Chinese/Kingdom Culture Study -3
Notes and Expositions by Sister Kim Frey
If we are to be builders in the house of God, we must be trained and equipped to be honest, righteous,cultivate our own morality, protect our family (community), govern a nation and bringing peace to the world.
There are 9 essential elements we can persistently pursue to effectively build a kingdom culture here on earth. These elements are not a formality, but rather powerful tools that can mold character and make you fit to serve in the Kingdom of God.
These qualities evolve from the inside to the outside; from ourselves to others. So, the first step is to immerse yourself in godly character and wisdom.
- Everyone is personally responsible to persistently upgrade his moral standard and perfect his personality (personal reality). Through proper training, we form proper habits; we can intentionally choose those habits that are desirable for the formation of character. (A higher realm of thinking.)
- Having a humble heart and receiving divine knowledge(from the Holy Spirit) are essential before one can bring order to their family, government, and nation.
(1) Learn to enlighten yourself and immerse yourself in godly wisdom.
Self discipline is a catalyst for the responsibility and integrity needed to rightly rule the Kingdom.
We may tend to think self discipline is simply a matter of trying harder. But, the Bible speaks of self discipline (self-control) as a fruit of the Spirit. Plants don’t produce more fruit by trying harder. We can’t produce this transformative process on our own, rather it is our cooperation with the work of the Spirit. God will always supply the power, but there is a direct correlation between the amount of transformation taking place and the level of our dedication to Holiness.
Our pursuit must be in knowing God in a personal way, rather than an objective or mechanical one. This takes obedience.
The pursuit of wisdom is not then merely in the flesh realm, but a path formed in the spiritual realm; moving from a natural way of thinking to a spiritual way of thinking.
One of God’s principles for advancement is the requirement to be diligent with what we have been given during the “present” time or “current” season (modified by editor).
God knows that if you aren’t disciplined to take care of that which you have right now, then you will not be ready for God to bring you more responsibility and influence in your life.
Revelation comes with accountability.
Jesus illustrated this point in the Parable of the Three Servants. He told of the master who gave His faithful servants more coins (treasure) after they demonstrated that they could be trusted.
But, He took away from the servant who proved himself unfaithful.
“For the one who has will be given more, until he overflows with abundance. And the one with hardly anything, even what little he has will be taken from him.’”
Matthew 25:29 TPT
Knowledge is power, and God does not want the arrogant and prideful to be powerful.
“God conceals the revelation of his word in the hiding place of his glory. But the honor of kings is revealed by how they thoroughly search out the deeper meaning of all that God says. The heart of a king is full of understanding, like the heavens are high and the ocean is deep.”
Proverbs 25:2-3 TPT
The more we seek to see, the more He’ll reveal and help us believe. And the more we are faithful and prudent with what He has given us, the more He will give us.
So, self-discipline is not as a drudgery to be avoided, but as a means to the joy that comes from walking in His way.
Our will always obeys our wants — our real wants, not our fantasy wants. And our real wants are based on our real beliefs, not our fantasy beliefs.
What do we truly want? What is our treasure?
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Matthew 6:19-21 ESV
The Father longs for us to explore and examine the imperishable reward He longs to give us. But, this is a prize that must be our top priority.The more we lay down our own wants and desires, the more we can step into this greater reality.
(Ephesians 1:17)
Paul trained for his spiritual journey like a professional athlete. Why? Because he wanted to have the self-control to finish the race without being disqualified.
“Isn’t it obvious that all runners on the racetrack keep on running to win, but only one receives the victor’s prize? Yet each one of you must run the race to be victorious. A true athlete will be disciplined in every respect, practicing constant self-control in order to win a laurel wreath that quickly withers. But we run our race to win a victor’s crown that will last forever. For that reason, I don’t run just for exercise or box like one throwing aimless punches, but I train like a champion athlete. I subdue my body and get it under my control, so that after preaching the good news to others I myself won’t be disqualified.”
1 Corinthians 9:24-27 TPT
The power for self-discipline comes from what we view as the prize.
We need to cultivate this same kind of spiritual fitness. Doing so will model a higher way of righteousness and will have an ever expanding effect on all of our different realms of influence.
(2) Honor those who should be honored.
“Recognize the value of every person and continually show love to every believer. Live your lives with great reverence and in holy awe of God. Honor your rulers.”
1 Peter 2:17 TPT
Honor cannot exist without structure and order. Each individual has a unique and valuable place in the Lord’s kingdom.
Honor is a behavior that recognizes, respects and encourages the position and season of the individual.
We should treat others with decency and honesty.
(3) Love those you should love as your family and friends.
Give Spiritual guidance, teach the importance of self discipline, respect, love, and care in relationships.
(4) Respect those with a greater responsibility, those with greater authority.
