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A Kingdom for Such a Time as This!
To understand the Kingdom of Heaven, Kingdom of God, and the Gospel of the Kingdom, — is to understand the very realm from where Jesus originated, — the very place that He has returned to as King of kings and Lord of lords. This mysterious Kingdom came into our existences the moment Jesus landed. He not only preached about this Kingdom but clearly modeled how we are to function in the realm of this newly landed Kingdom, — which is still a huge priority for Him even today. It was meant as an upgrade for a whole new way of living that was lost in the garden. But somehow, 2000 years later, we’ve blurred the lines creating all kinds of rabbit trails.
The difference between what we think we know, and what we should know about the Kingdom is huge according to Jesus. This Kingdom, at one time, played a very real part in our humanity prior to the fall. Jesus now brings this missing realm of a world within a world dynamic back into our lives as part of the salvation package. This Kingdom was always meant to be a vital part of our day-to-day lives. ‘Thy Kingdom come thy will be done on earth as is in heaven’ was the call to bring this whole misalignment back into alignment.
From the very beginning we were always meant to be Kingdom people. To powerfully push back the invading darkness that stands in the way of the plans that the Father has for us, not only individually, but also corporately in an Ekklesia setting. John the Baptist said this Kingdom was coming, Jesus said it has arrived, and according to what He preached, this restored and re-established Kingdom here on earth is now part of our renewed DNA, — if we allow it.
Sending Jesus with the ‘Gospel of the Kingdom’ tells me that our heavenly Father was serious about us partnering up with Him. His original intent was not only to partner up with the angelic, but most importantly it was to partner up with His spiritual sons and daughters. Without this added element we become refuges, not only in need of a Savior, but also in need of a Kingdom. ‘But seek first the Kingdom of God’ was the original call to partner up. Jesus, the sent one is now asking us to hold back from our ongoing traditional attempts to govern and take a serious look at this Kingdom, — to partner up with this divine administration.
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Gospel of the Kingdom of God
Mark 1:14-15
Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel."
Note: At this point the message of salvation still needed to be defined so the gospel that Jesus was referring to was His introduction of His Fathers Kingdom, the very Kingdom from where Salvation was incepted, where the Father, Son and Holy Spirit gathered around the table to discuss ‘Salvation’.
Matthew 4:23
And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.
Note: There is no sickness, disease, demonized, lame, blind, there is no fear nor is there any darkness in the Kingdom of heaven which gives us a pretty solid understand of the quote “Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven!”
For over three years Jesus preached the Gospel of the Kingdom testifying that He was sent by His Father to establish His House and take care of His Business. Jesus not only proclaimed the Kingdom but also demonstrated the Kingdom here on earth as He rendered the surrounding darkness that was standing directly in the way of His Fathers business. This new operating system that Jesus brings is a whole lot different than what we are so traditionally use to. How they roll in heaven is how we now need to start rolling down here.
Wherever Jesus exemplified this divine administration of His Fathers Kingdom, — signs, wonders and miracles followed. The dead were raised, lepers were cleansed, the lame walked, the blind were given sight and the demonic was cast out. Multitudes were fed, forgiveness offered, compassion extended, poverty addressed, prostitutes were shown mercy and the poor were treated with dignity. Every demonstration magnified the Kingdom more and more as it helped paint that much bigger picture of His Fathers House. A revelation that Jesus was trying to burn in the hearts of His disciples, — a revelation that needs to burn in our hearts today.
Matthew 9:35
Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
Jesus knew from the very beginning that establishing a revelation of His Fathers House was something that we desperately needed in order for us to truly walk in our fullness. And His demonstrations of restoring and realigning the family were never meant to end with Him! 'Thy Kingdom come thy will be done' was always designed from the very beginning as an on going event.
For us to live in a fallen world was never part of Gods original design for us. What happened in the garden was a shock to everyone, which was the very reason why Jesus came with the Gospel of the Kingdom and the message of Salvation. To steer us out of the mess, — and to get us back on track. What He brought and what He modeled now needs to be transitioned over to His disciples. And from His disciples it was always meant to transition over to us. As Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit to tend to His Father business, so do those who tend to the Fathers Business today also need to be led by the Holy Spirit. Baptized and filled in the Holy Spirit to be exact!
The profound evidence of the landed Kingdom was an important part of the disciples internship. Jesus now sends His twelve out to experiment with the Kingdom as He released them to play their part in the restoration and healing plan for the family. What He modeled now needs to be model by them.
