WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.540 When we show the earth people how life works, 2 00:00:03.640 --> 00:00:05.600 then they won't keep tripping over the obstacles 3 00:00:05.700 --> 00:00:07.140 that the world is setting in their way. 4 00:00:07.240 --> 00:00:09.340 It's like tripping over furniture in a dark room. 5 00:00:09.440 --> 00:00:11.240 So we've seen some things in our modern day. 6 00:00:11.340 --> 00:00:12.480 I mean, we can look at the news, and we 7 00:00:12.580 --> 00:00:13.980 can look at some of the issues that 8 00:00:14.080 --> 00:00:16.980 are being talked about, and some of the confusion. 9 00:00:17.080 --> 00:00:19.880 Because we have failed, to a large degree, 10 00:00:19.980 --> 00:00:22.960 to be light, to step into the dark room 11 00:00:23.060 --> 00:00:25.320 and shine the light so people can see what's really there. 12 00:00:25.420 --> 00:00:28.120 They can really understand what a man is and what a woman is. 13 00:00:28.220 --> 00:00:29.560 I'll just leave that one there. 14 00:00:29.720 --> 00:00:31.960 But it's things like that where we've kind of 15 00:00:32.060 --> 00:00:33.200 lost our place as light. 16 00:00:33.300 --> 00:00:34.900 But we're stepping back in. 17 00:00:43.000 --> 00:00:45.800 Well, welcome back to Kingship Reformation class. 18 00:00:45.900 --> 00:00:49.240 This is class number five, and titled The Leavening. 19 00:00:49.340 --> 00:00:53.220 So last week, last class, rather, we zoomed in on this. 20 00:00:53.320 --> 00:00:55.020 We used the parable of the wheat and tares 21 00:00:55.120 --> 00:00:57.420 to talk about this current age that we live in. 22 00:00:57.480 --> 00:01:01.020 Because Jesus gives a clear explanation 23 00:01:01.120 --> 00:01:04.620 of this current age in the parable of the wheat and tares. 24 00:01:04.720 --> 00:01:08.020 And that's Matthew 13, 24 through 30. 25 00:01:08.120 --> 00:01:12.900 And then he goes on to explain it in verses 37 through 43. 26 00:01:13.000 --> 00:01:16.840 And again, this is Jesus's clear teaching, the kingdom 27 00:01:16.940 --> 00:01:18.900 of God growing on earth. 28 00:01:19.000 --> 00:01:23.540 So last time, we focused on the planting and the harvest. 29 00:01:23.640 --> 00:01:26.240 So the planting, again, is the sons of the kingdom. 30 00:01:26.340 --> 00:01:27.320 It's the wheat. 31 00:01:27.420 --> 00:01:28.520 So the farmer is Jesus. 32 00:01:28.620 --> 00:01:31.680 He's the one who sows the field, his field, by the way. 33 00:01:31.780 --> 00:01:33.060 And he calls the field the world. 34 00:01:33.160 --> 00:01:34.820 But he plants the sons of the kingdom. 35 00:01:34.920 --> 00:01:36.160 He plants the wheat. 36 00:01:36.260 --> 00:01:38.900 And then, of course, the evil one plants the tares. 37 00:01:39.000 --> 00:01:41.360 And then we looked at the harvest as the end of the age 38 00:01:41.460 --> 00:01:43.100 and saw some incredible things there. 39 00:01:43.200 --> 00:01:45.660 I just want to read again this explanation 40 00:01:45.760 --> 00:01:47.800 in verse 40 through 43. 41 00:01:47.900 --> 00:01:50.700 So it says, therefore, as the tares are gathered and burned 42 00:01:50.800 --> 00:01:53.840 in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. 43 00:01:53.940 --> 00:01:55.380 And he says, this age. 44 00:01:55.440 --> 00:01:57.240 The Son of Man will send out his angels, 45 00:01:57.340 --> 00:02:00.340 and they will gather out of his kingdom 46 00:02:00.440 --> 00:02:02.520 the tares, all things that offend 47 00:02:02.620 --> 00:02:04.020 and those who practice lawlessness, 48 00:02:04.120 --> 00:02:06.480 and will cast them into the furnace of fire. 49 00:02:06.580 --> 00:02:08.280 There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 50 00:02:08.380 --> 00:02:11.960 And it says, then the righteous will shine forth 51 00:02:12.060 --> 00:02:14.120 in the kingdom of their father. 52 00:02:14.220 --> 00:02:16.620 So remember, important takeaway is 53 00:02:16.720 --> 00:02:19.660 that the tares are removed from out of Jesus's kingdom. 