The third step to get into the unexplored territory of the kingdom of God is to become a citizen of the kingdom.
3. CITIZENS OF THE KINGDOM
We are not church members but citizens of the Kingdom. A church member easily leaves the church when he has problems or when he feels uneasy, but the citizen never leaves. No citizen ever forsakes his country whenever he encounters problems. Citizens speak of rights or privileges and benefits.
As a citizen of the Kingdom, you have the right to be protected by the Kingdom. That’s why the Kingdom deploys 12 battalions of armies (angels) of heaven for every citizen (When Peter cut the ear of the servant of the high priest, Jesus rebuked him “Do not do it. Don’t you know that I can ask my Father to send 12 legions of angels?”) One battalion is approximately 6,000 armies. So, that is a total of 72,000 armies for 12 battalions. Imagine you are surrounded by 72,000 armies 24 hours a day to guard you! It’s only in the Kingdom that men can enjoy security. No government on earth could promise security to its citizens, not even the very powerful countries like America but it is only in the Kingdom where every citizen is secured. That is how the King loves His citizens.
You also have the right to be healed. So if you are sick, you can easily claim your rights as a citizen of the Kingdom. In the earthly kingdom, the king puts up a hospital for his citizens, and every citizen of that country is entitled to a free hospitalization without paying anything. I learned about this when I was in Brunei. The hospitalization there is free. This is one of the rights of the citizens in that country. However, in the Kingdom of God, the citizens do not only have the right to be hospitalized for free but to be completely healed as well. In the earthly kingdom, citizens are allowed to be hospitalized for free but it does not mean that they have the right to be healed. Healing is not assured in the hospital but in the Kingdom, healing is assured for it is your right!
Many Christians today cry for healing to God because they do not know their rights in the Kingdom. They cry for healing, they struggle for healing and they beg for healing. They do not realize that they are entitled to it. During the time of Jesus Christ, He was questioned when He healed a sick woman on Sabbath, because the Pharisees forbid healing during this day. By the way, the Pharisees twisted the truth about Sabbath – that healing is forbidden. The original concept of Sabbath that came from God does not forbid healing. Actually, healing is allowed even during this day because Sabbath means rest. How can you rest if you are sick? For the Pharisees, it is like they are telling people to enjoy their sickness during Sabbath, and wait for another day for their healing. But for the Lord, it is the opposite- get healed first when you are sick, and then rest! That is the real essence of Sabbath. When Jesus Christ healed a sickly woman on Sabbath, He was questioned by the Pharisees. And He countered, “Isn’t this woman the daughter of Abraham?” (Luke 13:16). Jesus went for the rights of that woman. With this, the Pharisees could not argue anymore because they understood about the rights. So if you are sick now, you can claim your right to be healed if you are truly a citizen of the Kingdom.
As a citizen of the kingdom, you also have the right to be blessed. Blessed means consecrated, sanctified, divinely or supremely favored. It means, if you committed a mistake (sin), you have the right to be consecrated (sanctified or purified) if you repent from your wrongdoing. And why do we need to be consecrated? It is because our access to the Father is cut off when we commit sin and when our access to Him is taken away, that means, everything will be cut off from us: the fellowship, provision, direction and protection of our Father and King.
Finally, as a citizen of the kingdom, you also have the right to be blessed financially. When you are blessed, Satan could not interfere with your blessings. He could not steal your blessings because you are supremely blessed. The word “supremely” in this context means “untouchable” by any power outside the Kingdom.