Matthew 10:7
And as you go, preach, saying, "The Kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Luke 9:2
And he sent them to preach the Kingdom of God, and to heal the sick.
Matthew 16:19
"I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven."
Upon their return, Jesus unpackages the Kingdom even more as He walks them through the parables. Not long after, He releases one hundred and twenty more. For His disciples, this Kingdom was now a present day reality as it rested upon them completely saturating them with a whole new lifestyle. And from what they found out, — this landed Kingdom had no plans of leaving. Once again the call went out for His disciples to engage and demonstrate this revolutionary Kingdom, to go out and preach about the landed Kingdom and to heal the sick as they lifted the name of Jesus. Notice that the crucifixion was still a few years away but His disciples powerfully demonstrated the Gospel of the Kingdom.
By the tail end of His three and a half years of ministry, Jesus then defines the message of salvation as the gospel was laid out in its entirety during that last supper table. What happened at the cross pretty well sealed the family invitation, — plus the Kingdom was released on a whole different level during Pentecost. Redemption and the power to restore was set in motion as the family expansion program suddenly kicked into another gear. Thy Kingdom has come!
This Gospel of the Kingdom was always designed right from its inception to direct us unto Salvation. The whole purpose of the ‘Gospel of the Kingdom’ was to steer us unto salvation. The ‘Gospel of the Kingdom’ and the ‘Gospel of Jesus’ were designed by heaven to be the total and complete package, — the two are actually one. But for whatever reason we have flipped the tables where the demonstrations of the Kingdom are missing in our Salvation message, — when the disciples clearly stated that their message was never meant to be of word only. But that the gospel they walked in was totally designed to partner up with a demonstration of power.
During the last season when we engaged with the Kingdom, we called it ‘Power Evangelism’ or ‘Prophetic Evangelism’ and I’m sure there were other names attached to it, but so much of the counterfeit crept in during that last season. The false prophetic, false apostolic, along with the distorted shepherding affected us on so many levels that in most cases we have pushed aside the Gospel of the Kingdom from what Jesus originally intended. Some are still entertaining the counterfeit while others went back to uphold the traditions of men once again, minimizing the Kingdom, downgrading it as happenstance, only to walk in a form of Godliness but lacking the power thereof, when in fact this incredible gospel came with dynamus power!
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Our Message Today
In our Salvation message today, very little of the Kingdom is demonstrated as originally intended. And that’s because we’ve disengaged from the Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus was heavily leaning upon. A gospel that He Himself demonstrated with incredible power, — captivating the hearts of those all around Him as He altered the landscapes physically, mentally and spiritually. Somehow we have entrenched ourselves into something that has steered us away from Gods original intent. The original gospel written upon those biblical pages was never meant to be just good reading material. So it really is time for us to realign ourselves and take a risk with the Kingdom once again. Let the Fathers’ Kingdom come, and let His will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.
In our prayers we need to be listening more. For us to play our part of the Fathers Business, — listening is vital. Not listening will only steer us into another Ishmael journey filled with frustration and endless works. When we refuse to wait, refuse to bend the knees, and refuse to listen, this will only send us around the mountain once again, — something we desperately need to avoid. Like I said before, we need to bring it all into alignment. So here’s a tip! When you gather in an Ekklesia setting, and get in that upper room mindset where you actually honor one another and serve another, — then He will come ! Yes He will come ! If Jesus thought that a small group of twelve had the ability to change the world, then should not our small groups (modeled after Jesus) change a few things around in our families, neighborhoods and cities? You bet!
As the twelve spent quality time listening to Jesus, so do we need to be spending the necessary time listening to the Holy Spirit. So get your twelve or whatever starting number you have together in an Ekklesia setting. Bring those who are truly united in a group setting, those that have a genuine love for one another and watch first hand as the Kingdom unfolds before you. Being united, honoring and loving one another is exactly the good ground that the Lord is searching for that will release the commanded blessing. Listen and listen carefully to what Holy Spirit is saying and get ready for an incredible journey. As you act upon His direction, lives will be affected, people will get saved, and the landscape will change as the gathering starts to expand.
And always remember this when stepping out, — the original Jesus model was always meant to be a gathering on the move, a powerful Kingdom on the move drawing many unto Salvation.
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EkklesiaRising.com / JesusMinistries.ca