Ambassadors Of Another Realm

Read: Micah 4:1-7

They will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. . . . Everyone will live in peace and prosperity, enjoying their own grapevines and fig trees, for there will be nothing to fear. Micah 4:3-4

IN WORD

Many great thinkers have envisioned utopia, some uncorrupted existence where human beings flourish and evil remains at bay. We long for such a place; it’s wired into our nature because we were made for it. We want fulfillment, peace, abundance, joy, and safety—full and satisfying relationships and opportunities to pursue our hearts’ desires. This is what we were designed for.

Prophetic voices from long ago give us glimpses of the Kingdom of God, a realm where no one lives in fear of war, loss, or the ravages of nature. They are often simple pictures of people enjoying simple pleasures. They are life on this earth, sometimes with death long delayed but still a reality (Isaiah 65:20). We know these pictures have not yet been fulfilled, but we also know they will be. And in the in-between, we wonder what it means for us today.

What does it look like to represent this Kingdom in this age, when conflict, threats, and losses still overwhelm? After all, we are ambassadors not of the current culture but of another realm. We represent this Kingdom, even though it has not yet come in all its fullness. Jesus demonstrated it in His time on earth and called His followers to do the same. We, like the ancient prophecies, are to offer glimpses of it as often as we can to whomever we can. We are to live the values and the vision of a time to come.

IN DEED

Ask God for opportunities to do that. Don’t get bogged down in frustration, assuming that you are as confined to human futility as everyone else is. No, you have access to the King Himself—the flow of His Spirit within you—and can cultivate the discernment for acting and speaking His purposes in this world. Demonstrate the shalom of the Kingdom as often as you can.

ADDITIONAL READING: Isaiah 65:17-25

Christians are the trustees of a revelation who go out into the world calling men to accept and follow it.

WILLIAM TEMPLE