Two
weeks ago I spoke about unlocking the kingdom of God in our lives. Jesus
said we should pray …
Matt 6:10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in
heaven.
The will of God is done in His kingdom! After Peter had made a confession
of faith in Jesus as the Son of God, Jesus said to him … and to all who
make Christ the Savior of their soul …
Matt 16:19 "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of
heaven;
As I was reading about the kingdom of God, the question I had was
… How does the kingdom come into our lives? And where can I find the
keys
to the kingdom? By searching through Matthew I came upon several scriptures
which would seem to be the keys to the kingdom.
The first of the keys of the kingdom is found in these verses:
Matt 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom
of heaven.
The next key to the kingdom is obedience to the Word of God.
Matt 5:19 "Whoever then annuls one of the least of these
commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least
in the kingdom
of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great
in the kingdom of heaven.
The third key is righteousness.
Matt 6:33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness
(moral character), and all these things will be added to you.
What are the results of seeking God’s kingdom?
Matt 10:7-8
7 "And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven
is at hand.'
8 "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast
out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
As we live daily in the kingdom, we have God working mightily within
our lives! We receive much from Him and have much of which to give to
others! After hearing that Jesus wants us to pray for the kingdom to
come into our lives … is it of any significant value in the 21st Century
for us to have the kingdom of God come into our lives? I know we all
would reply “yes” to that questions, but listen to Jesus’ words about
understanding the word of the kingdom
Matt 13:19
19 "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does
not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been
sown in his heart.
This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road.
Do you understand the word of the kingdom? Satan does not want us to
understand the kingdom, or its value. One of the many responses I’ve
heard from those who do not grow in Christ and mature in their faith
is that they don’t understand. If this is where you are … pray for understanding!
Jesus said He would give understanding to those that ask!
If understanding the call of living in God’s kingdom escapes you, be
aware that it is Satan who is robbing you of blessings and the benefits
of the kingdom by turning your attention away from understanding! I beg
of you to not lose the life of the kingdom by allowing Satan to cloud
your mind as to the value of the Word of God sown in your heart! Pray
for understanding as you enter the kingdom of God!
The more you understand the value of this priceless treasure we have
in the kingdom of God, the more you will find joy in doing the will of
God, and the more fruitful your life will become! God has wonderful plans
for your life in the kingdom!
With understanding the word of the kingdom … listen to the wisdom of
Jesus:
Matt 13:24-30 (Matt 13:47 fish)
24 The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed
in his field.
25 "But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and
sowed tares among the wheat, and went away.
26 "But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the
tares became evident also.
28 The slaves said to (his master), 'Do you want us, then, to go and
gather them up?'
29 "But he said, 'No; for while you are gathering up the
tares, you may uproot the wheat with them.
30 'Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the
time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather up
the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the
wheat into my
barn."
The wisdom of the kingdom is to love. One truth we need to know about
the kingdom is that there are both wheat and weeds growing side by side!
And it is not our job to pull the weeds! Jesus said the wheat and the
weeds are to be allowed to grow side by side until HE chooses to separate
them! Your job and mine is to keep on being wheat … and to keep on loving
the weeds!
Some Christians have taken the job upon themselves of deciding who
are the “wheat” and who are the “weeds”… and have caused damage to the
kingdom. Let Jesus decide that … you should maintain your own integrity
and keep on loving the weeds.
So … enter the kingdom with spiritual understanding and compassion!
Then expect to grow!
Matt 13:31-32
31 The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and
sowed in his field;
32 and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown,
it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds
of the air come and nest in its branches.
The goal of the kingdom is our maturity! God’s primary goal for your
life is for you to grow into spiritual maturity. You may feel as if the
faith that is within you is as small as the mustard seed, but God’s plan
is for that faith to sprout and to grow into full maturity!
In the references in Ezekiel, Psalms, and Daniel where “the birds of
the air” come to build nests in the tree of Israel … the reference is
that the tree is a place of refuge for those who need protection and
care. The spiritual growth of a Christian becomes evident when people
begin to come to them for prayer and ministry! There should be people
building nests in your heart!
“Thy kingdom come …” is not just a simple prayer!
Living in the kingdom
is to live with understanding,
it is to live with compassion, and
it is to grow into maturity where others can find strength from your
life
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