SEEK YE THE KINGDOM OF GOD…, THE MYSTERY UNVEILED

SEEK YE THE KINGDOM OF GOD…, THE MYSTERY UNVEILED

Thank you for joining us for another Holy Ghost inspired episode of the Hard Truth of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God by Joseph Maduabuchi Ogbuka, an avowed ambassador of the lost, forgotten and abandoned Gospel of the Kingdom of God. So, grab your Bible and listen attentively as he takes you through many scriptural testimonies and validations in proof of the hard truths that the Kingdom of God has been on the earth.

Good day ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to another edition of the Hard Truth of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. I'm your host, JMCC Ogbuka. Tonight, our topic is Seek ye the kingdom of God…, the mystery Unveiled. Seek ye the kingdom the mystery unveiled is a short is an abbreviation of the saying by our Lord Jesus in Matthew chapter 6, verse 33, where he said, but seek ye the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and every other thing shall be added unto you. The topic seeks for us to understand the mysteries behind this saying. A lot of mysteries are embedded in this great saying. Very many of us have had occasions to read and study these things. You have come across it several times. Your understanding of it before now is just the same understanding every one of us has heard about it. Which is, yes, that we should seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness. And it doesn't stop us from seeking for any other thing. It doesn't stop us from asking, putting in our prayers every other prayer point about our needs. It doesn't stop us from presenting to God in our petitions all other needs that we have. The understanding is that we should put the kingdom of God as our first, as our priority. But after that we can then proceed to present every other thing, the order of their priority to us. That is the understanding every one of us had about this particular saying. But tonight, by the grace of God and the revelation of the truth of the Scriptures, we shall be having an in depth exposition into what is behind the ordinary ways they revealed the meaning of these words.

As you all know, this is one of the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ on Mount Beatitude. The mountain of Beatitude is someone that started in Matthew chapter five and ended in Matthew chapter seven. And so, whatever is going to be the mean of these things must be situated within the context of that particular sermon. It's a long sermon. It started in Matthew chapter 5. It ended as far as Matthew 7. But seek ye the kingdom of God. That's our key verse. But seek ye. Give it to me. Seek ye the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Matthew chapter 6, verse 33 but seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Not our own righteousness, not your own righteousness. And all these things shall be added unto you. There is a very critical question. What are these saying? What are. What are these things referring to? And all these things, what do they refer? What does this refer to? What are all these things that shall be added unto you? Added unto us when we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. What are those things? In this passage, God has given us a blueprint of his priority for man on earth. Here before us is God's own priority for every human being on earth. He said, for every person on earth who desires to have a good relationship with God, who desires to please God, who wants his life to be pleasing unto God, who want to satisfy the requirements of God. He said we should seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Two priorities. The devil equally has his own priorities for us. For the devil, his priority is that we should seek every other thing in life except the kingdom of God and His righteousness. He didn't get me there. The priority of God for every believer, for every child of God, there is seek, hear first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. He said, every other thing shall be added unto you. The devil has his own priority. His own priority for us is seek all other things other than the kingdom of God and His righteousness. At the end of life. I will give you that kingdom and his righteousness. The devil's priority for man is go after all your material needs, all your needs, except the kingdom of God and His righteousness. At the end of life. God shall provide, shall give you his kingdom and his righteousness. This is a complete inversion of the order of God's priority for man. Complete inversion.

A complete contrast. The very opposite. On the other hand, the Christian faith presents the kingdom of God and His righteousness as the only need of man, the only priorities of man, the only thing that a man will seek and every need of his will be solved. On the other hand, devil presents Christian religion and every other religion which says. Which provides you, which gives you the opportunity to seek every six solutions for all your needs, pursue all your needs except the kingdom of God and His righteousness at the end. God will ensure that he gives it to you at the end. A great deception. A great deception one American psychologist and philosopher Abraham Maslow. In his theory of human needs, he categorized his own, his own hierarchy of meats into five and is called the Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. The first one in that hierarchy is what? Self-preservation, self-sustenance. Second one is, is safety, self-security, self-protection. Third one is self-love, a sense of belonging. Third one, fourth one is self-esteem. Fifth one is self-actualization. This is what this psychology said. This is the hierarchy. These are priorities. But for God, God said no. The priority of a man, my priority for man. What God wants you to go after every human being that loves God, that believes in God, that claims to be a child of God, God's priority for you. What God wants you to set your mind and your gaze upon is his kingdom and his righteousness. Look at that scripture. He didn't say that after you have sought his kingdom and his righteousness that you can now go for other things. Did he say so? No. He didn't give you a mandate to pursue other, all other needs, to seek to actualize all your needs apart from his kingdom and his righteousness. Rather, he said that when you seek his kingdom and his righteousness, he said every other thing he God shall provide you, shall afford you every other thing. That means that all your needs, all your needs. Jesus, by this statement, is undertaking a divine undertaking to provide man with all that he needs. In other words, instead of seeking for shelter, seeking for success, seeking for deliverance, seeking for healing, seeking for every need of man, what God said we should seek is his kingdom and his righteousness, with a guarantee that if we do so faithfully, that he will provide us with all those other things that answers to our needs. And the Bible proclaims in Philippians 4:19, that God shall provide all our needs according to his riches in glory. A categorical and bold assertion of God's capacity to provide all our needs according to his riches in glory. But the devil has a different blueprint, a different priority. He says, no, it's an inversion. Seek all these, your material needs, get them solved, pursue them. As for the kingdom of God and His righteousness, this is something that will be settled at the end of life, by the time this, this life here is over. He's assuring you that if you religiously go about it, seeking for your needs, asking God every day to provide or provide you with your needs, that at the end of the day, the same way he has been providing you your material needs, he will also provide you with the need of eternal, of the kingdom of God and His righteousness. By the way, let me shock you. There is a divine programming of human needs. It is insatiable, it is unsatisfiable, it is inexhaustible. There is Nobody on this earth, the richest man on this earth today cannot claim to have proved to have taking care of all his needs. Nobody. Since the history, since the world began. Solomon, the great Epicurean king, enjoyed all the glories of this world, enjoyed all the sumptuous feasts in this world, enjoyed all the pain, pomp and penguin of his office. And at the end of the day, he lamented. He lamented a great chasm, a great void, a great emptiness inside him. He said, vanity upon vanity, all is valid. He was belagud by some things that his wealth, that his glory, that his power cannot afford. He made an open lamentation of the limits of human wealth. So in philosophy we are told that human needs are insatiable. But let me tell you, human needs can be sociable. And the only way it can be sociable is, is by heeding to the injunction of Jesus Christ. Seek ye, don't go. Don't live a life that is set, that is set out to pursue all your needs. You know what? When you Every. Every need that is solved, every need that you provide for begets another need. So the more you get your needs settled, the more other needs crop up. The more other needs emerge, the more you begin to desire for the more other needs are born in your life, the more they begin to surface. So it is very, very important for us to understand.

