What are you doing to advance the Kingdom of God? You know you are a soldier, right? You sing songs about being a soldier, Onward Christian Soldiers. You mention being a soldier. You’re told in church you are a soldier – or at least I hope you are told. If that’s true, then what are you doing to advance the Kingdom of God, soldier?!
You could say, “Well, I attend church every week. I pray to God. I read the Word.” While all that is great and you should be doing those things, I’ll ask you again, What are you doing to advance the Kingdom of God, soldier? Because sitting in a pew and reading to yourself are not things that are advancing the Kingdom of God. Where are you gaining new ground and overtaking the enemy on the battlefield? Where are you taking prisoners? Where are you pulling others out of the line of fire?
Now, it may be possible that you are in a battle with your own faith, wrestling it out. If that’s the case, please, continue working out your own salvation with fear and trembling. That’s something we all need to be doing on a daily basis, continually, until death. I understand some are working it out as they mature in Christ more, but some are working it out just to obtain a grain of salt, a little faith, out of the hand of the enemy. And, remember what I just repeated from the Word of God there: “with fear and trembling”. I say this to some of your shame because when the going gets tough, the so called tough get going right into the hand of the enemy. We must do better than that, church!
How many of you are having pity parties over self? Having woe is me attitudes when the circumstances of this world don’t pan out in your favor? You start to doubt. You start to lose faith. You start to point fingers at God and blame him and maybe even give him a good old fashioned talking to. This may even include some inappropriate language directed at your God. Woe to us when we think we know better than our God! Woe to us when we think we know what is best for ourselves! What we think is best is derived from selfish desires of man’s heart!
What if you were set before an earthly King who had the power of your life and death in his hand. Imagine he made a ruling not in your favor regarding a dispute you were having with your neighbor. How would you react? Would you start cussing him out and pointing fingers at him and give him a good old fashioned piece of your mind? I highly doubt it. You would bow in reverence and say, “Yes, my King.” And properly conduct yourself in his presence and in his court, as if you were of a royal bloodline with honor and reverence. But, because you can’t see God and you’re not getting your way, you misconduct yourself like a raging animal, not like the royal priesthood that you are. And you “go off” on God. Your God.
Malachi 1
1 The burden of the word of the LORD to Israel by Malachi.
2 I have loved you, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the LORD: yet I loved Jacob, 3 and I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness. 4 Whereas Edom saith, We are impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places; thus saith the LORD of hosts, They shall build, but I will throw down; and they shall call them, The border of wickedness, and, The people against whom the LORD hath indignation for ever. 5 And your eyes shall see, and ye shall say, The LORD will be magnified from the border of Israel.
6 A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? 7 Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible. 8 And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts. 9 And now, I pray you, beseech God that he will be gracious unto us: this hath been by your means: will he regard your persons? saith the LORD of hosts.
10 Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for nought? neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the LORD of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand. 11 For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts.
12 But ye have profaned it, in that ye say, The table of the LORD is polluted; and the fruit thereof, even his meat, is contemptible. 13 Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness is it! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the LORD of hosts; and ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hand? saith the LORD. 14 But cursed be the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing: for I am a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the heathen.
Malachi 2:1-9
1 And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you. 2 If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the LORD of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart. 3 Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it. 4 And ye shall know that I have sent this commandment unto you, that my covenant might be with Levi, saith the LORD of hosts.
5 My covenant was with him of life and peace; and I gave them to him for the fear wherewith he feared me, and was afraid before my name. 6 The law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in his lips: he walked with me in peace and equity, and did turn many away from iniquity. 7 For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts. 8 But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of hosts. 9 Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law.
Hebrews 10:26-39
26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. 28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: 29 of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
32 But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions; 33 partly, whilst ye were made a gazingstock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, whilst ye became companions of them that were so used. 34 For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance. 35 Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. 36 For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
37 For yet a little while,
And he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
38 Now the just shall live by faith:
But if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.
