Finding The Kingdom of God

By Chad McComas

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” With these words Jesus started His ministry. He had come for a purpose. He had a mission. He knew that He was the Son of God who was to save the world. As He told Nicodemus “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Jesus' life and death provided the way of salvation, but there was the kingdom. Jesus came to call us to become part of the kingdom. He told Nicodemus “I tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Salvation is a gift from God, but we must make the choice to enter the kingdom.

In His famous “Sermon on the Mount” Jesus began by saying “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus was countering the thought that only the very religious and rich were worthy of God's attention. The Pharisees and religious leaders were controlling the nation, the temple, the worship, the sacrifices and “salvation.” There was little hope for the common man and woman to find a place in God's kingdom. But Jesus came to shatter that thought and rescue the people from the hold of religion to the invitation to join the kingdom. It was available to anyone. Religion had nothing to do with it. In fact, religion often tries to build it's own kingdom rather than God's kingdom. Religion teaches exclusivity, Jesus taught that all were welcome. He told us that we are invited to join and that we must make the kingdom our life-long quest. He said: “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” He was promising that when we make His kingdom our primary goal in life that He will take care of us. Just like a good king takes care of his citizens. It is the king's job to take care of the people. It is God's job to take care of us. Perhaps the first key principle of God's kingdom is that to enter we must let God be God. We have to stop trying to be our own god in our own kingdoms!

Jesus taught us how to pray as part of God's kingdom. He said: “This is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven...” Once we accept Jesus we enter God's kingdom and spend our lives under His protection and seeking to build His kingdom daily.

Jesus told us that we are in the world, but not of the world. (See John 15:18,19 and 17:14-18) We are brought out of the darkness of this world kingdom into the light of God's kingdom. Jesus told us that He was the light. And when we join His kingdom we are the light. Paul told us that “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” Then he told us that “we are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.”

We are called into God's kingdom NOW. We are citizens of God's kingdom NOW. We are living in God's kingdom NOW. We are representing God's kingdom NOW. The Pharisees made the mistake of thinking that God's kingdom was a physical one. Jesus set them straight by saying: “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.” How do we find the kingdom of God? Look inside.

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord...as our king...we are given the kingdom. Our eternal existence in His kingdom is secure NOW. We have the right to enjoy the kingdom every day. We have the opportunity to share the kingdom every day. We join together with others of the kingdom of God in growing that kingdom. It's not about a religion. It's not about a denomination. It's all about God's kingdom. Let's dedicate this year to living in and for that kingdom. There is so much more to share about the kingdom. I'd like to suggest we read through the New Testament and seek out all that Jesus said and His disciples said about the kingdom. I believe we will all be amazed and our spiritual experience will be set free.

Chad McComas writes from Medford, Oregon. info@thechristianjournal.org