LIVING IN THE KINGDOM

I. THEY SOUGHT ANOTHER COUNTRY

It is simply amazing to look at the distance the Body of Christ is from experiencing the riches of God’s glory. We are not walking in our inheritance as Sons of God, because of this; we are not able to be that presentation of Christ that is ordained by the Father.

There is a Kingdom that we have been born into, yet know nothing about. We do not even fellowship with the other citizens of that Kingdom who may be a part of the same local assembly. The Body of Christ here on earth is fragmented and divided on issues and doctrines.

There can be no unity of the faith because we are not all in agreement with the Father. This must change. Let us go back to the Word and see the real intent of the Father for the Body of Christ while we are here on earth.

Hebrews 11:13-14

13 THESE ALL DIED IN FAITH, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

14 For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.

They sought another country. This is a seeking of a literal place. The country they sought after however was spiritual and they were natural men. These were all men of the flesh seeking after a spiritual kingdom. It was impossible for them to inherit such a kingdom in their natural state.

1 Corinthians 15:50

Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

The best they could do was to visualize that kingdom through the preaching of the Word of God or obtain glimpses of it in dreams and visions given by God. They never obtained the promises, but they did embrace them and saw them afar off.

In other words, THEY BELIEVED GOD, they believed in the hope of the Gospel. The Kingdom of God was real to them. They died holding fast to faith in what God had promised. They believed beyond the grave.

Hebrews 11:15

And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.

It is important to note here that the fleshy mind was in agreement with God. Their fleshy minds believed in the promises of God. “If they had been mindful,” means they never considered anything contrary to the promises of God. They trusted that God was able to deliver what He promised. Had their minds been influenced by unbelief, they would no doubt have left off seeking the promise that motivated them to become pilgrims and sojourners here on the earth.

They lived as strangers in a foreign land, why? Their belief and trust made the promise real to them, they actually believed that a heavenly city existed somewhere for them. This belief is what motivated them to take the posture necessary to perform all the acts of faith listed in Hebrews 11.

Hebrews 11:16

But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.

Hebrews 11:39-40

39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:

40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

The Lord had prepared for them a city that they never reached in their lifetime. Paul goes on to say that they could not have been made perfect without us. In saying this, he reiterates that God had provided us with a greater salvation experience in our lifetime than what He provided for them.

That greater experience is the fact that we received the promise they believed in. We actually arrived at the city that was prepared for them and us. It is a place of fellowship for both the houses of Moses and Christ. I do not know if you realize at this point the awesomeness of this Word.

The Lord spoke to me recently, and revealed the impact of this scripture on the lives of the Sons of God. We have actually come to that city, but in order to understand this totally, a new mindset must be formed in the Sons of God.

Hebrews 12:14-17

14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:

15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.

17 For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

The first two verses of this passage seem to deal with a completely different subject matter than the latter verses of this chapter, but I want us to really hear the mind of the Father here. First of all, verses 14-17 are a warning. Paul reminds us to walk in the peace of God, as we interact with the people of this world. He challenges us also to walk in holiness or we will cause others to be defiled and fall short of the grace of God.

Paul goes on to cite the example of Esau, rendering that he sold his birthright for a bowl of soup. He reminds us that Esau sought repentance afterwards, but could not find it. In other words, he never repented for the sin of disrespecting the birthright, but was simply sorry for having lost it. Paul warns that we can acquire the same heart, if we do not remain diligent and steadfast in the faith.

Saints are denying themselves of their birthright everyday. The remorse they then feel in doing so is due to the loss of benefits that come with the birthright, instead of the fact they have dishonored the Father or disrespected their inheritance.

Do not miss all that is implied here, Paul is rehearsing/establishing the fact that we have a birthright that is set before us right now. It is the Kingdom of God, it is the heavenly city located in a heavenly country, prepared for the redeemed of the Lord.

The warning here is that we too, can trade our inheritance for the pleasures and sins of this world. Consider the root of bitterness he mentions here. This root of bitterness springs up or grows out of the impurity of the heart. Paul is very clear; the heart must be pure in order to bring closure to sin in our lives.

Otherwise, that which we allow to remain in us will cheat us out of entering into the peace of God. That peace can only be found in the Kingdom of God. The bottom line is, sin will rob us of the birthright promises due to the sons of God.

It also becomes impossible to see the Kingdom when we walk in the flesh. Paul sets the stage for his description of our resident city by comparing it to Israel’s encounter with God.

