Above Rubies Daily Encouragement Blogs
OUT OF STEP WITH CULTURE
The disciples of Jesus came to Him and asked him why he spoke in parables. Jesus answered: “Because it is given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given” (Matthew 13:11). The wonderful news of God’s great salvation is called “the mystery of the gospel.” The truths of God’s kingdom are called “the mysteries of the kingdom.”
One of the reasons is that they are so opposite to the natural man. They don’t even make sense to the carnal man!
Therefore, if you are born again and have entered the kingdom of God, you may as well get used to the fact that God’s eternal truths are at loggerheads with human wisdom. Why are you so concerned that you think differently to our culture? You’re not meant to think like our humanistic culture today. Your thinking should be transformed! We are meant to think like God thinks, not like the world thinks (Isaiah 55:8, 9).
Jesus went on to explain to his disciples the meaning of the parable of the sower where people hear “the word of the kingdom.” Verses 20, 21 say: “But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has not root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises BECAUSE OF THE WORD (the truths of the kingdom of God which are opposite to the thinking of the natural man), immediately he stumbles.”
If we believe and receive God’s Word from beginning to end. If we obey the words of His kingdom, we will receive reaction from family and people around us. We may face ridicule. Be scoffed at. We may even face persecution.
The question is: will we be offended? Will we turn away because kingdom truths are opposite to man’s ideas? Or will we stick fast?
We belong to a kingdom that is not of this world. It is an everlasting kingdom. A kingdom that will never be shaken. A kingdom that will one day rule every other kingdom. Because our kingdom is not of this world, the natural man cannot understand it.
In a society where marriages are breaking up, you build and strengthen your marriage. You are sticking to your sacred vows. In a culture where people do not understand the value of children, you embrace the children God planned to give to you. Even though you receive pressure to leave your children and get out of the home, you stand your ground. You will not give the children God has given you to someone else to raise. You know who God created you to be. You embrace motherhood, home, and family. You are out of step with culture, but you are in step with God.
People can’t understand you, but you are coming to understand the “mysteries of the kingdom.” You know they are God’s eternal truths. They are God’s blueprint. They bring peace, joy, and rest.
“Blessed are your eyes, for they SEE: and your ears, for they HEAR” (Matthew 13:16).
Be blessed today.
Nancy Campbell
