Taking The Kingdom By Force
The Kingdom of God is: “…righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 14.17) When something is, it expresses its nature. Now, let’s put some other Scriptures alongside this verse, such as: “…until now the Kingdom of Heaven has suffered violence and the violent take it by force.” (Mat. 11.12) “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet…” (Romans 16.20) Alongside of peace, joy and righteousness is violence, force and crush under your feet. This oxymoron of Scripture, takes what is essence and makes it a weapon. It takes nouns and makes them verbs. It takes what is usually thought to be a state of mind and makes it an aggressive, conquering agent of change. Peace crushes the enemy and joy is our strength.
When Jesus sent out the 70, He said He was sending them out as lambs among wolves. They were to go into hostile territory to announce to those captive by the enemy that the Kingdom of God has come. These warrior ministers of the Gospel were to have their feel shod with the preparation of the Gospel of Peace. The first thing they were to do, as they entered a house, was to say: “Peace be to this house.” (Luke 10.5) Peace breaks down the barriers of separation and mistrust. Peace is like the point of a spear that can pierce the hardness of heart and destroy the fortresses of the mind. This results in fellowship, transparency and a power encounter with our miracle-working God. Peace is not passivity, but rather an aggressive expression of love.
Joy is another weapon that crushes Satan under our feet. It is more than just an emotion that results from some good that has occurred. Joy, as a verb, changes the negative to positive, heals the sick and gives us the strength we need to handle every situation that may appear. I remember an experience I had while visiting a lady in the hospital. She was suffering from a deficiency in the marrow of her bones. She was so weak, she could hardly move. As I was about to pray for her, the Lord reminded me of Proverbs 17.22. It reads: “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” This lady certainly had a crushed spirit and, so I just started to joke with her. I told her funny stories and soon she began to laugh with me. Joy returned to her life and in two days she was released from the hospital; completely healed.
Righteousness means to be made right with God. It is having our sins forgiven and forgotten. There is no way to be righteous when sin is present. With the shedding of the blood of Jesus, sin was atoned for and forgiveness was given. It was not earned, but was conceded to us who believe. “…in Him we have become the righteousness of God.” (II Cor. 5.21) It is the cancelling of all the arguments that the enemy has against us. It is like being in a court of law. The devil brings up accusations against us based on the sins we have committed. We would be condemned if it were not for our alibi. You see, we are in Christ, not in sin. The Blood of Jesus is the proof of our innocence. You must cast off accusations, refuse sadness and crush under your feet all strife and division. Take hold of the Kingdom of God with all your might, walk in peace, rejoice always, and stand fast in your confession. The Holy Spirit will help you.
Scriptures to meditate on:
Mat. 11.12; Rev. 12.11; Rom. 14.17; 16.20; Gal. 5.1, 13; Phil. 1.27; Luke 10.1-12