The Kingdom of God

There is a kingdom we do not see

that dwells within you and me.

It is the kingdom of God which I speak

It’s not a kingdom in the sweet by and by

somewhere beyond a starlit sky.

But the kingdom that dwells in the depths of our heart

God by his Spirit did impart.

When we surrender our lives to the Creator of man

we enter in to the unfolding of Gods eternal plan

Of this kingdom there will be no end

and to become great in His kingdom

then your knee you must bend.

For he who would be greatest among you

must become servant of all

to those who are willing this is the call.

The kingdom of God of which I speak

is not for the proud and arrogant, but the meek.

It’s not for those who want to look wise,

but those who are willing to sell all they have

to possess a pearl of great price

that can’t even be seen by human eyes.

To possess this kingdom you must understand

you cannot follow the wisdom of man.

For the world in its wisdom crucified the Lord

and the preaching of the cross is totally absurd.

But God in his wisdom redeemed mankind

through the foolishness of what was preached

to those who are willing to trust and believe.

Yes, there is a kingdom that flesh and blood cannot inherit

but only obtained through Gods spirit. 

To possess this kingdom that’s not of this earth

there has to be a spiritual birth.

When you’re willing to confess you are dying in your sin

and invite Jesus as your savior The King of Glory to come in

He will wash away your past and give you eyes to see

His kingdom that will last for all eternity.

Sharon Trumps 05

God First

The main thing in Christianity is not the work we do, but the relationship we maintain and the atmosphere produced by that relationship. That is all God asks us to look after, and it is the one thing that is continually being assailed”.   Oswald Chambers- My Utmost For His Highest

 

Sometimes I have to remind myself that it’s ALL about Jesus.  God didn’t put me where He did for a job.  For a ‘job’ He could have put me anywhere, but to pour through me to those He wants to touch those He wants to draw to Himself through the Holy Spirit, He put me where He did.  Do we truly believe that our steps are ordered by God as the word says?  That we may plan our course but the Lord directs our steps? Jesus wants to pour through us but the devil wants to do everything he can to stop that or at the least impede the flow.  One of the ways he does this is through a religious spirit that gets our eyes more on what we are ‘doing’ for God than our actual relationship with God.

 

Jesus just needs me to yield so He can live through me, touch through me, heal through me, and establish His kingdom through me and sometimes it is without me saying a word.  My responsibility is to see to it that I stay rightly related to Him no matter what.  That is the whole of my life, my relationship with Christ, period.  Not just to go to heaven when I die but to be a clean vessel here and now, to walk in intimate fellowship and communion with the Son of God that is my fulfillment and satisfaction. 

 

Life is not found in the ‘perfect’ job, the perfect mate, perfect house, car or clothes, whatever….(yet how often does the enemy attempt to get us to believe this, even at times succeeding if only for a while?)Life is found in one place and that is in Christ and to the degree that I truly abide in Him and He in me, it is to that degree that I will have life, and life more abundantly which is what Jesus came to give us. I believe the times we find ourselves adding to that is when it is easier to add something rather than die to something of ourselves so that we may possess more of Him and He of us. 

 

Our jobs are not about the company we work for, the money we make, (even though we all know it takes money to live here) or the benefits of our job…. It is about one thing and that is Christ.  Do we work where we do because we believe it is where He has sent us or because it pays more or has better hours, etc. I believe without a doubt that If we make our relationship with Him our first priority the rest will take its proper place. Jesus said to take no thought for your life…but to seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things (having our physical needs met) will be added to us. Matthew 6:33

King of Kings

     God has already made us what He wants us to be.  When He spoke to Abraham He told him, “I have made you a father of many nations.  I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you and kings shall come from you.” That was spoken to Abraham when he was still childless. In another place God tells him, “Blessing I will bless you, and I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand on the seashore…..and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” Obedience is indeed an action on our part but action is preceded by agreeing with the one who gives the instruction in the first place.

     Notice that the word in italics above is ‘made’ as in past tense.  All that God has created us to be and do is already in us, but we must agree with what He shows us about who and what we are.  In the past so much emphasis was placed only on agreeing with God (confessing) about our sinful condition and to be sure we absolutely  must start there, but having been born again of the Spirit because of our confession or agreeing with God, we must also come to agree with Him on what comes after that by renewing our minds so that we know what His original intent was when He created us to begin with. 
     We can't keep agreeing with what we see, hear or feel in our flesh and expect to manifest the kingdom of God and have it be established in our life.  If we want the kingdom then we must agree with the King.

