What’s the opposite of Kingdom?
Common Kingdom Value
One of the things that strikes me about the U40 group is how people share the common value of the Kingdom. “Under 40″ is the working name (that I no longer like) for a group of friends that are thinking about how we might take the many diverse focii of the church in San Diego, and work together in functional unity to make a greater difference on our city with the Jesus’ gospel.
“Kingdom” is why people are in the room. When I invited people to the concept, the response was almost intuitive, “Sure, we need to do that.” I continue to believe that a healthy understanding of a “already” part of Kingdom can drive a movement of the church that would be a blessing to the city. There is a common value that each person, and the ministry they represent, wants to join in a larger movement of the church in Kingdom work.
A True Common Understanding will Take Work
The one thing I’m not sure about is whether any of us know just what is involved in working together under that Kingdom umbrella. We haven’t defined it together yet… and that is a little anxiety producing. Our group is quite diverse, spanning the gamut from church planting to working with at-risk youth. We have lawyers and environmentalists, campus workers and marketplace missionaries.
I suspect that one person’s understanding of the Kingdom means we must work to uphold the immigration laws, while another person’s view focuses on scriptural commands to care for the alien amongst us? Some might take the position that Christ and the church must transform culture, while others might say Christ and the church must be against culture. (There are even more categories that Niehbur uses to describe the relationship of the church to culture.)
Who is the Enemy?
So, I was glad to have a conversation with my friend Lee Simon. Trained in organizational wizardry for the Navy with your tax dollars. Lee has been interested in using his gifting in application to the church. Well you can imagine how glad I am that we stumbled upon this conversation together. Lee was the first to introduce me to the organizational theory topics that I’ve been posting on.
I told him I thought Kingdom was the central value that bring our U40 group together. He got me talking about what the opposite of Kingdom was? He first suggested that we, as a group, spend some time defining what we mean by Kingdom. And actually, what we are doing is recognizing that each person will have a particular slant on what they feel Kingdom will look like. So, those who are in the arts and media might be burdened to see how Kingdom values might be expressed in art and music. They might also be thinking about how the good news of the Kingdom might be communicated via the arts and media. Our friends that are concerned about creation care and sustainability as a piece of the gospel bring a contribution to our collective understanding of Kingdom. This is good.
But what criteria do you use when a decision must be made pitting the Kingdom minded artist with the Kingdom minded environmentalist? Lee suggested that identifying the opposite of Kingdom will the artist know that the opposite of Kingdom is not environmentalists, and vice versa.
Instead, the two parties can come together, give a little, and even sacrifice a little, because they are both moving toward Kingdom. They are not each other’s enemies, but rather colleagues in the Kingdom equation. Their relationship with each other, hopefully, will allow some give and take with each other. The important thing is that we aren’t moving to the opposite of Kingdom?
Kingdom vs. kingdom
So what is the opposite of Kingdom? I tend to think of Kingdom with the “K” is referring to a desire to work in extending the reign and rule of God. When referring to “kingdom” with the lowercase “k”, it can serve as shorthand for work that merely extends the reign and rule of a particular ministry, church or person. The negative connotation of “kingdom” is that much of the effort and focus is on extending one’s own human rule or empire. “Kingdom” is selfless, glorifying God. “kingdom” is selfish, glorifying man. This is a reductionistic but useful distinction.
If you get a bunch of innovative, pioneering types that are passionate about their “cause” into the same room, it won’t take long to see fireworks. This can occur if people are in the room to network primarily to extend the reach of their own ministry. It can also occur if Kingdom building takes second seat to “kingdom building.”
I believe that if Kingdom is really the organizing value, as I hope it will be, then we might be able to embrace the tremendous diversity in the room to open our collective eyes to the breadth and richness of the Kingdom. If someone sees the gospel in recycling NiCad batteries, I want to as well. I’ve have but a small understanding of just how good the “good news” is, and I want a bigger one.
I risk projecting my faith journey onto, well, everyone here. Oh well. I judge that most Evangelically bread folks were formed in environments where their Kingdom theology is shaped more by the absence of teaching/ conversation/ embodiment of the Kingdom, than by differing opinions on what the Kingdom is.
I went to a large community church, and to a Christian university, and it wasn’t until my Senior year that I ever heard anyone really attempt to articulate the Kingdom of God as; an end, a means, a world-view, a value set, etc.
The thing that Jesus talked about more than anything, was hardly ever mentioned, except in the “small k” sense. “We went to Mexico and built homes, we are Kingdom builders!”
I judge that most in the group have had to play “catch up” with regards to this integrating theological reality and concept. So, the problem, if we are honest, is neglect. Neglect is like undernourishment is to the body. Like the teens who love to drink Coke and eat Chips for lunch on my track team, the church is often taking in artificial nourishment (an inadequate uninformed Kingdom theology)that tastes really good, but in the end leaves the body undernourished. And, I agree with Geoff, that the “small k” stuff is that artificial nourishment, that but for the grace of God, would leave the church and the world it seeks to engage, neglected, undernourished.
I would be interested to hear from others the answer to this question, “When was the first time that you were exposed to any teaching on the Kingdom? And, what do you remember learning?”