"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Mattthew 6:33)
Jesus exhorts his listeners not to seek after the basic necessities of life, because "your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things." (Matthew 6:32)
At first, I thought that the kingdom of heaven was outside of me somewhere, some plan that I had to discern and fall into.
Then I found this passage:
"Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you." (Luke 17:21)
Then there is Jesus' mention of the Kingdom of Heaven in the Beatitudes:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:3)
So, how am I supposed to seek something that I already have? In the context of Luke 17:21, Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees. How is it possible for a group of self-righteous adversaries to have the Kingdom of Heaven within them?
First, let us establish the full identity of the Kingdom of Heaven.
In Luke's Gospel, Jesus speaks of the importunity we are called to have when petitioning our heavenly Father:
"If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" (Luke 11:13)
We can trust that God will always give us the best, even when we think that we know what we want. The greatest of gifts that the Father gives us is His Holy Spirit, His very Presence, His very Self in our lives.
Now compare this promise with another one Jesus mentions in the next chapter:
"And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.
"For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.
"But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.
"Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." (Luke 12:29-32)
On its surface, this is an apparent reporting of the same Sermon on the Mount that Jesus gives in Matthew 5. Just as before, Jesus exhorts His listeners to "seek the Kingdom of God", then in the next passage, he declares that it is the Father's express intention to give us "the kingdom".
This offering parallels the same promise in Luke 11. The Kingdom of Heaven is the Holy Spirit, whose power and dominion in the life of the believer enables one by faith to walk in obedience to God.
The Holy Spirit was first given to the apostles following Christ's resurrection:
"And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:" (John 20:22)
Following Jesus' Ascension, those in the upper room also received the Holy Spirit:
"And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
"And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
"And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
"And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." (Acts 2:1-4)
From the moment the Holy Spirit indwells every believer, they immediately witness of His power.
Therefore, every believer receives the Holy Spirit by faith in the Finished Work of Jesus Christ:
"Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." (1 Corinthians 12:3)
The Holy Spirit manifests the complete dominion of Christ in our lives.
Yet why then does Jesus say "seek" the Kingdom of Heaven" when it is a gift?
It is important to rightly divide the Word of God (cf 2 Timothy 2:15). Jesus tells us to "Seek" before He died on the Cross. Once He died for our sin, forever wiping away the rebellion that separated us from God, we become the Righteousness of God by faith, and the Holy Spirit therefore dwells with in us.
The manifestation of the Kingdom of Heaven within us bears the following fruit:
"For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." (Romans 14:17)
This verse not only affirms the coequal identity of the Kingdom of Heaven with the Holy Spirit, but also demonstrates the assurance of its presence in the life of the believer.
The Kingdom of Heaven is righteousness, something that we receive at the moment of salvation:
"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)
And this concords with Jesus' exhortation in the Sermon on the Mount:
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33)
Yet following the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we know longer have to seek this righteousness, because we become the very endowment of it through Christ.
The Kingdom of Heaven if peace. Christ is our peace (Ephesians 2:14). Peace is also a fruit of the Spirit (cf Galatians 5:22)
As for joy, Christ is intimately defined with this fruit as well:
"For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?"(1 Thessalonians 2:19)
Like peace, joy is a fruit of the Spirit (cf Galatians 5:22)
Then, since we have the Kingdom of Heaven in us through the Holy Spirit, what more then is there to do? We do not seek it, therefore, but rather abide and delve deeper into it:
"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field."(Matthew 13:44)
Which then Jesus follows with:
"Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old."(Matthew 13:52)
The Kingdom of Heaven is an infinite realm, for God is infinite, everyone, ever abounding in blessing us by faith. Our seeking the Kingdom becomes our greater awareness and reception of His love, peace, and power in our lives.
We are exhorted by Peter:
"But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen." (2 Peter 3:18)
Through meditation of His Word, through prayer in the Holy Spirit, we delve deeper into His dominion, and His made manifest in our lives.
So, contrary to its apparent presentation, the Kingdom of Heaven is not a separate destination outside of us, but the Holy Spirit abiding and guiding us from within. Through study and prayer, receiving from God, we grow deeper in our knowledge of the Kingdom of Heaven, meditating on the old and pondering the new, to become more intimately one with Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment