Which Servant of the King Will You Be?

 God's Work Among the Nations: Which Servant of the King Will You Be?

In the previous article we saw how God’s plan for the nations includes not only redemption, but also just judgment and righteous ruling. We know “that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow” (Phil 2:10). And we know that our proclamation of the Good News of Christ’s Kingdom includes both a warning to repent because of the judgment to come and also the promise of eternal life through the sacrificial death of Jesus. What will happen to those who do not believe the Good News? What will happen to individuals among the nations who fall under God’s condemnation? The book of revelation describes how the people of the nations who undergo God’s cataclysmic judgment of the earth are those who refuse to repent.

The rest of the people, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands to stop worshiping demons and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which are not able to see, hear, or walk. And they did not repent of their murders, their sorceries, their sexual immorality, or their thefts. (Rev. 9:20-21)

…and blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, yet they did not repent of their actions. (Rev. 16:11)

We could rightly say that there are two kinds of people on the earth, those who repent and those who do not repent - the sheep and the goats. So we can see the vital necessity of spreading the Good News across the earth in preparation for Christ’s kingdom. Interestingly, there is a third group of people who Jesus taught about. We don’t know if this third group ultimately repents in their future - there are likely some who do and some who don’t repent. This third group is composed of those who are jealous of sinners who come to repentance.

'Your brother is here,' he told him, 'and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.' "Then he became angry and didn't want to go in. So his father came out and pleaded with him. (Lk. 15:27-28)

 When those who were hired about five came, they each received one denarius. So when the first ones came, they assumed they would get more, but they also received a denarius each. When they received it, they began to complain to the landowner: 'These last men put in one hour, and you made them equal to us who bore the burden of the day and the burning heat!' (Matt. 20:9-12)

Jesus reserved His most severe verbal judgments on those Pharisees who attempted to hinder His ministry among repentant sinners who were looked down upon in society. There can often be a group of religious, self-righteous individuals whose attitude is contrary to the spread of the gospel. Like Judea during the time of Christ, there can be modern-day Pharisees in churches who are so concerned with personal holiness according to man-made laws that they can become disinterested with welcoming repentant sinners into believing congregations. We need to be on guard against an attitude that is in opposition to God’s plan for the nations.

We will look forward to the day when we can see the fulfillment of John’s vision:

Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look! God’s dwelling is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will no longer exist; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things have passed away (Rev. 21:3-4).

Thought for prayer and meditation: Lord, help us have a heart of repentance and faith. Help us to love others in both grace and truth.