As we continue our study of the kingdom economy, a basic principle is found in Hebrews 11:6: “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He rewarder of those who seek Him.” The three main elements of this are:

1) We must have faith to please God.

2) We must believe that He is, which means to believe in Him present tense, not just that He was or will be.

3) We must...

The next characteristic of love is that it “does not act unbecomingly” (see I Corinthians 13:5). That’s an interesting characteristic of love. We might also say that love is consistent, and the ones who love will have actions consistent with their beliefs. What would this look like?

    There are many human definitions of love, but none of them match God’s definition—that He is love. Therefore, the Lord cannot act unbecoming to love. So, the best example of love is the way that the Lord Jesus behaved. Does that mean His judgments, even His wrath, His verbal blasts...

We have been considering how the kingdom economy is based on love and examining how the love defined in I Corinthians13 would affect our trade in a kingdom economy. Last week we discussed how love “does not brag” (see I Corinthians 13:4), and how that might affect our advertising or marketing. Next, we are told that love “is not arrogant” (see I Corinthians 13:4). Could we possibly have the best products or be the best at something without becoming arrogant? True greatness with true humility is one of the most compelling and attractive characteristics of all....

As we continue our study of the definition and formation of the “Holy Nation,” the nation within the nations that God’s people are called to be, we have been addressing the economy of this nation.

    We are beginning to see a kingdom economy emerge which is so distinct and separate from the world’s that when the order is given that no one can buy, sell, or trade except they take the mark of the beast (see Revelation 13:17), then Christians will not even care if they can buy, sell, or trade with the world—they will have their own...

We continue this week with the theme of how an economy is the foundation for any government and how love is the foundation for the economy of the government of God. Before continuing with our study of how this applies, taken from I Corinthians 13, I want to share a word that I was given nearly twenty years ago.

    I was told that for the church to become what she is called to be, we would need to understand and implement the wisdom of the shopping malls. Not being much of a shopper, this caught me by surprise,...