Chapter Six--The Costume Kingdom
Chapter Six
The Costume Kingdom
mas·quer·ade: to pretend to be someone or something that you are not
The bottom line: the most dangerous thing about the kingdom of self is how easily it masquerades as the kingdom of God.
It was always one of the most dramatic moments in this well-known secret agent drama. Although viewers didn’t know it, one of the Mission Impossible agents had donned a latex mask that was meant to make him look familiar and safe to the enemy. The mask was so pliable and real-looking that it took on the appearance of actual human skin. At some crucial moment, the government agent would reach up and tear the “skin” off his face and reveal his true identity to the international bad guys who were about to be taken down. As a child, I loved watching those moments. I dreamed of growing up and being the latex mask agent. I imagined what it would be like to reach up and tear off my face to the surprise of bad guys who were plotting evil. I imagined that much secret agent work was done in costume and that most of our spies had a collection of the appropriate latex masks at their disposal. I really did want to be part of this government-sponsored costume kingdom. And I wanted to be the costume king.
As a sinner, I am still seeking to be the king of a costume kingdom. You see, the problem with the little kingdom (the civilization of self) is that it dresses up and puts on the mask of the big kingdom (the kingdom of God). It puts on the mask of things that are righteous and good, while it is capturing the heart for the glory of self. The most dangerous kinds of self-focus are those that take on the form of the good things of the kingdom of God. Indian theologian Vinoth Ramachandra describes it this way:
The Good News is packaged and marketed (using, uncritically, all the techniques of modern advertising) as a religious product: offering “peace of mind”, “how to get to heaven”, “health and prosperity”, “inner healing”, “the answer to all your problems” etc. What is promoted as “faith in God” often turns out to be a means for obtaining emotional security or material blessing in this life and an insurance policy in the next. This kind of preaching leaves the status quo untouched. It does not raise fundamental and disturbing questions about the assumptions upon which people build their lives. It does not threaten the false gods in whose name the creation of God has been taken over; indeed it actually reinforces their hold on their worshippers. This kind of “gospel” is essentially escapist, the direct descendent of the pseudo-gospels of the false prophets of the Old Testament. It is simply a religious image of the secular consumerist culture in which modern men and women live.” 3
There are many warnings in the Bible about the costuming of the kingdom of self. Christ makes this warning in the Sermon on the Mount: “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves” (Matthew 7:15). Paul writes to Christians in Corinth: “For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve” (2 Corinthians 11:13—15). In Philippians 1:15—16, Paul talks about people who even preach the gospel for their own selfish ends! In Galatians, Paul warns against a false gospel that wears the costume of the true gospel. Notice the strong language: “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.” And then, just in case his warning wasn’t strong enough he says, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned!” (Galatians 1:6—8).
Why is Paul so agitated? Because the kingdom of self is most dangerous when it takes on the contours of the kingdom of God. It is quite possible for you to be convinced that you are living for the transcendent glories of the kingdom of God when you are, in fact, living for yourself. Be warned! Be scared! The little kingdom is a costume kingdom, and it is deviously promoted by a costume king—Satan himself. The little kingdom will quite regularly don the latex masks of outward participation in worship, obedience, and ministry. It will appear as though it is serving the King of kings and Lord of lords, when daily it is bowing before the throne of self. Driven by earth-bound treasures and anxiety-bound needs, its worship can only be the worship of self. As Ramachandra says,
This kind of religion, whether in Christian or other forms, is idolatry by biblical definition. For at the heart of idolatry is the attempt to manipulate “God” or the unseen “spiritual world” in order to obtain security and well-being for oneself and one “group” (whether family, business corporation, ethnic community, or nation-state). Biblical faith, in contrast, is the radical abandonment of our whole being in grateful trust and love to the God disclosed in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ: so that we become willing agents in a costly confrontation with every form of evil and unjust suffering in the world. This faith involves us in embracing the pain and confusion of others, and in being willing to live with uncertainty ourselves while moving towards a future that is already at work among us.” 4
It is very important to note that the most dangerous idols for all of us are those that are easily Christianized. Selfishness is most dangerous when it masquerades as service. Self-focus is most powerful when it dons the costume of love. Earthly treasures are most seductive when they take on the appearance of spiritual need. Idols do their nastiest work when they wear the latex mask of God. Because the little kingdom is a costume kingdom, it presents a near and present danger to everyone who has committed himself to the kingdom of God.
