There is an interesting question nearly everyone knows and has asked at some point in their lives: Which came first- the chicken or the egg.
Like everyone else I have been trying to answer this question for 40 years now and I must confess I am at a loss to come to an unchallengeable and irrefutable answer.
However, I do have the answer to another similar question many Christians face: Do I have to become a citizen of the Kingdom of God first, or do I get blessings first.
For the answer I will reference Matthew 6 Verses 32 and 33....
32 For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.
First things first. What is the Kingdom of God and what do I seek in there? Now, we are all familiar with the virtual world where the internet reigns supreme. Think of the Kingdom of God as a virtual kingdom where God reigns supreme, where Jesus is the King. And because He is the King and it's His Kingdom we need to live by the rules of that kingdom. In this kingdom, God’s authority is recognized, and his will is obeyed. God's word and His will have been clearly laid down in His word - The Bible.
What is very clear is that we need to become citizens of the kingdom of God before blessings can fill our lives. And how do we do that? As a kingdom citizen, we align with God's lordship by aligning our life with what God has said in his word.
To become a citizen here, one obviously needs to follow the laws of the Kingdom. Consider His word, i.e., the Bible, as the constitution of the Kingdom of God, which contains all the laws and advisories for citizenship. But what benefits do we get from this citizenship?
1. As a Citizen WE Are under God’s Lordship
2. As a Citizen WE Are under God’s Protection
3. As a Citizen WE Are under God’s Provision
4. As a Citizen WE Surrender to God’s Purpose
You can study the above points HERE
So in effect it means that I need to first become a citizen before I can expect anything. How do I do that? I think there are four steps involved:
1. I need to give up citizenship of the Earth. I need to stop following the ways of the world - stop lying, cheating, fornication, adultery, murder (we may not murder anyone physically but character assassination is a very popular sport with us humans) and the list goes on and on.
2. I need to ask the King (Jesus Christ) for forgiveness. Keep going back to step 1 and repeat 1 and 2 till I have cleaned out my life. The Old Testament will be a guideline during this phase. Refer to Exodus 20 for each Law.
3. Replace each habit with a rule from the New Testament and teachings of the King.
4. Follow God’s agenda for us. I call this the POP principle - Preaching, Obeying and Praying. (To clarify, Preaching and Teaching can be done through example. One need not become a Pastor or a Preacher to do this.).
As we pray we MUST also repeat the Pledge of Allegiance to the kingdom. This pledge can be found HERE
So to conclude, becoming a responsible citizen in the Kingdom of God is the first and critical step. Everything else follows.
Comments
Post a Comment