OUR FATHER WHOSE KINGDOM WE MUST PRIORITIZE

In the context of the little child who was brought among the disciples to illustrate that they should change to be more like children to be eligible for the kingdom of God, the Lord Jesus gave a dire warning to those who would make it their preoccupation to cause believers in Him to stumble or fall away from their belief.

6 “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. 

7 Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come! 

This warning,  pertaining to those people who are used by the kingdom of darkness to derail the faith of people, should give pause to those who find themselves engaged in missions to discourage people from their faith in Jesus or to prevent the pure gospel of salvation from reaching the ears of people who would otherwise believe if they heard and thus enter the kingdom of God.

8 If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

The urgency of  salvation is starkly empahsized here where each person is advised to remove any element in their lives that would prevent them from acquiring and retaining citizenship in the kingdom of God. 

The Lord Jesus gave the analogy of the removal of body parts that impede us from being able to gain the kingdom of God. The point made is that the is no loss of earthly things that can be more grievious than the failure to enter the kingdom of God. 

We must gladly give up any and all things in our lives whether it be wealth, famillial or romantic bonds, social participation or position or any form of attachment to worldly living or sinful conduct that would undermine our faith in Christ and lead us away from the pursuit of the kingdom of God.

The value of the kingdom of God far exceeds any percieved advantage that we may have in this world and so, when it comes to making the trade, Jesus counsels us to discard all the parts of our lives that would keep us attached to the systems of this world and instead reach for the kingdom of God in faith.

Amen.

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