To Gain the Good Land (5)

Envoys will come out of Egypt;
Ethiopia will quickly stretch out her hands to God.
Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth;
Oh, sing praises to the Lord,
Selah
To Him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which were of old!  Psalm 68.31-33a

The Christian’s goal
Let’s be clear about one thing: The Christian’s goal in everything he does – whether in his own life or through the ministries in which he is engaged – is to bring the goodness of the Lord to others. We are promised blessing by God so that we might be a blessing to others. Our aspiration should be, like David in Psalm 27.13, to see “the goodness of the LORDin the land of the living!” We are called to seek the welfare and pray for the peace of the people around us (Jer. 29.7). It’s not our desire to tyrannize, oppress, bully, or humiliate anyone. We are commanded to seek God’s glory in Jesus Christ, and this means overcoming every evil influence with good things that bring the blessings of God (Rom. 12.21). Love for our neighbors requires that we seek for them that which we most desire for ourselves, that they might know the good land of God’s promises through faith in Jesus Christ.

As David looked forward to building the temple, using the example of Israel’s faithful forebears to spur his own generation on in claiming the promises of God, he foresaw the blessing their labors would be for the surrounding nations (Ps. 68.24-32). In the same way, we must not be content merely with basking in the blessings of God. Our goal is to spread the blessings around, to make of our Personal Mission Field a good land, where the Kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit is present and growing.

The pattern God prescribes for any Christian endeavor begins by focusing on His glory. Then, as we prepare ourselves through study and prayer, and as we show up, day after day, in the social and cultural arenas of our lives, we strive to live for God’s glory, and do whatever we can to overcome every presence of evil and establish ways of being, living, and working that honor God and benefit our neighbors.

So we need to be clear in our minds about the best ways of approaching each area of our lives with a view to bringing real Kingdom prosperity to everyone there.

An example
In our homes, for example, we’ll want to conduct our relationships and fulfill our responsibilities in ways that allow every member of the family to flourish and to contribute to the wellbeing of the household. We must learn how to talk with one another graciously, to work together on various projects, to care for our own possessions and to respect those of others, to build one another up, and to share generously and gladly in order to help other members of our family know the grace and goodness of the Lord. Moreover, we’ll work together to make our homes lighthouses for God’s glory – places of beauty, hospitality, generosity, and safety which benefit many others besides our own family members.

Much has been written to guide us in seeking to bring the goodness of the Lord into our homes and families. When it comes to our neighborhoods, communities, and workplaces, well, there’s not as much to choose from to direct our efforts. Some resources exist to help us to nurture a vision for what these areas might look like as the glory of God becomes the dominant power at work there. But there’s plenty of room for fresh thinking and new efforts.

Much good, God’s grace
Let’s face it: Much good is already present in our communities, at school or work, and in every other social and cultural arena. This is because the grace of God is at work in the world, even among people who do not acknowledge Him or the gifts He provides for them, that He might be glorified (Ps. 68.18; cf. Eph. 4.8). Much of what we can do in our Personal Mission Fields is to identify the good things already present and make sure our own behavior conforms to and, where possible, improves on these things. We should praise and thank the Lord that He is already at work in our Personal Mission Fields, preparing opportunities and the hearts of people for the good works He has redeemed us to accomplish. And we should encourage and support every example of goodness which allows us to extol the Lord Who brings such goodness to pass (cf. Acts 14.17).

We might be surprised to discover how people respond when they understand that we’re seeking what’s good for them and for all of us. Only when we encounter people who are determined to pursue self-interest at all costs should we expect to know resistance to seeking the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

But we must persevere, and that will entail, in part, persuading others to consider ways of being and doing that are more in line with the teaching of God’s Word. We must be champions of excellence and goodness in every way. We must work for the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living – all the living. We must exemplify in our lives the kind of blessing and goodness God intends for all people. We can argue for practices more in line with the good and perfect will of God on the basis of common sense, common interest, or common decency, as far as that will go, but we must always be ready with the Word of God as the foundation for all our goals and endeavors.

Ultimately it may be necessary to explain that we want to see these changes because they are in line with what God describes as good. But when it comes to that, hopefully we will have made the case that what we’re concerned about is everybody’s wellbeing and the peace and prosperity of all.

This is what God seeks, especially by our holding out Jesus to the people in our Personal Mission Fields.

For reflection
1.  Meditate on Psalm 27.13. Use that verse to write a prayer for your own life:

2.  Briefly outline and explain the pattern of Christian endeavor as we have described it thus far. In what ways does your own life reflect this pattern?

3.  Suppose you were to offer an example of what the Kingdom might “look like” as it came into your workplace, neighborhood, and community. What would change? How would others benefit from such changes?

Next steps – Transformation: Review the list you began making yesterday. Reflect on it and any conversations you’ve had with Christian friends about it, in the light of Jeremiah 29.7. See if you can identify one thing that you can do, in just one area, that might begin to raise the banner of God’s glory more prominently there. Take that step today. Then share with a Christian friend what happened.

T. M. Moore

This is part 3 of a 5-part series, Living toward the Promises. You can download this week’s study as a free PDF, suitable for personal or group use, by clicking here. You can learn more about living toward the promises of God by ordering a copy of the book, I Will Be Your God, from our online store (click here).

We invite you to register for the free online course, One in Twelve: Introduction to Christian Worldview. In this course T. M. Moore provides a sweeping panorama of how life in the Kingdom of God unfolds in an age in flight from God such as ours. Set your own schedule and study at your own pace. Learn more, and register for One in Twelve, by clicking here.

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