Kingdom Action

Reading this verse again from Isaiah 60, which we all know by heart. Verse one, Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. And to really ask ourselves specifically how that applies to us, what does it mean to us, when the Spirit of the Lord says to us as a congregation, Arise, shine, for your light has come.

It means one definite change in our relationship with Jesus and with the Kingdom of God. To arise and shine for our light has come means that we move from what could be called the passive phase into the active phase. Most of us here, well, let's not say most of us, let's say all of us, for the most part, even up to this moment, have been serving the Kingdom of God in a pretty passive way.

We're passive. We react and respond to stimuli and situations and problems that come up. But there is a lack of aggressiveness in us, probably because it's kind of a lack of direction.

We're not quite sure what we're supposed to do. We feel still pretty much like the laborers in the marketplace, waiting to be hired. You know, if God would only show me very clearly that I'm supposed to go to China, or if God would make clear to me that it's now time for me to sell everything I have and go down to Mexico City and start preaching the gospel on the streets, I would do it.

And it would be a great relief to know that that's what I'm to do. The problem is that life keeps going on. It's dull routine.

We buy and sell. We acquire and get rid of. We get up in the morning, say a few prayers, have our breakfast, go to work, come home, have dinner, watch the news, read the paper, fall asleep and go to bed.

Get up in the morning, have a few prayers, go to work and so forth and so on. And on it goes. We come together here on Sundays.

Maybe once during the week we get fellowship somewhere. We try occasionally to speak a word about Jesus to people, but we're all frustrated. It's all pretty tame and it's all pretty passive.

Reading from Matthew chapter 5 verse 14. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden, nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand.

And it gives light to all in the house. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. And in these words from Jesus, which parallel really is passage in Isaiah, we have again a call to come out of that passive phase into the active.

To throw off the bushel and move out of the life that's so ingrown and inward and withdrawn and safe and careful and cautious and move into a life of risk and boldness and victory and power and action. So that as we do this, the kingdom of God through us begins to have an impact on people around us. And people begin to see evidence of the kingdom of God through us.

But how does it happen? How do we move? How do we get out of this rut and move from passive to active? The first 40 years of Moses' life were spent as a Hebrew in the Egyptian court among the royalty. But he was an outsider and he knew it and everybody else knew it. And he felt like an outsider.

And he was frustrated. He belonged with those Hebrews over there who were really miserable. They were having a terrible time.

And he felt guilty. You know, he could look out the window and watch once in a while, ride by in his chariot once in a while, give somebody a little bit of money. But what could he do, he would say to himself, what can I do? What can I do? Moses continued to live a passive life.

He went with the flow of circumstances pretty much the way they were. But he really didn't do anything. And he hated himself for this.

Then one day he sees this Egyptian beating up on a Hebrew. And he flies into action. At last I have something that I can really do.

So he pulls out his sword and kills the Egyptian, after looking both ways to make sure nobody was watching. Buries his body in the sand and feels greatly relieved because at last I've done something. I'm a hero.

But the next day when he sees a Hebrew beating on a Hebrew and tries to settle that one, he's rejected. He at least thought there'd be some appreciation, but there's none. So he's not appreciated by the Hebrews.

He's now in danger from the Egyptians. What can he do? And so he arose and shone. See, but he did it before his life came.

He wasn't responding to God. He wasn't doing this in faith. And so his one-man revolution lasts for less than 24 hours.

And then Moses does what you and I so often would like to do. He runs away. He disappears in the mysterious wilderness of the Sinai Peninsula.

He becomes a shepherd in the wilderness of Midian. And he lives even more a passive life. I mean, he has to take care of the sheep.

He has to chase the wild animals away. He has to go to work every day. He has to look after his wife and sons.

But time is just going by. And he's getting older. And what has he got to show for his life? Until the day he stumbles over this burning bush.

He sees the bush. And he hears his name being called, Moses, Moses. He stops to look.

And then he's told, take off your shoes. You're standing on holy ground. And he responds.

And then he's called, come, I will send you to Pharaoh, that you may bring forth my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt. And with this, Moses moves from the passive mode into the active mode. And for the next 40 years of his life, until his death, he never stops.

