The Kingdom of God. That’s it. That’s all.
Service is a grand concept. People are enticed by being told they are customers and so are subject to outstanding customer service. People are compelled when they’re told by their political representatives that the representation is done as a service to the people. When we go to a restaurant or a hotel, we expect to be served. It’s all good. It’s lovely, especially when we are its recipients.
It was my privilege to work for the Civil Service of the United Kingdom for some time. I would love to tell you everything that happened, but having signed a document relating to the Official Secrets Act 1989, were I to tell you, well, I wouldn’t be saying too much afterwards. What I can say without fear of legal reprisal is that operating in the Civil Service is not easy, and it covers so much that it is admired what they do and how they do it.
Years after the experience, it occurred to me that following Jesus means we’re part of Kingdom Service. Thankfully, we don’t have to sign an equivalent Official Secrets Act, as our business has to be conducted concerning privacy. On the contrary, Kingdom Service is not about being secretive about how it does what it does. It doesn’t make a big deal of its service, but the nature of being a part of the service is that it illuminates, and people at least see that and give credit where it’s due.
That lends itself to an appreciation of the current state of the journey. Jesus was all about His Father’s business. And His Father’s business expressed something evident from the beginning – His rule. He created heaven and earth. He created the earth to reflect His rule in heaven. To get that done, He put His image-bearers about that business. Those image-bearers chose to distort that image, so the Father showed them how it’s done by sending His Son. A hallmark of His Son’s time on earth was that He was all about serving. Serving His Father by appealing to people to turn from their wicked ways to being ruled once more by the Creator. Reconciling man back to God was part of the expression of the earth being about the rule of heaven.
Some Christian groupings can be claustrophobically closed to such a degree that they are invested in just maintaining their own grouping. They believe that being part of the faith is all about holding on to their routines and keeping closed from any interaction or contact with the world for fear of being contaminated by their sin. Even if, as they do so, they contaminate themselves with sins of their own covered under religious terminology.
Other Christian groupings can be so expansively open that they are swept up with the latest trends and the need to be up with the right terms and socially acceptable positions. Their commitment to being so open dilutes their attention to what it is to be servants of the Lord Jesus. They’re more enthralled with appealing to others by being tolerant and accepting of so much as though Jesus wouldn’t say boo to a goose or dare offend anyone of anything. As they accept anything and everything, they justify their actions with … you guessed it, religious terminology.
At this stage of the journey, I appreciate that I cannot afford to be caught up with either of these expressions of church. The Body of Christ is essential to God's mission to express His Kingdom. Yet Jesus did not limit the expression of the Kingdom to the church. The rule of God operates through those sensitive to the calling of Jesus and that impact through all spheres of life. The rule of God is as much about the example of a godly cleaner in his workplace as it is about that dynamic sermon. The rule of God is as much about the kind and generous family blessing their neighbourhood as it is about that concert to raise funds for charities abroad.
I am hugely grateful for those who commit themselves to serving for the sake of the Kingdom. I am so glad for their continued example that when we pray for His Kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven, it’s not a wishful sentiment that has no bearing on life. How that can influence our lives and give us a greater desire to serve marks us as different from regular customer service, political service, or even civil service.
Jesus focused on the Kingdom, and the apostles taught about it. This stage of the journey places a greater emphasis on the Kingdom than ever before.
The Kingdom of God. That’s it. That’s all.
For His Name's Sake
C. L. J. Dryden
Shalom