If you are living your life today to solve your needs, then you will be in a perpetual pursuit of one need after another, one need after another. And at the end of the day, you will die with many needs unsolved. You will die with many needs unsettled. But Jesus has something to say. He said, look, what's the mystery there? The mystery there is that the believer is asked to seek only the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Not our righteousness, not your righteousness, but his own righteousness. When you seek this, you relax. You seek not that thing. The Bible said Jesus, God said, every other thing shall be added unto you. Every other thing. You can see by this particular God's priority of human needs. He said that the great, the only thing a human being needs for the solution to all his problems, for all his needs to be solved and settled, is for him to seek the kingdom, God and his righteousness. Why? He says that when you seek this kingdom of God and his righteousness, you activate the power of God to provide for all your needs. You activate the dynamo of God to solve all human needs around you. You don't need today, you seek this. Today you pray for healing Tomorrow it is malaria. Next tomorrow it is shelter. Next tomorrow it is accommodation. Next tomorrow is for your business to grow. Next tomorrow is for you to be successful. Religious associations, organizations and congregations have tied themselves up with this. In this struggle in search of the satisfaction of human needs. Every religious setting, you step your feet today in the world. They are all occupied with solving problems, providing solutions to people's needs. Those that are blind will come. Those that are lame will come. Those that are dumb will come. Those that are insane, we come. Listen. There is nothing wrong in what they are doing. But what they are doing is a religious. A religious way of solving that problem. God's way of solving human problems is that we should seek what God's kingdom and his righteousness, he said he himself will provide us with all these things. Religion has offered man the devil's alternative. The devil's alternative is pursuing the satisfaction of all these things. Churches, religious organizations pursue it as the agenda, as their priority. You go there, they are calling for prayer points.

You go there, what is on the main thing on the table is solving people's problem. Those that will go, those that will go abroad, those that will succeed in marriage, those that will succeed in their business, success in school, success in human endeavors. This is not God's priority for you. God's priority for man is kingdom of God and his righteousness. Leave the rest for him. That's what he says. He said he will provide all your needs, not some of your needs, not few of your needs. He will provide all these things. But the devil's authority is focus on these. We are material problems, these ones that are around now. When you get over to the end of life, I assure you, by your religious devotion, by your religious activities, by your religious dedications, you will earn eternal life. You will earn the kingdom of God, you will earn God's righteousness. And I want to submit to you tonight. That is a satanic priority for you. Is a satanic is a devil's option. Devil's priority for you, that is demonic. Even though it is presented to us in a religious garb, in a religious language, because religious accusations, religious congregations, religious groups, including Christian religion, is enmeshed in it. That's what they do as their mainstay of activities. They are busy providing solutions, attending to people's needs, attending to people's needs, as if God has said he will do it by himself and is incapable of doing it. They have taken to the devil's option. They have taken the devil's alternative. But tonight I want to submit to you that the injunction seek here the kingdom of God has been disobeyed by almost all mankind. But now is the revelation come. We have a responsibility to seek God's kingdom and his righteousness. Not, not. Not that when we seek it we can then seek other things. But that when we seek it we should relax by faith, relax upon our faith and look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who by the grace of God, who by the utterance of the Holy Spirit shall provide all our needs according to his riches glory. This is the point. This is the dividing point. This is the dividing line between the Christian faith and the Christian religion in the world today. All Christian religious organizations and congregations, they are all occupied with a strenuous effort dedicated commitment towards solving these needs one after the other.

They invite you to bring your prayer points. Tonight we are going to open the Scriptures. You will see that's not God's will for you. That's not God's will for you. God's priority for you. Before I go to the Book of Matthew, chapter six or maybe let me start with that. Matthew chapter six, Matthew chapter six 25 to 33 Matthew chapter six. Let's now dive into the Scriptures to see what the Scriptures has for us. Whether the Scriptures is telling us to pursue the kingdom of God and his king and his righteousness and, and thereafter we can then present, we can then seek other things. If it is by prayer, we can then pray for other things. If it is by hard work, we can work for other things. Or whether he say we should just set our eyes on the kingdom of God as righteousness. Let's see God's priority for us from the mouth of northern one but the Master himself, Jesus Christ. Matthew chapter 6:25 Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink, nor yet for your body what ye shall put on. Is not life more than meat? Is not life more than meat? I want you to give me this thing in NIV because. Yes. Therefore I say, I said, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food? Question. And the body more than clothes? Question. Is not your life more than food? What you are asking God? Is not life more than food? It's not your body more than clothes? Yes. Next verse. Look at the beds of the earth. They do not sow or reap or store away in barns. They do not sow, they don't reap, they don't put anything inside their barns, yet their heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? This is a great sermon and we are beginning to explore the profundity of this great sermon which we have read over the years and just ran over it with barely an average knowledge of its literal meaning. Tonight God is taking us deep inside the ocean of meanings in this particular message. Are you not much more valuable than they? Or best of the air, they don't sow, they don't reap, they don't put in the barn. God takes care of them. How much more you a human being, made in God's image. Next verse. Can any one of you, by worrying, add a single hour to his life? The answer is no. Nobody.

You cannot by being agitated or being. Or your. Your anxiety cannot act to anything that. That God has really given you nothing. Next verse. And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field, how they grew. They do not labor, they do not sow. They don't sow clothes. Who has ever sewn a clothes for a flower? Nobody. Yes, next verse. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendors was dressed like one of these. Give me that. Verse 27 in King James Version, verse 6. I mean chapter 6, verse 27. King James Version. King James Version 27. Which of you, by taking thoughts, can add one cubit onto his statue? 28. And why take here thoughts for a. Consider the lilies of the field. How they grow. They toil not, neither do they spin. While I was considering the Scriptures, I was led to go and look up for the grass called the lily. I was amazed at what I saw. Ordinary grass that is so arrayed with very powerful colors of adornment. Ordinary flower. He looks as if he's carrying chains. He looks as if he's. As if the clothes were sewn by God Almighty. But this ordinary flower, the lily of the valley, any of you can google it tomorrow and see what an ordinary flower looks like. The Bible said, consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. The toenoids they toil not, neither do they spin, they don't sow. Yes, verse 28. 29. Yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Solomon, the richest king on earth in his own time, full of splendor and glory. The Bible said, Solomon. Solomon's adornment was not as Much was not as rich as ordinary grass of the field. A grass that will leave today and tomorrow is dead. That is how the contrast is. Yes. 30 and wherefore if God so clothed the grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you? O year of little faith. O year of little Faith. Now, verse 31. Therefore take no thought saying what shall we eat? Or what shall we drink? Or wherewithal shall we be clothed? Take no thoughts, don't bother yourself, don't be disturbed, don't worry about these things. What are we eat? What are we drinking? What are we wear? What are we what? My shelter, my business, my healing, deliverance.

