Sermon Transcript

Well, good morning! And let me invite you to open your Bibles to Philippians chapter 3. It is good to be back with you. I have been out of this pulpit for the last five Sundays, doing things that pastors don’t get to do when they’re in the pulpit—like learning the names of their children, and realizing you’ve got awesome kids, and visiting your Mom in Oklahoma, and preparing for the whole next year’s worth of preaching. So thanks for that opportunity!

While I’ve been away, another thing I’ve had the opportunity of doing has been watching the news. What a joyful thing that is, now days! Do you realize what has happened in the last five weeks, since I have stood in this pulpit? Of course, we began the month of July like we begin every July. Celebrating our nation’s independence, right? The Declaration of Independence.

How many of you blew something up on the Fourth of July? Great! Something that was unintended, like a child or a finger or something. Anyway, that’s the way that we celebrate our independence. We were reminded that we’re celebrating our two-hundred-and-fortieth birthday as a nation, in which we declared independence from a king.

You see, Americans are not big fans of kings and kingdoms. We like to be known as self-governing, autonomous people, right? And so, when we begin to talk about what it means to be a kingdom citizen, I realize that is a very foreign concept. We don’t have kings and kingdoms in America. We like to talk about presidents and senators and representatives. We’re going to learn, throughout this series, what it means to be not only an American citizen, but to be a kingdom citizen. Why are we doing this series? American citizens are freaking out, because so few of them are living as kingdom citizens. The big idea of this series is this: we’re going to learn what it is to be a Kingdom citizen in the days ahead.

As we got into the month of July, at the turn of that month, we began to see—even on the news and in social media—things that were happening on the streets. Police that seemed to be doing things that were unjust to African Americans in our communities. How could arrest turn into murder on the streets? And then, in response to that, we all saw on July 7^th, in the city of Dallas, a sniper that committed that horrible act of violence; killing five police officers and injuring six others. And then, just days after that, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on July 17^th, another gunman shot and killed three more police officers.

On July 14^th, in a town in France, we saw a terrorist run a truck through a crowd of people, killing eighty-four people; and then that begins to make us wonder about our immigration policies. We see the racial tension and the divide: the divide between black and white, rich and poor, left and right, church and state, faith and science—all this divide going on in our country!

And, of course, in the month of July, the two major political parties presented to us their best solutions to all of our problems! And, we wonder, as American citizens—as kingdom citizens, “What are we going to do about that?” Well, I cannot tell you who to vote for, but I can tell you how to vote: vote as a kingdom citizen. We’re going to learn what that means as we unpack this series.

It is obvious that the moral fabric of our nation is being torn and, in all honesty, if you interpret what is happening in our country through the lens of Scripture, we would have to say we are experiencing the judgment of God because we have strayed from His laws, His commands, His principles. And as a result, it is hypocritical for us to sing God Bless America when so little of America has chosen to bless God.

So, how do we interpret this as kingdom citizens? We shouldn’t expect to get leaders that are any more godly than the nation! At times, what God does in judgment is, He gives people the leaders they deserve. It puts us in a position to cry upward to God and recognize, “We don’t just need a new president; what we need is a King!”

We’re going to learn what that means in this series. I told Andrea, I feel like—in introducing this series—I’m kind of a cultural-commentator-wanna-be. I’m waiting for that call from CNN where they bring on the token Christian guy to give the biblical worldview; a guy like Albert Mohler or Russell Moore. To be honest with you, I’m not good at that. I’m a Bible teacher.

So, let’s open our Bibles this morning and see if we can get a little cultural commentary on what is going on. Philippians 3, beginning in verse 18 (here’s a cultural commentary): “For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, [many] walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.” That’s what’s happening in our land! The population of those who do not love the cross of Christ is increasing, and the population of those who love the cross of Christ is decreasing. We find ourselves as the minority opinion in a land that was founded on biblical principles. So, we see in Philippians 3:19 [the answer to], “How’s it going to end? Who’s going to win?” Well, you can be certain, “Their end is destruction [the enemies of the cross of Christ]. . .”

Please understand, the enemies of the cross of Christ are not our enemies. The enemies of the cross of Christ are our mission field. It is our job as Kingdom citizens to turn enemies of the cross into lovers of the cross with the good news of Jesus Christ that will save them from the end that is destruction—unless they repent and believe. And so, our mission field is those that are enemies of the cross of Christ: “Their end is destruction, their god [with a little “g”] is their belly. . .” They live for their appetites, they live for what tastes good or what looks good or what sounds good or what feels good, because their appetite is unrestrained by the Spirit of God. Their god is their belly.

