The Discipleship of Jesus Christ

Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: The Work of Holy Spirit: The Discipleship of Jesus Christ

Scripture: Matthew 28:18,19

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

When Jesus met back with His disciples after His resurrection He said to them “All power is given unto me in Heaven and in earth.” (Matthew 28:18). Now we understand that Jesus is the source of the power and authority of the Kingdom of God. Now Jesus then gives the Great Commission to His disciples in Matthew 28:19,20: “Go ye therefore and teach (disciple) all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” Now did the disciples know exactly what to do? Of course, Jesus told them exactly what to do? But, How did Jesus know what to do while He was on Earth? Jesus was discipled. Now I have already talked about this so I will not dwell on it. From age 12 to 30, Jesus was learning and being discipled in the ways and character of His Father, God. He submitted His entire being to be the full exact representation of the Father in the Earth. This required Jesus to sacrifice His right to rule His life and submit, soul, spirit and flesh to the Father’s Will. Jesus, before the baptism, was not mature to handle the Father’s business. So the ministry of Jesus Christ did not start or begin on earth until the age of 30. So if Jesus gave up His right to rule then He was being lead by someone. Let me show you who? Matthew 3:17-Matthew 4:1:

“And lo a voice from Heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.”

Now if you see what the scripture says, it says that Jesus was lead by the Spirit. Holy Spirit is the one who led Jesus to the wilderness. So because Jesus submitted everything to the Father, He was led by the Spirit of God in every decision, word and action. This is how Jesus knew exactly what to do and what to say because He was led. Jesus said it best Himself to His disciples in John 5:19: “The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.” Jesus showed the disciples, including us, what it meant to be lead by Holy Spirit. It is the role of Holy Spirit to lead us and guide us in experiencing and living the Kingdom culture and fulfillment of our destiny. Now notice in the Great Commission Jesus did not send the disciples to teach the nations how to obey the Old Testament or the New Testament, He is sending the disciples to teach the people how to obey Holy Spirit moment by moment. Jesus is the one that sends the Holy Spirit to us to bring His power and authority to the earth. John 15:26: “But when the Comforter (Holy Spirit) is come, whom I (Jesus) will send unto you from the Father, He (Holy Spirit) shall testify of me (Jesus).” Does Jesus have the power to send Holy Spirit to us? Of course He does even if He told you because we know His words are truth. But in case you may doubt what gives Him the authority is the declaration after the resurrection in Matthew 28:18. Now we have discussed the fact that we are to be lead by Holy Spirit and He will guide us and disciple us in Kingdom culture. But what is the correlation between the coming of Holy Spirit and the coming of the Kingdom. We will take a look at that in the next message.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

The Work of Holy Spirit

Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: The Work of Holy Spirit

Scripture: Romans 14:17,18

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

In the next one to two messages we will look at this most important topic. How does the work of Holy Spirit correspond to the culture of the Kingdom? We understand that it is Holy Spirit’s power and authority to interpret Scriptures and give us revelation. Now the central work of the Holy Spirit is found here in Romans 14:17,18:

“For the Kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but in righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God and approved of men.”

So the result and evidence of the Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the citizens of the Kingdom. Now if we look at what we call today “the church”. It is evident that culture and in some places the knowledge of Kingdom of God is absent. Let me show you. The present church does not represent a heavenly culture. It either represents a historic culture (such as the Roman church and all it’s offspring) or an ad-hoc culture which includes the Charismatic and some evangelical churches, especially the mega church. As it pertains to the ad-hoc culture it is the culture of the guy in charge and he makes it up as he goes along. It becomes a mixture of tradition and marketing. For example, if he came out of the baptist church then his core doctrine is baptist but the way he applies those doctrines will be based upon the market he is targeting. This is why we see so many churches using gimmicks and cultural entertainment to draw people into their church for membership. Forget about trying to disciple them because they were drawn by your methods and gimmicks and not be the Spirit of God. Now what further complicates the issue is when the church will cry out against the decline of society but on the same hand they are also contributing to its downfall. So what is the answer to this problem? The answer is the Culture of the Kingdom.

