Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. But the kingdom of God which
the Lord Jesus Christ came into the earth to manifest is in direct
contrast to the kingdom of this world. His kingdom is one of
light and truth, yet the prince of darkness is the God of this
age and world system. He is the father of lies and
the accuser of the brethren. He has been used by the Lord
to blind those who are marked for destruction and does go about
as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Every principle
and philosophy that appears as right, good, and logical to the
natural man is at odds with the principles of the Kingdom of
God. The Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ is not concerned
with politics of one kind or the other, even though many on
both sides of the political aisle will invoke His name as though
to indicate that He is on their side. As a testament to the wickedness
of men, there have been few days upon the earth when there has
not been some armed conflict going on somewhere, even as Christ
testified that there would be. When asked about his kingdom
by Pilate, the Lord said, My kingdom is not of this world.
If my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight,
that I should not be delivered to the Jews. But now is my kingdom
not from hence. The sons of God are never taught
in the scriptures to take up arms for political gain or dominance
in this world. Rather, the Lord taught His people
to love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them
that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and
persecute you. Now some will immediately say
that will never work in this world. They are exactly right. This is not political advice,
but rather it is the commandment of His Kingdom and is alone intended
for those who are His subjects, who gladly serve Him night and
day. Paul plainly taught that the saints are to be engaged
in warfare continually, but the only enemy against which this
war is waged cannot be seen by the natural eye, nor can his
kingdom ever be assailed by the power of flesh and blood. For
though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.
For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through
God to the pulling down of strongholds, casting down imaginations and
every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge
of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience
of Christ. This is the only field of battle
for those who are the inhabitants of his kingdom. We often hear
the word liberal bannered about on radio and TV talk shows and
newscasts. It is generally used to refer
to a particular political position, which is also called left-wing.
The other position is called conservative, or right-wing.
The liberals are fairly sure the conservatives are devils,
and the conservatives are completely convinced that there is no greater
evil than to be a liberal. However, when we read this term
liberal in the scriptures, it has nothing at all to do with
any political position. In fact, those who are called
to be members of this kingdom of righteousness are made to
be liberals in the scriptural sense. The term liberal means
bountiful or generous. Every man according as he purposeth
in his heart, so let him give, not grudgingly or of necessity,
for God loveth a cheerful giver. The bountifulness of the sons
of God is not limited to the giving of money, but rather is
an attitude of desiring to help with any need, great or small.
Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
It has to do with the manifestation of love for the brethren. Let
nothing be done through strife or vain glory, but in loneliness
of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. The flesh
will always oppose this attitude and seeks to convince the liberal
man to look out for himself first. The greatest of all battles waged
in the kingdom of God takes place as the flesh lusteth against
the spirit and the spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary
the one to the other, so that you cannot do the things that
you would. All of God's children are sure to be defeated on this
battlefield, except that they have one who is in them who is
greater than he that is in the world. This is he of whom Paul
writes, saying, For it is God which worketh in you both to
will and to do of his good pleasure. He is that one in whom the psalmist
trusted, saying, I will cry unto God most high, unto God that
performeth all things for me. This is the place where the children
of God stand. Paul said, for we wrestle not
against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against
spiritual wickedness in high places. It is in the Lord's strength
alone that the sons of God are clothed, prepared, and sent forth
to conquer. The Lord is our strength in the
day of battle. If you would like a free transcript
of this broadcast, email us at 4the4 at windstream dot net.