Daily EncouragementSample

He is not leading a rebellion, because rebellions have to do with earthly kingdoms which rise and fall and pass away. “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight” (John 18:36). It is “a kingdom that cannot be shaken” (Heb. 12:28). Our Lord and his followers respect the rulers of earth’s kingdoms because they know that those rulers are subject to the kingdom of God. He is not leading a rebellion, because his methods are different from those of earth’s revolutionaries. He is not planning the planting of bombs, he is “teaching in the temple courts.” He is not promising the crowds bread in order that they will make him their king - he is king already, and he calls us to submit to him, following in his steps that led to the cross “so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness” (1 Pet. 2:21-24). He is not leading a rebellion, because his accomplishments are more powerful and far-reaching than that. He deals with man’s essential problem, which is his sin. He is building for eternity and yet his influence on time is amazing. Revival can change a community for good in weeks, and the influence of one of his followers - a Lord Shaftesbury, for example - a whole nation.