Sir Bentley and Holbrook Court (26 page)

The Prince represents Jesus Christ.

The Knights of the Prince represent all Christians.

The Noble Knights represent the Jews who were hostile to Jesus and His disciples (the Pharisees, for example).

Chessington represents Jerusalem, and Arrethtrae represents the whole world
(earth
and
terra
are combined backward to make up this word).

The Dark Knight, also referred to as Lucius, represents Satan.

The Silent Warriors are God's angels, and the Shadow Warriors are Satan's demons.

A haven represents a local church where believers are trained, discipled, and sent out to share the gospel with others.

A Vincero Knight is a person who has been personally trained by one of Lucius's Shadow Warriors to spread and cultivate evil. Vincero Knights are ruthless and twisted by the evil that has mentored them.

Bentley's question conveys a positive interest in the Followers and the Stranger instead of disdain. It also subtly demonstrates that Bentley feels something is amiss in the order of the Noble Knights, that he wonders if their lives made more sense before the appearance of the Stranger.

The root of the tension is the Prince! Read Jesus’ words in Luke 12:51. The word
division
(used in most Bible versions) means “disunion of opinion and conduct.” When a person's heart begins to incline toward the Lord, his or her opinions and conduct will begin to change, and this often causes tension with those who don't follow Him. The rest of the answer will be based on personal experience.

The Followers realize that the Noble Knights are not their enemies, and even though they are treated harshly by the Noble Knights, they willingly protect them from the true enemy because they know that all people are important to the King and the Prince. It is important for us as Christians to approach all people with this same perspective, regardless of how we are treated by them, because we know that God loves all people, that Jesus died for all people to be forgiven, and that people are not our true enemy (see Ephesians 6:12). Also, as we see in Bentley's case, this apparent contradiction—caring for and protecting those who oppose or persecute us—has the potential to cause hearts to turn toward the Lord.

Romans 1:20 is one choice. Another is Psalm 19:1–3.

Barrington's commitment to the oath he took and his sense of responsibility to provide a good life for his family are what have kept him from surrendering to a search for the truth. Other barriers to seeking God wholeheartedly include pride, love of comfort, fear, self-reliance, stubbornness, desire for other people's approval, busyness/distraction, ignorance of God, and so on.

All things were created by Jesus and for Jesus (Colossians 1:16), so He is our existence and our purpose. We can help people
find the answer to this question by praying for them, sharing the Word with them (Romans 10:17; 1 Peter 1:23), and living life so that they can see the goodness of God (Matthew 5:16).

Answer based on personal experience. God's ways often surprise us, but they undoubtedly work out better than what we could have planned. God is always trying to teach and develop us, and bring us to maturity, and He knows the best way to do it.

Discovering the truth can be likened to simply believing there is a God (or even that there is only one God), which James 2:17–20 tells us is not enough—even the demons know that! Following the truth means stepping into the truth that has been discovered—there must be action involved. A person receives salvation when he or she confesses Jesus as Lord and believes that God raised Him from the dead (Romans 10:9–10). We turn toward Him (repent) and submit our lives to Him as our Lord. Then our faith will give evidence of itself by the good works that flow out of it. We don't do good works to get faith (Ephesians 2:8–9). We are granted faith first, and then the good works naturally follow.

Jesus tells us that if we are willing to proclaim that Jesus is our Lord in front of anyone who asks—no matter what the outcome—then we will have the great privilege and gain the eternal benefits of having our majestic Prince call us His friends who are worthy to be in heaven with Him and the Father.

In John 14:6, Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

One possibility is John 8:44.

Really, the only common factor between all of the Christians in the world is Jesus. Christians can be mighty or meek, rich or poor, and from any nation or ethnicity. Jesus made it possible for all people, not just the Jews, to be God's chosen people.

This symbolizes receiving salvation from Jesus and becoming a Christian—one of His followers.

Answer based on personal experience.

Mercy is not a theory or a principle; it is an act. Mercy is love and compassion that leads us to do something for others that they cannot do for themselves. The Mercy Maiden is a picture of Christ's mercy toward us in that she willingly goes to the needy people not because she is required to, but because she wants to. She loves them and knows they need help, and she does not expect any repayment for what she's done—she knows they simply cannot repay her. Christ willingly came to the world not because He was required to, but because He wanted to. He loved us and wanted a relationship with us, and He knew we needed help in order to have that relationship. The payment for it was too high for us, so He paid it, and He doesn't expect any repayment from us. All we have to do is accept His gift, just as Anwen had to take the food from the Mercy Maiden and use it. If she had left it in the wagon or in the yard, it would have gone to waste. There are many creative ways that we can show Christ's mercy to the world—including giving money, food, labor, or quality time to people who need help!

Answer based on personal experience.

See 1 Corinthians 12.

In John 3:16–17, Jesus said, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” In John 6:47, He said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.”

In truth, the potential of representing Jesus to the world does carry huge responsibility. Individuals may end up in heaven or in hell based on what they see in our lives. That responsibility sounds too burdensome to bear, but the Word promises us, in 1 Thessalonians 5:24, that “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.” Our responsibilities as ambassadors of Christ include proclaiming the gospel; loving our neighbor; demonstrating kindness, mercy, and humility; providing food and clothing for the poor; respecting authority; obeying our parents; and much more.

Proverbs 16:32 basically tells us that it is easier to be mighty and take control of a city than it is to take control of our anger. It also tells us that this is something we should aim to attain, because he who can do it is “better than the mighty.”

