From: Paul Gage
LIVING IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD JANUARY 12, 2023
To all those living in the kingdom of God, Greetings,
I hope and pray that things are going well for each of you, even in the midst of whatever difficulties, illness, etc. you may be dealing with. Always remember that no matter what you may have faced, are facing or might face in the future, our Lord, God Almighty has promised His blessings, guidance and His presence.
It was Jesus, himself, who in teaching his disciples how to pray, included the thought, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:11. Doctrine and Covenants (DC) 65 says something very similar to the statement of Jesus.
DC 34:6 reads: “Keep all the commandments and covenants by which ye are bound, and I will cause the heavens to shake for your good; and Satan shall tremble; and Zion shall rejoice upon the hills and flourish; and Israel shall be saved in mine own due time. 6b And by the keys which I have given shall they be led and no more be confounded at all.
6c Lift up your hearts, and be glad; your redemption draweth nigh. 6d Fear not, little flock; the kingdom is yours until I come. Behold, I come quickly. Even so. Amen.
Brother Evan Fry, in one of his radio sermons entitled:”The Kingdom,” made the following statements: “What is the kingdom? It is God’s kingdom—the kingdom of heaven. But the kingdom does not exist only in heaven; the kingdom is universal. There is not a square inch in the vastness of the universe where God does not rule, and where God’s laws do not have to be obeyed. We are living in the midst of the kingdom NOW, either in obedience and loyalty or in rebellion.
The kingdom of God is spiritual. It exists in the hearts of men. It is righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost (Romans 14:17). It exists wherever men do the will of God, and to the extent that they recognize Him as King and give obedience to the laws of His Kingdom. But the kingdom must also be in some respects temporal, or it is no kingdom. It is simply not possible for us to keep a spiritual law without expressing that obedience in physical terms, in physical actions. It is simply not possible for us to believe wholeheartedly and unreservedly in spiritual principles, such as love, goodwill, and brotherly kindness, and then refuse to put into physical, temporal action the spiritual principles which we profess. Most of the attitudes of the so-called Christian (Restoration) world have missed the kingdom completely, because they think that they can be subjects and members of God’s kingdom by worshiping Him in spirit but ignoring His laws in practical physical, temporal, hardheaded, worldly affairs.
A spiritual kingdom without any temporal manifestation of the spiritual principles professed is like a disembodied spirit. It is only a ghost—a phantom. When shall the promises of the kingdom be fulfilled?
When there is a people prepared to receive Jesus as King and Messiah. When the church (us) has gathered out a nucleus of righteous, obedient, dedicated people who by keeping kingdom law do God’s will on earth as it is done in heaven as subjects of the Prince of Peace, then the Messiah will come to reign over them, to gather out His elect, and to judge the wicked and rebellious.”
As we near the middle of January, how are you doing in your “kingdom living?”
There is no time to become discouraged or quit. A sign in an athletic room said, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going. We have many great examples to follow: JESUS, Enoch, Daniel, Peter, Paul Ruth, Mary, Nephi, Alma, Joseph, Emma, etc. You name ten more.
As the song “Find Us Faithful” states:
1 We're pilgrims on the journey Of the narrow road
And those who've gone before us line the way
Cheering on the faithful, encouraging the weary
Their lives a stirring testament to God's sustaining grace
2 Surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses
Let us run the race not only for the prize
But as those who've gone before us
Let us leave to those behind us
The heritage of faithfulness passed on through godly lives
3 After all our hopes and dreams have come and gone
And our children sift through all we've left behind
May the clues that they discover and the memories they uncover
Become the light that leads them to the road we each must find.
Chorus:
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
May the fire of our devotion light their way
May the footprints that we leave
Lead them to believe
And the lives we live inspire them to obey
Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful
God Bless
Paul Gage
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