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Citizens of Heaven, Part 2

October 23, 2020 / / 1 Comment

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First the Kingdom, #35, Citizens of Heaven, Part 2. “Where Do You Dwell?”

Colossians 1:3-14:
“We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit.

For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;  strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.

For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,  in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

In a previous discussion we read a statement the apostle Paul made in his letter to the church at Philippi. We learned the exciting fact from him that we believers in Christ are Citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:20-21). This is in fact a marvelous privilege. We understand that the first initial step in becoming a citizen of the kingdom of heaven is to repent of our sins, and to take on a different perspective. In this new perspective the universe is not all about me. It is all about God Who created it! From Christ we have learned that He created everything with good, loving intentions. Therefore, to understand how the universe is centered around Him is a wonderful and encouraging thought!

In my personal experience, this rejection of my old ways and thoughts and my surrender to Christ was truly like a change in location! Before I was living in a world of discouragement and defeat, now I am living in a place of hope, peace and victory! My thoughts became aligned with God’s thoughts! This change is not only psychological but also spiritual. Our minds and bodies were designed from the beginning to be connected to the spiritual side of our being and to God. The further we drift from Him, the darker our thoughts become. Thankfully, Jesus Christ through His atoning sacrifice has reconciled the world unto Himself!

By faith in Him we are relocated back into the land of peace, love an light!
Sadly, I do not always live in that heavenly place in God. what I mean to say is that I sometimes forget to renew my thoughts in Him. The world, the flesh and the devil all conspire to bring me down to that former level of defeat and darkness. We are in a battle, and we have spiritual weapons that can help us to maintain our victory! I personally need daily fellowship with God and with my brothers and sisters in Christ. I need to meditate upon His Word, the Bible and I also need to hear it ministered to me through fellow believers. Another key is in the sharing of it with others. This opportunity I am taking right now is a joy and a blessing to me!

Belief, trust, faith in the Word of God not only brings us into our initial salvation, but it also carries us forward to our ultimate victory over sin and death! The challenge is not to manufacture holiness in ourselves. The challenge is to cling to Christ against all opposition, while He works in our hearts and minds to make us holy.

Have you ever considered the freedom of living under His Lordship? This means I can no longer serve fear, anxiety, anger, jealousy or frustration. I am a citizen of heaven! My king is the Lord of life, righteousness, peace, love and joy! To often people see His Lordship as restrictive and as something to be resisted. They prefer their petty attitudes, their habits and addictions over His liberating truth. Even some Christians want to debate whether or not submission to His Lordship is necessary for salvation.

The fact is that God in Christ has lifted His people up. He has raised us up from our sin and death and caused us to sit in heavenly places in Him! It is not His will for us to live a mere earthly existence. The question is: Why would we not want to live in the fullness that He has for us?

In these times believers all over the world are facing the temptation to sink back into the place from which He has lifted us. If we are not careful, our minds can become filled with corrupting thoughts. Hatred, anger, fear, resentment, revenge, greed, vice do not belong in the place where we dwell. Our citizenship is in heaven! We are called to freedom in Christ!
Yes we are being tested to prove that we serve Christ and will not follow fallen humanity into slavery to the prince of lies. But I say this to encourage us. Jesus Christ IS the Lord of all! Hear the Word of God, the Truth that makes you free! You are not a slave to sin, fear, anxiety and darkness! You have been translated from that realm and into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son. Let this truth dwell in you richly and let it grow to maturity. Let His thoughts and feelings overwhelm you. Consciously choose to dwell as King David did, in the House of the Lord forever.

He is your dwelling place, your sanctuary, your home.

Kingdom People!

