I am a seeker. I am always seeking and pursuing personal growth. I chaise after mental and emotional health. I hunt for inner peace. I search for what Jesus called the “kingdom of God” — God governing and ruling from within my heart.
To know the one, true, living God and to love Him with all that you are — with all your heart, mind, and strength — and to actively work for and care about your neighbor’s wellbeing as much as you work for and care about your own, means that: “You are not far from the kingdom (inner government) of God.” Jesus also said that loving God and others “is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” It is more important than all the religious things you can do.
To passionately love God enough to allow Him to continually rule and govern you from within is to draw close to and to begin to experience the kingdom of God. To actively and persistently show love for God and for people (even people who disagree with you, argue with you, and/or insult you) let your life be consistently governed by the presence of God’s Spirit within your heart.
Let all the obstacles in your life that are keeping you distant from the inner government of (hardheartedness, superficiality, and self-focused desires and opinions) be swept away by God’s Spirit. Then His light can sine brightly in and through you.
Unpackage “Christ in you.” “Loose him and let Him go so that He can fully rule and reign inside of you, no matter the consequences to your emotions, relationships. and self-esteem. Put the crown of your inner Kingdom on Christ’s Head and let Him be the Head of your life. Give Him the scepter. Crown Him as your absolute monarch and King. Then let Him have all the reigns so He can continually reign supreme in all you say and do.
Remove human tradition from the presence of the King of Kings. Make His paths straight. Dethrone your delights and distracting desires.
Look deeply into your own heart. Notice the overlooked and hidden things that are unaligned with God. Let Jesus have full access to and control of your heart, mind, and behavior. Allow Him to ceaselessly realign every thought, feeling, and desire to His will. To refuse or neglect to let the risen King Jesus personally lead you from within is to avoid the kingdom of God.
To take the kingdom of God “by force” is to courageously use the non-physical weapons of denying yourself, carrying your cross, and radical obedience to “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Taking the kingdom of God “by force” requires constantly confronting your ungodly thoughts feelings, and desires with great and persistent inner force. Soldiers of God’s kingdom fight with spiritual weapons instead of physical ones.
To “seek first the kingdom of God” is to always make hearing and obeying King Jesus your moment-by-moment, number one priority. If you are a citizen of the kingdom of God, then think like it, talk like it, and act like it.
Human coercion, laws, and physical force can often change peoples’ behaviors, but they can’t transform peoples’ heart. They can’t build the kingdom of God. Only Spirit-empowered love can do that.
It’s easy to be deceived. The Pharisees believed that they were representing God when they pressured Rome to kill the King of Kings. The Zealots thought that they could establish God’s kingdom by using physical violence to overthrow Rome. Instead, the city that Jesus wept over, and God’s physical temple, were both leveled to the ground in 70 AD.
Free Gas for Your Think Tank -- Fill Your Mind and Your Heart With Hope 