It is time for us to repent and focus on the Kingdom and living in the culture of the Kingdom. Now you must be aware of the current situation in the church. Many people have not heard of the Gospel of the Kingdom let alone the present day operation of the Kingdom of God on Earth. Now you have to allow Holy Spirit to show you this in your own respective churches.

1. Is the Gospel of the Kingdom being taught?

2. Is the Gospel of the Kingdom being preached?

3. Does your church believe in the Kingdom of God being present now and functioning in the Earth?

4. Does your church believe that the Kingdom of God has not come but still is to come?

Now the answer to #1 and #2 “should” be yes because it is the central message of Jesus Christ but depending upon how you answer #3 and #4 determines the culture within your church. If you answer yes to #3 then if the leadership is teaching, preaching and living in the Kingdom of God then your church should exemplify Kingdom culture. However if you answer yes to #4 then your church’s doctrine and purpose for saving people is for them to go to Heaven. Now we do have churches and denominations that believe that the Kingdom of God has not come yet but will come with the Return of the Lord. Now if this is the case then the gospel that is being preached emphasizes gong to Heaven and not living in the Kingdom of God on earth. The entire ministry of Jesus Christ was to show us the Father and the culture of the Kingdom. This required Jesus to be discipled. Huh? Jesus, the Son of God, had to be discipled?

In the next message we will look at that last question and show you the work of Holy Spirit with Jesus. Very interesting, but a scripturally sound concept that we must know if we are to live in the culture of the Kingdom.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Tradition vs. Kingdom

Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: Interpretation of Scriptures Part 2: Tradition vs. Kingdom

Scripture: Matthew 16:18; Matthew 4:17; Matthew 6:33; Luke 4:43;

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

In the last message we took a tiny glimpse into the traditional way the Scriptures are interpreted and realized that when you base the scriptures off of your traditions then you are being lead by the tradition and not the Spirit of God. Let me give you an example. People who take the historical (traditional) interpretation of the Scriptures tend to use phrases such as “We are the keepers of the traditions…” or “We are the real church of Christ because..” For example some people say that the Catholic church is the real church that Christ established because their church is a direct lineage from Peter. They tend to use Matthew 16:18 as the reason how Peter is the one who first received authority to rule over the church by His confession. I have ran into people who state (so if it is not true please find those people and correct them) that the “Church of Christ (which is a denomination)” is the true church of Christ and I have been given literature and all of this stuff but what it shows is where the foundation of their faith is. When you make statements like the one above or similar your mindset is a traditional, institutional mindset that has been influenced by the doctrines of men. They do not talk about the Kingdom of God in the sense of it being present currently and can relatively even talk about it at all. So what culture are they promoting? Many of those institutional models say they have a lineage such as the Roman church who state that their historical lineage is from Peter and then after Peter is this person and after that person there is this person. So it makes the church have a physical lineage for its existence and relevance. The Kingdom of God, the central message of Jesus Christ, is not physical and our lineage as born again believers, Kingdom citizens and sons of God is NOT PHYSICAL. It is spiritual. The Kingdom is spiritual, it cannot be seen with the natural eye.

Can we stick with Jesus please? Is He not the Lord and the Christ? Jesus is the pattern Son and has been given to us to bring us to the Father, in Himself (The Body of Christ). So our understanding of the scripture needs to come from the source of the power and authority to give the interpretation and that is the Lord. Now where am I going with this? Without Kingdom culture you cannot properly understand the scriptures. There is no coincidence that Jesus comes with a message to repent for Kingdom of Heaven is at hand (Matthew 4:17). There is no coincidence that Jesus was sent to preach the Kingdom of God (Luke 4:43). There is no coincidence that Jesus would tell the multitudes to “Seek FIRST the Kingdom of God…” (Matthew 6:33). It is all about the Kingdom. This Kingdom not only has citizens but it is also a family of sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty. So it is the uttermost of importance that the church you belong to foster the Kingdom culture and the central message of that church should be the Kingdom of God. It is not about who succeeds who. Being a son of God is about being born from above. Now once you are born from above and received Holy Spirit then your understanding of the scriptures should change in the sense that you are to be lead by Holy Spirit in everything you do, including receiving revelation and interpretation of Scriptures. See many of those traditional religious institutions have derived their own interpretation and called it God and when confronted with the real truth, they cannot support it with the Scripture, just with what they have heard. Hence we still see a decline in the spiritual growth of people because they have been lead to believe in the doctrine of the institution and not the Gospel of the Kingdom. To understand the heart of the Kingdom, you must understand the work of the Holy Spirit.