Answer based on personal experience. Although it is difficult, it is better not to let our emotions determine our actions, because emotions can be fickle. Allowing the truth to guide us is wise.
The Word of God—the truth—has the best answer in every situation, so keeping our minds on the Word and the Lord in times of tension is the way to make good decisions.

The purposefulness of his new life in the Prince, even in spite of all the difficulties he has encountered, gives Bentley true satisfaction. Knowing the truth and helping others to find it as well gives life meaning.

See Philippians 4:11–12. Paul expressed why he felt this way in the very next verse, Philippians 4:13.

Kingsley and Zacchaeus are similar because they are both rich and have used their position to gain their wealth from others, often through unfair means. They are different in that Zacchaeus quickly had a change of heart, whereas Kingsley didn't seem to be affected at all by Bentley's efforts to convince him to be compassionate.

Bentley remembers that it is the Prince who brings true change to a man's heart. The Bible says in 1 Peter 3:15 that we should be ready to give an answer to everyone who asks why we are full of hope. Therefore we are responsible for being a witness for Jesus, but He takes the responsibility for changing a person's heart.

Even though Bentley knew the world had once considered him nobility, high above others in status, his eyes had been opened to the truth of equality of all people… as well as to his new position of true nobility in the Prince. Just as the Son of the King came to Arrethtrae as a pauper and lived among the commoners until His true royal identity was revealed, Jesus came to
earth in a low position. He came as a baby born in a stable and laid in a rough-hewn manger (Luke 2:4–16) and lived as a common peasant until the time came for Him to reveal that He was the Son of God. The Bible tells us in Galatians 3:26–29 that in Christ we are all God's children and we are all one and all equal—that there is no slave or free, male or female, Jew or Greek. As children of God, we are heirs along with Christ (Romans 8:17). First Peter 2:9 tells us that we are a royal priesthood, and 1 John 4:17 says that “as He is, so are we in this world.” What Christ has done for us is an amazing gift! The rest of the answers will be based on personal experience.

Answer based on personal experience.

Answer based on personal experience. God looks at the heart of a person, not at his or her outward appearance.

The Bible definitely teaches that every person is precious. We are all precious because the precious blood of Jesus (1 Peter 1:18–19) was spilled for us. Also, 1 Peter 2:4–5 tells us that as Christians we are living stones, chosen of God and precious to Him (if we have tasted the Lord's grace by being born again). The gardener's mentoring changed Eirwyn's life by helping her to see people in this way. She is able to show love to all people, and most of the people in Holbrook love her back and are grateful to her. Even though she hides it, she has become a beautiful, merciful woman, inside and out.

Braith's life has become all about himself. He is rude, selfish, and mean, and as a result his relationships have suffered. His reputation among the people of Holbrook has been ruined. They don't trust him, and they especially don't like him.

The gardener was really teaching Eirwyn the ways of the Prince, and just as Bentley felt that tension, Kingsley's family slowly started to feel it too. This ultimately resulted in the rift that Eirwyn described to Bentley When the ways of the Lord begin to change one or just a few of the members of a family that division (“disunion of opinion or conduct”) begins to cause tension and can ultimately split the family The untouched members don't understand the change and don't want to. More than likely, their hearts begin to condemn them about the righteousness they can see in the lives of the believers, and they struggle against the realization that their lives are full of darkness instead of the light of Jesus.

No one can stand against evil with the proper authority but Christians. It is our responsibility. Some choices for Bible verses include Deuteronomy 31:6; Joshua 1:9; and 1 Chronicles 28:20 (for courage); Romans 16:20 and 2 Corinthians 2:14 (for triumph).

Answer based on personal experience. Two choices are Proverbs 11:14 and 12:15.

The sword of the King represents God's Word. Isaiah 55:11 promises that God's word accomplishes His will (as shown in Psalm 82:3–4, which Demus's speech echoes), and it does it by changing the hearts of men. Second Corinthians 10:4 tells us that through God's Word and Spirit, we have been given the power to destroy the strongholds of Satan.

Demus's words are based on Ephesians 6:12.

Lucre
is defined as “gain in money or goods, profit, or riches—often in a negative sense.” The Bible tells us that lust for dishonest
gain is not a characteristic that we should possess and that we shouldn't trust people who are “given to filthy lucre” (Titus 1:7, KJV). The Lucrums’ lust for lucre so darkened their hearts and minds that they had no respect for life. In addition to killing people in their raids, they regularly engaged in human sacrifices.

Fear tries to overcome courage by diverting our attention away from our strength—the Lord Jesus Christ. Fear can become a stronghold in Christians’ lives by keeping us from being obedient to God. Often what God asks us to do seems frightening because it takes us outside our comfort zone. If we get in the habit of ignoring God's promptings because of our fear, we will soon find it very difficult to follow His lead at all. The Bible tells us that “God has not given us a spirit of fear” (which comes from the devil). Instead God has given us the spirit “of power and of love and of a sound mind,” and with that we can courageously do whatever He asks of us! Other verses about fear include Luke 12:32; Romans 8:15; and 1 John 4:18. Note that the “spirit of fear” from the devil is different from the fear of the Lord; also remember that some natural fear we experience is healthy for keeping us safe.

Bentley's love for Eirwyn inspires him to be courageous in the face of Yagormoth. As you just read in 1 John 4:18, perfect love casts out fear. Bentley's rescue of Eirwyn is a picture of Christ's rescue of humankind. He loved us so much, He was willing to give everything to save us. Rest of answer based on personal experience.