Some have even built a ministry over distance. Ministry of this, ministry of that. One even said that his own is ministry of ministry for spinsters, praying for spinsters against the spirit that is holding them from marrying so that they will break the yoke and get married. So they have now distributed themselves into different ministry as you have. Ministry of work, works and housing. Minister of Finance, Minister of this. That is what some Christian charlatans impostors have turned the kingdom of God into. It has become an arena where people come to seek to get one need solved. Those that are sick, they come, they carry their sick and they come. Those that are those that their business is growing down, they will come and they will say our prayer point. My business. Those that are sick, those that are dying, they will carry them. We are dying. That has become the business of present day Christianity. I call it pagan Christianity. What do your native doctors do in the village? What do. What do you think they do is exactly what these people do. People go to them with one need or the other to solve problems and they solve it. So what's different? Pagan Christianity. Paganism inside the church. And that's not the church, that's a fake church, that's a false church. That's not the church of the Lord Jesus as a camouflage is a counterfeit. Now look, give me this verse from now in Niv. So do not worry saying what shall we eat? Or what shall we drink? Or what shall we wear? Yes. 32. Now pay attention. For the pagans, do you see it? For the pagans run after all these days and it is these things that the pagans run after. That is the devil's priorities in your life. The devil's priority, the Satan's priorities is for you to pursue all these things. Look at what your Bible is telling Jesus is telling you. For the pagans run after all These things. And your heavenly father knows that you need them for you. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But for them that are without us, outside our group, outside the circle of believers. The Bible said they are the beggars. That this is how they. This is what they run after. Jesus identified a clear distinction by which you will know a beggar. Pagans run after these things. Pagans are not only those that are native daughters houses.

When you are in any place and you are seeking, what you are seeking is your material needs, not the kingdom of God and His righteousness. What are you there? You are a beggar. Bible identified them as beggars. Say they run after these things. It is these things that they run after that constitutes the devil's priority for man. Devil says pursue them. He has even raised religious groups, Christian religious groups and other religious groups whose objective is to pursue this particular thing. And they invite you with with prayer points. What are those things in the prayer points? None of them is about the kingdom of God. None of them is about his righteousness. It is one need or the other. That is the plenitude of what is contained in all those things. A complete destruction. That is exactly what religion does. Religion provides you. Religion provides man an alternative from the real thing that God says. When God told our foreparents in the Garden of Eden that he has made them in his own image and likeness, devil came and told Eve that if you eat that fruit God said he should not eat, you will be like who? God? Eve, Any need to be like God? When God has made them in his own image and likeness, what need has he becoming like God? He's already like God. Are you with me? But the devil brought in a religion. Religion will teach you to do something, to end something. But there was no need for a religion. It was really that stupid religion that forced them out of that place. Today, again, Christian religion has offered the whole world a totally different package from the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Pay attention. Today the devil has, through Christian religion, taken away the mind of people from God's priority in their prayers. It is no more about the kingdom of God. And his righteousness is about settling one problem or the other. That's not the kingdom of God. That's not a child of God. That's not God's church. Now let's finish. For the pagans run after these things, it's important you identify yourself. Jesus defines a pagan here as those that run after these kind of things. But for you, the believer, if you are one, the Bible said, your Heavenly Father knows that you need these things. Now, these things he has enumerated, they are not exhaustive. They are just a summary of all the material needs of man.

The material needs of man do not stop at what he eats, what he drinks and what he wears. It's just a summary. There are a lot of them. There is no limit to human needs. There is no list of human needs that will be exhausted. Jesus, by these three material needs, has allegorically referred to all material needs. He says, your Heavenly Father knows that you need them now. Verse 33. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things. Now what are those things? You can now see the context tells you these things. What are these things? These things are all these things that they are seeking. Crying, going to one church, one denomination or the other to provide. All these things are the things Jesus is saying, all these things will be given to you as well. All these things will be provided for you. All these things will be afforded for you. This is a direct promise by God. But man has been discouraged from following this instruction. Those that attempt to follow it, they follow it halfway and they add other things. They don't wait for God to provide those things. They sit down to enumerate it for them. They increasingly disturb him with those things, as if the provision of those things is determined by the number of times they say it. Bible says we should not pray like pagans. We should not pray like pagans. We should distinguish ourselves as children of the kingdom by seeking only the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Nez verse Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow worry about himself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Now let us see another passage of the Scriptures about God's priority, and that is in John chapter six 28 to 29 and 39 to 40. John chapter six 28 29. Then said they unto him, what shall we do that we may walk the works of God? This passage resonates with God's priorities. Again here the Jews, who are already accustomed to Jewish religion and other religious set up another religious system that teaches them to do some certain things as a synonon for pleasing God, for satisfying God. That is Jewish religion. It teaches that you, you can you can you satisfy you. Man is required to obey the laws of Moses and the laws given to Moses by God. They are not just 10. They are 613 as a condition for obtaining the favor God has ordained for them, including sustenance in the land of Egypt, in the land of Israel. Now here Jesus was asked, what shall we do that we may do the work of God? Is it prayer? Is it worth? Because some people have even suggested that prayer is the paramount thing, that prayer is the most paramount thing, that prayer is the first. And the first thing is prayer. The first work is prayer. That with prayer you pray away to heaven, you get to heaven with prayer. They say prayer is the key. Prayer is the key. Prayer is the master key. Jesus started with prayer and ended with prayer. Prayer is the master key. Let me submit to the whole world tonight. Prayer is not the key and not even the master key. Jesus did not start with prayer and he did not end with prayer. Prayer is not a key. Prayer cannot take anybody to the kingdom of God. Praying cannot give you the kingdom of God and God's righteousness. No prayer, no amount of prayer can give can guarantee you the kingdom of God or his righteousness. Jesus did not start with prayer. The Bible tells us what Jesus started with. The Bible tells us in Mark, chapter 1, verse 14 and 15 that Jesus started with the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom of God. The preaching of the gospel of the kingdom of God. The first thing he did when he started his ministry, he said, now after that John was put in prison. Jesus came into Galilee preaching the gospel of the Immediately John the Baptist faced away. Immediately John the Baptist was arrested and incarcerated in the prisons. John, Jesus emerged and the first thing he did was to preach the gospel of the kingdom of God, verse 15 and saying, the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent here and believe the gospel. Matthew records that this was exactly what happened. That the first thing he did immediately attending 30 years was to come out for his work. And his work was the preaching of the gospel. He didn't start with prayer is a lie. From the pit of hell is a religious lie, a Christian religious lie. That Jesus started with prayer. It's not true. He did not start with prayer. He started with the proclamation of the gospel, the good news about the kingdom of God. He said, the time is fulfilled. Immediately John was taken and put in prison. He suffered with a message, Repent. The time is fulfilled. Repent here and believe the Gospel.

