Building Bridges to the Kingdom

Welcome to the intensified The town family for Wednesday, October 12 the truth of the gospel is the job of every believer and see that led to his impractical inspection that will help us be effective in building bridges to the kingdom. Jesus said in this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all nations, and then shall the end come, then just chapter over and the 25th chapter of Matthew.

In verse 34. He said then the king will come to those in sale. His right hand, you will blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. What is the kingdom of God. How do you get into the kingdom of God and what is our involvement as believers in the kingdom of God. When you receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior. The Bible says that you entered into a relationship with God through his son Jesus Christ unit is simply just become religious and joined some local fellowship but you and and until personal relationship with Jesus Christ and you became not only a part of a local church body, but the Bible says that you were baptized by the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ.

But more than that happened not only were you baptized into the body of Christ which encompasses all believers everywhere around the world. But the Bible says all so that you and I were transferred, translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of his dear son that is Jesus Christ. Most people's idea of their relationship to God goes something like this. Yes I trusted Jesus Christ as my Savior and oh yes, I belong to my church over here and so their vision of their relationship is this.

They received Christ as their Savior and they belong to their church so they sort of see their environment and their spiritual responsibility to God and to the church.

But the Scripture says that every single believer around the world is as related to you and to me, as believers, as this arm is that this body. He says that we are all part of the body of Christ. But if my vision stops there. Then my effectiveness is going to be diminished because he says not only are we a part of the body of Christ but you and I have been translated by the Lord Jesus Christ into the kingdom of his dear son, the kingdom of heaven. The kingdom of God. That means we're a part of something even larger than the church.

We are a part of the kingdom of God which involves and includes what God has going on in heaven today as well as what he has going on on earth here and now. I don't understand what the kingdom is in its preparation is think about it for just a moment Jesus speaks here of the coming of the kingdom as well as the presence of the kingdom. What is the kingdom of God. The word kingdom means rule eight involves the authority of God. It involves the rule of God in the heart of men, but it also involves a rail that is where God exercises his authority so that the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is the rule and authority of God the kingdom of God is also the realm in which God is exercising his authority when you and I receive the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal savior. The Bible says that you and I have become new creation that is the reason you will not become new creations is because what we were won't fit into the kingdom of God.

What we were. We will never be again. What we are. We were not before.

We have been translated because we become new creation into the kingdom of God. We are now in a whole different spiritual realm. Christ Jesus is now our key Satan was because there is the kingdom of Satan that we were in the kingdom of God. The kingdom of heaven. In the book of Matthew primarily uses the term kingdom of heaven. Mark, Luke and John use primer of the kingdom of God. The kingdom of heaven in the kingdom of God used interchangeably over 125 times those phrases are used in Matthew Mark Luke and John.

Those phrases were a key part of the ministry of Jesus Christ. When John the Baptist came up on the scene. Matthew chapter 3 we came upon the scene and he had one subject as his sermon message repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. When Jesus Christ in Matthew chapter 4 began his preaching ministry. What was the theme of his preaching.

Chapter 4 verse 17 repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. When Jesus Christ and his apostles out to preach the gospel what he give them is that message. He said you to go and preach the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

That is, he spoke of the present that is the presence of the kingdom in his day, Jesus Christ being the king had come upon the sea, John the Baptist identified him as the Lamb of God, which was slain before the foundation of the world.

He says the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Christ Jesus who is the king in the kingdom is now in the world. That's what John was saying, the kingdom of heaven is at hand and Jesus preach the same message and the apostles preached the same message that is the rule of God is now with us and Jesus Christ was the king has come to set up a kingdom that kingdom. First of all is to be set up with in the lives of people in the hearts of men. He set up the kingdom of God is not a say in Matthew chapter 6 verse 33 CT first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things should be added to you. That is the authority and the rule of God. When we seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. When we submit to the rule and authority of God and the character of God is going to be out so Jesus Christ came to set up his kingdom. Not as the Nation of Islam expected at first but to set it up in the hearts and lives of men. The kingdom of God is a present kingdom, that is, it is something that is going on here and now it is a spiritual kingdom that one day shall be a physical kingdom.

He says that the kingdom of God was present then as it is now, but he also spoke about coming kingdom.

