Freely given to us.
A Christian Guidebook: Why Has God Saved Us? (3)
And He said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that
Seeing they may see and not perceive,
And hearing they may hear and not understand;
Lest they should turn,
And their sins be forgiven them.’” Mark 4.11, 12
The things of God
God has saved us because He delights to delight us with the things He has freely given us. Those include a myriad of daily blessings as well as the new spiritual life and orientation we have in His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
It pleases God to extend His delight to us so that we can enter it, know its great pleasure, and rejoice, because He has made us for joy and saved us for joy, and the things He freely gives to us are the various means whereby He transports us into His joy.
And of all the things God has freely given to us, surely one of the greatest is the mystery of the Kingdom of God.
Wait. How can that be? A mystery, by definition, is something difficult or impossible to explain, something secret or obscure, understanding of which continuously eludes us. How can we know this mystery of the Kingdom of God?
Because God has given it to us! And even more amazing, it’s not merely that we have been given “to know” the mystery of the Kingdom. In Mark’s version that phrase is not in the original language (it does occur in Matthew and Luke). What Jesus said is, “To you the mystery of the Kingdom of God has been given”. The mystery of the Kingdom has been given to us; we have been conveyed into it (Col. 1.12, 13); we are citizens in that mystery and ambassadors of it; we may seek more of it; and we spread its effects to the world around.
We are beneficiaries, stewards, and executors of the Kingdom of God. And that’s why God has saved us, that He may bless and employ us, and this great gift He has given to us, to spread more of His delight and joy to the world.
What’s the mystery?
If we doubt that the Kingdom of God is a mystery, try this: Ask a fellow believer to explain the Kingdom of God. Through an uncomfortable few minutes of stammering and babble, a small gem of true understanding may emerge. But don’t count on it. Most Christians have almost no understanding of the Kingdom of God, even though this mystery has been entrusted to them.
So the mystery of the Kingdom, although it has been given to all who believe—all who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ—remains a mystery even to most of them. This is not what God intends. It’s no wonder many Christians today lack the power to grow in Christ and be consistent witnesses for Him and His Kingdom. The Kingdom of God is power (1 Cor. 4.20), but if we do not understand the mystery which has been given to us, that power will lie pent up and useless within us. And it’s no mystery why there seems to be so little joy among Christians today—except for the pseudo-joy many experience during “worship” but which dries up shortly after that ends. The Kingdom of God is joy (Rom. 14.17, 18)! But if the mystery escapes us, or we are too uninterested in the mystery of the Kingdom to unwrap and stretch out into it, then it’s no wonder we are no more joyful than we are.
The mystery of the Kingdom is among the many things God has freely given to us, and it is given unto us for power and for joy.
Beneficiaries, stewards, and executors
We who believe are beneficiaries of this great mystery. God wants us to realize the blessings and glory of the righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit which describe the character, context, and consequence of the Kingdom (Rom. 14.17, 18). He has given this mystery to us to enhance our experience of His glory.
We are also stewards of the Kingdom of God, given a gift and charge which we must faithfully seek more of if we are to know its fullest blessings. Do we truly understand the Kingdom? Of what it consists? What we are to do with it? What God intended in giving us this great gift? As stewards of the Kingdom, surely our first responsibility is to know this thing that has been freely given to us—what it is, what it is for, how it manifests, and what we must do with it.
For we are also executors of the Kingdom and of the joy God wants all people to know. Here there is work to do. The instructions for us as executors are simple: Plant this seed, water and fertilize it, protect and care for it, so that it will bear the fruit promised on the package. The fruit is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, as we have seen. That fruit is borne in our lives, the lives of those we cultivate for Kingdom living, and in everything to which we turn our hands.
The consequence of the fruit-bearing seed of the Kingdom is joy. Everyone wants joy. All the people in your Personal Mission Field would give just about anything for real joy. And you and I have it. We know the “secret” into the mystery of the Kingdom and its fruit of joy. Because we know Jesus. Jesus is the Good Seed of the Kingdom. He is also the faithful Sower of that Good Seed, working in us to bring forth the promises of the Gospel to those who do not know it and to help and encourage those who do to know more of it.
We have been given a great treasure—worth more than everything we own or ever could own. Enjoy it. Grow in your understanding of it. Seek, embody, and proclaim it daily. Do this, and you’ll know why God has given this great mystery to us.
Search the Scriptures
1. Meditate on Matthew 6.10 and 6.33. How do the charges given us here relate to our stewardship of the Kingdom?
2. Meditate on Acts 1.8 and 1 Corinthians 4.20. How do these relate to our being executors of the Kingdom?
3. Meditate on Romans 14.17, 18. How can you know when the mystery of the Kingdom is being manifested in your life?
Next steps—Conversation: Talk with a Christian friend or two about the Kingdom of God—what it is and why God has entrusted it to us.
T. M. Moore
Additional Resources
If you have found this study helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
This segment of A Christian Guidebook is adapted from our book, Such a Great Salvation. To learn more about what it means to be saved, order your copy in book form by clicking here or in a free PDF by clicking here.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