Philippians 3:19 continues, “. . .they glory in their shame. . .” To glory in something means to make much of it, to boast in it, to elevate it. Unfortunately, what we see in our culture is so many things being glorified that we ought to be ashamed of. Then, Scripture says, they, “. . .set [their minds] on earthly things.” Earthly kingdoms and earthly kings.

            Human history shouts this fact: the more fearful people become, the more they clamor for a king to save them. And if we’re not careful at this time in our nation’s history, we will look to an earthly king and set our eyes on earthly kingdoms and look for earthly solutions to solve spiritual problems. Spiritual problems can only be solved with spiritual solutions and a King and a kingdom that is not of this world.

Philippians 3:20 is our theme verse for the whole series, and it says this: “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ…” That’s our hope! The hope of the world is that citizens of His kingdom would acknowledge Him as the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, and get their eyes up and set upon a kingdom that is not of this world. Our founding fathers knew this. They wanted to create a government that would prevent us from having a king.

And so, our founding fathers said things like this…Do you know the name, Daniel Webster? He was a senator; he was kind of a cultural commentator. He became the Secretary of State in the United States in the founding days of our nation. He said this, “The Christian religion: its general principles must ever be regarded among us as the foundation of the society. Whatever makes men good Christians makes them good citizens.” So, what happens to a nation where there are fewer and fewer Christians?

Fewer and fewer Christians mean fewer and fewer good citizens. When the fabric and the foundations are removed, the whole thing collapses in upon itself under the weight of its shame in sin. And so, you and I are the hope of the world—that we would understand what it means to live as kingdom citizens.

So, as we introduce this whole series in the message today, let me just kind of warn you—unlike we normally do – opening to a passage of Scripture, walking through that – what we are going to do today is, we are going to skim along the Bible, and I want to give you a broad overview of what the Bible has to say about this topic of kingdom citizenship. First we’re going to look at this word “citizen,” and then we’re going to look at the word “kingdom,” and then we’ll be done. That, in no way, means this message will be short. That just means we’re going to unpack two words. Okay?

Now, as we understand this, let’s first of all begin with this idea of “citizen.” Even in the video that we saw…I’m so proud of our production team for making that original video and all the great things there. As I wrote the script for that, I gave it this definition. I looked at a lot of different dictionary definitions and I kind of molded them all together, and this is what we came up with:

 

Citizen: a legal resident of a territory who owes his allegiance to and expects protection from it’s governing authorities.

 

Now, that’s true of a citizen of any particular country.

How many of you stayed up late and watched the opening ceremonies of the Olympics? Then, when they got to the parade of nations, you turned it off and went to bed—because that’s the part that nobody really cares about, right? Until maybe the American team walks in.

All of those nations – I think it was two-hundred-four out of the two-hundred-twenty nations on the planet – had citizen athletes representing their countries. And to be a citizen means what our definition reads. Let’s unpack that for a few minutes, and let’s apply that definition to our American citizenship on the left side, and to our kingdom citizenship on the right side:

First of all, to be a citizen means you are a legal resident. Now, how do you become an American citizen? Does anybody know? How many of you were born here? Raise your hand. How many of you were naturalized? Anybody? There are two ways to become an American citizen. I have my handy pocket Constitution right here, which I’m sure you’re all carrying along with your Bibles this morning!

It says right here that the Fourteenth Amendment reads, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States.” So, we become American citizens, very simply, by being born here. You didn’t really have much to do with that, did you? You just showed up.

How many of you are grateful that you were born an American citizen? Listen, we’ve got problems, but if you think you’re going to find a better place to live, you’re going to be sadly disappointed. You’re living in the best place, with all of its problems! Thank God that we’re American citizens, and all we had to do was to be born here—or naturalized. That means that you have to take a test and understand the Constitution; you have to pledge allegiance, and you have to understand some things about our history so that you can be assimilated into the American citizenship—at least the way it’s supposed to work. And then there are others who kind of cut the corners.

Now, it is a lot easier to become an American citizen than it is to become a kingdom citizen. All you have to do to become an American citizen is to be born here, but to become a kingdom citizen, you have to be re-born; you have to be born again. Jesus told John – we looked at it a few weeks ago – that, “unless [you are] born again [no one will] see the kingdom of God.”

