Kingdom of God

 Luke 21:29 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near.

 As I read this today, I stopped and realized that just a few days ago, I read:   

 Luke 17:20-21 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, 21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

 So which is it? Is the kingdom of God in our midst or is it still coming or is it here? In Luke 21, Jesus states this because His disciples asked Him when His prophecy that the temple would be destroyed. In Luke 17, He is replying to the Pharisees.

It doesn’t help when we add Matthew 6:33, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” The kingdom of God is used sixty-seven times in the ESV Bible. Add some more confusion and you will find the kingdom of heaven used thirty-two times and only in Matthew.

Another interesting fact is that John only refers to the kingdom when he quotes Jesus in John 3:3-5;

Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

One more day and I’m reading again about the kingdom of God.

 Luke 22:16, For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. 18 For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.

Luke 22:28-30 28 “You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, 29 and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, 30 that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

 What do I say about all this? What do I learn and what do I apply to my life? I often just focus on the takeaway for myself, what I need to do, not do, or change. The kingdom of God has more than one meaning. To the Pharisees and Nicodemus as well as me and my daily life, the kingdom is spiritual. It is something I must seek now, not something that is only in the future.  Matthew 6:10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

It is part of our daily prayer that His kingdom should be in my heart and life every day. I am in His kingdom when I’m doing His will. In that sense, His kingdom is in my midst as I recognize and participate in the Church, the Body of Christ.

It is also a future kingdom that is more than spiritual. There will be a physical kingdom when Jesus reigns on earth. It will be a kingdom with people who are ruling over others and there will be a government that has the Apostles ruling over Israel. Where will I be?

 Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.

 Somehow, I will be in some position of authority with Christ. I won’t be alone, and I don’t know how it will work. But this is what Scripture says. But there is also this caveat. Revelation 3:8 “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.”  

I need to be a conquer if I want to be part of ruling with Christ. I can be by abiding in Christ, depending on the Holy Spirit for holiness, and trusting that Jesus will complete in me what He started (Phil 1:6).

Be Strong

 In Joshua 23, Joshua is old and advanced in years as he encourages Israel:

 Josh 23:6-8

Therefore, be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left, 7 that you may not mix with these nations remaining among you or make mention of the names of their gods or swear by them or serve them or bow down to them, 8 but you shall cling to the Lord  your God just as you have done to this day.

What are the things that can lead me astray?

1.      Not doing the things that are in the Bible. Not being in the Word daily leads to not remembering what I need to do.

2.      Not turning to the right or left. That means I must not add to God’s Word by making up things to do or thinking that some things I know I need to do are not for me.

3.      I’m not to mix with the nations. Romans 12:1 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect,” comes to mind. I just read in today’s paper that a Pentecostal church in South Africa engages in mass polygamous marriage ceremonies on Easter as it has incorporated African culture.[1] This is an extreme example of mixing with the nations.

Rather than do the things that will lead me astray, I am simply to cling to the Lord my God. In the rest of the chapter, Joshua encourages Israel and me.

1.   He has driven out the nations (Josh 23:9) – Jesus has driven out sin by His death on the cross. We still have a war to fight though. I am a citizen of a new country, the Kingdom of God and Christ (Phil 3:20).

2.   Remember that none of God’s promises has failed (Josh 23:14). I can remember all the promises Jesus has given to tell me that I have eternal life.

3.   I can abide in Jesus as He says in John 15:1-11. When I abide in Jesus, I will bear the fruit of a Christian.

Thank you, Jesus, that what Joshua had to say to Israel still applies to me today.

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[1] https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/a-pentecostal-church-in-south-africa-holds-mass-easter-weddings-for-3000-people-some-polygamous/

Hasdê for All Generations

Psalm 89:1

I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord , forever;

with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.

Steadfast love is one word in Hebrew is Hasdê (kheh'-sed). It is often translated as loving kindness, mercy, goodness, great love, unfailing love, or love. I asked Copilot to look it up and it came up with this:

It denotes more than a simple emotional feeling; it represents an active commitment to kindness and faithfulness that binds relationships, especially in the framework of covenants. In biblical usage, the term not only expresses natural benevolence but also the kind of loyal, covenantal love that is expected between God and His people, as well as among individuals. When God’s hesed is described, it speaks to His unwavering commitment and enduring compassion—even when human conduct falls short of perfect duty.[1]

This is the kind of love we celebrate every day, but especially on Easter. God’s faithfulness is one manifestation of his  Hasdê. We are blessed to see this come together in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for us as well as the Father choosing us before the foundation of the earth. He keeps His promises. That’s why it is up to us to be obedient to Him to declare this Hasdê in Jesus Christ to all generations.

Happy Easter – He is Risen.

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[1] https://www.abarim-publications.com/Dictionary/ht/ht-sa-d.html

https://biblehub.com/hebrew/2618.htm

 

Hope?

Prov 13:12

Hope deferred makes the heart sick,but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.

I pondered this a while and wasn’t sure why the Bible would say that deferred hope is a problem. After all, don’t we hope in our salvation culminating in eternal glory in heaven? Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” So, hope in the Christian sense is deferred until we go to be with Jesus or He calls us home.

Likewise, when a desire is fulfilled, does it give us life? That also doesn’t seem to jive with Christian faith. It isn’t that we can’t enjoy some things in this world as 1 Timothy 6:17 says, “God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.”

I had to ask Matthew Henry what he thought about it, and I had to do a head smack. The proverb isn’t talking about eternal life but is a warning about putting out hope in the wrong things. When we our hope is in the things of this world and we don’t get what we hoped for, we are disappointed. When we do get what we hoped for, we get a temporal boost to our feelings. Neither of these things are necessarily wrong, but some people crash and burn when they don’t get what they want. Some people get what they want and then they just want more of what the world has to offer.

The lesson for me is to make sure that I remember that the proverbs often present a worldly perspective. I looked at other translations and they didn’t help – which is the first thing I normally do. So the second thing for me is to look at commentaries when something isn’t clear or doesn’t make sense. Finally, I always need to look to my hope in Christ for everything or I may end up with heartache or misplaced joy.

Born in Zion

Psalm 87:4-6

Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon;

behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Cush—

“This one was born there,” they say.

And of Zion it shall be said,

“This one and that one were born in her”;

for the Most High himself will establish her.

The Lord  records as he registers the peoples,

“This one was born there.”

One of the reasons that I love this Psalm is that it gives a testimony to the fact that in heaven, there will be neither Jew nor Gentile for we are all one in Jesus Christ (Gal 3:28). Look at those whom the psalmist says know the Lord. Rahab – OK, I can see how He would include her – but this Rahab is not a person but the nation Egypt. They treated the Israelites as slaves. How about Babylon – the center of astrology and evil conquerors of Judah? The Philistines were constantly at war with Israel. Tyre was friendly with David and Solomon but judged during the times of Isaiah and Jeremiah. Cush was also judged by Isaiah but in Zephaniah they are described as worshipers (Zeph 3:10).

All of these were peoples who were enemies of Israel at one time or another. Yet the Lord says that they know Him and will register them as people born in Zion. The beautiful picture of this is that no matter what we were before we came to Christ, we are counted as one of His. We may even stray but once we belong to Christ, nothing can separate us from Him.

If I had a passport from the Kingdom of God and Christ, it would list my birthplace as Zion.