The Keys to the Kingdom

          Exploring the conditions for entering our inheritance:  MAIN HEALING LESSON 3

This teaching on the keys to the Kingdom is just one of the 24 lessons in our workbook for personal transformation, "Matters of the Heart."  All 24 lessons will be helpful to the person seeking restoration and freedom and have been posted on this web site. They are available as a complete set in our workbook which can be purchased as a download or ordered through the mail. The lessons are also available on CD and DVD as 24, 1/2 hour teachings. All scriptures are from the NKJV unless otherwise noted.
 

Introduction

In the previous lessons we noted the powerful connection between our negative emotions and many diseases and the uncomfortable fact that such emotions of the carnal nature are actually sins. How are we to get free? As it happens Jesus has foreseen our need and promised us keys—keys to His kingdom! In this lesson we will look at what the Kingdom of God means in terms of our daily experience, what the keys are, and what it is that the keys unlock.

In the church we have placed a priority on teaching about the gospel of salvation and the need for entering into the kingdom of heaven in the next life. Jesus, however, taught far more about the kingdom of God in this life and how to live a heavenly life now. This message is about the "gospel of the kingdom" which scripture tells us must be preached (also) before the Lord returns (Matthew 24:14). For all scriptures concerning the Kingdom of God and for a free download see God's Kingdom and the Kingdom of God.
 

Teaching summary

Jesus has given keys of entry to His disciples
The keys to the kingdom are the power to bind and loose. We are to bind the enemy and carry his works captive to Christ and we are to loose people from their sins and release them to God.

And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."   Matthew 16:19

The keys give us access to the Kingdom of God on earth. By the text we see that these are keys meant to be used “on earth” and they are given to all who receive the same revelation that Peter received—for the revelation of Jesus Christ is the Church’s great foundation. This Kingdom is a present reality to all believers (Colossians 1:13), but entering into it is not automatic—that is why we need the keys! Keys are for entering into places that we would otherwise be locked out of.

If we are to use the keys we need to know what they are and how to use them, but it will also help us to know some things about the Kingdom to which they give us access. A kingdom is the realm where a king reigns—the king’s dominion. Jesus told many parables describing how the Kingdom of God operates in this world: Paul gives us a clear description of what the Lord’s reign is like:

…for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Romans 14:17

Righteousness is vast
Righteousness in the sense of saving grace is “right standing with God”—something we are given through the new birth and faith in what Jesus has done for us at the cross and it brings us into a right standing with God we could never earn on our own. But this accurate definition may keep us from seeing the vast righteousness of the kingdom, because what is fully meant by righteousness includes everything that is right (good, beautiful and true) which flows from God: lunch with a friend is righteousness; doing a job well is righteousness; playing with puppies and babies is righteousness, enjoying a sunset or a good book is righteousness. It certainly isn’t unrighteousness! In this wider sense righteousness is anything the Holy Spirit would lead you into doing or appreciating. Such righteousness is the very life of heaven on earth. It may not be perfect, but walking in practical righteousness is a far cry better than walking in impractical unrighteousness.

Peace, joy and the Holy Spirit
Likewise the peace of the Kingdom is vast. It is not like that of this world—which is so easily lost. The peace of this Kingdom is deep and everlasting—nothing on earth can shake it; nothing on earth can take it from you. Earth’s joys are fleeting, but the joy of this Kingdom is available to everyone at any moment for it proceeds from the glad hearted God who wants to share His joy with us (see Our True Identity (Main Healing Lesson 9)). And who can say enough about the Holy Spirit? He is the very presence and power of Jesus on earth with us. This is what the Kingdom is “made of”! Now if we were suddenly told that all the right ways of living, all the peace, all the joy that we have ever wanted and the presence and power of God were on the other side of town just waiting for us, we would all be catching the next bus.
 

Just where is this Kingdom to be found?

Jesus told Nicodemus that unless he was converted (born again) he would neither be able to see this Kingdom nor enter into it.

Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." …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

Perhaps that has already happened for you. You can now see the Kingdom because you have eyes of faith to see the King! And you have been “conveyed” by the Father out of darkness into the kingdom of His Beloved Son (Colossians 1:13). Conversion certainly gets us into a portion of the Kingdom—but we are still searching for entry to that place where all the righteousness, peace and joy can be found—along with the Holy Spirit! Have you ever been conveyed to the airport of a foreign country, but never left the airport to explore the country or share life with its citizens? So too we may be in the Kingdom of God, but still not sharing in its life. And this life is all around us! Jesus tells us that it is literally as close as the air that we breathe—for it surrounds and fills us.

