TRUTH: Nothing Is Stable In This World ... Except the Unshakeable Kingdom of God!

 We are all increasingly aware of the instability in the world. And there is much fear and anxiety as to the future of mankind and [even] the planet. It is wreaking havoc upon men's souls. But to be honest, I find myself wondering why it should be so. Why are people surprised that, once again, we are facing cataclysmic chaos, uncertainty, and volatility? 

No matter if you are a Believer or not, where are we given any assurances that men can give us a world that offers us stability or security? Men have never been successful in building a stable or permanently established civilization, government or kingdom. Empires and kingdoms have come and gone throughout the history of the world. In the Bible, Daniel's vision prophesies of a towering statue that represents the coming world empires and kingdoms. Its shows us the passing of the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Greek and Roman Empires; each greater in influence and power than its predecessor. But none of them lasted.

Even the British Empire, which began in the late 1500s and grew to rule over 400 million people by 1913, [making it the largest empire in history], finally ended in 1997 when it seceded control of Hong Kong to China. The kingdoms of this world have always been about men building kingdoms to glorify themselves. There is only one eternal and everlasting Kingdom, and that is the Kingdom of our God and of His Christ! Any other empire is doomed to failure and extinction -- especially the empires we build to ourselves. Because, let's face it! Since the Garden of Eden, men and women have let themselves be tempted, deceived, and seduced into seeking something that elevates them above others, whether it be influence, power, territory, material wealth, or dominance and control. It can be on a grand scale [impacting nations and peoples] or on a minor level, affecting only their own life. In either case, they build these kingdoms for themselves, thinking they are going to be imperishable and indestructible... they will last forever.

As men become aware that forever does not exist in the realm of man's life or the earth's, fear and anxiety set in. And I am seeing that at an increasing rate. Believers recognize that our nation has lost its moral compass, while the unsaved see the condition of their lives and the nation's support systems beginning to fail. The Believers are aware of 2 Peter 3:10, which tells us that there will come a Day of God's Judgment, and it will be unannounced; coming like a thief. The sky will collapse with a thunderous bang, everything disintegrating in a huge conflagration/firestorm, and earth and all its works will be exposed to the scrutiny of God's Judgment. The unbelievers see the possibilities of nuclear war accomplishing the same destruction. And both groups wonder why we find ourselves in the mess we're in and what are we going to do about it?

I want to share a quote from the Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, the distinctive Welsh evangelist and theologian [1899-1981]. I believe it lends a voice to the questions we are asking in this 21st Century...."Why, in spite of all our efforts and endeavors and great advances, is the world still in trouble? Why is every advance followed by regression, every rise by a decline and fall? Why do our attempts to govern the world end in disaster? What is the matter? And there is only one answer. It is is due to the fact that men and women have sinful and fallen natures; it is due to their estrangement from God; and, more, it is due to God's wrath upon humanity in its sinfulness and arrogance. But the tragedy of the world is that it does not realize this."

The tragedy is that mankind is all too willing to point the finger at someone or something else for the degradation of our lives: inflation, higher food prices, the decline of the family/home as our nation's foundation; the willingness for world leaders to go to war as the answer; the lapse in religious faith. Make no mistake, I agree that all these are valid factors! BUT we must be truthful with ourselves! Yes, we have very real human enemies [as well as spiritual] that want to destroy us, but the real enemy is within us; in the corruption, degeneracy, perversion, and immorality of our souls -- in the sinfulness that we practice. And does our faith have any real substance to it? Or is it merely fading away into a form of religion that has lost any contact and relationship with our God? Can we say we truly know Him and He knows us?

I think any of us who are in our later years must admit that we have failed not only our country and generations [by not taking a stand against removing God from the center of our society, and by not protecting the unborn], but we have failed to recognize that relying on secular rules, laws, and regulations will not replace the righteous rule of God and His Divine Justice. And yes, I know the Bible tells us we win in the end! But have you read what the Word says will happen before we reach that conclusion? All the empires and kingdoms of the world have come to naught. They've all been unstable and shaken. It is only the Kingdom of God that cannot be moved. All the other kingdoms [past, present, and future], will be overcome by the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of His Son.

No other kingdom or false religion can overcome the Son of God! We have no need of fear or anxiousness for what is coming! If we truly know who we are in Christ, then we know that we need not fear what man or nation can do to us. All those kingdoms and the evil men of the world are under condemnation. It is our responsibility as heirs of God's Kingdom to proclaim our certainty of God's promises to us of eternal life, and that our blessed Lord and Savior is coming again to call us to Himself! 

So, instead of walking in fear, let us stand up boldly and proclaim the Unshakeable Kingdom of God. Let our words come as fire from the Holy Spirit within us, consuming the hearts and minds of the unrepentant and drawing them to the life-giving force of God, Himself. The kingdoms of the world have come and gone, but there are still kingdoms on the earth that need to hear God's Truth in today's contemporary circumstances. And they need to hear what no one else but God's Remnant can proclaim: It is God who makes us stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come! Praise Him and His Eternal Kingdom!

Hebrews 12:28     Therefore, let us be grateful for receiving a Kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for God is a consuming fire.  

       

Is the Church Equipped to Carry Out Its Great Commission?