54 00:02:19.760 --> 00:02:23.700 He's calling what was the field in the world by the end, 55 00:02:23.760 --> 00:02:26.500 by the end of this age, at that harvest, 56 00:02:26.600 --> 00:02:30.200 the tares are removed out of Jesus's kingdom. 57 00:02:30.300 --> 00:02:33.140 So and then the wheat, or the sons of the kingdom, 58 00:02:33.240 --> 00:02:36.640 shine forth in the kingdom of the Father. 59 00:02:36.740 --> 00:02:38.780 So there was a great handoff that happened here. 60 00:02:38.880 --> 00:02:43.040 And 1 Corinthians 15.24 kind of zooms in on that 61 00:02:43.140 --> 00:02:44.440 and shows it to us. 62 00:02:44.540 --> 00:02:49.720 And this chapter is about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 63 00:02:49.820 --> 00:02:51.860 So verse 24 says, then the end will 64 00:02:51.980 --> 00:02:55.760 come when he, Jesus, hands over the kingdom to the Father 65 00:02:55.860 --> 00:02:59.820 after he has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power. 66 00:02:59.920 --> 00:03:01.800 So I just posed the question. 67 00:03:01.900 --> 00:03:03.660 I wonder if this is what Jesus had in mind 68 00:03:03.760 --> 00:03:05.560 when he instructed his followers and us 69 00:03:05.660 --> 00:03:08.700 to pray to the Father, our Father who art in heaven. 70 00:03:08.800 --> 00:03:10.840 And he didn't say, my kingdom come. 71 00:03:10.940 --> 00:03:14.040 He said, thy Father's kingdom come on earth 72 00:03:14.140 --> 00:03:15.580 as it is in heaven. 73 00:03:15.680 --> 00:03:18.040 So that's just something to think about. 74 00:03:18.140 --> 00:03:20.380 So in this class, this session, we're 75 00:03:20.460 --> 00:03:22.200 going to focus on how the kingdom grows. 76 00:03:22.300 --> 00:03:24.840 So between the planting and the harvest time, 77 00:03:24.940 --> 00:03:27.240 there's not a whole lot given in that parable. 78 00:03:27.340 --> 00:03:29.780 But we're going to try to look at some of the other examples 79 00:03:29.880 --> 00:03:32.180 and teachings of Jesus to discover. 80 00:03:32.280 --> 00:03:34.580 Because now we're moving into, this 81 00:03:34.680 --> 00:03:35.980 is the time of our lives, right? 82 00:03:36.080 --> 00:03:38.620 We're living in this time between the planting 83 00:03:38.720 --> 00:03:39.760 and the harvest. 84 00:03:39.860 --> 00:03:42.060 So how, and another thing to keep in mind 85 00:03:42.160 --> 00:03:45.560 is, how does the field and the world 86 00:03:45.660 --> 00:03:47.560 transform and become, by the end of it, 87 00:03:47.660 --> 00:03:49.700 known as Jesus's kingdom? 88 00:03:50.080 --> 00:03:51.660 So the first thing I'd like to point out 89 00:03:51.760 --> 00:03:54.260 is how the kingdom grows is like leaven. 90 00:03:54.360 --> 00:03:57.320 So Jesus gave, in Matthew 13, he gave us 91 00:03:57.420 --> 00:03:59.300 several pictures of the kingdom. 92 00:03:59.400 --> 00:04:00.900 And it's some of the best. 93 00:04:01.000 --> 00:04:02.860 We should start our kingdom theology with, 94 00:04:02.960 --> 00:04:05.540 I mean, you don't get better teaching on the kingdom 95 00:04:05.640 --> 00:04:07.640 than from the mouth of the king, right? 96 00:04:07.740 --> 00:04:10.640 So Matthew 13, Jesus gives several parables 97 00:04:10.740 --> 00:04:11.880 about the kingdom. 98 00:04:11.980 --> 00:04:14.240 But one of those is, and it's intriguing, verse 33, 99 00:04:14.340 --> 00:04:16.880 it says, the kingdom of heaven is like leaven, 100 00:04:16.959 --> 00:04:20.640 which a woman took and hid in three pecks of flour 101 00:04:20.740 --> 00:04:22.800 until it was all leavened. 102 00:04:22.900 --> 00:04:26.340 So the NIV uses, it says, it's like yeast 103 00:04:26.440 --> 00:04:30.080 that was taken and mixed into the flour 104 00:04:30.180 --> 00:04:34.180 until it worked all through the dough. 105 00:04:34.280 --> 00:04:36.720 So you have this picture again. 106 00:04:36.820 --> 00:04:38.620 And again, in the wheat and the tares, 107 00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:41.920 the kingdom is, the sons of the kingdom are planted. 