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God’s Kingdom Is Our Compass

Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

—2 CORINTHIANS 4:16–18

The Kingdom of God is counterintuitive in many ways. In God’s Kingdom:

The way to be great is to serve (MATTHEW 20:25–28).

The way to be strong is to be weak (2 CORINTHIANS 12:9–10).

The way to be rich is to give everything away (MARK 10:21).

The way to be wise is to become a fool (1 CORINTHIANS 1:18–25).

The way to be joyful is to weep (LUKE 6:20–26).

The way to be first is to be last (MARK 9:35).

The way to win is to lose (LUKE 9:25).

The way to live is to die (MATTHEW 10:38–39).

God’s own plan to save us is counterintuitive. The infinitely powerful creator of everything chose to make Himself known by taking human flesh and being born as a helpless baby into an impoverished family. Jesus grew up in obscurity, spent three years as an itinerant teacher, and was then cruelly tortured and killed. But His death turned out to be the pivot point of history. By dying, Jesus overcame death, assured His own eternal reign, and provided for our eternal salvation. That is an unexpected storyline.

To live a life of Theopraxy, we must learn to think counterintuitively. We must learn to focus on, and base our lives upon, an unseen spiritual reality. The twelve spies in NUMBERS 13 are an example. Ten reported on the facts they had seen and drew the logical conclusion: “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are too strong for us” (NUMBERS 13:31). But two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, came to a different conclusion: “The Lord is with us; do not fear them” (NUMBERS 14:9). They saw the same facts—the same giants and great walled cities. But they viewed those facts through the lens of the invisible spiritual reality: “The Lord is with us.” The ten spies’ failure to view things from God’s perspective caused the whole nation of Israel to wander in the wilderness for forty years until their entire generation died off.

In 2 KINGS 6, when the king of Aram sent his army to kill Elisha, Elisha’s servant was worried. Elisha prayed for his servant’s eyes to be opened, and he saw chariots of fire—the armies of the Lord—surrounding them for protection. Because Elisha was aware of the unseen army, he was completely unconcerned about the enemy that could be seen. This attitude led to his audacious response of praying for them to be blinded and leading them to his own king. He then proceeded to instruct the king to treat the enemy combatants as honored guests and send them home in peace. This encounter resulted in a period of respite from the war.

In MATTHEW 14:28–33, we have another example. There, Peter briefly walks on water. He sees Jesus walking over the waves. At Jesus’ invitation, Peter steps out of the boat to walk on the water toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became frightened and began to sink. Jesus took hold of Peter and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” Think about that. Jesus rebukes Peter for doubting that, with Jesus’ help, he could walk on water. Jesus wanted Peter to know that His unseen power was greater than the visible power of wind, waves, and gravity. And He wanted Peter to act confidently on that knowledge. This is action based on an alternate reality. Living based on the Kingdom of God, rather than earthly realities, requires heavenly enablement.

The challenge in being Theopraxic is to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and the eternal realities of the Kingdom, and to live accordingly (HEBREWS 12:1–11; 2 CORINTHIANS 4:7–18; COLOSSIANS 3:1–4). That is the life of faith (HEBREWS 11:1–3). We cannot please God in any other way (HEBREWS 11:6). Living such a life is the evidence that we believe God and are relying on, seeking, serving, loving, and worshiping Him alone.

Midway through the great “hall of faith” in Hebrews 11, the author explains what all of the great heroes of the faith have in common:

All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own…. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them. (HEBREWS 11:13–16)

Because these great saints were focused on the invisible future promises of God, and not the visible here and now, “God is not ashamed to be called their God.”

The focus of this life of faith is exclusively on Jesus, as HEBREWS 12:1–11 explains. It requires us to “lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us.” We are to do away with anything that would distract or hinder us—even good things—just as Jesus did only what He saw the Father doing and said only what He heard the Father saying.

We are to focus exclusively on running the race that He has set before us. In doing so, we are to rely steadfastly on Jesus, remembering how He looked forward to the joy before Him and despised the suffering and shame He had to endure.

The author of Hebrews reminds us of the struggles we will face both in resisting sin and persisting in the face of discipline from the Father. But he promises that God’s discipline comes from fatherly love, will result in our increasing holiness, and will eventually yield the “peaceful fruit of righteousness” (HEBREWS 12:11) as the Lord achieves His aim in our lives. Those are indeed reassuring incentives for submitting wholeheartedly to His pruning.

SECOND CORINTHIANS 4:7–12, 16–18 echoes the same themes. Paul does not shy away from the difficulties we are destined to experience as we live the life of faith:

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death works in us, but life in you…. Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Paul willingly makes the sacrifices necessary to live the life of faith because he knows the unseen things are more permanent, more secure, and more solid than the things he can see and touch and taste. He considers the shipwrecks, stonings, beatings, imprisonment, and hunger he has endured as “light” and “momentary” compared to the “eternal weight of glory” that is stored up as a result. To Paul, the unseen things are more real than the seen—and he lives his life accordingly.

