God is Taking Back His World!

Transcript S3E5

God is Taking Back His World!

[00:09] 

Hello, I'm Tony Kostas, and welcome to Led Into Love.

As I sit here tonight, I wasn't exactly planning on recording another episode. But with all the things that I've been sharing about relationship with God, and how much it means to me, and with this great desire of my heart that you will know Him like I do. I'm also aware that each one of you – like each, every … everyone … whoever you are listening to this – has a whole life. You know, I don't know if you ever drive down the street sometimes and drive past a lot of houses and think: ‘Within those houses are people that I will never know, and every one of those people has got a life. And that life is as complex and as detailed and as real to them as my life is to me.

[01:03] 

Whoever you are, I want to speak to you concerning your own life. So in everything I say, I depend on you taking those things literally to heart, and letting the things touch you where God wants to touch your life.

It might sound a bit of a strange way of putting it. What I mean is it's all too easy to try and take something – even something that's about God – when you've got a desire for God and try and look for a remedy, or an answer, or an explanation to kind of settle you down about something and give you something to grab hold of … give you something to make you feel better … give you some sort of hope.

But it's not the same thing as opening your life wide to God and letting Him actually come to you and touch your life where He wants to.

[02:06]

And this is particularly critical at this time in history, because in many ways there's never been a time like it. And that's as it should be, because the world is unfolding. You might say the world is unravelling. And that's true. But I mean, the world is unfolding. The events of this world are unfolding as God intends, because God's purpose is always to bring in His kingdom.

Even Jesus said, as you know, at the beginning of what we call ‘The Lord's Prayer’: “Our Father who is in Heaven, hallowed be your name. Your Kingdom come…”

Everything that's been happening throughout history – ever since the Garden of Eden and the events there that I often seem to refer back to. But ever since then, God has been heading forward for His purpose for this world.

Now, there's a difference between God's plan and God's purposes. People like to think of God having a plan – like it's some kind of rigid thing that, you know, God's worked it all out since before the Beginning, and then He's been implementing His plan. Well, in actual fact, if God had a plan at the beginning, that plan suddenly became derailed before the Beginning … hardly got going when Adam and Eve sinned.

[03:38] 

Our God doesn't have a plan so much as He has a purpose. Now, you could say God has many plans, like a good general or a commander of an army when he goes into a conflict situation. He's got his objectives, he's got His purpose, and he has a plan to reach that objective. He has a plan to do what he sets out to do, and he will start implementing it. But then his enemy, the opposition – those who don't want him to achieve his purposes, who want to achieve their purposes, will employ tactics.

And then he is always watching what they do. And he will keep changing and modifying what he's doing, because the one thing he will not change is his objective.

You translate that into God and His Kingdom. God's purpose has never changed. Ultimately, God will have back this world that the devil usurped – hijacked and took over for himself. Not this physical earth. The earth is still God's, like the rest of the universe is. 

But the world of mankind (or if we want to be a bit more contemporary humankind) of people – the world of people who, by and large, is more often subjected, or subject … in subject to … the power and the wiles and the lies of the devil who usurped this world – than they are to the wonder and the truth and the life and the way of God.

[05:30] 

Which is why, at one point, God's whole purpose hinged on the fact that His Son Jesus was willing to come and give Himself to achieve something that was going to cost Him and His Father an unimaginable price.

And we know that He achieved that. But the war wasn't over yet. And nor is it over,

nor is it over yet. But it's getting closer.

Jesus said to His disciples before He left them: …”in this world you'll have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.” Which could sound like a bit of encouraging pep-talk. But in fact He was saying: “Don't worry. I have done everything that is necessary for this world to once more return to its rightful King … its rightful Lord, and be part of His kingdom.”

But those who follow Jesus and allow themselves to be an expression of Him as God brings in His kingdom, have to face the fact that we are in a constant conflict situation. When Paul, the Apostle Paul, wrote about it he said, “We don't fight against flesh and blood. We are fighting against principalities and powers.”  And he's talking about spiritual power. He's not talking about human authorities and governments. It's the powers behind what is happening in this world that's been usurped by the devil.

