The Kingdom of God

Hello my friends. Romans 14:17 (KJV) says, “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.” What is the Kingdom of God? It is the spiritual realm over which God reigns as king. It is the arena where the will of God is done. The apostle Paul first tells us what it is not. It is not about meat and drink. People sometimes debate about whether or not a Christian should eat pork or have a glass of wine with their meal, or eat their steak cooked rare with a little blood still there. Are these legitimate concerns. Yes they are. But the Kingdom of God is more than food and drink. It is also more than the clothes we wear. Or the style of music we sing and worship to in church. It is more than our church traditions or the denomination that we belong to. And it is more than personalities or the leadership style of our favorite preachers, though these things are all important. In this verse the apostle Paul tells us that it is primarily about three things.

The first one he mentions is righteousness. This idea has two sides to it. It is first of all about being in right standing with God. You can only achieve this by receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. It is also about doing the right thing.

The second thing the Kingdom of God is about is peace. This has three sides to it. The first is peace with God. It is to be on speaking terms with your creator where nothing hinders your relationship. The second side of peace is to be at peace with others. And the third side of this peace is to experience inner peace, that is peace with yourself.

These are three things that the Kingdom of God is about and they are all things that we can experience when we become a part of God's Kingdom by receiving Christ.