Hebrews 12:18-21

18 For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,

19 And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:

20 (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:

21 And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)

II. THE RESIDENT CITY

Hebrews 12:22-23

22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,

23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,

We have come to this place, to heavenly Jerusalem. We have come into a company of angels, unto the Father Himself, and the spirits of those who did not receive the promise in their lifetime but are now made perfect. They could not be made so without us, now we all make up the general assembly of the first-born.

Hebrews 12:24-27

24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

25 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:

26 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.

27 And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

If God is speaking to His people, then He expects us to hear. The promise that God will lead and guide His people is true for all who are partakers of the Holy Ghost. If such is the case, why is it common for most of the Body of Christ to confess that they are not sure as to when the Lord is speaking to them? This seems to be a major issue in the Body.

The people of God have become unsure sure when God is speaking, neither are they sure as to what to do. Where is the leading? Where is the guidance He promised?

Revelation 3:20

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

SUP: Spiritual communion between Christ and the faithful believer. (From Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words).

The Lord promised to sup with those in whom He lives. This supping is spiritual communion. It is fellowship with Christ in the Spirit. I will commune with Him and He will commune with me. This is the promise of the Father, what went wrong? Why is there hardly any supping/communion with the Master? If there were, then the Body would know the mind of the Father and the Son.

We must be honest; there is virtually no fellowship with the Lord. We seek to commune with Him through our rituals of fasting and shutting in, but the Lord is Holy and Light, and in Him is no darkness at all.

III. BELIEF AND TRUST

1. THE OLD PATRIARCHS BELIEVED GOD.

They were fully persuaded that the Lord would deliver that which He promised. They looked for that foreign country, that heavenly city; they did not stagger at these promises. They were not mindful of that place they left both naturally and spiritually. They were persuaded in their mind that God had something better for them.

There were no thought wars, because they did not allow themselves to think anything contrary to the promises of the Lord. They believed Him.

2. BY FAITH THEY SERVED HIM.

Faith was the anchor for their belief and trust in God that enabled them to do the great exploits they performed in the days of old. The entire 11th chapter of Hebrews declares that everything was done by their faith in God.

3. TO BELIEVE GOD IS TO BE APPROVED OF GOD. The old patriarchs faith in God made Him not ashamed to be their God and to manifest His works through them. The same is true now; we too, must be approved of God by belief and trust. We must believe Him.

4. WE DO NOT AGREE WITH GOD.

This is where the breakdown is. The patriarchs agreed to the point of self-denial. We disagree with anything that will take us out of our comfort zones or require a lifestyle of self-denial and sacrifice. They were not mindful of this world, but we are.

We are attached to this world literally at the hip. There are some things that we have been reluctant to give up and become completely vulnerable in our minds to God.

We have never been able to move to where they were in faith because we have not really agreed with God. His method and way of raising us in the gospel is not to our liking. We go about to establish our own method of servitude and dare to insist that God accepts it and will work with us in it.

IV. RENEWING THE MIND

1. THE MIND MUST CEASE TO BE OUR ENEMY.

Our minds must suffer truth if it is to be renewed. The mind must be allowed to experience the Word of God; it must be allowed to go further than the academics of the gospel. It must gain experiential knowledge - the performance of the Word.

2. THE MIND CAN BE TRAINED TO LOVE GOD.

Just as we trained our minds to love coming to church, a place that it was not fond of before salvation, so we can train it to love righteousness.

3. THE MIND MUST BE EXPOSED TO THE TRUTH THROUGH EXPERIENCE.

The mind must live the truth before it can even determine if it likes it or not. To do this is to do the righteous thing inside of every situation, circumstance or relationship, we cannot allow the mind to seek another route. Submit to the will of God in every situation in your heart and work the situation in the Spirit. Allow the mind exposure to this supernatural peace by submitting to God in all things.

4. THE MIND WILL SURRENDER TO THE WILL OF GOD.

The mind will come to love God and the things pertaining to God.

Romans 7:25

I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

V. RENEW THE MIND WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF TRUTH.

There is a whole spiritual kingdom that we have denied ourselves access to. Our minds have opposed us. The Lord is faithful to say nonetheless, “Allow your mind to suffer my truth. It will fall in love with me. Take no short cuts in your walk of faith. When you are tried, do that which is acceptable to my Father.

Try your feelings in these matters, for happy is the man who endures temptation. You will come to love righteousness and prefer it.” This is the only way the Lord will manifest Himself to us in our walk or our ministry. We must walk in the Spirit. The mind must be convinced that this walk of faith is real; it must be allowed to experience truth at every turn.