When we have the Bible available to us, we have no excuse for not obeying it. The problem is, we are so familiar with it that we forget to live it. Take for instance, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Mat 5:3) Another way to look at that is, if you are not poor in spirit, you have no part of the kingdom of heaven.

Being poor in spirit does not mean being spiritually destitute. Think in terms of opposites. Poor in spirit is opposite of arrogance, pride, and selfishness. We have to be told to be poor in spirit because our natural tendency is to be selfish. We are born “me first”.  To live counter to that inclination takes work and thoughtfulness. Are you doing that? Do you have an interest in living in God’s kingdom, that very place of salvation? Then you’d better consider your attitude in life. God smiles on humility. If the Son of God, the magnificent Son, could be born in a barn, then we can live humbly before Him.

That, however, does not mean that you lose out on anything. Jesus said to take the lowly seat and you will be invited by others to sit in a higher place. (Luke 14:10) Bless are those who are poor in spirit. Blessed! What God gives is highly valued. Don’t assume that what you can acquire for yourself is better than what God will favor you with. You’d be wrong.

Pay attention to the scripture and consider how you live it. You may have an eternity to wish you did.

The kingdom of heaven is to me the greatest mystery of the universe. No matter which I side I look at, there are a dozen other facets to try to piece together and it makes for a challenging experience.

The disciples thought the kingdom of heaven would conquer the Roman occupation. The ruling of kings was all that they knew. What Jesus offered was, and still is, baffling. This kingdom is transcendental. It’s a living thing. It grows, not like a church grows because more people attend, it grows like a presence in the Spirit. It is a place in the heart that connects to the corresponding place in other believers. It makes a connection place for Jesus to come. Where two or more are gathered in my name…

• The kingdom of God is like a man scattering seed, some will receive it and some will not.
• It is like a tiny mustard seed that grows to provide shade and shelter.
• It is like the innocence of little children.
• It is the inheritance of the poor in spirit.
• It is like leaven– a small touch of the kingdom can grow into a greater presence.
• It is like the great supper where the poor and neglected are honored over those who do not value it.
• It is righteousness, peace and joy.
• It is not in word, but power.

The Spirit of God is within us to accomplish His will on earth. And to accomplish His will, we need to be poor in spirit, like a little child, yet speak in power, with righteousness, peace, and joy. The kingdom of God is complex, yet stunningly simple. And to become a citizen of this kingdom, you must let go of your humanity. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2Cor 5:17) A citizen of the kingdom is a new kind of creation — human with God living in him. When God moves in, He brings His kingdom with Him.

The disciples did not preach a salvation message to people. They preached the kingdom of God. Living in the kingdom is not about avoiding hell. It is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. It is a way of life, a destination, a presence, and the hope of a lost world.

Your kingdom come, your will be done…

The natural outcome of trusting a good God is blessing. He blesses all the time, we’re just not in the habit of receiving it well. In fact, we can often block it unknowingly. There’s even some danger to receiving blessing. You may have promises that you stand on. You may expect that because of your faith, God will promote you and bless you, but you may not be ready to handle it.

The secret to receiving blessing is to set everything that’s dear to you aside. All your hopes and dreams. All your promises and needs. Set them aside, don’t throw them away. You’re just not ready yet. Direct your full attention to your heart. Your heart must be so full of love for God that nothing that happens in your life matters more than your relationship with Him.

Ask Him for more understanding of His love for you. Ask Him for revelation and knowledge of His love. The more you grasp how much He loves you, the more you can love Him back. Your gifts can be handled dangerously if you don’t love completely. You can get in the way of what God wants to do if love does not come first. Go back and read I Corinthians 13.

Learn to love God and learn to love other people. Be honest with yourself. If you know that you do not love, ask God to fill you and change you. Press into that and you will be more responsible with the blessings that follow.

This may come as a shock, but you are not your mother, your father, your sister, your brother, your pastor, or your best friend. The mold that is you won’t fit another person’s mold. Stop trying to be someone else.

