Government Closed: The Kingdom Still Open

Are we not supposed to have some of the smartest leaders in the world?  Are we not supposed to have the example of government for other world nations to follow?  What has happened?

No matter how bright of people you gather together, no matter how perfected a system, no matter how carefully distributed the power, we run into catastrophic shutdowns.

We could easily replace all the House, and the Senate, and other powers and positions with brighter more fairly minded people, yet eventually we would run into similar problems, or a whole set of new ones.

The limits of the great Pax Americana are rearing their ugly head.  And while it may be all too obvious of a statement now, I feel it must be said that the Kingdom of God is not the same as the authority of the United States.

The very best solution that our government could stumble upon will ultimately fall short of God's Kingdom.  This does not mean that government cannot be good, but that it is hopelessly limited.  While it is perfectly reasonable to want your government to make civil, thoughtful, and well-meaning policies and procedures, it is foolish to think the government can and will provide for every need.   Our government, nor any other, can provide sufficient security, ample health, meaningful peace, lasting international relationships, unity, honest justice, happiness, or purpose. 

We can look at the world around us and see that it is not government that provides these things.  There are people who have all these without a healthy government.  That is because these things are not offered by human rule, but by the Kingdom of God.  Christ Jesus is the creator of all things including thrones, and dominions, and rulers and powers (Col. 1:16).  It is in him all things hold together (17) because it is in him alone that the fullness of God was pleased to dwell (19).  Things do not hold together by any form of government except by the government of Jesus Christ.  That government is not a democracy, a republic, a dictatorship, or oligarchy, but a monarchy; it is a kingdom, the Kingdom of God.  Things outside the Kingdom will eventually fall apart because Christ holds all things together.  Leaders will stumble and fall because Christ alone as all the fullness of God.  He created true power and authority, so any rule that excludes him excludes true power and authority.

We should not be surprised that we are in the situation we are in.  We have a vast amount of people who lead with their pride.  True leadership needs to lead with humility.  True leadership needs to seek not the kingdom of their own self-interest but the Kingdom of God,.  If leaders seek first what is true, what is good, what is noble, and who is God, we become closer to living in the Kingdom.  And his Kingdom looks much better than any other government that ever has and ever will be fashioned.