Seeing the Kingdom of God

December 3, 2019

Seeing the Kingdom of God

“Then he touched their eyes and said, “Because of your faith, it will happen.”

Matthew 9:29

“Two blind men followed along behind (Jesus), shouting, “Son of David, have mercy on us!” They went right into the house where he was staying, and Jesus asked them, “Do you believe I can make you see?” “Yes, Lord,” they told him, “we do.” Then he touched their eyes and said, “Because of your faith, it will happen.” Then their eyes were opened, and they could see! (Matthew 9:27-30).

What did they see? For sure they saw Jesus and other people. They also saw ‘stuff’, and I am sure they were in awe as they could see the countryside when they left the house. But did they see something else? When Jesus had his encounter with Nicodemus in John 3, Jesus told him, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” What does it mean to see the Kingdom of God?

Primarily, to see the Kingdom of God means to see what Jesus sees, which is only visible through eyes of faith. The Gospels don’t tell us much more about the two men and their new-found vision, but what we do learn suggests they may have received their sight but not the Kingdom of God. After their eyes were opened, “Jesus sternly warned them, “Don’t tell anyone about this.” But instead, they went out and spread his fame all over the region” (Matthew 9:30-31). It takes obedience to the teachings of Jesus to establish our faith with which we can see the Kingdom of God.

In this Season of Advent, we look forward to the coming again of Jesus in final victory. Can you see the signs of his coming again? With eyes of faith, we can see signs that the Kingdom of God is preparing for the return of Jesus. God doesn’t want you to miss seeing the signs; if your vision isn’t clear maybe you will find time to spend in Psalm 139:

Search me, O God, and know my heart;

    test me and know my anxious thoughts.

Point out anything in me that offends you,

    and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

                                                                                Psalm 139:23-24

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2019 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

• Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

• The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.