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Matthew 24, get your Bibles out. I was in the service this morning in liturgical service. How many of you guys have been in liturgical service by the chance? Jesse, if you get a chance, stop in and check that out. It's a very different flow, but I think you might like it for those that have a different framework of church, and it kind of gives you a different look at church itself. But one of the readings is in Genesis 32, is about the story of Jacob wrestling with the angel of the Lord. And there's a conversation in which they're struggling, and the angel says, I'm going to change your name because you've struggled with God and man. And I'm going to summarize and survive. I thought about that phrasing in the scripture today, in the reading this morning, in the service, because isn't that a summary of living every day sometimes? The struggle with God and man. Who's ever in your life struggled with God? Put your hand up high. What about with other people? Now, note, I got people staying it up. I mean, now just notice this real fast. How come on the on the with God part you're kind of like on the human part you're like, that be me? The truth is this is the human dilemma. And every day you look at life and you see things around you happening, you wonder to yourself, Jesus, this would be a good day just to come back and take us out of here. Have you ever had that thought before in life? Just going, if I could just hit a button and go, I think this is the day to go back to heaven. And this is our life. But the truth is, this was the times of Jesus as well. In fact, he used the message of God's kingdom to be a conversation piece that balanced out the earthly tensions and even the unknowns with the hope of the kingdom of God coming. Now, today you might be in a space of difficulty, brokenness, conflict, struggle, strife, and maybe more in your life, your family, your career, your world you live in today. But know this today, no matter where you are, God's kingdom and a kingdom mindset can change everything just like that. Because in his kingdom, there is fullness of joy, pleasure at his right hand forevermore. There is peace, there is safety, there's security, there's promises, there's hope today. All these things exist in the kingdom of God. Can I get an amen today? God's kingdom is that place. In Matthew 24, Jesus is laying out this very apocalyptical time and language about the end. He's asked the question, hey, when will we know you're coming back and when will the end happen? And he says, he says this, watch close, he says, watch out lest no one deceives you. I'm in verse 5 now of Matthew 24. He says, For many will come in my name. You will hear of wars, watch this, and rumors of wars, but see that it you're not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Now watch verse 7 close. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against, come on, kingdom. There will be famines, earthquakes, and various places. All these things are the beginning of the birth pains. Then you'll be handed over to be persecuted and put to death. That sounds encouraging, doesn't it? And be hated by many because of me. Now watch verse 10. At that time, many will turn away from what? The faith and betray and hate each other. In other words, those who turn away will hate those and betray those who don't turn with them. But because the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow what? Cold. But the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. Now watch verse 14 close. And this gospel of the kingdom, everybody say kingdom, kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a what? Testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. Jesus introduces to this tension about the future, the alternative of God's kingdom, being a place of hope and peace. No matter what you see around us, there's always hope and peace when you have a kingdom mindset. I'll be the first to tell you, it's hard to have a kingdom mindset by nature. By nature, I have an earthly mindset. How many guys in the house have an earthly mindset? Put your hand up, how you do, believe it or not. When you wake up, your first thought is not God's kingdom. Your first thought is coffee and probably the bathroom. Can I get a witness today? That's your first thinking. When you look at cultural ailments, you don't always think kingdom come. You think, how can this affect that? How can we change that? Why is this wrong? Why is that right? And we think in terms of human efforts. The challenge for every believer is to think like kingdom people and not cultural people. And we'll say it again because you're not awake, obviously. The challenge for all of us is to think like kingdom people and not cultural people. We live in a culture, but we are of the kingdom of God that changes everything for us as kingdom thinkers. Now, the culture's always trying to get you and me to fall into cultural camps. When you open the word of God, it's trying to get you in the kingdom of God camp where Jesus is king, where he is Lord, where his will reigns, his will be done on earth as in what? Heaven. He is in charge in his kingdom. There's the tension. But Jesus gives to us this very clear picture in the Sermon on the Mount of the kingdom of God and what it means to be a transformed kingdom person. When you look