Friday, July 2

From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near. Matthew 4:17

Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. Matthew 4:23

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:10

For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:20

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33

Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. Matthew 9:35

From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. Matthew 11:12

Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. Matthew 13:24

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Matthew 13:44

He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field". Matthew 13:31

And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven". Matthew 18:3

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14

Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. Matthew 21:43

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. Matthew 24:14


Here is a rather obvious statement at this point– Jesus talked a lot about the Kingdom. Jesus refers to it 55 times in Matthew and over 150 times in the four Gospels. In fact the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7), which we are studying this summer, is all about what it means to live in the Kingdom.

Here is a rather obvious and important question – What exactly is the Kingdom?
At the risk of reducing what Jesus himself took a good deal of time and effort to explain, illustrate and describe, the Kingdom is living life with Jesus as your King.

We don’t talk or think much about kings and kingdoms in our culture these days, but it is worth considering for a moment. To have a king means to be a subject, to be under the reign of another.

Living with Jesus as your King means that Jesus is in charge. He gets to decide what is best for you. You submit yourself to his laws and obey his commands.

Living with Jesus as your King means that you owe him your allegiance. He is your first loyalty, before country, family, work, friends, or self.

Living with Jesus as your King means that you serve him. You are willing to sacrifice for him and give to him your time and treasure.

Living with Jesus as your King means that your honor and revere him. You respect his name and reputation. You recognize that your life represents the honor of your King.

It is not always easy to live this way. There is a part of us that doesn’t want to bend the knee to another. We don’t like having someone else call the shots for us. We want to be our own king. If we only had an earthly king, we would have good reason to be uneasy. The kings and rulers of the world operate with on this principle – your life for me. They rule at the expense of their subjects.

But Jesus is a different kind of King and his kingdom operates on a radically different principle. The kingdom principle of Jesus is – My life for yours! He sacrificed himself so that we might rule and reign with him! He is the King who became a servant of all! There is none like Him! He is Jesus, your King!

Jeff Frazier