The Path to Glory (1)
The Rule of Christ in the Book of Psalms (1)

And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, ‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain?’” Acts 4:24, 25

The greatest challenge

The greatest challenge facing the Church today is not the threat to our liberties which some see as an item on the agenda of the present Administration. It’s not the challenge of staunching the flow of our young into the world of secular self-indulgence, which is continuing unabated at present. The greatest challenge to the Church is not financial, and it has little to do with figuring out the next best way to attract people to our assemblies.

Advancing the Divine Economy (7)

And we are his house if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope…For we share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.
Hebrews 3:6, 14

The larger framework and paradigm

Whatever else we have been called to do in life, advancing the divine economy is the larger framework and the overarching paradigm that must guide our efforts.

As followers of Jesus Christ we have been translated into a new Kingdom, where a new agenda and new power await us, to help us fulfill our callings of subduing and reconciling all things back to God. The Kingdom of God is advancing all around us, and each of us, as followers of Jesus, has a unique and important contribution to make in furthering that great salvation which has been granted to us. This calling to seek the Kingdom and advance the divine economy is a lifelong commitment; we must never draw back, never relax our progress; and never allow anything to get in the way of knowing, living, and proclaiming that great salvation which we have in Jesus Christ.

Advancing the Divine Economy (6)

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:21

Obstacles and challenges

Advancing the divine economy is not exactly a cake walk. We may expect to encounter many obstacles and challenges along the way as we seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Indeed, some of these will arise from within our own souls, as the law of sin continues to exert its nefarious powers upon our hearts, minds, and consciences. Others will come from well-meaning believers, who think we’re getting just a little too serious about this discipleship thing. Still others will come from those who oppose the Gospel, as well as from the pervasive presence of sin throughout the various institutions of our culture and society.

Advancing the Divine Economy (5)

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31

Stuck in compartments

Many Christians live a compartmentalized experience of following Jesus. That is, they have reserved room in their lives where discipleship and seeking the Kingdom are appropriate, and then there are rooms in their lives where such matters don’t seem to be particularly relevant. Thus, we think about our faith and the Lord and what it means to follow Him when we’re at church, or with our Bible study group or in some other church activity, or while we’re reading Scripture and praying. But when we head out into the everyday, workaday world of real people and things, somehow our Christian faith doesn’t seem to apply.

Advancing the Divine Economy (4)

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us… Ephesians 3:20

“Underachievers”?

Given the straightforward, unadorned way in which Paul makes this declaration, it’s surprising that so few of the followers of Jesus Christ seem to take it to heart. We have a power at work within us, the power of God’s indwelling Spirit, Who is able to do in and through us far more abundantly than all we could ever ask or think.

This being so, why are so many of us “underachievers” for the Lord?

Advancing the Divine Economy (3)

At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. Hebrews 2:8, 9

Our great Leader

In the halcyon days of Marxist-Leninism, you could tell whether the nation you might be visiting was communist or not. In just about every place of visibility, some picture, statue, or caricature of the Great Leader would confront your wondering eyes. Whether it was of Lenin, Stalin, Castro, Mao, Che, or any of the other pantheon of now-discredited demigods, the larger-than-life representations of their images were always a prominent feature of communist public life.

These images of the great thinkers and dictators of Marxist-Leninist thought were meant to accomplish two purposes, one inspiring and one intimidating. By placing these icons in various public places, communist leaders hoped to inspire their people with the memory and example of their great leader – his courage, vision, and determination above all. If the people were not inspired by these icons, they should at least be intimidated, for the many depictions of communist leaders in public places served to remind the people that, in a very real sense, they were never out of sight of the Great Leader – or, at least, of his informants.