at the world today, it's not hard to see the need for the king to return. Think of it this way: you ever grow up in the house, and maybe you were the younger sibling, and mom and dad left the house, and the older kids weren't that nice to you. Can I get a hand up? That's my story. And I'm sticking to it. I was deprived of eating in my house, as you can tell. But when you're the one who thinks you're taking it on the chin, you have this mindset. I cannot wait for mom and dad to get home. Because you know they're going to equalize things. I cannot wait for Jesus Christ to come back because I know. Come on, say I know. Come on, say I know. I know He will fix what's wrong. He'll make straight what's crooked, He'll make whole what's broken, He'll make what's been wrong back right because that's His kingdom, and He has full reign in that space of the kingdom of God. When I look at this thought and realize today your joy may be lacking. Sorrow taking full scope of your life. You think about the negative more than the positive. You struggle day to day. There is hope, there is hope, there is hope because in his presence there is fullness of joy at his right hand, pleasures forevermore, because God is a good and a loving and a faithful God. Can I get an amen today? That is the kind of God he is today. Go to Psalm 16 real fast. I want us to read this text together, and I'm gonna come back to the gospels and the kingdom of God conversation. But I want to set this up real fast. Because I want you to see another look at this idea of focusing on God being the source to take your focus off what's not right in this life. Matt, Psalm 16, here we go, verse 5 through 11. You're not gonna like this, but I was gonna see. Would you mind for a moment if we just all stood back up and read this word together out loud? Would you do that for me? I know, I know. You're like, we just sat down. It's 9:45. But I want to put that on the board today. I want to read this text out loud together. Get that up on the screen real fast. And I want you to read these words with authority and conviction in your heart. Think of this as a proclamation over your life. Are you ready to say yes? Here we go. One, two, three. Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup. You make my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. Surely I have delightful inheritance. I will praise the Lord who counsels me. Even at night, my heart instructs me. I keep my eyes always in the Lord. With him in my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore, my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices. My body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful ones see decay. You make known to me the path of life. You fill me with joy in your presence with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Can I get any amendment that his word is true? Blessed be the word of the Lord today. Take your seat. Notice this joy is not found in our circumstance. Joy is found in the presence of the Almighty God. In his kingdom, his presence is there today. And this is why Paul can sit in prison. David can worship while hiding in caves. Stephen can smile while being stoned. And the early church can face difficulty because they know in his kingdom he has full reign. And it's gonna be okay. Jesus Christ is King of kings, he is Lord of lords. If I think like I'm in his kingdom, it changes everything. Not a few things, but everything. But watch us close. If I try to think like the culture and live in the kingdom, I've built in conflict in my own soul today. I've got to decide. Do I believe that I believe that I believe that there's a place in which his will is done on earth as in heaven, in which there's joy beyond my own eyes, in which there's courage and hope beyond what I can control. I've got to decide that and I cannot go back and forth. Because the Bible tells all of us that a person that lives here and lives here becomes unstable in all their ways. I've just got to decide single-minded or double-minded. I don't know about you, but I want to live single-minded. With my heart and my affection set on the kingdom of God. Come on, say kingdom of God. The king is with us, Jesus is alive, he's not dead. His kingdom is near. The kingdom is about showing the world a new way. And we enter the kingdom by coming through access of kingdom transformation. That's how you get in God's kingdom. But here's the reality we always look outside and go, God, how do we fix that? Or how do I correct this? And we fail to ask the right questions. Let me share one more thing in scripture. Go to 2 Peter chapter 3 real fast. 2 Peter 3, 10 through 12. I love this text. Another picture here of end-time, apocalyptical, out-of-control dynamics. It says, But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. Now, verse 11, watch this close. