Most of us are pretty darned good at looking after our own self-interest aren’t we? So good that we become builders of our own petty little empire rather than of God’s Kingdom. So what’s the difference then between an empire builder and a kingdom builder? Kingdom vs Empire The kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of God, these are terms that Christians wave around rather a lot, and I guess in one sense they’re entirely self-explanatory, and yet in another, I wonder sometimes whether I and others really, really get it. Here’s why You and I are by and large programmed to be empire-builders. In other words, we’re programmed to look after our own self-interest: Our needs, our wants, our reputation, our influence, our comforts, our dreams. From birth, we’re taught how to become self-reliant, and for 20 years working as a consultant in (I guess) a few hundred organisations round the world, I dealt with many, many senior managers and leaders – thousands of them. My observation is that 95% or more were empire builders. They were interested in building their networks, their control, their influence, to achieve their ends. Most organisations had a high degree of conflict, and that’s often why I was called in – to navigate the political minefield, so that the boss could get done what he or she wanted to get done. And very sadly, can I tell you, over the past almost 20 years now since I became a Christian, the vast majority of churches that I’ve encountered aren’t a lot different. There are factions jockeying for control, there are church-splits, there are many people who are hurt by leaders, abused even. Sadly, many-a church is full of empire builders, rather than kingdom builders. Am I saying that all churches are bad? Of course not, but they’re full of imperfect people like you and me, and one of the ways in which our sin manifests itself (I know; sin’s a stark word, a harsh word, but hey; it’s the right word) … One of the ways that we sin within the family of God is to be a control-freak. We become all tribal; we form teams; we compete against one another. That team has a different theology to our team; that team belongs to a different denomination to our team; that team … You’ve seen it, right? We have to criticise. We have to separate. We have to … well, we have to win, right? So, today on the program, we’re kicking off a series of messages that’s all about Becoming a Kingdom Builder, rather than an empire-builder. It’s not for the fainthearted. This series is for those who know that they’re imperfect, but those whose heart it is to see more and more and more people around them, and around the world, experience the love and the grace and the mercy and the peace and the power of God, that can only be found in an intimate personal relationship with Jesus Christ. This series is only for those who want to nail their sin, their empire building, to the cross and discover a new way to live: A new focus, a new priority. It’s for those who want to become kingdom builders, rather than empire builders. So, if that’s not you, I suggest go make a cup of tea or coffee and find something else to do for the next 6 or 7 minutes, and then come back to the radio. So what’s the difference between the kingdom of God, and the empires of this world that we’re so deeply programmed to be part of? Well, that’s by no means a new question. It’s a question that arose about two thousand years ago, when Jesus started talking about the kingdom of God, or the kingdom of heaven – two terms which, by the way, I take to mean pretty much the same thing. When Jesus first started talking about the kingdom of God, He had a lot of explaining to do because back in those days, a kingdom was a very specific thing, and it was all about power and control and land and wealth. Nations were by and large ruled by kings, and those kings often went to war over land and wealth and power. In Jesus’ day, Israel and much of the then-known world was ruled by the Roman empire. Their king was the emperor, and it was a brutal form of rule. Insurrection and rebellions simply were brutally crushed, and yet Jesus came out and said He was here to introduce the kingdom of heaven. Have a listen to this exchange between Jesus and some of the religious leaders of the day. Luke 17:20-21: Once, Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and He answered: ‘The kingdom of God isn’t coming with things that can be observed, nor will they say ‘Look, here it is’ or ‘There it is’, for in fact, the kingdom of God is within you’. In other words, this is not a physical kingdom – a worldly empire like the Roman empire, which was at the front of everybody’s mind, but the kingdom of God is something else entirely. The kingdom of God lives in our hearts. It’s not a bunch of chariots and warriors coming over the hill to take the citadel of Jerusalem by storm; it’s a battle that’s fought and won; it’s peace that endures in the hearts of men and women, and children. What’s a kingdom? Well, plain and simple: It’s the place where a king rules. It’s a place where what the king says goes. It’s a place where the king’s subjects submit to the will of the king. See, back then, kings had absolute power of life and death over their subjects, and the people who were listening to Jesus had one particular kingdom in mind. Well, it wasn’t actually a kingdom; it was an empire – the Roman empire, answerable only to the self-declared deity of the Roman emperor. No wonder they were confused, and that confusion goes on still today. We are constantly confusing God’s kingdom with human empires. See, we’re all programmed to build and look after our own personal little empires. Laying them down; taking up our cross; following Jesus … well, that’s a totally unnatural act, right? The apostle Paul put it this way. Romans 14:17: For the kingdom of God is neither food nor drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. In other words, the kingdom of God isn’t something physical. It’s not a bunch of religious rules. It’s not about things that we can see and touch, as much as it is about the stuff that God is doing in our hearts, and the battle that God wants to win in our hearts (yours and mine) is the battle of our will. John Piper, in his book The Supremacy of God in Preaching, says this: ‘Therefore the goal of preaching is the glory of God, reflected in the glad submission of the human heart’. The kingdom of God is alive and well in the hearts of all those people who worship Jesus, and whose hearts ache to obey Him. The Word says that we express our love for God through obedience, much in the same way that a man and a woman express their love for each other through fidelity. 1 John 5:3: For the love of God is this: That we obey His commandments. Empire builders, like the Roman emperor of Jesus’ day, they’re interested in furthering their own interests and power and control. Kingdom builders are interested in laying down their own interests, so that others around them might experience the righteousness and peace and joy of the Holy Spirit that only comes through faith in, and a personal relationship with, Jesus. Empire builders and kingdom builders are two profoundly different kinds of people. Kingdom builders are about sacrificing their interests in order to further God’s interests. The life of an empire builder is totally, totally different to the life of a kingdom builder. So, let me ask you something: Come on, which one are you? Are you an empire builder or a kingdom builder? Are you someone who’s much more interested in building their own circle of influence and control than laying down what you want, in order to build the kingdom of God? And, ...

Released on 31 Oct 2021