A Question of Source

A Question of Source

In the morning, they brought the Lord Jesus to Pilate. In response to the governor’s asking the Lord "Art thou the king of the Jews?", Jesus answered, "Sayst thou this of thyself, or did others tell it thee concerning me?" And Pilate replied, "Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done?" Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence." Therefore Pilate said to him, "Art thou a king then?" To this Jesus answered, "Thou sayst that I am a king. To this end have I been born, and to this end am I come into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice." Pilate said to Him, "What is truth?" But without waiting for the answer he came out to the Jews and told them, "I find no crime in him." And thus was the testimony which the Lord Jesus gave before Pilate.

Many of that day thought this matter of being the king of the Jews was a political problem. But the Bible shows us that when the Lord Jesus was asked by Pilate, "Art thou the king of the Jews?", Jesus probed into the source of this word by inquiring whether this was Pilate’s own understanding or something he had heard. Such inquiry was of great importance. For the Lord Jesus testified openly without any hiding that He was a king. Yet what He testified and what He was accused of were totally different. The king is closely related to the kingdom, and consequently He declared, "My kingdom is not of this world." Since His kingdom was not of this world, His servants had no need to fight for Him. If it had been of this world, they would have fought. But His kingdom is of God and from above; accordingly, there is no need to fight with flesh and blood. Though He is king of the Jews and He is born to be king, His kingdom has nothing to do with world politics.

Among God’s children, some only know the world as a material entity. To them, to be not of the world is to be a little more careful concerning the material things. Now we are not suggesting that we should be lax with respect to the material side. Nonetheless, the biggest issue in regard to our relationship to the world is the question of source—whether we are "of" or "not of" the world. In other words, we do not at all belong to this world.
There are many things in the lives of God’s children which appear to be spiritual, but oftentimes if these things are traced to their source, they would be found to have emanated from the world. Although the terms may be scriptural, the things may have their source in the world. For example, we concede that humility is a virtue, and surely it is a mode of behavior commended in the Scriptures. Nevertheless, whether the humility delineated in the Scriptures and the humility in our lives are one and the same thing may often present a real problem. Frequently, in tracking down the source of our humility, we discover it arises out of certain considerations—for instance, out of fear lest someone may lose face or we ourselves be criticized. So that this humility of ours grows out of a worldly consideration. Outwardly it may be called a virtue, but it does not originate in the kingdom which is not of this world. It has its source in this world, it being the result of mundane considerations. Oh do let us see that a Christian who lives by God can be gentle as well as strong because he is not governed by any worldly consideration.

God’s children frequently talk about being heavenly. What is meant by being heavenly? It does not necessarily signify that we are always in touch with heavenly things. It actually means that this or that comes out of heaven, that heaven is its source. Similarly, then, what is meant by being worldly? It does not have reference to our being in constant contact with the world but it speaks instead of that which comes out of the world. Let us not imagine we could be unworldly if we had less contact with the world. Having less intercourse with the things of the earth only makes us recluses—those who escape from reality. No, such conduct will not make us not of the world. We instead need God’s light, because we are originally of the world. And under His enlightenment, we will be enabled to see just how many earthly reasons do govern much of our goodness. There is a reason for each action, and frequently these reasons originate from the world. How many goodnesses of ours may give the appearance of being spiritual, but in actuality they may be merely worldly "spirituality." There is neither testimony or reality in them.
The Lord Jesus declared that His kingdom is not of this world. He reigns and rules over a realm which is not of this earth. His kingdom has nothing in common with the worldly one. And for this very reason, therefore, our problem is not concerned with whether we have left the world or not but is concerned with how much of the world may still be in us. May God be gracious to us that we may not be affected by the world at all.