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KINGDOM PURPOSE
Living Life Within the King's Domain
"Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Luke 12:32
One of the most illuminating truths in scripture is not just that we have an opportunity to enter into the kingdom, but that the kingdom has been placed in our possession in order for us to carry out the purpose of God. Right here, in this verse, Jesus said, "It's your Father's good pleasure to GIVE you the kingdom"!
The entire message of the cross was to undo that which Satan had wrought in Adam. It was God's way of getting man back into a position where he could once again administrate the affairs of heaven on earth. That is why you see Jesus carrying out his mission by first, exhibiting a kingdom life for three and half years before going to the cross. Man needed some sense of identification to his primal purpose because he lost that identity in the fall. Jesus' mission was certainly centered on redeeming man, but his initial purpose was to exhibit what our true identity was by bearing the image of God through flesh and blood. What you see in the life of Christ was how God intended for man to live. It has never been "just" about going to heaven. That certainly is our eternal destination, but it's far more than that. It's about reestablishing a life of destiny, engaging the will of God in heaven and being stewards of that will on earth so that the purpose of God can be fully demonstrated in and through our lives.
All that we lost in Adam can now be reclaimed in Christ. In other words, what man lost in the fall, the new man rediscovers in the resurrection. Every day we live, we see right before our very eyes the gospel being preached. The sun (Son) goes down in the evening, and the sun (Son) comes up in the morning! With each new day there is a kingdom message for the new man! We are to rise up and shine forth as the light of God Eternal Resurrected Son! Redemption is far more than having a ticket to heaven. It is the reintegration of our lives into a kingdom life where we rule and reign in the King's domain! Our mission is to conduct kingdom business on this earth. We have been given the privilege of a kingdom life, and with that privilege comes the task of carrying out kingdom purposes. Everything we do should be lived out of a kingdom mindset. We are to center our attention on kingdom objectives. We are to follow after kingdom principles. We are to live with kingdom awareness.
After Jesus went to the cross and arose, he appeared on different occasions to his disciple over the next forty days. Acts chapter one says, "To whom also he showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3). Think about that! Wouldn't it have been amazing to be like a fly on the wall to hear all that he spoke concerning the kingdom? From all that we can see lived out in the lives of the disciples, this message of the kingdom is exactly where they focused their purpose and attention! They demonstrated Christ's victory by exhibiting the King's dominion. They became co-workers with him by carrying out his mission. In fact, that is what the Great Commission is all about. It is a co-mission! How he ministered the kingdom is what we are called to the kingdom to do. What became engrained in the disciples they understood was all about living for a kingdom purpose. God granted them signs and wonders to follow the preaching of the Word. Clearly, Philip got a hold of that truth because he saw it demonstrated in Samaria: "And when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women" (Acts 8:12). Notice what happened when he preached a kingdom message: "And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed. And there was great joy in that city" (Act 8:6-8).
If we would take our rightful place in Christ as ambassadors of the kingdom and maintain a life centered on kingdom purposes, we can expect to see the same results.
PRAYER
Father, today I take my rightful place as one born into the kingdom to live a kingdom life, and I purpose in my heart to live with a kingdom objective. Holy Spirit, come now and live big within me. Build into me a consciousness that I have the kingdom in me and my purpose in life is to exhibit the rule of that kingdom everywhere I go. In Jesus' name, I pray, Amen.
CONFESSION
I will live with a kingdom mentality. I will function in this kingdom under the rule of the King. All hell must bow to His Lordship. Every symptom of lack and deficiency, every symptom of sickness and disease is subject to the authority of the King. I stand in him as a co-laborer and I rule and reign in this life through one, Jesus Christ.
DEFINING MOMENTS...
Hebrews chapter two says, "...through death he (Christ) destroyed him who had the power of death, that is the devil" (Heb. 2:14). One of the words that describes "destroyed" is to discharge or to be unemployed. I like that! Jesus reduced the enemy to a status of unemployment! He lost his job as Lord over us! We now have a new Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ. That means we are back in business, and the devil is out of business! Whatever you do, DON'T REHIRE HIM! Let's keep him unemployed by reminding him he is defeated! Let's maintain a kingdom life by carrying out kingdom purposes.
In His grace,
Pastor David
Faith Harvest Church
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