Continuing our journey into the subject Basiliea (Greek word for Kingdom which our Saviour spoke about in His first discourse — Mark 1:15), today let’s cast our spotlight on another related themes such as rules of the Kingdom, how to obey them etc. Firstly…
Commands…
Ignorantia Juris Non Excusat (Ignorance of the Law is no excuse). Is there any Citizen of any Country who would be excused to live as he wants without paying any heed to the Constitution of his Land? No way! Similarly, a person who is now part of God’s Kingdom (living in full, blessed communion with Creator) needs to know the Almighty’s “constitution,” in order he walks in accordance with it (Exo 33:13). Where else can the new citizen find the Divine Constitution other than in the New Testament Canon (Matt-Rev) and who better to teach the same to him/her the best other than the oh-so-close, indwelling Counselor (Holy Spirit — John 14:26/Gal 5:16/1 John 2:27). Amazing isn’t it that our Heavenly Father not only reveals His plans for us through His Word but also places a Divine teacher within us to understand it’s intricacies perfectly. Say Christian, have you ever thanked Him wholeheartedly for the wondrous teacher He has given you? Oh yes, there are human agencies too like a inspired Pastor and a Teacher who have a role to play in the learning process of a Christian (Eph 4:11-12), but none better and greater than the one and only Holy Spirit.
In essence, Commandments of the Kingdom are all about loving God and loving one another intensely as can be evidenced in the Gospels and in the writings of five inspired writers’ whose writings alone comprise the New Testament Canon – Mark 12:28-34, Romans 13:10 (read Paul), 1 Peter 4:8, James 1:27-28, 2 John 1:5, Jude 1:21.
Capacity…
There is a rare privilege conferred upon the Citizens of Lord’s Kingdom. Oh yes, it is the capacity to selflessly obey the commands of the Kingdom out of sheer love for the Master (agreed we are by nature selfish people). It is also given to us by the Indwelling Holy Spirit. Consider this Scripture portion… “we feel this warm love everywhere within us because God has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.” (Rom 5:5). In which Earthly Kingdom would the King Himself give the capacity to His subjects to obey His commands? However noble he is, he cannot give the capacity to his people too, to be as noble as him, unless he can indwell them, which of course is the case in the incredible God-Christian relationship.
Hey, the Kingdom of God is not just talking but living by God’s power (1 Cor 4:20/James 1:27)!
Concise…
When the community of Citizens of the Kingdom all enjoying communion with the Heavenly Father gather together to worship the Almighty together and fellowship with one another, a Church is born, which is the concise form of Heaven on Earth (James 1:18-ESV) where God’s will ought to be done as it is in Heaven.
Prayer: Father, we Thank Thee for not only making us properly understand Thy commands but also for giving us the capacity to obey them and also for uniting we of different backgrounds into one spiritual family…the Church. We magnify Thee once again in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Suresh Manoharan
J and SM Ministries
(To access the entire “Basics of Basileia” mini-series, please click here.)