Do Not Worry – 7

9For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.

10And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,

11being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully

12giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.

13For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,

14in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Has qualified = ἱκανόω hikanoō 2x (2 Co. 3:6) = to cause someone or something to be adequate for something.

To make sufficient, render competent or worthy.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV84)

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

2 Corinthians 5:21 (TEV/GNB)

21 Christ was without sin, but for our sake God made him share our sin in order that in union with him we might share the righteousness of God.

The explicit purpose for which the Father made the Son to be sin on the cross is “so that in [Christ] we might become the righteousness of God.”

Philippians 3:8–9 (AMP 2015)

8But more than that, I count everything as loss compared to the priceless privilege and supreme advantage of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord [and of growing more deeply and thoroughly acquainted with Him—a joy unequaled]. For His sake I have lost everything, and I consider it all garbage, so that I may gain Christ,

9and may be found in Him [believing and relying on Him], not having any righteousness of my own derived from [my obedience to] the Law and its rituals, but [possessing] that [genuine righteousness] which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.

When we are “found in him,” we do not have a righteousness of our own derived through commandment keeping; rather, we lay hold of the alien (i.e., belonging not to us but to another) righteousness of God that comes through faith in Christ.

Ephesians 2:4–5, 8–9, 11–13, 19–20 (NIV84)

4But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,

5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—

9not by works, so that no one can boast.

11Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men)—

12remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.

13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

19Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,

20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.

We were qualified when we were born again.

John 3:3, 5–6 (NIV84)

3In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”

5Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.

6Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.

R.C. Sproul: Only those who are members of the family of God, those who are members of the invisible church, those who are truly converted, those who are truly in Christ, will come into that kingdom; everyone else will miss it.

We know this is so because of Jesus’ use of the word unless.

This word ought to get our attention when we see it in the New Testament, because it signals a necessary condition, something that has to happen before some desired consequence will follow.

In this case, the necessary condition is the new birth, and the desired consequence is seeing the kingdom of God.

These are absolute statements; there are no exceptions.

No one can see or enter the kingdom of God unless they are born again.

John 6:44, 65 (ESV)

44No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.

65And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father (unless the Father has enabled him, niv84).”

These are also absolute statements.

No one can come to Jesus unless the Father draws him, and that it has been granted to him by the Father.

1 Corinthians 6:9–11 (NIV84)

9Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders

10nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

11And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. – Do not be deceived!

Galatians 5:19–21 (NIV84)

19The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;

20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions

21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

(Amp 2015): “those who practice such things…”

Ephesians 5:1–7 (NIV84)

1Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children

2and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

3But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.

4Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.

5For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient.

7Therefore do not be partners with them.

The entryway into the kingdom of God is narrower than most people think.

Luke 13:18–24 (NIV84)

18Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to?

19It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air perched in its branches.”

20Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to?

21It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.”

22Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.

23Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them,

24“Make every effort (strive, lsb) to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.

To belong to the kingdom of God is to receive the gift of salvation and come under the reign of God.

V. 24, make ever effort (strive) = ἀγωνίζομαι agōnizomai = to strive to do something with great intensity and effort; to make every effort to, to do everything possible to, to strain oneself to.

Access to God is not a wide-open, take-any-route-you-want affair. God sets the route’s ways and means.

Will be able to = ἰσχύω ischuō = to be able: to be or become sufficient to meet a need or task.

be capable of.

be able, can, have resources.

The strength of God bestowed upon believers.

Many will try to enter but will lack either the ability or the resources to do so.

The ability and resources are given to those who have received God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ.

A sinner will not be declared righteous in God’s sight unless he believes, and it is only through the instrumentality of faith that he will lay hold of the righteousness of God in Christ.

Luke 17:20–21 (ESV)

20Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed (signs to be observed, lsb),

21nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

Ways that can be observed = παρατήρησις paratērēsis 1x = careful watching, intent observation.

in such a way that its rise can be observed.

In the midst = ἐντός entos = a position within an area determined by other objects and distributed among such objects; among, with.

Jesus was responding to Pharisees who asked when the kingdom would come, and his answer was that it wouldn’t arrive in the manner they expected.

The phrase within you (kjv) presents a problem because Jesus was addressing the Pharisees, and he surely wasn’t saying the kingdom resided in their hearts.

The Jews were looking for a king and kingdom that would come in power to overthrow the Roman rule.