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, watch what it says next. What kind of people ought you to be? When you look at the world and see things going totally amess, and you think, man, this is wrong or that's wrong, and you're probably right. The culture says you go do this and you go do that, but the Bible says when you see all this breaking down, ask yourself the question: what kind of person do I need to become? How should I be different on the inside? It says you ought to live a holy and a godly life as looking forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. Now, that doesn't sound very good unless you're a kingdom thinker. I gotta be honest with you. Believers should never fear death nor the end of time. Can I get a witness today? We should never fear death. Death is a doorway to the next phase of living. I don't know about you, but I'm gonna tell you a quick secret. The day I die, I'm not actually dead. You're staring at me like, what is wrong with him? If you're a believer in Jesus Christ, the day you die, guess what? You're not actually dead. You're not there, but you're alive, you're alive, you're alive in the presence of the Almighty God. You're healthy, you are strong. No more ailments, no more pain, no more conflict, no more strife, no more difficulty, no more brokenness. You know why? Because you're united, you're reited with your Father in heaven and your Savior in heaven, and God is good. Can I get an amen today? When you think about these things and you realize the world around us, and then the scripture says, hey, when all this is cutting loose, don't worry about that. But think about what kind of person you ought to be. Don't worry about all this mess. Look up to the heavens. Redemption draws nigh. Don't worry about all this, focus on that. You always balance out earthly tension dynamics by thinking about God's kingdom. Because that's a place it all works out the way the king intends. The Sermon on the Mount is a beautiful portrait of people coming together whose hearts have been transformed by the king and whose lives are now participating in kingdom-minded citizenship. I tell you this all the time in Calvary Church before you're uh you're before you're a citizen of any nation as a believer, you're a citizen of the kingdom of God. I love the fact that Calvary is a church of 70 plus nations. I love hearing dialects and different tones and languages. I love to say, tell me where you're from. I love the idea of different people worshiping God together in the same space. It's awesome to see every service. But everybody here needs to know something important. As a believer in Jesus Christ, before you're any earthly citizen, you are a kingdom citizen. Now I am Marty, I was born in America. I'm an American citizen. But before I am that, I'm a citizen of the kingdom of God. And that is true for you too. We are kingdom people first as believers. Now, the culture always tries to pull us back into cultural citizenship, but Jesus pulls us up to kingdom citizenship. Let's go to the Sermon on Mount Matthew chapter 5. Jesus gives to us a complete blueprint of what it looks like to live as a kingdom citizen in his historical Sermon on the Mount conversation. Think of it this way Jesus gives to us what you would call basic life pillars, the idea of praying, fasting, giving, trusting, honoring, all part of his life story. And then he gives to us language that's so simple and so clear on how we should look living in God's kingdom. He kicks off Matthew 5 with a beatitude conversation. Everybody say beatitude. Look at your neighbor and say, watch your attitude. He gives us what type of attitude we should have or the attitude we should be of, the beatitudes. And it maps out so clear for us. Go real fast to Matthew chapter 5, and let's go to verse 1 through 16 real quick today. It says that when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him and began, he began to teach them. He said, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for there is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, they'll be comforted. Blessed are the meek, they'll inherit the earth. Blessed are the hunger, those hunger and thirst for righteousness, they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, they will see God. Blessed are the who? The peacemakers, they'll be called children of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. And he goes on and on and on. He says, Blessed will they insult you. And then he says, By the way, you're the salt of the earth and you're the light of the world. Now just I summarize for time's sake on this, but think about this. They gather around Jesus to hear this life-changing message, instruction, anticipating probably a kingdom of Roman takeover, we're going to overthrow the Roman Empire. And he looks at him and goes, Oh, by the way, you're the salt and you're the light. And then he says, in essence, if you act better, you'll be a kingdom thinker. Your posture. So the first thing we see in this kingdom mindset that Jesus talked about is everybody in God's kingdom begins with having a right posture toward God, each other, and the kingdom. It all starts with how you stand before God. Look at His wording here to us in the Beatitudes. He says, Blessed are those who have a poor spirit about them, are poor in spirit. Not that they're poverty mindset, but they're humble in their approach. Blessed are those who hunger for righteousness' sake, who want to see things be right. Blessed are the merciful. Come on, say merciful. Who could use mercy in life today? My hand is up. That means we have to give mercy in life. Blessed are the pure in heart, the peacemaker, those prepared to suffer for Christ's sake. This is all part of the kind of person we should become. Now notice this: Jesus did not begin by doing conversation. He began by being conversation. The Christian life