See it also in Matthew 4:17. Matthew reaffirms this when he said, from that time Jesus began to preach and to say, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Repent. But this is what he started with. Prayer is not the master key. There is no scripture that tells you that prayer is the master key. If prayer is the master key, Jesus would have told Us. All we need to do to get the kingdom of heaven and God's righteousness is what? Prayer? But he didn't say so. He made it abundantly clear when he was asked, what shall we do to do the work of God? Is it prayer? Is he keeping the laws? Is he climbing a mountain? Is he fasting? As so many religious groups are saying, as so many religious congregations are teaching that for you to do the work of God, you will need to do this. These are dogs. They don't know God. They have been hosted. They have been appointed by the devil, recruited by the devil and unleashed upon the world to draw disciples unto the devil using the language of religion. Jesus came to deliver us from religion. Religion is of the devil. Religion is the antithesis of the Christian faith. Jesus did not bring religion on this earth. He brought the Christian faith. And the Bible tells us in Hebrews chapter 12, verse 2, he said, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith is a faith. Apostle John said, a faith that overcometh the world. A faith is not a religion. It's a faith. There is a faith that overcome the world. A faith that the world cannot gospel with. It is not a religion. Religion teaches you what you have to do. Look at them in John chapter six, asking him. They are religious people. What shall we do so that we do the work of God? What shall we do so that we do the work of God? And what was Jesus answer? Did he tell them to go and keep the laws? Go and pray. He cannot. He did not. Jesus answered and said unto them, this is the work of God that yet believe on him whom he has sent. This is God's work. God's work is not for you to pray. God's work is not prayer. Prayer. It is not fasting. It is not keeping those useless laws. It is what believing on him whom he has sent that is God's work. See it again in verse 39 to 40. That same chapter. And this is the Father's will which had sent me. That of all which he has given me. I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. Verse 40.

And this is the will of him that sent me. Now look at his will. That everyone that seeth the sun and believeth on him may have everlasting life. And I will raise him up at the last day. At times I wake up, I see people on social media, on Facebook. They are telling people how to. How to break. How to break courses by midnight prayer. 12:00pm 12 midnight prayer. I asked myself, has this delusion gotten to this point, how to do this? He said, if you want to overcome this demon, then you have to pray by 3am and they will even prescribe prayers for people. Hey, this is terrible. This is unbelievable. Look at what is saying here. This is the will of God for you. That everyone that see the sun, this thing. You cannot get eternal life by prayer. You cannot get heaven, kingdom of God and His righteousness by prayer. That anyone, everyone, everyone, everyone that see the sun and believeth on him has activated the power of the Holy Ghost unto everlasting life. And I will raise him up at the last day. That's the work of God. Believing in him whom he has sent cured you don't add, you don't subtract. Those that are placing this Carmel burden of loss on human beings. Jesus told them in the same sermon here you don't want to enter. You are laying burdens on people. These things you are teaching people, you yourself, do you keep them? Can you observe them? And you keep on teaching. God has come to save man and has brought down the faith of the Lord Jesus. A faith that overcometh the world. It is not religion. Now let's proceed to. We have seen God's priority for you. What is that priority? Believing in his only Son. Everyone that seeth the Son and believeth on him may have everlasting life. And I will raise him up at the last day. This is God's priority for you. It is by believing in him that you enter into that his kingdom. That is how to seek the kingdom. It is by believing him that you enter his kingdom. The kingdom is the kingdom of his dear Son. It is by believing him that you have access that will be given access into his kingdom and his righteousness. Now let us see the devil's priority. Because I told you he has a priority for you. And you may be asking me, what is the scripture? Let me just drop one Matthew, chapter 13, 3, 4 and 18, 19 Matthew 13, 3, 4 and 18 to 19. I will draw it from the passage of this particular parable of the sower in the book of Matthew 13, verse 3.

And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, behold, a sower went forth to sow. Yes, verse four. And where he sowed, some seeds fell by the wayside. And the fowls came and devoured them up. And the fowls came and devoured them up. Now what are these fowls? Who are they? This sower sowed a seed, but the false came and devoured them up. What are these fouls. Let's see, 18 and 19. Hear. Yeah. Therefore the Parable of the Sower. Yes. 19. When anyone heareth the word of the kingdom and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which receives seed by the wayside. The devil has a work he does. Whenever the word of the kingdom of God is sown. The devil's priority is to take that immediately out of the place of your heart and leave you scrambling to continue to scramble for the peanuts of your over your material needs. It is the devil that roots these things out of your heart. It is the devil that uproot these things out of your mind. It is the devil that removes these things away from the reach of your mind. He doesn't want you to ponder on it. He doesn't want you to meditate over it. He knows that the only solution to your problem, the only solution, the only way you can gain liberty from his stronghold is what if you seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness? The devil knows that his hold on mankind can only be broken by one thing. And that is when he allows you to seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness. That is why when the seed, when the word of God, when the gospel is preached about the kingdom, the devil goes after it to uproot it to prevent you from taking advantage of it. That is the devil's priority. The devil's. I call it the devil's alternative. Now let us see other scriptures concerning these things. Because I told you at the very beginning of this message, I made it clear that the the message that Jesus preached on Mount of Beatitudes started in Matthew chapter 5 and ended in Matthew chapter 7. Let's take another look at another similar passage in that same sermon on the mount. Let's see. Matthew chapter 7:7 to 11. Matthew chapter 7:7, 11. Matthew chapter 7:7-11. Ask and it shall be given. It shall be given. You seek and ye shall find. Knock and it shall be open unto you. The question I have heard so many people talk about this scripture, use it severally to support the idea that God has an injunction for us to pray. This is always used to validate the idea of prayer, of praying and praying for anything you need. You just continue to bug God, bug God in prayers. He said ask. And for years me too has had always looked upon this scripture as a scriptural validation for the idea of praying and praying for anything we need. I too was once in that school of thought until God opened my eyes by divine revelation until God came to my rescue by the light of his divine revelation, making me to know what are those things we are asked to ask? Ask for what are we to ask for? Those things that the pagans are known for? Those things the pagans ask for? Is that what we are supposed to be asking is what is I say, what is required of us to ask for what? Ask for food, Ask for shelter, Ask for healing, Ask for deliverance, Ask for what? Is it ask for these things? Or is it ask for the kingdom of God and His righteousness? What I want to know the context will tell us what Jesus have in mind when he says, ask and it shall be given. You seek and ye shall find. Because if we don't know exactly the if we don't know exactly what we are being asked to ask for, the devil will definitely exploit this particular verse and derail us to ask for things which will definitely portray us as beggars. So we have a responsibility to go inside that sermon to find out what was Jesus talking about that he said, ask and it shall be giving you seek and ye shall find. Knock and it shall be opened unto you. Otherwise this scripture will be used to support asking for anything. Already the scripture has told us that we should seek for only the kingdom of God and His righteousness. And the word seek is also there. So this verse is coming after Matthew chapter 6, verse 33. So it is already clear from the context of Matthew chapter 6, verse 6:33 is already clear for us. What is the context of this particular message. Matthew 7:7 cannot mean anything, cannot be a blanket authority in the Scriptures for us to pray for everything that is that that becomes our need. No, no.

