The upside down ways of the Kingdom

 

Isaiah 55:9

For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

God’s wisdom often runs against the world’s way of thinking. Indeed, to non-believers certain principles of the Kingdom of God seem to be upside down! Here are a few:

1.      To live, you must die. Gal 2:20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Our baptism is a picture of this truth - abundant spiritual life begins when we identify with Christ’s death (by being immersed under water) and His resurrection (rising up as a new person). We have received a new life in Jesus, and sin no longer rules over us.

2.      The last will be first. Matt 20:16 “So those who are last now will be first then, and those who are first will be last.” God does not take signs of success in the eyes of the world into account to determine heavenly rewards. Instead, He looks at the attitudes of our hearts.

3.      He who is great shall be your servant. Matt 23:11 The greatest among you will be your servant. The world equates greatness with authority over others, but Jesus associated greatness with service to others. In this Jesus is our perfect example, as He left His place of honour in heaven to come and die for us, His creation.

4.      When I am weak then I am strong. 2 Cor 12:10 That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong. To the degree that we recognize and acknowledge that our own abilities are insufficient, to that degree we will discover that we can rely and call upon the One whose strength never fails.

5.      To save your life, you must lose it. Matt 16:25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. If we make our earthly life our ultimate priority, it results in the loss of something so much greater. Following Jesus requires sacrifice, rejection, persecution or even martyrdom, but those who belong to Christ possess a future that physical death cannot destroy.

6.      The victory of Jesus Christ through His perceived defeat at Calvary. The devil’s plans to destroy Jesus failed spectacularly at the cross. What should have been the ultimate assassination of his arch enemy, resulted instead in Jesus’ glorious resurrection as the Saviour of mankind!

Pearls to ponder:

Let us be bold enough to change the way we approach life from following the world’s perspective on things, to following godly principles, even if it means a 180-degree turnaround!

A humble heart