The you that God made is unique. Your personality and gifts are unique. They won’t work with another template. But the only way they will work according to the great plan that God designed for you is if you stop looking back. You are a  new creation in Christ. The old you is dead. Stop digging him up to look at all the stuff he did. That’s ancient history now. You’re not a kingdom archaeologist, you’re a kingdom trailblazer.

You connect with your unique plan when you turn your heart to God. Let Him walk you through the steps of your life. Listen to His voice in the quiet places. Let His word soak into your spirit  and affect your thoughts. Ask Him for revelation on what that plan looks like. It’s probably not as bizarre and wild as you think. It’s probably got a lot to do with what you already love.

Be the you you were meant to be, not the person you admire that you will  never be. You are blessed by God in a way that only you can live. If you don’t, there will be people who will never see God because you weren’t there to show them. That’s how important it is for you to be real.

When you are filled with the presence of God, you become a portal to heaven for everyone around you. How many people do you work with, go to school with, hang out with? Do they all know Jesus? No, but you do. You may be the only connection those people have with heaven.

You carry the kingdom of God with you where ever you go. You’re not just an ambassador, you’re a connection to the eternal, living God. Walk worthy of this calling. If you refuse to honor Christ is your life, He has no obligation to honor you. Your response to stress and pressure should show others that there is another way to live that they can have.  You’re life should be so different that it’s obvious that you march to a different drummer, and the sound of that drum should make people want it for themselves.

When you live in an attitude of constant praise and worship, you extend the atmosphere of heaven everywhere you go. It may not be obvious, but others will feel it in their spirit. The more you praise, the wider your portal becomes. Imagine walking into a room and changing the atmosphere by your presence, and Who you bring with you. It’s time to have some fun.

We need to be very careful about what we think God expects of us. I used to think that all I needed to do was believe that Jesus died for me so I could go to heaven. That’s it. I had no interest in ministry. That was for other people. I had job and it was enough that I went to church and believed in God.

But God had other plans for me. I began to read the Bible to understand exactly how I was supposed to live. I wanted to hear from God myself. What I learned startled me. The scriptures that I knew from childhood began to convict me for not believing what I already knew. We’re called to live like Jesus lived. That’s why He called Himself the Son of Man, not the Son of God. That’s why He showed us how to pray and said that we would do greater works than He did, because we’re supposed to live like Him.

And He warned us to not live complacently. Just look at the parable of the talents. (Matt 25:14-30) We know that talents were a form of money, but what if we consider that they may also mean talents we are gifted with — music, business, invention, creativity. The one who did nothing whatsoever with what he’d been given was cast into outer darkness. What we do or don’t do for the kingdom matters.

Are you thinking like I used to — He doesn’t really mean it? Or, that’s not about me? You’re wrong. It’s about you, and one day you’ll stand before Him and there will be an accounting of your life. I understand that we don’t go to heaven because of our works, but we’ve been commissioned to be a city on a hill, a light to a dark world. Are we living like Jesus lived? Is the kingdom of God real to us. Do we love God with all our heart, soul, and mind? Do we love others as much as we love ourselves?

Be honest. Be gut-wrenchingly honest. You have to lose your life to Jesus or you lose everything. There’s no compromise. Jesus said, My sheep know My voice,  and I know them, and they follow me. (John 10:27) Do you hear His voice? Are you following where He is leading. If you are not challenged in your faith, you’re probably not following Him. God will shake up what you think you know so you will have to rely on Him and Him alone.

Don’t be lulled into a passive faith that you think is safe. Jesus said He would spit that lukewarm mindset out of His mouth. He wants a vital, dynamic faith that understands that obedience is better than sacrifice. Read the scriptures for yourself and see where you stand. Many are called, but few are chosen. Work out your salvation with fear and trembling, because there is everything to be gained and everything to lose.

The church in America has turned entering the kingdom of God into a prayer to go to heaven. I don’t think that’s what Jesus meant by the kingdom of God at all, at least not entirely. Every time He healed someone or performed a miracle, He told them, “The kingdom of God has come near you.” It’s not a far off place, it’s a lifestyle for us here and now.

