Why Kingdom?
Written: November 30, 2018
I taught on the Kingdom of God recently, and the day after my teaching, my husband had several people ask him… “Why teach about the Kingdom?”
A majority of the people you ask, “When I say Kingdom of God, what comes to mind?” … will tell you, “it’s where we will go when we die.” Or “It’s the new place that will be on this earth when Jesus returns again.” Some may even say, “It is Jesus in you.” But it’s mere words, they have no idea what that actually means.
This is WHY I teach Kingdom… I want people to understand … The Kingdom of God is in your midst, and you don’t even know!
A while back, I heard Ryan LeStrange say, “In God’s kingdom, there is no room for a religious mindset because a religious mindset keeps us in a 'judgment' zone of any new thing God may choose to do, and in that we miss out on the depths of God that He wants to call us to. The depths of who we are IN HIM! God wants us to get rid of the Pharisee/religious mindset and grab ahold of the Kingdom mindset and walk as Jesus walked!”
We won’t see His Glory (manifested presence) on this earth until the religious mindset dies!
Here’s the deal, though: until we recognize the difference between kingdom and religion, we will not be able to understand or walk in the fullness of the Kingdom.
The religious people/Pharisees were bound, they were powerless, and they hated Jesus because He did a NEW THING, something they were very uncomfortable with!!!
There were four schools of thought in Jesus’ day. From the Bible, we see the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Zealots. From religious history, we also see the Essenes. The Pharisees were the strictest sect of Jews, as Paul states in Acts 26:5. Their very name meant “set apart.” However, all too often, they clung so tight to tradition and law that they missed the Messiah’s visit. Jesus rebuked them many a time as they were hypocrites and did not love truth nor follow it. The Pharisees loved to take verses from the Pentateuch and make religious rules out of them. Much like we see in religious circles today, they find a single verse and make a doctrine out of it, and those who do not know the truth in how to study the word, fall prey to it and begin to allow the religious mindset to settle in them. That makes people so headstrong that they refuse to accept anything new that Jesus wants to do… Just like the Pharisees! This is very dangerous, and this is why the church is failing in many ways.
Why is it important to know about the Pharisees? Well, in Matt. 5:20 Jesus said:
“For I say to you, that unless your righteousness (right standing, justification) exceeds (superabound, beyond measure) the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter (arise, or come into – the influence of) into the kingdom of heaven (the fullness of God).”
The following were the main characteristics of the Pharisees:
(1) They threw aside God’s commandments and made the commandments of men and traditions into doctrines. Mark 7:7-9 – “They worship me in vain, teaching as doctrine the commandments of men, having no regard for the command of God, you hold fast to human tradition.” He also said to them, “You neatly reject the commandment of God in order to set up your tradition.”
(2) They were more concerned with outer purity rather than the purity of the heart. Jesus said that they cleaned the inside of the cup, but inside, their hearts were full of greed and wickedness and self-indulgence! Luke 11:39; Matt. 23:25, 27-28
(3) They tithed on herbs, which is good, but more important matters like justice and love for God were overlooked. “The people of Nineveh will stand up at the judgement with THIS generation and condemn it, because they repented when Jonah preached to them – and now, someone greater than Jonah is here!” Luke 11:32 WOW! “Woe to you, Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, yet you neglect what is more important in the law – justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You should have done these things without neglecting the others.” Matt. 23:23
(4) They loved the highest seats and public greetings in the market because they were selfish and wanted to be seen by people, to the point of enlarging the borders of their clothes. "But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels [of their garments.] They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the marketplaces, and being called Rabbi by men.” Matt. 23:5-7
(5) They burdened people with unnecessary traditions and did not raise a finger to help. "They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with [so much as] a finger.” Matt. 23:4 & Luke 11:46
(6) They would not confess Jesus Christ as Lord, so they wouldn’t be removed from the synagogue. They loved the praises of man more than praise from God. - John 12:42,43
(7) They said long prayers pretending that they were righteous. They even praised God with their lips and their heart was far from Him. Matt. 7:6, Matt. 23:14
(8) They took away the key to knowledge. They blocked people from getting into heaven and they themselves did not get in. Matt. 23:13, Luke 11:52
(9) They loved to tempt, accuse, and oppose Jesus. Matt. 16:1; 19:3; Mark 8:11; 10:2; 12:13; Luke 6:7. They continuously tried to entangle Him in His talk. Matt. 22:15 Paul, who was a Pharisee, told of his own nature before his conversion:
"I (Paul) verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth."
