Citizens of Heaven: Kingdom Bringers

        Often times we think of heaven as something we are waiting for; that we live in hope of the future promise of eternal life as we strive in this broken world.  Yet the Holy Spirit has been revealing to me a very different reality; we, as Christians, should not passively wait for the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven, but actively bring it here to Earth.

        "Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:11-13)." Did you catch that? We ought to be people who are not only waiting for, but hastening the coming of the day of the Lord!!!

     "Being asked by the pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, 'The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed, nor will they say.  'Look, here it is!' or 'There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you ( Luke 17:20-21)."  Philippians 3:20 says that we are citizens of heaven, and Ephesians 2:6 says that we are 'seated in heavenly places'. We are the conduits by which the kingdom of heaven invades earth. It is our job, our commission, to bring heaven to earth, just like in the Lords prayer where we pray for God's will 'on Earth as it is in Heaven'.  That means that what belongs in heaven belongs on Earth, and what doesn't belong in heaven doesn't belong on earth.

      This principle is seen in Matthew 18:18, "Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.  Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them."  God gives us powerful authority!  The chasm that was between heaven and earth has been bridged by the sacrifice of Jesus.  And we, as redeemed sons and daughters of God, work to bring the two kingdoms together through faith.

          It says in Romans 8:19 that, "For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God." Creation is waiting for us, so that we can liberate it from bondage that it was subjected to.  If we are not taking up the role that God has given us then creation will not be liberated.  If we neglect our calling of bringing heaven to earth then it will take longer for Jesus to come back.  Going back to 2 Peter 3, it says that our role is to hasten the day of the Lord, and we do that by actively bringing heaven to earth through our citizenship.  I fully believe that if Christians 1000 yrs ago stewarded the kingdom the way God designed them to, then Jesus would have come back already.  It is my hope that we begin a new chapter in the church.  That we start a movement of kingdom bringing people that hastens the day of the Lord; that unlike past generations we steward the kingdom so that Jesus can come back in our lifetime!

          Many times Christians are looked down upon for believing that Jesus is going to come back before they die, I rebuke that! We should all hope for his coming, we should all have faith that he comes back in our lifetime.  Many of those who believe that Jesus was coming back were true warriors for the Kingdom; this hope is a reflection of their faith!  It is they that have taken up the call, they that are hastening the day of the Lord. I want to be like them, I want to be a 'Kingdom Bringer'.