Faithful on Fridays Blog

Episode Six: Already

As Jesus continued to explain the Kingdom of Heaven to the crowds He changed from seeds to other experiences of life. This imagery of ‘kingdom’ is pervasive throughout life, He said … just like leaven (Matt. 13:33). Yeast takes time to bubble up and permeate the bowl. Just like seeds underground, you trust that God’s hidden power, like yeast, is working in secret as you share the Kingdom of God. 

For the Kingdom of God isn’t just a lot of talk; it’s living by God’s power. 1 Corinthians 4:20 

As the crowds dispersed Jesus continued His leadership training in private; it was vital His followers understood the Kingdom of God and their new way of living. Sometimes it’s hidden and sometimes obvious, but nevertheless, God’s kingdom is working wherever there’s faith in Christ.

Remember, those without faith can’t understand the upper story, but with faith you receive the Spirit’s revelation. In the stories of ‘hidden treasure’ and the ‘pearl’ Jesus taught the value God places on our response to the gospel of the kingdom. Some people are searching for God and others couldn’t care less, but He knows who’ll respond with humility and sacrifice. The kingdom is like a valuable treasure that’s hidden in a field, someone stumbles over it, their heart is moved, and they cover it up while they ponder the truths of God’s love and care for them. Could it be true? Joy bubbles up and they have to buy that field! When God reveals His love and forgiveness we’re willing to give up anything to follow Him. From another angle, someone may be searching for God and finds His grace and forgiveness moving them to give up anything to receive this valuable gift. He’s looking for that ‘one pearl’ that will change his life,

The one thing I ask of the Lord— the thing I seek most— is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in his Temple. Psalms 27:4 

“There’s still one thing you haven’t done,” He told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you’ll have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.” Mark 10:21

… but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, Phil. 3:13b

Finally, the ‘net’ parable is serious for Jesus followers; Judgment Day is coming and there’s a destiny for every person depending on their response to the gospel. Fishermen throw out a dragnet catching a variety of fish that need to be separated: good from bad. That’s our assignment, cast the gospel net and God does the rest: Destiny is His business. 

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season. 2 Tim. 4:1-2a

Parable of the Sower: Good Soil

Teaching fifth grade science was enlightening for me; my unit on botany is a good example. Identifying parts of a plant, how they receive nutrition and grow was helpful, but the value of good soil was classic. The kids loved it when I explained that good soil is made up of dead things: sticks, sand, minute rocks, decomposing animal and insect parts. 

As we complete the Parable of the Sower it’s vital to talk about death. Jesus explained that fruit grows in good soil, full of dead stuff, but requires a heart that hears God’s Word, understands it, accepts or clings to it with an honest heart and then, with patience, fruit comes. What a simple explanation and yet so many people leave out the dead stuff. 

If our desire is to grow spiritual fruit then we have to die to some things. Time in God’s  Word and prayer must take priority over sleeping in or reading our email. Participating in a small group ministry or Bible Study must take precedence over other opportunities that occupy our time. Resisting temptation or sin is a death, especially if you have some habits that are addictive, but God promises to give you power to resist those temptations to sin. Dying to yourself may also include loving your enemy, blessing those who persecute you, or being generous when you’d rather keep the money for yourself. Death.

Soil may need fertilizer, soil enhancements, or other added nutrients to cause optimum growth. Therefore we add prayer, worship, kindness, compassion, forgiveness, I think you see where I’m going, to result in good soil. We also cannot let our soil grow fallow. That’s a field that’s been plowed, but left unseeded during a growing season. This inactivity leaves uncultivated soil that’s dormant or idle. God desires to see us actively living for Him, kingdom living, whose yield is exponential. 

Sometimes we think that ‘big’ means ‘doing it right’ but think about this; an average yield is 7.5 times the seed sown. Jesus said that if you maintained good soil you would yield 30, 60, or even 100 times. Thirty times is huge, however, you don’t decide the size of your harvest, God does. If you’re involved in ministry that’s fruitful but small in number, rejoice, in His sovereignty God has chosen a 30 for you. Maybe you’re involved in a ministry that’s a little bigger, a 60; be careful not to look down on a 30, both are designed by God. 

