The Need For Citizens’ Orientation

Philippians 3


We are walking in today: The Need For Citizens’ Orientation

Witness way throughout the Bible: H734 orach--way, path, road, way of living

Job 6:18 The paths H734 of their way are turned aside; they go to nothing, and perish.

The Torah testifies.....................
Gen 49:17 Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, H734 that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward.

The prophets proclaim..................
 Isa 2:3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: H734 for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

The writings bear witness.............
 Pro 12:28 In the way H734 of righteousness is life; and in the pathway thereof there is no death.

Psa 119:128 Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right and I hate every false way. H734


Chapter 6 The Need For Citizens’ Orientation

Having just presented the idea that the Bible is the constitution of the Kingdom of The Most High, I want to quote a few statements from that constitution, for the sake of your orientation and alignment with the Kingdom way of doing things. These statements will start to move you into a thought process. The more you read the constitution of the Kingdom with a “Kingdom filter” on your mind, the more the light of understanding will dawn for you. (In the style of legal documents, I will use “sections” and “articles” in place of chapter and verse:)

Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of The Most High. (Section Ephesians, subsection 2, article 19)

For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Most High, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of The Most High; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. (Section Colossians, subsection one, articles 9 through 12)

For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Yahushua Hamashiach… (Section Philippians, subsection 3, article 20)

These words in the constitution of the Kingdom were written to citizens of the Kingdom in the present tense. They explain some of the current and ongoing rights, privileges, and duties that come with Kingdom citizenship. These rights, privileges, and duties belong to every citizen, including you, even if you are a very new citizen. You cannot earn them or improve on them. You can, however, remain ignorant of them and ignore them. That is why it is so important to talk about the Kingdom and to keep reading its constitution in depth in order to understand it.

Many sections of the Kingdom constitution were written by a citizen named Paul. Paul spent most of his adult life preaching, teaching and writing letters to citizens of the Kingdom, helping them adjust to the Kingdom lifestyle. Sometimes he had to correct misunderstandings about theological ideas. Yet he was never inventing anything new or establishing a new gospel. He was always addressing Kingdom issues.

This is because the citizens were always having adjustment problems. They had social problems, cultural problems, relationship problems, money problems--every category of problem you can think of. Paul explained to them, “Look, to live in this Kingdom there are some things you need to do, and some other things you need to stop doing, and here they are.”

You and I have adjustment problems as well. I am glad Paul wrote as much as he did, because today we can use all the help we can get. We need to understand more about our citizenship in the Kingdom.

Mental Transformation
Most of our problems start in our heads. Therefore, we need a mental transformation if we want to become full citizens of the Kingdom. We need to figure out our misconceptions and how to get rid of them, especially those religious concepts that we have been hearing all our lives. You and I want to be citizens of the Kingdom, free from labels and assumptions. I do not want to be Baptist, Methodist, Episcopalian, Catholic, Seventh-Day Adventist, Church of God, Assemblies of God, Charismatic, or Pentecostal anymore. I do not want to think of myself as a businessman, a pastor, an advisor, or any other kind of career person. I want misconceptions to be fully and continually cleaned out of me so I can start over. I want to start fresh as a citizen of the Kingdom of The Most High, and I want you to be able to start fresh, too, looking for the next assignment He will give you.

Turn your thoughts over to the Creator who made you. Let Him reorient your thinking. Turn over all of your possessions to Him. He is your King, and He owns it all anyway. Let Him show you how to redistribute everything you thought you owned.

Correct Concepts
Anybody who has studied communications knows what I mean when I say “noise.” A sender sends a message to an intended receiver, and noise is what happens during the transmission, in between when the message leaves the sender and gets received by the recipient. The noise can be very complicated to understand because it includes your culture, your educational level, your social upbringing, your religious history, your values, your moral status, and your present situation in life.

For something that is called “noise,” a lot of it is very hidden and silent. The most important part of the noise is what I call concepts. A concept is an idea, a thought that has been conceived as a mental picture. Thoughts are very powerful, even the ones that are never expressed in words. ( A word is an exposed thought, but most thoughts never get expressed.)

