A Story of Two Kingdoms

I finished reading The Fine Line by Kary Oberbrunner this week. Some sections I could have gone without, others were really good. Overall, it was a good book and one I’d recommend. I’ll post my after-thoughts sometime next week.

In one of the closing chapters, Kary talks about the difference between two kingdoms - the kingdom of Earth and the Kingdom of heaven. He offers the following table outlining the contrast between the two:

This was a good look for me to see some of the comparison between the church and the world. I would have listed a couple of things differently, though. I think throwing in the whole “good versus evil” is a little too simplistic (even if it is accurate at the deepest level). To me, the “selfish/selfless” comparison stands enough on its own. I also think a more accurate “Concept of Love” for the kingdom of Earth would be “I love myself and my neighbor” (or something that takes into account that it’s not necessarily a lack of love for others, but rather a love of self).

That being said, I still think the comparison is a good one that helps put some of the complex nature of the two kingdoms in perspective.

On second look, though, I found myself looking at the table from a much different angle. What if the comparison really wasn’t between the church and the world (at least how we usually think of them), but rather, really between two kingdoms? That is something much bigger.

All of a sudden the things in the middle column don’t necessarily mean things that are exclusively outside of the church. Showing favoritism/partiality? Merciless in judging others? Poor in faith? Must be in control? Any one of these can be said about those representing the church in any given week.

I’m not trying to pass judgment, but I do think that it is important to look at the bigger picture than what many of us who have grown up in the church have seen and even been taught. Jesus came to establish a kingdom. He did it through discipleship. The church was the after effect of that process, but the kingdom was what he talked about all of the time.

The church is what it is. I think we might do well, as followers of Christ, to have a kingdom perspective that is greater than a “church versus the world” mentality.

Posted 12.06.2008

Sorry. Commenting is no longer available for this post. In most cases, you may leave comments up to 30 days from the time a post is published.