And so you have to be, not just naturalized, you have to be “super-naturalized!” Something has to happen from the outside in, to change you from an enemy of the cross of Christ to a lover of the cross of Christ, as you understand what happened on the cross of Christ. That He died on that cross, in your place, as a substitute for your sin. Once you repent and believe that truth, do you know what you are? You are born-again and you are super-naturalized, and you become a kingdom citizen. I am under no illusion that everyone in this room has had that happen. Not everybody here is a kingdom citizen. But we have a dual citizenship. Do you understand?

 

• Citizens of heaven are dual (Phil. 3:20; Eph. 2:19)

 

            If you are an American citizen and you have been born-again, super-naturalized; you are dual citizens. Ephesians 2:19 says, “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens [and enemies of Christ], but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.” So, are you a kingdom citizen? Have you been born again? If not, we can take care of that at the end of this service. If you’re ready to express your faith in Jesus Christ, pledge your allegiance to Jesus Christ, live for Him, bow in surrender to King Jesus—you can become a kingdom citizen.

A citizen is a legal resident of a territory. Now, if you’re an American citizen, you understand the geographical boundaries and borders of the United States. It’s a physical territory, right? And sometimes we need walls around some of those borders, because people try to sneak in. And as a kingdom citizen, we understand that that territory is not a geopolitical border or boundary—it’s a spiritual territory. That means that, no matter where you are on Planet Earth—wherever you are geographically within the borders of any particular country—there are kingdom citizens there, if they have been born again into the household of God. So, we’re “legal residents of a territory who owe our allegiance to…”

Now, as American citizens, there are a lot of ways to express our allegiance. We call it “patriotism.” We might stand and pledge allegiance to the flag; we might sing our national anthem. Another way to express your allegiance is to pay your taxes. I thought I might get an “amen” out of somebody. Nobody’s a fan of big taxes? How many of you are fans of roads with no pot holes? Yeah. How many of you are fans of a military that keeps us safe? Are you fans of that? Yeah. Well, somebody needs to pay for that. You’re like, “Yeah, it’s that one percent. That one percent needs to pay their fair share!” Right? No! We all enjoy the benefits, we all express our patriotism, because we all, together, contribute to the common good, the common welfare.

Now, as a kingdom citizen, the way we express our allegiance is through our worship. It is our obedience to the laws of God, it’s the love that we have, not just for our country, but for our Savior! You know what? We pledge our allegiance to Christ through a public profession of our faith; we gather together and we sing our faces off in the expression and the excription of our glory to King Jesus—and we pay our tithes! And we serve, and we give, and we become ambassadors of our King, by telling the story of how others can become kingdom citizens. So, we owe our allegiance to, and we expect protection from, our governing authorities.

So, in America we have the military, we have police; hopefully we have good laws and good lawmakers that protect us from evil and promote the good. As a kingdom citizen, we expect protection from angels—angel armies. Yeah, that’s an upgrade over bombers and cannons. We get protection from our governing authorities.

What are the governing authorities, as an American citizen? Well, we have three branches of government. Do you remember back to your ninth grade Civics class? You say, “No. No, I don’t really remember very much from ninth grade!” Let me give you a little review: there are three branches of government, all balancing the power so that there’s not a king that arises. Do you know what those are? The executive, the legislative and the judicial. At least that’s the way it’s supposed to work, because I read my pocket Constitution, and that’s what it says!

And then, as a kingdom citizen, whom do we get protection from? Well, there are kind of some balances of power there, too – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. One God who protects us from spiritual threats. And so, as dual citizens, we understand—we owe allegiance to two kingdoms. And yet our allegiance to the King must be the priority over allegiance to any earthly kingdom. Here’s the second thing I want you to know about being a citizen of the kingdom of heaven:

 

• Citizens of Heaven seek the welfare of their earthly (Jeremiah 29:7)

 

It would be a mistake for us to think, “Well, America’s just going to pot; and I’m just so glad I can come to the church. Maybe I can just kind of stay at home and cut the cable, and not listen to the news—and we can just kind of live in the basement and get some guns and ammo and food. And maybe we can just ride this thing out.” Listen! This is not the first time that kingdom citizens have felt like they were in the minority, or have lived as if they were in exile so far from our kingdom.