108 00:04:42.020 --> 00:04:44.720 Can you see this, how embedded in earth were to be, 109 00:04:44.840 --> 00:04:48.340 how interrelated and integral to life on earth 110 00:04:48.440 --> 00:04:50.640 were to be, quite different from being 111 00:04:50.740 --> 00:04:52.180 withdrawn from the earth. 112 00:04:52.280 --> 00:04:53.540 So we're like yeast. 113 00:04:53.640 --> 00:04:55.940 We're stuck in the middle of the world. 114 00:04:56.040 --> 00:04:59.380 And it says, until it works all throughout the dough. 115 00:04:59.480 --> 00:05:00.680 And 116 00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:05.760 The interesting thing here to think about is when you put yeast in flour and mix it, if you've ever 117 00:05:05.760 --> 00:05:12.880 watched somebody make a pizza crust, the dough doesn't become yeast. It would taste terrible if 118 00:05:12.880 --> 00:05:19.360 it did. The dough doesn't become leaven, but the leaven affects and transforms the whole loaf. It 119 00:05:19.360 --> 00:05:25.280 works systemically from the inside out. And if you think about it, there's so many dynamics of 120 00:05:25.280 --> 00:05:31.040 the kingdom that have parallels you can observe in nature, but it's the way we're actually changed 121 00:05:31.040 --> 00:05:37.440 as individuals. We have that passage that says, be transformed by the renewing of your mind. So 122 00:05:37.440 --> 00:05:42.720 we set our mind on the things of God and we get the word of God inside of us. And that word, 123 00:05:42.720 --> 00:05:49.040 if we participate with it in faith, it will leaven our lives. It'll cause a transformation 124 00:05:49.040 --> 00:05:53.920 of our whole life. We usually get an initial surge of change that happens at the new birth. 125 00:05:53.920 --> 00:05:59.440 But then as we walk out life and the sanctification process, our whole life is transformed. Well, in a 126 00:05:59.440 --> 00:06:05.840 sense, the way God plants us into the world is to have the same effect in the world. But again, 127 00:06:05.840 --> 00:06:11.040 it's got to operate by faith. And we have to understand and embrace who we are and what our 128 00:06:11.040 --> 00:06:17.280 role here is. The second thing is the wheat and the tares grow together. 129 00:06:17.840 --> 00:06:22.880 And we saw that in the parable that we just looked at at the beginning. 130 00:06:22.880 --> 00:06:27.920 So there's two things that I see here as far as the wheat and tares growing together. One is 131 00:06:27.920 --> 00:06:31.600 there's actually a conversion element. And so we're looking at, again, how does this kingdom 132 00:06:31.600 --> 00:06:37.920 grow through the earth? So it's interesting to me that if you think about it, it's a 133 00:06:37.920 --> 00:06:42.880 rigged system against the devil because the tares are the sons of the evil one, the wheats are the 134 00:06:42.880 --> 00:06:49.200 sons of the kingdom, but tares actually get converted into wheat. So every one of us that's 135 00:06:49.200 --> 00:06:54.880 been born into the kingdom, born of the Spirit, we started off really as a tare. We were under the 136 00:06:54.880 --> 00:07:00.080 control of evil. We were of Adam's nature, and we know where the destiny of that group is. 137 00:07:00.080 --> 00:07:04.400 So you think about Saul of Tarsus. I mean, the guy was going one direction here and persecuting the 138 00:07:04.400 --> 00:07:11.120 church, and boom, he got zapped. You look at Constantine and same thing. So you have this 139 00:07:11.120 --> 00:07:17.440 major tare. I'm sure the devil was really proud of his children, and then suddenly God comes 140 00:07:17.440 --> 00:07:20.960 along, and these people are zapped, and they're converted. They actually become wheat at that 141 00:07:20.960 --> 00:07:25.920 point. And at the point of conversion, you're planted in the earth. So the planting goes on 142 00:07:25.920 --> 00:07:32.320 all through the age to the end of the age. And then you and me, I mean, when we were redeemed, 143 00:07:32.320 --> 00:07:38.480 Isaiah 