Because if that is the case, that means this scripture would then be contradicting the scripture in Matthew 6:33, which says, Seek ye the kingdom of God and his righteousness first and not as in seeking it first. And then second you continue just seek it as your priority. Leave it there. What about the other things? God said every other thing and all other things shall be added unto you. So whatever interpretation that will likely be given to this cannot be contradictory to what was given to us in Matthew 6:33. The Matthew 6:33 carries another Sikh. Seek. Seek what? Seek ye the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Now he says ask. And he says, seek. And he says, find. Find what? Seek what? Ask for what? As we progress now the Scripture will tell us what God has in mind. Let's go. Verse 8. For everyone that asketh, receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh, it shall be open. You see, this is giving us an. A. A divine assurance, whatever. What? If we ask, we will receive. If we seek, we'll find. And if we knock, the door will be open. Yes. Or what man is there of you, whom, if his son asks bread, will give him a stone? Yes. Or if he asks a fish, will give him a serpent. Yes. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father, which is in heaven, give good things to them that ask him? How much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? Now let's go. He has given us an injunction. Now let us know what are these things we are asked to ask for us to have a sense of what we are being asked to Acts here. Let's take a look at verse 13 to 15 and 21 to 23. Let's go. 13 to 15, 21 to 23. Enter here. Now, in that same passage he said, enter here in. At the straight gates. At the straight gate there is a gate that is straight. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction. Now you can now begin to see two alternatives. There are two contrasting alternatives. Two systems of belief. Two doors, two way of life, two different ways of life. Look at it. Enter ye in at the strait gates, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction. And many there be which go in their hearts, and many there be which go in their heart. Verse 14. Because strait is the gate and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life. And few there be that findeth it. Yes, beware of false prophets which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Stop there. Now, from verse 13 to verse 15, you cannot decipher a sense of what Jesus is trying to let us know here. Look at it. You see, that is telling us that. Look, there is. There is a. Not. There is a group, there is a system. There is a religion that seem. That seems. That looks like the other. They look alike, but they are not the same. There is two things that are being presented to us here in this particular passage. The way that leads to eternal life, the way that leads to the kingdom of God, and the way that leads to destruction. The way that leads to destruction is presented by a religion, a religion that. A religion that has a very wide gate, Broadway. And look at verse 14 and verse 15. Sorry. And then there are. It has prophets which come to people in sheep's clothing, but they are inwardly, what, ravening wolves. Now this thing is used to depict a religious way of life that is in contrast to the kingdom of God that is opposed to the way of the kingdom. The way of the kingdom is a straight way with a narrow gate. So there are two separate alternatives here. And that is what? The way of the kingdom has a straight what Gate and a narrow way. It requires you to seek. If you don't seek it, you cannot find it. If you don't search for it, you cannot get it. It's not something you can just get. He said, he that seeketh shall find. He that knocketh, the door shall be opened. And he that asks shall be given, what is that door? The Bible tells us what that door is. In John chapter 10, verse 9, Bible says the door is not that one, but who? Christ. He said, I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find what pasture. So the door is not that broad door. It's not that broad way. Jesus is offering himself here as the door. So this door is a narrow way with a straight gate. He said, I am the door. John 10. Nine is narrow. It's straight. You need to find it. It's not something you can see anyhow without looking for it. You need to ask for it. You need to find, search for it. You need to seek it. You need to knock. So this thing is not a material door warehouse that contains food, that contains oil and meat.

This is Christ. These are talking about the kingdom of God. The door here is referring to Jesus. This scripture is not. It doesn't give us the liberty to use it to be praying for things. We are not supposed to pray as children of God. As children of God, we are limited to seeking only the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Jesus is the door. What we are to seek for was given to us in Matthew chapter 6, verse 33 to be the kingdom of God. So we can't use that verse and begin to seek for other things that are not given to us here. It is one thing to say you were asked to ask, you were asked to seek. You were asked to find. What are you seeking for? The same Bible that asked you to seek, told you what to seek for. He says seek for the kingdom of God. The same Bible that says he should knock at the door told you the door. He said the door is Christ. I am the door. By me. If any man enter in, he shall be saved. You don't use this to support your frolic for all your material needs? No. In this passage, Jesus is contrasting the kingdom of God, represented by himself as the door that is narrow, and the religious activity, the religious world with all the activities and all the things they offer. He said that one is available. You don't need to look for it. You don't need to seek for it. You don't need to. You don't. You don't need anybody to. To see it. You don't even need to ask for it. But the door to the gate of the kingdom is narrow and you need to ask, you need to seek, you need to knock. And he has told you the door. So this door is not your material need. It's not for food and shelter and progress and prosperity as some have taken it to be. What you have to seek is the kingdom of God. What you have to ask for is the kingdom of God. What you have to pray for is the kingdom of God. So it's important that you understand what you should do. It is important that we understand what we are required to do. We are required to find out exactly what Jesus meant in this particular passage. What is the meaning of this particular passage? What is the meaning of this particular passage? This meaning is provided for us in this particular passage. It means that Jesus do not want us to go after those things that do not pertain to the kingdom of God. It means that we should limit ourselves to what God has told us to look for. We should limit ourselves to what God says we should seek. What God says we should ask.

What God says we should knock for. We should not go knocking on anybody's door. If you look, there are two gates there. It tells you the gates you have to knock. It is not the broad, broad gate. It is not a wide gate. It is the, the narrow, the, the. The straight gate. There are two doors there. Which of the doors will I knock? It's not just enough to go and knock. If you go and knock on the broad door on the, the wide gate to where destruction you and I are enjoined to find the strait gate and look at the strait gates. It is not for us to go out and begin to seek for things that God has not asked us to seek for. If you say we should knock, God has told us to knock. There are two gates there. If you knock at the other gates, it will lead you to what destruction. We are not required to knock at that door. We are not required. We are enjoined to knock on a particular door. Not every door. It is not every door that we should knock at. It is only the door that gives us the eternal life in Christ Jesus. That is the door we should knock at and no other door. And it's important we understand that this injunction is given to us to enable us, redirect us away from the religious enticements that are in the world today. That has been presented to us in the form of a very broad gate, a wide gate with a Broadway. If you say that the Bible says we should knock, knock is knock. We should knock on any door. You have two doors there. You have the straight gate, you have the wide gate. Christ did not say you should knock at that wide gate. That wide gate represents the present day religious, Christian religious world. In fact, the entire religious world is telling us about the reason, the need for us to avoid religion and ostentatizements. There is nothing good in religion. It leads to destruction. If you watch in that chapter, verse 15, he said they come to people in the form of what? Sheep? But they are ravening wolves. They cover themselves. They disguise with Bible. You don't. You cannot believe that thing is talking about. Religion is a religion that disguises in the form of. In the form of disguises in a way that tends to suggest that is helping you to know God. Look at it. He's telling you that system is referring to.