June 24, 2019 / / 0 Comments

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First the Kingdom Part 20 – Kingdom People

If you haven’t already noticed, Jesus was first focused upon the will of His Heavenly Father, and secondly upon people who are the object of His Father’s love. These two priorities come together in the Good News of the Kingdom of God. His entire life was devoted to bringing the Kingdom of God to people and to bringing them into the Kingdom of God. Even after His resurrection He continued to speak of things related to the Kingdom of God. (Acts 1:3)

His Kingdom is not of this world system. His people are in the world system but not of it. But make no mistake, His Kingdom is more than an experience or a state of mind, as some would teach! To be born from above and to enter into the Kingdom of God is most definitely a life-changing experience, but it is also one that impacts the world around us. Rather than looking to escape this world and its ways, we are to pray as Jesus taught for the Kingdom to come and for God’s will to be done in earth as in heaven!

The Kingdom of God is the Kingdom of heaven after all. These terms are interchangeable in the Gospels. Those of us who have truly repented and believed in Christ as our Lord and Savior have already tasted of heaven in a measure. There are those who believe that most of what is prophesied in the Bible concerning the Kingdom is in the future, and there are also those who believe it has fully come now. I would ask, Why not simply take the words of Jesus and His apostles and the prophets as they were given?

Throughout the Gospels there are plain statements that the time for the Kingdom of God had come. Jesus declared that His power to heal the sick, raise the dead, and cleanse the lepers was evidence that the Kingdom of God had come upon the people. (Matthew 10:8, Luke 9:2, 10:9, 11:20) Paul wrote to the church at Colossae that “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love..” (Colossians 1:13) NKJV

On the other hand, many statements are made relating to future aspects of the Kingdom. In Hebrews 6:4-5 we are told that those who have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come. It should not be difficult to see that the Kingdom of God has broken forth into the earth through the life, the work and person of the Lord Jesus Christ! This world will never be the same! And yet He has taught His followers to pray for the Kingdom to continue to come. I for one am thrilled to know that there is more to come even in this earth, but I am equally grateful to know that we can be Kingdom people, living in God’s presence, enjoying many of the privileges of the Kingdom of heaven now!

Paul said he was an ambassador of Christ. An ambassador is one who represents another. Christians should think of themselves as ambassadors who represent Christ and His kingdom to the world. I found an interesting illustration for this upon my first visit to India. In order to get a visa to enter the country I had to contact the Embassy of India in Washington, D.C.. Even though the office of the Embassy of India is in the USA, it is actually a part of India. That office had the authority given by the Indian government to give me permission to enter the country. The Indian Ambassador represents his country and possesses certain powers granted by his government.

Can you see where I am headed with this? Believers in Christ are in this world, but we are ambassadors, representatives of another world, that is the Kingdom of Heaven. We are given special privileges as citizens of heaven. We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have a new nature by the New Birth, and are given the authority and ability to represent His Kingdom in this world!

Without Christ we can do nothing of eternal value. But in Christ, and in His mission we have been granted the power of the Holy Spirit! Our local gatherings are like outposts that create the environment of heaven here on earth. We are the light of the world, a city set on a hill, a real and significant demonstration to the world of what the Kingdom of God is like!

Sadly, some today believe the authority of the Kingdom of God is for serving our own purposes. They confess faith, make claims and hope to obtain the things they want for themselves. Guess what, this often works for them. Why? Because human beings do have great potential in themselves. They can do great things, have great accomplishments and build empires from sheer willpower and determination.

We however are talking about a kingdom that cannot be threatened, shakened or moved. This kingdom might not even look like much from the outside, but it is precious in the sight of God and those who love Him. It is realm of total dependence upon the supernatural power of a Holy God. In it there is no place for greed or selfishness, and yet there is prosperity of heart, soul, mind and body.

The Kingdom of God is demonstrated through a people who acknowledge and worship Jesus Christ as their Lord. He is the motivating force of their lives, the very reason for the beating of their hearts. They depend upon His power for their next breath, but by His power they are breaking down the very gates of hell today! He is their King and they are in His Kingdom now, but they also look to the time when “the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ!” (Revelation 11:15)

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