Strong Souls (3)

And when they had preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting themto continue in the faith, and saying, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.”Acts 14.21, 22

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6.33

The right framework
Like the Lord Jesus Himself, the Apostle Paul understood that the salvation of the Lord, while it begins in the human soul, is much larger than the soul, even than all the souls of all those God will save by grace through faith throughout the course of human history.

Salvation and full faith begin and unfold from within, in the human soul. The stronger our souls become, the more of the Lord’s great salvation we will be able to experience.

But the soul is only the most immediate context in which the salvation and Kingdom of the Lord begin to be known on earth as in heaven. The Kingdom of God is the larger, historical and even meta-historical reality within and toward which our salvation unfolds. We are saved into the Kingdom of God, and we are saved for the sake of the Kingdom of God. What has been planted and is growing in our souls is the seed of the Kingdom. As that seed is strengthened within us it grows and bears fruit unto righteousness, peace, and joy in the Spirit – the character, condition, and consequence of the coming of God’s Kingdom (Rom. 14.17, 18).

Thus our souls can only be truly strengthened, as the Apostle Paul rightly understood, and we can only make progress toward full faith, when they are continuously focused on and fitted for seeking and advancing the Kingdom of God.

Why is this so?

Called to the Kingdom
In the first place this is so because we who believe in Jesus Christ have been called to the Kingdom of God, and to His glory (1 Thess. 2.12). The Lord Jesus is giving His Kingdom to us, so that we might find our true place, and the proper unfolding of our salvation, within that glorious realm (Dan. 7.18-27). All believers are citizens and ambassadors of the Kingdom of God; thus, the Spirit of God within us is working to strengthen us for this calling, so that we might enjoy and contribute to the righteousness, peace, and joy that He is establishing, on earth as it is in heaven, in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is why Jesus made so much of the Kingdom during His earthly ministry. In parable after parable Jesus sought to cast a vision and whet our appetite for the coming Kingdom of God. He told us that God was eager to give the Kingdom to us, and made it clear that this involved the gift of the Holy Spirit and His powerful working in our lives (Acts 1.1-8).

So it’s no wonder that Jesus, in order to focus our hopes and aspirations, and to give direction to our experience of His salvation, commanded us to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.

The Kingdom of God is the natural habitat of all who are striving to realize full faith. Our souls flourish in, toward, and for the Kingdom of God. When we direct our minds, hearts, and consciences to the fuller realization of the Kingdom of God, the Spirit of God at work within us strengthens our souls for Kingdom progress, precisely as we see in the book of Acts.

The Kingdom and the soul
Seeking the Kingdom has profound effects on the redeemed soul. It expands our minds, broadens and clarifies our thinking, and gives shape to all our visions and plans. As we study and contemplate the Kingdom of God, we learn to think like the Lord Jesus Himself, Who even now rules at the Father’s right hand for the progress of His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.

The Kingdom affects our emotions as well – what we desire, hope for, aspire to, and long to achieve. As we understand the vast scope of the Spirit’s power – how He works to transform us increasingly into the image of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 3.12-18) – and the beauty, goodness, truth, majesty, and greatness of our King and His Kingdom, all our deepest longings and greatest delights take on a new aspect. We begin to love what Jesus loves, and the effect of this is to see the increase of His powerful, glorious rule welling-up within our souls and flowing, like rivers of living water, through us into our world (Jn. 7.37-39).

And this focusing on and desiring the Kingdom alters and adjusts all our priorities and values, so that we will what God the Father wills in every situation (Phil. 2.13).

Thus we need to give ourselves to improving our vision of the Kingdom of God, and of its coming in and through our lives. The more clearly and consistently we are able to see the Kingdom, the more earnestly we will seek it, unto the strengthening of our souls and progress of the Gospel.

For reflection
1.  What is your understanding of the Kingdom of God? What does it mean to seek the Kingdom?

2.  Meditate on Romans 14.17, 18. How can we know when we’re making progress in the Kingdom?

3.  Each local church is a Kingdom sign and outpost. Explain:

Next steps: How do our heart, mind, and conscience work together to make seeking the Kingdom our top priority in all things? What can hinder this work? Talk with some Christian friends about these questions.

T. M. Moore

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This week’s ReVision study is Part 4 of a 10-part series, “Full Faith.” You can download “Strong Souls” as a free PDF, prepared for personal or group study. Simply click here.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.