No your King, then not your Kingdom

There are those, such as free-grace adherents who teach that receiving Christ as Lord in order to be born again is a heretical doctrine labeled as ‘lordship salvation’. This term has become associated with certain celebrity Calvinists whose theology contradicts itself. On the one hand Calvinists insist that people are absolutely passive in being born again and then say these same people must receive Christ as Lord. In short, Calvinism is a monergistic counterfeit of biblical Christianity and free grace adherents are in fact encouraging people to continue living in rebellion to God and just rule their own lives. To both of these extremes my response is that these are different gospels which are no gospels at all.

The Kingdom of God is just that, a Kingdom. Jesus Christ is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and His kingdom is a monarchy, not some republic or democratic state where everyone gets to vote on how the kingdom is governed. No person can become a citizen of a Kingdom unless they are a subject of the ruling King. If you have never surrendered your self-rule to Jesus Christ as Lord and King, then you remain in rebellion to Him and have no place in His kingdom. This, as we shall see, is exactly what Scripture states.

In 1 Samuel 9 we read how the Israelites went to the prophet Samuel and demanded a human king. Samuel was upset with them and prayed to the Lord. In verses 7-8 the Lord tells Samuel:

‘Listen to all the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. (1 Samuel 9:7-8)

The Lord told Samuel to warn the people of the consequences of choosing a human king ending with the words, ‘you will become his slaves (17). When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the Lord will not answer you’ (18).

God had brought the Jews out from under slavery to Pharaoh, but they still had a slave mentality. They demanded to choose their own king in order to be like the nations around them, to align themselves with the pattern of the world, and in doing so, continued in their slavery. The Lord let them exercise their autonomy and demand their independence of Him, rejecting Him as king, for they needed to learn a lesson in true freedom and who He is and what He offers as the King of Kings.   

Every human being needs to learn this lesson as it is an essential part of understanding what is required to becoming a partaker of the divine nature, of being born again.

Human beings were created in the image and likeness of God and God’s plan has always been to bring us into a similar relationship with Him as He has within Himself as a trinity of persons. That relationship begins in this life when we are united with Christ, and is perfected in the next. Yet many people have an incredibly shallow understanding of what salvation is thinking it is basically a fire escape. Such a view is fundamentally self-centered and misses the point entirely.

In Genesis 1:27-28 we read that human beings were given rule over God’s creation. This rule was a form of kingship under the Kingship of God. In Psalm 8 we read these words.

‘What is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet…’ (Psalm 8:4-6)

A crown represents a form of kingship and in this case, being rulers over God’s works of creation. Glory and honor are linked to our being made in God’s image, and also have a future element in New Testament theology. We are a little lower than the angels in the sense that we are tied to the earth, our bodies are inferior. But it would be a grave mistake to assume that we were created this way as a permanent state, for that was never the plan. From God’s perspective, Christ was slain before the foundation of the world and the plan was always that some of us would dwell forever in God’s heavenly kingdom where no flesh can enter.

We were given the authority to rule, but never to be self-ruling. Our rule was always to be under the authority of the King of Kings. Like the Jews who demanded a human king, God has allowed us to be self-ruling so that, like them, we would understand that our demand leads to a slavery to self and what self desires. But how does one explain the importance of these things to people whose cultures elevate self, individuality and ego as goals to be achieved rather than the very things which stand between us and God?

For example, American culture has an obsession with self-centered egoism and a ‘we are the greatest nation in the world’ mentality, a mentality which permeates almost every area of society. In the movies, the British have James Bond, a lone English hero saving the world. But in America, there are dozens of superheroes and major film franchises pumping out Batman, superman, aquaman, wonderwoman, Xmen to name a few, and every time there’s an alien invasion the Americans save the world.  

American celebrities are literally worshipped as ‘idols’ and you can buy your kids action figures and dolls which are then replaced by wall posters for teens.   How can a person grow up in such a culture and not be affected by the messages which constantly tell them to cherish ego and individuality as marks of success? And I am making generalizations here as I also know that many Christians are aware of these issues and try to bring their children up to see beyond the immediate world they live in.

In American and other western cultures such as Europe, New Zealand and Australia, the majority of people live very comfortably. And there is nothing wrong with enjoying creation and working hard to have creature comforts. My point is that when you are constantly told, even by celebrity pastors to ‘have your best life now’, the kingdom of heaven may be something you think about as being difficult to exceed what you already have.

The early church was vastly different to western cultures. Israel was occupied by the ruling Romans and life, in general was difficult. 

Being a Christian publicly often meant being expelled by the Jewish leaders as one of the chosen people and treated with contempt by family and society. And then persecution broke out, firstly by their own society led by the Jewish leaders, and later by the Romans. In those early days Christians were often betrayed by members of their own families, then arrested, tortured and even killed for following Christ.