In Jeremiah 29:7, Jeremiah is writing to a people under the judgment of God who have lost their religious freedom; they have lost their influence in their earthly kingdom. They are living as slaves and exiles—a minority group—in a country filled with the enemies of God! And Jeremiah says to them in this verse, “Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile…”

First of all, notice, it was God who sent them into exile. That was His judgment coming upon them. But, now that they were in exile, they were to seek the good of the people who were enslaving them, and they were to pray to the Lord on their behalf. Some of you say, “Yeah, I pray all the time for the President!” But you’re praying imprecatory prayers.

Do you know what imprecatory prayers are? All those Psalms where God just wipes people out and stuff. Listen, God wants you to pray for the welfare of this city, of this community and of this nation. We’re dual citizens. We want to see the welfare of the people around us—see them prosper. Why?

God says, “…in its welfare you will find your welfare.”  So, what’s that mean for us? We’re to pray! Pray for Donald, pray for Hillary, pray for Barack, pray for justice in the criminal justice system. Pray for our police, pray for minorities, pray for righteous laws to be passed. Pray for court rulings that promote human flourishing and create strong families. Where a biological father is married—for a lifetime—to his child’s biological mother, because it promotes the flourishing of children who become adults, who will become fathers, so that the welfare of that family creates the good in the community, and other people don’t have to give welfare because there’s a strong family there. We pray for those things.

Pray that religious freedom will be upheld. And, by the way, if you’re getting all excited about any particular candidate that wants to shut off one particular religious group, why wouldn’t you think that particular candidate wouldn’t turn the tables and say, “Well, yeah, those people are just like these people,” and begin to restrict the religious freedom of those that are theologically aligned with us? Be careful, be discerning! We’re to serve the community, we’re to serve the nation; relieve human suffering, especially eternal human suffering by giving them the gospel. We’re to speak the truth in love, as exiles.

What happened in this time frame was that, when there were problems in the community…remember the book of Daniel? The king couldn’t figure out his dream, and he raised up the best of the dream interpreters and they couldn’t figure it out either. They finally went and got one of the exiles; his name was Daniel, and he gave them the interpretation because he was wiser than all the rest.

What if our families were strong? What if we were prosperous? What if there was a moral authority that we carried? Because people say, “I just don’t understand why you don’t have all these chaotic problems going on in your life!” “Yeah, well there are some principles and boundaries that I live my life by that kind of prevent a lot of this.” And then they come ask us questions, as American citizens. “Why are the kingdom citizens doing so well?” “It’s because we’ve stayed within the guardrails of God’s truth.” And in doing so, they get the answers they’re looking for.

We need to express our will for godliness and character through things like political elections. I’ve heard some people say, “Man, I’m looking at the candidates, and I’m not finding any particular candidate that I think is really aligned.” I am understanding that! I don’t know who I’m going to vote for, but I guarantee you, I will vote. I may write in Nathan Scroggins, or Micah Klutinoty, or somebody. I don’t know! “Why are you going to vote?” Because I still can! And I have brothers and sisters in Christ living under incredible persecution, who don’t have any voice in who governs them. How am I going to meet them in Heaven, and they look at me and say, “You had a vote, and you didn’t use it?”

Twenty years from now, are you going to be able to look into the eyes of your children who have lost their right to vote because they believe in Jesus Christ and stand for truth—and they’re going to look at you and say, “You had a right to vote, and you didn’t use it?” We seek the welfare by the voice and the one vote. I am under no illusion that me going into that voting booth and casting my vote is going to sway the election in any particular way, but it is a gift that the founding fathers gave us, and we should vote. So, as kingdom citizens we seek the welfare of our earthly home. . .and then this,

 

• Citizens of Heaven are homesick for their eternal (Col. 3:1; Heb. 11:14-16)

 

Do you remember when you were twelve years old and you went off to camp? And you were just so desperately sick for Mom and Dad. You really didn’t have much appreciation for them while you were home, but then when you got to camp you realized Mom and Dad were awesome. And they had money! They provided things that you couldn’t provide for yourself. It was like, “I just wish I was there!”

Or, some of you who have lost a parent or a loved one and they have gone on to Heaven, and you just miss them so much, and it’s almost as if, “I just wish I could see them. I want to be there!” Well, of course you do! Because, as kingdom citizens, we realize this world is not our home!

Look at this verse, Hebrews 11:14, “They [speaking of “we”] are seeking a homeland…” Verse 16, “…they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.” Anybody want to vote for a better country? Like, “I’d like a better country!” Yeah.

