I Run the Country and the World

On April 28th President Trump said in an interview with The Atlantic that in his first term he focused on two things—running the country and surviving, but in his second term, “I run the country and the world.”

That is an ambitious claim, yet it pales by comparison with the claim of another living world power holder. The all-time leader in power claims talks like he is God, or at least God-appointed. He famously said long ago, “All power in heaven and on earth is given to me.”

That Leader, alive to this day, then followed up his claim with instructions for his entire constituency. They are supposed to welcome his rule and clue the world in about him. This Leader, of course, is none other than Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, and his view of power is as refreshing as it is fascinating.

Unlike politicians, including our President, Jesus is not on an all-out quest for more power so he can implement his program completely as planned. Instead, he already holds all power. The only question is what strategy he will use to exercise his power and bring the future he wants.

Many people assume that if Jesus really had the power, he would implement his plans as instantly and as totally as if he had a magic wand. Just poof! No delay. No participation needed by anyone else. Since he has not done that, they conclude he either does not hold the power he claims or he does not care much about people who are suffering in the world as it is.

Others do believe Jesus has the power and will use it, but not yet. On the day of his choice, he will ambush the world’s other power holders all at once. All who have been abusing their power will be exposed and toppled. All who lift a finger against him will be destroyed.

Many who hold this view believe that things are bad now and getting worse. They think there is not much we can do about it except pray for the day when Jesus Christ comes back to fix it all. This is the “light switch” view of the future. It’s very dark now but when Jesus comes back to earth, he flips the switch and everything is instantly light—perfect, peaceful, solved.

A contrasting theory of power says that Jesus wants his followers to seek all the power they can get to approximate a future of justice and peace. They should elect officials and pass laws that weave Christian values into the national life. They should work hard to push evil out so the present will resemble the glorious future we all want.

Both these somewhat flawed views overlap with the authentic strategy for change that Jesus himself declared, launched, and is still using. Jesus puts no confidence in the power structures of this world as change agents. He bypasses them. Instead of tapping their power, he mobilizes his own team or family, the People of the Future (POTF), to foreshadow the future he is bringing. They neither sit and wait for it nor try to force it on others. They live it and explain what is behind it—Jesus himself.

Jesus's counter-intuitive plan is built on a different power. He did not take this power through a revolution nor was he given it through an election. God gave it to him directly, appointing him to pull the world out of its current mess and bring utopia. He is God’s designated Future-bringer.

Down through history many leaders have claimed they could solve the world’s mess if only they could get their hands on a little more power. None of them could come close to doing what the all-powerful Jesus actually does—puts some of himself, his Holy Spirit, into his POTF (People of the Future). We welcome his future and we live it, cluing the world in to what is going on.

That is the authentic strategy in a nutshell, the Messiah living in you and me (Colossians 1.27). This is how the future arrives in part now, pointing toward the total arrival when the Messiah, the Ruler of heaven and earth, returns.

So what does that arriving future look like in everyday life? Great question to explore with your choice of free tools from the SYNC “Tool Kit” for Power Season. Discover the brilliant, counter-intuitive creativity of Jesus the Messiah―a power holder you can trust―the Leader who will in fact take the world exactly where he says he will, starting now in you.

Photo by Margot RICHARD on Unsplash