is not about doing first, it's about being first, and then the doing starts. Once I become, now I do. I don't do to become. This is not a religion based upon work, it's based upon faith in Jesus Christ today. But once you come to faith, now it's time to go to work. Can I get an amen today? It's time to work and reflect the light of Christ. When you look at these verses in Matthew chapter 5, it's clear to us that before God can change the world through us, he must do a change inside of us. Now, when you read the Beatitudes that all of us have a thousand times, it's easy to think, well, yeah, I do all that. But let me pause you and ask the question are you sure? Are you sure you do all that? Because everything in this text is counter your own nature. Let me give you one for example. Nobody thinks of others above themselves by nature. We can by transformation, but not by nature. And I can prove it to you. Have you ever been on the interstate driving? You're laughing already. And a car comes flying by, and you say to yourself, Where's a cop when you need one? But when you speed, you never say, Where's a cop when you need one? In fact, you pray, God, I hope there's not a cop up here. You know you do that. All of us by nature think high of ourselves and loathe of other people. Kingdom people reverse the process, and we think of others better than ourselves. You ever heard the phrase give someone the benefit of the doubt? Easy to say, super hard to do. Easy to say, super hard to do. We always take things way too far because it's personal. When we live with a posture of the kingdom, our first response to everybody is a step back, not a step forward. It's a, I want to hear more about that, not what did you just say? See, the culture has you going at each other. Jesus is trying to connect you to each other. And two different thought processes invoke from that today. God's kingdom starts with the right kingdom posture. Here's a second thought for you. God's kingdom grows by living out our purpose in the world. Jesus said, You're the salt and you're the light. You realize there's a kingdom citizen, you have a purpose on the earth. I love the last song we sang. I wasn't made to be tending a grave. I was made for something more. Can I get an amen today? I'm not here just to live and to die. And an hour after I die, you have chicken back at the church on my behalf. That's not why I'm here. I am here on a kingdom of God assignment. You say, well, sure you are. You're the pastor. No, no, no, no. You are here on a kingdom of God assignment. Not just me, but you in your marketplace, in your schoolhouse, in your family, in your neighbor, in the Walmart store line. You are here today on a kingdom of God assignment. You're not just here to live and to die, to get up and go to bed and have a Monday, have a Tuesday, have a Thursday. You are here to serve the kingdom of God, serve God's mission and redeem people back to Christ as you live out every day the gospel that Jesus Christ save me, healed me, delivered me. That's why you're here. You have a kingdom purpose. Live it out. Be the salt and be the light. When you see the cave, you put the gospel of salt on top of it. When you see darkness, you shine the light of Christ. That's kingdom purpose, and all of us have that today in this life. Jesus also gave us a very interesting conversation toward the end of Matthew chapter 5. He kept saying the phrase, you have heard it said, but I say. You have heard it said this, but I say that. He's talking about the contrast of the religious thinking versus kingdom thinking. In religious thought process, we know people by what they do. Jesus, his kingdom, they know people by what they think. I don't know about you, but that scares me to death. To think that Jesus knows my intentions, not just my actions. I know how you act, I don't know what you intend. I can act nice and intend ill. Can I get an amen? And it probably has happened before in your life where somebody acted the nice part, but their plan wasn't for good. It was for evil. Now you think about this today. He goes from you're the salt and the light to also this idea about different language. You've heard it said, but I'm gonna say. You've heard it said, but I'm gonna say. Go real fast in Matthew chapter 5, go to verse 21 real quick today. It says, you've heard it said, it was said to people long ago, you shall not murder. And anyone who murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you, but I tell you, anyone who is angry with a brother or sister. No. No. Okay. If I'm reading that right, we all know you can't kill people. That's frowned upon. But do you know you shouldn't be angry either? Crickets. Think about Jesus' words here. You've heard it said, don't kill somebody. How many agree we shouldn't kill people? Not enough hands are up. That's concerning. How many agree we shouldn't kill people? Come on, put your hand up. Yeah, yeah, thank you very much. That's much better. Okay. But are you okay with being angry at somebody? Jesus really raised the bar here. I mean, this is intense. He said, but I tell you that anyone who's angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says that this brother or sister Raka is answerable to the court. Anyone who says you fool will be in danger of fire of hell. Whew. Therefore, look at this one right here. Therefore, if you're