Now when the Spirit of the Lord says to this assembly, arise, shine, for your light has come. He is calling this assembly to come from the passive to the active mode. Not just as individuals, but as a body.

Reading from Luke chapter 5, verse 1. When the people pressed upon Jesus to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret. And he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nests. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land.

And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. Up to this point in Peter's life, Peter, though he was a hard-working man, and a man with an active mind, as far as his relationship with the kingdom of God was concerned, he was passive in this. He went to the synagogue on the Sabbath.

He attended the temple on the holy days. He took the trouble to go down to the Jordan and listen to John the Baptist. He even heard Jesus speak a number of times and was deeply impressed.

But he kept saying to himself, what can I do? I mean, I'm a fisherman. I've got to make a living. Now Jesus says to Peter, Arise, shine, for your light has come.

It's time to move from passive to active, Peter. And so we read on in this passage. When he had ceased speaking, he said to Simon, Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.

And Simon answered, Master, we've toiled all night and taken nothing. But at your word, I will let down the nets. When they had done this, they enclosed a great shoal of fish.

And as their nets were breaking, they beckoned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.

For he was astonished, and all that were with him had to catch a fish which they had taken. So also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, Do not be afraid.

Henceforth you will be catching men. And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him. It was at this point that Peter moved from passive to active.

And for the rest of his life, he was out there hauling people into the kingdom of God, drawing people into the kingdom, catching men and women. We have come, I believe, to such a juncture, not just as individuals, but as a congregation, as a flock. And it means, to arise and shine, for your light has come, that we move from passive to active in four specific areas.

First, arise, shine, for your light has come means active worship. You know, active worship as opposed to sitting and meditating, which has its purpose and its value, but it's got to move beyond that. As opposed to dreaming dreams, which also have their purpose, but it has to go beyond that.

Take off your shoes, you're standing on holy ground. And Moses has to jump, he's got to act and take off his shoes. That was an act of worship, that's active worship, which begins with an act of repentance.

It's a turning away from his old life and from himself and showing honor to God. And from his past. Or when Peter, in the boat, falls down to Jesus' knees and says, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.

That's worship, active worship. He's not just thinking the thoughts, he's doing something. And he's repenting.

And when they bring their boats to land and forsake everything and follow Jesus, that's worship, active worship. It's repentance, it's turning away from my past and moving with tremendous faith and great joy in a new direction, following Jesus. Worship can't just be the same all the time.

It has to move, it has to grow, it has to advance. And all the time, if it's going to be worship, it begins with a repentance for being me. I repent of myself, Lord God.

I turn around, I take my shoes off before you and I honor you. That's how it always begins. And then it moves into active praise.

And every model for worship that we have in Scripture is certainly, it's not the dreamy kind. It's loud and it's alive and it's in there with everything we've got. As we see in Revelation chapter 5, verse 6, Between the throne and the four living creatures, and among the elders I saw a lamb standing as though it had been slain, with seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God, sent into all the earth.

And he went and took the scroll from the hand of him who was seated on the throne. And when the lamb had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the lamb, each holding a harp and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying, Worthy art thou to take the scroll and open its seals, for thou was slain and by thy blood didst ransom men for God.

Worship, active worship, loud, strong, clear, joyful. Then I looked and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders and the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing. And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea and all therein saying, To him who sits upon the throne and to the lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever.

And the four living creatures said, Amen. And the elders fell down and worshiped. Then there was silence.

Skipping over to Revelation 7, not to go on and on with this, but we see again a picture of where we're moving. This is what we're going toward and which we, these are things that we should be tasting now and expressing now. After this I looked and behold a great multitude which no man could number from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues.

And what a glorious thing. That's what we have here. We have such a wonderful mix.

Now let's do something with it. Clothed in white robes with palm branches in their hands and crying out with a loud voice, Salvation belongs to our God who sits upon the throne and to the lamb. Act of worship.

And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God saying, Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever. I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Spiritual worship isn't just sitting and brooding.

Spiritual worship is action with the body, the offering up of the body, of our strength, of the best of our mind. Thought, think, not just emotion without thought and not just thought without emotion, but bring them together and let them fuse in our bodies and begin to worship the glory which has come to us. Arise, shine, for your light has come.

