A New And Different Kingdom Series

A Different Kingdom

Matthew 6:24, 32-33

"For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you" (Matthew 6:24, 32-33).

Last week we talked about our mind as the battleground… where Satan would attack us, and how we could win the battle… build a wall of scripture around the mind.

On Sunday evening, we began to gather the stones for the wall, as we marked our bible with scriptures on COMPROMISE.

We’ll continue to gather more stones on Sunday evenings.

But in order for us to live the kind of victorious life that I have talked about for several weeks now… to be more than survivors… to be CONQUERORS… we have to prepare more than our minds.

We have to enter the Kingdom of God

You might say, “I am in the Kingdom of God… I have been saved, baptized and have a home in Heaven waiting for me when I die.”

Most people mistakenly believe the term, Kingdom of God refers to Heaven

or to being a Christian… a believer.

It is NEITHER, the kingdom of God, which Jesus came to inaugurate, is not a group of people in heaven or earth,

In fact… there are Christians who are not in the Kingdom of God…

If you don’t take my word for it, listen to Jesus…Matthew 7:21

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

OK Preacher, now you have me confused!

Well, I’ll confuse you even more…

There are even people in heaven, who were not in the Kingdom before they died.

HOW???

What is the kingdom of God?

It's one of those terms we like to use but seldom define. Part of our problem is that it is a tough thing to analyze.

Chuck Swindoll says, “Generally speaking, God's kingdom is a synonym for God's rule.”

The kingdom is the invisible realm where God rules as supreme authority.

Jesus described it best when He said, “your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Mt 6:10

The Kingdom of God is when God’s will is done here, in a human heart, as it is in heaven… perfectly!!!

That will never refer to an earthly kingdom. It does not even refer to a large group

It refers to individual hearts, individual souls who have submitted their freedom, their rights, their will to HIS

The Kingdom of God was illustrated by Jesus…in the Garden.

When He prayed, “Not my will but thine”

Others entered the Kingdom…

Stephen… the first Christian martyr

Peter… crucified upside-down

Mary… I am your hand-maiden

Joseph… “far be it from me to sin against God”

Why were these in the kingdom???

They had made that same trip Jesus did…

Through the valley of death… to self

Up the sheer cliff of submission

Down into the depths of suffering

Until their reached the place of complete emptying of self

The place where there was no longer any question of ownership

The place where God and His Will were the only choice

THERE…. RIGHT THERE… they entered the Kingdom of God

That was the place God had designed for them before creation

The place God made for them to live in the Garden

God created the place of perfect submission

The place where all was perfect because God was God and there was no other

But Man defiled that place… because he refused to be part of the Kingdom

Refused to submit… refused to bow down

He stood up and claimed HIS FREEDOM OF CHOICE

HIS POWER TO GO HIS OWN WAY

And the Kingdom was lost… peace was lost

Joy was lost

Intimacy was lost

And God has been working for thousands of years to restore the Kingdom

There were bright spots along the way… a few who chose to enter the Kingdom of God

But few… why? Too hard… no power

So God sent His Son Jesus… to issue in a new era… a new world where we were not powerless, defeated by sin and self

Jesus climbed on that cross and said… It is finished

The powerlessness and defeat

He died… grabbing the keys to death and hell

He was buried… and descended into Hell and unlocked the chains of the believers

He rose… bursting the chains of Hell… the power of Satan

He was taken up to heaven… sending the POWER… THE VICTORY

The Spirit of God

No longer did Satan hold the keys to the heart of man

No longer was man powerless over the schemes, the wiles of the Devil

Now we had a power to overcome