You are a kingdom disciple living as a kingdom servant while making a kingdom impact that will resonate throughout all time. And you do this through what we read in 1 Peter, which says we are to “proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (2:9).
What It Means to Be a Kingdom Influencer
You are to be a proclaimer of Christ. A more contemporary term would be kingdom influencer.
A Kingdom Influencer Proclaims Christ Publicly
You are to use your status, time, talent, and treasures to influence others for God’s glory and the greater good of all. You are to serve notice on the culture that Jesus Christ is here and His kingdom is alive and well. As a kingdom influencer, your intention should be that of proclaiming the gospel to a lost world and bringing glory to God.
Kingdom Influencer as Christ’s Ambassador
Paul outlined this mission of ours as kingdom influencers in 2 Corinthians 5:16–21:
Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
An Ambassador Represents the Kingdom, Not the Culture
Paul called us “ambassadors” (v. 20). Ambassador is another term for representative or influencer. In the political realm, an ambassador is someone who has been duly deputized to go to another country and represent their homeland. They hold an official title and responsibility to represent the nation they’ve been sent out from. Thus, ambassadors sent from the United States are not promoting the culture of foreign lands as their primary goal. They are to promote the values and prosperity of the United States of America.
Paul called each of us an ambassador who has been saved by Jesus Christ. Our job is to take the values of the kingdom of heaven and promote them in the culture of this world. Whether this is on the job, in the marketplace, to family members, in your community, or even in your church doesn’t matter. What matters is that you promote God’s kingdom principles everywhere you are.
When a Kingdom Influencer Confronts Culture
The moment the culture disagrees with God’s principles, you are to disagree with the culture. You are not an ambassador of earth. You are an ambassador of the kingdom of heaven. Heaven’s values are to inform your words, worldview, concepts, and actions. They are to inform every aspect of your life because you are a citizen from on high. To acquiesce to the culture negates the purpose and effectiveness of your true role.
Why Compromise Destroys Kingdom Influence
Unfortunately, God has a lot of His followers keeping the title but failing to carry out the role. They are not representing the kingdom of God in the culture of the world. Rather than repenting and returning to God when they veer off course, they have gotten comfortable with society and its ways. Thus they have become useless in advancing God’s kingdom agenda on earth.
The question you need to ask yourself is this: Am I a kingdom influencer? Are you making a difference through your influence on others or are you simply promoting the culture at large and its values? Are you standing with the fifth columnists who are seeking to bring about radical transformational change or are you seeking to settle for the status quo? The way you answer those questions will quickly tell you how much of God’s kingdom power you are unleashing in your life. God equips and provides for those who live according to His purposes. He has never stated that He will equip and provide for those who are apathetic to His kingdom cause.
Becoming a Visible Kingdom Influencer
When your Christianity is visible, you’ll effect change. You’ll unleash kingdom authority. You’ll live as a kingdom influencer making a difference.
Living Boldly Without Shame
You must live as a visible, verbal follower of Jesus Christ, not as a secret-agent Christian. Now, you are to do this lovingly and with compassion and sensitivity, but you are to stand for what you know to be true. You are not to be ashamed of the gospel. You are not to be ashamed of God’s taking you out of darkness and placing you in the light. As Peter wrote, you are to “keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation” (1 Peter 2:12).
Dr. Tony Evans is the founding pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, founder and president of The Urban Alternative, former chaplain of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks & the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, author of over 125 books, booklets and Bible studies. The first African American to earn a Doctor of Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, he has been named one of the 12 Most Effective Preachers in the English-Speaking World by Baylor University.
Dr. Evans also holds the honor of writing and publishing the first full-Bible commentary and study Bible by an African American.
His radio program, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, broadcasts to millions of active listeners across hundreds of radio stations and digital outlets across the nation and around the world. Dr. Evans launched the Tony Evans Training Center in 2017, an online learning platform providing quality seminary-style courses for a fraction of the cost to any person in any place. The TETC currently has over 50 courses to choose from and has a student population of over 1,500.
Dr. Tony Evans was married to Lois, his wife and ministry partner of over 50 years until Lois transitioned to glory in late 2019. They are the proud parents of four, grandparents of thirteen and great-grandparents of five. In November 2023, Dr. Evans married Carla Crummie, beginning a new chapter of love, faith and kingdom purpose. His new book, Unleashed: Releasing God’s Glorious Kingdom in and Through You, releases October 28, 2025. For more information, visit tonyevans.org.
