The Cost of the KingdomSample

FREE, YET THERE IS A PRICE TO BE PAID!

MAIN IDEAS

• The KINGDOM OF GOD is priceless; are we prepared to pay the price?

• JESUS does not ask His followers to hate their family; on the contrary, they must even love their enemies, but if they are pressed to choose between God and family, they must always choose God.

• God paid the ultimate price for us to receive the Kingdom. However, we too will pay a price for it.

JESUS teaches these lessons at a time of maximum popularity and rise in public esteem for Himself. More and more people were associating themselves with Him and with His teachings and were happy to be His disciples. They were advised that the KINGDOM OF HEAVEN is a very valuable reality, a spiritual good for which a price must be paid. The Kingdom is neither for sale nor free. Its price is so high that God, knowing that people have no way to pay for it, elected to pay the price for us Himself. In one sense, we receive the Kingdom for free, although this has cost God the ultimate price. God knows however, that man treasures something according to how much he pays for it, so He has „arranged” things in such a way that man must pay a price as well. That price is set by the fact that the Kingdom is so valuable that man cannot measure it against anything, not even his own life. Since no man could pay the price for entering the KINGDOM OF GOD, He gives us free entrance, through faith in the JESUS’ sacrifice; remaining in the Kingdom, however, is only possible by respecting Its principles.

True love for God, received through HOLY SPIRIT, is supernatural and is so strong that our natural love for people around us or even for our families pales in comparison. This shouldn’t scare us, as these days not many of us will go through martyrdom, but if we truly love God and His Kingdom, we’d be ready to give up this temporary life on earth to win eternal life. If someone finds themselves in the position to become a martyr for Christ, the HOLY SPIRIT that lives in that person will give them the strength and the necessary joy to do this, for the beauty of THE KINGDOM that is expecting us, along with Jesus, our beloved KING.