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We have seen that in the progressing stage of God’s full salvation, the believers corporately experience the dispensing of the Divine Trinity by entering into the kingdom of God. In this lesson we will see that because we have entered into the kingdom of God, we need to live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens (Matt. 5—7). If we desire to develop in the divine life to have a rich entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we need to live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens.
The kingdom of the heavens is a term used exclusively in the Gospel of Matthew, indicating that the kingdom of the heavens differs from the kingdom of God, which is mentioned in the other three Gospels. The kingdom of God is God’s general reign from eternity past to eternity future. The kingdom of the heavens is a specific section within the kingdom of God, a section composed only of the church today and the heavenly part of the coming millennial kingdom. Hence, in the New Testament, the kingdom of the heavens, a section of the kingdom of God, is also called “the kingdom of God” in the other three Gospels.
According to Matthew, there are three aspects concerning the kingdom of the heavens: the reality, the appearance, and the manifestation. The reality of the kingdom of the heavens is the inward content of the kingdom of the heavens in its heavenly and spiritual nature, as revealed in chapters 5 through 7. The appearance of the kingdom of the heavens is the outward state of the kingdom of the heavens in name, as revealed in chapter 13. The manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens is the practical coming of the kingdom of the heavens in power, as revealed in chapters 24 and 25. Both the reality and the appearance of the kingdom of the heavens are with the church today. The reality of the kingdom of the heavens is the proper church life (Rom. 14:17), which exists in the appearance of the kingdom of the heavens, known as Christendom. The manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens is the heavenly part of the coming millennial kingdom, which is referred to as the kingdom of the Father in Matthew 13:43. In the heavenly part of the millennial kingdom, which is the kingdom of the heavens manifested in power, the overcoming saints will reign with Christ for a thousand years (Rev. 20:4, 6). Today, as believers in Christ, we need to live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens by entering into the kingdom of God for the corporate experience of the dispensing of the Divine Trinity.
Matthew 5 through 7 describes the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. The words spoken by the Lord Jesus in these chapters, as the revelation of the spiritual living and heavenly principles of the kingdom of the heavens, consist of seven sections (5:1-12, 13-16, 17-48; 6:1-18, 19-34; 7:1-12, 13-29). We will now briefly look at these sections to see the living of the believers in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens.
If we would live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, we must live in the heavenly nature of the kingdom people. Matthew 5:1-12 describes this nature in relation to nine blessings. Those who live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens are poor in spirit, mourning for the present situation, meek in suffering opposition, hungry and thirsty for righteousness, merciful toward others, pure in heart, peaceful toward all men, suffering persecution for righteousness, and bearing reproach and evil speaking on behalf of the Lord.
Verse 3 says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of the heavens.” The word spirit refers not to the Spirit of God but to our human spirit, the deepest part of our being, the organ by which we contact God and realize spiritual things. To be poor in spirit is not only to be humble but also to be emptied in our spirit, in the depth of our being, not holding on to the old things of the old dispensation but unloaded to receive new things, the things of the kingdom of the heavens. We need to be poor in this part of our being so that we may realize and possess the kingdom of the heavens. If we are poor in spirit, the kingdom of the heavens is ours; we are in its reality now in the church age, and we will share in its manifestation in the kingdom age.
In verse 4 the Lord Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” The entire situation of the world is negative toward God’s economy. Satan, sin, self, darkness, and worldliness predominate among all the people on earth. God’s glory is insulted, Christ is rejected, the Holy Spirit is frustrated, the church is desolate, the self is corrupt, and the whole world is evil. God wants us to mourn over such a situation. If we mourn according to God and His economy, we will be comforted by being rewarded with the kingdom of the heavens. We will see God’s heavenly ruling over the entire negative situation.
Verse 5 says, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” Verse 3 speaks of being poor in spirit, verse 4 speaks of mourning, and verse 5 speaks of being meek. To be meek does not mean simply to be gentle, humble, and submissive. To be meek means not to resist the world’s opposition but to suffer it willingly. To be meek means not to fight or resist. If we are meek, willing to suffer the world’s opposition in this age, we will inherit the earth in the coming age, as revealed in Luke 19:17, 19 and Hebrews 2:5-8.
