Theology @ Work – Kingdom

“For you I'd wait til kingdom come” go the Coldplay lyrics. Implying forever, or until the end of the world. Because that’s when we’ll see God’s Kingdom come, or so popular expectations will have it. But popular belief, as so often, is wrong.

When Jesus started his earthly ministry, according to Mark he announced his arrival with these words: "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!" (Mark 1:15). Here and throughout the gospels we hear that the Kingdom has already arrived through Jesus, and that we’re invited to be a part of it!

In my last couple of Theology @ Work posts I explored our role and calling as the temple of the Holy Spirit, and as priests. Both of these are intermediary roles, in which we become the place where heaven and earth come together (as N.T. Wright so helpfully puts it), and in which we bring others before God in our intercessory prayers, while at the same time offering the grace and hope and beauty of God to those around us. But the Old and New Testaments both speak of our calling not just as a priesthood, but as a royal priesthood. For example Exodus 19:6 includes a promise to God’s chosen people that “you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation”. 1 Peter 2:9 then picks up this promise and applies it to followers of Jesus, His church: “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” The royalty spoken of here isn’t a statement about us, but about God. We are the priests of His Kingdom – His present reign and rule over all of His Creation.

When Jesus announced the arrival of the Kingdom, he did it in full knowledge that his followers would be the ones he would use to bring the developing Kingdom to fruition. We are the ones he has called to carry out the work of redemption – buying back not just people, but all of creation, so that it is fully and perfectly back in tune with God’s original intentions for it.

That was a long pre-amble for a short application, but what does this have to do with work. Absolutely everything! In the workplace, everything we do, every word we speak or write, every motivation and ambition – all are in the light of the present reality, and developing hope, of the Kingdom. This is our context and perspective. As priests and workers in the Kingdom, we are accountable to the King Himself, equipped by Him, empowered by Him, and authorized by Him, through the presence of His Spirit. My next bankruptcy filing needs to reflect this. The coaching session with one of my staff members needs to be in this context. The ethical debate with my boss is a Kingdom debate.

It may take us each a lifetime to work out what this really means (it’s the primary quest of my blog) but we can help one another. May God be glorified as we seek to live Kingdom lives at work.