circle four

A woman with a bad reputation rushes into the town that shuns her to tell them of a man they must meet. A man who could be the savior of them all.

A stumpy, corrupt bureaucrat is so transformed by Jesus' kindness, that he pays back every person he has ripped off and give half of all he has to the poor.

A disgraced disciple stands in front of a group of people, including those who killed his teacher, and invites them to repent, be baptized and become members of the Kingdom of God.

If you go to church, you may be familiar with the idea of "testimonies". Testimonies are when some person tells the story of how they became a Christian. They usually follow the same pattern:

"I was doing ____ with my life, then everything went really bad and I ended up ____. In desperation I came to church/ met with a pastor/ went to a Bible study/ talked to a friend that I knew was a Christian, then I accepted Jesus into my heart and I was saved."

These are powerful times, because they remind us that God is not far away and that lives are being transformed by his love right now. These stories often renew our faith that God is present and has influence in the world.

But too often (though not always) the stories end with a prayer to God. It is the spiritual equivalent to the "and they lived happily ever after" crawl at the end of movies. You begin to crave more of the story, what happens after "happily ever after"?

In scripture, when people encounter Jesus, that encounter changes them. They live differently. Remember, Jesus proclaimed "Repent! For the Kingdom of God is near". He frankly, said nothing about converting, he said repent (turn around, 180 degrees) and live out the values, purposes and in allegiance to the Kingdom of God (the first circle).

He promises help (the Holy Spirit, essentially the power of God in action) and establishes community to work with (see Acts chapter 2). It is a group effort, because kingdoms not only have kings, but citizens as well. Pursuit of the Kingdom and allegiance to the King define the fourth circle. The word "kingdom" reminds us that not only is water God's water and the earth God's earth, but people are God's people. We belong to him and are most alive when recognize that we have a role and purpose on earth (like the first man and woman did in circle one).

What does that mean? It means reorientation. Whatever was the central purpose of your life before, no longer is. Spouses, majors, parents, jobs, sports, entertainment...everything must be reordered, so that Jesus can be King.

Does this really matter though? After all, if you reorient your life, but the world continues as it is with self-interest as the central purpose, why does it matter that you allowing Jesus to reorient you?

It matters because the Kingdom is here and coming. Remember, Jesus is restoring creation and removing the corruption like snake venom from a wound.

Self-interest will disappear, as well as all of its children. War, rape, greed and any form of abuse that exercises power of another person, or over creation for self-interest will fade from history. As will those who have self-interest as their center.

A fully reoriented world will be established and continue forever. When we labor towards the Kingdom, we labor towards what is eternal. When we labor towards anything else, it won't be.

Now let me clarify something, this doesn't mean that only ministry matters. Art can be Kingdom work. Small businesses that help bring people out of poverty are doing Kingdom work. Engineers that bring clean drinking water to those who don't have it are Kingdom builders. Single fathers who work two jobs so there kids can eat loving the Kingdom and their children at the same time.

Does this sound like a lot of work? It is. But it's the right work. We all work, except for those few who are cursed with wealth without discernment. The first man and woman had work, but it was work that was rooted in proper relationship. They weren't trying to prove themselves with their work. They weren't justified by how much better they were at working than their neighbor. Jesus said that he came to bring "life and life to the fullest" and "living water that wells up to eternal life". Full and eternal lives are full of the right work and the strength of God supernaturally equipping you.

In short, the fourth circle is the kingdom that the third circle established. It isn't going to church or a summer mission trip, it is living the Kingdom out is classes, Greek houses, residence halls, internships, family reunions and yes, in church and summer mission trips! It is reorienting your life within community, so that Jesus is the King. And it is pursuing a world where that reorientation is taking place in ghetto's, college campuses and governments. It is, as the 24/7 Prayer movement calls it, "praying like all depends on God and living like it all depends on [us]".

Here is a story that I think spells out the fourth circle better than I can: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ycn-9159265

One last question...are you in?

Next steps:

• Ask Jesus to examine you. What is your center? Is it Jesus? The good news is that you cannot fix your center, Jesus can. Ask him to establish himself there, and he will.
• What Kingdom do you live for? How can you beging to reorient your time, priorities, budget, etc to be Kingdom of God focused? Looks at Bible, pray every day, saturate yourself with the Kingdom.
• Community. People are "sent to heal", not individuals. Are you laboring with people? Allow others in, allow them to help.