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Posts Tagged ‘born again’

The Kingdom of God – Present Reality, Partially Revealed

Posted in God, God Stories, Responsibility, Vision, tagged , , , , , , , on February 16, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Jesus talked about the kingdom of God a lot.  I was told He mentions the Kingdom of God 84 times in the Gospels.  At the very start of His ministry He proclaims in Mark 1:15 “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
Mark 1:15 ESV   https://www.bible.com/bible/59/MRK.1.15.ESV  The Kingdom of God was not a future event Jesus was calling people to prepare for eventually.  The Kingdom of God was a present reality He was calling them to join now.  He is still calling people to join the Kingdom and to partake of the benefits and responsibilities of kingdom citizenship.

Some may ask, if God is good and His Kingdom is present now, then why do we still have school shootings, and wars, and conspiracies, and child molesters and on and on.  Two primary reasons come to mind.  The first is God is patient and desires everyone to have an opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel.  Jesus died so that all may enter into the Kingdom of God.  But entrance into the Kingdom is not automatic.

The Kingdom of God is unique.  God the Father is the King and like all Kingdoms He reigns supreme.  I have studied a bit of history the past few years and one of the realizations that I came away with is just how long civilization has existed with monarchies as the primary form of government.  And under good, benevolent kings life flourished.  God is the ultimate in good and benevolent.  His people are not simply subjects to be ruled, but when we enter His kingdom we become His children.  We are heirs with Christ Jesus becoming daughters and sons of the Lord God.  Unique to God’s family, we enter through a dual process.  In a natural family you are either born into it or you can be adopted into it.  But for God’s family we are both born into it and we are adopted into it.

‘Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” ‘  John 3:1-8
https://www.bible.com/bible/59/JHN.3.1-8

‘For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. ‘  Romans 8:15-17  https://www.bible.com/bible/59/ROM.8.15-17

Jesus ushered in the Kingdom of God with His life, death, and resurrection.  The Kingdom of God is a present reality.  But as mentioned in the second paragraph, why are there still bad things that happen?  So God’s mercy is one reason.  God’s plan is the second reason.

There is war in the heavenly realms.  Satan was once an angelic being of high status.  Unfortunately he desired higher status still and pride brought about his downfall.  Since that time he has lead a rebellion against the Lord God.  Humanity is the battlefield.  Mankind is God’s crowning creation.  We are specifically created to be able to choose to love.  That is God’s plan and our purpose.  Satan strives to thwart that.  God will not “make” us love Him because then it wouldn’t truly be love.  And thus we have the reason the Kingdom of God is not fully revealed.  God desires for the Kingdom to be revealed through His children living in such a selfless, loving, sacrificial way that those who are not yet His children will question, will wonder, will be drawn to Him.  He desires that those who don’t yet know Him will become seekers of the Truth behind a people who are manifestly different than the rest.

Being a Jesus-follower for many years now, I can see the Kingdom of God all around me.  But I know it remains obscured to many.  God has called me, along with every born-again child of God, to live in and display the reality of the Kingdom of God right now.  It is not something far off, but here and now.

I thought about today’s post a good bit yesterday as I had a 3-hr drive late in the evening.  I had the title and I had thought about a lot of different things to share about the Kingdom of God, but as I neared my destination, I whispered a prayer, “Lord, give me the words you want me to share.” and I knew He would provide.  As I dreamed last night I met my best friend from high school, Scott.  He was playing in a band.  He had either a clarinet or some other marching band type instrument in his hand.  We haven’t seen each other in quite some time so we hugged and celebrated getting to see each other.  He was preparing for a parade.  I laugh because he told me he was playing three different instruments now.  It was great to see Scott and my heart was full from the visit.  You see, my friend Scott passed away over 17 years ago.  He was an athlete and as far as I know he never played any musical instruments.  But in the presence of the King, he has learned new ways to celebrate and make a joyful sound.

Yes, the Kingdom of God is here right now and it is bigger and better than we realize.

Be blessed my friends.

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Like the Wind

Posted in Church, God, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Prayer, Salvation, Spiritual Growth, The Father, tagged , , , , , , , , on June 17, 2016| Leave a Comment »

There is a friend of a friend who has come to a place where he can no longer embrace a faith in God.  He told his spouse that he loves her and he will attend church with her if she wants him to, but she needs to know he is doing it for her, not because he believes.  His primary reason – there are simply too many unanswered questions.

I like the honesty… if it is truly the honest response of a searching person.  However, it may be that he is trying to put the infinite God, Who wants us to come to Him by faith, into a box.  If he is seeking a nice, safe, fully understandable god, then he is not really looking for the Creator God… the infinite God of the universe… the God of absolute justice and total love.

Frankly, God doesn’t want to be understood; He wants to be known… to be experienced.  He will not subject Himself to our experiments.  He won’t fit into a test tube.  I am an engineer, a scientific person.  Admittedly I wanted, and still sometimes try to, define God in terms that make sense to me.  This is not wrong.  But it will always be limited and fall short of capturing Who the Infinite Other really is.

I have experienced God.  Baby steps of faith grew to the point that I went all in and committed my whole life to Jesus several years ago.  God entered my life that September day in 1983 and I suddenly knew that He was real.  It was not theoretical.  It was not a faith of straining to do the right things.  It was an overwhelming reality that God’s Spirit had taken up residence in me and was beginning the process of changing me for the better.

I have been thinking about and praying for this friend of a friend for several weeks now.  In a couple weeks I am going to meet him for lunch.  I will try to answer some of his questions.  But I know that answers to his questions are not what he truly needs.

I have thought about the wind the last few times I was praying for this friend.  I can give a scientific definition of wind… the movement of air from a higher pressure area to a lower pressure area.  But for a person who has never been outside to feel a cool breeze or walked on the sea shore and experienced the tangy, salty wind blowing in from the ocean, my scientific definition is of little value.  They get much closer to grasping what wind is by seeing it’s affect… trees swaying in the winds of a storm, coastal trees permanently shaped by sea breezes, snow drifts, and clouds moving.

Ultimately they will only begin to really understand what wind is by stepping outside and experiencing it.

Jesus used wind in one of His most famous illustrations.  He was talking to Nicodemus, a religious leader who was curious.  The conversation was recorded in John’s gospel, Chapter 3:5-8  “Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.  You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘you must be born again’.  The wind blows wherever it pleases.  You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it come from or where it is going.  So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

My baby steps of faith were bolstered by seeing evidence of God in other people’s lives.  I saw the changes and transformation of character that had taken place.  I realized that my striving to make me a better person had always seemed to slip back.  And then God met me and offered me a new life… a life in Him which had only this promise.  “I will never leave you or forsake you.” He said.

Folks, I stepped into the wind that day and I experienced life for the first time.  And He has never failed to keep His promise.   The life I have lived has been blessed beyond my wildest dreams.  I thank the Lord for drawing me to Himself, for pouring His Holy Spirit into me, and for shaping me with the wind of His love that others might see and seek Him out too.

Love you guys.  Have a blessed day.  And let the Lord bless others through you.

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