Pursuing God's Kingdom Purposes
Pursuing God's Kingdom Purposes
by Bruce Witt
“Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” - Matthew 6:33
WHAT ARE WE GIVING OUR LIFE TO? What will have lasting value? These questions should force us to examine our hearts and our priorities. At the end of our days, we will have to give an account for our labor. Our end should be God’s eternal Kingdom and His purpose. The temporal pursuit must be in light of the eternal. Our focus needs to be on His glory and Kingdom, not on gaining recognition for ourselves.
A Kingdom perspective looks at life differently, it is a great paradox.
- Life starts with dying – Galatians 2:20
- You gain your life by losing your life – Luke 9:23
- The first shall be last and the last shall be first – Matthew 19:30
- You bear fruit by being pruned – John 15:1-4
- God’s work begins when you do nothing – John 15:5
- You grow by suffering; you rejoice when it is difficult – James 1:2-4
- You are strongest when you are weak – 2 Corinthians 12:9
- You lead by serving – Luke 22:26
- You receive by giving – Luke 6:38
- You gain by dying – Philippians 1:21
- Only the humble will be exalted – James 4:6
- Love your enemy; pray for those who persecute you – Matthew 5:44
A Kingdom pursuit engenders an outward focus and a servant attitude rather than being competitive and possessive. It has a ministry focus of evangelism and discipleship and a heartbeat that seeks to reach the third and fourth generations. This happens only when we focus on the eternal versus the temporal.
“The temporal and eternal perspectives are competing paradigms of life. We can live as if this world is all there is or we can view our earthly existence as a brief pilgrimage designed to prepare us for eternity.
“People think they want pleasure, recognition, popularity, status, and power, but the pursuit of these things leads, in the final analysis, to emptiness, delusion, and foolishness. God has set eternity in our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3:11), and our deepest desires are fulfillment (love, joy, peace), reality (that which does not fade away), and wisdom (skill in living). The only path to this true fulfillment lies in the conscious choice of God’s value system over that which is offered by this world. This choice is based on trusting a Person we have not yet seen.” — Ken Boa, Conformed to His Image
Bruce Witt, www.LeadershipRevolution.us