Insider Information!

“Classified!  Top Secret!”  People who handle sensitive information need a security clearance. Background checks determine if they are worthy of having knowledge that is critically important to the function of the government.  Companies keep secrets, too.  KFC has the “colonel's secret recipe” for making chicken taste good.  Coca Cola has the recipe for a soft drink sold to billions of people ‘round the world.   

Christian, Jesus entrusted the secrets of the Kingdom of God to us!  He said,  “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you."  (Mark 4:11, NIV)  We are ‘insiders,’ cleared by the Spirit to know the realities of God's rule, while those without the Spirit see nothing at all!   When Jesus stood before Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor was puzzled by the accusation made against him that he was a king inciting rebellion.  He asked Jesus, "Where is your kingdom?"  Jesus answered him with these words, cryptic to those without faith, “My kingdom doesn’t consist of what you see around you. If it did, my followers would fight so that I wouldn’t be handed over to the Jews. But I’m not that kind of king, not the world’s kind of king.” (John 18:36, The Message)

How could Jesus claim to be a King while standing bound and beaten before a Roman government official?  Was He delusional?   No, He was and is the King of kings. His true authority was greater than command of an earthly army or authority over some mere nation!  He commanded the winds and waves. He held the universe together.  He made blind see, dead live again!  His greatest work was just ahead and Pilate was being used to accomplish it. What was that? The greatest mystery secret of the Kingdom – atonement and redemption!  By offering Himself for death, He would free the world from the grasp of sin.  

We who know Him today are Kingdom people, too.  What those who do not know the secret see as being duped or 'out of touch'  is actually faith in action. Those who cannot understand the Kingdom of God cannot understand why anyone would choose to live with their focus on the unseen realm of the Spirit.   But, when our eyes are those of the Spirit, we choose to live by a wisdom that transcends the knowledge of this world.   God, the Spirit, gives to us the secrets of the Kingdom!

Living in the Kingdom lets us understand what it means when we "die to live,"  “give away to gain forever,"  “serve to rule,"   "turn the other cheek in meekness and gain great power," "forgive those who mistreat us."  Those who know the secret of the kingdom choose these things with joy, for they are releasing God’s power into their lives and the world around them.  Matthew 5 begins with the Beatitudes which are sheer nonsense to those who are not given the secret of the Kingdom!   "Blessed are the poor in spirit... blessed are those who mourn... blessed are the meek."  Such words invite ridicule in a world where the rich, the happy, and the powerful are envied and emulated, yet they make sense to those who know the secret Kingdom, who organize their lives by the principles of the Kingdom of God.

Which wisdom shapes your decisions?  
Are you living by the conventional wisdom that teaches you to go for the gusto today, to serve Self, to hold tightly to the trinkets of life?
Are you living to die, your only hope being what you can enjoy in these fleeting days of your earthly existence, or – as Jesus taught –
are you dying to live with your destiny fixed in the Father’s house?    

There is a secret Kingdom that we can know.  It is seen through eyes of faith,  made plain by the Spirit revelation.  Jesus told a man of power and prominence - “I assure you, unless you are born again, you can never see the Kingdom of God...The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit." (John 3:3, 5 NLT)   Receive Christ as King and Lord today!   Let the Spirit cause you to be born anew, a living child of God, in on the secret of eternal life,  heavenly life right here and now!

Here is the word from the Word.  Paul speaks of the mystery, the secret, of the Kingdom.  "I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world, and not the kind that appeals to the rulers of this world, who are being brought to nothing. No, the wisdom we speak of is the secret wisdom of God, which was hidden in former times, though he made it for our benefit before the world began. But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would never have crucified our glorious Lord. That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” But we know these things because God has revealed them to us by his Spirit, and his Spirit searches out everything and shows us even God’s deep secrets." (1 Corinthians 2:6-10, NLT)

________________

Let Your Glory Fall

Father of creation,

Unfold Your sov'reign plan.

Raise up a chosen generation

That will march through the land.

All of creation is longing

For Your unveiling of pow'r.

Would You release Your anointing?

Oh God, let this be the hour!

Let Your glory fall in this room.

Let it go forth from here to the nations.

Let Your fragrance rest in this place,

As we gather to seek Your face.

Ruler of the nations,

The world has yet to see,

The full release of Your promise,

The church in victory!

Turn to us Lord and touch us,

Make us strong in Your might,

Overcome our weakness,

That we could stand up and fight.

Let Your kingdom come

(Let Your kingdom come)

Let Your will be done

(Let Your will be done)

Let us see on earth

(Let us see on earth)

The glory of Your Son

Let Your glory fall in this room

David Ruis

© 1992 Mercy / Vineyard Publishing (Admin. by Vineyard Music USA)

CCLI License # 810055