Amazingly, this kingdom is very close to you--it is always within reach of and always within every believer. We are in the kingdom like fish in the ocean: the fish is in the ocean and the ocean is in the fish. 

…the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.   Mark 1:15

For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.   Luke 17:21
 

It is a realm that requires childlike trust and cleanness of spirit.

If all of these highly desirable things are already within us and are all around us, what is keeping us locked out?  According to Jesus, conversion in the form of the new birth gets us into heaven (John 3:16); becoming as little children gets us into the kingdom. Note how stringent the warning is: unless we are converted and become as little children we will by no means enter into this kingdom. The big “key” is becoming like a little child!

Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.   Matthew 18:2-3

Jesus is not speaking about entry into heaven here. In Matthew’s gospel the Kingdom of God on earth is usually referred to as the Kingdom of Heaven. To this day little children enter the Kingdom and show forth its fruit far better than most believers (Matthew 19:14). And this is true of little children no matter what the religion of their parents. In fact most little children haven’t even been converted (know and believe in the King) and yet they still live in the Kingdom. What is it about little children?

Children exemplify life in the Spirit
We can safely assume that Jesus wasn’t holding up as an example a little child “in the flesh” but one that was in the right spirit. All such children exemplify the life of the Kingdom (Matthew 19:14; Mark 10:14; Luke 18:16) better than most believers—regardless of the religion of their parents. They are humble, unself-conscious, willingly dependent for all provision upon their parents and freely love the people they meet. They are also teachable, fearless explorers of their worlds, and live with openness and transparency in the present moment.

If anything troubles or hurts them they run to their parents, are quickly set right, and easily let go. In fact once hurts begin to accumulate and they start carrying yesterday (and its pains) with them, they become self-protective, leave childhood behind and become like us! Jesus says that self-protectiveness is guaranteed to rob us of life (Matthew 16:24-27; Mark 8:34-37; Luke 9:23-25).

We lock ourselves up in a dungeon of pain and bondage
Due to an accumulation of life’s hurts that we did not release, we left childlikeness behind by binding the pains and injustices of the past to ourselves. This is why we need keys to the Kingdom!  Un-forgiveness is the number one block to healing and to the Kingdom’s peace and power. It leads to unanswered prayer, un-received mercy, hardness of heart, spiritual bondage and painful inner torment.

And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.   Mark 11:25

And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.  Matthew 18:34-35

Hidden and unrecognized unbelief can also bar our entry into the Kingdom, because it “hardens” the heart before God as powerfully as un-forgiveness does.

Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.   Hebrews 3:12, 19
 

We will concentrate on four keys 

1) Receiving: Confess, repent of recognized sin and receive full forgiveness (halleluiah moments).
2) Releasing: Confess, repent of un-forgiveness and release full forgiveness (to God, self or others).
3) Believing: Confess, repent of unbelief and believe the truth with a full heart of faith (Romans 15:13).
4) Discerning: Use the key of knowledge: discerning the spirits; discerning truth (Luke 11:52; Hebrews 5:14).

Because God gives us sovereignty over our hearts, it is not what happened to us that is the real issue. It is how we have reacted to hurt and injustice that determines our life, our peace and our emotional freedom. We will encourage you to use the keys to forgive others and to fully accept yourself.

At first it will seem like we are making the problem worse because we will be showing you the connection between physical, mental and emotional health and what the Bible clearly describes as sin issues: bitterness towards others, unbelief, envy, not accepting oneself, living stressed up, etc. But because Jesus died to free us from sin’s penalty and power there is a pathway of cleansing and freedom. Learn to say “Halleluiah!” when the Holy Spirit reveals sin in you that you had not seen before—it means He is getting ready to cleanse you and give you greater entry.

So, set your heart on pilgrimage (Psalm 84:5) and...

get really, really good at using these 4 keys!
 

Interested in going deeper?

Don't just give these truths a "head bob"!
For further study and for help working these truths into your heart and life, see Keys to the Kingdom part 2 (Head to Heart Guide 3) and "work out" with exercises, discussion questions, review of main points, digging deeper, more scriptures, model prayers, renunciations/affirmations and practical steps of life application.

Or better yet, let us minister to you in person
     --at one of our Savannah Seminars...