Kingdom of God

One of the most profound sayings by any man who ever lived was uttered by John the Baptist when he said concerning Jesus – "He should increase and I should decrease"

Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom – Luke 12: 32

Why did Jesus say fear not? What were they afraid of?

The answer lies in the preceding verses of chapter...

For this reason I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, as to what you shall eat; nor for your body, as to what you shall put on. For life is more than food, and the body than clothing. - Luke 12: 22

Ever since the fall of man, this has been what the entire world was after: What to eat, what to drink, what to wear, where to live, what materials to own and so on.

Here’s the formula for a successful Christian living: But seek for his kingdom, and these things shall be added to you.

We have been practicing this principle in for fellowship for the last few years. Through intercessory prayer, we took a step to seek His Kingdom. We stood in the gap and prayed for nations, for countries, for various people groups. The result was God met all our needs. Every request, we had was answered by God, not because we prayed hard or that we deserved, but when we went after what was dear to God, He supplied all our needs.

The Lord is saying to us – Do not fear because He knows what we need and if He can feed the birds of the air and clothe the flowers in splendor will He not take so much care of us.

Characteristics of Kingdom Jesus speaks about:

Living Kingdom – How is it living?

• Being Born - "...I say to you, 'unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.... That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." John 3:3-6
• Christ Dwelling In Us - "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20
• Living In Obedience -. "He who has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him." John 14:20-21
• Bearing Fruit - As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. " John 15:4

So let us be bold to spread the good news to everyone the Lord brings into our path.

Righteous Kingdom

• Kingdom is righteous; Rom 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
• As part of God’s righteous kingdom, we are to be a people undiluted from the world and unpolluted by sin. And the good news is that this righteousness is not a matter of striving. It is a matter of faith. Those who have placed their faith in God are cloaked in garments of righteousness!
• Righteousness is Right Living; Jesus declares, “… unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20).

“How can I possibly live a life superior to them?” Jesus was talking about righteousness; not the kind put on from the outside, but the kind that is lived from the inside. As we have seen, Christ’s victory on the Cross has made it so that we now stand in His righteousness, for we have become the righteousness of God.

Powerful Kingdom

• Paul testifies in 1 Corinthians, "My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power … For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power."
• For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. - 2 Timothy 1:7

Let us embrace the promises of God and venture boldly to claim what He has already given for His glory.

Precious and valuable Kingdom

Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys - Luke 12: 33

Do not be afraid to use earthly resources to store for yourselves treasures in heaven. I am pleased at how ready all of us are to use our abilities, time, efforts, and money for the purposes of the gospel of God. The VCU outreach is a great testament to our hearts.

Conclusion:

We are not limited by our abilities or the lack of them. We are empowered by the abilities of God Himself.

As the Israelites won against the Amalekites when Moses’s hand was lifted (Exodus 17:11); let us go into the battlefield because the hand of God is on each one of us.

As long as we remain united with Him and with each other, the hand of God will continue to be felt in a mighty way among us!