What is the Prize?

...He had an assignment, but most importantly he has a relationship....

There is a lot of emphases on finding the point in life. We are bent on discovering the target we are to aim for in life. Mountains and mountains of books, messages, programs, etc have been done to aide in our grasping of this quest. Most of them having good and needed input on many levels. Life is to have an aim, a target. There is a prize to be obtained. There is a point to all this.

I believe a Kingdom generation's work is to obtain a view of Jesus from Biblical insight. We need to process and view all things of life, culture, and history through Jesus as revealed in scripture. Gaining a view of redemptive history will provide a clear perspective about the “why's” and “what for's”. I've put together 12 points of Redemptive History to help us see the big picture and then be able to put our eyes of the prize. See what you think.

These 12 points will communicate things in priority and chronologically. The start of all things is with the Trinity. So we start there.

• Trinity – Ever existing, self sustaining, supreme Sovereign
• The Throne – rulership, seat of authority, set-apartness, revealed majesty
• The Kingdom – realm of His rule
• His Rule – the way He wants things
• Creation – His handy work and communication of Himself
• Man's Delegated Authority – our assignment to govern earth and beautify the raw materials to full potential (given a Tree of Life or Tree of Knowledge to gain from for the assignment)
• Man's Failure (sin) – set something else as object of desire, lost fellowship with God and access to Tree of Life (left to themselves to govern the earth – a way seems right to man, but leads to death)
• Curse – brokenness, decline, degeneration, hopelessness
• Struggle – sweat, toil, failure, lost
• The Christ Event (incarnation, life, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension) – turning point of all things, new creation, new order, relationship restored, man redeemed, access to empowerment to achieve assignment.
• Creation of the New Jerusalem – the Ecclesia, the Church, governing ambassadors of the Kingdom
• Discipling of all things to Jesus and His order – delegated authority to bring forth His will – the revelation of Him seen in all the earth

In the process of Redemptive History we see God has been working His will throughout time to increasingly reveal Himself and enable man to see the prize made available to him. In 2012, we find ourselves in the Discipling phase. Jesus restated in Matt 28 the original mandate on man given in Gen 1:28. Genesis expresses it as subduing, filling, having dominion. Jesus used the word, disciple – bring everything into the discipline of His ways and how He wants things. Adam had an assignment, but most importantly he has a relationship. The relationship was essential and the assignment necessary. Adam had the assignment and before him was 2 options of going about it. What path would be taken in the assignment?

There it was, the Tree of Life, presenting to us Jesus – Life. It was there in the middle of the garden, the center piece. Also there, the Tree of Knowledge. To me, the Tree of Knowledge presents to us something else set up to be the object of our desire. Mankind has a responsibility to take the desert like earth and transform it into a garden-like existence. The Tree of Knowledge was presented as a good thing that would be helpful in achieving what was needed done. That presentation shifted the focus and shifted the desire. They wanted to gain from the Tree of Knowledge so they could obtain more. This communicates a shift from setting full satisfaction in God and full completeness in Him to a desire for something not gotten in God. The Tree of Life was no longer enough. More was needed. So the pursuit became obtaining more. I can perceive the desire to obtain more could of even been connected to the desire to accomplish the responsibility given to gardenize the earth. The good desire to be more and even the right desire to succeed in the mandate became the focus, the point, the prize. That which is not Jesus, even though it's good, becomes the downfall when it's the focus.

We as the New Creation, the New Jerusalem are in the same opportunity to be pulled into setting the goal of awakening, reformation, disciplining, shifting culture, elections, economies, etc as a primary focus. In doing so, we eat from the Tree of Knowledge. We once again are drawn into things that are “good” and right but often times set that as our satisfaction. If we can get this done, or get this area fixed, or get this person elected, we would feel fulfilled, satisfied, achieved. Yet we are already fulfilled, satisfied, achieved in Christ.

Jesus asked the primary question in Matt 16, “who do you say I am?” This key question carries with it enormous weight. This question is as important now as then. It's as important now as the day you where born again/regenerated. It's an ongoing question that beckons us back to setting Him as the fixed and set object of our desire and pursuit. To know Him, to see Him, to have my longing settled in Him is the objective. We often times make Jesus the means to the end. We work through Him to accomplish what He has given us to do, and in doing so it's like we walk past Him to get to something else. We bypass the Tree of Life to get to the Tree of Knowledge.

We are in an important moment of history where God is awakening more and more into the responsibility man is given to govern the things of earth and bring them into looking more and more like heaven. The unleashing of a Kingdom generation can bring with it the opportunity to embrace the work of the Kingdom and set that as the objective, the prize. Revelation chapter 1 verse 1 states, “a revelation of Jesus Christ”. That is what is needed. We need to answer who He is and see that answer compel in us what it will. We need who Jesus is presented to the Church, the culture, and to society and see that answer work what it will. The work of the Kingdom is vital. The King on His throne has His realm of rule, the way He wants things, and He has brought forth the Eccelesia to disciple all things in all places into His way. Yet if our aim is the effects of the King's rule, we are shooting for an abstract goal. If the prize, goal, target is Jesus; Jesus seen, Jesus known, Jesus worshiped, Jesus surrendered to in all things in all places, we will have the fruit of the Tree of Life.

We need a revelation of Jesus. We need preachers preaching Jesus. We need authors writing about Jesus. We need songs about Jesus. We have meetings about awakening, but no meetings about Jesus. We want reformation but eat from the Tree of Knowledge as reformation is too often set as the prize. When Revelation 4:1 calls us up to see, what is seen in Him – the Trinity, on the Throne, over His Kingdom, releasing His rule. We must have those younger and older calling all things to come up and see Him. We must have a Christ Centered Movement that unleashes a Kingdom generations so He is seen in all things in all places. He is The PRIZE!