61.3 says, when we were redeemed, we became known as the planting of the Lord, 144 00:07:38.480 --> 00:07:42.320 the trees of righteousness. So there's that conversion element of the wheat and tares 145 00:07:42.320 --> 00:07:47.120 together. Then there's an interactive element, and we'll develop this further in subsequent 146 00:07:47.120 --> 00:07:53.600 classes. But my theory is that our functioning as kings and priests in the midst of the world, 147 00:07:53.600 --> 00:07:59.120 and by the way, that involves servant leadership. This isn't a violent takeover. It's a love takeover 148 00:07:59.120 --> 00:08:04.160 really. It's bringing the ways of Jesus and the character of Jesus. That actually systemically 149 00:08:04.160 --> 00:08:09.120 transforms the world. And there's examples. I mean, we're living in a country that's an example 150 00:08:09.120 --> 00:08:14.560 of some systemic transformation. There's still wheat and tares growing together, but kingdom 151 00:08:14.560 --> 00:08:19.760 principles have been inculcated into the very foundational documents of our nation. So you 152 00:08:19.760 --> 00:08:25.040 have that interactive element as well. So the third way that this growth occurs in the growing 153 00:08:25.040 --> 00:08:31.760 season is we're called the salt of the earth. And Matthew 5.13, Jesus says, you are the salt of the 154 00:08:31.760 --> 00:08:37.760 earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, it is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and 155 00:08:37.760 --> 00:08:43.919 trampled under the foot of men. So in the ancient world, you probably know salt was not thought of 156 00:08:43.919 --> 00:08:49.600 so much as a flavoring. It was a preservative. It's what kept the meat from rotting. So my question 157 00:08:49.600 --> 00:08:54.880 is, has our withdrawal from the earth's concerns caused the culture around us to rot? Do we see 158 00:08:54.880 --> 00:09:00.400 some rot? Are we being trampled under the foot of man in his world system because we have 159 00:09:01.280 --> 00:09:06.720 withdrawn ourselves? We've become unsalty. And I don't mean across the board, but I mean, largely 160 00:09:06.720 --> 00:09:12.480 the church has been pretty disengaged with management of the planet and stewardship of 161 00:09:12.480 --> 00:09:16.960 the planet. And that's changing. That's why this is a kingdom awakening that's happening right now. 162 00:09:17.840 --> 00:09:23.040 So in the same part of scripture, Jesus says, not only are we the salt of the earth, but he says, 163 00:09:23.040 --> 00:09:29.440 we are the light of the world. Matthew 5.14-16, he says, you are the light of the world. A city 164 00:09:29.440 --> 00:09:34.880 set on a hill cannot be hidden, nor do they take a lamp, nor do they light a lamp, excuse me, 165 00:09:34.880 --> 00:09:40.800 and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand. And it gives light to all who are in the house. 166 00:09:41.440 --> 00:09:47.840 Let your light so shine, or you might say, let your light in this manner shine before men, 167 00:09:47.840 --> 00:09:54.160 that they may see your good works and glorify your father in heaven. So we put a light in a room, 168 00:09:54.160 --> 00:09:59.840 not so that people come to the light like moths. We put a light in the room so that 169 00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:06.320 people can see what's there. So, what I say is when we show the earth people, when we kingdom 170 00:10:06.320 --> 00:10:12.800 people that are born of heaven, when we show the earth people how life works, then they won't keep 171 00:10:12.800 --> 00:10:16.320 tripping over the obstacles that the world is setting in their way. It's like tripping over 172 00:10:16.320 --> 00:10:20.320 furniture in a dark room. So, we've seen some things in our modern day. I mean, we can look 173 00:10:20.320 --> 00:10:23.920 at the news and we can look at some of the issues that are being talked about and some of the 174 00:10:23.920 --> 00:10:30.640 confusion because we have failed