[07:14] 

Now that's just a fact. That is the reality. That's why, with the devil ruling, the world can only go in one direction. Because Jesus spoke about the devil. He likened him to the thief who breaks into the sheep-pen. And He talked, and He likened Himself to the shepherd. He said, “I'm the good shepherd. I go in by the door. Every good shepherd goes in by the door of the pen and he leads the sheep out. He looks after them. But the thief breaks in by some other way and he comes to steal and to kill and to destroy.” And that's what the devil came to do and that's what he keeps doing.

The devil cannot give life. The devil is only the giver of death. Just like the devil could not speak truth because, the devil is the father of the lie. So, you know, there's that old saying: “The devil looks after his own”. No, he doesn't! The devil does not look after his own. The devil destroys his own along with everybody else, because he simply comes to steal, kill and destroy!

But we're not focusing on the devil, other than we are aware of him and we must be aware of him, and we mustn't be ignorant of all the tactics that he employs. We're very foolish if we do that.

We get to know his tactics in our lives and we can see his tactics in all sorts of ways. If our eyes are on God and then He shines a light on the things that we need to know.

But be real about that. But I'm telling you, do not be afraid of what is happening in this world.

Do not be afraid, particularly if you are a committed Christian. If you are a really passionate Christian, the last thing you should do – and the last thing you can afford to do – is be afraid of what is happening or what's going to happen.

[09:02] 

On the face of it, there's lots to be scared of. But you look at those early Christians. You look at the situation they inherited from Jesus … ‘Thank you very much!’ He died. Yes. And it was as awful and as agonizing as we understand it to be. But He went to His father and basically said, “Okay, guys. It's up to you now. I'll be with you by my Spirit, but you've got to go and do this now!”

Living for Jesus in these days is either an awful thing to have to face as the world goes in the direction it's going … or a thrilling, exciting prospect. And I can't say that superficially, but it is a thrilling, exciting prospect if you are walking with Jesus. Because to me, to have the privilege of being alive in this day, in these days – to still be alive. Not to just see what God is doing … And many Christians are afraid that God's not doing very much. But the devil seems to be doing a lot! 

Believe me, God is working His purpose out in ways that you can hardly imagine. But even if you believe all that, can you really believe that you have the privilege of placing your life so in God's hands that – in these days in which we live which really are swiftly heading to their conclusion – can you believe that you are going to see the glory of God as God gets the victory and as God's Kingdom is established?

[10:45] 

Now, I'm not going into the technicalities because I don't know them. This is not about the ‘last days’ doctrines. It's not about explaining the book of Revelation. This is about the reality – the simple reality – that the Book of Revelation is all about, that God is getting His way.

God's kingdom is coming. God will always get the victory. God will get His world back, and you and I are alive in this day and have the privilege of living for God. 

And so, my encouragement to you is, that if He means to you what He means to me – which as far as I'm concerned is: what's the point of even associating with Jesus if He's not going to be to you who He is? You can't have a Jesus of your choosing. 

He is who He is: the Son of God who came to destroy the works of the devil. The Son of God who came with these words on His lips, “Your kingdom come,” to His Father. He's the one I associate with. He's the one I belong to. He's the One who's given me His life and His spirit. There's no limitation in your life or in mine. If you want to give yourself to Him and believe God, keep your eyes on Him and see God having His way.

[12:11] 

What is happening in the world today – there's lots that you don't see, but what you see on the surface is a good indication of what's happening in the whole spiritual realm, where we wrestle against all these principalities and powers – aren't for us to be focused on the battle. But to be focused on the victory. God gives us the victory because Jesus scored a victory that can never be undone. And that victory is being played out by those people that follow Him until the devil is destroyed and God's kingdom is established.

And that's really all that's on my heart to share with you for now.