We think first, then we speak or write. We try to express our thoughts and we want others to understand them--but their own thoughts often alter their comprehension, resulting in misunderstandings or misconceptions.

Nothing is as dangerous as a misconception. Marriages can break up because of them. A husband and wife may actually love one another, but misconceptions arise and they enter into conflict. Governments and churches break up because of misconceptions, too. If you build your whole life on a certain idea and it becomes theory and then philosophy and then doctrine and then a belief system and finally a way of life and a mentality, you will not know that you have basically built your life on a lie. To you, it is not a lie; it’s the truth, and you will strongly defend even your misconception.

When it comes to truth about you and The Most High, most likely much of what you believe has been contaminated. People interpret words about The Most High through their pre-existing concepts. This includes the words in the Bible. Your seminary degree could be contaminated with ignorance of the true concepts about The Most High. You and your pastor and your church friends could all have pieces of the truth, but none of you has asked the original Sender to clear your mind of contaminated concepts so you can get the message right.

The King anticipated this problem. This is why He provided an expert Counselor for us, the Ruach Hakodesh, who can personally help you capture the correct concepts that come to you from the mind of The Most High. “He will guide you into all truth,” said Yahusha’s disciple John (John 16:13).

Correct concepts about The Most High include truth about the Kingdom of The Most High. When you rediscover the truth about your Kingdom citizenship, you rediscover something that has been lost over the years. The average person living in the Western world has no real understanding of the words that Yahusha used. So we superimpose on His words our concepts, which come from our culture and our environment. We build our lives on our own conclusions and we create a belief system called religion.

Instead of reading out of the Bible, we read into the Bible. And we miss the Kingdom because of the noise in our heads.

Humble And Teachable
Yahusha had the perfect remedy for noise. He took and put a child in front of his disciples and He said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 18:3, NIV). Entering the Kingdom requires that you exchange your theology, your doctrine, your old religion, and your independent self-sufficiency for something new. Unless you change, you cannot enter.

Children are like blank pages. They know nothing. To become like a child means you need to stop being an adult. Adults think they know a lot. Adults need to unlearn everything and start over. Unless you change, you will never enter the Kingdom.

When a rich young man asked Yahusha how he could be sure he would go to the Kingdom of Heaven, Yahusha answered, “Obey the laws of the country of Heaven” (see Matthew 19:16-30). But the young man was rich in material possessions. He had obeyed the letter of the law, but he was not humble in his heart. So Yahusha commented, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 19:23, NIV). The young man was so used to making his own living that he was going to find it difficult to stop taking care of himself and let the King do it. He had been schooled in self-sufficiency, and it was tough for him to believe that The Most High could supply his needs. His good life was getting in the way of Kingdom life.

In a way, we are like that rich young ruler. Our theology and our concepts occupy our minds and hearts. We say we want to enter the Kingdom, but we procrastinate. Not only do we need to listen to Yahusha when He says we should become like children, we need to remember the first words of his public ministry, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 4:17). The kingdom has arrived. It is here already. If you do not change your thinking in time, you will miss it.

Seek The Kingdom First
If you seek the Kingdom of Heaven and its King, you will not have to worry about anything else--riches or poverty, sickness or health, life or death. In seeking the Kingdom, you are also seeking, and you will find, the pure provision of the King for every contingency of life.

Yahusha said, Therefore do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?”... For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of The Most High and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matt. 6:31-33)

Another time, Yahusha made it clear that anybody who seeks for righteousness will surely find it: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Matt. 5:6). Once you find the Kingdom, you find righteousness, too. Your religious friends may not understand the change that has happened. Nevertheless, you will have found what you were looking for, and you will want to hang onto it.

In my experience, once people really know about the true Kingdom of The Most High and they see it modeled, they want to get in. Citizenship in the Kingdom is a powerful lure. Most pastors do not understand the Kingdom so they do not preach it or teach about it. Consequently, most of the people in the churches have not entered into the Kingdom, and they cannot model it. Why should it be a surprise that nobody wants to join their church? What is surprising is that anybody does!

