the
full sense of the word employed in the Greek, expressing "out of,"
"springing from." But "of," like other words and other things, in the
course of time has got weakened by the wear and tear of life; and the
sense "belonging to," "connected with," is its natural suggestion to
modern ears; whereby the sense of our Lord's words has been grievously
weakened too. Did the Lord mean to say, "My kingdom has nothing to do
with the institutions and arrangements of the worldly life of men: you
need not fear any rivalry, delegate of Caesar; My kingdom is in a quite
different sphere, and will keep there, without touching yours: it only
has to do with men as spiritual beings, with a view to their final
destiny in the eternal state: keep to your secular province, and we
shall never cross or clash: the two spheres are quite separate, and
nothing but mischief can come of their commerce: I leave you to rule;
leave Me to teach, unfettered by conditions; for I aim at no influence
on earth, My one object is to persuade men to live a life separate from
this world, as much detached as possible from its interests and
pursuits, that they may enter into My heavenly kingdom when death
releases them, and where the sphere will be all My own"? Was this His
meaning? or did He mean to say, "My kingdom is not out of this world; it
comes down into this world from on high: this world is, like man, made
of the dust of the earth, 'of the earth, earthy,' except some spirit
breathe into it from the higher world--then it lives: My kingdom comes
to the kingdoms of this world, the interests, aims, pursuits, and common
life of men, like this breath of Divine inspiration: without it they all
languish and must perish; with it they live: it is a descent of heavenly
truth, heavenly love, heavenly life, into the sphere of the earthly, to
make it live anew; the earth languishes for My kingdom, for without Me
it dies: leave Me free to fulfil My mission, not because this world is
nothing to Me, and My kingdom will not trouble itself with its affairs,
but because My truth, My life, My love are needful to the life of this
world as vital air to the body; because all business, all domestic life,
all friendship, all society, all government, all thought, all art, all
learning are waiting, are panting, for the living baptism which I bring.
I am not of the world, My kingdom is not of the world, in the springs of
its influence; it is essentially of heaven, and from heaven: bu