     Above where God talks of kings coming from Abraham, according to Revelation 5:10 we are the kings He was referring to. 
And they sang a new song, saying: "You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by your blood.  Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation.  And have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth." Revelation 5:9-10
So I ask you, what was your first reaction upon reading that you are a king? The thing is, our excitement about being a 'king' shouldn't come so much from us being a king as much as being able to serve the King of kings and to manifest His kingdom on earth.  When we truly understand our position, arrogance is hardly the adjective that someone should be able to use to describe us anymore than it would have been used to describe Jesus.

Being Shaken

Hebrews 1:1-2  God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;………Hebrews 12:25-28  See that you do not refuse Him who speaks, For it they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.”  Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain.

If you are alive then you are either in the process of being shaken, have been shaken or soon will be shaken by the things going on in your life and or the things going on in the world so that those things which cannot be shaken will remain.  We have been going through the process of being shaken for about three years now and without a doubt only those things which are of the kingdom will be left when it’s over.

 In a previous post I wrote about walking through circumstances which caused much of my external existence to ‘feel’ very unfamiliar even though by observation it wouldn’t appear to anyone else to be any different.  We have all experienced those times when something happens (usually out of our control) that causes our life as we know it to be suddenly changed.  It might be a loss of a job or income as was the case with us, or the death of a spouse or a divorce, but all of the sudden everything around you that made your life yours is different and maybe like me at first you feel like you’ve been dropped off on another planet. I remember initially feeling a sense of panic (based on what was going in the natural) until the Lord told us what to do and what not to do. I have since found that the only familiar place in life I can count on is in Jesus, everything else is subject to change ‘without notice’ I might add. Over the past three years with all we have personally been through and all the changes taking place in other peoples lives on a global scale socially and economically, just about everything became unfamiliar and uncomfortable for a season.  But what I have felt lately and believe I am not alone in this, is that while externally it is no longer unfamiliar or uncomfortable, how I feel about it all is unfamiliar, if that makes any sense. As I have found more and more strength and stability in the Lord I have also found myself to be affected differently (in a good way) by what is going on around me.  Many in the body of Christ are undergoing changes inside primarily brought on by external circumstances in preparation for what the Lord is going to be doing through us in the days to come.  Even though some things have returned to a more familiar place externally, my relation to some things in my life is not the same and never will be.

Psalm 37:39-40 But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in the time of trouble.  And the Lord shall help them and deliver then;  he shall deliver them from the wicked and save them, because they trust in Him.
April 12th, 2012

Jesus Is Lord

Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.  Many will say to me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name done many wonderful works?’ “And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” Matthew 7: 20-23

     The proof of whether or not Jesus is our Lord isn’t by our works or our ministry; it’s proven by our surrender to Him in the everyday circumstances of life, especially the ones that aren’t the way we want them to be and know He has the authority and ability to change but chooses not to or the circumstances created by something He allowed to happen that He could have prevented.  Our life in Him isn’t about external things but about our heart. Our response to the external things serves as a barometer of our heart and measures the authenticity of Jesus' Lordship over us. His Lordship over us is directly related to how well He knows us, not because of His omniscience but by our willingness to open our hearts up to Him in an ongoing intimate relationship because we trust him.

     It is interesting that Jesus doesn’t say I am not your Lord, but that “I never knew you”. That Jesus is Lord is a fact for He is Lord of Lords, but the degree to which He is our Lord on a personal level will depend on the degree to which we allow Him to know us. The degree to which He is our Lord directly affects whether or not we do the will of the Father.  Doing His will, not merely knowing it determines whether or not we enter the kingdom. Being born again gives us the ability to see the kingdom, doing His will enables us to enter.

Strangely Unfamiliar

      I am not sure if it is just me or if you have been feeling the same as I.  Things seem strangely unfamiliar to me and have for quite some time. Just when I think that is going to change it seems something else happens and the familiarity I thought was within my grasp stops short. Even things that should "feel" familiar don't.  I wish I could say this has been a recent thing, but to be honest it began over two years ago and rather than subsiding with time it seems that time has only increased this uncomfortable feeling and sense of not belonging.

     The other day I thought about TV shows I watched as a kid. For me there was the Lucy Show, the Flintstones, the Price Is Right (has there ever been a time that show wasn't on TV?) and others that came on at the same time. Did you feel somehow that all was right with the world as long as you got to watch "your" show? I know I did.  I think watching the shows was more about a sense of continuity, an inner strength that was drawn, however unnoticed, from the fact that no matter what catastrophe was going on in the world, or even  closer to home, the TV show was a familiar place, like the familiarity one feels when they turn the corner and see the name of their street on the sign.  Even the music to the evening news can create the same sense of familiarity and comfort or the sound of a lawn mower, just because it is a sound we have heard all our life. Hopefully you're following me on this.

