John Stanko

"Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations" - Psalm 145:13.

Jesus came preaching the kingdom of God. Another way to describe the Kingdom is God's government, which means Jesus taught that people everywhere must come under God's rule or authority. Every kingdom has a king and a set of rules by which the people are governed. Therefore, God's will for you isn't just to make you a member of a church but a subject of His kingdom under the rule of King Jesus. When you are under that rule,  you will extend God's kingdom wherever He chooses to send you—school, work, church, neighborhood—by obeying His laws and inviting others to come into the Kingdom through faith in Christ: "He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick" (Luke 9:2). Are you spreading the good news of the Kingdom or preaching religion and membership in a church or denomination? Do you see that when people come into the Kingdom, they will become part of a church because it's the will of the King? If they become members of a church and don't see themselves as subjects of the Kingdom, however, then they will settle for a religious experience, and will seek to do the will of an institution instead of the will of God.

Today's reading - Psalms 141-145