FIRST 2

Now, last time we talked about putting "first things first," saying that for the Christian, "the main thing, is to keep the main thing, the main thing" which is to put God first.

In this verse, Jesus has given to all of His followers a top priority, a number one loyalty, a main thing that we are to place first among all other things in life, and He calls it "the kingdom of God."

"SEEK FIRST...."

But here's the deal: When He tells us to seek first the KOG, I don't think many of us fully understand what He means by "the kingdom of God."

Is the kingdom of God another word for heaven?

Does the KOG simply mean the will of God for our lives?

Does the KOG refer to ministry, to preaching the gospel, or to building churches, or to a personal change in heart or morals?

What exactly is the KOG?

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Well, the phrase KOG is found 61 times in the gospels.

And the "KINGDOM OF GOD" was a favorite subject of the Lord's...

In fact, many Bible scholars have concluded that “the Kingdom of God was the central message of Jesus.”

Listen to these examples of Jesus talking about the KOG...

Mark 1:14-15 "Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 and saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.'"

Mark 10:15 "Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it (the KOG).”

Luke records the burden Jesus had concerning the KOG: “But He [Jesus] said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose” (Luke 4:43).

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Jesus not only preached the KOG, but He Himself was the full manifestation and representation of the KOG,,,

Luke 17:20 "Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

Some translations say, The KOG is within you, but by far the better translation is "in your midst."

Of course, He was talking about Himself!

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And Jesus wasn't the only one to talk about the KOG...

Paul the Apostle talked about the KOG a lot as well, right up to the end of his life!

We're told in the book of Acts that in his final years, Paul spent his time..."preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him" (Acts 28:31).

In Romans he wrote, "...for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit."

Here Paul describes the fruit of the KOG in the heart of the believer--Righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit!

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Finally, Matthew’s summary of Jesus’ ministry and message is this:

“And Jesus was going about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom (KOG), and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people” (Matt. 4:23).

--So the Kingdom of God was at the heart of Jesus’ message, the declaration of it was His purpose on earth, and He Himself was the perfect manifestation and representation of the KOG.

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So, if we're supposed to seek the KOG first above all other things, we need to know what the KOG is!

So here it is:

Every kingdom has a King that rules the kingdom.

So the Kingdom of God exists wherever the King of the Kingdom rules.

Wherever the Lord Jesus Christ reigns, there you have the Kingdom of God.

This is true for an individual life, or for a group of people, or for a nation.

The KOG exists wherever God's will is done!

And the evidence of His kingdom's rule is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost!

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You see, when Jesus was born into the world, He was born into a world at war with God.

It was a world of anarchy, sin, rebellion, and Satanic rule...

The Apostle John describes our world this way, "We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one" (1 John 5:19).

Paul the Apostle says that our world is under constant spiritual attack from a fallen Devil,

"For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against persons without bodies—the evil rulers of the unseen world, those mighty satanic beings and great evil princes of darkness who rule this world; and against huge numbers of wicked spirits in the spirit world" (Eph 6:12).

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So watch this: When both Jesus and John the Baptist announced that the Kingdom of God was at hand, he meant that God’s rule was just about to break into the world through Jesus, the Messiah.

This is why Jesus taught us to pray, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."

When we pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven (Matt. 6:10),” we are asking God to exert His authority in the world so that His purposes are achieved!

When Jesus preached and proclaimed the Gospel of the Kingdom of God He meant that, in and through Himself, God was exercising His power and authority against all the evil in the world!

--So in short, the Kingdom of God is the rule of God manifested in Christ to defeat evil and bring redemption to people.

No wonder the Kingdom is the central theme of the New Testament!

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So when Jesus said to His followers, "Seek first the kingdom of God," He meant that His followers are to seek to be under His Lordship, and to pray into the world His rule and reign!

So let me give you 3 simple things to know about the KOG:

I. Repentance is the first step into the kingdom of God

Jesus preached that repentance is a non-negotiable requirement to be a part of the kingdom of God.

Mark 1:14-15 “Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. REPENT, and believe in the gospel.’”

In Luke 13:3 Jesus said, "I tell you...unless you repent of your sins and turn to God, you too will perish."

Repent means that we agree with God that we have sinned, and that we are willing to turn from a sinful lifestyle to turn to Him...

Without repentance there can be no salvation...Repentance is the first step through the doorway of salvation!

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Then Jesus gave a second necessary step into the KOG, and that is...

II. Being born again...

Jesus said that the kingdom of God must be entered into by being born again...

John 3:5-7 "Jesus answered, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’"

He did not mean you need to "turn over a new leaf," or decide to "become a better person," or give up some bad habit, or undergo "rehabilitation...

He was talking about an inner transformation brought about by God's Holy Spirit coming into your heart after your repentance!

2 Cor. 5:17 "Therefore if anyone is in Christ [joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life]."

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And the third step into the KOG is...

III. Receiving His righteousness...

Which leads us to the second part of Matt 6:33, "Seek first the KOG, and His righteousness."

This second part is easy to understand, because the righteousness Jesus refers to is "His (God's) righteousness."

The only way into the KOG is by way of the blood of Jesus by which God declares the believer "righteous."

Romans 1:16-17 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

2 Cor. 5:21 21 "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

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In Summary: 1.) The follower of Jesus is to seek first to live under the reign and rule of the king of the kingdom, Jesus Christ, and 2.) to pray and live to spread the rule of the king of the kingdom on earth, and 3.) to understand and accept that our righteousness before God comes from the blood of Christ, not our own efforts.