In Matthew 5:6 the Lord said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” Righteousness here denotes our being right in our behavior. We need to hunger and thirst for this righteousness, to seek after such righteousness, that we may enter into the kingdom of the heavens (vv. 10, 20). This righteousness is related to what we are inwardly, which is indicated by the fact that we are told to hunger and thirst for righteousness so that we may be satisfied. If we hunger and thirst for righteousness, God will grant us the very righteousness we seek, that we may be satisfied.
In verse 7 the Lord continued, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy.” To be righteous is to give one what he deserves, whereas to be merciful is to give one what he does not deserve. For the kingdom of the heavens, we need to be not only righteous but also merciful. To receive mercy is to receive what we do not deserve. If we are merciful to others, the Lord will grant us mercy (2 Tim. 1:16, 18), especially at His judgment seat (James 2:12-13). If we judge our brother without mercy today, we will not receive any mercy at the judgment seat of Christ. However, if we have mercy on our brother, the Lord will have mercy on us at His judgment seat. Thus, we should be strict in dealing with ourselves but merciful in dealing with others. This also is a matter related to our inward being.
In Matthew 5:8 the Lord continued, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” To be pure in heart is to be single in purpose, to have the single goal of accomplishing God’s will for God’s glory (1 Cor. 10:31). This is for the kingdom of the heavens. Our spirit is the organ by which we receive Christ (John 1:12; 3:6), whereas our heart is the ground where Christ as the seed of life grows (Matt. 13:19). For the kingdom of the heavens we need to be poor in spirit, empty in our spirit, so that we may receive Christ. We also need to be pure, single, in our heart so that Christ may grow in us without frustration. If we are pure in heart in seeking God, we will see God. Seeing God is a reward to the pure in heart. This blessing is both for today and for the coming age.
Verse 9 says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.” Satan, the rebellious one, is the instigator of all rebellion. For the kingdom of the heavens, under its heavenly ruling, we must be those who make peace among men (Heb. 12:14). The sons of the devil make trouble, but the sons of God make peace. As the Son of God, the Lord Jesus made peace with God and with man. Now, as the sons of God, we must follow Him to make peace. Our Father is the God of peace (Rom. 15:33; 16:20), having a peaceful life with a peaceful nature. As those born of Him, if we would be peacemakers, we must walk in His divine life and according to His divine nature. In this way we will express His life and nature and be called the sons of God.
In Matthew 5:10-11 the Lord Jesus spoke of the believers being persecuted and reproached. Verse 10 says, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of the heavens.” The whole world lies in the evil one and is filled with unrighteousness (1 John 5:19). If we hunger and thirst for righteousness, we will be persecuted for the sake of righteousness. For the sake of the kingdom of the heavens, we need to pay a price for the righteousness that we seek. If we are righteous, we shall be condemned, opposed, and persecuted. If we seek righteousness at a cost, the kingdom of the heavens is ours; we are in its reality now, and we will be rewarded with its manifestation in the coming age.
The Lord concluded His words concerning the nature of the kingdom people in Matthew 5:11, saying, “Blessed are you when they reproach and persecute you, and while speaking lies, say every evil thing against you because of Me.” The persecution in verse 10 is for the sake of righteousness, because of our seeking for righteousness, whereas the persecution in verse 11 is directly on account of Christ, because of our following Him. When we live a life for the kingdom of the heavens, in the spiritual nature of the kingdom and according to the heavenly principles of the kingdom, we are reproached, persecuted, and evilly spoken of, mostly by the religious people, who hold to their traditional religious concepts.
In verse 12 the Lord Jesus spoke an encouraging word to those who are persecuted for His sake: “Rejoice and exult, for your reward is great in the heavens; for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” This reward indicates that all the results of the foregoing blessings are also rewards. This reward is great and is in the heavens; it is a heavenly reward, not an earthly one.
The Lord Jesus, in speaking of the believers’ influence on the world, said that we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world (vv. 13-14). There is a difference between the earth and the world. The earth was created by God, whereas the world came into being through the corruption of the earth. We are salt to the God-created earth and light to the Satan-corrupted world.
The first part of verse 13 says, “You are the salt of the earth.” Salt, by nature, is an element that kills and eliminates the germs of corruption. To the corrupted earth the believers who live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens are such an element, keeping the earth from being fully corrupted. This means that the believers exercise influence over the God-created earth. The believers, as salt with its killing and preserving function, bring the earth back to its original condition and preserve it in that condition. Hence, the function of the believers is to preserve what God has created. As the salt of the earth, we have the function of killing germs and eliminating rottenness, that is, of preserving things in their original condition or of bringing them back to their God-created condition. Eventually, when the millennial kingdom comes, all the germs on the earth will be utterly killed, and the whole earth will be regained by Christ and brought back to its God-created condition. In this age, wherever the believers are, they should exercise a salting influence over those around them.
