Are You a General inThe Kingdom?
Mega churches, big ministries, big crusades, most number of churches planted, most number of church members---a lot of church people still go for these measurements. The church is still blind to them, thinking the more and the bigger, the better, greater and more favor from God. We think the more we have in our hands, the higher our position in the Kingdom, and the more God is pleased with us.
It is generally seen that generals of the Kingdom are the great ministry performers on earth. The same was assumed by Samuel when he wondered who the next king of Israel would be. He saw Eliab and decided he must be the guy for the throne---with his appearance, height and everything. But the Lord rebuked him.
"Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
Outward appearance includes performance. Up to this very moment of church history, the church still gauges greatness based on what the eyes can see and the flesh can appreciate. Big, mega, popular, peopled, moneyed, influential, busy, productive and all other qualities also applauded in the world. We still regard everything and everyone from a worldly point of view. Never from the point of view of the cross.
I tell each of you not to think you are better than you really are.
[Romans 12.3]
One time I watched how a denomination rewarded its pastors who had the most number of new members, most number of Sunday school enrollment, most number of baptized people, bible study or "discipleship" attendance and the highest church income during the year. It gave the "winning" pastors P10k each. Wow, what a standard to judge good performance in God's Kingdom. Or is it really God's Kingdom? More like it was nothing more than men's empire.
"If anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself" [Galatians 6.3]
In God's Kingdom, it's not outward appearance that matters. It's the heart. Jesus warned about those who think pleasing God was about performance. "Did we not propohesy in your name and perform miracles?" Paul said real Kingdom people (new creations in Christ) did not regard anyone from a worldly point of view anymore, admitting that once upon a time they had regarded Christ this way [2 Corinthians 5.16]. The world thinks you are nothing if you cannot display anything it values highly.
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So people today, church people included, display everything they can to be acceptable---church buildings, members, income, titles and degrees, positions, authority, educational attainment and the like. It's ridiculous being in a pastors' meeting where you see how they try to outdo each other to prove their worth. You also see them on Facebook trying to impress each other with their ministries. Can you imagine Jesus doing this?
Church people today think Kingdom ranks are based on performance. And the more you perform the higher is your rank. God's "generals" are those who have mega membeships, buildings, facilities and income---church leaders who look great in people's eyes. Though they read it in the Gospel, their spirits are too carnal to realize that in God's eyes the least is the greatest. Tey refuse to have any part in this. They want to be the greatest and they're out to prove it.
Who are God's real ministry generals then?
We glimpse his standards in the way Jesus commended people in the Gospel. He commended how Mary simply sat by his feet listening intently, relishing in his every word. He commended how the Syro-Phoenician woman (believed to be from Tyre and Sidon) urged Jesus with all her heart even if the miracle she asked for wasn't due her at the time. He commended a Roman officer who merely took Jesus at his word for the healing of his servant. He commended a widow who gave her last penny (two very small copper coins) into the offering box.
I mean, these people didn't do anything grand or great. They didn't have mega ministries or did great exploits for God. They simply took faith in God seriously with their simple deeds and simple lives---possessing Jesus' very own kind of faith. Earlier in Scriptures, Enoch simply walked with God and pleased Him. Abraham traveled with God and was called God's friend. Moses, on the other hand, did great exploits but never entered the Promise Land.
Not to mention how Lazarus ended up in Abraham's bosom relaxing and enjoying peace while the rich man (no doubt applauded by this world and performed grandly) ended up in hell. I can imagine how church today would also applaud and reward the rich man for his "outstanding compassion for the poor" by giving leftover loaves to them. Modern church has this spiritual myopia of seeing only those they have seated near the stage and seated there because of their high status in life. They do not see people they have seated in the far-flung rows because of their low status.
We value those we see as active in church, present in all the activities and ministries, running here and there like Martha did, oozing with this and that talent, and especially those fond of giving and contributing money. Our physical eyes see these things and we base our sizing-up or criteria on them, forgetting that what God commends is in the heart. And only eyes that see in the spirit dimension discern what is in the heart.
God's real ministry generals are those the church barely notices today but who take faith seriously, fervently praying and worshiping God in private, quietly living a life pleasing to the Lord, faithfully meditating God's Word day and night, faithful with their giving (doesn't matter if meager or hefty), and doing what little tasks they can in church. Or even just sitting in the pews. Most pastors make fun of people "just sitting in the pews doing nothing" but Mary would probably do the same if she were in church today---and that would be real and powerful "ministry" in the eyes of the Lord.
Church is impressed with those who make noise and bark around to prove they are the best. But one poster I saw put it succinctly: "Lighthouses don't bark to prove they are lighthouses. They simply shine." Real generals of the Kingdom are the least among us and who never care about themselves or their standing in men's eyes (never makes noise to prove their worth), but only for the King. If you're a simple, ordinary member of the church but possesses Jesus' kind of faith, his heart and his character, you may be among GOD's genuine spiritual generals. It's God's next move.
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