When you and I for example, pray this prayer we find in Matthew chapter 6. Our father which art in heaven remove the phrase that says thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. So he speaks of the coming of the kingdom in the 16th chapter of the book of Matthew again. Jesus, having just told his disciples he was going to die, said I said you there are some of you standing here who shall not taste of death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom, so that there is the message of the presence of the kingdom and the coming of the kingdom of our God. You and I who have been saved by the grace of God, all a part of the kingdom of God. God is already set up his kingdom in the hearts and lives of people. One of these days that kingdom is going to be a physical reality in the new heavens and the new world and the kingdom of God shall reign forever and ever and ever. The kingdom is the rule of God. There is the rule of God. There is the realm of his kingdom.

That is the reality of this kingdom here and now because you and I are the ones who people the kingdom of God.

He came to establish that kingdom. The kingdom who that came when Jesus came the kingdom that is coming in the future. All of us who believers are a part of the king that he says there is a message that relates to the kingdom. The proclamation the kingdom. Chapter 24 back to verse 14. This is what he says. He says in this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come. What is he saying a proclamation is a declaration of truth here is an announcement and he says we living in the age of grace. He says the medicine the proclamation of the kingdom. The message of the kingdom is this and that is by the grace of God's salvation is offered to all men everywhere. That's the message of the kingdom. The message of the kingdom is in Christ Jesus sacrificial substitutionary all sufficient atoning death at Calvary has opened the door of opportunity for every man everywhere, every woman everywhere to be save of the goodness and love and the mercy of God, demonstrated upon the cross so that the message that needs to be proclaimed in the world today is a message of freedom, liberty, forgiveness, redemption, reconciliation, justification, glorification, and the resurrection of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. All of this is a part of the proclamation of the gospel age in those days in which John the Baptist, Jesus, the apostles preached they preached. Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand and you and I living in the church age, which began at Pentecost.

We living in the age of grace. When the gospel is transforming the hearts and lives of men so that the message the day that the world needs to hear is the message of grace God's loving acceptance of mankind.

God's willingness to forgive you of your sin.

God's willingness to take you right where you are. Forgive you of your sin. Transform your life renew you and translate you into a brand-new kingdom, having made you a brand-new creature in Christ Jesus.

That's the proclamation of the kingdom whether the something else interesting here because he says in this 25th chapter you go back there for a moment, he says there's something else about this particular kingdom that you and I need to understand.

He says this King will say to those on his right, you who are blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Listen. This kingdom was prepared before the foundation of the world. This is something that God just decided to do in eternity past, it was established and in eternity future it will last.

He says, for example in Luke the first chapter, the kingdom of Christ, shall no no in he says in the first chapter. First Peter. He says that the kingdom of God is endless and then in that 12 chapter of the book of Hebrews. He says it in a beautiful way and the 28th verse he says this kingdom. Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and all for our God is a consuming God what is he saying that you and I are a part of an endless eternal unshakable kingdom. Jesus Christ is the king of the kingdom you and I are a part of the kingdom of God. Now all of these things that I referred to. Up to this point is what God is done. He's the one who's prepared this eternal kingdom.

He's the one who designated that the message of the kingdom is the message of grace. The word of the living God, but especially the message of grace is God who said this term in this kingdom is permanent that it is eternal. But here's the question what is our involvement in the kingdom. Here is the involvement in Matthew chapter 28 if you turn there for just a moment. The 28th chapter of Matthew, Jesus in verse 16 set. The Bible says the 11 disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated and when they saw him they worshiped him, but some were down and Jesus came up and spoke to them saying all authority is the key. All authority has been given to me delegated to me in heaven and in earth king in the heavens King on their goal. Therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the father and the son of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you and low I am with you always, even to the end of the age now want you to think for just a moment. What a solemn awesome occasion that was to those 11 he gave the responsibility of populating the kingdom. How does a person get in the kingdom of being save of the grace of God. Here's where you and I become a vital part of the kingdom of God.

The mission of the church, your church, no matter which church you belong to the mission of the church is to share the word of God to show the way to those who are willing to believe it is God's responsibility to execute redemption, execute forgiveness, execute reconciliation, execute the writing of that person's name. The Lamb's book of life, but he says that all of us have a responsibility, he says that we like bridges from the lost man to the kingdom of God. We are the ones who were the ones who build the structure of their understanding of the grace of God we are the ones who show them the truth we want to explain the truth of them is the grace of God. It is the power of God is the King of Kings is the work of the Holy Spirit to bring those people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. But I want to remember something when he left those apostles. He left them with one plan.