The arrival of the kingdom of God will not be accompanied by spectacular signs in the heavens but rather that the kingdom will come quietly, evident only in the change in people’s lives.

It is in the midst of you, in the person of Jesus and in the reign of God manifested in those who are already following Jesus.

The kingdom of God is present in the person and ministry of Jesus.

Matthew 6:33 (NIV84)

33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

The kingdom of God is God’s sovereign rule and saving reign through Jesus Christ over all creation, especially over His redeemed people.

The kingdom is not merely a place; it is the active reign of God.

Seek = ζητέω zēteō = to devote serious effort to realize one’s desire or objective, strive for, aim (at), try to obtain, desire, wish (for); desire to possess. – bdag

The present imperative indicates that the activity is to be ongoing: keep seeking.

An ongoing pursuit of that life which reflects God’s reign in this world.

First = πρῶτος protos = firstly: before anything else.

First; leading, foremost, prominent, most important; earlier, former, before.

First indicates priority. This may include priority in time or sequence or priority of rank in a class.

First indicates that it is to be done above all else. It is of first importance, the highest priority, the dominant concern, the most important thing of all. God’s kingdom should be their primary concern, the thing they should be concerned with before anything else.

Henry Drummond (1786-1860): “Do not touch Christianity unless you are willing to seek the kingdom of heaven first. I promise you a miserable existence if you seek it second.”

It means first in time and importance.

Larry O. Richards: Believers are to seek first God’s kingdom, giving the Lord a priority that makes every other concern of secondary importance.

How does one seek first the kingdom of God?

To seek God’s kingdom is to submit to God’s rule and obey him, constantly seeking to do the things that God wills.

It is to make God and His will one’s dominant concern, resolving to live under God’s direction and control.

John F. MacArthur, Jr: The kingdom of God can be explained in this manner: The eternal triune God created a kingdom and two kingdom citizens (Adam and Eve) who were to have dominion over it. But an enemy deceived them, seduced them into breaking allegiance to the King, and caused them to rebel against their sovereign Creator. God intervened with consequential curses that exist to this day. Ever since, he has been redeeming sinful, rebellious people to be restored as qualified kingdom citizens, both now in a spiritual sense and later in a kingdom-on-earth sense. Finally, the enemy will be vanquished forever, as will sin. Thus, Revelation 21–22 describes the final and eternal expression of the kingdom of God, where the triune God will restore the kingdom to its original purity with the curse having been removed and the new heaven and the new earth becoming the everlasting abode of God and his people.

William Perkins, Puritan (1558-1602): The kingdom of God is only one, and yet it has two degrees: the first in grace; and the second in glory.

The kingdom of grace is that spiritual regiment which God exercises in man, or in His church, by His Word and Spirit in this life; and it is the first step or entrance into God’s heavenly kingdom.

The kingdom of glory is the full fruition of immediate fellowship with the blessed Trinity by means of Jesus Christ in the highest heavens, after this life. Now both these degrees are here understood by the kingdom of God.

Romans 14:17 (ESV)

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

The kingdom of God doesn’t arrive through observable external signs, but through an inward spiritual transformation that occurs in the hearts and lives of those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ.

Matthew 6:33 (ESV)

33But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Donald Grey Bzrnhouse: It is important to note the sequence of these characteristics of the Kingdom of God in the heart.

Righteousness comes first, peace second, and joy third.

One reason for the terrible frustration of mankind is that peace and joy are sought without righteousness.

But without the righteousness of God there can be no peace, and without the peace of God there can be no joy. God simply will not allow any man to know true peace until that man first possesses divine righteousness.

A butcher was once asked what difference it made to him when Christ entered his life. He replied, “I stopped weighing my thumb.” He then told how, before becoming a Christian, he put meat on the scales in such a way that his thumb trailed down, approximately the weight of an ounce. He had included that thumb in the weight of beef, pork, lard, and every other item of his merchandise. But after Christ came into his heart, he stood away from the scales and gave a full sixteen ounces of meat. And when he served customers whom he had formerly cheated, he added an ounce to make up for past peculations.

God’s righteousness produces an infinite longing to grow in holiness, an ardent desire to know Him better, an intense craving for truth in the inward parts. When a believer truly yearns for the righteousness of God, he possesses the passport that identifies him as a true citizen of the Kingdom of God. (May we seek to do the same.)

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