God has called His people to be engaged in the world, but not to be invested in it. A distorted view of holiness can cause us to miss the former, while misguided notions about evangelism can result in us falling to the latter.
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Today marks the fiftieth anniversary of my parents marriage. Though we had to say goodbye to my father long before we were ready, I’m grateful for all that he and my mother have meant to us over the years. God blessed us richly through this union and I will always look fondly upon this day.
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In recent years I’ve heard a lot of talk about the “Kingdom of God” and of the need to be “Kingdom Minded”. As I’ve prayed and meditated on these things, I’ve sensed the Lord speaking. I’ve included some of those thoughts below:
1. If we are truly becoming more “Kingdom Minded”, our hearts will be increasingly focused on “The King”.
2. If our priority is truly the “Eternal Kingdom”, our focus will be shifting from what is seen to what is unseen.
3. The Lord will continue to grant the peoples wish for an earthly king, but “His Kingdom” will come through those who yearn for “His Lordship”.
4. Revival is birthed in the hearts of God’s people. It is the rekindling of the “Brides” passion for the “Bridegroom”. The outward manifestations that we’ve come to associate with revival only follow this inner stirring. The church’s inability to sustain these outward manifestations is rooted in the absence of this internal work.
5. The work that God has called us to is to believe in the One who He sent (John 6:29). While this belief will ultimately compel us to further action, all of our “work” for the Kingdom must be rooted in this.
6. We are not Kingdom Builders. There is a big difference between building a house and moving a house. When we build a house, we choose a site, make our plans and build to suit our desires; but when the house already exists, we must go to where it is and study its design, if it is to arrive intact at it’s new location. The Kingdom of God already exists and God Himself was the Architect and Builder (Heb. 11:10). God is not interested in some earthly replica of His Kingdom, He means for His Kingdom to come to earth as it already exists in the heavenly realm.
7. We must discern the difference between imagination, inspiration and revelation. Though there is a place for all of these things, the distinction between them is critical.
8. It’s all about relationship. We must understand the difference between associates and friends, business partners and brothers, networks and families, collaboration and covenant, and ultimately between ambition (i.e. personal) and passion (i.e. for the Lord). If we have not love, we have “nothing”.
9. Don’t be impressed by anyone’s resume, because God isn’t. Few could boast an earthly resume as impressive as King Solomon’s; his reign is viewed by many as a pinnacle in Jewish History and yet he was ultimately deemed a failure by God’s standard. His life stands as an example of the dramatic contrast between what the world considers success and what is valuable to God.
10. Beware of those who call themselves Shepherds and yet view sheep as the obstacle to their destiny. Beware of those who claim to be a covering and yet accept no responsibility in the day of trouble. Beware of those who invoke the name of Jesus, but bear no resemblance to Him. The Bible contains numerous warnings pertaining to false teachers (e.g. 2 Peter 2:1), false prophets (e.g. Matt. 24:11), false apostles (Rev. 2:2); and it speaks of our need to discern between those who are serving the Lord and those who are not (Mal. 3:18).
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God has not called His people to build a bridge between Him and the world; He has called them to be the bridge. While our human tendency is to erect monuments for posterity, God is far more interested in our personal involvement.
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This little article is the kind of self-indulgent thing that I generally try to avoid; after all, who besides me should really care that this is the 100th writing that I’ve posted on my website. But on some level it seemed momentous, so I thought I might as well say something about it.
With encouragement from my dear sister (Mary), my beautiful wife (Anita) was the one who set this whole blog site idea in motion. She wanted to create a way for people to access the things I write and she was confident that if she did, they would. I must admit that I didn’t necessarily share her confidence; not because I doubt my ability to write, but because I don’t really understand what makes a person visit the site of someone who isn’t famous, influential and that they don’t really know. As with many other things, she was right. In the almost eight months (we started in Feb 2010) since the site was born, we’ve garnered visits from complete strangers from around the world. In fact, this site was instrumental in connecting us with some wonderful new friends in Australia (Matthew & Shera Dahlitz), who asked to regularly feature some of my writings on their site (thissideofthecross.com) as well. That relationship has managed to connect us with even more people in all sorts of exotic locations. That has been a great experience and more than I could’ve hoped for. I am humbled by those opportunities and by the understanding of how God blessed me with a partner who is more interested in seeing my aspirations fulfilled, than in the fulfillment of her own.
Considering that I really didn’t start writing in earnest until I was almost forty years of age, it is amazing to me what a passion it has become. In the last six years I’ve written plays, songs, poems, stories, prayers, commentaries, tributes, skits… and I don’t feel as though I’ve even scratched the surface yet. I hope that as my children get a little older, I will be able to devote more of my attention to the writing, as opposed to the haphazard process I use now. And while I certainly don’t believe that my perspective is anymore valuable than anyone else’s, I have found great fulfillment in trying to find expression for the things that are closest to my heart; and in sharing those ideas with others. I hope that in some way it helps, even if it’s only to make people feel less alone in the their struggles.
Who’s to say where I’ll be 100 posts from now or even if there will be another 100 posts. Whatever the case, I’m grateful for making it this far and for those of you who’ve visited along the way. Thanks.
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Because every persons experience and perspective is to some extent unique, unity is not likely to come about through total agreement. For human beings, unity only becomes possible when we are willing to commit to standing together in spite of our differences.
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In the deepest part of the valley, you encounter the river that carved it. Ultimately, I believe this is why God allows us to spend time there.
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Bjcorbin's Blog 
Post Modern Christianity
October 19, 2010 by bjcorbin
I can profess that You are the way
Yet believe that there are many ways
I can profess that You are the truth
Yet believe that every man defines truth for himself
I can say that I am created in Your image
Yet also believe that I evolved from an ape
I can think of the Bible as Your word
Yet disregard the parts that no longer seem applicable
I can consider myself Your friend
Yet maintain my close friendship with the world
I can claim that You died for me
Yet never die to myself
I can think of you as my Savior
Yet never bow to You as my Lord
I can wear Your cross on a chain around my neck
Yet remain unwilling to take up a cross of my own
After all
God is love
This is a new millennium
and
I am a Post Modern Christian
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