THE KINGDOM #1: HAPPILY EVER AFTER
OPENING TEXTS:
We are called to seek first the kingdom of God. What is that?
“John the Baptist came preaching, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt. 3:1-2).
“Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt. 4:17).
“Jesus said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent.” (Luke 4:43).
“Jesus has made us kings and priests to His God and Father.” (Rev. 1:6).
“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.” (1 Peter 2:9).
“Those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.” (Rom. 5:17).
In my Bible, I use a colour-coding system to identify different themes: Jesus the Saviour (red), Jesus the Healer (blue), Jesus the Baptiser (yellow) and Jesus the coming King and the Kingdom (purple).
THE BIG IDEA: God has invited us to enter into the Kingdom of God and experience a transformed life. Like the story of Cinderella, we, the bride of Christ, are destined to live happily ever after in Heaven with the Prince of Peace – Jesus.
FAIRY TALES AND MOVIES:
Why do we love fairy tales, and fantasy movies? We love stories that tell of transformation.
QUOTE: “In the original Beauty and the Beast… a creature that no one could bear to look upon is transformed into a handsome prince. That which was dark and ugly is now glorious and good. Is it not the most beautiful outcome of any story to be written? Perhaps that is because it is the deepest yearning of the human heart. Look how often this theme surfaces. Cinderella rises from the cinders to become a queen. The ugly duckling becomes a beautiful swan. Pinocchio becomes a real boy. The frog becomes a prince… In hope beyond hope, they are all transformed into the very thing they never thought they could be. Why are we enchanted by tales of transformed? Why is it an essential part of any great story? Because it is the secret of Christianity.” (John Eldredge, Waking the Dead).
• Christianity is not just about trying to be religious or being good – it’s about experiencing new life in Christ – entering the Kingdom of God, and being transformed!
• Are you addicted to drugs or alcohol or pornography? Struggling with depression? Have you dreamed that you could one day be free? This is the message of the Kingdom!
WE SEE KINGDOM THEOLOGY IN NURSERY RHYMES TOO:
• Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
• All the king’s horses and all the king’s men, Couldn’t put Humpty together again.
• Jack and Jill went up a hill to fetch a pail of water.
• Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill cam tumbling after
• Rock-a-bye baby, in the treetop, When the wind blows, the cradle will rock,
• When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall, And down will come baby, cradle and all.
• When we go somewhere we’re not supposed to go (high places / pride) we will fall!
THE CLASSIC FAIRY TALE STORY OUTLINE:
1. Hope and Promise
2. Loneliness and Despair
3. A Spark of Light (Romance)
4. Loss and Hopelessness
5. The Promise of Love / No possibility of guy/girl coming together
6. Couple finds each other, gets married and lives happily ever after
THE STORY OF CINDERELLA:
• Born with hope and promise.
• Loneliness and despair – when mother dies, father remarries wicked step-mother.
• Heroine works in rags, cleaning up cinders. Spark of light – invitation to the ball.
• Loss and hopelessness – dress ruined, step-mother says she must clean the house.
• The promise of love – enter fairy godmother – transformation into princess.
• Hope lost – midnight hour.
• Knock at the door – couple finds each other, gets married, live happily ever after.
THE CINDERELLA STORY IN THE BIBLE:
• Cinderella = Adam and Eve (and us) – created by God with great destiny.
• Enter the wicked stepmother = Satan and his demons.
• Glimpses of hope and light throughout the OT.
• Then – the Prince arrives, cheering and celebrating.
• But – the Prince is murdered by the villain. Hope lost? No!
• Surprise twist = Jesus is raised from the dead, the Prince wins His bride.
• When we enter the Kingdom of God through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, our lives are forever transformed!
• The story ends: “And the Prince, who was now the King, and his bride lived happily ever after.” Our “happily ever after” is to live forever in the paradise of Heaven with Jesus!
“And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.” (Revelation 22:3-5).
CLOSING – HOW TO ENTER THE KINGDOM:
“1 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 Again, he sent out other servants, saying, Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." 5 But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 Then he said to his servants, ’The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.’ 10 So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 So he said to him, ’Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the servants, ’Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 For many are called, but few are chosen.” (Matthew 22:1-14).
“Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, saying, "The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15).
• How do we enter the Kingdom of God?
• You can go to church your whole life and not enter the kingdom!
• You must repent (turn from your sins and turn to God) and believe (put your faith in) Jesus as YOUR King to enter the Kingdom of God.
ALTAR CALL FOR SALVATION
Beausejour Community Church Website: www.beausejourchurch.ca
Pastor Chris Jordan’s Blog: http://thelandofpromise.blogspot.com/
Note: Thanks to Pastor Barry Buzza for his message “Dancing with the King” that inspired parts of this message.
