Kingdom of the World or Kingdom of God: Which Kingdom Do You Serve?

With the election just around the corner, it’s impossible to avoid all the political and social chaos that ensues. Social media pages and advertisements are covered with smear campaigns. Conspiracies are everywhere. Tensions are rising among friends and families about which candidate should be voted for. The left and right have become so extreme and far apart that it seems like there could never be any common ground or unity. It has created a passionate hatred that has divided much of the nation. And to top it off, you have Christians on both sides proclaiming their side is more Christian than the other, and they’ve become entangled in this kingdom-of-the-world, left-versus-right feud. When I see this “Christian” behavior, I can’t help but recall the story of Samuel in the Old Testament and how similar our society has become. It clearly shows how obsessed we’ve become with the kingdoms of this world as opposed to the kingdom of God which is not of this world.

As a man of God and a prophet, Samuel “judged Israel all the days of his life,” (1 Kings 7:15)* but when he became too old to judge, Samuel appointed his sons as judges over Israel. However, “his sons did not walk in his way; and they turned aside after gain, and took gifts, and perverted judgements.” (1 Kings 8:3)* As a result, the people of Israel were very displeased:

And the men of Israel gather themselves together, and come to Armathaim to Samuel, and they said to him, Behold, thou art grown old, and thy sons walk not in thy way; and now set over us a king to judge us, as also the other nations have. (1 Kings 8:4)*

The Israelites had decided they wanted to be like the other surrounding nations and have a king to rule over and judge them.

And the thing was evil in the eyes of Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us: and Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, Hear the voice of the people, in whatever they say to thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me from reigning over them. According to all their doings which they have done to me, from the day that I brought them out of Egypt until this day, even as they have deserted me, and served other gods, so they do also to thee. (1 Kings 8:6-8)*

When the Israelites decided they wanted a king to rule over them, they fully rejected God from reigning over them. This is what I see when I look around at many of you “Christians” today. Just as the Israelites throughout the Old Testament, you have chosen to put God aside through the desire to have a man (or woman) rule over you. This nation and its leaders have become the god of many so-called Christians out there, and your obsession with this nation has pushed God completely out of the picture. You may say you’re a Christian or you may go to church every Sunday or you wear a cross around your neck, but what (or who) is truly your master? Can you honestly say that God is greater than politics to you?

In a recent sermon, Kyle Idleman pointed out, “When you are finding it more comfortable to evangelize to someone about your faith in a candidate instead of your faith in Christ, that’s a pretty good indication that things are out of balance.”¹ Just look around. Politics are everywhere. Are you sharing more posts about potential presidents and political promises or about Jesus and eternal promises?

As a true Christian, we have only one master, only one king, who is Jesus Christ. Our allegiance lies with Christ and His kingdom, not in the kingdoms of this world. If Christ wanted us to have allegiance to a worldly kingdom, He would have made that clear to us. There are multiple opportunities in the Bible where He could have ruled the world as an earthly king, however, he makes it very clear that His kingdom is not of this world. Christ wasn’t concerned with setting up an earthly kingdom. He had the ability to do so many times, even to control all the kingdoms of the world had He wanted. Instead, He chose to serve the Father and to serve us, even to death. In doing so, He has set up an everlasting kingdom for us that is not of this world in which we are all called to be a part of.

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. (1 Peter 2:9-10)

When we choose to follow Christ, we are no longer part of this world but are “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people.” We have become the people of God. As this chosen people, we are to be set apart from this world:

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:1-2)

As true Christians, our allegiance is to the kingdom of God. We cannot live like the world lives, but we should be transformed by the renewing of our minds. We are to be a light to the world, the salt of the earth, and we should be making disciples of all nations. How can we do these things when we are conformed to this world? Many “Christians” have chosen to follow the gods of this world just as non-Christians do. You live like they live. You act like they act. Some even worse. Just as with the Israelites during Samuel’s time, you want to be like the worldly nations around you. And when it comes to politics, this nation and its leaders are who you worship and where your allegiance lies.

Now, I’m not saying that political power is completely evil and there shouldn’t be any form of governmental system. As Peter says:

Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men . . . (1 Peter 2:13-15)

Governments and rulers have been established to maintain order, so, to this extent, they are good because they prevent total chaos from abounding. The thing we tend to forget is these governmental entities are still kingdoms of this world, not the kingdom of God. Though they might have been put in place by God, that doesn’t mean they conform to His will.

In his book The Myth of a Christian Nation, Gregory Boyd refers to kingdoms of the world as “power over” kingdoms, meaning they rule by force, with the sword as it were. If we don’t cooperate, we receive punishment. This fear is what keeps most nations in check. Boyd’s point, however, is that “as effective as a raised sword is in producing conformity, it cannot bring about an internal change.” ² This is what’s so amazing about the kingdom of God. While kingdoms of the world can only effect change by fear, the kingdom of God does it through love. It’s not an external conformity but an internal conversion. Therefore, these two types of kingdoms are in complete opposition to one another:

From the time that the heads of government assumed an external and nominal Christianity, men began to invent all the impossible, cunningly devised theories by means of which Christianity can be reconciled with government. But no honest and serious-minded man of our day can help seeing the incompatibility of true Christianity — the doctrine of meekness, forgiveness of injuries, and love — with government, with its pomp, acts of violence, executions, and wars. The profession of true Christianity not only excludes the possibility of recognizing government, but even destroys its very foundations. ³

If we desire to be true Christians, we have to put aside the kingdom of the world mentality. We can’t conform to its “power over” rule. We have to conform to Christ’s rule, which is self-sacrificial love: “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) Or again:

But Jesus called them to Himself and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave — just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His live a ransom for many.’ (Matthew 20:25-28)

It all comes down to love through serving. Christ loved us so much that “while we were still sinners” He was willing to die for us. This is what the kingdom of God is all about. It’s all about self-sacrificial love.

Sadly, when I look around today, whether it be social media, among those around me, ad campaigns, etc., I hardly see any self-sacrificial love, especially among you extremely political “Christians.” There is so much anger, hatred, and violence stemming from it. This is the complete opposite of the kingdom of God. How can you call yourself a Christian — a follower of Christ — if you don’t follow His example?

It’s honestly quite simple, does your behavior show compassion and love and servitude, or does it show anger and hatred and dissention? If you step back and truly evaluate yourself, the answer should be clear. Which kingdom do you serve?

* 1 Kings in the Septuagint is 1 Samuel in newer Bibles.
1 – God and Government: Part 02
2 – The Myth of a Christian Nation: How the Quest for Political Power is Destroying the Church, Gregory A. Boyd, p. 18
3 – The Kingdom of God is Within You, Leo Tolstoy, Ch. 10