Regarding the earth, there is the need of salt; regarding the world, there is the need of light. Darkness is not related to the earth but to the world. The world refers to human society, Satan’s system. The dark human society of the world, the satanic system, needs light. Therefore, the Lord Jesus said, “You are the light of the world” (v. 14a). The believers are the light that effaces the world’s darkness.
In verses 14 and 15 the Lord Jesus said, “It is impossible for a city situated upon a mountain to be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp and place it under the bushel, but on the lampstand; and it shines to all who are in the house.” Here the Lord spoke regarding the believers’ outward and inward shining. The light as a city on a mountain shines outwardly upon those outside, whereas the lighted lamp on the lampstand shines inwardly to those who are in the house. As the city, the light shines upon people, but as the lamp in the house, the light shines into people. This indicates that our influence over others should not merely be outward but also inward. The outward shining is general, but the inward shining is particular. A city situated on the mountain has a general outward shining, but a lamp on a lampstand has a particular inward shining. This inward shining penetrates the inward being of others and convinces them.
Eventually, both aspects of our shining will give glory to the Father. Verse 16 says, “In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in the heavens.” Good works constitute the behavior and living of the believers who live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. Through such works men can see God and be brought to Him. Our shining glorifies the Father because it expresses God. Glory is God expressed. When we express God in our behavior and good works, men see God and give the glory to God. If we are such a shining light, God will be expressed in our shining, and all those around us will see glory, God expressed. When others see God in our shining, it is a glory to God. As a city without and as a lamp within, we shine to express God, to let God have the glory in the eyes of others.
The believers who live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens practice the higher law of the kingdom of the heavens and have the surpassing righteousness. In 5:17-48 the Lord Jesus decreed the law of the kingdom people. As the children of our Father, we must now fulfill this new law, the higher law, through the resurrection life, the eternal life of the Father.
In verse 20 the Lord said, “I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall by no means enter into the kingdom of the heavens.” Righteousness does not refer only to objective righteousness, which is the Christ whom we receive when we believe in Him and thus are justified before God (1 Cor. 1:30, Rom. 3:26); it refers even more to subjective righteousness, which is the indwelling Christ lived out of us as our righteousness that we may live in the reality of the kingdom today and enter into its manifestation in the future. This subjective righteousness, which is according to the new law of the kingdom, surpasses the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. It is impossible for our natural life to gain this surpassing righteousness; it can be produced only by a higher life, the resurrection life of Christ.
In Matthew 5:48 the Lord said, “You therefore shall be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.” For us to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect means that we are perfect in His love. We are the Father’s children, having the Father’s divine life and divine nature. Hence, we can be perfect as our Father is perfect. The demand of the new law of the kingdom can be met only by the Father’s divine life, not by the natural life. The kingdom of the heavens is the highest demand, and the divine life of the Father is the highest supply to meet that demand.
Matthew 6:1-18 speaks concerning the righteous deeds of the kingdom people. The Lord said, “Take care not to do your righteousness before men in order to be gazed at by them; otherwise, you have no reward with your Father who is in the heavens” (v. 1). Righteousness here denotes righteous deeds. Man’s flesh, seeking to glorify itself, always wants to do good deeds before men in order to gain men’s praise. However, the kingdom people, who live in an emptied and humbled spirit and walk in a pure and single heart under the heavenly ruling of the kingdom, are not allowed to do anything in the flesh to gain the praise of men but must do all things in the spirit in order to please their heavenly Father. Their doing righteous deeds is not to gain man’s glory but to receive the Father’s reward.
The believers should live by the Father’s divine life and walk according to their spirit. Hence, they are required to do good things in secret, not in public (vv. 3-4). Public exhibition does not correspond with the mysterious, hidden nature of the divine life.
In all His illustrations, regarding giving alms, praying, and fasting, the Lord Jesus used the word secret (vv. 4, 6, 18). We must do our righteous deeds in secret, for our Father is in secret. As children of the heavenly Father, we must live in the presence of the Father and care for the Father’s presence. The Father sees in secret whatever we do in secret for the Father’s kingdom. The Father’s seeing in secret is an incentive for doing our righteous deeds in secret. Eventually, the Father will repay us. This may take place in this age (2 Cor. 9:10-11) or in the coming age as a reward (Luke 14:14).