In the next message we will look at the work of the Holy Spirit in understanding the Kingdom and discipling sons in its culture.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Interpretation of Scripture

Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: Interpretation of Scriptures

Scripture: Genesis 1:26; Luke 3:38; John 1:12; Romans 8:19;

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

The progression of a culture is largely dependent on what people know and how they interpret what they know. As time changed, so did our society and culture change. One of the changes I have seen that happen almost overnight was in the music industry. Now I do not agree with much of what the industry does or the messages it portrays. But as an example let me show you. In the early 90’s we saw the Pop culture really flourish. It was a culture that saw dancing and entertainment be the driving force and less really on singing ability. Just as the pop culture grew it was like overnight that the pop culture just seem to diminish and give way to the dominance of the hip-hop culture. Now these cultures are only as strong as people know and perceive about them. If we look at our society, we have to say the hip-hop and heavy metal culture has had a significant influence on our culture in a negative way from dressing, to attitude and even to spirituality and the blasphemy of Jesus Christ. But these things in the end will fade and die but at what cost and how many lives. Now depending upon the culture you live in, much of what you understand and interpret from the Scriptures is what you know and how you act towards them. There are two types of interpretations of the Scriptures that are present and dominant in the church. The reason these are dominant is because of the state of the church. There is the traditional interpretation and ad-hoc interpretation.

Traditional interpretation is when the traditions that you have interpret the Scriptures and the Ad-hoc interpretation is when you pull Scripture out of the Bible and quote it in support of anything you want to do as a contemporary initiative. In both cases the goal is to get someone to believe your argument or your perspective. Now the culture of the Kingdom offers a completely different way to interpret the Scriptures. First we must know that the things of God do not change from year to year. Everything that God does is absolute and consistent because He knows the end from the beginning. Hence what God tells you is already what He foreknown. So when it comes to interpreting the Scriptures in the Kingdom of God, it is not up to the sons of God to interpret. It is for the Holy Spirit to give us the interpretation so that the words we speak are not those of truth from our own mind, but from the mind of God because we are Ambassadors and Ambassadors only speak what the leader of the nation speaks. In our sense we only speak the words of the King and our Lord, Jesus Christ. Now let me give you an example of how the interpretation of Scripture from the Lord brings about absolute truths and not truths that change with time.

The purpose for God creating man was for Him to have a relationship with man as a son of God. Hence this is why when God created Adam He called him His son (Luke 3:38). God gave His son, Adam dominion to rule and take care of the Earth. The creation loved man because they would see the Creator in him. Now when mankind sinned in the Garden the relationship between God and man was severed so God always intending to have a relationship with man as His sons, He sent His Son, Jesus to the earth so that we can be reconciled back to the Father as His sons (John 1:12). Hence we have the scripture in Romans 8:19: For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.” Why? It is because it was God original purpose and the creation will see the Creator once again in mankind ruling as His sons. So the beginning started with the sons of God and the end concludes with the sons of God. So even though time and culture has changed, God has not changed and His original purpose will be fulfilled, with the sons of God ruling on Earth.

