Kingdom of Heaven: Overview

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Kingdom of Heaven: Overview " Week 29

The Jesus MeetUp       Kingdom of Heaven: Overview       Week 29

“The Kingdom of Heaven is within you” = approach this lesson with your HEART!

What is a kingdom? We know it as a region, a geographical territory which is ruled by a “king/queen” or some

un-elected ruler of that domain. There are 44 such countries on the world today led by kings, queens, sultans, emirs, shahs, emperors, including Pope Francis, leader of the smallest nation in the world called Vatican City, within the city of Rome, Italy.

During the time of Jesus, there were emperors and kings. Remember King Solomon and David from the Old Testament? So, while the term “kingdom” was automatically used to describe territorial possessions, this was not the preferred word of Jesus to describe the community of believers he was gathering. However, his apostles and followers had great difficulty in dropping the term “kingdom”, both from habit/tradition AND to desiring to be elevated to a prominent position in this ruler-ship!

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This kingdom is a divine family and God is no respecter of persons.

He loves us all equally.

Here it is made simple, as taught many times by Jesus.

First, the kingdom of heaven is not of this material world. There is no palace or fancy building with an appointed king sitting on a throne overlooking his subjects in fine costumes with a special bloodline and lineage. However, “the universally recognized and unreservedly worshiped center and head of this far-flung brotherhood of intelligent beings is my Father and your Father”, said Jesus. (149:6.8)

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From a bird’s eye view – the broad overview.

• The kingdom of heaven is a divine government, meant to be first established here in our world, then to progress onward to the Source.

• It is an exclusively spiritual brotherhood of God-knowing individuals, the social association of the spiritual membership of this kingdom.

• It is founded on the fact of divine sovereignty – God is spirit – therefore, a spiritual relationship between God and man.

• The kingdom of heaven in the hearts of men, women and children will create religious unity (not necessarily uniformity) because the Spirit of God is central and indwells everyone.

• It is purely a matter of spiritual concern.

• This kingdom is a life of progressive righteousness and increasing joy in the perfecting service of our Father who is in heaven.

• This kingdom is a spiritual experience having to do with the enthronement of God in the hearts of humankind.

• This is the truth that the kingdom of heaven is the spiritual brotherhood of man founded on the eternal fact of the universal fatherhood of God, who is the spirit head of this brotherhood. The Father cannot be excluded!

Now you can see the clear over arching idea of what the kingdom of heaven is according to what our Master-Brother Jesus has given us during his perfectly led religious life here on earth.

Jesus tried many times to substitute the kingdom idea with the following:

• family fellowship with God the Father as its sole foundation

• the family of God

• the Father’s will [the Father IS the Father’s will]

• the friends of God

• the fellowship of believers [those who have actually entered into this kingdom of God]

• the brotherhood of man [human fraternity of the divine Spirit = our Paradise Father]

• the Father’s fold

• the children of God

• the fellowship of the faithful

• the Father’s service

• and the liberated sons of God.

• Any ONE of these expressions in themselves clearly identifies what the kingdom of heaven is!

“The Master made it clear that the kingdom of heaven must BEGIN with, and be centered in, the dual concept of the truth of the fatherhood of God [foundation] and the correlated fact of the brotherhood of man [emerging from those who KNOW God. We know there are only 2 kinds of people. Those who KNOW God and those who do not.]. The acceptance of such a teaching, Jesus declared, would liberate man from the age-long bondage of animal fear [they become “devoid of fear”] and at the same time enrich human living with the... endowments of the new life of spiritual liberty.” (170:2:1)

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What must we do the enter this kingdom?

“The keys of the kingdom of heaven in our personal minds and souls are: sincerity, more sincerity, and more sincerity. All men have these keys. Men must use them—in order to advance in spirit status—by decisions, by more decisions, and by more decisions.” (39:4:14)

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We must first have FAITH [needs no proof], not just a belief [requires proof], in the truth-fact that God is OUR FATHER. And because we accept this, then all others in the world are his children, therefore, OUR brothers and sisters...this latter part being a planetary reality from which we cannot escape!

“..now have I (Jesus) come proclaiming faith, the gift of God, as the price of entrance into the kingdom of heaven. If you would but believe that my Father loves you with an infinite love, then you are in the kingdom of God.”  ~ Jesus (137:8.17)

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Why do you think this is difficult for some people to believe or have faith? Have they not been loved by their parents, family or even friends, in the way that they should have been? That is, then, an extreme challenge to believe in being loved by God if they do not know the experience of an unselfish love from their first relationships of the parental or family unit. But this kingdom is open to anyone and everyone, everywhere at any time!