I challenge you to be honest with yourself; did God’s Word get planted in your heart this week and is it producing fruit? Are you experiencing love, joy, and peace regardless of your outward circumstances? Are you stronger in patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control (Gal. 5)? It’s a physical law of botany and a spiritual law of scripture: you will harvest what you plant in cultivated soil. Whether your yield is a 30, 60, or a 100: be content.

Episode Five: Already

Jesus made the powerful declaration in the Lord’s Prayer, “Kingdom Come! Will be done on earth as in heaven.”  Those anointed words show the crucial nature of the Kingdom of God already a reality.

When Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7) He expressed truths we shouldn’t miss. “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else …, enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate …, follow God’s commandments, teach others, and you’ll be great in the Kingdom of Heaven, additionally, only those who do the will of My Father will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Thankfully, his four seed-parables from Matt. 13 and Mark 4 give us insight into understanding the secrets of the Kingdom: The Parable of the Sower, The Growing Seed, The Wheat and Weeds, and The Mustard Seed. We’ve already looked at why people don’t receive the seed of God’s Word when we share, but we still get frustrated. We witness and testify of God’s love and grace, the higher life is right here; why don’t they respond (Parable of the Sower)? 

The second seed-parable Jesus told reveals the process of The Growing Seed (Mark 4:26-29) comforting us that when we testify of God’s goodness we remember it’s a slow process. You don’t plant a seed one day and there’s fruit the next. It requires patience recognizing there’s a lot happening underground we can’t see: the seed coat needs to break open, gravity draws the roots down, and the baby plant reaches up to the light. This all takes time, but eventually the fruit ripens and it’s harvest time; God’s Kingdom is like that (Is. 55:10-11).

Next, Jesus explained His story (Matt. 13:36-44) of the good seed (wheat) and the bad seed (weeds). He reminded us of an enemy opposing our every move to share the Kingdom. Jesus planted good seed in us mandating we go and do likewise, yet realizing Satan is sowing bad seeds at the same time: social media, news outlets, or politics are often weed-seeds. Pointing us to the end of this age or time, He clearly addressed the separation of believers and unbelievers. Judgment Day is real.

Lastly, The Mustard Seed; that tiny, insignificant seed planted as we share God’s love and mercy with others. Jesus desires us to know that every word we speak about Him doesn’t go unnoticed; He sees it all. Again, seeds take time to germinate; you may be the first, tenth, or even hundredth time someone hears the message, but when it does take root God nourishes it to full growth. The smallest, seemingly unimportant seed you sow becomes the largest plant providing shade, shelter, and protection for those who receive the seed.

Moral of the four stories? Recognizing obstacles to responding to God’s Word, including Satan, we share His message of the Kingdom of God remembering it’s a process that takes time and patience. The smallest kindness in His Name will have an effect so … ‘shine the sun’ in His Kingdom now.

Parable of the Sower: Strangled Heart

After a gardener has tilled the hard ground, removed any rocks, he must keep careful watch for weeds. Weeds/thorns can cut off life from the fruit by strangling it, therefore, the plant isn’t able to mature due to this choke-hold. Notice that the plant was growing alongside these thorny weeds; the picture is outside influences preventing fruit from maturing. Do you see the spiritual connection?

Jesus identified the thorny plants for us: the cares of the world, deceitfulness of riches, desire for other things, and pleasures of life. I find myself influenced by several of those categories at various times in my life. Do you find worldly influences choking out God’s Word and a victorious kingdom life? Are there times when you’re double-minded; you want to go one way, but sense the Holy Spirit leading you in another? Which way do you choose? Are you so busy with life that God has become an outsider, just looking in? Is there a choke-hold in your mind that’s suffocating the voice of the Spirit?

The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. Galatians 5:17 

The thorns of life are inevitable while living in the world, but we can’t let them twist around and choke our fruit.

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:22-23 NLT

Jesus once got angry at a tree, isn’t that funny, (Mark 11:12-26) because it looked good on the outside but had no fruit. After Peter questioned him Jesus compared it to our faith without the influence of doubt. He spoke to that tree and it withered, consequently, He taught that we can speak to mountains and they will move. That’s the kind of fruit we need: mountain-moving faith. Jesus continued to encourage us to forgive others (vs. 25-26) and pray in faith:

I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours. Mark 11:24 

Forgiveness is fruit you want to cultivate today, then your Father, in turn, will forgive you: you only harvest the seeds you plant. Interestingly, the same word for thorns is used for Jesus’ crown of thorns. He was a mock-king by wearing it, however, it symbolized our forgiveness on the cross. To experience kingdom living we also must display the fruit of forgiveness.