The Fruit of the Costume Kingdom
If you examine the church of Jesus Christ in our day, the visible location of the big kingdom, it won’t be long before you see the fruit of the little kingdom. Think of it this way. Suppose I have committed myself to a healthful diet, and I am at least externally keeping its rules. At the same time, however, I am sneaking in copious amounts of chocolate chip cookies. Two things will surely result from this pattern. First, the cookies in the jar will begin to mysteriously disappear. Second, I will gain weight rather than lose it. Now, it is quite obvious that neither of these results is the fruit of a healthful diet, which points to the fact that what has masqueraded as a diet is not a diet at all, but an even more deceptive form of overeating.
If you look around in your life and the lives of fellow Christians, you will see fruit that is not the result of a joyful commitment to the transcendent glories of God’s kingdom. Instead, these things are the fruit of serving the self, while masquerading as living for the King. Bad fruit results because “less” has taken on the costume of “more.” In a very illusive way, the transcendent glories of the kingdom of God have been shrunk down to the size of my earth-bound treasures and my anxiety-bound needs. It is not the fruit of remembering the Father and being freed to give myself to his kingdom. No, it is the fruit of forgetting the Father and making sure that I actually get what I have told myself I need. And remember, all this takes place in the form of worship, obedience, and ministry.
Let’s consider three things that are the fruit of the kingdom of self hiding out in the kingdom of God.
A lack of excitement and enthusiasm in the gospel. It is amazing how casual we can be about the glory of the gospel! Surely some of this is the result of familiarity, but as I examine my own life and spend time with others, I am convinced that something deeper is operating here. When the gospel (being welcomed into God’s presence to live for his glory) is no longer the end, but a means to an end, then my enthusiasm will not be for the gospel, but for the “stuff” that I think it will give me. So, for example, I may be grateful for the gospel, but what really excites me is the hope that my relationship with God will give me what I really want, such as the marriage of my dreams.
As a new Christian, Drew seemed to have an insatiable love for the things of the Lord. He could not find enough Bible studies. He read as many Christian books as he could get his hands on. He took copious notes during every sermon. His presence seemed to open and close almost every gathering of his church. Now, five years later, Drew seems to be a different man. The sermon notebook doesn’t accompany him to worship services anymore. He seldom attends the gatherings of his small group, and he is barely able to get himself up in time to have a brief personal time of worship before he hits his day.
What happened to Drew? The same thing that happens to many believers. Drew came to Christ as a lonely young man. Although he did not know it, his enthusiasm for the gospel was not about the grace and glory of Christ. No, in the church Drew had found the circle of friends he had always longed to have. In the church, Drew had found a family. And while that is very good, the spiritual problem was that the end (a love relationship with Christ) had functionally become the means to another end (acceptance with a family of people). Big kingdom glories were a way to experience little kingdom treasures.
And these relationships with sinners proved to be flawed, as they always will be this side of heaven. Eventually, Drew’s growing lack of enthusiasm for the gospel revealed that his excitement about his newfound faith was simply the kingdom of self dressed up in the costume of the kingdom of God.
Disappointment with God and/or Christianity. In almost thirty years of counseling, I cannot tell you how many believers I have encountered who were either disappointed with God or disillusioned with Christianity. I have endeavored over the years to carefully and patiently listen to their stories. And, although each story is unique and different, there has been one theme running through them all. Their disappointment with God or Christianity is not that God has failed in his faithfulness or love or that the teachings of Scripture have not proven to be true. No, they are disappointed because they thought that God’s love and the principles of Scripture would result in certain things in their lives. When these things failed to materialize, it was hard not to be disappointed.
Marylynn stated it most clearly when, after her divorce from her unrepentant husband she said, “Frankly, Paul, when I came to Christ, this is not what I signed on for.” The Psalms are in the Bible to confront the Marylynn in us all. In the Psalms, the life of faith isn’t idyllic, pretty, or easy. It is a walk with God marked by anguish, dread, and grief. The Psalms picture a life where prayers seem to go unanswered, where God seems distant, and where evil seems to be winning. The Psalms welcome us to a faith where God’s agenda is more important than ours and where we are asked to live out our faith in the context of a disastrously broken world. But this is also precisely where we experience the highest personal joys, as we put our hope in the covenant love of the Lord and make the pursuit of his glory the goal of our lives.
We will tend to take on the image of our little kingdom treasures.
Listen to the words of Psalm 115:1—8.
Not to us, O Lord, not to us
but to your name be the glory,
because of your love and faithfulness.
Why do the nations say,
“Where is their God?”
Our God is in heaven;
he does whatever pleases him.
But their idols are silver and gold,
made by the hands of men.
