The Paradox of God's Kingdom

"For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it."

―Jesus Christ (Luke 9:24)

This sounds ridiculous at first, you gotta admit. But this is sort of a thesis statement to "The Paradox of God's Kingdom," and if not a thesis, at least a main supporting point. So what does he mean?

Think of it like this:

It's not until you surrender to God what you want the most, that you actually get it. In this case he was talking about life itself, but this goes along with everything.

To walk in authority and power, you need to live a life of submission .  I've been taught my whole life that those who surrender in nature are the weak ones. Whether the "survival of the fittest" in evolutionary theory or the focus on individualistic entrepreneurship in capitalistic America, I've been socialized, as well as many others into thinking that submission, in it's simplest form, is contrary to exercising power and authority. I'm here to tell us that submission to God is the only way to walk in true power and authority. Backwards? I know. It doesn't make sense. But that's the point! God chooses to work through the "weak" things on purpose. By raising up those who submit to Him in their weakness, He makes them strong through the cross of Christ just to prove His glory. Take a look at this.

'The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. As the Scriptures say,

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise
 and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”

So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.

But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.
Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.
God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.” '

―The Apostle Paul (From writings to the church in Corinth, 1 Corintians 1:18-31)

If you don't believe it look at me, an ex-pervert and ex-doubter who's only known personal assignment from God is to be a father and impact lives. And it's all because God's message of love reached my ears by His grace, and I responded in submission. Jesus died for my sins and defeated death so that I could live in life and connection with God forever. Now I have power. Now I have authority. Now I have hope. Now I have Jesus and now He has me. He has plans and purposes to use me that have eternal consequences I never would have dreamed of. If you know me, know that I'll always make myself available to talk. This is serious business and I am not typing it lightly. Once we hear the truth about Jesus and what He did, we have a choice to either accept Him and receive eternal life, or reject Him and receive eternal death. One of my friends was really hurt by this truth. He called it a manipulative ultimatum, a power move on God's end. Many people feel this way, but we're not justified in our logic. We're rebellious against God and our souls are what need justifying. Don't let your feelings or your intellect stop you from gaining the one thing that everyone is looking for but can't see. It has many names―love, acceptance, intimacy, security, hope, adventure, purpose, drive, strength, power, confidence―and they are all found in one name, Jesus Christ the Son of God. I'm begging you to look into this. If you know me personally I want to let you know that I am never too busy to help you make that informed decision. Please hit me up if you have any questions. Because if you choose to only look at one side of a story then that makes your decision biased. If you don't know me, ask a friend who does, a friend who's life shows the power of this paradox.

To be fully satisfied in all of the desires God has given you, you need to "hate them" 

"If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple"

―Jesus Christ (Luke 14:26, NKJV).

Another translation fills the gap on the interpretation of this scripture really well. It says:

"If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple."

―Jesus Christ (Luke 14:26, NLT).

Whether its family relationships or even your own life, if you love these things more than Christ then... Well most importantly He says you "cannot be My disciple." Let that sink in for as long as it needs to, don't just overlook it. I was tempted to overlook it when I was writing this blog post. If you call yourself a disciple of Jesus, then He said these words just for you. And without his leadership as "teacher" in your relationship, you will never be taught how to enjoy these desires in the fulness of how they were designed. All these things―love, acceptance, intimacy, security, hope, adventure, purpose, drive, strength, power, confidence―they will be abused and twisted into issues, pains, and temporal ecstasy. The purpose for all your desires is to enjoy the Giver. And when you enjoy Him through them, their purpose no longer becomes short lived and temporary but long lasting and eternal.

Some examples:
Sex
Power
Wealth
Dream Job
Hobbies
Future Spouse
Relationships