Lastly, when we share Jesus with anyone they have heart conditions to consider as well. We can pray for the Spirit to reveal any spiritual hardness, spiritual rocks, or thorns as we share God’s Word praying for better soil and the release of fruit. 

Episode Four: Already

As you read this series my hope is that you’re seeing God’s plan from before time: kingdom living! It’s knowing that you’re royalty in God’s invisible realm and reigning with Him even now, and yet not completely.

For He raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:6 

The Kingdom of God is already here, we’re no longer dead to God but alive in Christ, and in the invisible kingdom (the upper story) we’re already seated with Him. I know that’s a mystery, especially if you’re looking at the your outward circumstances, but God wants us to look past them and to spiritual realities. 

God’s people anticipated this kingdom (Daniel 2) after King Nebuchadnezzar had Daniel interpret his dream of five kingdoms. Historically, the first four came to power and dissolved, however, the fifth kingdom was different. It wasn’t made by hands, but by a Stone; the ‘revealer of mysteries’ had spoken. 

For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved. Acts 4:11-12

So everyone was waiting for this fifth kingdom, the one where God will reign, and Jesus enters telling stories and revealing these spiritual mysteries beginning with the Parable of the Sower, which thankfully, Jesus interpreted for us (Matt. 13:18-23). The seed is the Word of the kingdom and different types of hearts will hear this message. If it’s a hard heart the evil one will steal the seed because their hearts need to be softened for it to penetrate. If the heart is rocky they may joyfully receive this message of kingdom living, but their hearts remain shallow, they have no roots and their outward circumstances cause them to fall away. Hearts that are thorny, explained Jesus, are those who allow the world, riches, and pleasures of life to choke out the kingdom. He clearly revealed this mystery of the kingdom as beginning in the good soil of our hearts.

If you’d like to experience kingdom living, even though you can’t see it yet, then begin evaluating your own heart. Jesus said it’s a privilege to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God but you need good soil,

“But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.” Matthew 13:16-17

How do you handle stress, disappointment, or frustration? Ask your family for the truth. Kingdom living means you control anger, treat everyone with kindness, and easily forgive. That’s the ‘already’ of the Kingdom of God. 

Parable of the Sower: Shallow Heart

Kids love to play with modeling clay; it encourages creativity and it’s fun. The soil around my house is plagued with clay, but it’s not fun. I quickly learned that removal was necessary if I wanted my flowers to grow and flourish so I began the long process of digging out buckets of clay. The clay needed to go because it kept the depth of rich soil quite shallow. That’s our second heart condition: shallow soil.

Jesus continued His story (Matt. 13, Mark 4, Luke 8) describing a heart that’s full of rocks. The point isn’t the rocks or clay, but the lack of good soil for the plants to root in. Strong roots anchor plants, bring in water, and nutrients, consequently, a beautiful flower or fruit. With that picture in mind Jesus explained that our hearts are like that; we were created for depth. 

For the inward mind and heart of a man are deep. Psalm 64:6b 

I often hear that people leave churches because they need more depth; the teaching and preaching isn’t deep enough. News Flash! It may not be the preacher; it may be your heart. To be even clearer, Jesus described this shallow heart. You immediately receive the Word of God with joy and excitement, you last for a while, but because the good soil has no depth, the roots can’t thrive and you begin to wilt. Your faith is tested when life becomes hard and because you haven’t removed the rocks or clay from your heart, you fall away.

What’s the remedy for a shallow heart? Paul tells us that Holy Spirit revelation comes through your time with God. Yes, that four-letter word that everyone moans about: Time.

… these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 1 Corinthians 2:10 

I encourage you today, whether the metaphor is soil or water:

Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch. Luke 5:4b 

God is offering revelation when you open His Word and pray.

