Monday, November 7, 2016

Looking Beyond the Election: Looking at the Kingdoms of the Bible


I am proud to announce part two of this series. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I did.
 
Today is Election Day in the United States and we are all ready for it to be over. We have been scared silly with all of the possible outcomes. Some days it feels as if we are standing at the precipice of The Great Unknown.
 
But there is one thing that I do know, despite all of the spin, hype, drama, name calling, disappointment and politics. One thing will be true after every last vote is counted and half of America is elated and half is heartbroken.
 
God will still be on the throne.
 
God is in control.
 
God is sovereign.
 
God has a plan, and nothing can thwart it.
  
It appears that a lot of believers have forgotten those facts, and have slipped into a mindset of fear and dread about the coming times. We may even feel that way no matter who wins. America is an earthly kingdom. Many earthly kingdoms are woven into God’s account of His story with mankind in the Bible. God’s interactions with man within the kingdoms of history have shaped my perspective on the election and its outcome. The Bible shows us that powers rise and fall, and God will use them for His purposes and His glory. Here are a few “kingdom” lessons for our lives regardless of who wins the election.
 
The earliest great kingdoms of mankind arose in what we today call the Middle East. A man named Abram lived in this region, and his father was an idol maker. He and his wife could not have children. God spoke to Abram and called him to leave his home and travel to an unknown place. Abram obeyed. God promised to give Abram land and descendants. God even said that kings would come from Abram! Later, God changed his name to Abraham, and promised both to bless Abraham and that Abraham would become a blessing. Abraham left the life and home he knew and followed God’s command into the unknown. His descendants became the nation of
Israel which God built into a great kingdom.
 
No matter who wins the election, listen for the voice of God over the messages of the idols of this earthly kingdom, and be obedient to it.
 
A boy named Joseph, one of Abraham’s descendants, was sold into slavery by his jealous brothers and ended up in the powerful kingdom of Egypt. Joseph knew the Lord, and all of his behavior honored God, despite temptation and injustice. When Joseph interpreted a dream of the Pharaoh, the Egyptian King, he could see Joseph’s wisdom and trustworthiness. Pharaoh placed Joseph in charge of the storage of food for the entire kingdom, and he was second in power only to Pharaoh. Joseph made sure that Egypt and surrounding nations had access to grain during a terrible famine, saving thousands of lives. He was even able to save the lives of his brothers who had sold him into slavery and their families.
 
No matter who wins the election, focus on God’s character, and trust in it despite the circumstances, knowing that God is good, and that He has a plan. Do not let your circumstances drive you to sin or to behavior that dishonors God.
 
Four hundred years after Joseph, Abraham’s descendants were slaves in Egypt. Their growing population caused Pharaoh to fear that they would rise up against and revolt. He commanded the
midwives to kill all male children at birth. But the midwives feared God, and did not do it. Then Pharaoh commanded that all male children be thrown into the Nile River to drown as soon as they were born. But one woman took her newborn son and placed him in a basket in the river, where he was discovered and rescued by none other than Pharaoh’s daughter, given the name Moses and raised in the royal household. Later God called Moses to confront Pharaoh in order to free his people. Moses led them out of Egypt, and out of slavery.
 
No matter who wins the election, fear God’s commands above the authority of earthly kingdoms. Stand for sanctity of human life. No matter who wins the election, remember that God loves your children more than you do. Be brave enough to trust Him with their lives. Remember that God can and does organize circumstances for His plan and purpose.
 
God had promised Abraham that Kings would come from him, and God raised up the Kingdom of Israel. Israel became powerful, and wealthy, but unfortunately it also failed to follow God’s commands. Instead of being the holy people that God intended them to be, they sinned, again and again. God sent prophets to call them to repentance. One of these was Elijah, and he confronted an evil king, Ahab. Ahab threatened Elijah’s life, but God hid Elijah and provided for him. While Elijah was in hiding, he was fed by ravens daily. Ravens were unclean birds! But God used them in this circumstance for His purpose, to sustain His prophet. Elijah had to trust God, choose to take the food, and live.
 
No matter who wins the election, remember that God will choose His own means to accomplish
His purposes, no matter how odd, upside down or confusing they may seem to us. He may actually use the thing we think is detestable to save us. 
 
God eventually judged Israel for its great wickedness. He did this through foreign kingdoms. Assyria and then Babylon become great powers. Assyria defeated the northern kingdom of Israel. God used a pagan, unholy nation to punish His chosen people. Later a second, unholy, pagan nation, Babylon, defeated the southern kingdom of Judah. In both cases, God allowed His chosen people to suffer and be defeated in order to bring them back to Him in repentance. 
 
No matter who wins the election, remember that God is in control of the rise and fall of nations. God can use the unholy for His sacred purpose. God’s goal is always to bring us back to Him.
 
A young Israelite man named Daniel was taken into captivity to Babylon. He was living in a foreign land among foreign customs and laws. Daniel was chosen to be educated at the royal court and was given royal food rations. According to Jewish law, this food would have made Daniel unclean and therefore sinful before God, and he was determined not to let this happen. Daniel was determined to follow God’s law even in though he was in a place where God’s laws were not recognized, understood or upheld. So he proposed a plan which allowed him to obey God, and eat different food. This was successful; Daniel thrived despite not having the rich food of the king’s rations. He continued in the king’s court, where he was educated and became a trusted official to the king. 
 
No matter who wins the election, determine to follow God’s laws and uphold them no matter what an earthly kingdom offers. Remember that God can provide a “Daniel option” which will
enable you to obey Him.
 
There are many more “kingdom” lessons we could learn from the Bible. But I want to close with this thought. There is a lot of conversation going on right now about God judging America. 
There is a lot of conversation going on about the potential loss of religious liberty. These conversations may cause fear, dread, uncertainty, and anxiety. But Scripture clearly shows that God allows many things into the lives of His children to accomplish His purposes. It shows that God brings judgment for sin. It shows that God may allow His people to enter exile, to lose freedoms, to suffer, to be confused at His ways. It also shows that God is always, always in control, and that He has a purpose and a desired outcome from every single thing that He causes or allows. I am choosing to fear God, and nothing else with regard to the election. I pray you will do the same. Because,
 
No matter who wins the election, as believers we are citizens of a different kingdom. That’s the kingdom we need to focus on.
 
Copywrite BPKearns 2016
 
Briane P. Kearns is a Jesus loving first born who celebrates being a daughter, wife, mother,
grandmother and breast cancer survivor. She loves teaching others that the Bible is relevant for
today, her family, laughing with friends, encouraging women in their faith walk and being a
southerner. After 20+ years in the corporate world, in 2012 the Lord called her to attend
seminary. She will complete a Master of Arts in Biblical Studies in May 2017. She lives, writes,
teaches and avoids cooking as much as possible in central North Carolina.

3 comments :

  1. Encouraging words for this post-election Wednesday! Thanks for sharing on #coffeefortheheart!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Kristina,
    I just love the stories in the Bible that give us a peek into the lives of those who followed God to show us the path we can take in our own lives, don't you? I'm so grateful that God is our anchor and rock to the peace we need in our souls!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Amen! Thank you for reminding us all that we don't beong to an earthly kingdom!

    ReplyDelete

Back to Top