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

The end times

 

Luke 21:28

So when all these things begin to happen, stand and look up, for your salvation is near!”

Nearly all previous generations believed that they were living in what is called “The End Times.” When Jesus’ disciples asked Him in Matthew 24 what the signs would be that would show them that the end has come, He listed things to look out for, and his listeners would have found many of them impossible to believe.

But in our generation, all the prophecies given throughout history about the End Times are converging before our very eyes. Technologies that would have seemed improbable and even impossible just ten years ago, are now not only already operating in our society, but evolving at break-neck speed, so much so that even scientists and IT experts have difficulty keeping track of it all. Let us look at just a few of these signs that we see happening in our generation:

Is 11:12 He will raise a flag among the nations and assemble the exiles of Israel. He will gather the scattered people of Judah from the ends of the earth. We have seen the restored state of Israel come into being, a real miracle in the making.

Matt 24:14 And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come. The spreading of the Gospel throughout the whole world has actively been pursued for many years by now and is increasingly happening around the globe.

Rev 13:16-17 He required everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name. The technologies to bring this about are emerging all around us - previous generations would not have been able to foresee any of it, indeed it is astounding even all of us living in our present generation!

Rev 11:9 And for three and a half days, all peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will stare at their bodies. No one will be allowed to bury them. We now have the ability to view global events in real-time like never before through satellite systems connecting the whole earth.

Ez 37:10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army. Israel has proved itself as being an exceedingly great army, victorious in battles that seemed hopeless at the time they happened.

Rev 13:7 And the beast was allowed to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And he was given authority to rule over every tribe and people and language and nation. We clearly see the trend toward the forming of a global government happening from every direction and across all boundaries.

2 Peter 3:3-4 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” Peter warned us that many will deny all the signs, not believing what is clearly happening before their very eyes.

Pearls to ponder:

Our beautiful Saviour is coming soon, much sooner than we think! He has graciously provided us with signs of when to expect Him – are we showing our gratitude towards Him by taking these seriously, and warning others to do the same?

The Spirit and the Bride say: "Come!"

Our Intercessor

 

Rom 8:34

Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

When a crisis looms, we tend to run to friends and intercessors at church to pray for us. Which is not wrong, we are meant to pray for our Christian brothers and sisters in their need, and we love doing so.

But our quoted verse brings intercession to a next level. We have Someone right next to Abba Father in the throne room, interceding for us! If we could hear Jesus’ prayer for us in our moment of need, would it not change our whole perspective about our problem?

Robert Murray M’Cheyne once wrote “If I could hear Christ pray for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies.”

Imagine sitting in a room, and through the wall you can hear your name on His lips. Would you still be as afraid? Would you still feel hopeless? Would the enemy’s lies still weigh so heavily on your heart and mind?

This truth is so important, that Heb 7:25 repeats it for us: Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Never again do you have to think that your prayers do not mean anything, that it just gets stuck against the ceiling. Even when you were not aware of it, Jesus was already praying for you. We have an example of this in Luke 22:3 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”

Too tired or stressed out to pray? He is ready and willing to pray on your behalf. Afraid that you do not have the right words to use? He knows exactly what to say. There is even more help available for us when we pray: Rom 8:26 ….We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

Pearls to ponder:

Think about these truths until it becomes part of your mind and heart. Never again do you have to feel that you have been abandoned, or that your prayers do not mean anything. If Jesus and Holy Spirit are praying on your behalf, is there any chance that Abba will not hear them? Of course not!

Don't stop praying