Think about this. If you been standing there.

Those men only had one plan and that is share the gospel show them the way and let God execute redemption in their life that is the mission of the church that is the minister of the church is the mission of every single converted person is the minister of every single converted person we can convert people we can save them.

But we can share the truth. We can show them the way.

First of all by life. And then Violet but as we live the life and show the truth and share the truth. Almighty God is going to execute salvation, redemption, reconciliation, justification, giving them the promise of life eternal and giving them the hope of it here and now. That is the work and the mission of the church if the Lord Jesus Christ simply wanted to save us a people to populate his kingdom any of the fashion he could do without us. But listen, he has the power to write across the midnight skies all over the globe out in space the gospel of Jesus Christ. He has the power to write that in every single language every dialect and every tongue. He could write it in such a fashion, inflaming letters all across the midnight sky that people from every tongue and every culture, every background could see the gospel recognize the presence of God and be saved. But he and Schuster that he's only got one plan and this is his plan that people like you and me share what Jesus Christ is doing in our life that we share the plan. Show the way and let God do the saving. The only way he's been a populate his kingdom is for people like us to do the one thing he's called us to do and that is to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, that all multiplied ways of ministering the gospel of Jesus Christ multiplied ways when you and I stand before him. We will be able to look back and see that God used us to share in someone's life and get their name written in the Lamb's book of life that is the work of the church that is the work of ministry that is the work of the kingdom of God. Listen got this we can't bill the kingdom. The church is not the kingdom. We can't bill the kingdom of God builds his kingdom but he has chosen to use individuals and the sharing of their faith and the witnessing of the gospel when we just read a few moments ago on this passage, he said concerning this message, he said, and this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come. If you have added that you want those were the same persons and this is your little world over here and all you want to do is just learn more gospel truth and you want to learn more principles and you want to go to more Bible studies you want to soak up more truth. I will tell you something, God says that not a single one of us has the right any longer to decide how we can live our lives. When you became a part of the kingdom's kingdom mean kingdom means rule and authority.

It is around. It is a spiritual realm in which you and I chose volunteer to become a part. He says that you not your own. Your book with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body.

You are not a part of the kingdom of God today when you became a part of the kingdom of God you gave up your rights, your time, your talents, your treasure all that you have belongs to the King of King and the Lord of lords. All of us testify to the fact that Jesus Christ is our Lord if he is my Lord, that means I'm submissive to him.

If he's not Lord I'm subject to him if he's not Lord I'm a servant to him. If he is my Lord.

I just moved as he says move do what he says to my responsibility in life is to fulfill the purpose of God. When you not stand the judgment of the Lord Jesus Christ.

One of these days we only have to give an account for a life we don't have to give an account for life individually. We do not become account for those whom we could have influenced and did not those we did influence, and influence them for good. Those we influence for evil.

We gonna have to give an account for life.

Can you tell him anything anymore exciting anymore wonderful anymore rewarding than to be able to stand before the Lord Jesus Christ and the Lord Jesus Christ just remind you, in those moments that he has forgiven you, of all of your sins that you were redeemed by the blood of his son. Can you think of anything anymore exciting for them to then say to you, I want to read you the names of the people who have entered the kingdom of God because of your witness because of your faithfulness because of your sharing and he reads out, not five not 10 but hundreds thousands of names of people who been born in the kingdom because you were faithful as a child of God to do the very thing that God called to do that is to preach the gospel in your way, where God is put you 10101 to 201 the multitudes of what is called to do is to share the message of Jesus Christ. The kingdom of God is at work in the heavens. The kingdom of God is at work here on earth, and the mission and the ministry and the motivation of the church should be to fulfill God's great kingdom purpose while we were in Missouri we don't build it. We just are the vessels by which God populates his kingdom and he has no plan B just planning that must be the minister of every fellowship that is going to be obedience. Almighty God, thank you for listening to building bridges to the kingdom of the like to invite you to join us in celebrating 45 years of God's faithfulness #antistatic T/45 years to learn more. His podcast is a presentation of intense ministries Atlanta, Georgia