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THE KINGDOM OF GOD: Why​





Who
What
Where
When
Why
How



The questions that must be answered in every news article.
Maybe they should be answered about The Kingdom of God too?
Seems important enough...

WHY

If one pays attention, they'll find that Jesus spoke about two teachings.
Oddly enough, He did not speak too much about how to be saved.

He spoke about how we are to behave and He spoke about the Kingdom of God.

Before we go any further let me assure you that the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven are used interchangeably in the New Testament writings. Usually, the Kingdom of God refers to the earthly Kingdom, and the Kingdom of Heaven refers to a time in the future when the Kingdom of Heaven will be right here on earth --- when the lamb lies with the lion.

Every enlightened being ever sent by God, including Buddha and Krishna taught exactly the same things. They were concerned with letting man know how to be closer to God and to let man know how God would like us to behave --- as a human race.

No mail please; I'm not putting Jesus in the same category. However, he DID ALSO teach us many concepts and did NOT come to us just to die for our spiritual salvation. After all, if He came only to die to save us, that could have been accomplished In Nazareth when Jesus went to the synagogue and read to all from the book of Isaiah...

Luke 4:18 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set free those who are oppressed,

Right after reading, He closed the book and proclaimed:

Luke 4:21New American Standard Bible (NASB)
21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your [a]hearing.”
The men got very angry with Him and wanted to throw Jesus off the cliff near the town.
Or, He could have gone to Jerusalem sooner and died there sooner.

Instead His ministry lasted over 3 years.
Why?

Because Jesus had things He wanted to tell us.
He wanted to tell us that THE KINGDOM OF GOD starts right here on earth.
He wanted us to know that we could have the spirit of God in us and that we could belong to The Kingdom.

Jesus wanted our world to be a better place. He wanted to teach us how to change ourselves internally so that we could become more Chirst-like. God created us in His image. That means that we are like God in many ways – we have His attributes – although we are not perfect as he is.

However, we could put these attributes to good use. Jesus felt that if enough persons could come to believe in The Kingdom, earth would be more heavenly. He wanted as many persons as possible to be CITIZENS of The Kingdom.

The best place to find out how Jesus would like the citizens of The Kingdom to behave is found in Mathew, Chapters 5 to 7, The Beatitudes. These three chapters are Jesus' formula for making a better world for ourselves. Mathew is an instruction manual for new Jewish converts and shows what Jesus taught.

  1. When tempted by Satan, reply with the scriptures. Mathew 4:4,7,10

  2. Repent, for the KINGDOM OF GOD is at hand. 4:17

  3. Follow Me. 4:19

  4. Blessed (this is how we should be) are the poor in spirit 5:3

  5. Those who mourn 5:4

  6. Those who are gentle. 5:5

  7. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. 5:6

  8. Those who are merciful. 5:7

  9. Those who are pure in heart. 5:8

  10. Those who are peacemakers. 5:9

  11. Those who are persecuted for righteousness sake. 5:10

  12. We are to be the salt of the earth and not become tasteless. 5:13

  13. Make our light shine before men that they may see our good works. 5:16

  14. Our good works glorify our Father in heaven. 5:16

  15. We are not to annul even one commandment. 5:19

  16. Whoever keeps and teaches the commandments will be great in the Kingdom of Heaven. 5:19

  17. Our righteousness must surpass that of the Pharisees. 5:20

  18. Do not be angry with your brother. 5:22

  19. Do not commit adultery. 5:28

  20. Do not divorce except for unchastity. 5:32

  21. Do ot make oaths. 5:34

  22. Give to who asks of you. 5:41

  23. Love your enemies. 5:44

  24. Be perfect like your heavenly Father is perfect. 5.48

  25. Do not be proud of your works. 6:1

  26. Follow instruction in the Lord's Prayer. 6:9-13

  27. Forgive. 6:14

  28. Fast. 6:16

  29. Lay up treasures in heaven. 6:20

  30. Serve God, not mammon. 6:24

  31. Do not be anxious for tomorrow. 6:34

  32. Do not judge. 7:1

  33. Treat others as you would have them treat you. 7:12

  34. Bear good fruit. 7:19

  35. Do not practice lawlessness. 7:23

  36. Build your house UPON THE ROCK. (JESUS) 7:24

  37. Hear and follow the words of Jesus. 7:26
The WHY for the Kingdom is the above list.
If we all followed the list, we certainly would be living in a better world.
There are more...for example, feed the hungry, clothe the poor, visit the sick.