So when he came on the scene after Jesus' ascension, he persecuted the Christian Church.
(10) They asked for a sign to believe when many were already given. If given yet another sign, they would not believe. Luke 22:66, 67 Note that the incident mentioned in the given text was after three and a half years of Jesus working miracles, healing all types of diseases, and even raising the dead! The Pharisees needed to “observe” in order to believe! They were faithless!
(11) In fact, they killed Jesus – They hate the Truth. Matt. 12:14; 21:33-46; Matt. 27:20-22 – Religion kills intimacy!
This is the heart of a religious mindset. We look at the “new” and say, “That can’t be God!” because it doesn’t line up with the traditional way of thinking. The Pharisees, Sadducees, and the Zealots could not see past their comfort of tradition in order to see Jesus Christ (THE KINGDOM OF GOD), their redeemer, standing right in front of them… Because of this, they were unable to walk in the fullness of the Kingdom!
Religion KILLS Kingdom advancement!
When the Pharisees asked Jesus when the Kingdom of God would come, He quickly told them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, they won’t say ‘Hey look, here it is!’ No! Indeed, the kingdom of God is in your midst!” (Luke 17:20-21)
Jesus said, “The Kingdom of God is ALREADY HERE!! The kingdom He was speaking of is God’s Government and Culture now present in the earth because of Jesus!!
Jesus said, "I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH!" So, why teach Kingdom? Because Jesus IS the Kingdom and the Kingdom will build His church! It's not about numbers in a building; it's about nations being discipled!
Let’s look at Luke 16. Until John, the law and the prophets were taught, BUT since that time, the good news (gospel) of the KINGDOM OF GOD is being declared, and EVERYONE IS FORCING (PRESSING) THEIR WAY INTO IT!”
Matthew 11:12 in The Passion Translation tells us, “From the moment John stepped on the scene until now, the realm of heaven’s kingdom is bursting forth, and passionate people have taken hold of its power.”
Friends, God has placed us on this earth to continue what Jesus started! Jesus’ assignment was to introduce the Kingdom to this earth. He came in the flesh… Trained 12+ men and women while declaring the Kingdom EVERYWHERE HE WENT for 3 ½ years… then He died for OUR sins and sent the Holy Spirit to live IN US. Now that He is IN US, it is our assignment to BRING that same CULTURE of the KINGDOM TO EARTH! WE HAVE A PURPOSE!!
As long as we are going around trying to hang on to all these rules and regulations of religion, we will NEVER fulfill His Kingdom mandate! Religion has to go, and the Kingdom must advance!
What is Kingdom? GOD – LOVE, JESUS - HIS CHARACTER – knowledge – the LIGHT and HOLY SPIRIT – HIS POWER!
And WHO’s spirit dwells inside of YOU and me? That of God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and Holy Spirit – the all-encompassing LOVE, CHARACTER, and POWER of the Trinity!!
Father, I repent of allowing a religious mindset to get me comfortably settled and to keep me from advancing your kingdom! I choose to be a kingdom carrier everywhere I go! I choose to be YOU in this world! Father, open my heart and mind to all the newness that is of YOU and YOU alone. I pray for a spirit of discernment as Your Word tells us to always test the spirit behind anything we hear or see. Give me a fresh vision for Kingdom-mindedness and remove any old ways of thinking that are holding me back. Father, I know the only way to shift my mindset is to be IN Your Word and to communicate with You daily, so I ask for a deep hunger for all things Kingdom!!! In Jesus name, Amen!