Quote:
Originally Posted by UntoHim
Hey Bible-believer, if "most Christians" are confounding the two kingdoms, maybe it's because the gospel writers and the Lord Jesus himself confounded the two kingdoms:
In Matthew 19 the terms kingdom of heaven and kingdom of God are used interchangeably WITHIN THE SPAN OF TWO CONSECUTIVE VERSES;
Brothers, sisters, friends, lurkers...we are in a race. God will not be mocked. If we are disqualified in this race in this age how could we possibly think that we will be rewarded in the age(s) to come"? To be sure, judgement will come, and so will the Kingdom of God and of Heaven. But first, judgment must begin at the house of God today. We cannot serve two masters, for these are masters of two different kingdoms. We can serve and worship the one true God, or we can serve the god of this world who has blinded the eyes of the unbelievers, and also those entrapped within false religion. Many of our dear brothers and sisters in the Local Church of Witness Lee have been blinded. They have been deceived into believing that the kingdom that Witness Lee built is the kingdom of God. They have been deceived into believing that their reward and punishment will be based upon the person and work of a mere man and his so-called ministry of the age. But we know better now, don't we?
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Very well said - both regarding the kingdom or God and the kingdom of heaven being the same; and the part about accountability for believers concerning what we do with this incredible grace we've been given! As has been stated before by various ones, I don't belief the intense punishment for believers who are "disqualified" - as was promoted by WL - is scriptural let alone supposedly having to be in the LC to be qualified to be in the kingdom!
However, over & over the NT exhorts and encourages us to run the race looking away to the goal of the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. In this life we do fail often, but it's not about the failure - it's the getting back up by looking away to Jesus ("they over came him by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony"). I believe He honors that - getting back up and and then being faithful in the few things He's given us individually to be good stewards of.