Introduction

Welcome back to our second week of our four-week series, “Discovering the Kingdom of God.” I’m excited about this series because the gospel of the “Kingdom of God” is the gospel Jesus preached. We saw this last week, when we discovered that the gospel of simply going to heaven when we die is only a small part of the vast, life-giving gospel of God’s Kingdom.

It’s true that in Jesus we have forgiveness of sins and the promise of living with Him forever in heaven. It’s wonderfully true! But the good news is even better than you know. God is not only concerned with getting us into heaven; He’s also concerned with getting heaven into us, here and now. That’s what the gospel of the Kingdom of God is all about.

God is not only concerned with getting us into heaven; He’s also concerned with getting heaven into us, here and now.

Our Identity as Citizens in God’s Kingdom

This week, let’s discover our identity as citizens in God’s Kingdom: The privileges and responsibilities of being part of this wonderful kingdom.

Here’s a good place to start: Every born-again believer, every person who committed his or her life to Jesus, is a part of God’s Kingdom. In a famous gospel passage, Jesus explains to Nicodemus, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless they are born again.” (John 3:3) He then repeats, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.” (John 3:5-6) This passage has many things to teach us, but let’s make sure we get this straight right away: No one attains, earns, or works for their place in God’s Kingdom––we are born into it.

And if we are born into God’s Kingdom that means we are His children ... View this full sermon with PRO Premium