Inspiration Avenue

Throughout traditional Christianity, we repeatedly hear this thing called “Gospel.” It’s being preached everywhere, from everyone, all the time. Well, sort of. Usually just on occasional Sunday mornings and Christmas, right? The Gospel is basically the story of Jesus’ life – Jesus’ narrative. The Gospel starts with the virgin birth of Christ, and ends with his death and resurrection. The “punch line” of the Gospel is, “Jesus died for your sins, so you don’t have to worry about it, because you’re saved since you’ve accepted Christ as your Saviour. And if you haven’t done that yet, it’s time for an altar call.”

Has it ever bothered anyone that we only talk about the “being saved” aspect of the Gospel? Like that’s all there is to it? It seems to only revolve around one aspect of Christ – “being saved.” We always say, “Christ is my saviour.” And usually, we just leave it at that. It’s like he’s some guy who came down to save us from sin so that we don’t have to suffer in hell for eternity after we die. Now that’s grace at its finest. But that’s just one little aspect of who Jesus really is. Many Christians view him as the “Lamb” and those who aren’t Christians view him as “baby Jesus.” But he’s also the Lion! He is Fire! He has power, authority, and rulership! He is the King! We seem to ignore that aspect of him. What’s up with that?!

I think there is something more than just the traditional Gospel of Christ. There is this other thing called the “Gospel of the Kingdom.” At least, that’s what I call it. The Gospel of the Kingdom is what Jesus preached his entire life. Everything he did and said, it was all about Kingdom. Kingdom, Kingdom, Kingdom, all day, everyday. He told parables about it, he preached it in the synagogues, he talked to people about it in their homes, and, most importantly, he lived it in an apostolic and prophetic way. (By the way, the foundation for the manifestation and exponential multiplication of the Kingdom throughout all nations is an apostolic and prophetic life.) Jesus modelled how to live a Kingdom life. He trained his disciples to do the same, so that when he leaves the earth and goes back home, his disciples can carry on modelling the Kingdom for other people so that they have the Kingdom DNA in them. That way, it can multiply like a virus, and it cannot be stopped by any force. Jesus figured out the essence – the foundational structure – of teaching: modelling something. Jesus came down to this earth to primarily teach us and show us what the Kingdom is all about. He did this by modelling a Kingdom lifestyle. It must’ve been frustrating though, because he lived here for 33 years, and after all that time, his disciples still didn’t really understand what the Kingdom is. So he had a final 40 day teaching session of what the Kingdom is. And even then, they asked him, “Lord, are you this time going to restore the Kingdom to Israel?” They just didn’t understand that the Kingdom was already there, in their lives. They were living it, and they didn’t even know.

The Gospel of the Kingdom is a new way of living life. Well, actually, it’s an old way of living life. Basically, we veered away from following Jesus’ teachings. We need to, no, it is essential that we stop doing our own thing, and start doing God’s thing again. I only know a few Christians who study the Bible with the Holy Spirit, and who actually live what Jesus taught. It’s almost like Christians have accepted the worldly lifestyle and just put a fish sticker on it. The main difference between worldly families and Christian families is that the Christian families give their children some kind of spiritual education, like Sunday school. That’s really the only difference. In all other areas of life, money, sex, and power, they’re exactly like the world. How are we going to make a difference in this world if we live life like the world? Maybe we can influence a few people’s lives through expensive outreach programs, but there’s no way we will change anything. Anybody can influence something, you don’t need to be a follower of Christ to do so. Some people can change something, and you don’t need to be a follower of Christ to do that either. Steve Jobs, a Buddhist, changed the computer world with his Apple products. However, the Holy Spirit, who can act in us and through us, can turn this world upside down, and nobody else can do that, not even Steve. But right now, we are not living a Kingdom life like Jesus did. We are selfish, individualistic, greedy, and stubborn, and we say “Lord Jesus, change my life,” but we expect him to do all the work, and we just carry on, living our daily worldly lives like everybody else, not giving a crap about change.

No wonder Jesus was killed; he was totally different than the rest! He lived outside of the worldly system. He preached things that were never heard before, he did things that were impossible to recreate, and he lived a lifestyle that made people ask questions. So what is the Kingdom of God? It’s a lifestyle that is radically different from the one that many people are living right now. It’s a personal relationship with God as well as with each other. It is dangerous and fun. Mostly dangerous, though. Only a few people live that kind of a lifestyle, and it’s usually the young generation (18-30 year-olds.) And those few people are supposed to change the world? Seriously? I mean, they could change the world, if others from different generations would unite and join them in that lifestyle. But Christians have their own denominations, their own churches, their own programs and their own friends. They are comfortable with what they have now. A secure job with a steady income, a wife and 2.5 kids, a house, and a car with a fish sticker on the back. “And on top of all that, we are saved by the Blood of Christ! So what else do we need? Why do we have to risk living a radical lifestyle for which we will be persecuted like Jesus?” Yet they sing songs with incredible lyrics like, “Jesus, I wanna be like you.” What a paradox!

Living in the Kingdom of God means that we have God as our Saviour and King, and that we live life differently than the individualistic, consumer-driven world. It affects all areas of life. Family, finances, media, education, government, you name it. For most Christians, God is spiritual, but He isn’t in their everyday lives. For example, did you ask God if you should date that girl or not? And even if you did ask Him, were you biased? “I feel like God is saying yes, but I’m not sure, so I guess I’ll go ahead and date her and see how it goes.” God can speak very clearly if we only open our ears. A Kingdom life means that we rely on God for absolutely everything. He is our Creator, we are His creation, He leads, we follow, He is King, we are servants. If a community lived a Kingdom life, there wouldn’t be a need for medical or car insurance, there would be no need for taxes, no need for traditional education. You could really live in a community where the government has no influence on your life. If so many people are upset with the government, why aren’t Christians taking initiative and showing them how to solve the problem? If Jesus solved the problems, why are we still living with those problems? Living in the Kingdom of God means to die to self, obey God, love Him with all your heart, soul, and mind, and love your neighbour as yourself. It’s not easy, but it’s what Jesus did, and he got killed for it. Yet, he turned this world upside down. So let’s do the same thing by making disciples of all nations (literally!), and living in the Kingdom of God, the country that is under God’s uncontested rule. Is anybody up for an adventurous life? I sure am!