The Kingdom of God (continued)

(Bicento working in our little garden, and our last picture of our flowering plants and shrubs as of this week! We love to putter in our little plot!)

In our first communication about the Kingdom of God, I mentioned that the Scriptures speak a lot about this subject, as well as about the kingdoms of this world.
You will find this from the very beginning of Genesis right through to the Book of Revelations. I have to admit that it is not easy to write about or explain the Kingdom of God, and the kingdoms of this world. There are many that are believers in the gospel of the grace of God, who are confused about these two kingdoms. There are many precious believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, who believe that there is a difference between the Kingdom of God and the Gospel. The truth is that the Gospel and the Kingdom of God are inseparable, but it is important to distinguish or identify each from the other.
To begin with, our Lord Himself taught and proclaimed the Kingdom of God. From the beginning of His ministry to the very end, He taught about the Kingdom of God. Take for example, our Lord Jesus’ words to Nicodemus who was a member of the Council of Jews, in John 3:3, where Jesus tells Nicodemus this: "I tell you the truth, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again." Then answering Nicodemus’ question and observation, Jesus continues to say: " I tell you the truth, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit."
In our previous short word, we mentioned this doctrine, but we can read more about that in various Scriptures that help us to understand by faith. In 1 Peter 1:3-5 we read the following, " Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade –kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." Here we can clearly see that the new birth is related to the death and resurrection of the Lord, and that it is the work of God the Father by means of His Spirit. Further on in 1 Peter 1: 23-25 we read this: " For you have been born again, not by perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For all men are like grass and their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever. And this is the word that was preached to you."
Friends, in the above verses we can see so clearly that the new birth takes place when we hear the WORD of GOD, in the gospel. The Bible says "consequently faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ."
A simple study of this portion of Scripture indicates so clearly that the message and the Word mean the gospel. The word gospel simply means the good news. We can then conclude that only sinners who repent of their sins when they hear the gospel and obey God by putting their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus, Who died and was raised from the dead for us, will enter the Kingdom of God. The Bible is crystal clear about this truth! All declarations in the Scripture about this truth about the Kingdom of God are sure and irrevocable, because the Word of God is alive and endures forever.
Here are a few Scripture portions for you to read and ponder over that speak about the Kingdom of God: Acts 1:3, 19:8, 20:25, and 28:23-31. These Scriptures are all found in the Book of Acts. Read them sincerely from your heart and the Lord Himself will help you understand.

This far today in this morning’s Blog! Have you been blessed, encouraged and challenged? Write to us and share that with us at: bbhenriquez@setarnet.aw

THE KINGDOM OF GOD

In the Scriptures we read a lot about the kingdom of God. But at the same time the Scriptures speak a lot about the kingdom of this world. As far as the kingdom of this world is concerned, we have no decision to make; our parents make it for us. The moment we are born we are registered to a citizen of the nation that our parents belong to.

But this is not how it is with the kingdom of heaven, the celestial kingdom. Even if our parents are citizens of the kingdom of God, their children do not automatically become members of the kingdom of God. If our parents are members of any religion, they may put our names on the list of membership for their religion. But something our parents can never do for us is to make us members of the heavenly kingdom of our God and Father.

This world is divided into different kingdoms under various names. But the kingdom of God is an only kingdom that consists of people from all nations, tribes and languages. Now, if we cannot become a member of the kingdom of God, even though our parents are, automatically the question arises: How can I enter the kingdom of God or become a member of that kingdom?
Dear friends of all ages: the Lord Jesus Himself gives the answer to us with affirmation and clarity Himself. Take your Bible and read in John 3, verses 1-21. Here we read that if a man is not born again he will not see the kingdom of God. However, for someone to enter the kingdom of God, he has to be born again by the Holy Spirit of God. Then comes the natural question: How can this be? How can a man be born again since he has already been born from his mother’s womb? We must be thankful to our Lord Jesus Christ because He gives the answer in the verses that follow in John 3:10-21. In verses 14 and 15, the Lord continues to speak about a bronze snake that the prophet Moses lifted up in the desert as commanded by the Lord God, during a time when the people had been taken out of Egypt were rebellious and murmured against God and against Moses. The Lord sent venomous snakes, which bit many and caused many to die. It is only then the people recognized their error and admitted their sin. Then the Lord said unto Moses: "make a snake and put it on a pole and lift it up, so anyone who has been bitten can look at it and live."

That story, friends both young and old, the Lord told Nicodemus as an illustration of what would happen to our Lord Jesus Himself. He is the one who would be lifted up on a cross to save us from our sins. He died because of our sins, not of His, because He never sinned, and there was no guile found in His mouth. Make sure and read 1 Peter 2:21-25.

When we read that He carried our sins in His body on the cross, etc., instead of reading our sins read my sins. It is the truth. That is why the Scriptures say that it is for us that He suffered, for us He died, and for us He was raised from the dead. The children of Israel that believe Moses and admitted their guilt, and looked up to the bronze snake, did that by faith. It is no different today my friends, believe the Word of God that tells us that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Read Romans 3:21-26. There is a very solemn warning that accompanies the offer of pardon for sin and eternal life, which says: "How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?" (Read Hebrews 2:1-3).

This is all for today. We will continue this topic in the next blog. We would appreciate a comment from you, a suggestion, a Scripture related question you might have.

Bicento and Betty