Adopting Kingdom Values
Pastor John’s* recent teaching encourages us to adopt “the values of the kingdom.” But what exactly does this mean? In summary, it means to embrace a Christian worldview and to apply Christian teachings and values to our life decisions and actions. Each of us has a worldview of some kind. Our worldview is everything we believe true and underlies our every emotion, decision and action. As such, it steers our beliefs in all areas of our lives from science to philosophy, theology to economics, politics, law, art and social order… everything.
A Christian with a biblical worldview and the values of the kingdom knows their primary purpose and cause in life is to love and serve God. Understanding that Scripture is the infallible Word of God should be the foundation of all our actions. Pastor John suggests that if you take seriously the mandate in Romans 13 to honor the governing authorities by researching the candidates and issues, you will make voting a priority.
So, test yourself… do you have a biblical worldview? Your answers to the following questions should be “yes.”:
Is the Bible accurate in all of its teachings?
Do absolute moral truths exist?
Is absolute truth defined by the Bible?
Did Jesus Christ live a sinless life?
Is God the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe, and does He still rule it today?
Is salvation a gift from God that cannot be earned?
Is Satan real?
Does a Christian have a responsibility to share his or her faith in Christ with other people?
But here is the real questions:
Does your life reflect upon these kingdom values?
Is your walk with Christ in keeping with Christian values?
Admittedly, we are all sinners and fall short, but most of our action should reflect what we deep-down, honest-to-goodness believe to be real and true. If we diligently learn, apply, and trust God’s word in all areas of our lives, we develop a foundational, comprehensive faith that counters against the growing tide of our culture’s non-biblical ideologies and heretical views. In doing so, we avoid becoming “…captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” (Colossians 2:8).
If we truly embrace kingdom values and trust them with unfaltering devotion, we will have Christian views on all the political and social questions of our time and make the right decisions. Our decisions and actions show the world who we are… and what we believe. “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”. (Romans 12:2)
*Pastor John Smith, Executive Pastor, Church at Severn Run
JG