From: Paul Gage
LIVING IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD MAY 4, 2023
Welcome Dear Saints to the merry, merry month of May,
It is interesting how that mankind down through the ages has not changed much, though of course, many things about life have changed. Solomon in Ecclesiastes 1 makes some profound statements, among which is vv 9-11 “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done; and there is no new thing under the sun. 10 Is there anything whereof it may be said, See, this is new? It hath been already of old time, which was before us. 11 There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after.” Read the whole chapter and may chapter two also.
He also makes a profound statement at the end in Chapter 12:13-14 “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.”
All the wild, weird, ungodly things being done in our world today, have been done before. The main thing that has changed is the advancement of mankind in technology and such, which are all fulfillment of prophecy. Though people in the days of Noah did not have cell phone, computers, etc.etc., they obviously had enough things to keep them from believing in God, as only eight souls were saved.
So, here we are, in 2023, “Living in the Kingdom of God.” Do you think about that each day you are privileged to wake up and go through another day? That we are living in the Kingdom as a prelude to the return of Jesus when He establishes His real kingdom? Do we think about that as we interact with people all day, at home, work, school, church etc? Does the thought of living in the Kingdom have any effect on how we interact with others, especially in the home and church?
The following is a portion of a prayer from a Prayer Diary written in 1949.”O Father in heaven, who didst fashion my limbs to serve Thee and my soul to follow after Thee, with sorrow and contrition of heart I acknowledge before Thee the faults and failures of the day just past. My failure to be true even to my own accepted standards; My self-deception on face of temptation; My choosing the worse when I know better; O Lord, forgive.” His prayer goes on in a similar vein. This is an indication that people don’t change much. If we have those feelings today, we may want to analyze our “living in the Kingdom.”
A young man had a sign on the wall in his room at college. It read (His name) the Third.
His mother had given him the motto to remind him that God is first, others second and you are third. Of course that goes with examples given by Jesus in Matthew 22:34-39; Mark 12:33-39; and Luke 10:26-38. Same idea with different endings. Read each of them for yourself and then see how it relates to your living in the Kingdom. We have a camp song entitled “JOY.” Jesus, others and You. What a wonderful way to spell JOY. Do others see that JOY in our lives? They should if we are living in the Kingdom.
TODAY: Thursday, May 4, 2023 is National Day of Prayer. We all need to pray fervently for our nations.
This Sunday, May 7, 2023 will be a Pastors of Zion Joint Prayer Service followed by the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. Prayer Service at 8 am and Sacrament at 10 am at:
Waldo Avenue Restoration Branch. What might it do to boost our living in the Kingdom to have 1000 plus Saints come together?
Copies of the current Daily Devotional Guide will be available if you do not have a copy. This is another way Saints all over the world can stay in tune with each other and God every day as we live for the coming of His Kingdom in its fullness.
God be with you,
Paul Gage
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