PACIFIC KINGDOM - PART 5

SATURDAY 19 APRIL 2025

Reference: Hebrews 12:28 English Standard Version (ESV)

"Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, and offer to God pleasing service and acceptable worship with reverence and awe."

Today's article is still focused on showing more sincere gratitude for the Kingdom we receive. Personally, I'm highly grateful for the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross, which is expressive of the unconditional love He lavished upon the undeserving and sinful world. And indeed, we are united into His death, meaning that as He died, we also died with Him unto sin, so we should walk in newness and holiness of life. To that effect, Pauline epistolary expression numbered as Romans 6:5-8 reads:

"For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, we will also be part of His resurrection; knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be in bondage to sin. For He who has died has been freed from sin. But if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with Him" (WEB).

Having accepted Christ Jesus as my Lord and Saviour, by virtue of my justification and salvation, which is on account of His finished work, I have become a heir of the Kingdom. Simply put, I have truly become a heir of God, in accordance with the promise made to Abraham. And it is not by the obedience of the Law, but by my active faith in God, which is exactly the same way that Abraham possessed the promised blessing. To instantiate this verity, beloved, the Bible says in Galatians 3:13-14 that:

"Christ redeemed us from that self-defeating, cursed life by absorbing it completely into himself. Do you remember the Scripture that says, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"? That is what happened when Jesus was nailed to the cross: He became a curse, and at the same time dissolved the curse. And now, because of that, the air is cleared and we can see that Abraham's blessing is present and available for non-Jews, too. We are all able to receive God's life, His Spirit, in and with us by believing—just the way Abraham received it" (MSG).

How grateful are you for what Christ did for you on the cross? When Jesus was nailed to the cross, did you know that He became curse for us? In other words, instead of "us" bearing and suffering the curse, He was cursed by God on behalf of the entire sins of mankind, and in addition, by the efficacy of His death and resurrection, He redeemed and brought us into a right relationship with God, which in turn correlated us with the presence of the Spirit. On account of this truth, every saint in Christ is the true seed of Abraham, because the Kingdom of the Messiah, which is the promised inheritance, is our "now" or present possession.

The divine power and wisdom of this Kingdom we have received were demonstrated in the finished work of Christ, and the revealed grace of God is shrined in Christ alone. More so, Christ's Kingdom and authority, His dominion and government cannot be shaken, and we must continue to function in this Kingdom with an earnest heart of gratitude. Stay tuned for part 6. Shalom!

Scripture Reading - Matthew 28:2-7; Luke 24: 6-7; 1 Peter 1:3; Revelation 1:5-6.

Guided Prayer:

Heavenly Father, I'm forever grateful for the unco realisation of your eternal purpose on earth through the sufferings, death, burial and resurrection of Christ, which delivered the Kingdom of heaven to me on a silver platter, in Jesus' Name, Amen!