The True Kingdom of God
Chapter 4
The Kingdom Nature
We must understand that the kingdom of God is an entirely spiritual kingdom. We enter it spiritually through receiving Christ into our spirit, whereby we're born again, and we remain in His Kingdom if we "walk according to the spirit." (Romans 8:1)
Luke 9:27 says, "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God." Jesus is not speaking of His Second Coming here but is saying that before the apostles would die they would see His Kingdom, and they did! The Kingdom of God came on the Day of Pentecost when men received the Spirit of Christ and were empowered to minister the kingdom and bear its fruit. Before any of the apostles passed away they had all moved in the Kingdom. The thief on the cross said " Remember me when you come into your kingdom." (Luke 23:42) This man wasn't forgotten or on probation for thousands of years until Jesus returned! He was received into Christ and His Kingdom when Christ arose.
Jesus told his disciples "I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." (Luke 22:16,18) Concerning the bread, He said, " I will not eat it again until it finds FULFILLMENT in the kingdom of God.” The elements of the Passover meal found their fulfillment in the spiritual Body of Christ when they received His Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. Amen! The grapes have life in the VINE until they mature and then they're CRUSHED to flow together. Their observable outer nature is CHANGED from solid to liquid and their inner nature is CHANGED from grape juice to WINE! The tiny wheat SEED is PLANTED and DIES! Out of its old, hard nature bursts a powerful LIFE yielding 30, 60 or 100 fold! It willingly SUBMITS to GRINDING so that its whole nature can be CHANGED into FLOUR! IT LOSES ITS IDENTITY as it's MIXED with millions like it. POWERFUL HANDS KNEAD the dough and then SUBMIT IT TO FIRE, necessary to CHANGE IT INTO BREAD! Praise God! He says, "I'll commune with you again when your inner nature has been changed to BE LIKE MINE. When your life can truly flow with mine in Spirit (like wine) and your life is broken as bread to feed the nations then you will be worthy to sit with me in My Kingdom."
In John 6:53 He said "unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink." Just as natural bodies hunger for bread and drink, millions of new converts in His Spiritual Body (the true Church) come hungering and thirsting for Eternal Life in Christ. Jesus told the woman at the well, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:13) He said, "If a man is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified." (John 7:37-39) After Jesus was risen from the grave and ascended to His Father, He poured out the promised Holy Spirit upon the Church and those who would hunger and thirst could now be filled.
The religious then and now have looked for natural signs of a natural kingdom and devise natural programs to help the natural man enter it. Jesus doesn't oblige them. He has come as the spiritual second Adam (I Corinthians 15:45-48) with spiritual signs of a spiritual kingdom which only the spiritual (I Corinthians 15:50) can enter. This second Adam is the head of a new Creation.
Those who would enter His kingdom would be a spiritual people born from above, and be given power to become His children (John 1:12,13) He said, "Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein." (Luke 18:16) We must come like children, without shame or pride, to our Father. Children are HELPLESS, INNOCENT and PURE, so we must become Helpless, so we won't make our own way and depend entirely on Father for direction and provision. We must be Innocent from any sin, pride or desire. We must be Pure in heart, without any mixture of prejudice, religion or loyalties. We must depart from pushing politics and programs if we intend to approach Him in spirit. Jesus said, “true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God [is] a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship [him] in spirit and in truth." (John 4:23)
His kingdom was for those who would be POOR IN SPIRIT, MEEK, HUNGRY AND THIRSTY FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS, MERCIFUL, PURE IN HEART and PEACEMAKERS. These people would be innocent "AS A LITTLE CHILD." They would LOVE THEIR ENEMIES, DO GOOD TO THOSE WHO HATED THEM, BLESS THOSE WHO CURSED THEM, PRAY FOR THOSE WHO MISTREATED THEM and they could "turn the other cheek" if offended. His children would give anything to someone who needed it or demanded it of them, love the unlovable, do good to those who weren't good to them and lend to those who couldn't repay (Luke 6:2,7-36).
Worship in His kingdom wouldn't be with symbolic animals but would be done by each one offering themselves as a living sacrifice. (Romans12:1) The sacrifice of praise now would be believers confessing His Name and other acceptable sacrifices would be doing good works and sharing with others (Hebrews 13:15,16).
Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God DOES NOT COME VISIBLY nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or ‘There it is,’ because THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS WITHIN YOU." (Luke 17:20,21) He also said "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign!" (Matthew 12)
The contemporary Church has made the same mistake that Israelites made 2,000 years ago. If s so busy looking for natural signs and at natural Jerusalem that they can't see the TRUE Kingdom of God! God has already built an observable Israel, came in a natural body and tolerated the ministry of written law by natural priests! All of these were SIGNS of what was to come! (Colossians 2:17 and Hebrews 10:1) "The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual." (I Corinthians 15:46) His New Covenant is with a Spiritual Israel who have His Word written on their hearts and they enjoy Kingdom Life and Power because He gives them His Spirit!
Jesus said of the Holy Spirit (John 14:17) "The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be IN you" Vs. 26 says "My Father will love him, and WE WILL COME TO HIM AND MAKE OUR HOME WITH HIM." His home is IN US!
The Father's Home would not be earthly buildings made with human hands but would be a SPIRITUAL house, the BODY OF CHRIST. This would be the house He spoke of (1 Chronicles 17:10-14) that He would build for himself and from which His Son would rule. This house would be in that city Abraham looked for "whose builder and maker was God." (Hebrews 11:10) This city would be the same as the Bride shown to John in Revelation 21: 2-10. This LIVING Temple, filled with His Spirit, would not be in one certain town or ministered to by one certain race or gender of people but would be built up of spiritual believers everywhere. Paul said in Galatians 3:28, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." His grace and election is now to "whoever calls upon the Name of the Lord!”
God's Israel is believers everywhere. His Jerusalem is the righteous Church and His Zion is those who worship Him in Spirit and in truth.
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