DIVINE PRIORITY

Recently, Rev. Dr. Kong Hee of City Harvest Church has been preaching a series of messages on the "Kingdom of God".

The following is a brief recapitulation and adaptation of his preaching on 25 & 26 March 2017 for your edification. 

However, you gotta get hold of the sermon CDs from The Ink Room so that you can listen to them. After all, faith comes from hearing the Word of God. There is power in the spoken word; God spoke the universe into existence where "Uni" means "One" and "verse" means "poetic verse" in Latin.

In Genesis 1:26 God gave man dominion over the creatures He has created. "Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”" Genesis 1:26 (NKJV)

To have dominion means having authority as a king over a territory or a domain. Interestingly, God did not give man the authority to subdue other people.

A king has authority over a realm while a lord has ownership (e.g. landlord). In Psalm 24:1 (NKJV) we understand that:- 

"The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness,

The world and those who dwell therein."

"But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant." Matthew 20:25-26 (NKJV)

The Kingdom of God is a king of kings; servant kings. It is filled by believers who serve others with dignity as opposed to servitude.

"But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:" John 1:12 (NKJV) 

As sons and daughters of the Most High God, we are the King's kids; princes and princesses. (This truth need to be told more often so that it is not sidelined to the corner of fairy tales or myths and legends.)

"The sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to be king over all, but all who will take God’s gift of forgiveness and acquittal are kings of life because of this one man, Jesus Christ." Romans 15:7 (TLB)

Indeed we are meant to reign in life as kings in Christ Jesus.

Our reign is on this earth. "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." Matthew 5:5 (NKJV)

"The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s;
But the earth He has given to the children of men." Psalm 115:16 (NKJV)

God is fittingly both our KING and our LORD. As declared in Revelation 19:16 (NKJV), "And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

KING OF KINGS AND
LORD OF LORDS."  

God gave man a lease agreement over the earth. God Himself will not violate His words. 

The authority over the earth was, however, relinquished to the enemy of our faith when man fell into sin. 

"Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish." Luke 4:5 - 6 (NKJV) 

God need to look for a human to intervene on this earth. By prayer, we give God permission to move and intervene on this earth while the lease is still operative.

“Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

“Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” Matthew 18:18-19 (NKJV)

"Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:14-15 (NKJV)

Repent means a total change of thinking resulting in a total change of action.

Jesus has already dealt with sin and the devil. Our greatest enemy is ignorance.

According to Abraham Maslow, the basic needs of man are food, water, clothing and housing. Truth be told, these have already revealed by Jesus Christ way back during His earthly ministry.

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?" Matthew 6:25 (NKJV)

God is a Spirit and mammon is also a spirit. Mammon is the spirit of this world which makes us worry about food, drinks, clothing and housing.

Hear then from Matthew 6:33 on the Divine Priority:-

"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."

DIVINE PRIORITY means that seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness is the most important thing in life. T

To seek means to pursue fervently. Seek Him first and only; not seek Him first and then seek after mammon. The two are mutually exclusive. Make the Kingdom of God your highest priority. Don’t imbibe the spirit of mammon. Repent from giving leeway to the spirit of mammon. Align your thinking with the Word of God.

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." Matthew 6:24 (NKJV)

When we acknowledge God as LORD, it means that He is our supreme owner. Seeking God first is a "Yes, LORD." response. When we say that God is LORD, but respond with 'Yes, LORD, but ...', this is an oxymoron.  

There is a cost to following Jesus through whom we come to God our Heavenly Father.

"Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” Luke 9:57,58 (NKJV)

Jesus said matter of factly that it could be costly to follow Him; one might have to give up the comfort of home or house even.

"Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” Luke 9:59 (NKJV)

This man was called by Jesus specifically, but he was not ready till his earthly father has passed on.

"And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.” But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”" Luke 9:61, 62 (NKJV)

This follower kept looking back to unresolved distractions; he did not have a clear priority to seek God first and only.

We are in the world but not of the world. What are you giving strength to? Are you controlled by mammon or led by the Holy Spirit? Are you giving yourself consistently to the things of God and allowing Him first priority in life, above all?

Then there is the account of the rich young ruler. "Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions." Matthew 19:21,22 (NKJV)

For sure, God is a rewarder and He will show Himself faithful to those who follow Him to the end with the right motive. (Bottom line: If we have Jesus, He is our everything.)

"And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first." Matthew 19:29 (NKJV)

"So He said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or parents or brothers or wife or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who shall not receive many times more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life.”" Luke 18:29,30 (NKJV)

Repent and cast aside mammon. God has something better for us -- Divine Priority. Get this right, and we will enjoy life as God has intended for us. He is a good God who takes care of the flowers and birds. Surely, He will take care of us, too, as we submit to His reign in our lives as the King of Kings and LORD of lords.

About Kong Hee

REVERENCE AND RELEVANCE.

These two words encapsulate the crux of Kong Hee’s life-transforming message to the masses: “Loving God Wholeheartedly and Loving People Fervently.”

There is much value in the simplicity of this maxim that effectively demonstrates the vertical aspect of the Cross—having a deep relationship and reverence for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; as well as the horizontal aspect—stepping out of the confines of our personal needs to meet the needs of others.

Preaching the gospel of Christ in a manner that is both progressive and heartfelt, Kong is a highly sought-after conference speaker worldwide, and his messages reach out to touch and minister to millions of lives through many multimedia platforms. Kong’s revelatory emphasis of the Great Commandment, the Great Commission and the Cultural Mandate resonates powerfully within 21st Century Christianity by inspiring believers everywhere to take on the mantle of Kingdom ambassadorship. Not just within the four walls of the church or within full-time ministry, but in whichever areas of society God has placed them in.