Do you remember what it was like as a child? No want, no bills, no worry, no concern about what may come your way. Your parents covered you. Your home was the kingdom. Your parents ruled. They made sure you never lacked. The Kingdom of God is the same way. Nothing could or can harm you.
Psalm 18:2-3 – The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies.
The United States of America emerged from the will of the people. It became the great American experiment. I think it meant well. In the early days of our Union, I believe the American public had a core value of keeping our nation solid and patriotic. In those days, solidarity was our nation’s saving grace.
However, I believe this core value began to erode. It had a dark underbelly that caused a failure to uphold this value. We allowed too much freedom to corrupt good moral sensibilities. The core value starts with the family. Families began to erode. Failure to teach children the basic values of life left them without boundaries. Losing a sense of right living led them down a slippery slope. The foundational belief in God was systematically dismantled in the name of freedom. Children began the journey from earning rights, which has now given way to a feeling of entitlement.
No one deserves something for nothing. Nothing has value if you didn’t work for it. This is destroying America. And I feel it will. There are no honest leaders. How did they get there? Because the family has broken down. Voting for individuals who cannot sustain our nation has brought us to this day.
Israel clamored for a king. Israel requested one as seen in 1 Samuel 8, the people wanted to be “like all the other nations,” with a king to lead them and fight their battles. God viewed this as a rejection of His kingship, but permitted their request.
So the biblical picture is that kingship was both a concession to Israel’s desire and an instrument God incorporated into his larger plan. The institution itself was permitted, but Israel’s demand for a king “like the nations” revealed a lack of trust in God.
This is evident in how children today respond to parental guidance. Here, we see a lost value: unlike God, parents do not command that families adhere to values. God was willing and able to lead, but decided to allow this to happen to teach a lesson, not to acquiesce in a relinquishment of duty.
Sadly, a lesson to learn is in motion. What is that lesson? To learn that God is the King. The one and only King. A King leads. He has sole authority. God has our best in mind. We fight it daily. Why? Because we think like Burger King. We want it our way. That’s an old selling line from a Burger King commercial from years ago. And that’s my point. We can’t have it our way. We are too flawed and immature. That’s why we are called “the children of God” as Christians.
As Christians, we seem to think we know better than God and want the ruling hand. We can’t do that. Look where we are. The world is in chaos. It’s evil against evil and even immature Christians against immature Christians. I have said, and always will say, that evil eats its own. If you see Christians doing that, I proclaim the same for them due to their inability to properly view God and His Kingship. This Kingship, viewed as a family, clears our view. The king, the father, is the King, our Father God. The church is the mother, the bride of Christ. The children have no say. These are the subjects of the kingdom. This may sound constrained, but I go back to the beginning of this post.
Did you trust your parents to take care of you? Again, I ask. Did you worry about bills, food on the table, a roof over your head? Did you worry about any lack in your life as a child? Sadly, that lack can be seen today. Families have been destroyed. But for those with values and those who teach those values to their children, there is no lack.
Trust God. He is your Father. He will lead. But only if you surrender and let Him control and direct your life. He has always provided for me. In my immaturity, He has never failed me because, at some point, I found I had no choice but to surrender. I have examples I could share of when I gave up and allowed Him to take over. He always had a way to do things that amazed me, and still does. My Father knows my heart. Do you know His? He wants to give you your best life yet.