Well, on an earthly scale, you’re living in the best one, alright? But on a Heavenly scale we, as kingdom citizens, are looking forward to the upgrade. And do you know what’s happening in that Heavenly homeland? There’s no Alzheimer’s, there’s no cancer, there is no sin, there’s no middle school! I thought I might get an “amen.” There are no middle-schoolers, in that homeland. It’s a complete upgrade! There’s nothing to learn—there’s no school. You will have all the knowledge that God wants you to have, in that homeland.

There are no threats, there are no enemies, there is no sickness, there is no disease. God will wipe away every tear. Why would we not be homesick for that place? That’s the purpose of this series—to understand that the kingdom of God transcends the kingdom of this world, and we should long to be a part of that homeland.

So, let’s talk about the second word. The first was “citizen.” Second word, “kingdom.” What is the kingdom of God? Here’s the real question. “I really don’t understand the kingdom, so-o-o-o, help me understand that.” I’m glad to do so! The kingdom of God is this; here’s the definition, simply:

 

Kingdom of God: The rule and reign of God that transcends all other kingdoms. (Psalm 103:19)

 

If you would do a word study on this, through your Bible, you would be absolutely shocked how often this term “kingdom” appears in our Bibles. When we walked through the book of Matthew, if you were here for that, in seventy-four weeks a few years ago, that whole book simply tells us; it reveals for us what is going on in the kingdom, and how important that kingdom is to our daily lives.

But, this is what we believe as kingdom citizens. It is this: that the Lord has established His throne in the heavens and His kingdom rules over all. All nations, all leaders, all families, all husbands, all middle schools, all middle-schoolers. All churches, all pastors, all presidents, all elections. There is nothing that happens outside of God’s control. There is not one square inch in the universe over which God is not completely and sovereignly exercising His Kingship. He rules from a throne, and it is not a problem for Him. He’s not exhausted, He’s not worried, He’s not anxious. He rules the universe on the throne—with His feet up. It’s not a problem.

And then this, from Psalm 145:13: “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom…” Not only does it have universal dominion, but it has endless control over time. “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations.” And so, we have hope.

Right before those verses, Scripture says this [Psalm 145:11-12]: “They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your power, to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.” That’s what I want to do with the rest of the message—I want to make known to you the glorious splendor of His kingdom.

So, let me give you a little biblical history. As a matter of fact, the history of the world in about three minutes, okay? God created everything. God chose a people, a family, and through the line of Abraham He created a great nation. It was His promise that Abraham’s descendants would outnumber the sands of the sea. So, God creates this kingdom—the nation of Israel—and He sets it up to govern it as a theocracy. God, as King, gives them His law and says, “Here’s the way I want you to live.” And for a period of time, they tried that. And then, after a while, they became prosperous and they became a “big, bad nation,” and they looked around and they realized, all the other nations around them had kings!

And so, the people began to demand a king. They went to the prophet Samuel, and in 1 Samuel 8:5, we learn that the people said this: “Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.” It’s like a kid walking through the toy aisle at Walmart. “I want a toy! Everybody else has a toy! Why can’t I have a toy?” The people said, “We want a king! Give us a king! We want to be like everybody else. Why can’t we have a king?” “And Samuel prayed to the Lord.” He told this to the Lord. “And the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Obey the voice of the people…’” [1 Samuel 8:6] Think about that. God told Samuel to give the people what they wanted, even though what the people wanted wasn’t what God wanted. God said, “They want a king? Give ‘em a king.” And that was His way of sending judgment upon His people, for desiring what God did not want them to have.

Here’s the reason He said that. “The Lord said to Samuel, ‘Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.’” And so God gave them their first king—his name was Saul: externally very impressive; on the inside, he was a spiritual doughnut hole. It turned into a collapse.

The second king was David—he was the second flawed king of Israel—but on the inside, he had a heart for God. He made external mistakes, he externally sinned in many ways and grieved God; he paid incredible consequences for it. But David was this king, and during the reign of David, God promised that a descendant from David would one day reign on a throne that would never end.

Generation after generation after generation goes by. The people continue to rebel against God, they reject Him as King. God finally sends ultimate judgment. He sends them into exile, and then four-hundred years of silence from God. God does not speak between the Old Testament and the New Testament.

