Kingdom Seeking

July/Holiness

15 July 2010

Four things through which the kingdom of God may be sought: steadfastness and detachment from the world, devotion and constancy.

- Colman mac Beognai, Aipgitir Chrabaid (Irish, 7th century)

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."

- Matthew 6.33

Kingdom seeking is the Christian's calling in life. The Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom. 14.17). We are seeking the KIngdom when, in every aspect of our lives, we are striving to know and extend these virtues in the world. From us righteousness should make progress against sin and unbelief. From us peace should overcome fear and uncertainty. From us joy should supplant disappointment, sorrow, and distress.

Here is a call to steadfastness - daily persevering toward a Kingdom horizon in every area of our lives, refusing to allow ourselves to be distracted or deterred. Here is a call for detachment from the world, for we cannot advance the rule of Christ if we are slavishly holding on to the things of this life. Here is a call for devotion, for without a close and vital relationship with the living God, we have no strength for seeking the Kingdom. Here is a call for constancy: we must keep on keeping on even when we see little progress or reason to hope.

Kingdom seeking can become a way of life for us, and we can make a contribution to righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, when these four disciplines, mentioned by Colman, come to characterize our lives. Oh, but this is hard work, requiring constant attention and prayer without ceasing! Seeking the Kingdom is not just some pious phrase to affirm; it is a way of life to embrace, pursue, endure, and triumph in day by day by day.

Will today find you seeking the Kingdom as your first priority in every area of your life?

Join us tonight at 9:00 to pray for revival. Send me an email and I'll send you the prayer sheet and phone number to call.

July Exercise Part 2: OK, you've been reading and doing some self-evaluation based on the brochure, Called to Be Witnesses. Now, for July 12-18, sit down with some Christian friends and share the results of your first week of this exercise. Make a copy of the brochure for each of your friends and challenge them to begin this exercise as well.

Today in ReVision: Souls on the Mind - What was Paul Giamatti thinking?  Also new at the website today, we begin our next Kingdom Civics series on the "Founding Documents" of the Kingdom, and Every Thought Captive features the next installment of Satan, Bound.

This Week's Download: Called to Be Witnesses - Give a copy to your friends and begin talking together about how you can become more serious about piety.

We hope you'll visit our book store and check out the resources available to help you live the Christian life. And let us hear from you.

T. M. Moore, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.