Transcript: The Battle of the Kingdoms

The Battle of conflict is a deceptive battle.  The Wildfire grabs our attention, and tries to get us to think that this is all about the lantern.  Whatever we're fighting about, whatever the conflict is over we, gravitate toward that it begins to dominate our thought life and begins to dominate our activities, it makes us we think about it when we're at work, we think about it when we go to bed, and until that conflict gets resolved, we just don't have peace.  

We think that the battle is just about this lantern and if I just get that lantern resolved, I'll have peace.  But you know, every conflict we face is part of a broader conflict.  As we come back to the Peacefire triangle, we're in that section right now we're talking about pursuing God's purpose and how it changes our priorities. And in understanding God's priorities and God's purpose, we find victory in conflict. We find that peace, that transforming peace that passes understanding.  

So how do we identify the Lord's purpose? How do we seek Him to understand His purpose in the midst of this conflict and get our attention off of the lantern?  Because everything in this world is trying to keep us focused on that lantern.  We think this lantern is more important than following God.  

And in this session, we want to talk about why that is and what's going on?  And how do we know, how do we know to seek God's purpose? Where do we find His purpose?  Because the battle that we're in over the lantern is just a small battle compared to the real battle that we're all part of as Christians, as followers of Jesus Christ, because we're involved in a battle between two kingdoms as much as we're in a battle over the subject matter of a conflict. And it's that battle, that larger battle between two kingdoms that helps us gravitate towards the Lord's purpose and seek His purpose, seek to know it so that it can change our priorities and responding to this conflict. 

When we are born again, into the kingdom of heaven, into God's kingdom, we're born as an infant, just like a baby's born into this world.  We aren’t born again into the kingdom of God, knowing everything about the Bible.  The transformation process that the Lord begins in his people just starts at that point.  We're like a baby.  We don't know anything.  In fact, we're totally dependent.  And when someone is born into the kingdom of this world, as a baby, same way.  That baby grows, becomes a child, becomes a young man or woman, becomes the man or woman, and functions in this kingdom, in maturity.  In the same way, in the kingdom of God, we're born again, as an infant, as a babe in Christ and we feed on the milk of the Word, and we grow a little bit.  And pretty soon we can handle some meat.  And so we get into deeper doctrines and more advanced teaching and understanding of the Scripture and we begin to mature and the Lord is at work, changing us into His image.  And as we grow in Christ, we begin to look more like Him. 

Because everything in God's kingdom gives glory to Jesus Christ.  Every one of his sons and daughters are his workmanship.  And he's at work changing us into His image.  And you are somewhere between the infant stage and the mature believer stage.  And wherever you are, in that process, give thanks where you are, because the Lord's at work there in your life.  But know that there is nothing from this kingdom that we can bring over into this one that's going to please the Lord.  He wants to totally redo you into the image of Jesus Christ.

Now, when we're born again, especially if we're born again when we're older, we come with some baggage.  Now there's the sin baggage that we know we want to leave behind and we're happy to receive the Lord's forgiveness and His grace and His mercy and, let that go and leave that behind the step into God's kingdom.  But there's other things that we think are pretty cool about us. 

For those of you that have a full head of hair, you might think you look good.  Or maybe you have a lot of money, a lot of possessions.  Or maybe you think you're an excellent teacher, maybe even a Bible teacher.  Maybe you're good at what you do in your vocation.  If you're an excellent Carpenter, an excellent businesswoman, businessman, you can make money.  Whatever your talents and abilities are in this kingdom of the world, we want to bring those over, say, Lord, here's what I'm bringing to you. Look what I have to give to you that you can use for your glory. And I pose it to you that the Lord looks at your offering, and he says, not interested.  But I do want to take it and change it so that it looks like Me and I can use you.  

And he's faithful to do that in our lives.  And what often happens in conflict is that these things that the Lord wants to change, sometimes it's correction, sometimes it's just changing us, the transformation process, He exposes in that battle between the kingdoms.