Roman persecution officially began under Nero around 64 AD when he blamed Christians for starting the fires which devastated Rome. This was just 30 years after the resurrection of Christ, but sporadic and brutal persecution and murder of Christians would continue unabated for another 240 years. 

For Christians living at this time, there was a huge emphasis to ‘set your minds on heavenly things’ (Colossians 3) for no one would ever have imagined this was ‘their best life now’ as Joel Osteen preaches. Today, in countries like China and others where Christians are persecuted, one does not commit themselves to public witness through baptism before counting the potential cost and risks of following Jesus Christ. Yes, Christian doctrine and commitment has always been its most pure and biblical where Christianity is persecuted, however, there are also many radical and non-compromising Christians who are ready to make the ultimate sacrifice for their faith who do not have the threat of severe persecution. 

The obvious question is this: why are some sold out for Christ and His kingdom, whilst others who also profess to being Christians are still in love with the world and what it has to offer. I think there are two probable answers.

1. That the worldly group has been deceived by watered down counterfeit Christianity and, as a result, have never experience new birth. Like the first three groups in the parable of the sower, they never produce the fruit of the Spirit. Such people have never surrendered to Christ as King and Lord, and therefore, are neither His beloved subjects, or citizens of His eternal kingdom.

2. That the person was truly born again, but through various circumstances such as tests and trials, distractions, spiritual deception or neglect, has lost their first love and allowed their heart to be hardened.

I don’t know to which group you belong, but let me ask you these questions and you can decide for yourself.

1. Is Jesus Christ your Lord and King or just someone you see as a ticket to heaven? Have you ‘died with Christ’ (Colossians 3) been ‘crucified with Christ’ and ‘belong to Christ’ or do you relegate such terms to fanatics of which you are not? At what point would you walk away from your ‘faith’? If like Job you lost family and possessions, would you take Job’s wife’s advice and curse God? Who comes first in your life, spouse, children, possessions? And how long would you last as a Christian in China or Iran? Would you deny Christ if threatened with a beating, or imprisonment, or death?

Every Christian needs to be able to answer these questions including pastors and leaders. If you have been taught that believer and disciple are different categories, you have been deceived. Christ never made such a distinction and His command was to make disciples, not weak, powerless loveless ‘believers’ who insist on ruling their own lives.

If you have surrendered your life to Christ as your Lord and King, then you are a disciple of Christ and a citizen of the kingdom of heaven. This the point of Jesus’ teaching in Luke 14: 31-33. He speaks of two Kings going to war and asks if the less powerful king will not sit down and consider terms of peace. Christ is the powerful king and we the little king. The terms of peace are surrender to Him as King of Kings and becoming His subjects. Jesus confirms this interpretation with the words, ‘in the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciple.’

Did He mean we must literally give up everything, or be willing to lose everything? In Mark 8, He said that we must deny self, take up our cross and follow Him and asks the question, ‘what can a man give in exchange for his soul’. Jesus’ point is clear and repeated in many parables. We must come to Him with open hands, surrendering our lives to Him as Lord and Savior. As Lord, He will decide what remains in our hands. Our part is to trust in His mercy, goodness and faithfulness by faith, as we place our lives in His hands. When we do this, we will become partakers of the divine nature, we will now we ‘belong to Christ’ and are ‘God’s own possession’, and all that is His is gifted to us as His beloved children.

Paul said to test ourselves to see whether or not we are truly in the faith. If you are not a subject of the King of Kings, then neither are you a citizen of the kingdom of heaven. If He is not your Lord, neither is He your Savior. 

2. If you have lost your first love then please consider this. As Christians we are running a race and the Lord wants to bestow honor and glory on us when we stand before Him. Paul wrote these words to those who are children of God.

‘Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we might also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth considering compared to the glory that will be revealed in us’. (Romans 8:17-18)

In chapter 1 of his first letter Peter wrote similar words. He began by speaking of our inheritance being kept in heaven, and then about suffering grief through all kinds of trials and tests. Then he wrote,

‘These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith – of greater worth and gold, which perishes even though refined by fire – may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed’. (1 Peter 1:7)

I don’t know if it was temptation, deception, trials or just neglect which led you off the narrow path, but I encourage you to get back in the race. 

Don’t live for the moment, but for eternity. I encourage you to read my small book ‘Running the Race: A Life of Discipleship’. You can send me a message from my website and I’ll forward a free digital copy to you. 

And a final word. There are many competent biblical scholars who believe we are very close to the beginning of the most terrible and frightening time of all human history, that which Scripture refers to as the Great Tribulation. The prophecies concerning Israel being back in their own land and taking control of Jerusalem have been fulfilled after 2500 years, and there are no obvious prophecies yet to be fulfilled before the Tribulation. Those who profess to be Christians during this period will face two options: deny Christ or die. I implore you, think seriously about these issues and know with certainty where you stand or fall.

I pray this video/article has been informative for you. God bless

Steve Copland