So the eternal truths surpass the realm of time, but God brings them to us who live in the pocket called time and allows the eternal to impact time and continue. This is what the culture of the Kingdom is currently doing for those who are a part of it. They realize who they are and their function in the Earth. The interpretation of scripture which is given to them Holy Spirit leads to revelatory truths that are confirmed and mature the body of Christ in the culture of the Kingdom. In the next message we will look at the current church culture and how it differs from the Culture of the Kingdom.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Discipleship

Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: Discipleship

Scripture: Matthew 28:18,19

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

Now that we understand how we are translated into the Kingdom of God. Now begins the journey to experiencing the Kingdom culture. It starts with discipleship. Why does it start with discipleship? Now that you have come into the Kingdom, you still do not know or understand the culture of the Kingdom. So God has special sisters and brothers that are to disciple you in the ways and character of the Father to mature you so that you can handle the affairs of the Kingdom. Let’s look at this scripture because we have read it and read it but do we understand the directions and command of our Lord Jesus Christ. Matthew 28:18,19

“And Jesus came and spake unto them saying, All power is given unto me in Heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost”

Now, Jesus makes the declaration that all power is given unto Him in Heaven and on Earth. So Jesus is the source of the power for us. Now, He tells His disciples to Go and teach all nations. Now the word teach in the Greek is Matheteuo. Matheteuo means disciple. So you can read the scripture in the original Greek as “Go you therefore and disciple all nations.” Now before we look at this remember, God selected 12 disciples for Jesus.. Even though there were some 70 other people who came along and were called disciples there was specifically 12 that God gave to Jesus for Him to disciple. Now Jesus was discipling them into maturity knowing that His time on Earth would be short and the ministry and the culture of the Kingdom would continue starting with the original 12 disciples that walked with the Lord. Now if Jesus knew how to disciple the disciples, how was Jesus discipled? Jesus was discipled by the Father throughout His life, particularly from age 12 to 30 because it was this time that He would come into maturity to handle the affairs of the Kingdom and demonstrate Kingdom culture. Now Jesus has prepared these 12 disciples and told them to go disciple all nations. The word nations in the Greek is Ethnos meaning a nation of people. Jesus told them to disciple all nations. That means the entire world. This declaration and decree is what is called the Great Commission. This is not some optional thing that believers do. This is the commission to the sons of God that we are discipled and then go out and disciple the nations. The mistake that is made is the belief that it is the pastor’s responsibility to teach the flock. The pastor is an overseer and on some levels they are to teach the flock but teaching and discipling is not just delegated to the pastor but to the Body of Christ. But what can you disciple if you yourself have not been discipled, let alone spent study time with the Lord.

Now what has happened is we do not disciple the nations but make converts and church members. Now there is just a membership drive going on in the church and the people are becoming more ignorant to the culture of the Kingdom and ways and character of God. The church then really has no place to go in their mind but to turn to society because they have gone so far off base and they have to now do what society does to feel relevant and call it God. Now I do not fully blame the people for their ignorance in as much as I blame man’s systems and traditions. You have to be personally accountable for your life but there are also other that have accountability. So when the pastor or bishop see the people lacking in the knowledge of God they want to blame the people but they need to look at the systems in place to see if the system is broken. I am a strong believer in the Word of God being the centerpiece and less singing and “fluff” during worship services because it is the time that we as believers need to be discipled and hear from Heaven, the direction the King wants us to go in. We as a church have to get back to the Great Commission and disciple all nations. That means it will require to fight spirits of racism and social myths to do what Jesus asked us to do. The commission is for all nations not just your nation or race.

To begin to experience the Kingdom culture there has to be a spirit of discipleship and a heart and love for the people of God and those who have yet to come into the Kingdom to go out in the vineyard and labor for the Lord. Are you willing to be discipled? It is a part of the culture of the Kingdom.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Understanding Translation

Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: Understanding Translation

Scripture: Colossians 1:13, Ephesians 2:5,6

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

So what happens when God reconciles us and translates us? What does it all mean? For most people it is all about going to Heaven and once again, Heaven is a natural end-result for anyone who is saved. But let’s look at this word “translated” in Colossians 1:13. First let’s look at the scripture. Colossians 1:13:

“Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”

