Day #10: Kings and Kingdoms.
[If you want to know how and why this devotional came into existence feel free to read this]
What you will need:
- A Bible
- This Devotional
- Some Coloring Utensils
- And a print out of this awesome coloring sheet designed by Nic Mansfield (Instagram and twitter)(Here is the week #1 sheet)
Theme: Origins
Passage for March 10th 2017: 1 Timothy 6:11-16
Bars from “All We Got"
This is for the kids of the King of all Kings
This is the holiest thing
This is the beat that played under the Word
This is the sheep that ain't like what it herd
A Thought:
I am a nerd. I try to keep up on the hip and trendy but underneath all of that is a deep love for nerdy things. This began with a habit that continue to this day when, I started reading comics. The climb up nerd mountain was aided when one Christmas break I read “The Lord or the Rings.” The dwarves, elves, swords and magic made my prepubescent reality in the suburbs of Denver more than mundane. I have my inner geek to thank for my love of the concept of “Kingdoms.” The idea that there are Kingdoms of “Good” at battle with Kingdoms of “Evil,” has never lost its luster for me. It is why I love Star Wars. It is why I love the X-Men. It is why I love reading and watching “The Return of the King.” And ultimately it is why I love reading about the Kingdom of God in the Gospels of Jesus.
Jesus is crucified as a King of the Jews. However, Jesus had a more expansive vision for his rule and reign. He called it the Kingdom of God. Jesus, however, has a habit of subverting terminology. Unlike the kingdoms of this world, Jesus’ vision for the expansion of his Kingdom does not happen through conquest or force, but rather, as people are impacted by his sacrificial death and powerful resurrection they freely pledge their allegiance to Christ. When we recognize, like Paul does in 1 Timothy, that Jesus is the “Only Ruler, King of Kings” his rule and reign, God’s kingdom, begins to become a reality in our life. The hearts of Christ followers are the epicenter for God’s movement in the World.
And this is why it is important when the scriptures call us to pursue “righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.” This is not simply asking us to align ourselves to an obtuse ancient code of ethics or freedom squashing morality. It is a call to allow the culture of the Kingdom of God, to expand from our hearts and into the very reality we move, live and have our being.
Here is the questions I am contemplating today: What does it mean to say that Jesus is the King of my life?
Mediation: Psalm 23: 1-3
Read the whole passage through once and pick a phrase that is sticking out to you. As you meditate on that phrase picture God participating in an activity that gives you joy with you. If you are feeling bold,