And finally, we open to Matthew chapter 1, and we find a baby in the manger. That baby had a cousin, and his name was John the Baptist. John the Baptist began to preach, and when he began to preach—according to Matthew chapter 3—he had a particular message he loved to preach. Here’s what it is: “Repent!” Sounds like Harvest Bible Chapel, doesn’t it? “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”

Then Jesus began to preach. Guess what the title of His message was? “Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” And then Jesus raised up some disciples and He told them to go out and preach. Guess what He told them to preach? Matthew chapters 4 and 9. Jesus sent His disciples, proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom. And then Jesus sent His disciples out in Matthew chapter 10, verse 7 saying, “And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

Do you know the reality?

 

• The kingdom of God has already (Matthew 4:17)

 

It is here! Right here, right now! You don’t have to wait for the kingdom or the King. It’s accessible right now if you are a kingdom citizen.

Jesus said in Matthew 12:28, “The kingdom of God has come upon you.” In Matthew 13:11, Jesus said you can “know the secrets of the kingdom.” And He gives us parable after parable, story after story, beginning with this phrase: “the kingdom is like. . .” and He describes it, because He wants us to know the secrets of the kingdom.

In Matthew 16:19, Jesus says to one of His disciples, Peter, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven…” And finally, Jesus dies on the cross, He’s raised from the dead, He ascends back to His Father. But before He does, He gathers His disciples in Acts chapter 1. The Bible says that after His ascension, He taught them for forty days.

What would Jesus spend forty days teaching His disciples right before He went back to Heaven? Scripture tells us. He taught them for forty days about the Kingdom! And then, we go all through the book of Acts—the disciples are planting churches everywhere. We get to the very last verse of the book of Acts. This is what it says: They were “proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.” [Acts 28:30]

That was our theme verse for the Be Bold series. I introduced it to you last year about this time. That’s what we’re to be all about—we’re to be talking and proclaiming the kingdom! But how often do you even use that term, or think in those terms, as a kingdom citizen? We get into the New Testament, and 1 Corinthians 6:9 says, “…the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God…” Hebrews 12:28 says we are “…receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken…” All that to say, the kingdom of God has already arrived! And if you really believed that, you wouldn’t be freaking out every time there’s an election. No matter what we see going on in the news. No matter how great the enemy threat. No matter how weak the economy. No matter how corrupt the government. No matter how intense the persecution. No matter who sits in the Oval Office. No matter if the United States rises or falls, Kingdom citizens rest their hope on this: God is still on His throne! Jesus is our King and His Kingdom reigns over all.  Stop freaking out!! You’re a kingdom citizen!

Now, I know what you’re saying. Some of you are saying, “Then why is my husband such a jerk? Why do I have to go to middle school? Why do I have cancer? Why am I depressed? Why did my parents get a divorce? Why do I have…all these issues? Why do I feel so unloved? Why am I lonely? If the kingdom of God has already arrived, then why do we see such chaos in the world…because it looks like there are a lot of places where the rule and the reign of God is not being realized!

The Bible affirms what you just expressed.

 

• The Kingdom of God has not yet been fully realized. (1 Cor. 15:24)

 

“Then comes the end…” speaking of a future day, “when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father…” [1 Corinthians 15:24] So, King Jesus—God the Son—one day will deliver His kingdom, full and complete, to the Father. When will that be? “…after destroying every rule and every authority and power.”

            You see, right now, the kingdom of God is clashing with the kingdoms of this world. There are rival kings and rival kingdoms that compete for the control and the sovereignty of God. Some of you are sitting here, “Yeah, the Democrats. The Republicans. ISIS. My middle school math teacher.” You’re thinking of all these enemies.

Listen. I am much more concerned about the “rival king” that lives on the inside of me, that is constantly grabbing for control that belongs to God. I am much more concerned about the unfinished business and the parts of “king me” that have yet to be conquered by the rule and reign of God, than I am about any external kingdom. Part of the rule and the authority of the power that is yet to be destroyed lives inside of me—and it lives inside of you.

And so, while we are waiting, we’re in a battle of clashing kingdoms. And we are living in the land in between the already established kingdom and the not-yet-fully-realized kingdom. And so, the question becomes, “What do I do in between?” Glad you asked! Here’s the truth:

 

• The kingdom of God is shining through kingdom citizens. (Matt. 6:10, 33)

 

When Jesus came as that little baby in a manger, do you know what was happening? The kingdom of God was cracking into the kingdoms of this world. And with every word Jesus spoke, there was a crack in the kingdoms of this world, and the kingdom of God was shining through that crack. And with every miracle He performed, it was the rule and the reign of God happening on earth as it was already happening in Heaven.

