God’s Kingdom is meant to be a living Kingdom, living through you and me, as we follow Christ Jesus. I share this message with you to encourage you to surrender to God and then allow him to reign as King in your life – now and forever.
Lead Scripture:
Matt. 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
1. Jesus introduces his ministry with one phrase, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
2. What is the significance of this statement?
a. At the time, the pronouncement ushered in Jesus’ public ministry.
b. What about now?
i. Today, the words of Jesus are a clarion call to a new life. Jesus is pronouncing his victory over:
1. The kingdom ruled by Satan
2. The kingdom ruled by Man
3. The kingdom of ruled by Self
ii. He is inviting us to surrender to Him and share in this victory.
3. What is the kingdom of God/heaven?
a. Simple answer: The place where God reigns as King.
b. Consider what allegiance is owed a King . . .
i. In a 21st Century Democracy, we have a hard time with such concepts as “King” “allegiance” and “sovereign authority” because we are king and sovereign over our lives.
- We decide what we will do, when we will do it and how we will do it. We do not take kindly to being told what to do. We claim “freedom” from any ruler and authority. Our allegiance, in the social contract, is first and foremost to ourselves.
ii. In the bible and other historical texts, a King is the absolute ruler of his kingdom.
- The King is completely sovereign.
- The King is the law and the authority.
- The King owns the life of every subject and disposes of that life as he sees fit.
iii. There was never a situation where there are two sovereigns in one Kingdom. Such circumstance always resulted in war and the subjects would be required to proclaim allegiance to their king, fight for their king, and die defending their king.
iv. When a King prevailed over another King for sovereignty over a land and a people, the subjects of the conquered country would often be given a choice: Either surrender to the conquering King or die.
- The decision to surrender subjected the people to a new King and his law, his rule, his will.
- The life of the subject was, in effect, purchased.
- The life of the subject was a gift of the king
4. When Christ calls us to “repent” what is he asking for?
a. Total and complete surrender to his Kingship over our lives.
i. Historically, surrender during a war occurs when soldiers, nations or other combatants stop fighting and eventually become prisoners of war, either as individuals or when ordered to by their officers.
- A white flag is a common symbol of surrender, as is the gesture of raising one’s hands empty and open above one’s head.
ii. When the parties agree to terms the surrender may be conditional, i.e. if the surrendering party promises to submit only after the victor makes certain promises. Otherwise it is an unconditional surrender where the victor makes no promises.
- Normally a belligerent will only agree to surrender unconditionally if completely incapable of continuing the fight.
iii. EXAMPLE: the 1862 Battle of Fort Donelson in the American Civil War. Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant of the Union Army received a request for terms from the fort’s commanding officer, Confederate Brigadier General Simon Bolivar Buckner. Grant’s reply was that “no terms except unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted. I propose to move immediately upon your works.”
- When news of Grant’s victory—one of the Union’s first in the Civil War—was received in Washington, D.C., newspapers remarked (and President Abraham Lincoln endorsed) that Ulysses S. Grant’s first two initials, “U.S.,” stood for “Unconditional Surrender,” which would later become his nickname.
iv. EXAMPLE: 1 Kings 20:1-4, “And Ben-hadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it. And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Benhadad, Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine. And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, 0 king, according to thy saying, I am thine and all that I have”.
- As the great preacher Andrew Murray once pointed out when he taught from this passage, Ahab gave what was asked of him by Benhadad – absolute surrender.
- He emphasized these words: “My lord, 0 king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have,” as the words of absolute surrender with which every child of God ought to yield himself to his Father.
- Murray pointed out that the condition of God’s blessing in our life is absolute surrender of all into His hands. “Praise God! If our hearts are willing for that, there is no end to what God will do for us, and to the blessing God will bestow.”
b. The Kingdom of God has come and has vanquished all of the enemies who have challenged His absolute sovereignty:
i. Satan –defeated
ii. The kingdom of man – defeated
iii. You and I [our sin and rebellion] – defeated
- We were once enemies of God.
- By his grace, we are now his subjects. No, through the grace of God, we are more than subjects, we are called his children!
c. In the wake of God’s victory through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God is calling for absolute surrender, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is upon you.”
5. Have we surrendered to God’s reign as King over our lives?
a. Are we at war with God?
b. Have we retained sovereignty over some aspect of our lives?
c. Have we placed conditions on our surrender?
6. What are some practical ways we can surrender to God and allow him to reign as King over our lives?
7. Surrendering to God’s reign over your life as King will open the door to a new Living and Eternal Kingdom
Living Letters 