In 1 CORINTHIANS 15:50–57, Paul explains how “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye” our mortal bodies will be exchanged for immortal ones. In verse 58, he concludes, “Therefore [because of the promised eternal reward], my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.” Our promised future is a motive for Kingdom living now.

FIRST CORINTHIANS 9:24–27 also implores us to concentrate our efforts on Kingdom matters:

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.

Paul explains that this disciplined focus is driven by his desire to avoid the mistakes made by the Israelites during the Exodus (1 CORINTHIANS 10:1–12). All of them were “baptized into Moses.” All of them drank “spiritual drink” and ate “spiritual food.” “Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness.” Their membership in the nation of Israel, crossing the Red Sea, eating manna, drinking the water that miraculously poured out of the rock, and participation in the miracles of Moses were not enough to make them acceptable to God. God was displeased because they craved evil things, persisted in idol worship, and grumbled against God (VERSES 6, 7, 10).

We need to avoid the same mistake. “Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall” (VERSES 11–12). We too can miss the promised land. We too can miss the blessing God has for us, if we fail to focus on Him and His Kingdom and allow ourselves to be distracted.

COLOSSIANS 3:1–4 similarly redirects our focus to the Kingdom of heaven:

Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

The recurrent theme is unmistakable: die to self while here on earth, with an eye on the eternal hope of glory with God. This is why Paul wrote that faith, hope, and love endure forever (1 CORINTHIANS 13:13). Love is the ultimate characteristic of God’s Kingdom, but faith is the means of living the life He gives, and hope gives the strength to persist in that life.

As we live a life of Theopraxy, we have but one purpose: God’s purpose. As Paul told Timothy, “Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier” (2 TIMOTHY 2:3–4). This message is concerned primarily with focusing Timothy’s attention. Paul is making sure Timothy will not be distracted by earthly matters and lose his focus on eternal matters.

This focus can be illustrated by the process of pruning. For a time, I worked as a berry farmer. I have some advice for you: If you are going to grow berries, do not start with blackberries. Growing them is extremely labor-intensive. You have to set up a trellis system with two wires and place a berry plant every six feet, next to a pole. Every year, the plant puts out multiple “canes.” You have to prune off all but two of the canes and then train these two to climb the pole. As they grow, you tie them onto the pole while trimming any additional shoots that emerge. Then you train them along the wires, one cane to each wire. Again, you constantly trim any extraneous shoots. Over the course of a season, a blackberry farmer might trim 90 percent of the growth so as to end up with only growth along the poles and wires.

In the end, this work is rewarded with an abundant harvest along every pole and wire. Without the support system, the plant would not be able to carry so much fruit. The berries are huge and juicy. All the berries are readily accessible and can be harvested quickly and easily.

We also have wild blackberries in our part of the country. The berries are much smaller. There are only a few blackberries per plant. To pick them, you have to fight your way through the thorns and brambles. You can pick as many carefully cultivated blackberries in five minutes as you can pick wild blackberries in two hours. But to get to that point, a significant commitment is involved—not only the brutal pruning process I have already described, but after the harvest you have to cut down all of the past season’s growth and start all over again. Achieving that sort of harvest requires a significant degree of discipline.

It is possible to follow Christ in a convenient, casual, and lazy fashion, sort of like growing wild blackberries. You may yield some fruit, but the result will never be comparable to that of a life wholly set apart for His purposes and pleasure.

Jesus uses a similar metaphor in JOHN 15. He says, “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.” In Jesus’ story, we are not the farmer; we are the branches, or canes, that must be pruned to bear fruit. God the Father is the farmer who prunes for fruitfulness, and Jesus is the vine from whom all the branches grow and draw sustenance.

If our goal is fruitfulness in God’s Kingdom, we must be ready for pruning. We need to willingly submit to painful discipline from our loving Father, who “disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness” (HEBREWS 12:10). Sanctification (becoming holy in our daily lives) may involve changing our behavior, as in the passages that call us to “put off” our old ways and “put on” a new life (e.g., EPHESIANS 4:20–32; COLOSSIANS 3:8–17). But often it will require inner change. It may mean doing the same things, but doing them for God rather than for oneself.

Jesus warned that some people, on the day of judgment, will claim to have been doing the right things but will still be rejected by God. They will say, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?” And yet, Jesus will say, “I never knew you” (MATTHEW 7:22–23).