With every demon Jesus cast out, it was a preview of “a coming attraction” for the day that, one day, all enemies will be vanquished. With His death and His resurrection and the establishment of His church, Jesus brought to the kingdoms of this world a glimpse of the kingdom of Heaven. And so, we have hope that the kingdoms of this world will one day be the kingdoms of our Lord!

Revelation 11:15, giving us a glimpse of what one day will happen: “There were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” Revelation 12:10, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come. . .” So, we’re waiting for that day, and yet, while we’re waiting, what did Jesus tell us to pray? We’ve already prayed it. We’re to pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it in Heaven!” So, how does that happen?

Do you understand that wherever you are on earth—whatever your physical address, wherever this church meets together—it is possible for the kingdom of God to come and be more fully realized on this particular section of earth as we pray that God would send His kingdom. So, how does that happen? It’s when we “seek first the kingdom of God.” Do you know Matthew 6:33? You “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

            We’re to seek more of His reign, more of His rule, more of His will, more of His ways in our lives – the kingdom of our hearts. We’re to pursue, with the greatest philosophy, a life that God says is righteous. When we pursue what is righteous, the kingdom of God comes to that particular section, and the will of God is done—on that lot of earth—as it is being done in Heaven. Not self-righteousness, but supernatural righteousness.

When the kingdom of God comes and invades the territory of my heart, the stronghold of my little kingdom bows to His authority, and the kingdom of God comes right here—right now. There is a sense in which we will experience the kingdom, fully realized, only then—only there. But when we pray, “Lord, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth—in me, in my church, in my family, in my nation—as it is being done in Heaven,” then there’s another crack in the earthly kingdom.

Every time you hear the Word of God and you lean into it and you listen and obey and you change your life, do you know what happens in your life? The kingdom of God comes—right here, right now! Every time you express love for someone that is hard to love, do you know what happens? The kingdom comes, and the will of God is done on earth as it is being done, right now, in Heaven.

Every time you forgive someone who doesn’t deserve it, every time you serve your spouse, your children, your church, the kingdom of God comes on earth. Every time you tell someone the good news of Jesus Christ. Every time you deny your flesh and you direct your passions solely to Christ. Every time you restrain your flesh and put your sexuality within the boundaries of His will, the kingdom of God comes to your sexuality, and His will is done on earth as it is being done in Heaven!

Every time a teenager submits to the authority of his parents, every time a church is planted, every time a disciple is made, every time praise is sung, every time an older saint endures sickness and hardship and loneliness with joy—rather than being bitter and grumpy and complaining—the kingdom of God comes to that nursing home, or comes to you in your loneliness, and the will of God is done on earth, as it is being done in Heaven.

Every time you crush anger, fear, anxiety and bitterness with the overwhelming hope and love and joy of being a kingdom citizen, the kingdom of God comes. Every time we erupt with praise and sing our faces off to our King, the kingdom of God comes to that people and it’s fully realized on earth as it is in Heaven. In that moment, in that spot! Are you a kingdom citizen? Then stop freaking out!

I want you to stand with me right now. I want you to bow your heads, and we’re going to do what we just said happens. We’re going to pray that the kingdom of God would come, even as we close this service. If you’re not a kingdom citizen, you should become one. You should come and bow your heart to King Jesus. The Bible tells us that we are to receive the kingdom as little children, dependent completely on the protection of our King. Let’s bow our heads.

Lord Jesus, we acknowledge that You rule and reign over all! This morning, as we gather as kingdom citizens, our hearts grieve. We bring to You our fear, our anxiety, our confusion. And God, we want to go on record as saying our hope is not in a presidential election, our hope is not in the laws of man. Our hope is in You! God, would You convince us of what we have read, we have studied: our citizenship is in Heaven, and from it we await a Savior—the Lord Jesus Christ! So, God would You hear our praises as we finish today. It is true that all glory, all honor, all wisdom, all power, all authority belongs to You! So, God, receive our worship this morning. You are King! We are citizens of Your kingdom. Calm our hearts; replace the fear and the anxiety with joy and hope, the confidence of knowing our protection comes from You. We pray in the Name of King Jesus, amen!