The Kingdom of God

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We can build all sorts of things in life.  

A legacy
A family  
An empire  
A home 
A career  
A network
A fortune

Building God's Kingdom is not like building anything else we can build.  Not everything that is God's Kingdom is visible yet.  Also, the Kingdom of God is within you.  So we learn that it is both a physical place yet to be, but also inside our spirits.

"For, behold, the kingdom of God is within you."  Luke 17:21

How do you build a spirit?  And how do you measure its progress?  It is not that specific a science.  Only God fully knows each human heart.

So building the Kingdom is more than merely "winning souls for Christ," though that is a good thing.  But how do those "won souls" turn out in the end?  Do they go on to grow in Christ as one of His intimates, willing to follow wherever He leads?  Or are they merely good churchgoers, complying on the outside while their inner "house" may be a total wreck?

That's why our faith is so important when it comes to building God's Kingdom.  We will not see all of the results this side of eternity.  We must trust, by faith, that we are building it.  That can be hard if we are results-oriented.  We want to see the fruit of our labor, of all of our building work.

But we will just have to wait to see all of the ways we have built God's Kingdom.

In another verse, God tells us that His Kingdom is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.  

"For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit."  Romans 14:17

How do we measure these spiritual intangibles?  First off, these qualities are not really ours, but are found in Christ.  We must remember that once we are born again into God's Kingdom, it is His righteousness, peace, and joy that live inside of us via His Holy Spirit.  Our responsibility is to let Him grow those qualities in us, grow His Kingdom inside of us, so to speak.

As for the tangible Kingdom of God, I have a feeling that there will be some surprises there.  Only God knows who's who and again, we will have to wait and see.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."  Matthew 7:21 

There are many more verses in the Bible about the Kingdom of God.

Jesus is the Kingdom of God   Mark 1:15

Those persecuted because of righteousness, theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven    Matthew 5:10

If we seek His Kingdom first, everything we need for earthly life will be given to us   Matthew 6:33

So though we can build many things in our lives, focusing on that which will last into eternity seems the wisest thing to build.  God's Kingdom.  But we will have to wait and see all the fruit of our labors in the next life.  Build on!

Thank You, Lord, that Your Kingdom is real.  Thank You for making a way for us, through Your sacrifice on the cross, to enter it.  Thank You that You delight to give us the Kingdom!  Help us build Your Kingdom and put our efforts into that which will last forever.  Show us the way, Lord, and give us faith to wait to see the results.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.


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