In Matthew 6:19-34 the Lord Jesus spoke regarding dealing with material riches. In this portion of the Word the Lord told us not to love or serve mammon but to love and serve God. In verse 20 He said, “Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” To store up treasures in heaven is to give material things to the poor (19:21) and to take care of the needy saints and the Lord’s servants (Acts 2:45; 4:34-35; 11:29; Rom. 15:26; Phil. 4:16-17).
In Matthew 6:21 the Lord said, “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” We must send our treasure to heaven so that our heart can also be in heaven.
In verse 22 the Lord continued and said, “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is single, your whole body will be full of light.” Our two eyes can focus on only one thing at a time. If we endeavor to see two things at once, our vision will be blurred. If we focus our eyes on one thing, our vision will be single and our whole body will be full of light. If we store up our treasure in heaven and on earth, our vision will be blurred. For our vision to be single, we must store up our treasure in only one place.
In verse 24 the Lord told us that we cannot serve two masters: “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” The word mammon is an Aramaic word signifying wealth, riches. Mammon stands in opposition to God, indicating that wealth, or riches, is the opponent of God, robbing God’s people of their service to Him. As people who live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, we should not let mammon replace God in our living. Instead of loving and serving riches, we should love and serve God. This is an aspect of living in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens.
In verse 33 the Lord Jesus said, “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” The Father’s kingdom is the reality of the kingdom of the heavens today, the reality of the church life today, and will be the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens in the coming age. The Father’s righteousness is the righteousness expressed by keeping the new law of the kingdom. This righteousness is Christ lived out by the kingdom people. If we seek first the kingdom of our Father and His righteousness, not only will His kingdom and His righteousness be given to us, but also all that we need will be added to us.
As those who live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, we should deal more with ourselves than with others (7:1-12). The Lord Jesus said, “Do not judge, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you shall be judged; and with what measure you measure, it shall be measured to you” (vv. 1-2). Living in a humble spirit under the heavenly ruling of the kingdom, we should always judge ourselves, not others. Under the heavenly ruling of the kingdom, the believers will be judged with what they judge others. If we judge others with righteousness, the Lord will judge us with righteousness; if we judge others with mercy, we will be judged with mercy by the Lord.
Matthew 7:3-5 says, “Why do you look at the splinter which is in your brother’s eye, but the beam in your eye you do not consider? Or how can you say to your brother, Let me remove the splinter from your eye, and behold, the beam is in your eye? Hypocrite, first remove the beam from your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the splinter from your brother’s eye.” In these verses we see that as people living in a humble spirit under the heavenly ruling of the kingdom, we must consider the beam in our own eye whenever we look at a splinter in our brother’s eye. A splinter in our brother’s eye must remind us that we have a beam in our own eye. Then we will deal with ourselves more than with others. We must deal more strictly with ourselves than with others.
Finally, if we live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, we need to walk on the way that leads to life and receive Christ’s words as the foundation of our living and work so that we may do the Father’s will. In 7:13-14 the Lord Jesus said, “Enter in through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter through it. Because narrow is the gate and constricted is the way that leads to life, and few are those who find it.” In verse 13, destruction does not refer to the perishing of the person himself, but to the destruction of a person’s deeds and works (1 Cor. 3:15). In Matthew 7:14 life refers to the ever-blessed condition of the kingdom, which is filled with the eternal life of God. This life is in the reality of the kingdom today and will be in the manifestation of the kingdom in the coming age (19:29; Luke 18:30).
The gate is narrow and the way is constricted because the new law of the kingdom is stricter and the demand of the kingdom higher than the law and the demand of the old covenant. The narrow gate deals not only with outward conduct but also with inward motive. The old man, the self, the flesh, the human concept, and the world with its glory are all excluded; only that which corresponds with God’s will can enter in. If we would live in the reality of the kingdom, we first need to enter in through such a narrow gate and then to walk on such a constricted way. To enter in through the narrow gate is simply to begin walking on the way, a way that is lifelong.
We should not only walk on the way that leads to life but also receive the words of Christ as the foundation of our living and work. Everything we do in our living and work must have the word of Christ as its foundation. The Lord said, “Everyone therefore who hears these words of Mine and does them shall be likened to a prudent man who built his house upon the rock” (Matt. 7:24). Rock does not refer to Christ but to His wise word, the word that reveals the will of His Father. Our living and work must be founded on the word of Christ for the accomplishing of the will of the heavenly Father. To take Christ’s words as the foundation of our living and work is to enter the narrow gate and walk on the constricted way that leads to life.