Arise, shine, for your light has come. Secondly means active prayer. Again, as opposed to sitting in the chair thinking, looking out the window and brooding and checking your watch and said, Yes, okay, I'll put in my 15 minutes.

Active prayer that comes into the presence of God, bold, confident, joyful, thankful, and asks. This is what Jesus teaches us every time he talks about prayer. He talks about being aggressive, asking it shall be given you, knocking it shall be opened, seeking you're going to find, do something, don't just sit there and wish.

And so he tells us in Luke chapter 18, he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and never lose heart, never get discouraged. We should never be discouraged. We sing it.

He said, in a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor regarded man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, Vindicate me against my adversary. But she didn't have a good lawyer because she had no money.

So she had to do it herself. For a while he refused. But afterward, the judge said to himself, Though I neither fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will vindicate her or she'll wear me out by her continual coming.

And the Lord said, Hear what the unrighteous judge says And will not God vindicate his elect who cry to him day and night? Notice that. The elect are not sitting in chairs brooding. They're crying to him day and night.

Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will vindicate them speedily. Active prayer. Aggressive prayer.

I'm not talking about anything that would have anything of blasphemy in it. I'm not talking about trying to be buddy-buddies with God. God is holy and we have to take off our shoes.

But he wants us to come into his presence. And he wants us to cry out. You know, and don't sit there feeling sorry for ourselves.

Come on, let's move, let's act. Let's pray. Arise, shine, for your light has come.

You can pray. Arise, shine, for your light has come. Thirdly means, active faith.

It's translated into deeds. So that we take this faith and we put it to work. We do something with it in our families, where we work, in our neighborhoods, among our friends.

You know, so it's not just feeling, but action. You know, if all we do is walk around with a feeling of faith, but it never translates into any kind of deeds, our families and the people we work with and our neighbors will never know anything about Jesus. It only happens when it's translated into deeds.

You take the bushel off. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, your action. And give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

So we take the mercy which has come to us through the cross, the blood of the land, the mercy that's come to us, and we begin to turn it around and give it to the lives we touch. We show that same forbearance, that same generosity, that same kindness, that same patience in deeds to the people around us. And they are blessed.

Arise, shine, for your light has come, you can do it! Finally, arise, shine, for your light has come, means active witness. From the book of Acts. Acts.

Chapter 1, verse 6. So when they had come together, they asked him, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? He said to them, it is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority, but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be my witnesses. In Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth this happened. They received the Spirit, and they became his witnesses.

Now we have received the Spirit, and are receiving the Spirit, and we are his witnesses. To the whole world, beginning in Detroit, that Jesus, crucified and risen, is Lord. To get over our shame of actually saying that, and that he is coming back to call to account everyone who has ever lived on this planet, to aggressively proclaim that that is so, calling people to repent before Jesus, and trust Jesus, and follow Jesus, and obey Jesus, walking with Jesus into the kingdom of God.

Arise, shine, for your light has come. Don't be afraid, take off the bushel, and witness. Those first 80 years of Moses' life were not wasted.

40 in Egypt, 40 in the wilderness, 80 years. They were not wasted, they were a preparation, and everything he learned during those 80 years came in handy. But, those first 80 years would have been wasted if at the burning bush, Moses had failed to move from passive to active.

The early time of Peter's life, when his relationship with the kingdom was passive, was not a wasted period, it was a beneficial time, and it would bear fruit for him in later years, but it would have been wasted if in the boat that day, Peter had not moved from passive to active. Now the time has come for us. And it revolves really around a single question that the Spirit of the Lord puts upon us today.

He says to us, are you ready to say yes? When the Lord God says to this flock, and to everyone here, go, I'm sending you to Pharaoh that you may bring forth my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt. From now on, you're going to be catching men. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works, and give glory to my Father who is in heaven, your Father.

Let's throw off the bushel, and move, and act, beginning this day, move from wherever we are right now, into active worship, active prayer, active faith, aggressively, arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness is going to cover this earth, thick darkness to people. But the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you, and nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your light.

Let's just wait upon the Lord in silence for a minute.