Kingdom Currency

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Christianity, Currency, faith, Hope, Kingdom, love, time

Every country around the world has a form of currency they use for the exchange of goods and services. Some currency has a higher exchange rate than others, but in the end each currency is used for the same purpose, everywhere around the world. The kingdom of God is no different, the kingdom has a currency that people spend/save all the time, whether they realize it or not. Not being able to recognize the currency of the kingdom has caused many to go bankrupt, and for some without notice.

Since the early 90’s the church has been preaching prosperity, using verses that have nothing to do with money, while wondering why people are not getting what the church has promised. Prosperity in God’s kingdom has to do with his currency, not ours. Dollars, Ringgit, Euro’s, Yen, Peso’s, Franc’s are all currencies of earth and we have spent so much time pursuing these, we have neglected kingdom currency. So, what is the currency of the kingdom?

*Time: How you spend your time shows what you value. In the kingdom there is equality and we all have been given the same amount of time (24 hours in a day), but how we spend that time is determined by what you value. If you want to know what you value, evaluate what you spend your time on.

*Choices: Everyone has been given a free will, another equalizer in the kingdom, what we choose, whether to obey God or disobey God, determines our level of prosperity in the kingdom. Galatians 6:7-8 says, “Don’t be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit, will from the Spirit reap eternal life”.

*Words: Our words are our seeds that we plant and when they grow produce a harvest in our lives. What we sow, we grow, our words are our seeds. Mark 11:23-26 is speaking about our words that grow unforgiveness, unbelief, etc. Solomon said it best, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who live it will eat its fruit”. (Prov. 18:21)

*People: John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world (nations, ethnic groups of the world) that He gave His one and only Son…”. People are of an extremely high value in the kingdom of God, how you treat them is of the utmost importance to God.

*Faith: The more you agree with God, the more faith you get. The more you believe what you read in the word of God, the wealthier you are in the kingdom. Faith is walking in agreement with God.

*Hope: Confident expectation of good. No matter what you see, you know God is good. Romans 5:5 says, “Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit that was given to us”. Expectancy that God is always good.

*Love: The absence of fear! Fearless people are lovers and love wins.

I am sure there is so much more kingdom currency that others will be able to add to this list, but one thing I know for sure, God wants the content of our message to match our character, that is why 3 John 2 says, “May you prosper and be in good health, even as your soul prospers.” God delights in the prosperity of His children, so let’s be good stewards of the kingdom currency!

Submission Not Slavery

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Christianity, Hope, maturity, men, Revelation, Submission, women

2 Peter 2:19 “They promise them liberty, when they themselves are the

      the slaves of depravity and defilement – for by whatever

      anyone is made is made inferior or worse or is overcome, to

      that he is enslaved.”

Women are constantly bombarded with the scriptures that remind them they are to submit. Submission has become such a swear word to most women, because whenever they rise up to their rightful place as a woman of God, she is reminded by someone that she is supposed to submit. Submission has been misunderstood for many years and despite all the advances in knowledge, science and the internet, we still are unclear of what submission really is. Men know women are supposed to submit, other women know women are to submit, but very few understand what submission looks like.

Submission is a choice, just like every other command in the bible, it is a choice. God does not force us to submit, any more than He forces us to give, love or honor. Submission has been misunderstood because many believe submission means someone is less than the other, but that is not submission, that is slavery. Slavery is the devaluing of humanity in a hierarchal fashion. Submission does not devalue, it actually shows how much value someone really has. For someone to submit to another person, means they know who they are and are willing to submit themselves to who someone else is. Knowing full well, they are equal in their humanity, dignity and value as people, they choose to lay down their rights, in order to let another’s rights have preeminence in their life.

People who believe they are inferior to another are slaves of the one to whom they feel inferior to. In addition, anyone who seeks to make others inferior to themselves, is acting as a slave owner and is seeking those who will be their slaves. We are not commanded to obey anyone other than God. That is why submission is not slavery. Submission is a choice; it is a Philippians 2 attitude; it is a John 13 expression; it is showing that you are created in the image of God.

If you don’t know who you are, submission will become a stumbling block, for your inferiority and insecurities will tell you they want to make you their slave. But the truth is, God is not looking for slaves, He is wanting servants that have the same character qualities of His son, Jesus. Genesis 1:26-27 says, both male and female are created in the image of God, we are not inferior, nor superior to anyone, we are co-heirs with Christ. This is why we can choose to submit without fear of being a slave to anyone.