Ways of the Kingdom

Are you a casual Christian?

"He who loves purity of heart, and whose speech is gracious, will have the king as his friend" (Proverbs 22:11). In John 15:14, Jesus teaches us that we are his friends if we do what he commands. The Holy Spirit wants to help us create a climate for communion with our King, and that climate is maintained through obedience.

When Solomon finished praying to dedicate the temple, the fire fell. What happens when we finish praying? The fire will fall where there is dedication - a heart that is separated, surrendered, and yielded to His will. The fire will fall when a man with such a heart says, "Here I am. This is my life."

"From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God" (Acts 28:23). We must shake off apathy and excuse-making and daily contend for the kingdom of God. The Father is looking only for available vessels.

The Father is calling us individually and corporately into the place of prayer. The greatest ministry we have is ministering to Him through a lifestyle of intimate friendship with and obedience to Him. The King has given us authority to know and pray the desires of His heart to shake the nations.

We cannot advance the kingdom vision that the Father has given the local church without Martha's, but our remaining steady in the call of God depends on being seated at His feet, waiting in His presence. We need Martha and Mary to become one in our mind's, but the vertical dimension must take priority.

One of the great tragedies in Scripture is the death of an entire generation of Israel in the wilderness due to unbelief. We need to confront every stronghold of fear and unbelief by saturating and renewing our minds with the Word of God. Let us set our minds on things above and believe that the Father will accomplish what He has promised.

Enough of this toleration of doctrine that is not rooted in the revelation of God's holiness and the revelation of Jesus Christ, but in the opinions and the minds of men. When the Word of God is lost in our lives, we lose our way and establish idols in our lives. Revival will always begin with a revelation of the Word of God.

Revival is about the heart being revived, awakened, and re-positioned for the express purpose of the Father's pleasure. It's a restoration of the original design that the Father purposed from the beginning - a people for His very own.

In Isaiah 66, the Father asks, "Where is the house that you will build for Me? Where will my resting place be?" The Father is looking for the Body of Messiah to be a habitation for His presence and His glory. Let us prepare ourselves to be His resting place in humility and brokenness of spirit. Only rent hearts will rend the heavens.

Are you angry at the alarm clock? Self-indulgence wearies us and causes our hearts to slumber, and often our displaced passion is spent on the cares of this world rather than the glory of God. The Father is calling His people to awaken to urgency and zeal for His name - alone.

"The honor is yours to tell me: when shall I entreat for you and your servants and your people, that the frogs be destroyed from you and your houses, that they may be left only in the Nile?" Then he said, "Tomorrow." (Ex. 8:9-10) - What are you putting off until tomorrow?

We live in a world where there is pain everywhere we go, but as believers we have the capacity to deal with pain God's way. We cannot afford to be offended at God when we go through difficulties in our lives.

The Father is calling us to cultivate faithfulness in the city in which we live. He's calling us to lift up our eyes and look on the harvest, but if we're not steady in the grace of God - we will miss our harvest. We must not grow weary in doing good, for the Father will cause us to reap a harvest at the proper time.

The presence of God is the most important thing in our lives. We are distinguished by the presence of God, and we cannot allow anything to keep us from the bread of His presence. Pursue it!

One of the truths that flow out of the ways of God's kingdom is friendship with God. God wants you to know Him, and we can grow in our communion with God in such a way that our lives are transformed.

While our culture teaches us to be strong in our intellect or our talents, the kingdom of God teaches us that weakness is the key to being truly strong in the Lord.

A ship, a storm, and a sleeping Shepherd. Learning from the storms that we go through is a very important principle in the kingdom. Storms are an opportunity for revelation. Pressure reveals. The Father wants us to learn to trust Him in these difficult times.

Pastor Greg just returned from ministering in a Muslim stronghold in east Africa. Christians in this area lay down their lives when they choose to live for Messiah. Just a few weeks prior to their visit, in a nearby city, radical Muslims broke into a church and trapped women inside, beating them with clubs and ordering them to convert to Islam. Thankfully, Jesus is a King who laid down His life for us. What are we doing with the freedom we've been given to advance the kingdom of God?

"Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God." (Revelation 21:3) The appointed times of the Lord all point to the Messiah. This week, we celebrate the time of Sukkot - the Feasts of Tabernacles - God dwelling with man.