Kingdom Culture - 3/11/06

John 12:42-43, “But many believed in Jesus, even many of the leaders. But because of Pharisees, they did not say they believed in Him for fear they would be put out of the synagogue. They loved praise from people more than praise from God.”

A true follower of Christ is just that — a follower. A believer who has taken the extra step to act on what he or she believes is true. A follower is willing to walk away from anything they once held valuable for the sake of God. They love praise from God more than praise from people.
But the verse above refers to the opposite — those who love praise from people more than praise from God. They are believers, but they refuse to act on their belief for fear of rejection.

Their culture was centered around the synagogue and the fear of being banished from it; ours centers around entertainment and gratification of individual/selfish desires. People living in both cultures must decide between trading praise from people with praise from God — by acting out what they believe to be true.

The culture of the Kingdom of God is what unites the two groups, and anybody in any other culture or ethnic group. Mutual beliefs and values separate the Christian from the surrounding culture, turning them into a beacon of kingdom values. 1 Peter 2:11, “Dear friends, you are like foreigners and strangers in this world. I beg you to avoid the evil things your bodies want to do that fight against your soul.”

Our culture promotes so many of these evil things that fight against our soul as “normal” and even a “rite of passage.” A quote in the Max Lucado Bible from Walter Wangerin addresses the world’s “healthy” promotion of sexual activity. This is a quote from his book As For Me And My House. Sorry for the length, but it’s good food….

“…[they] justified their sin by the premise that sexual satisfaction is somehow their right — because God made them this way and they can’t help it; because the world makes so much of sexual experience; because they don’t receive enough “loving” from their spouses.
But in fact, the marriage vow subordinates one’s individual satisfactions in all areas to one’s marital partner — declaring publicly that sex is less important than one’s spouse, less important than the health of the relationship. Sexual satisfaction is no longer a right, but a blessing, a gift of the relationship to its partners….

He who worships anything of himself is a candidate for extra-marital sex. His marriage is vulnerable. His desires have become his privileges. So long as he is his own god, he feels himself free to obey nothing and no one but himself.

But he who takes seriously his declared commitment to the mutual relationship with his spouse, will guard the marriage even against the assaults of his own desires. His attitude sensitizes him, making him careful, wary, and aware. He will be able identify as threats those desires that are purely personal and merely self-satisfying. He will recognize them already when they are weak and small, before they grow monstrous and demanding; and…while he can, cut them off and quench them.”