Give the Lord, our Majesty, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Ancient of Days, Jehovah Nissi – the Lord our Banner, the Lord of hosts, the Captain of our Salvation, the Commander of the heavenly armies his reverence, honor, and fear. He is a King. He is a Warrior. He is the Creator of all things. How dare we give honor to earthly kings and not to the Creator of heaven and earth!
Matthew 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
If our minds cannot even imagine what God has prepared for those who love him, our minds cannot even imagine what God has prepared for those who don’t.
Matthew 25:41 says that everlasting fire was prepared for the devil and his angels. It wasn’t prepared for us, but they will take us with them if we let them.
So, yes, work out your own salvation with FEAR and trembling, brothers and sisters.
But, some of you are farther in your walk than that – maybe still you needed that admonishment, though. We are human after all, but some of you are beyond wrestling with your faith to that extent. You feel secure in your faith, but yet you’re a stagnant soldier. What do soldiers do? Again, they move forward.
Remember Jesus said in Luke 9:62 ‘No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.’”
Well, what about putting your hand to the plow and just standing there? Or never even putting your hand on the plow, but instead just standing in the field staring at it? Is the field going to get plowed? No! So, going back to what I said earlier – Going to church weekly, reading the Word, and saying your daily prayers is not advancing the Kingdom of God. You’re stagnant. What in the world would happen to a soldier that ran out onto the battlefield in enemy combat and just stood there? Because that’s what you are doing.
You have entered this war. You have chosen a side and now you are standing on the battlefield, not even moving. You are a nonmoving target, an easy target. You are going to get creamed by the enemy.
And, if by some chance you remain, how far did you help your troops advance by standing still? How much new ground did they take over? How many people did you rescue? How many brothers and sisters in arms did you pull out of the line of fire? How many of the enemy troops surrendered?
Well, if you were just standing there doing nothing, I’d have to say None to all of those questions.
What are you doing with your free time? Are you shopping? Are you playing on your phone? Are you playing video games? Are you enjoying earthly hobbies? Are you traveling? We need to get our priorities straight! How are you ever going to hear, “Well done good and faithful servant” if you didn’t do anything? You can’t hear that if you just sat in church and read the Word. I mean, what did you do? Even demons and Satanists believe and know the Word of God. This is why faith without works is dead. Without works, you are just standing there on the battlefield in the line of fire, and you’re dead. At any moment any stray bullet is going to strike you down and you are useless to the army of the KIngdom of God. You are completely useless just standing there doing nothing.
What can you be doing? Intercession. We all need prayer. Be in intercessory prayer for your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, your country, our leaders, the world, the unbelieving dying world around us, against atrocities, the list is endless.
Testify! If you have a testimony regarding your salvation, then testify! How wonderful that the Lord has given you a testimony against the enemy and regarding his good intentions and love towards us. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy. Exalt His name!
Evangelize the lost. You can do this through sharing your testimony. Or, just find ways to spark conversation everywhere you go – the grocery store, meetings, restaurants, airplanes, bus stops, parks, everywhere! Ask God to open a door for you to witness to the lost.
Write. Are you a writer? Start a blog. Leave bible verses in shopping carts and on park benches. Write a book, songs, or poems.
Speak! Do you love public speaking? Stand up in the park and start witnessing to the goodness of the Lord.
Teach. Lead an online or home Bible Study. Does your church need help in youth ministry or children’s ministry? You could volunteer and help the younger generations grow in Christ.
Grow a Family of Faith. Teach your family about God – your spouse, your children, your grandchildren, your nieces, your nephews, your cousins. Taking care of our spiritual needs at home, within our family, is a huge undertaking and very important.
No matter what you do, do something. Do not stand idle in enemy territory just waiting for a bullet to hit.
Luke 10:2 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.
Get out there into the harvest and push that plow forward advancing the Kingdom of God, sowing seeds everywhere you go!!
Ephesians 4:11-16
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.