Economic Growth (1)
Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. Hebrews 2.1
A divine order
Throughout this study, we have been examining what the apostle Paul describes in Ephesians 3.9 as a divine plan, administration, or economy which has begun to unfold on earth since the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. God, Paul insists, has a plan, which He is administering, and which affects everything that takes place in time. The word in the Greek is οἰκονομία, oikonomia—economy. It means an order, an administration, a way of “keeping house” that flows from a set of priorities and values through a bank of resources into a new order on earth, one that refracts the things of heaven.
These last days are the days of the Kingdom economy. All who have been called to the Kingdom and glory of God through our Lord Jesus Christ will devote their time and all their labors, as agents of grace and justice, to the work of seeking and advancing the rule of King Jesus.
There is a Kingdom economy, and God is setting it up in our midst, right now, today, and every day of our lives. We are part of that great plan, and thus it behooves us to understand as much as we can about it, so that we can make our way in the divine economy according to God’s purposes and designs, for our great blessing and that of our neighbors, and the glory of God.
Listen up!
This is the thrust of Hebrews 2.1. The writer understood that, with the inauguration of the divine economy, there is much for us to do, and much for us to learn. The divine plan comes to expression in the form of a Kingdom, ruled by Jesus Christ, administered by His Spirit, and put in place by His Church, the members of His Body. As individual believers, following the guidance of God’s Word, draw on the power of the Holy Spirit to shape and lead them, they advance the divine economy, bringing blessing and truth to everything and everyone.
So if we are to fulfill our calling in this great work of God, we’d better learn to listen up.Here the writer of Hebrews refers to this divine economy as “so great a salvation” (v. 3). Indeed, the salvation God has been pleased to grant us in Jesus Christ is not merely soothing and renewing for our souls, or guaranteeing us a place in heaven. It is that, but much more. God intends His salvation to bring redemption, reconciliation, and restoration to the entire world, the whole vast cosmos (Jn. 3.16; 2 Cor. 5.19). For each of us in the divine economy and the Kingdom of God, this begins in our world, our sphere of life and work for the Lord.
And, while we will not see that complete renewing of all things until Jesus returns, ushering in the new heavens and new earth, even now, in our everyday lives and circumstances, believers are called to advance that Kingdom economy as the defining priority in every area of their lives (Matt. 6.33). If we are faithful and diligent in this mandate, we may expect to see genuine and abiding economic growth—growth in grace and justice, not material wealth—according to the plan and purposes of God.
Learning and re-learning
Because our salvation is so very great, encompassing every aspect of life and all our relationships, roles, and responsibilities, we have a good deal of “re-learning” to do concerning how the Kingdom economy should come to expression through our lives and work.
This is why all who follow King Jesus as He advances the divine economy are called disciples, or learners. To be of maximum service in advancing the divine economy, we must become devoted learners, men and women eager to learn from Jesus Christ how His Word informs, shapes, and transforms every facet of our experience in the world, and how growing in Him can empower us for Kingdom living. The writer of Hebrews warns that if we fail to “give the more earnest heed” to this great salvation, we will simply drift away from it, from the fullness of life and purpose and joy that Christ intends us to know. We will abandon our unique Kingdom-and-glory calling and assimilate more and more the ways of our materialistic and secular age.So what is your program of learning, so that you can live as a good steward in the Kingdom economy?
Do you spend enough time in God’s Word, searching the Scriptures day by day to discover the mind of Christ for every aspect of your life? Do you read great Christian writers of the past and present? Seek out current Christian thinking on contemporary issues and concerns? Study with other believers to better equip yourself for advancing the divine economy? Does your prayer life reflect an insatiable hunger for the Lord, and for the knowledge of His will?
Would you say that you are a consistent, diligent, eager student of our great salvation, and that this is evident in how the Kingdom economy is coming to expression in your life?
I’m asking you, like Paul did with the Corinthians (2 Cor. 13.5), to examine yourself. In what ways and to what extent is God’s economy evident in your life? Are you advancing His rule on earth as it is in heaven? Is your discipleship evident in your zeal for learning about your calling to God and His Kingdom and glory?
We are called to be good stewards of the salvation God has entrusted to us, that we might be agents through whom the blessings and glory of God flourish on earth. There’s a lot to learn here, so let us dedicate ourselves afresh each day to being the best learners—the best disciples—we can possibly be.
For reflection or discussion
1. How would you explain to an unbelieving friend what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ?
2. What does Paul mean by a divine economy? How does such an economy differ from, let’s say, a free-market economy?
3. How great is our salvation? How much does it affect? Or should it affect? What is it like to grow in this salvation?
Next steps—Transformation: Take time before the Lord to meditate on the questions raised in this article. Seek ways, and the grace you will need, to improve in your specific calling from the Lord.
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest: This week: The Read Moore podcast pushes on through our readings from Joy to Your World!. Our Crosfigell teaching letter continues its brief series on the early 6th-century Irish saint, Coemgen. In our daily Scriptorium column, we are working our way through Matthew’s gospel, studying the coming of the Kingdom of God. Check out our other excellent writers. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