to a large degree to be light, to go step into the dark 175 00:10:30.640 --> 00:10:35.680 room and shine the light so people can see what's really, they can really understand what a man is 176 00:10:35.680 --> 00:10:39.920 and what a woman is. I'll just leave that one there. But it's things like that where 177 00:10:39.920 --> 00:10:47.680 we've kind of lost our place as light, but we're stepping back in. So, it's interesting that, 178 00:10:47.680 --> 00:10:51.520 you know, the tears when they're removed back to the parable of the wheat and tears, 179 00:10:51.520 --> 00:10:56.880 they're called stumbling blocks. So, the stumbling blocks are being removed at the end of the age. 180 00:10:57.440 --> 00:11:03.120 So, using that analogy. So, when they see us, when the people of the earth see us working, 181 00:11:03.120 --> 00:11:06.960 when they see us working in God's ways, because God's ways work, they work on the earth, 182 00:11:06.960 --> 00:11:13.120 they bring freedom on earth, they bring happiness in life, they're the way life is designed to live 183 00:11:13.120 --> 00:11:19.920 as God's ways. So, you can see that this is evangelism on steroids. You know, we a lot of 184 00:11:19.920 --> 00:11:23.440 times would ask people, you know, do you know where you're going to go if you were to die 185 00:11:23.440 --> 00:11:27.360 tomorrow, where you would spend eternity? And that's valid. That's a great question. 186 00:11:27.360 --> 00:11:31.600 We all ought to answer that. But, you know, really, what the fish are biting on and what 187 00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:36.800 the world's asking, what people are crying out for is, don't tell me about how to go to the next 188 00:11:36.800 --> 00:11:41.440 life. What I'm trying to figure out is how to raise my kids and how to navigate the school system. 189 00:11:41.440 --> 00:11:46.720 I need to know how this life works. And what Jesus says, if we'll show them how this life works, 190 00:11:46.720 --> 00:11:50.880 they'll glorify the Father. They'll want to go to the author of this life. They'll want to know 191 00:11:50.880 --> 00:11:56.160 the one who created this life that actually works. Life needs to work for people. It's designed to 192 00:11:56.160 --> 00:12:03.440 in the kingdom. So, just as a point of testimony, my wife, Joy, was serving as a nurse and was 193 00:12:03.440 --> 00:12:10.880 administering these high-definition ultrasounds to abortion-minded young ladies. So, they would 194 00:12:10.880 --> 00:12:15.280 actually, they thought they were going into Planned Parenthood clinics because this particular 195 00:12:15.280 --> 00:12:22.160 ministry would set up these life, you know, these offices like next door. And so, 196 00:12:22.160 --> 00:12:26.080 people would come in and they would come in and they would get an ultrasound. And so, 197 00:12:26.080 --> 00:12:33.600 when you show a young woman, this child growing in their womb, it's like, again, it's like shining 198 00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:39.280 the light in a dark room. Oh, that's a baby in there. And the statistics are incredible. It's 199 00:12:39.280 --> 00:12:46.480 somewhere, plus or minus 90% of the abortion-leaning people that come in and you just 200 00:12:46.480 --> 00:12:50.560 shine the light and show them what's actually growing inside and that it's actually a baby, 201 00:12:50.560 --> 00:12:56.320 like 90% of them make the decision to keep the baby. So, that's a very in-your-face example of 202 00:12:56.320 --> 00:13:00.720 letting our light so shine that, you know, that people will see our good works. They'll see this 203 00:13:00.720 --> 00:13:07.200 is how life works. This is what's happening. So, there's another testimony that, you know, 204 00:13:07.200 --> 00:13:12.720 I guess I can name names, but I heard Chris Vallotton, and he's on staff at Bethel Church 205 00:13:12.720 --> 00:13:19.440 in Redding, California. He had this situation happen. He was going to share a message at church 206 00:13:20.400 --> 00:13:25.600 regarding being an apostolic community, how Bethel is an apostolic community. And 207 00:13:25.600 --> 00:13:30.320 on his way to church, he flips the newspaper on the seat next to him and the rubber band pops, 208 00:13:30.320 --> 00:13:34.960 whatever, and it opens up and he sees the front of the paper and the headlines are, 209 00:13:34.960 --> 00:13:40.240 Redding, California, ranked one of the worst places to live in the country. And it was like 210 00:13:40.240 --> 00:13:45.200 he was gripped because he said, if we're an apostolic community and we're growing, and 211 00:13:45.200 --> 00:13:49.520 I don't know, some high percentage of the people that live in Redding actually attend 212 00:13:50.080 --> 00:13:55.440 church at Bethel. By the way, this can go for most churches. This is kind of the state of the church. 213 00:13:56.080 --> 00:14:01.440 And he said, oh my goodness, we must be doing something wrong. And he actually did a study that 214 00:14:02.320 --> 00:14:06.880 cities that had the largest, I don't know if he said the largest churches or the largest church 215 00:14:06.880 --> 00:14:13.200 population, were actually, by quality of life metrics, were actually the worst places to live. 216 00:14:13.760 --> 00:14:19.280 And so what they determined in studying this out was it's something that he calls the huddle effect. 217 00:14:19.280 --> 00:14:26.160 So we build a church and we create a community of faith, and then we go out into the dark world 218 00:14:26.160 --> 00:14:29.920 and we invite people to come to Jesus, and then they come into the church 219 00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:36.480 and they live their lives in the silo of the church world. And then we have theologies which 220 00:14:36.480 --> 00:14:41.520 don't encourage them to go engage the world, but encourage them to create all their social 221 00:14:41.520 --> 00:14:46.640 gatherings and all of their interactions and relationships within the church. Now, there are 222 00:14:46.640 --> 00:14:50.480 huge exceptions to that. And in fact, I'm going to brag on the church that I'm part of here, 223 00:14:50.480 --> 00:14:56.240 The Road at Chapel Hills in Colorado Springs. Just coming up here in the next few days, 224 00:14:56.240 --> 00:14:59.680 this church is actually hosting a 225 00:15:00.000 --> 00:15:03.320 debate for the mayoral candidates in our city. 226 00:15:03.320 --> 00:15:06.840 And there's several, I mean, I think it's a pretty large number, I don't want to exaggerate, 227 00:15:06.840 --> 00:15:10.560 but of people that have actually gotten involved in school board positions. 228 00:15:10.560 --> 00:15:16.160 So the point of this whole class, the point of this is that the kingdom of God on earth 229 00:15:16.160 --> 00:15:22.720 grows through intricate and intimate involvement of God's kingdom people who are planted in 230 00:15:22.720 --> 00:15:23.720 the world. 231 00:15:23.720 --> 00:15:28.500 We're not of it, but we're certainly in it, and that's actually God's glorious plan. 232 00:15:28.500 --> 00:15:30.520 So it's all about engagement. 233 00:15:30.520 --> 00:15:37.620 So whereas maybe there's been a large withdrawal of the church from the culture and from involvement 234 00:15:37.620 --> 00:15:42.260 and leadership in the culture, what's happening now, I believe, and again, it's this great 235 00:15:42.260 --> 00:15:47.140 reformation that's coming, is we're returning to a theology of engagement. 236 00:15:47.140 --> 00:15:49.500 So that's what I want to leave you with this time. 237 00:15:49.500 --> 00:15:54.420 It's the way the kingdom grows in the earth is through engagement and involvement and 238 00:15:54.420 --> 00:15:59.940 bringing the superior ways of God and the presence of God right smack into the middle 239 00:15:59.940 --> 00:16:05.060 of the culture and in the world, not withdrawing and isolating ourselves from it. 240 00:16:05.060 --> 00:16:09.580 So I hope you enjoyed this class, and we look forward to seeing you in the next class.