THE TWO WINGS OF THE KINGDOM MESSAGE
The Kingdom Gospel is like a messenger pigeon with two wings. How So?
The left wing message of the Kingdom is one of social justice and global peace (James 1:27; Isaiah 2:1-4). The right wing message might be described as a passion for truthful teaching (2 Thessalonians 2:10), a profound and ardent desire to correctly understand the Sacred Secret regarding the kingdom (Matthew 13:10-13).
In order for the messenger pigeon to arrive at its destination and to successfully deliver its message, it patently requires both wings for flight. Similarly, Christians endeavouring to obey Christ’s command “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:19, 20) do their best to give flight to the gospel message by manifesting in equal measure both wings of our illustrative pigeon.
In 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, Paul the apostle helps us to understand that each Christian has been given a different gift of the spirit. Hence, not all Christians are gifted with the
same manifestation of the spirit (1 Corinthians 12:29-31). Rather, as a body, Christians represent a corporate messenger pigeon, so to speak, that may take flight and deliver a complete and balanced message of Justice (left wing) and Truth (right wing).
Although we may not all possess the same gifts, we are encouraged to “Keep on desiring the better gifts.
“And now I will show you the best way of all”. (1 Corinthians 12: 13, International Standard Version)
In my view, Paul’s encouragement above, and his subsequent discussion of the superlative way of love in 1 Corinthians 13, is the apostle’s way of encouraging all Christians to strive to greater maturity in Christ, not to be complacent with the gifts we have, but to consider growing into the fullness of the Christ. Ultimately this culminates in the superlative love of God (Truth) and neighbor (Justice) (Mark 12:28-30, Galatians 5:14), the fulfilment of both the Law and the Prophets.
Whatever our gifts of the spirit may be, there is always room for introspection and improvement. Our goal should be to complement our various gifts with the superlative gift of Love.
Both James and Paul articulate this in differing terms – works (left wing) and faith (right wing). James (2:17) states: “Even so faith if it hath not works [left wing], is dead, being alone. In Ephesians 2:8, 9 Paul says: “For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so that no one can boast.”
The apostle John reconciles these two points of view that at first glance seem contradictory. He combines faith and woks as one mode of being for Christians: truthful actions. In 1 John 3:18 the apostle states: “Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions [left wing] and in truth [right wing] (New International Version). Paul similarly brings the two wings of our messenger pigeon in view at Romans 1:5: “[Through Jesus] we did receive grace and apostleship, for obedience [left wing] of faith [right wing] among all the nations, in behalf of his name” (Young's Literal Translation).
It behoves us as Christians to lead balanced lives in respect to our ministry and mission to proclaim the Good News to peoples of all races and tongues.
Why?
Because we are ultimately defined or judged by what we do! God will not judge us according to what we say we do. Notably, in Scripture Christians are judged according to their deeds. “For, the Son of Man is about to come in the glory of his Father, with his messengers, and then he will reward each, according to his work” [left wing] (Matthew 16:27, Young’s Literal Translation). “But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s
wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God “will repay each person according to what they have done” (Romans 2:5, 6). See 2 Corinthians 5:10.
This raises many questions: Can one enter the Kingdom on the basis of Truth alone? Can one enter the kingdom on the basis of good deeds alone? Many more questions like these could be posed.
According to Paul, Jesus is God’s appointed Judge and he alone can answer definitively such questions. In 1 Corinthians 4:4, 5 Paul says: “My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore, judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.”
These are questions that are meant to be kept introspective; no one can judge his brother. The questions serve to expose any imbalance or deficiency in our messenger pigeon’s flight path.
Imagine you have discovered the truth regarding the sacred secret of Scripture, and you are doctrinally sound in all major issues that impinge on salvation but fail to attract people to the gospel, because of a misguided or underdeveloped manifestation of love as described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 13. Our passion for truth alone could consume most of our time and energies and so stifle or limit greatly our opportunities to express our love in actions, thus stultifying the power of the truth that we are so proud to teach verbally. If you were in need and were forced to choose between a Christian that had truth but failed in actions of love, and an atheist that had no belief in God but had love of neighbour and was always ready with actions of love, which would you call on in a moment of crisis? They say, “Better a good loving atheist than a well-spoken yet bad Christian.”
In this instance, the atheist is embodying the Christian spirit unbeknownst to himself, while the Christian speaking Christ-like wisdom fails to embody Christ. Which of these is doing the will of the Father?
Ideally, we should wish to be known as Christians that both teach truth and practice justice in equal measure, all within our personal context and according to our innate abilities.
The following are some questions one may ask oneself in order to have a balanced ministry and ultimately embody both wings in one’s Christian life, as typified by our messenger pigeon of the gospel.
Sobering questions to ask oneself may be: What am I known and respected for in my local community? Is it my eloquence, my excellent exposition of sound doctrine? Is there more to my reputation than that?
Do we exude the depth of Christian maturity that can manifest great compassion and interest in our brothers even at great energetic cost to ourselves?
What might be the first thing our brothers think of us, when in need of comfort and a listening ear? Do our brothers view us as aloof or distant, maybe socially inept or lacking insight into the human condition with all the demands of empathy and compassion that inevitably tax our energies when helping the depressed soul?
Are we known to be hospitable and generous with our time, especially toward those related to us in the faith?
When I teach do my brothers see more of the man and less of the Lord or more of the Lord and less of the man?
Are we known as Christians still in need of milk?
These and many more introspective questions may serve to help us attain to fullness of the Christ.
May God bless us in our endeavour to be messenger pigeons that soar above the limits of human frailties, as we deliver the life-saving Gospel of the Kingdom.