The Kingdom of God: What are its requirements?

  

 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”

Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. "   John 3:3-5 NKJV

Before I go further, I would like to define what the " Kingdom of God" is, Is it Heaven or another place? Well I believe the answer can be found in Daniel 2:44 and Revelations 11:15

"In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever." Daniel 2:44 I encourage you to read the whole of Daniel chapter 2 for more details on God's Kingdom.

Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven: "The kingdom of the world is now the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever." Revelations 11:15

These two scripture texts illustrate that the time that the Kingdom will be established after Christ’s return to the earth. At the completion of the process of being saved or born again, we shall be transformed into immortal beings and become kings and priests serving in God’s Kingdom on earth see Revelation 1:6 and Revelation 5:10.

Friends, the Lord Jesus Christ did not mince words when speaking to Nicodemus, one of the Jewish leaders. Nicodemus acknowledged that Jesus was sent by God, but he was still a bit confused about who He really was. What was his actual title? Was He just a teacher, a prophet, or someone greater? Who was this man? Nicodemus knew this was a fascinating individual who seemed to be able to draw people to him through his teachings and he felt it was time to have a one on one conversation with him. So in order not to be seen or identified by his colleagues, he went to see Jesus at night. The Lord Jesus straight up told him, unless you are born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God. Of course, Nicodemus had no idea what he meant by being "born again" as we can see in vs 4 and so Jesus tried to explain the term in vs 5, saying "unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of God. I am sure if the conversation had continued a little longer which it may have very well done, Nicodemus may still ask " what do you mean by water "Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born [a]again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

 

What does it mean to be "born again"? It means surrendering your life to the Lord Jesus Christ, confessing with your mouth that He is the Son of the living God who came to earth in human form, died for our sins and rose up on the 3rd day, ascended into glory, and is currently sitting at the right hand of God interceding for us daily. Because of the great love, the Father had for us, and He sent His only begotten son to die for our sins for us to spend eternity with Him. This is the first requirement "Believe" John 3:16.

The second requirement for entering the kingdom of God is to do the will of the Father. Living a holy life pleasing to God makes you and me a candidate for the kingdom of God. So beloved when you give your life to the Lord Jesus or become born again, it's only the beginning of your Christian journey, the process begins. As believers, each of us must work out our salvation with fear and trembling. I like the way the New Living Translation puts it " Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear."

You must strive to live a godly life, letting your light shine wherever you go so that all may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven, this is stated in Matthew 5:16. It's disheartening to see how over the decades, many in the body of Christ have fallen, they started well but ended so badly and many more today are following in the same path, giving into false teachings, heresies, etc. The word of God tells us in Matthew 7:21 " Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven."

In Matthew 19:21, the rich man was interested in getting saved, but he was not willing to go all the way with Jesus. He was not ready to let go of all his worldly possessions to follow the giver of life and all good things. So when Jesus acknowledged the fact that he had been obedient to the law, obeying all the commandments, he now told him to do one more thing, sell all your worldly possessions, give it to the poor and follow me. Like many of us would have probably done today if we are honest with ourselves, the rich man said he couldn't do that. After all my hard work, after all the challenges I faced to get to where I am today, you now want me to give it all up for a life of uncertainty? Sorry "Rabbi" (Teacher) I can't do it. Beloved, what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but loses his soul? Not my words, but Christ's" Mark 8:36

To enter the kingdom of God, we must be ready to surrender all to Him, our worldly possessions, our lives, our family, everything near and dear to us. Unfortunately, so many are not ready to let go completely and give God full control. Fear, worry, family, material things, staying in our comfort zones holds us back, and if one is not careful, the cost can lead to dire consequences. 

Do you meet these two requirements? If yes, Praise the Lord and keep on walking in Christ and living for Him, if unsure, examine your life and make the decision today to get right with the Lord. If you are not born again, and you are ready to give your life to the Lord Jesus Christ today, pls click on this link for the "sinners prayer "http://www.24hourprayer.com/saved.html. 

After you have done so follow the rest of the prompts for what next or you are welcome to contact us @ dozmeinternational@gmail.com to connect you with a bible believing church in your area or you are welcome to go to Church Finder - Find Local Churches - ChurchFinder.com.

Beloved Jesus assures us that when you do decide to follow Him all the way, surrendering all and trusting Him for your life, the Lord God will make it possible for you to stay faithful, committed, focused to the very end.

"When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:25-26 ESV

Shalom!