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Kingdom of God, Seeking First
(From Forerunner Commentary)

Matthew 11:12  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Christ was perhaps recalling His wrestling match with Jacob, centuries earlier, when He commented that "the violent take [the Kingdom] by force". J. B. Phillips has it: "The Kingdom of heaven has been taken by storm and eager men and forcing their way into it." It takes sweat. Charles Whitaker The Israel of God

Matthew 11:12  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) The Kingdom of God will be the recipient of slings and arrows and wars and temptations, and its own people will need to be violent in return. He means "forceful." It will take a titanic struggle to enter it because so many things are acting against us. Jesus warns us it will not be easy. We are going to have to work vigorously and "violently" at times, to force ourselves to do what is right, because the Kingdom of God is now under siege in so many ways. Therefore, we have to fight as warriors in battle and violently engage the enemy. From John 17:11-18, we know that the Kingdom functions in the world, and Jesus is not going to take us out of it. But He asks His Father to give us His protection from the Evil One so that we can at least have that added strength. We must constantly deal with the world, human nature, and the Evil One himself, as well as his demons. Richard T. Ritenbaugh Parables of Matthew 13 (Part 2): Leaven

Colossians 3:2  (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up) Paul is telling us where the focus of our attention needs to be. We can give our minds over to a lot of things, for instance, to our jobs—and there is a place for that. We can give our minds over to physical things—exercise, eating well, and so forth—and there is a place for these, too. Indeed, humans need to set their minds on many things, but they need to be prioritized correctly—put into the right niche and position. Then each of these things has to be seen in relation to the Kingdom of God. Our priorities must be set according to this standard—the overriding goal of our Christian lives. "Set your mind on things above" adjusts the focus of our attention so that we do not become distracted by things that are less important for any longer than needed, so that they occupy the right proportion and amount of time in our lives. John W. Ritenbaugh Titus 2:11-14

 

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