The Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Man
The Pharisees and Herodians try to trap Jesus in a false dilemma about paying taxes, but in His brilliant answer Jesus provides the basis for a Christian view of government and citizenship.
Mark 12:13-17
The Church – The Persecuted Community of Faith
The Church is the community of those who are God’s people through faith in Christ and are therefore exiles in this world. Consequently, they must persevere through suffering and persecution, knowing God is worth far more than this passing age.
Hebrews 11
Justification By Faith Alone
This looks at persecution in the early church. It will look up through the first couple of hundred years ending in the early to mid 200s.
Great Expectations – We Will Return Home
The great expectation that our deep sense of alienation and exile from our true home would one day be removed is fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 40:1-5
Called To Citizenship
Christians are called to serve God in their nation and culture, submitting to their leaders, and serving in the government and wider culture with unbelievers to promote the common good, always remembering that their true home is the new heavens and the new earth.
Romans 13:1-7; Jeremiah 29:4-7; Philippians 3:20-21
Unity Through Humility
As citizens of heaven who have been blessed by God, we are to walk in humility before God and each other, which leads to unity in the church.
Philippians 2:1-4
Unity and Courage in the Face of Opposition
As citizens of the heavenly Kingdom believers must live worthy of the Gospel, walking in unity with each other and standing with courage when faced with opposition.
Philippians 1:27-30
Living in the Shadowlands
Between the day of our redemption and the day we die, we live with one foot in the physical world stained by sin and the other foot in the Heavenly Kingdom that shines with an ever-increasing glory.
1 John 3:1-3
Christ and the City of Jerusalem
The city of Jerusalem was a type and shadow of the true city of God, the new Jerusalem, which is comprised of all those who have faith in Christ.
Hebrews 11:8-16