     Back about a year ago as things were changing  with the economy and other areas of life that we grow accustom to over time, one of the things I believe God wants to develop in us, is for Him to be our familiar place, our place of comfort and safety, our place of continuity on a daily basis.  That the familiarity of being with Him will be where we draw our inner strength from. The truth is, nothing is forever except Him. No matter what it is that brings us that sense of belonging, or comfort or that feeling that the world is as it should be, the world around us is changing , and much in ways we have no control over. We can however  control  what we choose to cling to and allow to be our safe place. I don't know about you, but I am learning more and more that Jesus is who I need to cling to and  needs to be what makes the world for me "as it should be".

     The Word refers to believers as strangers and pilgrims on earth (Hebrews 11:13), and I have over the years witnessed an increased sense of not belonging here but even more so the past few months.  Years ago we used to sing a song that had the following verse:

This world is not my home I'm just passing through

my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue

the angels beckon me from Heaven's open door

and I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

 

     As a young Christian I  hardly understood the sentiment with which the above verse was penned. While my eyes had been opened to a whole other world beyond the one in which I live on earth, the reality of its existence  has been ongoing. Back then I couldn't  imagine coming to a place where the reality of Gods kingdom and heaven as my home would surpass the touchy feely "real" existence of my life on earth, but as my perception of God has changed, so has my reality.
March 23, 2011

The Kingdom

The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
Matthew 13:44-46   

Kingdom Poem
  

The treasure is Jesus. He is the kingdom within. The rule and reign of Christ in me and my life is the kingdom manifesting in righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  Jesus said the Kingdom of God is  within you. I realize now that to possess the kingdom there is no area of my life that can be off limits to Christ’s rule and reign. Every area must come under the authority of the King; everything has to be rightly aligned according to the blueprint of the Kingdom. I can’t have His rule and reign in one area but lock him out of another. I will never possess the kingdom in the measure He wants with that kind of mentality. 

     I have been thinking a lot about being rightly aligned in order that there can be a fuller manifestation of the kingdom in my life and I feel like we are currently living with some circumstances that have created a wall of sorts that hinders that. I doubt we are unlike a lot of people who truly seek the manifestation of the kingdom in their lives. It is a process, not an overnight sensation. The problem is, while it is good that my desire for the kingdom has superseded my desire to just maintain the status quo and keep everything comfortable and safe (at one time I couldn’t even say that) I can’t entreat Jesus to knock the wall down and then not give him permission to do it the way He sees fit. After all He is the King and it is His kingdom that I am seeking to possess. It’s like I am saying “Jesus please demolish this wall but would you mind dismantling it a brick at a time instead of using a wrecking ball.” I know some of you are laughing because you have felt the same way. So glad He has a sense of humor!
     There cannot be a full manifestation of the kingdom without proper alignment; that alignment being our submission to His authority. Not the superficial submission of one who gives mental ascent to the authority of Jesus but the submission brought about as a result of being intimately acquainted with the King. The kingdom will be made manifest in proportion to the measure of our submission to His authority. We want the benefits of His Kingdom rule and reign without paying the price of submitting to His rule and reign. But once we become intimately acquainted with the King of the Kingdom submission to His authority is not an issue for we realize that His rule and reign is built upon a foundation of love and humility, not lording it over us.

My Prayer:
I don’t know what it will look like or what my life will look like, but one thing I know, I can’t live without you. You aren’t the main thing, you are the only thing. All I think about lately is you, your kingdom and eternity and how much I long to make a difference. I can have all kinds of noble deeds and lofty ideals but without your Presence it is all for naught. Church history has proven that again and again. Even though my flesh trembles and my knees quake, I want you, all of you and all you desire to do through me and my life. I just keep laying myself down at your feet on the threshing floor and saying have your way, spread your garment over me and have your way. Man may not like me, people may reject me and talk about me but what difference does it make, if I have you I have everything, everything else is all for naught without you. I don’t want to be someone who can talk all about you and even sound like I know you, if there is no substance, no manifestation of the reality of what I say, what does it matter? I don’t know why but I have this burning passion to be one of those who was unashamed and unapologetic of you and your presence. You are God, you are everything and the only thing that matters. It is in you that we live and move and have our being. Amen.