the Lord comes again and the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ.

As we bless others in the name of Christ, may we catch a glimpse of a better land and a more lasting kingdom. By the grace of God and the Spirit’s power, may they be wooed through our lives and our corporate witness into joining us on our journey. 

-- Donald W. Sweeting and George Sweeting in “How to Finish the Christian Life: Following Jesus in the Second Half” 

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KINGDOM PROMISES: DIVINE PURPOSE AND DIRECTION

“The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all.”  (Psalm 103:19 NIV)

The Kingdom of God is unlike any earthly government we know. It doesn’t operate on democracy where we have rights and can cast votes. Instead, it’s a divine monarchy, where Jesus is King and Lord. In His Kingdom, we don’t have rights; we have responsibilities. As citizens of His Kingdom, we’re called to live in obedience to His righteous and gracious decrees.

This isn’t about losing our freedom but embracing a life filled with divine purpose and direction. Our King’s decrees are not burdensome; they are life-giving and rooted in love. When we submit to His rule, we align ourselves with His will, which is ultimately for our good and His glory.

In God's Kingdom, our responsibilities are privileges in disguise. We’re tasked with loving one another, serving the needy, and spreading the gospel. These responsibilities transform our lives and the lives of those around us, reflecting the love and grace of our King. 

-- SOUND BITES Ministry, compiled from a variety of sources 

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FINISHING WELL – Part 2 of 2

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day -- and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing.”  (2 Timothy 4:7-8 NIV)

The Christian life is a long-distance journey. We need to finish well. Here is the second thing we need to say about that.

As you encounter people and culture around you, “give ‘em heaven.” You’ve heard the opposite phrase. That’s what many people give us. It is so easy to imitate them and do the same. But Jesus calls us to a better way. So give ‘em heaven!

It was sometimes said in the past that Christians were so “heavenly minded that they were no earthly good.” The story of church history has actually proved opposite. It is only when we have perspective, when we have the big story in mind, that we are so heavenly minded that we are most earthly good! Why? Because we know what values stand at the center of the universe and what really matters to God…

As we bless others in the name of Christ, may they catch a glimpse of a better land and a more lasting kingdom. By the grace of God and the Spirit’s power, may they be wooed through our lives and our corporate witness into joining us on this journey. Yes, yes… give ‘em heaven! Give ‘em heaven!

-- Adapted from “How to Finish the Christian Life: Following Jesus in the Second Half” by Donald W. Sweeting & George Sweeting

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LIGHT OF THE WORLD

Jesus said: “Blessed are the poor in spirit,… those who mourn,… the meek,… those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,… the merciful,… the pure in heart,… the peacemakers,… those who are persecuted because of righteousness… Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me… You are the light of the world… Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. ”  (Excerpts from Matthew 5:3-15 NIV)

These blessed people really are the light of the world! They may only be one insignificant candle, but they give light to an entire house. When people in a dark world see the work of these citizens of the kingdom, the people give glory to God because they know there is still hope for this world!

This is who we are called to be as citizens of the kingdom of God. We may be amazed or surprised – that is exactly the response [Jesus] intended! The Beatitudes are not placid statements spoken softly. They are exclamations. We step out into the morning sun after a foggy night and exclaim, “Wow! Look at that sunshine!” We hear a great piece of music and come away exclaiming, “Wow! That’s really Beethoven!” The Beatitudes are similar exclamations. They exclaim “Wow! Look at the happiness of those who are citizens of the kingdom of God! This is really living; we just never saw it before!” 

-- James A. Harnish in “What Will You Do with King Jesus?”

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SOMEONE TO SURRENDER TO

"For if you want to save your own life, you will lose it; but if you lose your life for Me and for the gospel, you will save it.”  (Mark 8:35 GNT)

G.K. Chesterton wrote, “When a person has found something which he prefers to life itself, he for the first time has begun to live.”

Jesus in His proclamation of the kingdom told us what we could prefer to life itself. The Bible ends by telling us we are called to be a people who could say, “Come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20), who could welcome something more than business as usual and live in God’s Big Picture. We all have to ask for the grace to prefer something to our small life because we have been offered the Shared Life, the One Life, the Eternal Life, God’s Life that became visible for us in this world as Jesus.

What we are all searching for is Someone to surrender to, something we can prefer to life itself. Well here is the wonderful surprise: God is the only one we can surrender to without losing ourselves! The irony is that we actually find ourselves, but now in a whole new and much larger field of meaning. 

-- Adapted from “Preparing for Christmas with Richard Rohr”

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LIVING FULLY IN THE KINGDOM

“But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body.”  (Philippians 3:20-21 NIV)

To live strongly and creatively in the kingdom of heaven, we need to have firmly fixed in our minds what our future is to be like. We want to live fully in the kingdom now, and for that purpose our future must make sense to us. It must be something we can now plan or make decisions in terms of, with clarity and joyful anticipation. In this way our future can be incorporated into our life now and our life now can be incorporated into our future. 

-- Dallas Willard in “The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God”

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THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS LIKE YEAST

Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” (Matthew 13:33 NRSV)

Yeast makes bread rise because of the bubbles of gas that it produces. When the yeast is mixed throughout the dough, the bread rises and has the proper rough and airy texture. But if all of the yeast is lumped together in one small part of the dough, the bread won’t rise evenly and will have big, empty holes in it.

Even so, the church -- the people of the Kingdom -- must be intimately involved in life, in the world, in the flour of humanity. When we have clustered ourselves together, fearfully barricaded behind sanctuary walls, we have created great, empty holes in God’s world that are filled with nothing but hot air. But if we, who call ourselves yeast, are willing to become so involved in the pain, the despair, and the laughter of life that our main concern is enabling people to grow into all that they can be -- then God’s bread will become perfect in quality, with yeast permeating every part of the dough.

Being involved with life -- intimately mixed through and through it -- sounds dangerous. Yeast dies in the oven, having lost itself to the creation of something new. May we also be willing to lose ourselves. 

-- Mike Hodge

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