The Kingdom is Like (Part 2)

The Kingdom is Like (Part 2): “Beloved, Grace and Peace be unto you from God our Father, and from the LORD Jesus Christ. This week I would like to continue to look at the Kingdom of God. Let’s continue the text we started two weeks ago. Matthew 25:1 states this: Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
Jesus is giving us intructin as to what we should resemble as members of his Kingdom. We looked last week at what was meant by being a virgin. This week as we look at the latter clause of this verse we see that Jesus tells us that we have a purpose, and the we should carry our lamps. The ten virgins in this parable had a goal. They had one purpose. The purpose was to meet the bridegroom.  It is clear that the scriptures, even Christ refers to himself as the bridegroom; Luke 5:34 And he said unto them, Can ye make the children of the bride chamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them?
Luke 5:35 But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.
So we understand that our purpose is to meet Jesus. The scripture declares that this honor is limited to the believers: 1Th. 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
So our purpose is to live in such a way that our life is pleasing to God, that we would walk righteously before him. Everything we do should be with the goal to meet Jesus, to please Jesus, to obey Jesus. So citizens of the Kingdom do have a common goal. Our love for Christ defines us and he sets the bar in this regard. He says: John 14:15 ¶ If ye love me, keep my commandments.
Beloved Jesus also shares another key characteristic of the Kingdom. The citizen of the Kingdom of God, not only is a virgin, and has a goal, but also carries a lamp. This is key. The purpose for a lamp is to see your way in the dark. So Jesus is telling us, beloved that we should not confine our goal to meet him only in the convenience of daylight. We should be prepared to move toward our purpose even when night falls. In other words, nighttime can be an inconvenient time to travel, but God does not call us to convenience. He has called us to diligence. Just because it is hard to see, does not mean we have the right to give up. We cannot wait for a convenient time to be righteous.
We must diligently seek him, Heb. 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
We must diligently hear his voice: Deut. 28:1 ¶ And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:
Be diligent in your obedience to God. Keep your lamp with you. There will be times when it will not be easy to do right, but you can do it. You belong to Christ, and you are what God says you are. 

Yours Because I’m His
Leo Colon
pastor@ihpfwc.org
http://www.ihpfwc.org
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(Via .)