offering a gift at the altar, and there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar and first go and be reconciled back to them and then come back and offer the gift. Jesus makes some statements here that are hard to process. He used the phrase, you've heard, but I'm going to tell you this. The law says this, we can see this, but I'm going to tell you, it's going to go deeper when I can see. It's going to go down to the intention upon your own hearts. He covers things like anger, lust, divorce, honesty, adultery, much more, loving your enemies. Guys, I don't know about you, but this right here is some stout conversation. And everything in here is tied to what kind of person we should be. When it all looks messy on the outside, be sure you get right on the inside. Because here's a fact there's a kingdom way and there's a cultural way. There's a way the culture acts, and there's a way the king's kids act. I want to be a king's kid today. How about in the house today? You want to be a king's kid? Come on, give God praise. He's worthy of our praise. Be a king's kid. Here's a couple more thoughts for you. God's kingdom is a place we live for his glory and not our own. Jesus addressed three specific categories with the same theme. He discussed giving, praying, and fasting. And all three of these, he said, don't do it for somebody else to see. Do it for God to see. Now, I've got no issue with us digging in this for just a second. He's not saying you can't tell folks, yeah, I'm on a fast. What he's saying is, don't make a deal of it. Like they're gonna look at you, oh man, we're proud of you. What an amazing Christian you are. If you're fasting, we worship you today. It's giving God the glory. He's not saying you can't contribute and give, and people know what it is. What he's saying is, don't give for human recognition. Well, praying. You ever met folks that pray with strange voices sometimes? When I talk to God, it's like I'm talking right now. I was walking my dogs the other day a couple weeks back, and I was walking the dogs. You say you can walk dogs. Yes, I have two dogs because I have one wife. I love my wife, and she loves the dogs. And I take care of the dogs because I love my wife. That's how this works. And I was walking, and I'm just walking, and I said, God, I got issues. As if he was shocked. I said, I need you to, I don't know, I don't know why I'm this way. That's me talking to God. That's me praying. I didn't have a the or a thou, thouest on highest, most highest goddess in the worldest. I just said, God, I got I'm messed up. I got some issues. We just walked and we talked. See, I don't, my prayer is not for you to hear me pray. I don't ever pray for you to hear me pray. I just talked to God. Jesus took these three areas, goes, listen, guys, never do any of this for mankind to see. Do everything for God's glory today. When you're in God's kingdom, He is the one that gets the glory, gets the honor, gets the praise. He is worthy, we are not. He is holy, we are not, he is righteous, we are not. He alone deserves the honor and the glory and the praise. Can I get an amen today? Praise be to God. He's worthy today. Here's a last thought for you. In God's kingdom, this is in Matthew 6, Jesus made it so clear. In his kingdom, we seek the king first. He summarizes much of the entire Sermon on the Mount with this access point of seek ye first God's kingdom, his righteousness. And then all this will be added back to you. Think about that language right there today. Now, why am I opening up this message? Over the next few weeks, we're gonna be preaching to you more and more about the kingdom of God. Because the solution to the life outside is not starting outside, it's starting inside. It's starting in a space where the King of kings and Lord of Lords has full reign. The Lord's Prayer Simple summary Thy kingdom come and thy will be done on earth, as in what? As in heaven. That's the goal. These sermons, or these this sermon and the elements in the sermon itself break down for us so much about living a kingdom lifestyle. In his kingdom, there's blessing. In his kingdom, there's priority. In his kingdom, there is hope beyond this life. But it all begins by having a kingdom of God mindset. Not a culture one, but a kingdom one. It's all here in Matthew's gospel. We're gonna break it down the next few weeks here at Calvary Church. I want you to come every weekend. We're coming through the summertime, coming into back to school week and coming up in two weeks, and we got Calvary United in about a month or so away. A lot of moving parts. But listen, be here to hear the word of God because I want to show you the blueprint to live a different way in a world that desperately needs Jesus, the King, to return. Because in his kingdom, in his presence, there's fullness of joy. What goes on on the outside cannot affect what's on the inside when you know who the king is, who your source is, and who your savior is. I'll go back to it. This is why, like Paul, you can sing in prison. Like David, you can worship while hiding in a cave. You can sit in the face of the emperor who's about to commend you to death, and you can say, I know who my God is, and I know who I serve. You can tell Nebuchadnezzar, turn up the heat. We're not gonna bow to your idol. Because we know if God is for us, who can ever be against us today?