Concerning the house built upon the rock, the Lord said, “The rain descended, and the rivers came, and the winds blew, and they beat against that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock” (v. 25). The rain, which descends from the heavens, is of God; the rivers, which come from the earth, are of man; and the winds, which blow from the air, are of Satan. All these will test our living and work. Although the rain may descend, the rivers may come, and the winds may blow, the house built upon the rock will not fall because it is built according to the constricted way, the way of doing the will of the Father. The house built on the rock, a house that does not fall, is like the work that is built with gold, silver, and precious stones, a work that can stand the testing fire (1 Cor. 3:12-13). However, the house built upon the sand of our human concepts and natural ways will surely fall (Matt. 7:26-27). If we do not receive the words of Christ as the foundation of our life and work, eventually all that we have done will be destroyed.
To do the will of the Father, we must walk on the way that leads to life and receive the words of Christ as the foundation of our life and work. In verse 21 the Lord Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter into the kingdom of the heavens, but he who does the will of My Father who is in the heavens.” To enter into the kingdom of the heavens, we need to do two things: call on the Lord and do the will of the heavenly Father. To call on the Lord suffices for us to be saved (Rom. 10:13), but to enter into the kingdom of the heavens, we also need to do the will of the heavenly Father. Since entering into the kingdom of the heavens also requires doing the will of the heavenly Father, it is clearly different from entering into the kingdom of God through regeneration (John 3:3, 5). The latter entrance is through being born of the divine life; the former is through the living of that life.
If we live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, we will do the will of the Father who is in the heavens. We are not here to do anything other than the will of the Father. In order to do the will of the Father, we need to walk on the constricted way, the way that leads to life. Our Father has a will to accomplish, but we can accomplish it only by His life. Hence, we need to live in and by the life of the heavenly Father. Such a living is for the doing of the Father’s will.
Matthew 16 reveals that the Father’s will is to build the church upon the Son as the rock. This is fully developed in the Acts, the Epistles, and Revelation. The New Testament reveals that God’s divine and eternal will is to build up the church. The believers who live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, corporately experiencing the dispensing of the Divine Trinity, walk on the way that leads to life and receive the words of Christ as the foundation of their living and work so that they can do the Father’s will, which is to build up the church as the corporate expression of the Triune God.
As believers in Christ, we need to live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens by entering into the kingdom of God to corporately experience the dispensing of the Divine Trinity. Matthew 5 through 7 describes the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, revealing the spiritual life and the heavenly principles related to the kingdom of the heavens; these chapters consist of seven sections. Since we have entered into the kingdom of God, we need to live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens according to what is portrayed in these sections. First, we must be in the heavenly nature of the kingdom people. Matthew 5:1-12 describes the heavenly nature of the kingdom people in relation to nine blessings, including being poor in spirit, mournful of the present situation, meek in suffering oppositions, hungry and thirsty for righteousness, merciful toward others, pure in heart, peaceful toward all men, suffering persecution for righteousness, and bearing reproach and evil speaking on behalf of the Lord. Second, we must be the salt of the earth to restrict the corruption of the earth and be the light of the world to enlighten the world. Third, we need to practice the higher law of the heavenly kingdom and have the surpassing righteousness. In 5:17-48 the Lord Jesus decreed the law of the kingdom people. As children of our Father, we now need to fulfill this new law, the higher law, through the divine life, the eternal life of the Father. Fourth, we need to do righteous deeds and contact God in secret without making a show. Whatever we do in secret for the Father’s kingdom, whether it is giving alms, praying, or fasting, the Father sees in secret and will repay us. Fifth, we need to not love or serve mammon but to love and serve God. When we seek first the kingdom of our heavenly Father and His righteousness, not only will His kingdom and His righteousness be given to us, but also all that we need will be added to us. Sixth, we need to deal more with ourselves than with others. Living in a humble spirit under the heavenly ruling of the kingdom, we always judge ourselves and not others. Seventh, we need to walk on the way that leads to life and accept the words of Christ as the foundation of our living and work so that we may do the will of the Father. In order to do the will of the Father, we need to walk on the constricted way, the way that leads to life, for the building up of the church as the corporate expression of the Triune God.
