The Kingdom of God – His Presence

I am learning, confirming, and reinforcing so much from this series on How To Minister Like Jesus. I hope and pray this series has encouraged you as well. In my mind, in my brain, and in the way I think, I see it this way. God’s presence whether it’s the Father being present and speaking through the prophets (old testament), or Jesus being present here on earth in fulfilling the Old and bringing in the New Testament, or through the gift of the Holy Spirit in us here on earth until He returns, it is representative of the Kingdom of God – His Presence.

What Heaven is Like – I Can Only Imagine

And what comes with His Presence, the Kingdom of God? In the Kingdom, there is love, righteousness, wholeness, completeness, forgiveness and peace (spiritually, mentally/emotionally, and physically). In His presence, there is nothing missing. Within the Kingdom of God, there is no more sin, no sorrow, no shame, no selfishness, no brokenness, and no more wardrobe malfunctions (see previous blog posts).

Revelation 21:4 NIV

‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

Heaven on Earth?

Yes, this speaks of heaven. This also describes what Adam and Eve had in Eden. It also describes what Jesus has made possible to us once again – what Jesus has restored in what Adam had lost. As Paul shares, The first Adam lost the benefits of the Kingdom when he sinned – God and sin cannot co-exist. Jesus, the second Adam as Paul explains it, came from God and is God, and restored all that the first Adam had lost (I Corinthians 15).

That’s why we see Jesus, in His ministry here on earth, bringing restoration everywhere He went. He didn’t go out and proclaim that He had a healing ministry. He simply went out to share God’s love and restore people back to God. Jesus was restoring what was lost in the Garden of Eden. Healing was/is a natural result of who He is. Healing is restoration. It was a natural part of what He did everywhere He went.

Jesus Came to Restore

Jesus proclaimed in Luke, in reading from the scrolls out of Isaiah 61:1-2, the following:

Luke 4:18-19 AMP

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me (the Messiah), Because He has anointed Me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent Me to announce release (pardon, forgiveness) to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed (downtrodden, bruised, crushed by tragedy), to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord [the day when salvation and the favor of God abound greatly].”

If this isn’t good news, if it’s not the Kingdom of God at hand, then I don’t know what is! Following in the footsteps of His own ministry, Jesus trained and equipped others. Next He sent the 12 disciples out to proclaim the Kindgom of God was at hand.

The Twelve

Luke 10:7-8 AMP

And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’  Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. 

The 70

He also sent out 70 other disciples to proclaim that the Kingdom of God was at hand…

Luke 10:8-9 AMP

Whenever you go into a town and they receive and accept and welcome you, eat what is set before you; And heal the sick in it and say to them, The kingdom of God has come close to you.

“Repent and follow Jesus, and then you will be healed,” is not what the Disciples said. They were proclaiming Jesus and that the Kingdom of God was at hand. The healing was an affirmation that the Kingdom of God was at hand. It naturally followed His presence. It was a sign.

The Kingdom of God Means Healing

Healing means restoration, completeness, made whole, put back in right standing as when it all began. There are five areas in which Jesus has restored. Let me preface this list by saying I certainly don’t know it all. Complete books and blogs and sermons and classes have gone into great detail on each of the five points below. These points coorespond to what Adam “Undid” when he sinned.

But Jesus Undid What Was Done By Adam

• Healing the Spirit (key word – unregenerated spirit)
  • The Power of the Cross overcoming our main and most basic problem – alienation from God.
  • This means God’s love through His Son Jesus Christ has healed sin and it’s effects through:
    • Forgiveness through His blood – a free gift (it can’t be earned).
    • Righteousness, also a free gift in Christ giving us a new identity. We are now new creatures (creations) in Him – 2 Corinthians 5:17.
• Healing Damaged Emotions (key word – unforgiveness)
  • Applying God’s mercy to the hurts that have been done to us in this broken world.
    • These hurts keep us from moving on with God AND with others. It can and will cause physical sickness. This can also give the enemy a foothold on one’s life.
  • Always know, that healing begins when we take responsibility for our actions.
    • What do you need to do to make right? Blaming others keeps you stuck.
• Healing the Body (key word – unhealthiness)
  • Sin can and will cause both minor and major effects on our health.
    • Sin’s effects from a broken world, even passed on from generations past, have caused:
      • Damaged tissue, malfunctioning body parts, and even a lack of body parts. It’s all a part of a broken world from the effects of sin.
• Healing of those tormented by the enemy (demons) (key word – unprotected)
  • this means eliminating demons so a person is protected and can respond to God’s grace without being hindered by the control of the enemy.
• And, Healing the Dying and the Dead (key word – Untimely) – yes this one is just a little more contraversial:
  • It certainly is appointed once for everyone to die (Hebrews 9:27)
    • But is it really their time?
      • The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10a) before it is your time.
  • If not, how do you minister to them?
    • And if they do die before their time, is it possible for them to be raised from the dead?
  • If it is their time, then appropriately minister to them.

Repeating Myself

If you read my blogs consistently you’ve heard this. I love to share what often is attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. So I’ll share it again,

Love on Others – What Else Is There?

What I mean by this is, our actions should proclaim God’s Kingdom. His love, righteousness, wholeness, completeness, forgiveness, peace, and wholeness (spiritually, mentally/emotionally, and physically). Quite simply, our job is to reflect Jesus. Love on others. Let them see and experience (not just hear) the Kingdom of God.

Challenge of the Week

Your goal and my goal is to go and share the gospel with someone. And if necessary, use words. So, who is it this week that needs not to be judged, but needs loved on? Our Father just dropped a name in your heart. Put that first name (or initials) in the comments below and I will pray for them as you go out and love on them. That’s your mission, like the 12, like the 70. You are the one! So be it.