BORN AGAIN FIRST FOR THE KINGDOM OF GOD

 FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

           "SEEK YE FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD AND ALL THESE THINGS WILL ADDED TO YOU." . Matthew 6: 33

"Truly truly I say to you must be born above to see the kingdom of God "  John 3: 3

The first three Gospels are mostly about the kingdom of God. "Although the Cross was the primary mission of Christ on the Earth, it was not his main message, nor was it considered as an end in itself. Any careful study of the Gospels will reveal that the kingdom was the primary message of the teaching of Christ." that statement was written by a Dr. Earle E. Cairns, in his book, p. 54, "Christianity through The Centuries."

According to Dr. Cairns, " Christ taught that the kingdom will never be realized by an historical Evolution process in which the Church by social action prepares the world His coming. The Scriptures plainly teach that the future eschatological, as distinguished from the present ethical and spiritual phase of the Kingdom, will be realized supernaturally and cataclysmically at the coming of Christ rather than as a result of the work of the Church.
Hence, the primary task of the Church is not world conversion by preaching and social action, but the evangelization the world by the proclamation of the Gospel, so that those who are to make up the true church may have an opportunity to respond to that message as the Holy Spirit brings conviction to their hearts." P.56

Most evangelicals that I know of , that I have been associated with,  believe the above statements, but IM wonder sometimes if we sell short this last sentence that Cairn makes. I believe, the spiritual impact on our lives, that our new relationship with Christ and the Holy Spirit, should be life changing. I wonder if there are times in our zealous  efforts to win somebody to Christ, we are manipulating somebody, rather than the Holy Spirit bringing conviction in their hearts.

I believe it's true that, many times, the Holy Spirit does convert somebody later in life, after the initial efforts of the soulwinner.  And I don't mean to be knocking the zealous soul winner--obviously, we all need to give an account of our hope in Jesus Christ.  But we had better be aware of the fact that a person that is not born again by God the Holy Spirit is not born again.

John 1: 11-12 "... as many as received Him, He gave the right to become tshe children of God, even to those who believe on His name. Who were born, not of blood, nor the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of God."

"He saved US not on the basis of the deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His Mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ Our Savior."  Titus 3: 5