This kingdom of the world does not accept the things from this kingdom.  There is a battle between these two kingdoms.  The ruler of this kingdom, the ruler of darkness, wants to do everything in his power to hinder you, one from entering His kingdom and two, from being transformed, following Jesus Christ, from being used of him in the midst of conflict.  Because any man or woman who seeks Jesus Christ in the midst of a conflict is dangerous to this world kingdom. 

When we come to those to know the Lord Jesus Christ, everything changes.  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the oldest passed away, behold, the new has come, 2 Corinthians 5:17.  And as we grow to maturity, more and more day by day into the image of Jesus Christ, from glory to glory, the Lord is always at work.  He's changing us. 

The Lord calls us to change.  One of the ways is by the way we think.  Romans 12:2 reads, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

So the Lord is always at work changing us.  He wants to change the way we think about things. And in this course, we're talking about changing the way we think about conflict.  That is not about pursuing our desired outcome . It's not about getting the lantern.  It's about pursuing Jesus Christ, His will in our lives, His good pleasure in our lives, and letting him have his way, helping us change the way we think about conflict. 

Now the worldly kingdom operates by the law of self-interest. The lantern, I want the lantern. That is a principle of this world. Galatians 5:19-21 reads, “The acts of the flesh are obvious,” and by the flesh we're talking about our natural desires, sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery, idolatry and witchcraft, hatred, discord, which is conflict. jealousy, which is conflict, fits of rage, which is conflict, selfish ambition creates conflict, dissensions, conflict, factions and envy, conflict, drunkenness, orgies and the like.  I warn you, as I did before, to those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” 

Now we've all been envious.  We've all been jealous.  We've all been ruled by these desires of the flesh.  And as we come into the kingdom of God, whether you've been in the kingdom for a month, or for 30 years or 50 years or 70 years, the Lord is still transforming you into his image. And He uses conflict, to expose some of those things that He wants to change. 

So the world's Kingdom is governed by those desires. We want something, we desire it, our greed comes in, our covetousness comes in.  If you own the lantern, I envy you because you have something I want.  But the Heavenly Kingdom, when we're born again and enter the Lord's Kingdom, it operates by different law.

This Kingdom operates in the law of our selfish desires.  This Kingdom operates in law of love. Everything in this kingdom glorifies Jesus Christ. 

Ephesians 2:8, "It is by grace, you've been saved in faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God.” 

Everything that's in this kingdom is a gift from God.  We can't earn it. We don't deserve it. But we get it, we receive it.  The very life we have in this kingdom is the life of Jesus Christ living in us.  I've been crucified with Christ. Galatians 2:20.  I no longer live but Christ lives in me in the life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.

So this Kingdom operates by the law of faith.  It's by faith we are saved through God's grace, the faith is a gift from Him and He gives us the gift of faith so we might operate in this kingdom and make our choices by faith, rather than according to this kingdom's principles of our natural desires, what I want, what I think I need. 

God's Kingdom operates on the law of love which is the fruit of the Holy Spirit living in us.  Galatians, 5:22-23, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things, there is no law.”

So in your last conflict, what was evident in your response to the Wildfire?  That list we read from the works of the flesh, or of the list we just read the fruit of the Spirit.  Because where we make our choices from in response to the conflict will there will bear fruit.  Remember, our choices matter.  And when we choose to seek the Lord at the Peacefire, He will change us.  He'll change our perspective on the conflict, He'll change our priorities in responding to the conflict, and He’ll give us the power to walk out what He reveals to us.  

So in this spiritual battle between the Wildfire and the Peacefire, the flesh and the spirit battle for control of your heart’s desires.

1 Peter 2:11 reads, “Dear friends, I urge you as foreigners and exiles to abstain from sinful desires which wage war against your soul.”

And Paul wrote Romans 8:5-8, "Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires.”  In conflict those who live according to the flesh have their mind set on what they want on the lantern.  “But those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their mind set on what the Spirit desires. “

Lord, what do you want me to do?  The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.

This battle between the flesh and the spirit, this battle between the kingdoms helps us discern the dynamics of conflict and discerning how to discern the Lord's purpose in the midst of conflict. And we're going to talk more about that in the next session. 

God bless you.  We’ll see you next time.