All the above would be covered by the two great commandments Jesus left us:

LOVE GOD
LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF

But we cannot deny WHY Jesus taught all of the above:
To create the Kingdom of God right here on earth.
But we must see it to believe it.

John 3:3New American Standard Bible (NASB)
3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born [a]again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Can we see the Kingdom of God?
Are we citizens of the Kingdom?
Do we promote the Kingdom?
Do we strive to make it better?
 
Are you saying that the Kingdom is real but everything we see around us is not real?
Maybe you mean that the things of life are an illusion?
 
wondering said:
THE KINGDOM OF GOD: Why​





Who
What
Where
When
Why
How



The questions that must be answered in every news article.
Maybe they should be answered about The Kingdom of God too?
Seems important enough...

WHY

If one pays attention, they'll find that Jesus spoke about two teachings.
Oddly enough, He did not speak too much about how to be saved.

He spoke about how we are to behave and He spoke about the Kingdom of God.

Before we go any further let me assure you that the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven are used interchangeably in the New Testament writings. Usually, the Kingdom of God refers to the earthly Kingdom, and the Kingdom of Heaven refers to a time in the future when the Kingdom of Heaven will be right here on earth --- when the lamb lies with the lion.

Every enlightened being ever sent by God, including Buddha and Krishna taught exactly the same things. They were concerned with letting man know how to be closer to God and to let man know how God would like us to behave --- as a human race.

No mail please; I'm not putting Jesus in the same category. However, he DID ALSO teach us many concepts and did NOT come to us just to die for our spiritual salvation. After all, if He came only to die to save us, that could have been accomplished In Nazareth when Jesus went to the synagogue and read to all from the book of Isaiah...

Luke 4:18 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set free those who are oppressed,

Right after reading, He closed the book and proclaimed:

Luke 4:21New American Standard Bible (NASB)
21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your [a]hearing.”
The men got very angry with Him and wanted to throw Jesus off the cliff near the town.
Or, He could have gone to Jerusalem sooner and died there sooner.

Instead His ministry lasted over 3 years.
Why?

Because Jesus had things He wanted to tell us.
He wanted to tell us that THE KINGDOM OF GOD starts right here on earth.
He wanted us to know that we could have the spirit of God in us and that we could belong to The Kingdom.

Jesus wanted our world to be a better place. He wanted to teach us how to change ourselves internally so that we could become more Chirst-like. God created us in His image. That means that we are like God in many ways – we have His attributes – although we are not perfect as he is.

However, we could put these attributes to good use. Jesus felt that if enough persons could come to believe in The Kingdom, earth would be more heavenly. He wanted as many persons as possible to be CITIZENS of The Kingdom.

The best place to find out how Jesus would like the citizens of The Kingdom to behave is found in Mathew, Chapters 5 to 7, The Beatitudes. These three chapters are Jesus' formula for making a better world for ourselves. Mathew is an instruction manual for new Jewish converts and shows what Jesus taught.