Religious activities and spiritual actions do not prove allegiance to God, nor are miraculous blessings necessarily a sign of God’s pleasure. In MATTHEW 11:20–24, Jesus rails against the cities where most of His miracles occurred because they did not repent. He said those miracles would simply result in heavier judgment against those cities. Without repentance and commitment, even God’s blessings are a punishment, just as suffering for the cause of Christ is actually a reward (MATTHEW 5:10–12; ACTS 5:41; 2 CORINTHIANS 4:17).

I understand why some people are enamored with signs and wonders, but I have never really been very interested in them. Many people wish they could have witnessed Jesus’ miracles firsthand. I also wish I could have followed Him on earth, but for a very different reason. I would love to have witnessed what it looked like for someone to live a perfect life of Theopraxy. How did He demonstrate a perfect expression of the Father’s will in every moment, in every interaction, in the use of His time and energy and resources? How did He do business, do carpentry, or tell a joke? What did He talk about when hanging out with people? What does it look like for a human to live in this world as a perfect citizen of the heavenly Kingdom?

Similarly, when reading a missionary newsletter, many people love photos, tolerate text, and abhor spreadsheets or statistics. I am the opposite. I rarely even look at the photos. After all, a lineup of the participants in some training session looks just like any of a hundred other similar photos I have seen. I seek out the text and devour the spreadsheets or statistics. To me, those reveal much more about what is happening than a mere photo. God has preferences as well. He sees appearances, He notices actions, but He looks primarily at the heart (1 SAMUEL 16:7).

In Theopraxy, we serve an audience of one. It is possible to do the same action either for God or for oneself or some other purpose. If we do everything for the glory of God, God sees. Then our lives become an act of worship. Our whole lives can be a prayer (1 CORINTHIANS 10:31).

Jesus described the hearts of men with the parable of the four soils (MATTHEW 13:3–23; MARK 4:3–25; LUKE 8:5–15). Failure to hear or receive the word reveals a hard heart. Hard times and deprivation reveal shallow hearts. Easy times and prosperity reveal distracted hearts. Only through the Holy Spirit can we have good hearts that produce the fruitful crop the Lord desires. God invests more in those who are faithful. So how can we cultivate our hearts?

Above all, God delights in humble hearts. In MATTHEW 11, Jesus says God has revealed His works to “infants” and hidden them from “the wise and intelligent” (VERSES 25–26). He adds that no one knows either the Father or the Son unless the Son reveals them (VERSE 27). Then Jesus tells us that He calls those “who are weary and heavy-laden” (VERSE 28). Those people are like Him, for He is humble in heart. Those are the people to whom He will give rest. He will teach them and carry their loads. Again, a life totally devoted to God is ironic. It is impossible to live in one’s own strength, yet living in God is easy and light (VERSES 29–30).

It has always been this way. Moses was God’s friend (EXODUS 33:11) and the most humble man on earth (NUMBERS 12:3). God gave him an enormous task and helped him bear the burden (NUMBERS 11:11–14). The same pattern holds true throughout Scripture. Those who know the Lord the best are the humblest. These people are often called on to make the greatest sacrifices, but are also used in mighty ways.

Living for an audience of one means living as extremists from the world’s perspective. This is an attitude of the heart. It exposes our level of commitment, our determination to pursue one goal. Jesus said, “From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force” (MATTHEW 11:12). We may not say it in quite such a jarring way, but no matter how we express it, total commitment to Christ sounds offensive to the world. Our level of commitment is exhibited by the level of sacrifice we are willing to make or the level of risk we are willing to take for His sake.

PRAYER

Father in heaven, though I cannot see You, You and Your promises are stronger and more reliable than anything I can see or touch or taste. You are the ultimate reality. Your Kingdom is the most important thing in the universe. Eternity with You is so much bigger and longer than this life. But my fears and desire for comfort push me to focus on what is right in front of me. Teach me to live a life of faith. Teach me to willingly suffer now to gain the great reward You promise me. Teach me to accept from Your hand the discipline I need to become the person You made me to be. Prepare me for life with You.

Do what is necessary to wrench the roots of my heart from this temporal world and transplant them in eternity. Thank You for loving me, forgiving me, adopting me, and giving me a future with You.

QUESTIONS

Read the following questions, then pray and ask God what He wants you to learn and do. Listen quietly.

Review your journal. Are there any past commitments you have not completed? If needed, schedule revised completion dates.

1. Do I make my daily decisions based primarily on earthly or eternal realities? How do my daily activities demonstrate that?

2. What am I doing, in my life, that would be completely crazy if Jesus’ promises were not true?

3. What specific actions does God want me to take in response to this chapter? (Note them in your journal and schedule them in your calendar.)

4. With whom (at least one name) does God want me to share what I have learned?

Ask the Lord to enable you to follow through on these commitments and to prepare the hearts of those with whom you intend to share insights.