When a king has to send out his soldiers out to war, what does he look for in his warriors?
In other words, what makes a strong, conquering army?
The way history tends to show us, a preferable, “winning” army will have men that are big, built, tough, rough, fierce, and able to defeat it’s enemies without being defeated.
Sounds scary, doesn’t it? Intimidating, in a way. This idea of an army makes me think that I wouldn’t want to be on the other side of the battle. I would get destroyed. Also, I may not be big enough, built enough, tough enough, rough enough, or fierce enough to be part of this army either. So where do we fit?
I am sure you’ve heard the phrase, “Kill them with kindness.” In other words:
“Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you… Lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great…” -Luke 6:27-35
|It’s a beautiful thing when we find out our day-to-day quotes are really scripture references|
Let me address how this applies to a “kingdom” picture:
In a kingdom, there exists a king, usually his queen, the kings army, and the kingdoms/kings people. The king has expectations of his kingdom: That the army would protect him, that his people would obey him, that there would be some sort of communication throughout the kingdom, an economy that gives and receives between the people of the kingdom and himself, and that he would have a bride/queen at his side as he oversees his kingdom. A king lives off of gold, sitting on a throne so high decorated with jewels of valued colour. He can destroy and imprison those he wishes to with a simple command. Sometimes even, he expects to have an enemy; maybe another kingdom with wicked hearts that plan to kill and destroy the reputation of this good king and his kingdom.
When the enemy is moving forward with an attack against the king or the kingdom, the king is ready to send out his army against the enemy army. A king filled with rage instructs his soldiers to kill every opposing enemy so as to not be a threat to the king’s reigning kingdom.
Just to clarify, I have not lived long enough to have experienced “kingdom living” in the sense where I live my life in a half-fear that either my king will destroy me, or the enemy against my king will destroy me. What I have been experiencing for almost 2 years is this notion of the “Upside Down Kingdom” which can best be described in a book called the Bible, in the book of Isaiah, verse 52.
In this chapter, the city of Jerusalem has just been destroyed by Babylon, the opposing enemy. Not many citizens of Jerusalem are left, but still a few remain. The few are left wondering:
‘Has our God abandoned us?’
‘Is this not the city where God is supposed to bring blessing to us all?’
‘Were we not protected under His name?’
BUT WAIT. Here comes hope:
“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news.” -Isaiah 52:7
A messenger has arrived at the gates of the city of Jerusalem to bring the good news over this despair:
DESPITE JERUSALEM’S DESTRUCTION, ISRAEL’S GOD STILL REIGNS AS KING
Now, where else do we see a messenger spreading good news in the bible? That’s right, the New Testament introduces a character named Jesus who travels as messenger on the mountains with beautiful feet to deliver the good news: That Israel’s God still reigns as King.
PLOT TWIST: The way Jesus describes God’s reign threw many people off. Look at it this way…
A strong army should be able to kill and destroy all of its armies, but the Bible says it like this:
“The least of you will become a thousand, the smallest a mighty nation.” -Isaiah 60:22
The strongest soldier is the weakest, the one who loves, and the one who serves those even below him. Though it is expected in a regular kingdom to fight against our enemies in an attempt to destroy them, the bible instructs us, in the upside down kingdom to love our enemies, to do good to those who hate us, to bless those who curse us, and to pray for those who mistreat us, always (Luke 6:27-28).
So when the people of Jerusalem go under attack again, God will expect them not to fight back violently, but to violently love on their enemies.
Word is now spreading that this same Jesus is coming as King. And not just any king, but the King of kings. He is appointing 12 disciples who represent Isreal’s 12 tribes, he is acting and talking like he is king, he is even healing people and forgiving people of their sins.
Israel’s leaders see Jesus as a threat and decide to have him killed, and Jesus willingly walks into this plan, which is a strange thing for a king to do: to allow himself to get killed by the nations’ leaders around him. Gratefully, I say, Jesus knew what he had to do.
Though many would have been willing to fight for Jesus’ life, Jesus himself believed that it would be through an act of sacrificial love for his enemies that God would bring down His reign over the world. Even though Jesus saw it all coming, he still chose the cross as his enthronement. He received a crown of thorns, a robe to cover the shame of his nakedness, and he is exalted up high, but not on a throne: On a cross.
Nailed to the cross, the blood dripping from the holes in his feet remind us, ‘how beautiful are the feet that bring good news…’
The good news today is that he shares his victory over the grave with US: God’s children. That doesn’t just mean people who consider themselves “Christians”, but remember that Jesus also had our enemies in mind and in his heart when he chose to die on the cross. The Kingdom we belong to is one where our King would give up his own life for us, his servants and followers, and still we are seated beside God’s throne, beside Jesus Christ, without condemnation, free of guilt and love/faith written on the tablet of our hearts.
The Upside Down Kingdom required:
- a King who would be willing to fight for us, not one where we would need to live lives filled with fear
- a King who took up his throne on the cross, opened his arms up wide, and invited the world inside
- a King who accepted a crown: a crown of thorns
- a King who brought the good news, and shared his victory with us
So as an act of gratitude, thank him in this way:
- do good to those who hate you
- bless those who curse you
- pray for those who mistreat you
- give to everyone who asks you
- do to others as you would have them do unto you, in kindness
- PRAY in a manner that shows our King we want to communicate with Him
The Upside Down Kingdom in London, Ontario.
https://youtu.be/4pW7ULvKSYE