ON EARTH as it is in Heaven

There’s a saying that I’ve certainly used many times “They’re so heavenly minded that they’re no earthly good”. We need to be heavenly minded, but I believe that we also need to be earthly good!

We ‘recite’ the Lord’s Prayer, but do we actually PRAY IT, I wonder? One of the lines in the prayer is “ON EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN” (Matthew 6:10). But do we actually do ‘on earth, as it is in heaven’? Or are we so caught up in being ‘spiritual’ that we actually miss the boat? Do we truly “manifest Your Kingdom realm, and cause Your every purpose to be fulfilled on earth, just as it is in heaven” (TPT)?

Please understand that I’m not talking about praying about worldly things, and then twisting heaven’s perspective to suit worldly ways. I’m not talking about trying to entice people of the world into the Kingdom by lowering ourselves to doing worldly acts and actions. I’m talking about living our lives in such a way that we bring the Kingdom of Heaven TO EARTH so that the people of the world can see that the Kingdom of Heaven is a glorious place to be in. 

How do we be salt and light to the people of the world? How do we bring heaven to earth and demonstrate the things of the Kingdom here in this world? We have to remember that we are in the world, not of the world. Yet we are still to do ON EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN. We still need to live for the glory of God and manifest His power and the things of Heaven in our day to day living. 

We must not be so caught up with earthly things that we lose focus of Heaven. But we must not also be so caught up with Heavenly things that we lose the opportunities on earth of showing the glory and power of the Kingdom. God is to be glorified in all things.

2 Corinthians 5:19-20 [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition] “¹⁹ It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself, not counting up and holding against [men] their trespasses [but cancelling them], and committing to us the message of reconciliation (of the restoration to favor).

²⁰ So we are Christ’s ambassadors, God making His appeal as it were through us. We [as Christ’s personal representatives] beg you for His sake to lay hold of the divine favor [now offered you] and be reconciled to God.”

This verse from 2 Corinthians reminds us that Jesus came TO EARTH so that He could demonstrate the power of the Kingdom of Heaven to the people of the world with a message of reconciliation. Therefore, if we are Christ’s Ambassadors (vs 20) (Ambassadors represent the ruling authority of the country they are citizens of), then we are His representatives and are expected to represent the realm that we are citizens of, i.e. Heaven, in a ‘foreign place’, i.e. earth. How is that not ON EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN?

Sadly, we have allowed our culture to shape our understanding and perspective of God’s will and the things of Heaven. Sometimes we are more interested in defending and representing the Nation we are citizens of that we forget that the Kingdom of Heaven has different values. We must allow God’s Word and Holy Spirit to reveal to us the ways of the Kingdom of Heaven so that we can demonstrate that in the world we are in but not of.

Maybe, however, we are too scared to bring Heaven to earth for fear of retribution and condemnation. Maybe we are so caught up with a worldly lifestyle, that we can’t actually see the difference in our own lives between Heaven and earth – and certainly those of the world can’t see us being Heaven’s Representatives.

Again, I re-iterate, I’m not advocating that we live in the ways of the world – because that is against Kingdom Culture. We are also warned not to have a foot in the world and a foot in the Kingdom. What I am advocating is that we do indeed become Heavenly Minded by pursuing the things of God, by seeking Him first, by living for God with our whole life, by knowing the ways and the purposes of the Kingdom of Heaven, and then demonstrating that on earth so that the people of the world will see the goodness and love of God.

Let’s get PRACTICAL.

Living a Kingdom lifestyle and being ‘Heavenly minded’ means making a choice to embrace the ways of the Kingdom. It means giving up our worldly mindsets and “being transformed by the renewing of our mind” (Romans 12:2). It takes time – and it involves drawing near to God as He draws near to us. It means that we surrender our lifestyles and thinking processes to Jesus and allow God’s Holy Spirit to work in us, lead us and guide us. It means that we need to study the Word and seek Him and His Righteousness first. In a way, being heavenly minded is a learned behaviour that becomes a lifestyle.

How are we earthly good by being Heavenly Minded? (These are just some things, you will think of more I’m sure)

• Our character is transformed as we draw near to God, and we approach the things on earth with a lifestyle that reflects the fruit of the Spirit.

•  We become a people who are filled with faith – people in the world will see our faith and it will, hopefully, cause them to ask us questions about our faith.

• We are filled to overflowing with love and walk in forgiveness. The world doesn’t often believe in sacrificial love, and it certainly doesn’t often offer forgiveness to others. When we demonstrate these two attributes, we are showing a lifestyle that is contrary to what most people practice.

“It’s only after being loved by God that we can truly love others. Without encounters with the heart of the Father, we are incapable of living selflessly. Pride is the natural state of all those who aren’t consistently encountering the transformative power of the Holy Spirit. But through God’s grace and receiving a heavenly perspective, we can step outside ourselves and the fleshly desires of this world and truly love others with the heart of God.” (First15 Devotional – ‘A Lifetime of Love)

I bless you to continue to go deeper in your relationship with God and to gain a deeper understanding of His will, plans and purposes for your life. I bless you to grow to be more and more like Jesus every day. I bless you walk in love and forgiveness and show the world the peace and joy that comes from having a Heavenly perspective. I bless you to be a people who show the world the goodness and love of God in a way that transforms their lives too.

Be blessed

Jean

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