They have mouths, but cannot speak,
eyes, but they cannot see;
they have ears, but cannot hear,
noses, but they cannot smell;
they have hands, but cannot feel,
feet, but they cannot walk;
nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
Those who make them will be like them,
and so will all who trust in them.
Psalm 115 teaches many things, but one of the most important is this principle: you become like the treasure that you seek. It is an eloquent and accurate principle. When I live for material things, I increasingly become a materialistic person. I start to care about things more than people, thus becoming like the things I crave. Similarly, the person who lives for the little kingdom treasure of control will inevitably become a power-obsessed, controlling person. Someone who gets his identity and meaning from relationships will become driven by what people think of him, living in unending fear of man.
Rather than developing the traits of Christian character, which are the result of pursuing and treasuring Christ, I will take on the qualities of my Christ-replacement. This is why so many people in our churches are not growing in Christlikeness. To the degree that Jesus is not the treasure I seek, I will not be progressively taking on his likeness. Instead, I will begin to look more and more like the treasure of the kingdom of self that I am actually living for.
It was by far the most disappointing party of my childhood. We were all told that there would be prizes for the best costume of the night. My dad was pretty creative when it came to costumes, and my mom was a good seamstress. As a result, they helped me create a killer costume. With great excitement, I went to that party dressed as a very convincing old lady. What I didn’t know until I arrived at the party was that you weren’t allowed to take off your mask until someone had discovered who you really were. Well, my costume was so well-executed that it completely disguised my true identity. No one could figure out who I was! But as the night wore on, it became quite clear that the children who had been discovered and who had taken off their costumes were the ones having all the fun. I spent the night sitting on a chair watching the fun proceed until finally, by the process of elimination, someone figured out who I was.
Taking Off the Mask
These three things—lack of excitement with the gospel, disappointment with God and with Christianity, and taking on the traits of my treasure rather than the character of Christ—can rip the mask off of the costume kingdom in your life. Could it be that you have shrunk the kingdom of God down to the size of your little kingdom treasures? Could it be that your excitement with the things of the Lord is not really about the Lord at all? Could it be that the transcendent glory of God and his kingdom has become for you more of a means to an end rather than the end itself?
The scary thing about the kingdom of self is that it is a costume kingdom. It very quickly takes on the shape and appearance of the kingdom of God. It is very easy to think that we are living for God, while our personal agenda still rules our hearts and shapes our decisions, words, and actions. It is very easy to think that we are living for the transcendent joys of intimate communion with God, fueled by a personal enthusiasm for his glory, when in fact we have placed our hope in the shadow glories of this created world. It is very easy to think that we have exited the narrow confines of our little cubicle kingdoms to breathe the spiritually invigorating air of the kingdom of God, when really we are more entrapped in our cubicles than ever before. It is very easy for our earth-bound treasures and anxiety-bound needs to masquerade as love for Christ and enthusiasm for his work on earth. It is very easy to shrink the size of your life to the size of your life and not know it, because the little kingdom of self has been a costume kingdom since the time of the fatal deception in the garden.
The Costume Kingdom and the One True King
Be honest with yourself. What are you after? What are you living for? Is there a place in your life where your little kingdom purposes have been masquerading as the kingdom of God? Has your life with God shrunk to the size of “me and mine”? What in your life right now really excites you? What things do you find fulfilling and satisfying? What has become your treasure, and how do you define your needs? Is there a place where selfishness wears the latex mask of godliness? Is your little kingdom so well costumed that no one around you would ever recognize it for what it really is? What kingdom owns your heart where you live and work each day?
And as you ask yourself these questions, remember that on a Sabbath day long ago your Redeemer stood up in the synagogue and quoted these words from Isaiah, applying them to himself: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luke 4:18—19
You are not alone in this battle to unmask and dismantle the little kingdom in your life. Be excited! Your Messiah gives you just what you need for this battle. The little kingdom leaves you poor, so he offers you the good news of the eternal riches of his grace. The little kingdom enslaves you, so he endured the cross to set you free. The little kingdom leaves you blind, so he places hands of grace on you to restore your sight. The little kingdom has left you oppressed, so he purchased your release. In your Lord you find all the resources you need to live with insight and liberty while you breathe the big sky air of his glorious kingdom.
Your hope and mine will not be found in another kingdom. What we all desperately need is a King who will liberate us from the kingdoms we build to ourselves. That King has come for you and for me, and Emmanuel, the Lord Jesus Christ, is his name. Seek him! There is help to be found!
The final question: in your everyday life right now, where are you telling yourself that you are living for god when you are really living for yourself?