There is a disguise outwardly, it is not what is shown outwardly, that is, that is not what is shown outwardly, that is seen by the people. What is shown outwardly does not correspond with what is inward. What is shown outwardly is different from what is done inside. Outwardly, there is a tendency to believe that it is a religion, that it is about God, that is teaching people about God. But inwardly that religious activity, whether it's prayer, whether it's deliverance, whether it's miracle, whether it. Whether it's healing, everything is taking you to hell, destruction. You need to find the truth. Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. John 14:6. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one cometh unto the Father except by me. I am the way, the truth and the life. No one cometh unto the Father except by me. You can see that way being talked about in Matthew chapter 7. Is Jesus the straight way, the narrow way? So there are two gates, the narrow gates, the broad gates, the white gates. That you are asked to knock does not mean that you should knock anywhere. Jesus is trying to Let us know to choose the door we are to knock. Is it the narrow gate or the wide gate? It is not everything that we should presents that we should ask for. You can't be asking for that white gate. No. It will lead to destruction. That you are asked to ask does not mean you are free now to ask for anything for everything. There is a limit to what we have to ask. It's not every door that we are supposed to knock at. The only door we should knock at is the door that leads on to life, which is Jesus. John 10, 9, John 14:6. We cannot seek anything other than the kingdom of God. And we cannot ask for anything other than what God has given to us. What God has asked us to ask for is the kingdom of God and his righteousness. So that Broadway is. Is represented by God is using. Jesus used ravening. He said, look at 7, verse 15. Jesus used these false prophets as a metaphor to refer to that religious setup, religious system, a system of religion that outwardly he present people as holy. He presents people as having a good relationship with God, doing the right thing, as serious with God. But inwardly Bible says they are ravening wolves. He's talking about religion. It is only religion that dresses up somebody, that dresses up something as good, but inside that thing leads to death is religion.

This is a contrast between the kingdom of God and religion and what it offers. This is telling you the door to knock is Christ. The thing to seek is his kingdom. And what to ask is only him and him alone. But you have another door. There you have another way. There you have another. You have another door. You have another way. And you have another. You have another set of people who wear the who, who come in sheep's clothing. They come in religious attire. They come in an appearance of holiness. They come with an appearance of holiness. But inwardly it is leading on to destruction. It is leading on to destruction. Let us see. Let us confirm it again in verse 21 to 23. Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. But he that doeth the will of my Father, which is in heaven, you see, he's still referring to them. He's still referring to a system of religion that draws people away from God, giving people the first impression that they are seeking God's favor. But what they are doing is against the will of God. Not everyone that saith unto me. So these people that are in the other, they are also calling Lord, Lord. But they shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. The only one that can enter Is he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven? What is the will of my Father which is in heaven? That he who believes this, he who sees the Son and believes in him, shall be, shall have eternal life. John 6:40. Yes, 22 many will say to me in that day, lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? You see, when I tell you it's a system of religion, Jesus is contrasting himself and his kingdom with this system. He said he's the door, he said he's the way. He said, we are to seek the kingdom, his kingdom, the kingdom of God and His righteousness. But in contrast to his kingdom, in contrast to him is this system of religion. He said, many will say to me in that day, lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? So this other group are equally prophesied in his name. You now know the you know them. These things are even making it clearer. The description is becoming more clearer. They prophesy in his name, and in Thy name they even cast out devils. And even in his name they do many wonderful works, healing, speaking in tongues. All those things, all the rackets going on there, all is in the name of the Lord Jesus. In Jesus name we pray. In Jesus name we pray. Do not be deceived. Do not be deceived. Don't knock at those doors. It's not every door you should knock at. It's not everything you should seek. As a child of God, you can only seek for the kingdom of God. As a child of God, you can only seek. You can only knock at the door that is straight. You can't ask for anything. There's a limit to what you are going to ask. Because outside the kingdom of God and His righteousness, every other thing you ask, you are asking what the pagans ask. You are seeking the way of the pagans. That's the way of the pagans. That's not the way of a believer. Verse 23. And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you depart from me, yet thou walk iniquity. You see, this is very, very important. It's important we understand our calling in Christ. We are not called onto a religion. This is the religious system in the world. Whether Christian religion, non Christian religion, pagan religion, Jewish religion, Judaic religion, every religion, they are all one. They are the same. They are leading one place. You don't have two places in hell. All of them are taking you direct to one place. So what Jesus is teaching is telling us to seek. Ask and you shall find Seek and you shall find. Knock and the door shall be open to you is not a license for you to ask for anything As a believer, as a child of God, you can only ask for the kingdom of God and his righteousness. He knows our needs and he has avowed. He has vowed to provide all our needs according to his riches in glory. Now it's important we Is important we look at. Is important we look at. Yes, we have treated all this. Now let's go further in search in for further clarification about the priority more clarifications about the priority of the kingdom of God over every other human needs. Let's look at Luke chapter 957 to 62. Luke chapter 957 to 62. And it came to pass that as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, lord, I will follow thee, whereas where wheresoever thou goest. Okay? And Jesus said unto him, foxes have hosts, birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head. Yes. And he said unto another, follow me.

But he said, lord, suffer me to first go and bury my Father. Yes. Jesus said unto him, let the dead bury their dead, but go down and preach the kingdom of God. Yes. And another also said, lord, I will follow thee, but I let but let me first go bid them farewell which are at home at my house. Yes. Jesus said unto him, no man having put his hand to the plough and looking back his feet for the kingdom of God. This is a teaching about the kingdom of God. Three different groups of people. One group, they said, we will follow you anywhere you go. And to them Jesus said, look, foxes have hooves, bears of the head have nests. But the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head. They didn't recant is cost of discipleship. Jesus is counting the curse for them what we are going to suffer. Don't complain about what shelter. Don't complain about the place to sleep. I am not interested in these things. I am interested in giving you my Father's kingdom. I am interested in giving the world what access to the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Because when you get the kingdom of God and his righteousness, you know what every other thing, including shelter, including what will be provided for you. What is at stake in that passage that fox, foxes have host and the best have nest is about Sherry. Jesus is telling that man, God's priority is not your word. Shelter. It's not your words shelter but what the kingdom of God. But when you get the kingdom of God, every other thing in Your life, including what shelter will be provided unto you. The second man said, okay. Jesus told him, follow me. He said, yes, I will. But before I answer this call, let me go and bury my father. Jesus said unto him, of course there is nothing bad in burying your father. There is nothing bad in burying your father. Jesus is teaching about the priority of the kingdom of God. The priority of the kingdom of God is more than shelter. Foxes have hosts, birds have nests. Son of man has nowhere to lay his head. He is more occupied with the kingdom of God. That's a higher priority. That is stronger than that in the other case. In the second case, priority is priority. A thing as important as burying your father was seconded to the kingdom of God. Jesus told that man, what? Leave the dead to bury the dead and come and follow me. It means that even death cannot should not stop us. Yes, death cannot stop a believer. Death no excuse. There is nothing that excuses you from God's priority. The need to go and bury someone's father could not be an excuse. Jesus said, leave it. The third person now said, I will follow you, but before I do so, let me go home and tell my people at home at least bid them farewell. Let them not begin to look for me and go reporting at the police that are missing. He said, no. Jesus said, you see no man having put his hand to the plough and looking back his feet for the kingdom of God. He is trying to accentuate the priority of the kingdom of God. In all these three passages, excuses were offered. But none of these things were considered much more important than seeking the kingdom of God. This is further in further support of the priority or the prioritization of this of we seeking the kingdom of God. Let's see. Luke, chapter 18:15 17. Luke, chapter 18:15, 17. And they brought unto him also ephets that he would touch them. But when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. And they brought unto him also ephas that he would touch them. But when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. Here another exemplification of how the kingdom of God is is sought. How to seek. How to seek. This one is how to seek the kingdom of God. Here we are told that aphans were brought to Jesus that he should touch them. But his disciples saw it and rebuked. And they rebuked them? Yes, verse 16. But Jesus called them unto him and said, suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of God. Suffer little children to come unto me. Allow little children to Come unto me and forbid them not. For of such it is people like this or people that behave like them that can get into the kingdom of God. So please, whenever you see them, allow them, forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom. It is people like this, people that behave like them that can have access to the kingdom of God. Next time when they come here, don't tamper with them, don't stop them, allow them. It is people like they people that behave the way they behave. It is people that behave the way he didn't say it is children that will enter the kingdom. Did he say so? It is for of such people that behave like children will enter the kingdom of God. Now who are they that behave like children? Nez Verse Verily I say unto you, whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter the area. So what is in a child that makes it easier for him to have access into the kingdom of God than an adult? What is in a child? When you now begin to he didn't say it is children that will go. He said for such it is people that behave like them. It is people that are like them that will have access. Verily I say to you, whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God if you are not prepared to receive it like little what child? Children. If you cannot receive it like a little child, he said, you shall no wise enter therein. What is in this set of people that are being recommended for believers? God is recommending something in children for believers. What is that thing that God is recommending in children for believers? That thing is the absence of any past experience. No teaching, no catechism, no theory, no logical religion. Nothing. A child is is without any antecedent, no catechism. Nothing has been programmed into the box. That is why it is easier for them to receive it. That is why it is easier for them to accept it. That is why it is easier for them to do anything that God says they should do. A child is eagerly ready with excitement to believe anything he's told. He does not have the religion, previous religion to maybe that will cause him to doubt what you are saying. He doesn't have any logic that will make him to disprove what you are saying. He doesn't have any experience that he will say is contrary to what you are saying. So whatever you give a child, that child will receive it. Cook, line and shaker. And that is the way God recommends that we should receive the teaching of the gospel of the kingdom of God, it is not to be doubted. It is not something you take with a pinch of salt. You don't subject it to the. The dogmas of your catechism, the dogmas of your religious teaching. You don't compare it. You don't. You don't interrogate it with what you have learned, what you understood before your former religion. A child does not have any religion. A child is free from what religion? Free from experience, free from anything. That is why he has a higher reception to the teachings of the Gospel than anybody who is an adult. If you tell a child you, a father who cannot even afford a motorcycle.

