The Kingdom of God vs the Kingdom of Man
A few months ago, My daughter and I were watching Prince Caspian (The Narnia series); as she is 11 and lives within the context of the 21st century in Australia, she didn’t really grasp the concept of kingdoms and what being a King meant. As the movie continued my daughter understood that the people of Narnia were deeply impacted by whoever was in the position of King, to the point that it dictated culture, rights and freedom. Ironically, it made me think about how we as Christians often forget that without providing a context for God's kingdom, we may focus more on our expectations of what God should do and fail to properly give voice to the responsibility and passion it should instil in us believers as representatives of his kingdom.
Matthew 6:33 ESV
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
We live in an environment that is very focused on ourselves, what we want, what we can get, what we can bring…. But the Kingdom of God is about everyone; it includes all the believers and calls us to play our part in caring for his kingdom. You may have heard about the Kingdom of Man; this reference is made in relation to where we as people position ourselves as the “king” or to depict the climate of the world, which positions humanity as its king by the way it prioritises the desires or inclinations of people. The thing is, if we surrender ourselves to God and place him as our King, then we are positioning ourselves into relationship and stewardship with creation and community and by doing so, we begin to function out of a place of belonging and gratitude. In this space, we can be a part of his grand plan of restoration; we have meaning and autonomy.
But when we take God's kingdom and our place in it for granted, we can easily fall back to living our lives as though we are somehow deserving of the title of king by what we have done or who we are, like Prince Caspian's uncle does in the movie, and demand our wants and desires above others. Similarly, like many of the Talmarines in the movie, by living in the kingdom of a man, they stop believing Narnia's history and see all Narnians as a product of fiction, completely disregarding any responsibility or care for those inside their kingdom; creating a separation from community and its rightful King. So then, how can we make sure we are being intentional about living our lives in the Kingdom of God? Here are a few things that may help
1. Do you know God as your King? If not, read your Bible and start a relationship with him.
2. What do you do with your wants and needs? While you may be more than able to do many of these things yourself, by surrendering them to God first, you are trusting that your future is in his hands despite what you may do to facilitate it.
3. Who takes the credit? When good things happen in your life, take a minute to praise God. This should not take away from your hard work, but rather, it honours him first and then allows you to celebrate together the way you might when calling a friend or family member after a big accomplishment.
4. How does your identity reflect God? We are made in his image and live within his creation, so just as he forgives us, shows us grace, blesses us, and strengthens us, we can also practice these things in our own lives towards others.
5. Why does it matter? Unlike those born into a kingdom we have made a choice to be included and take part in this beautiful Kingdom God created, and that should make each of us take personal responsibility for how we live our lives, how we treat others and how we make choices.
6. When should we choose God's Kingdom over men? Honestly always, this looks like reflecting on our behaviours, our choices, and our beliefs. Checking these against the word of God and within wise Godly council because we are part of a greater community with a purpose beyond the material.
Throughout the movie Prince Caspian, we see that individuals have the potential to bring hope or destruction, but restoration takes a whole community, and although restoration comes from God and not people we as a collective get to be his hands and feet on this earth in our everyday mundane lives, so choose to be positioned in Gods Kingdom alongside others in relationship with Christ. Together we will see his Kingdom flourish.