This Gospel of the Kingdom 3

Matthew 24:14 (NET) 

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole inhabited earth as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Because of Nneka’s faith in the Lord Jesus, she could not continue in some unrighteous business deals even though those were the deals that made her the most money. She made this bold decision because she understood that nothing was too big to sacrifice for God’s kingdom. She understood that the kingdom is real and eternally relevant and she didn’t want anything to hinder her from her inheritance in it.

The true gospel of the kingdom teaches selflessness and sacrifice. Anyone who has truly accepted it would be willing to forsake certain things in order to follow Jesus fruitfully.

But there is a gospel today that purports that there is no need to make any sacrifices and forsake anything because Jesus has already made the needed sacrifice. Even though what they say is true on a particular level, they are absolutely wrong on all other levels. Those who will follow Jesus must be ready to deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow Him (see Luke 9:23). They must be willing to sacrifice fleshly pleasures for kingdom participation and elevation (see Rom 12:1-2, 13:8).

The kingdom of God is like a man who finds a great treasure in a field and goes to sell all he has to buy that field (see the Lord’s Parable of the hidden treasure in Matthew 13:44-46).

Go into today remembering that anything you forsake for the kingdom is a small temporary investment you are converting into a great eternal investment that would bless you for time and for the whole of eternity.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, now that I am born again, help me see your kingdom the way I ought to, and walk in its reality [and power], in Jesus name. Amen.