Learn to do so from the perspective of a King. A king has helpers and assistants. Treat them with respect and honor then your way of dealing with these relationships will trickle down and has a huge impact on the greater society. (Edited)
We must learn discretion on the spiritual maturity and landscape of each individual.
Recognize those with a greater responsibility- they are people who have not just the enabling or the gifts of the Spirit, but more importantly the character or the fruits of the Spirit.
A good player might not be the best candidate as captain of the team. (Editor added)
These ones are not a means to our own end, but to the attainment of a whole new culture.
It’s important to make a distinction between equality and equity in our relationships.
- Equality is defined as “the state of being equal, especially in status, rights, and opportunities”.
- Equity on the other hand, is defined as “the quality of being fair and impartial”.
Although these words have some similarities, they have some major distinctions in how we should view relationships.
- Equality in a relationship often makes individuals aware of amounts, like trying to balance two sides of an equation. This type of “tit-for-a-tat” scorekeeping corrodes relationships, especially if this type of equality becomes the measure for a relationship’s success. Each person has a God-given capacity and role. This is why comparisons can be dangerous.
- Equity is a completely different perspective in terms of relationships. Rather than keeping score, we remove our ego and selfishness, and look at strengths and abilities of others to determine what is best. Everyone is given what they need, in their season and maturity, what they need to be successful.
Jesus showed this to those willing to learn. He treated them all with the same love, yet the way he interacted with each of the disciples was different, according to their personality and education.
His focus was on who was actually capable of doing the thing He cared about. (Edited)
Jesus taught Peter(a fisherman, might be very uneducated), John( who has a priestly family background), and Paul (one of the best Pharisees). So people were quite different when Jesus called them, but they all have to let go of their social standings in order to follow Him. In essence and in practice, He leveled the playground for them through His discipleship and inclusion as members of His Father’s family. (Edited and added by the editor)
Bringing equity to a relationship is not natural to our flesh and is a process we must walk through. This takes self discipline.
In order to discipline yourself, you must right your own heart.
You can’t right your heart until you are honest with yourself about your intentions/motives. Having the right motives means you have to learn how to learn.
To learn you must study the world. After you observe the world, you attain knowledge. Knowledge can help set the tone of your attitude.
This attitude gives you the right heart. A right heart helps you discipline yourself the right way.
Then, you can treat your family (community) rightfully, with equity.
After that, you can govern a nation and eventually endeavor to bring a greater peace to the whole world.
Each realm of influence depends on the one before. (See Deuteronomy 4)
(5) Understand and care about those serve with your
- show compassion and kindness to them
- Have respect for the ones you work with
- Care and treat them with a sense of understanding
- shepherd and care with those in our dominan of responsibility.
The one able to be honest (clean conscious) – this is the way to do relationship
They don’t have to work hard on their own to hit the mark. Human thinking doesn’t intimidate them, so they can confidently walk in it (this is a manner of godliness).
To do this, we need to abide with those who are good (do justice) and don’t waiver from doing righteousness
(6) Be a good father – treat people under your care as you would your own children
Honor the wise one, the one who gives you counsel.
Elders set in place to discipline you on a regular basis. (This is like a Father figure or elders to you. ) Give them official and or formally-acknowledged place of honor and entrustment to invite and enable them to do so, much like the setup of senator in the governmental capacities and functions. They should be honored as the eldership more than as respected advisors to my person, but also as such to the greater community or society. (Added by editor)
(7) Welcome all kinds of people with different talents and different gifts.
Know how to allow others to feel the freedom to be themselves. Those have diffent capacities. This is what helps an economy to flourish.
Turn something that is hard and mold it to be something soft. Create a rightful diplomacy.
- Diplomacy is the art and science of maintaining peaceful relationships
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this is a mutual respect and understanding
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Tribal leaders -like the 12 tribes under David
(8) Be a nation of different families. When a family comes to visit, treat them with hospitality.
-In this light, you must take care of your own family.
-we need a reset
God wants His chosen people to be more than fair, but merciful.
The aim is to be a source of healing, both within one’s own culture and to other nations.
(9) Care and treat with a sense of understanding- shepherd and care with those in my dominion.
Like a mother with a nursing child.
-Cultivate yourself (be honest with yourself )
Obey each other – those near me(this brings equity into your family)
Obedience to the Father could also be referred to as self-discipline.
Being a prince is about more than just being a good son, but also includes gaining wisdom and learning from others.
- -reputation and possessions are important
- -those who are constantly seeking more and never finding satisfaction are missing out on the true joys of life.
- -the negative consequences of prioritizing material wealth over relationships, noting that many wealthy individuals suffer from broken families and lack of meaningful connections.
- -their is value in knowing when to stop and preserve what one has, rather than always striving for more.
True wisdom, therefore lies in finding contentment and value in meaningful relationships over material possessions.