Adamic Citizenship Restored
We know that the first kingdom in existence was the Kingdom of Heaven. There was no kingdom before that one. The very first citizen of the colony of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth was the first man, Adam. The Most High took some dirt and formed Adam’s body, and then He breathed the spirit into the body. Each one of us is like the first man Adam; we have a body that comes from the earth and a spirit that comes from the Most High.

The Most High never intended that Adam, or any of us would be considered citizens of the Earth, or even permanent residents. When I speak about Adamic citizenship, I am referring to a continuation of the original plan. What country is our citizenship in? Heaven. Do we expect to gain that citizenship status only upon arriving in Heaven after our death? Is this like retirement? Or can we experience heavenly citizenship right now? You know the answer: no matter where you go, your citizenship stays the same. You may live on Earth in a colony of the Kingdom of Heaven, but you remain a full citizen of Heaven.

But you also know what our problem is; we have become too used to the Earth that we think we are from the Earth and nowhere else. And we become a little afraid of the very thing we are supposed to rule. Yahusha was never intimidated by anything, whether it was a storm or demonic influences or a strong wind, or pestilence. He knew He was above all of that.

It would not be disrespectful to say Yahusha is like Superman. He came from another planet, so to speak and when He got here, He had super powers. As a matter of fact, the Superman story is probably the closest story to explain who you are. You, too, are from another “planet,” Heaven. When you came here, your powers kicked in because your only dominion is on Earth. When you go back to Heaven, you will not need your powers anymore. Kryptonie is sin. When you disobey the Most High’s laws you lose your powers on Earth. Obedience protects you from kryptonite. It is that simple.

Adam was the first citizen from Heaven on Earth, and he was given all the rights, privileges and authority of the heavenly kingdom, so that he could exercise dominion over the Earth. The Most High gave him authority over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the cattle of the field, and the creatures that creep over the ground---over all of the earth.

We are supposed to be part of that same arrangement. We are from Heaven, and we live on the Earth, having brought all of Heaven’s authority with us. For most of us to remember that we are really citizens of Heaven takes a major reorientation. Next time you walk into a meeting, engage in some kind of negotiations, or interview for a job, fix your mind on your true citizenship. “I am not from here,” you can say to yourself. “These people are being used by my government to fix me up.” When I walk into this room, my King walks in too. Through me, He is in charge here.”

Wake Up
When you wake up to the fact that you were created to be a Kingdom citizen, lights will come on in your mind. You will leave behind the things that used to keep you stressed and discontented and you will look for opportunities to bring the Kingdom into the world around you. Paul put it this way:
Ephesians 5:11-17 King James Version (KJV)
11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. 12 For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. 13 But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. 14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. 15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, 16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

We are from Heaven, and we live on the Earth, having brought all of Heaven’s authority with us. When you wake up and reorient yourself as a reborn citizen of the Kingdom of Light, the King will shine on you and His light will expose every last bit of darkness in you. He will expose your bad decisions and your irresponsible behavior. He will show you where you have been keeping bad company and how you waste money. Not only will He show you what is wrong in your life, He will show you what to do about it. He will help you gather up all the knowledge and understanding you have accumulated, and He’ll show you how to apply it.

Wisdom means applied knowledge. Knowledge and understanding by themselves are only comprehension, while wisdom is the application of that information. The kingdom is very practical. Everything you have learned up to now, the theories and principles, together with this great revelation you have gotten about the Kingdom, will apply to real-life situations. That is what Paul means above when he said, “making the most of every opportunity.” Time is limited and evil has had the upper hand for too long. By continuing to seek the Kingdom with passion, you may find that the King will redeem everything you lost through your mistakes.

You will understand more clearly what the King wants you to do. He will organize your schedule and dedicate the company you are supposed to keep. His will includes every detail of your life. The will of the Most High should show you whom to be with and whom not to be with, and when and for how long a time.

