Defend the Castle

“Man does not live on bread alone.” Matt 4:4

Many children have built “forts” or “cubbies” in their youth. In a child’s fantasy world these primitive structures represented a hide-out, or even a stronghold, like a castle, to protect their little kingdom. Though we do not live in castles, as Christians we are citizens of a real and dynamic kingdom – God’s Kingdom. In our experience of the Kingdom we encounter faith-based organizations or individual Christians in the workplace wanting to work with a Kingdom alignment. I want to ask what might be the salient distinctives – characteristics we cannot live without – to be promoting and defending this position.

In kingdom work I want to propose that simply being obedient to a high moral code is admirable but is not enough. Working hard and treating workmates and clients with fairness and kindness is praiseworthy but is not enough. Pointing people to Jesus and operating under Biblical principles is constructive but is not enough.

Christ’s wilderness series of temptations shows us the classic three pronged temptation that seeks to attack and destroy kingdom distinctiveness. On the flip side, it also gives us some valuable clues to what it means to be a kingdom worker. The three temptations are the worldly quests for self centered a) impact b) impression, and c) influence. Pause and re-read this list in the light of your current motives and work strategies. The list may have become more invasive to your life than you might realize.  But the way of Christ seems to call us to be counter-cultural in three different ways:

To embrace a life of contemplative prayer and communion with God,

to pursue community interdependence and tenderness toward others,

and to be sensitive to  the leadings of God for direction

Can we learn to receive the Father’s love and to live in dependence on Him? It is through continually talking and listening to the Father, in actively engaging in a shared ministry life and then following His Truth wherever it leads that we best model the Kingdom’s salient distinctives.