First things first ... what is the Biblical definition of a commission? Strong's expanded Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, tells us "this word denotes a turning over (to another); a referring of a thing to another, and so a committal of full powers." Let's take a look at what Jesus tells His Disciples [in Matthew 28:19-20]: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in [or into] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."   

Next question ... What constitutes the "all"? Obviously, making disciples of all nations and baptism of new believers was part of the commission. But there's more! Matthew 10 begins by telling us that Jesus called His twelve disciples together and gave them authority [turning over His authority, in full power -- the definition of a commission] over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and affliction. Furthermore, in verses 5-8, He tells them, Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel [the Gentiles did not receive the gospel of the Kingdom until the Jews refused it]. Proclaim as you go, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons." These are the things Jesus taught them and commanded them to do. We see the disciples carrying out that important commission in Scripture. 

Now, the important question for our generation ... How does the Church define its commission? I think we can all agree that the Church [which are the people of God] has been given tasks by God for us to accomplish in the world. I would venture to say that the modern Church has largely defined its role in terms of the Matthew 28 description of the Great Commission: i.e., making disciples [through preaching the doctrine of salvation], and baptizing believers. Nothing wrong with that!  Jesus absolutely commanded that. And the missionary work of the Church has certainly taken the Word of God to the world.

But somewhere along the way in history, the Matthew 10 part of  "the all" He commanded became discounted through doctrines like "Cessationism" [the belief that Jesus gave His power to work miracles to the disciples to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, and cast out demons only until the Church was established]. But Jesus didn't come to establish a Religion to be practiced only in a building. Scripture does not record that as part of His commission. He clearly says "AS YOU GO"! So, as we go about our day, we are to proclaim "the kingdom of heaven is at hand" -- it's available; readily accessible when needed. That means the power that Jesus received from the Father to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers and cast out demons, is available to us, too, because He turned over the full powers of Heaven to us!

Because "the Church", for too long, did not recognize that part of its commission, the Enemy of God has had a field day with Christians. Please note ... I am not questioning the salvation of those who are truly committed to a faith in Jesus, nor am I discounting all the good things the institution of Religion has done in the world. But let's be honest with ourselves. Has the Church walked in the power of Jesus that He turned over to us? If so, why has cancer grown in its power? Why did so many die from the latest pandemic? Why has evil and violence gained so much ground in our culture? We cannot deny that our church buildings are full of wonderfully saved people. But why are so many on medications to deal with their anxiety and depression? Why are marriages failing as we see the Biblical concept of family disintegrating before our eyes? 

And don't tell me that demons aren't real! If you call yourself a Bible-believing Christian, then tell me this ... do you believe the Bible when it says Jesus cast out demons? Do you think when He was crucified, resurrected, and ascended into Heaven, that the demons decided that they were vacating the earth, too? And finally, do you think Jesus left us here at the mercy of the demons, with no way to war against them, as He had? No! It's HIS POWER [that He gave to us] to continue His work to show believers that the power of the Kingdom of Heaven is available to us, too ["at hand"]! That's why He says in Matthew, Teach them to observe [participate in] all that I have commanded you; and I will be with you always, until the end of the age. He intended for His work to continue through us until the end of the age .  That's what John 14:12 means ... "Whoever believes in Me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father."  

Rest in the part of that Scripture that says He will be with us always! Yes, we have His power in us, but we don't have to try to figure out how to use it by ourselves. He is now seated in Heaven, giving us instructions on how to advance the Kingdom of heaven here on earth, just as the Father guided Him when He walked the earth as a human. He showed us the way, and we are now to carry on that work, "as we go". And I want to summarize why I presented the question in the title of this blog. It is so important that we, as the Body of Christ, inside and out of the building, be equipped to do ALL the work of Jesus's Great Commission. I cannot imagine that there is a single spirit-filled Christian on this earth that doesn't see the darkness that is coming on the world. And more and more, we are going to see people [those who are believers and those who are not] begin to despair and walk in fear. 

Jesus tells us over and over and over, "Do not fear; don't be afraid -- just believe." Fear and belief [faith] cannot co-exist. You must decide which you will be ... fearful or faithful. Because I will tell you, [through my recent personal experiences] that you will encounter people "as you go" throughout your days who will need to be healed of illnesses, freed from demonic spirits of oppression, cleansed of societal rejection, and yes, even brought back to life when the devil tries to steal their life before God has ordained it. And you need to be prepared to work with Jesus and the Holy Spirit, right then and in the moment, to free them from the attack of the Enemy. The darkness is coming fast and it is going to try men's souls. We MUST fulfill our commission and use the full power of Jesus [that He has transferred to us], or we will have failed to carry on His work as He intended us to do. And we must be equipped and prepared to do it anywhere, at any time -- our mission field is the world, not only inside the Church building.

Yes, Jesus preached the Word inside the synagogues. But He didn't limit His work to the building. He displayed the Mighty Power of Heaven as He went; and wherever He went. I believe our world is going to look a lot different in a very short time. I pray that those with ears to hear and eyes to see will rediscover Jesus's commandments to His followers. I am so thankful that God always has a Remnant to work with and I am believing He will empower us with all the spiritual weapons that Heaven has to offer. Prepare your heart for what's coming. Then ask to walk in faith, trusting that Jesus will be with you, as He promised --  and you will receive! 

Matthew 10:26-27     So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.