Do you pay attention to comic books? Before you sound the nerd alarm, let me ask that question a different way. Did you go see The Dark Knight Rises or The Amazing Spider-Man during the last month? If so, you were one of millions who spent good money on a few hours of comic book entertainment.
I have to admit that I didn’t see either of these movies. Having young children makes sitting through three-hour movies tough. So, I guess I’ll wait until they hit Netflix or DVD.
However, as I have listened to water-cooler talk about these movies, I’ve realized that some things never change. For starters, you have to wear spandex to be a real superhero. That makes me nervous, but apparently, it’s true. And it never changes.
As you move beyond the surface stuff, the plot doesn’t change either. Have you ever noticed that the superhero typically has no intentions of building his own empire? He’s just advancing the good of the society around him. The empire-building-guy is always the villain. I mean, can you think of a good superhero who desired his own “evil empire?”
That’s incredibly ironic to me, because the exact opposite is true in the real world. If someone is able to build their own “empire,” we call them a success. Maybe even a raging-Donald-Trump-type success. And in some regard, almost everyone alive is working to build his or her own kingdom. Those of us who are logical avoid calling our own kingdom an evil empire (that would be weird), but we regularly strive to build them.
Maybe you see where this is going. I don’t think God calls Christians to imitate Superman, but I do think there are some parallels in our missions. We aren’t called to build kingdoms. We’re just called to advance the good Kingdom that is already established. God’s Kingdom. We can’t extend God’s reign, but we can help people understand what it’s like to live under His reign. We can invite them into the joy of God’s Kingdom through our words and actions.
The cool thing about this is that God gives us certain weapons that are potent against the “evil empire” around us. Let me give you a couple of examples:
Grace. There is no other religion that hinges entirely on grace. Philip Yancey’s book What’s So Amazing About Grace develops around the idea that grace separates Christianity from every other religion. For Christians, there is no working your way to God; no perfection by achievement; just a God who loves you enough to see you through Jesus-covered glasses. So, grace is a huge weapon for advancing God’s kingdom.
Generosity. A second – and often overlooked – weapon for advancing God’s Kingdom is generosity. Think about it. This was the mark of the early church. They imitated the loving generosity of God and the world was amazed. They sold fields and laid the proceeds at the apostles’ feet saying, “use this for anyone in need.” They cared for the sick – risking their own lives caring for those infected by plagues. They took up offerings for the needy. And the Kingdom advanced rapidly.
So, let me ask you a question. Are you working to advance God’s Kingdom, or are you steadily constructing your own empire? My comic book reading side – and my pursuing God side – indicate that building our own kingdoms is not the way to go.
If you want to know more about the role of grace in God’s Kingdom, you should read Philip Yancey’s book, What’s So Amazing about Grace? And if you want to dive into the heart of generosity, you should check out Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger by Ronald Sider.
What other major weapons can you identify that God uses to advance His Kingdom?