  1. When tempted by Satan, reply with the scriptures. Mathew 4:4,7,10

  2. Repent, for the KINGDOM OF GOD is at hand. 4:17

  3. Follow Me. 4:19

  4. Blessed (this is how we should be) are the poor in spirit 5:3

  5. Those who mourn 5:4

  6. Those who are gentle. 5:5

  7. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. 5:6

  8. Those who are merciful. 5:7

  9. Those who are pure in heart. 5:8

  10. Those who are peacemakers. 5:9

  11. Those who are persecuted for righteousness sake. 5:10

  12. We are to be the salt of the earth and not become tasteless. 5:13

  13. Make our light shine before men that they may see our good works. 5:16

  14. Our good works glorify our Father in heaven. 5:16

  15. We are not to annul even one commandment. 5:19

  16. Whoever keeps and teaches the commandments will be great in the Kingdom of Heaven. 5:19

  17. Our righteousness must surpass that of the Pharisees. 5:20

  18. Do not be angry with your brother. 5:22

  19. Do not commit adultery. 5:28

  20. Do not divorce except for unchastity. 5:32

  21. Do ot make oaths. 5:34

  22. Give to who asks of you. 5:41

  23. Love your enemies. 5:44

  24. Be perfect like your heavenly Father is perfect. 5.48

  25. Do not be proud of your works. 6:1

  26. Follow instruction in the Lord's Prayer. 6:9-13

  27. Forgive. 6:14

  28. Fast. 6:16

  29. Lay up treasures in heaven. 6:20

  30. Serve God, not mammon. 6:24

  31. Do not be anxious for tomorrow. 6:34

  32. Do not judge. 7:1

  33. Treat others as you would have them treat you. 7:12

  34. Bear good fruit. 7:19

  35. Do not practice lawlessness. 7:23

  36. Build your house UPON THE ROCK. (JESUS) 7:24

  37. Hear and follow the words of Jesus. 7:26
The WHY for the Kingdom is the above list.
If we all followed the list, we certainly would be living in a better world.
There are more...for example, feed the hungry, clothe the poor, visit the sick.

All the above would be covered by the two great commandments Jesus left us:

LOVE GOD
LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF

But we cannot deny WHY Jesus taught all of the above:
To create the Kingdom of God right here on earth.
But we must see it to believe it.

John 3:3New American Standard Bible (NASB)
3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born [a]again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Can we see the Kingdom of God?
Are we citizens of the Kingdom?
Do we promote the Kingdom?
Do we strive to make it better?
Click to expand...
I'm so glad you're back posting. Thanks! Lots to read and digest but good to reflect upon.
 
wondering said:
Are you saying that the Kingdom is real but everything we see around us is not real?
Maybe you mean that the things of life are an illusion?
Click to expand...
There are different levels of reality.
  1. The Kingdom of God is Real and to us invisible in terms of uncreated light.
  2. Our visible reality is also Real in terms of created light, and earth and its natural environment is part of that Reality. For the invisible Reality contains all that is visible, but the visible does not contain all that is invisible. So the Greater Reality is the invisible.
  3. The part that is a delusion and illusion is the worldly part. To explain. a rock as it is is true and Real, however, as soon as we shape it into a brick, the rock is no longer true, but deceptive, so too is the brick.
 
calvin said:
calvin here,
self?
Click to expand...
Calvin,
I don't want this to turn into a thread about who was best at what.
God Always spoke to man.
He found different ways.
Jesus is the ultimate way.
The Others taught "Godly" things, not satanic things.
Self --- well, are we not infected with the sin nature?
What good could come from "self"?
Not much.

Think of everything you do and everything you say.
It's from God, or it's from the evil one.
No in between.

I think we get a little mixed up with where our misery comes from.
That could include "self". But still from wandering from God and listening to the enemy.
Our misery comes from:
Ourselves
Others
Nature

We can't help what Others do that effect us and we can't do much about what nature does to us, be it externally (hurricanes)
or internally (sickness).

We COULD help the misery we cause oursleves, but due to the sin nature, we do not have full control over that either.

Mathew 12:35
Mathew 19:17
 
Hermit said:
There are different levels of reality.
  1. The Kingdom of God is Real and to us invisible in terms of uncreated light.
  2. Our visible reality is also Real in terms of created light, and earth and its natural environment is part of that Reality. For the invisible Reality contains all that is visible, but the visible does not contain all that is invisible. So the Greater Reality is the invisible.
  3. The part that is a delusion and illusion is the worldly part. To explain. a rock as it is is true and Real, however, as soon as we shape it into a brick, the rock is no longer true, but deceptive, so too is the brick.
Click to expand...
I can't grasp number 2.
It seems the other way around to me.
God is the creator of heaven and earth...all things visible and invisible.
I'd have to say that he visible reality contains all that is invisible.
Think of it,,,we see the rock. It's made up of invisible things we do not see.
In THIS SENSE, the invisible is more of a reality because without it, the rock would never be.