If while living, you tell a child he will buy him aeroplane, he eagerly waits for your return with a very great excitement and fervency. You are returning is believing that you have bought what? The aeroplane? That is not true. But at his level he is bound to believe it. That is a very golden virtue in a child. And Jesus said we should emulate. Is not for us to interrogate. Begin to subject our. Our. The word of God to the rigors, the rigors of our religious dogmas, teachings, traditions and antecedents. No, that is not what. So you can see another very important way on how to seek the kingdom of God. How to seek the kingdom of God? How do you want to seek it? You want to seek it as a child, like a child will seek. He says, seek. Seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness. What did he say you should do for you to get the kingdom of God, that whosoever seeth the Son and believeth in him shall have everlasting life. Simple. And tell a child that thing. A child will hold God there. That whoever believes in Christ, believes in him. Whom God have sent shall be what saved anything from that child will believe it. And his father will be struggling to believe it. His guardian will struggle to believe it. That's what makes them different from adults. That his father is struggling to believe. He has already believed it. He doesn't have any problem. His father is already writing questions. The boy is already excited. All right, the same. Luke chapter 18:18 to 30. A certain ruler asked him, saying, I call this man the stupid, foolish man. The the foolish rich man. A certain ruler asked him, saying, good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? Next verse here is asking Jesus, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? What shall I do to enter the kingdom of God? And Jesus, first of all, has taken note of the fact that this man, that is Asking this question is a Pharisee. So the intention behind this question is not to go in, it's not to inherit the kingdom of heaven, is not to inherit anything from God, but to set a temptation for Jesus that we put him on head on collision with the Jewish leaders. For they will say he has preached against Moses. He is now a heretic. So as we progress in this conversation, you see that this man is a Pharisee. And he came to put Jesus to a test. Now Jesus being God, and knowing him, even denied being God to him. Look at the next verse, okay. And Jesus said unto him, why callest thou me good? None is good save one, that is God. By this assertion Jesus has disclaimed being God. Disclaimed not only being good, but also being God. But that's a mere deception to the man because Jesus there is no other God except him. And let's progress. But Jesus is doing this because this man is not coming with clear conscience. So he needed to be. He needed to be dribbled. And Jesus is out to do it here now. Now to answer his question. Now Jesus said verse 20. Thou knowest the commandments, do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not bear false witnesses. Honor thy father and thy mother. You know the commandments. Now why are you wasting time? Go and keep all of them. That is what you will do to inherit eternal life. That's what you will do to inherit the kingdom of God. Now look at what he said. And he said, all these have I kept from my youth up. That from this scripture is obvious. This man is not an ordinary Jewish worthy man. Here is a Pharisee. Anybody that tells you he has kept all of them. Anybody who avows to have kept all the laws, that person is a Pharisee. We also have more than Pharisees. The modern Pharisees tells you Pharisees will tell you that they have kept the laws, that they keep it, that they keep it, that they maintain it. He said how? He said that the grace of God given to them has helped them to do it. That is a foul school from the pit of hell. Nobody, nobody can meet God's standard by keeping the Lord. And for Jesus to prove this man false, here he is telling him he has kept it all. Say next verse to show him that he's a liar. Look at what Jesus told him. Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, you have kept all the laws, all these laws. You have kept them. Congratulation. Yet you still lack one more thing. You lacked thou one more what? 10. And what is that? Go. Say, this one will now be. Which law? The 11th law or the 614th law? Now I didn't know that you have finished all of them. Since you have finished, let me set for you another one. Go sell all that thou have, distribute all of them to the poor, and thou shalt have treasures. Where in heaven Then come and follow me. The man said, next verse. And when he had this, he was very sorrowful. Oh wow. No, I can't keep all this.

The Bible says he was very sorrowful, for he was very rich. You saw God and you told him, you have kept laws that he said that nobody can keep. You say you have kept it. He has not given you another one. You are now running away. The Bible says he was what? Sorrowful. For he was very rich. Let's read the next verse. And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, how hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God? Give me Niv. Let's see how hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God. How hard? How hard? Look at verse 25. Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God. Is it possible for a camel to go through the eye of a needle? Can a camel go through the eye of a needle? So invariably is an impossibility for a rich man to to enter the kingdom of heaven. Now with this mindset of his impossibility, let's proceed. Yes, those who heard this asked, who then can save with this standard you have set? Who can be saved? Who can sell everything he has, give to the poor and come and start following a man who does not have any place to lay his head. Is it possible? Verse 27. Jesus replied, what is impossible with man is possible with God. What is impossible with man is possible with God. Yes, Peter said unto him, we have left all we had to follow you. 29. Truly I tell you, Jesus said unto them, no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom, we fail to receive many times as much in this age and in the age to come eternal life. Now the question is, it is not possible for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. So how possible it is, how is it possible for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God? The Bible made it clear many impossibilities have been done. Not once, not twice. These things that are impossible are only impossible with man, but with God they are what possible. And Jesus answered it there. He said, with man they are impossible, but with God they are what possible. Now, how are they possible? The question is, how are they possible with God? The book of Luke, chapter 1, verse 45 comes to 8. He says, the word of God says there and blessed is she that believe. For there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord to them that to he that believe there shall be a performance of what is promised.