“In gaining an entrance into the kingdom of heaven, it is the motive that counts. My Father looks into the hearts of men and judges by their inner longings and their sincere intentions.”  ~ Jesus (140:3.19)

We cannot hide or pretend or make a show of believing and “being good”, like the Pharisees used to do. Our Father, who dwells inside our mind, knows/sees all! This is because following the completion of the mission of a Paradise bestowal Son (Michael, who is our Jesus upon his ascension), these Father Fragments (Thought Adjusters) truly become the “kingdom of heaven within you.”

We enter the kingdom of heaven by our moral decisions and by spirit victories; and when we once enter therein, we are promised to find joy, righteousness, and eternal life.  When once we have entered within this spiritual kingdom, we are required to be consecrated in doing the will of the Father in heaven and even to striving to become like God!

                                                                        The Father IS the Father’s will.

“With the spiritual attitude of a sincere child” we shall become regenerated, converted and born again; becoming a re-created child of the divine spirit, thereby gaining entrance into the brotherhood of the kingdom of heaven. Such is the “preeminence of the individual” of which Jesus talked, that transformed superiority from former ways, which transcends mere mortal existence and becomes spiritually-seeking over the materially-minded = the preeminence of the spiritual compared with the material; glorifying spiritual realities and exalting superhuman ideals. Soon after, we experience “the possession of new courage and augmented spiritual power.”

Preeminence: excellence, greatness, distinction

This new YOU can only happen by a unique, and desired personal relationship with our Father, through the experience of falling in love with Jesus, when we realize the higher qualities of spiritual living, bringing us progressively to new and higher levels of divine certainty and eternal grandeur.

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Then, what happens?! What do we do upon our entrance?

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Our business is to be ambassadors of a spiritual government on high, concerned only with the representation of the will and character of the divine Father who stands at the head of the government whose credentials we claim to bear.

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In this kingdom where we find ourselves, we are to proclaim the good news of the gospel – the kingdom of heaven and that God is our Father and we are his sons. If you wholeheartedly believe this, it is your eternal salvation! Jesus’ 1st cardinal gospel message is that “the kingdom of God dwells within you” and THEN comes

the resultant brotherhood of man. We cannot have the latter without the former. Without the individual making connection with the Father first no other kingdom consequences emerge.

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In the kingdom of heaven: “Whosoever would be great among you, let him first become your servant. He who would be first in the kingdom, let him become your minister.” ~ Jesus  (171:0.6)

Remember the parable of the mustard seed – the smallest of seeds which grows into

one of the largest of trees wherein come to nest all the birds of heaven.

We are that small seed as we start our part in kingdom building!

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And because we know that Jesus is the SON OF THE LIVING GOD, he told us:

“This is a revelation of the spirit of my Father to your inmost souls. And when, therefore, you make this confession by the insight of the spirit of my Father which dwells within you, I am led to declare that upon this foundation will I build the brotherhood of the kingdom of heaven. Upon this rock of spiritual reality [that He is the Son of the Living God] will I build the living temple of spiritual fellowship in the eternal realities of my Father’s kingdom. All the forces of evil and the hosts of sin shall not prevail against this human fraternity of the divine spirit. And while my Father’s spirit shall ever be the divine guide and mentor of all who enter the bonds of this spirit fellowship, to you and your successors I now deliver the keys of the outward kingdom—the authority over things temporal—the social and economic features of this association of men and women as fellows of the kingdom.” ~ Jesus (157:4.5)

Let us seize hold of this promise with a whole soul-ed belief in the certainty of its truth! ~ Monica Kemp

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Questions to discuss:

1.  Who is the leader of the Kingdom of Heaven? Why?

2.  Can we have the Kingdom of Heaven without God?  Why?

3.  What must one do to enter the Kingdom of God?  How is this accomplished?

4.  How badly do you, personally, want to enter this kingdom?

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Next is we discuss: What Should I Be Doing?  Week 30

When men search for God, they are searching for everything. When they find God, they have found everything. The search for God is the unstinted bestowal of love attended by amazing discoveries of new and greater love to be bestowed.

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