At last you will understand why certain things had to happen. The Most High will start to show you a vision for your life, your destiny in life. However, He will rarely let you see the steps of how to get there. This is because part of His plan is the process itself. He wants you to keep on exercising your citizenship privileges and to keep on trusting Him. Joseph could never have viewed all of this seemingly setbacks as steps to his destiny, but the Most High knew what He was doing when He allowed him to be thrown in a pit--a pit that happened to be located just along the route of the slave traders who would pull him out and take him to Egypt. Go to the book of Genesis chapters 37-50 to review the whole story. It is an excellent example of someone whose life belonged to the Most High.

My point is this: all you have to do is wake up and stay awake in the Kingdom. The King will take care of the details.

Managing the Planet
The will of the Most High for humankind is management all the way, just as it was originally with Adam. His will is not as many of us believe, singing and clapping hands and going to churches. It is actually management. It’s authority. It is taking responsibility for the things around us and bringing the Kingdom to bear on them.

As I have said already, every problem on the planet today is the result of mismanagement. Adam was given the original management contract for Earth and what did he do with it? He took the contract and gave it to an unemployed cherub named Lucifer, now better known as hasatan or the devil. Adam took the authority and the territory that had been given to him and gave them to someone else. Hasatan “managed” the world into darkness, because he did not have any light from Heaven. Adam had to struggle for everything and for all the rest of his life, he had one serious difficulty after another. Human beings have been following Adam’s example ever since.

When Adam mismanaged his assignment, the Most High took it away from him. The same thing happens to everyone of us. Whatever we mismanage, we lose. Whatever we manage with the Most High’s help, we improve. Managing the planet does not mean that we become super-heros or knights in shining armor who sweep away the opposition and conquer the world. Our management takes place in our own homes and neighborhoods, in our places of employment. We manage our own bodies by eating the right foods and getting enough sleep. We manage our marriages by spending time cultivating them. We manage our jobs and our salaries by getting to work on time and working diligently until quitting time. Thanks to the King’s guidance our steps take us to the right places at the right times. Once in a while, we know what it is like to be given a bigger assignment.

Adam lost the real estate he had been given to manage. We are being given a second chance. Now that Yahusha has come as the

Second Adam, our authority has been restored. The kingship of the Most High has an opportunity to prevail!

We read in the constitution of the Kingdom that the earth is the Most High’s (See Exodus 9:29 ad Psalm 24:1) The Most High never gave ownership of it to Adam, only the management of it. This was a good move, in light of what happened. The Most High was wise not to give ownership to human beings. Sure enough, when the first man messed up his management duties, the Most High could work out another plan. He hadn’t lost the planet altogether. If you manage somebody’s apartments, the landlord still owns them. If you mismanage the property, the owner will simply fire you. He retains ownership and he can give management to whomever he wants to. He will look for somebody with a good track record.

I hope you realize that the Most High does not hand you gifts from His storehouse just because you call yourself a Christian or even because you are righteous. He gives you what you need for your management assignment. He will let you keep managing what He owns as long as you keep managing it well. If you handle your money and other possessions well He will give you more to manage. That is Kingdom thinking, and the more we think that way, the better off we will be.

The Kingdom Is Now
Churches are filled with people who say the Kingdom is still coming. They believe that they will be in the Kingdom--someday. They think that the people who believe in Yahusha will be full citizens after they get to Heaven, and that they must postpone their joy until then. “Thy Kingdom come,” means we should pray for it to come, but it is not here yet, they say.

They are wrong. The Kingdom has come already. The Kingdom is here, now. It is present and functional on planet Earth and once you have been born again then you have been naturalized as a Kingdom citizen. “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven” means that the Kingdom is alive and stirring already, and we are participants in it, bringing the Most High’s will to the Earth.

Please wake up to the fact that the Kingdom is here and you have work to do. Do not lock the door against those who want to get in by telling them that it isn’t time yet. Orient yourself to the idea of your full Kingdom citizenship. Pursue the Kingdom and its righteousness with a passion, and your life will overflow with Heaven!
Shema Selah what ways will your life according to??? Man or the King of Kings??? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GblK3RBMovI