When you believe a promise, your believing of that promise will activate the power of God to make that promise a reality in your life. You didn't get me. The key that makes the promise of God to become realized in one's life lies in the power of that person, in the ability in that person. Believing that promise. Your Bible said believing a promise activates the power of God towards the performance of that promise in your life. So he that believes there shall be a performance of that which is promised. Now let's see an example of that in the life of Mary. Give me that Same Luke, chapter 1, verse 35. Here, Angel Gabriel specifically comes to Mary with a good news, a good news about God's plan to bring forth Jesus, the Savior of man, the Savior of the world, through her. He tells her she's going to be conceived and that she will have a baby and that the baby's name will be called Jesus because he shall save his people from their sin. Now Mary was astounded. How can this be, seeing that I'm a virgin. And Mary had to even voice it out to the angel. The angel received it. But there is something the angel told her, which is the mechanic, the mechanics, the kinetics of God's power. How God's power of how God's power that turns impossibilities to possibilities. Come, Abba, he told Mary, I have heard you. I am not surprised that you are confused. I am not surprised that you are sounding the way you are sounding. I know naturally, by human standard is impossible. For you are a virgin and you are not. A virgin cannot be conceived without a meeting with a man. But let me tell you, in the things of God, there is something that will happen. Impossibilities will become what possible Mary would have said, what is that say? Yes, he said, when the spirit of God comes down and the power of God overshadows you, that thing you say is impossible. It shall become possible. A woman without meeting a man, will have a baby and bear it, carry it and release, deliver that child. Yes. Is it possible. Zerubbabel said Zechariah 4, 6. Not by power, not by might, but by the Spirit of the Lord. Then he answered and said unto me, saying, this is the word of the Lord. Unto Zerubbabel, saying, not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. There is nothing impossible for the Spirit of God when he comes down. What you consider impossible becomes what? Possible. It is not possible for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. But when the Spirit of God is in action in a man, he can make him enter into the kingdom of God. The Spirit of God can take a rich man the same way can take a poor man. The same measure of power is what he's going to use, not extra. Do you understand what I'm saying? The Bible said if the Spirit that took. That took Christ from the grave out, if he is in you, he is able to transform your mortal bodies into a glorious body. It is also impossible for this flesh to be transformed into a glorious body. Three of us, yes. But when the Spirit of Christ enters into this body, when this body is now motorized by the Spirit of God, what is impossible becomes what? What is impossible becomes possible. It is also impossible for people to transit upwards on the day of Rapture, at least is against one notable law of nature, the law of gravity. But when the Spirit of God is activated by faith in God, it transcends the power of gravity. So a rich man, ordinarily, by human standards, cannot enter the kingdom of God. No way is it possible. Your Bible says so. Your Bible calls it impossibility. But your Bible says what is impossible with men with God, they are what? Possible. And how are they possible? When a rich man believes this radical message about the kingdom of God preached by Jesus Christ and seeks the kingdom of God and his righteousness, the Bible said, every other need of that man shall be provided by God Almighty. You didn't hear me. Every other need of that rich man shall be provided. Seek ye the kingdom of God and his what? Righteousness. Every other thing shall be added unto you. Including what? Including what? Including what? No, including eternal life, including making it to the kingdom of God. When you seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness, you activate the power that makes everything impossible to become. What? Possible. Because you activate the eternal Spirit of God, the quickening Spirit of God. The Spirit that went into the grave and took a dead man and transformed him into a living. Into. Into a living person. The Spirit that. That trajectory from the. From. From on top of Mount Olivet straight into the sky.

Those that we are, those that are the scientists of that day, will be asking, did Jesus develop wind? Are you with me? There was no wind. For the bird to overpower the law of gravity, it must use its wings. It must use its wings to generate a force called what lift for it to overpower that natural law that draws everything up, what down. Jesus didn't have any weights. There is a power when the Spirit that is in him is inside a man. Everything that was said to be impossible becomes what possible. So believing, seeking the kingdom of God and his righteousness is what a rich man has got to do. A rich man is not required to sell everything he has and follow Jesus. It's not true that rich man is a Pharisee. Jesus gave him that to teach him a lesson. The lesson he was teaching, he taught him was that he is telling a lie to have said that he has kept all the laws. And now that he has kept all the laws, he was giving another one. Because no man can keep those laws. And even if you keep all of them, you will still require to come and follow Jesus. So what you are to do simply is to seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Seeking God's kingdom and his righteousness is the only requirement of God for man, for him to have eternal life. The eternal life the man was asking for that day can be gotten by a rich man who seeks the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Not the rich man's righteousness, but God's own righteousness. So by this you can see how what is otherwise impossible becomes possible. So it is not. We have come to a point now where we can now see how we can, by seeking only the kingdom of God and God's righteousness, attain God's eternal life. Because that alone will activate the Spirit of God in our lives. The Spirit of God in our life is the force with which God does everything. That's why he says it's not by power, it's not by might, but by my side. Spirit, says the Lord of hosts, there is nothing the Spirit cannot do. You can now see that the Spirit that can provide everything for a rich man, once he believes, once he seeks the kingdom of God and righteousness, that same Spirit can provide all that you need in Christ Jesus. Every of your need can be provided by God. The Bible says God knows all our needs and we don't need to remind him. It is the pagans that pray God to ask to supply their material needs. It is pagans. They can be Christian pagans or pagan Christians. They can be other types of other denominations of pagans, but all of them are pagans. We are enjoying not to pray. Like pagans, we are enjoined not to ask like pagans, we are enjoined not to ask what they ask. They ask for their daily dailies. They ask for material things. They ask for wealth. They ask for success. They ask for progress and prosperity. But we are asked to ask for only what the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and Jesus and God will add to us everything that we need. Brethren, this is where we draw the curtain on this edition of the Gospel of the Hard Truth of the Kingdom of God. I want to thank you all for another opportunity to be with us. I regret the fact that we could not make it last Sunday because of a conflicting schedule. We are very sorry for that. Thank you for being part of this program and may God richly use this message to open your eyes and draw you into his kingdom. Thank you.

Thank you once again for listening to this fearless broadcast of the forsaken Gospel of the Kingdom of God. We hope you have been blessed by it. Our goal is to present to you the good news about the Kingdom of God we which is the Church of the Lord Jesus, just as the apostles of old did in the Bible, and afford you an opportunity of entering and being part of it as we eagerly wait for his promised appointment in the sky. Please endeavor to visit us online for more episodes of this gospel as www.the hard truth of the Gospel of the King.