So God delivered us from the Kingdom of Darkness and translated us into the Kingdom of His Son. Now the word translated in the Greek “Methistemi” it is two words together, meta meaning to denote change of place and histemi meaning to place or stand. So the word translated (Methistemi) means to denote change from one place to another. So why would God want to change us from the Kingdom of Darkness to the Kingdom of His Son? Once again, this is more than about being saved and going to Heaven. First we must understand the correlation between darkness and light. In Colossians 1:12 we see in the latter part that we are to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light. In Hebrew light is symbolic of knowledge and darkness is symbolic or ignorance. When you are in the Kingdom of Darkness, all of your decisions are made in darkness. However when we are translated into the Kingdom of Light then are decisions are made based on truth but it is where we are translated that is the source of our decision making process. So let’s look at this.

Ephesians 2:5,6: “Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved), And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Do we see this! When we are translated God sits us together with Christ in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Remember we talked about the difference between Jesus Christ and Christ Jesus. Christ Jesus is in reference to being in enveloped in the anointing and the full measure of the Christ. But when God does this He does not remove us from the Earth to do this. Because we are in Christ Jesus and we are in the Body of Christ then wherever Christ is so are we. Christ currently sits on the throne in Heaven hence denoting in the scripture that we sit with Christ in heavenly places in Christ. So when we make decisions our decisions should be now made from the throne in Heaven from Jesus Christ. We are able to actually see the end from the beginning because the one who we receive the information from knows the end from the beginning. So being translated means more than just going to Heaven it is about now being able to make decisions based on the truth we receive from the throne in Heaven. Now before I end this message I want to look back at Colossians 1:13 and clarify something.

When the scriptures speak of “the Kingdom of His dear Son” there is no contradiction or other kingdom. The Kingdom of His Dear Son is also called:

1. The Kingdom of the Son of God

2. The Kingdom of Light

3. The Kingdom of Heaven

4. The Kingdom of God

So we are still talking about the Kingdom of God. Now that we know that our decisions are made from the throne of God this means we now can make decisions that foster the Kingdom culture and environment in our lives as well as those around us so they can see the Kingdom that we are citizens in and the household we belong to. In the next message we will see the result and the purpose of being translated and making decisions from the throne of God.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

A Kingdom Concept or Heaven Concept

Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: Salvation: A Kingdom Concept or Heaven Concept

Scripture: Colossians 1:12,13; Ephesians 2:6,7

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

Now in the last message we stated just by looking at the youth that there is a need for Kingdom Culture to arise in our various churches. We are aware that there is an identity crises in the church and this results in a loss of purpose and function in the earth. But what has happened? Where are the people like Paul and where did it go wrong for the church today? Well we know we are lacking understanding to what Kingdom culture is but where does the problem begin? It begins at the beginning. Why do people want to be saved? The answer lies in this very question. What has the church made salvation all about? When do not understand this everything after that can be potentially flawed and will be influenced by Satan to mislead you away from your purpose.

The church as we know it today for the most part has no concept of Kingdom. The preaching, teaching and understanding of the Kingdom is really just in the past 20 to 30 years started to take flight again because Paul understood what the culture of the Kingdom was all about but today we do not. Because we do not understand Kingdom we adopt reasons, regardless if they are scriptural or not, to why people should be saved. The biggest one the church uses is so that you will go to Heaven and not Hell. Is this true? Yes! But is it the reason we get saved? Based upon the scriptures, it is not. The reason for the most part people get saved is to be relieved from the burden of sin by the work of Jesus on the cross and go to heaven. The church has made the goal of salvation to go to Heaven. This has become the main “selling-point” or mandate the church uses to get people saved. Here is a revelation:

“Heaven is an end result, but it is not the Goal!”

