The Constitution of the Kingdom

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
Jaywill seems unaware what the Kingdom of the Heavens is, FMF refuses to tell us. Can anyone tell us what the Kingdom of the heavens is? Does anyone else find it incredulous that Christians and former Christians are oblivious to the central tenet of a belief system they profess or have professed. I do.

You are asking so many questions and yet you are not doing what sonship asked us to do. Read this post from the beginning and do all what readers are advised to do. You seem to differ with people whilst you do no pay attention to what they write. I do not mean to offend you in any way, if I have offended you, I apologise. God bless you. Keep it up sonship! You are really helping us to understand God's purpose with the world and people.

The seventh article is in verse 9.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God." (Matt. 5:9)

The result of righteousness is peace. When there is no righteousness there can be no peace.

The participants of the kingdom of the heavens must live a righteous life which results in bringing peace to men. In Hebrews and in Romans Christians are exhorted to be at peace with all men as far as they have the empowering grace to do so. The passage makes allowances for levels of growth in maturity.

" Pursue peace with all men and sanctification, without which no one will see the Lord." (Heb. 12:14)

"If possible, as far as it depends on you, live in peace with all men." (Rom. 12:18)

Some men will not want to live in peace with the kingdom people. But as far as it is on their side, the kingdom people should live in peace with them, They should be peacemakers.

Their Father is a God of peace -

" Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen." (Rom. 15:22)

Though He is the God of Peace toward Satan the evil spirit He is out to crush him under the feet of the kingdom people.

"Now the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly, The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you." (Rom. 16:20)

Poor neglected thread.

After the "article" about the peacemakers there is encouragement to the persecuted kingdom people.

" Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, or theirs is the kingdom of the heavens." (Matt. 5:10)

The whole world lies in the evil one, the Devil. The whole world is like a patient under an anesthesia, in a stupor of semi-consciousness on the operating table of an evil doctor. It lies in the evil one (1 John 5:19)

" We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies in the evil one." ( 1 John 5:19)

Since the world is filled with unrighteousness the kingdom people "hunger and thirst for righteousness" as Jesus indicated in verse 6. The followers of Jesus must pay the price for righteousness that they hunger and thirst after. But this will bring upon them persecution.

" And indeed all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." ( 2 Tim. 3:12)

Most likely you will not be persecuted if you do not hunger and thirst to live like Christ or do not desire to live godly in Christ. But those living the kingdom life in the midst of a world that lies in the evil one, will suffer persecution from that world.

The two verses together make the best impact concerning the price to be paid for following the King of the kingdom of the heavens.

"Blessed are you when they reproach and persecute you, and while speaking lies, say every evil thing against you because of Me.

Rejoice and exult, for your reward is great in the heavens; for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (vs. 11,12)

I don't think this means that their reward is GOING to heaven. It means the source of their reward is not from this world in any way but from God in the heavens.

The kingdom of the heavens involves Christ taking possession of the earth. So it is more the sense that to the heavens they should look for their reward and not from this fallen world.

The bad treatment cannot be because of their sins or stupid things they did. It is bad treatment from men because of "Me" - Jesus Christ the present and living Lord. Not all bad treatment of Christians may be because of Jesus Christ. We can also suffer because of our own dumb behavior.

This is persecution for living Christ, living unto Christ and allowing Christ to live in us.
Today we may suffer discomfort. But we can rejoice because in the future the reward from God as the source in the heavens will be tremendous.

Praise the Lord.

Verses 13 through 16 of this Constitution are concerned with the influence of the kingdom people on the earth around them.

The first principle is that the presence of the kingdom people is as a preservative - salt. Salt is a preservative that prevents food from completely rotting. The kingdom Christians cannot change the world completely. They can arrest the process of total degradation and rotteness on the earth.

"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt has become tasteless, with what shall it be salted?

It is no longer good for anything except to be cast out and trampled underfoot by men." (vs. 13,14)

For the Christians to lose their saltiness is very bad. This means that their distinctive preservative function is lost. They become like the world around them. All respect is lost and they will be indistinguishable from the rotting society around them.

The world will trample them underfoot. The Christians should not lose the function of being a preservative "salt of the earth".