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways! Romans 11:33 

It’s your responsibility to change your soil so fill your buckets with rock and clay-excuses and make God a priority for your day. You don’t have to be a shallow believer, the depth of your heart is calling out for the deep things of God (Ps. 42:7). Go for it!

… be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16-19 

Episode Three: Already

When Jesus appeared on the scene He preached, 

“The time is fulfilled and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:15

That’s the ‘already’ gospel of God (vs. 14); we can experience a foretaste of everyday living like kings and queens in God’s realm … now. After forgiveness of our sins we die to our old life (lower story) and enter into a new one (upper story). We look the same on the outside, however, our inner man is a new creation; the old is gone and God gives us a new identity in Him. When the time was right the Father released the Son to come to earth and get this show on the road; it was His purpose (Luke 4:43)! God can’t wait for us to take our rightful place of dominion in the Garden once again. But what, exactly, is the Kingdom of God for today? Paul explained it like this,

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Romans 14:17 

The Kingdom of God has been prepared and in position from before time began, the Plan for us to rule and reign with Him, but Jesus also said that a believer may have to forcefully take possession of it.

“The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the Kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing their way into it.” Luke 16:16 

We have an enemy ruling the kingdom of darkness on earth attempting to keep us from righteousness, peace, and joy in the Spirit; it’s Satan’s temporary kingdom that  tries to darken our soul and do what he does best: steals, kills, and destroys (John 10:10). However,

He has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of His dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins. Colossians 1:13-14

Binding Satan is rendering him powerless in your life, one of the mysteries Jesus discussed, and we do it by praying for ourselves and others for healing and deliverance from that dark kingdom (Matt. 10:7-8, 12:22-28). We can walk like royalty in His righteousness, His wholeness (peace), and His bubbling over joy as Jesus’ 72 apostles, ‘sent ones’ (Luke 10) experienced. They showed evidence that the Kingdom of God is a present reality by bringing wholeness to many in their body, soul, and spirit. They returned rejoicing that even demons are subject to them in His Name. Jesus responded,

“Yes,” He told them, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning! Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy.” Luke 10:18-19a

We’re already experiencing the Kingdom of God as a taste, not a full meal, of the final Kingdom. We’ll look at some parables next week that show how this kingdom actually works.

Parable of the Sower: Hard Heart

One reason I return to Indiana from Arizona in spring is gardening. I’ve spent ten years striving to understand my type of soil, appropriate flowers, and enemies to my garden. Jesus told a parable using a garden metaphor that strikes at the heart and His warning was understanding; the parable of the sower opens the door to understanding all the parables (Mark 4:13), consequently the mysteries and secrets of God (Mark 4:11).

Thankfully, because of that astonishing promise, our Teacher Jesus, interpreted this story for us as an example. The seed is the Word of God (Luke 8:11), therefore anyone who speaks God’s Word is the gardener. He lists four conditions of our heart, the soil, that we can understand for ourselves first and ultimately for others.

The first heart/soil is likened to a well-traveled path that has been become hard and impenetrable. This can be you if you’re not a careful gardener. How does a heart turn hardened? When life becomes difficult, we’re not dependent on God but ourselves, we become like that hard path. God allows pain, suffering, and distress into our lives but we don’t lean into Him for comfort or clarity; we don’t understand. We forget all the times He was there for us and fall into doubt and unbelief. Jesus called His disciples hard-hearted when they didn’t understand the impact of His miracles (Mark 6:52, 8:17, 16:14); their hearts became like a trampled down footpath.  

The result of this type of soil leaves us open for Satan to snatch up the seed of truth. God’s Word cannot penetrate this hard soil and Satan, who’s been waiting on the sidelines, seizes the opportunity. Listening to encouraging words through preaching and teaching are snatched away: our heart has become hardened.

Does that describe you? Are you in a place where you don’t understand and have stopped believing God? Jesus warns that your words reveal the condition of your heart (Matt. 12:34); so be honest with yourself and with God. 

Ezekiel prophesied (36:26-27) that He’d replace Israel’s stony, hard heart with a new one that’s tender and responsive. Our solution to a hard heart is the same as Israel’s: the Holy Spirit. He’s sent by the Father to help by giving us power to change, consequently that packed-down soil is broken up and readily receives the seed. The devil cannot overcome the power of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, he can’t understand it. God’s desire is for you to recognize your heart/soil today. Break up the clumps of doubt, add the fertilizing Word, and ask for the Spirit’s water to change. That’s kingdom living.

Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts. 2 Corinthians 3:3 NLT

Episode Two: Before

We’ve established that God is both Lord and King over His creation and He planned for mankind to represent Him here before time began. Knowing that He would make a glorious return, sit on His throne on earth, and judge the nations He reminded the disciples and us,

Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”  Matthew 25:31-34 

Inherit the kingdom? An inheritance is a gift given to a person entitling them to share what’s passed on or handed down. As children of God we are co-heirs with Christ; we’re in the same family.

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him. Romans 8:16-17

How do we know what’s included in our inheritance? We begin at the beginning,

For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. Romans 4:13 ESV

And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise. Galatians 3:29 

So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God. Galatians 4:4-7 

The promises to Abraham, inheriting the world, looks back to Gen. 1:28, the blessing of fruitfulness, multiplication, dominion, and authority to rule. It all begins there. There are many promises made to us by God, but they all begin here: before. 

The Kingdom of God begins with eternal life; Adam and Eve were created to live forever, that’s why after the fall God placed an angel guarding the Tree of Life; their inherited sin nature needed to be transformed into a new nature. That new nature includes the promise of life, a renewed inheritance, with God forever.

… so that being justified by His grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:7 

As believers in Jesus Christ we have an inheritance that’s promised before, is partially here already, and not completed quite yet. We live in that in-between time of the 1^st and 2^nd comings of Christ, therefore it’s a spiritual reality now (more next week), but a reality nevertheless. 

One last thought, the prophet Daniel interpreted Nebuchadnezzar’s dream which included this Kingdom in his prophetic dream,

And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever, Daniel 2:44a

That’s our inheritance, back to sinless Eden, to rule and reign again when Christ returns!

On Earth as in Heaven: Part Five

When I was young my favorite movie star was Doris Day and one of her most beloved recordings was Que Sera, Sera: whatever will be will be. That’s the attitude of King Solomon in the book Ecclesiastes, however, in a negative sense. He wrote from his heart as he reflected on his life, but that heart turned cold toward God. His beginning was strong, unfortunately, he finished weak.

Where do you see heaven connecting with earth in his story? God visited Solomon twice explaining the plan (1 Kings 9): if you walk like your father David … then I will establish your throne forever. How did David walk before God? With integrity of heart and uprightness. Solomon was given the privilege of connecting heaven to earth by building the Temple for God’s Presence. The people were given a foretaste of the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven, however, the second part of God’s declaration was that if he didn’t stay close to God, then He would cut off Israel from the land and His Presence would depart.

Solomon wrote in Ecc. 2 (using the phrase ‘my heart’ 14 times in three chapters) that he experienced life God’s way and his own way, consequently, he concluded that it doesn’t matter: whatever will be, will be. His wisdom, wealth, and influence in the world brought him no peace for he abandoned his intimacy with God. How’s that possible? He allowed the blessings of God to draw him away from relationship with his Creator. 2 Sam. 12:24 tells us that the Lord loved Solomon and 1 Kings 3:3 says that Solomon loved the Lord: what happened?

He allowed worldly influences to infect his life with the disease of self; life became all about him. He forgot his prayer-life as recorded in 2 Chron. 6:12-42 when he recognized the power of relationship with God. “… heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You … yet You listen to the cry and prayer … you forgive.” God opened the heavens for Solomon to experience the Kingdom of God on earth but also reminded him that there are consequences to disobedience without repentance: He’ll promptly shuts the heavens. 

Today we face the same worldly temptations, but fortunately have more power than Solomon; we have the indwelling Holy Spirit to help us maintain our relationship with Jesus Christ. Even though God connected heaven and earth temporarily through the Temple in a magnificent way we have something better: the permanence of Immanuel, God is with us; we have His Spirit residing in us. 

Jesus instructed us to pray “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” and one way to experience heaven on earth is through repentance and forgiveness. King Solomon wrote one provocative verse in Ecc. 3:11 ‘eternity is in our hearts’ so we have a natural desire to know Him. Spend time with your God and experience His peace.