If Heaven was the goal then there is no more need to stay down here after being saved. I should just be changed and go up to heaven and live with Jesus. That is not what Jesus taught nor exemplified. Jesus stated for us to “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand”. The church has made salvation about going to Heaven. The natural end-result of you being saved is going to Heaven. Jesus after His baptism did not go to Heaven immediately, he exemplified the culture of the Kingdom and taught His disciples how to live and function in the Kingdom of God on Earth. The church has made the Kingdom of God something that is to come later and really speaks nothing to its current operation in the earth presently. The Kingdom of God is present on the earth now and eternal to come. The reason you are saved is to operate and live in the Kingdom of God on earth. What do we think the books and letters of Matthew to Revelation is all about. It is teaching us how to live and what to expect on earth, not what will happen in Heaven per say. It does tells us the events that will but for the most part it teaches and instructs us on Kingdom culture and learning how to rule again on earth. Let’s look at this scripture: Colossians 1:12,13:

“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints of light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son.”

Now if you read this we see that we are to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints of light. What is the inheritance of the saints? The Kingdom of God is the inheritance. Now Paul goes on to further re-emphasize this point in verse 13 when he says we were delivered from the powers of darkness and translated us to the Kingdom of His dear Son. So the key to us being saved is the translation from darkness to light. In the next message we will look at the translation and get an understanding to show how important it is for us to embrace the Kingdom concept and Kingdom culture.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Youth and the Current Church Culture

Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: Introduction: The Youth and The Current Church Culture

Scripture: Colossians 1:12,13; Ephesians 2:6,7

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

Now this is a passionate topic for me because I work with youth and I understand that they are having a hard time differentiating the true church and reality from what they are seeing today as church. Hence we have a litany of youth turning their back on the church. I stated a few of the problems that the church is having in the past messages. We also stated that because of a lack of identity and understanding it’s function in the earth, the church has adopted the earthly cultures of societies and tried to make itself relevant in their mission to save souls and this is another issue altogether that we will deal with in the upcoming message. But what are the youth seeing that is turning them away from the church. Let me state a few and this is from youth that I have spoken to:

1. The youth today understands that the church should be a place of refuge from the harsh realities of life. But what they have seen is the church looks no different from what they experience daily in their own lives

2. They see adultery in the leadership and gossiping amongst the members

3. They see homosexuality be promoted just because someone has a talent.

4. They see members act one way on Sunday then Monday through Friday they act just like satan.

5. They fear the stares and whispering they will receive about opening up and telling their story in the plea for help.

6. They see the corruption of money and the lack of stewardship with the church resources for personal gain

Now these are just a few issues but some of the most prominent issues. Many of the youth that we have today in the church fall into two categories. They are either children who were born into that church so their membership is “birthed” in that church. On the other hand they are children of members who have concentrated on music and culture to attract young people to the church. Now let’s deal with the first.

Youth that are inherently born into the church, if trained and raised properly in the Word of God usually are fine. However that depends upon the doctrine of the church and whether it is the doctrine established by God or of man. These children who grow in the Word and God shows them the Word and the truth behind what they see can be seen as almost rogues or enemies of the state and let me explain. They ask questions that need answers and they come against the institution in love and truth to try to explain why we should change. One example that I have encountered is the church has no business having Easter egg hunts or participating in them. Now I am seen as radical for that stance but the question is, “is it right to do so?” Well if Easter and its origin is pagan and false god worship then that should be the end of it for the church. But because it has become traditional and we do it for the children to have fun then we see nothing wrong. Then when the truth comes because we have accepted in our minds, not God’s mind, that it is ok and we see no harm then we become no better that the companies the commercialize it and further take away the significance of the truth which is we are to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Hence I call it Resurrection Day. But these children are seen as radical and out of step with the current church culture leading to them many times leaving their current place.