As far a he illusion and delusion, at the time the rock is a rock it is NOT an illusion. It IS a rock.
When it becomes a brick, is not the brick reality?

I think of life as being a delusion and illusion more in an exestentialist kind of way.
Not sure that's even the word I want. Maybe.

Maybe we make up a world around us so that we don't have to face the truth, or a truth.
??
 
Matthew 6:9 KJV
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Does God want the kingdom on earth?
Yes.

What is the model?
Heaven.

Just meditate on the following questions:
Where is the Father?
Where is the Son?
Where is the quickening spirit?
Where is the Holy Spirit?
Is the kingdom instantly here?
Is the New Jerusalem part of the Kingdom?

This is a good thread subject. Several boxes will be challenged. We are hopefully looking through scripture for answers. The OP is complex, and just by post 10 has been given more clarification.

Thy Kingdom is an internal Kingdom. Our viewpoint is often external.

Moderators please join in early on. Of course that will be interesting.

A rock is a rock. It is also Jesus hidden.

Redneck
eddif
 
eddif said:
Matthew 6:9 KJV
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Does God want the kingdom on earth?
Yes.

What is the model?
Heaven.

Just meditate on the following questions:
Where is the Father?
Where is the Son?
Where is the quickening spirit?
Where is the Holy Spirit?
Is the kingdom instantly here?
Is the New Jerusalem part of the Kingdom?

This is a good thread subject. Several boxes will be challenged. We are hopefully looking through scripture for answers. The OP is complex, and just by post 10 has been given more clarification.

Thy Kingdom is an internal Kingdom. Our viewpoint is often external.

Moderators please join in early on. Of course that will be interesting.

A rock is a rock. It is also Jesus hidden.

Redneck
eddif
Click to expand...
Why should moderators join in early on?
This was an interesting comment !
 
eddif said:
Matthew 6:9 KJV
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Does God want the kingdom on earth?
Yes.

What is the model?
Heaven.

Just meditate on the following questions:
Where is the Father?
Where is the Son?
Where is the quickening spirit?
Where is the Holy Spirit?
Is the kingdom instantly here?
Is the New Jerusalem part of the Kingdom?

This is a good thread subject. Several boxes will be challenged. We are hopefully looking through scripture for answers. The OP is complex, and just by post 10 has been given more clarification.

Thy Kingdom is an internal Kingdom. Our viewpoint is often external.

Moderators please join in early on. Of course that will be interesting.

A rock is a rock. It is also Jesus hidden.

Redneck
eddif
Click to expand...
Coming up next:

WHERE is the Kingdom of God?
 
Last edited:
wondering said:
Coming up next:

WHERE is the Kingdom of God?
Click to expand...
Ok
IMHO

Revelation 21:2 KJV
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

In motion from heaven to us.

Esther / Ester may be the hidden prophetic of the start of motion.

Selection
Preparation
Encouragement
Reality

Symbolism is not perfect. An ox does not look like an elder, but the comparison is made.

eddif
 
eddif said:
Ok
IMHO

Revelation 21:2 KJV
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

In motion from heaven to us.

Esther / Ester may be the hidden prophetic of the start of motion.

Selection
Preparation
Encouragement
Reality

Symbolism is not perfect. An ox does not look like an elder, but the comparison is made.

eddif
Click to expand...
The New Jerusalem?
Oh my no. I believe it, but not for now.
Stay tuned...
 
wondering said:
I know.
Buddha didn't come to save. He never claimed to be God.
He came to promote the Kingdom of God.
God used him, at his time.
Click to expand...
Huh?

Buddha spoke nothing that matches the biblical view.medidate,and deny your existence as a person and become one with the earth and enter into nirvina .he really just revamped Hinduism.
 
Well I haven't jumped in but have read it all. Good thread. Too early to get this deep. As for Buddha, I don't know enough to comment. But God uses the godly and ungodly for His purposes. I'm not saying he was ungodly, only that God uses whom He uses for reasons He knows and we probably don't. Hope that made sense because I'm still working on waking up. #retirementLife
 
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