John 18:33-40
My Kingdom is not of this world.
I was reading from Daniel 2 this morning and praying that our Father would deliver us from the evil that I see around us. Then I was reminded of this scripture. This is where the Christ is taken before Pilate. He tells Pilate that His kingdom is not of this world. If it were his followers would defend Him. All one has to do is go back to the 17th Chapter of John and one can see where the real kingdom is. It’s in the hearts of men. We are told in Daniel 2 that God puts kings in power and takes them out. The Jews were looking for an earthly type of Messiah. They were looking for someone to rebuild their national pride. They were looking for someone to bring them back to a place of national power. What Father gave them was Himself in the person of His Son. Man’s actions are a result of his heart condition. When man’s heart is evil so are his actions. The Christ was sent at Christmas to start the process whereby a man’s heart could be changed. That would be finished at the resurrection of the Christ on the third day. If we want to see real change in our country then our prayers need to be focused on the most important change that has to happen. That change has to be in the hearts and minds of our leaders. That’s where our prayers need to be directed. We need to be praying for a change of people’s hearts and minds. As we look at the reason for the sinful happenings in this country. We see one root cause. Selfishness is that cause. What will make me happy. Not what is best for the other person involved.
I was watching an interview that Stuart Varney was having with Kirsten Powers the other day. Kirsten came to faith 7 years ago and is very liberal. Our politics don’t mesh at all. She made an interesting statement. The church has dropped the ball. Instead of the church helping the people who are down and out, the Gov’t has had to step in. Stuart then made a statement about taxation. Kirsten asked him one simple question. Do you tithe? Varney was not expecting this question, became a bit flustered and answered truthfully. He then asked Kirsten the same question. She pointed out some facts. She has moved to a smaller apartment so she could give more. She stated she gives more than the tithe. Her heart was truly changed. The simple fact of where her treasure is shows that. That impressed me. Her conviction that the church really dropped the ball got me thinking. Did this whole mess get started because the church was not doing what we were called to do? This is something to think about.
Go in peace
Michael