Second we have the youth that are members through worldly culture and music. I have said this before, Jesus did not need any music to draw anybody. Jesus did not need a gimmick to draw anybody. Jesus submitted body, soul and spirit to the Father and allowed the Father to live through Him. Now, when you draw youth in with music and social culture then you have to sustain them there with it and if you know the current culture, music changes consistently. Now if music changes that often, then what the church does is, they have to change to stay relevant to keep them. The church is now further moving away from Christ drawing to having to use music and culture to draw. What that shows is there is an atmosphere of entertainment in the church that needs to be changed. Now do not get me wrong, God has music that He loves, but He is the one that draws and it is the Word of God that pricks the persons heart. The only time that I have read about Jesus singing was when they went to the Mount of Olives where they were singing a hymn. So even with this Jesus was with His disciples and Jesus did not sing to the multitudes to draw them in. The devil used music and setting the atmosphere to influence the heavenly angels to rebel against God. In these last days the true sons of God will see this and turn away from these centers of entertainment because they know that there is nothing spiritually prosperous going on. We see the rise of Gospel competitions putting people against people and choirs against choirs. What is this mess? When did God want any type of competition? But even worse and I have to give the devil credit for this, he influences the gospel artists to head this thing up and judge people on their singing abilities. That means you have someone judging another on their heart and possibly tearing down their hope.

It is time for us to be serious about the Word of God and start ushering in the Kingdom culture. This is the culture that will stand when the world pass away. This is the culture that will stand when everything in the worldly systems are not working and the youth today is looking for the place of refuge and that culture which is the Kingdom of God.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.

Culture of the Kingdom: Introduction

Series: Culture of the Kingdom

Today’s Topic: Introduction

Scripture: Colossians 1:12,13; Ephesians 2:6,7

Greetings Kingdom Citizens

When we look at the word culture we see it defined as a state or form of civilization. The culture of a civilization is the identity of that civilization. If this is the case then if we look at the church, the sons of God or the body of believers, then we can conclusively say we have an identity problem. What is the culture of the Kingdom of God all about? What is our very identity? The church has lost its identity and since it has lost its identity, it has lost its function in the earth. Well what has happened and what is the reason for this? When you do not know who you are and the way you are to conduct yourself then you adopt other cultures that are around that influence you. Now when you do that you lose relevance to your true identity and the culture you should be maintain. So when we look at the state of the church we see that the various cultures of societies have infiltrated the church and because we lack identity we tend to conform to those ideals of those cultures and try to make them relevant to the church. We now contribute to a problem that we are to actually have a solution to. For example:

Catholic Church was faced with having to deal with priests abusing children in a society that sees this perverse condition on the rise. Instead of dealing with the problem immediately as God would deal with it, they tried to hide it by shuffling priests from parish to parish and even on some levels pay people off for their silence to save face. So instead of protecting children and this is what God would do, the abuse was allowed to continue until the Pope had to make a humble and embarrassing apology in the United States to the members of the Catholic church and to the rest of the nation.

The Anglican Church of England (Episcopalian Church in America) has started ordaining homosexual bishops. Now it is evident that the spirit of homosexuality is a growing situation and instead of standing on the Word of God they folded to the culture around them to make them “think” they are relevant.

Evangelicals in America have a history of supporting the Republican party. They have become so desperate that they would stand behind and put their vote on a Mormon or even someone who does not profess to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Why would they do that? It is because they derive their power from their connection to the political parties. In turn, we vote for someone either for history’s sake and what I mean, just to put someone in office to say we made history regardless if they support homosexuality and abortion? So forget about allowing the Holy Spirit to put His representative in a place of leadership to bring the Kingdom influence to the nation, we want to congregate and put our vote on who we perceive has the power. Or we congregate to the person who we want in office to see what we believe come to fruition even if it goes against the laws of the Almighty God. But who better to congregate with than Jesus? Now I am neither Republican nor Democrat but what I am saying is the church, because it lacks identity and understanding the Kingdom culture, it takes on the cultures surrounding it, regardless of the problems and conflicts it has with the Word of God and the Kingdom. Instead of being the change God calls it to be, holy and set-apart, it contributes to the problems and finds it hard to offer any solutions.

What makes this situation even worse is this generation of youth is seeing the hypocrisy and are turning away from the church because it sees it as not being relevant but just like society. In the next message we will look at the current situation and relationship between the youth and the churches.

At the Father’s Service,

Elder Calvin Calhoun Jr.