Not A Consultant

From @DailyKeller

No Other King

O Lord,

Come quickly and reign on Your throne,
for now often something rises up within me,
and tries to take possession of Your throne;
pride, covetousness, uncleanness, and sloth
want to be my kings;
and then evil-speaking, anger, hatred,
and the whole train of vices join with me
in warring against myself,
and try to reign over me.

I resist them,
I cry out against them,
“I have no other king than Christ!”

O King of Peace,
come and reign in me,
for I will have no king but You!

- Bernard of Clairvaux, 1090-1153

• HT: TrevinWax

King Jesus

Found this good summary by Phillip Bethancourt at the Gospel Coalition about the relationship between Jesus and the Kingdom of God:

1. Jesus inaugurates the kingdom. With the coming of Christ, the kingdom begins not in the coronation of a mighty king but in the birth of a crying baby. Yet as Jesus' ministry begins in Mark, he announces, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel" (Mark 1:15). What Israel had long awaited, Christ had now inaugurated.

2. Jesus is the kingdom. Where the king is, there is the kingdom. This is precisely why Jesus says to the Pharisees, "The kingdom of God is in the midst of you" (Luke 17:21). As Graeme Goldsworthy teaches, Jesus embodies the kingdom motif of God's people in God's place under God's rule. Jesus is both the faithful ruler and the righteous citizen of the kingdom.

3. Jesus purposes the kingdom. Jesus reveals that his purpose is to proclaim the kingdom. Jesus described his mission saying that he "must preach the good news of the kingdom of God" (Luke 4:43).

4. Jesus declares the kingdom. Through his words, Jesus explains the kingdom and invites people to enter into it. Luke summarizes Jesus' ministry as "proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God" (Luke 8:1). The declaration of the kingdom often came through the parables of Jesus that illustrated what it was and how it worked.

5. Jesus demonstrates the kingdom. Through his works, Jesus shows the power of the kingdom and his authority over the prince of darkness. As Jesus explains, "If it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Luke 11:20). Jesus not only declares the kingdom in his words but also demonstrates the kingdom in his works.

The Humble King

(Saw this on Facebook, but don't know who to credit for the picture)

Consultant?

From @DailKeller

Guerrilla Warfare

“A deep spiritual walk with God does not usually happen immediately after conversion. When the Holy Spirit invades the enemy territory of our lives and sets up Jesus Christ as King in the capital city of our heart, his strategy for conquering the rebel forces of the flesh that keep up their guerrilla warfare is different for each person. It may be fast or slow. God’s clean up operations are very strange.” 

— John Piper  "The Danger of Being Merely Human"

HT: Of First Importance