Jesus described the kingdom in so many ways, it sounds like the blind men describing an elephant. And because of that, we pick and choose what parts we want to believe and hold onto that truth as if it’s the only truth. But the reality is, the kingdom is amazing and dynamic and unfathomable. It  crosses boarders and joins hearts all over the world, transforming them into a magnificent bride. And yet, despite its narrow gate, it’s simple enough for the smallest child to enter.

The kingdom allows us to live like Jesus lived. That means we heal people. We raise loved ones from the dead. We go off alone and commune with our God to hear His voice and receive His great pleasure. We shine the light of this gospel from the mountain top, unashamed of who we are in Christ. We are known by our love.

We have to be transformed to live like that. We have to allow our old attitudes to be shaken and undone. We have to learn to love like Jesus loves, to believe that He is exactly who He says He is. When we can do that, the kingdom of God will not only be in us, it will all but burst to get out, and that will change the world.

We become bondservants out of love.

Love is not for the faint of heart. Love takes guts and determination. Why? Because we need to love people we don’t even like. We need to love our enemies — you know, the ones who hate us back.

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (1 Cor 13:4-7)

Love does not take offense. That means that you can’t get your feelings hurt, no matter what happens. Forgive, and let it go. That doesn’t mean that you have to agree with everyone, but you are not allowed to hold a grudge or have a bad attitude. You are called to represent Jesus, and Jesus loves everyone.

Check your heart. If you are holding onto bad attitudes toward anyone, repent and give it to God. Ask Him to fill you with His love so you have love to give out. See the best in people. Love them. Bless them. Let God change your heart to be all that you are called to be. You are loved greatly by God, now give it away.

Love is the essential heart attitude of the kingdom, and you can’t love without humility. Love is not puffed up, does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity. (1Cor 13:4) Love makes you take a backseat to the needs and feelings of others. 

Humility guards your heart. It keeps arrogance out and makes you gentle. Good deeds done without humility become bragging grounds. We feel justified in telling people how we prayed for someone or helped them. Humility allows us to do good in secret. When we feel free to talk about our good works, our focus is no longer in love for others, but making us feel better about ourselves.

In a society where we are judged by our cars, our houses, our income, humility is a hard lesson. We are so concerned about what other people will think. The fear of man becomes stronger than the love of God. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. (I John 4:18) 

I have to believe that most of the church has not been made perfect in love just based on the number of failed marriages, church splits, and issues that Christians carry that are just like those who do not claim to know God at all.

We are not called to live like other people. We are called to live like Jesus. Our heart must beat with His. Yes, He will bless us with the desires of our heart, but only after we align our hearts with His. Humility will keep us in right attitudes. It comes straight from God Himself, and since He puts His Spirit in us when we come to know Him, we have everything we need to live like Jesus. But we have to want to be transformed. We have to want to be like Him and asked to be changed. We have to see our need and our selfish ways so He can change us. If the world sees humility as weakness, so be it. It is powerful in the kingdom.

Authority puts demands on our love.

Your identity in Christ is who you are, not who you will be in heaven. When Jesus said, the kingdom of God is near you, He meant here and now. If we lived in the understanding of our identity, we’d be a wholly different church.

Imagine the prince of a kingdom living his life. Would anyone question his commands? Would anyone ask, Who do you think you are? No, the prince’s father is the king. There would be hell to pay for abusing or disrespecting the prince. The prince has perfect confidence that what he says will be backed up by the authority of his father.

But we are not arrogant sons and daughters of the King. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. We are sons and daughters of the King with all His authority, but with all His love as well.

God’s authority is kind and gentle. His motivation is love, and if we are to look and act like Him, then we have to let go of old perceptions of what it means to be a Christian. Love the Lord God with all your heart, and love others as much as you love yourself. We have to start doing that.

When we walk in our identity as heirs to the throne with true humility and love, Jesus will be irresistible to a world in need.