ENTERING GOD'S

KINGDOM ON EARTH
By Richard D. Saxton

I believe that Christ came to earth, not only to die on the cross and be resurrected, but
also to help us humans find the Kingdom of God in the here and now. His sermon on the
mount is not an apple pie in the sky moralist view, but rather a means to change
ourselves to be able to perceive and live in God's Kingdom right here and now. In order
to live in Gods Kingdom while still on earth, we must bring our soul (in Greek
"Psyche") into harmony with the Kingdom. A radio is a good analogy. The radio waves
of a particular radio station are all around us, whether we hear them or not. To listen to a
particular radio station, you must turn your radio on and tune your radio to the desired
station. So, to enter the Kingdom of God while you are still alive, you have to attune
yourself to it. A very simple and powerful way to do this is to modify our thinking (and
then our doing) to be consistent with the teachings of Jesus himself, not just the
teachings about him. It is simple, but it takes much practice and patience. From a
Christian point of view, it is not just our efforts that help us to live in the Kingdom, but
more importantly, by the Plan and Grace of God. Never the less, since we have free will
of our own, we need to take the first step towards God by harmonizing our being with
God, rather than with mammon.

Philosophy, Science, and religion are of one accord concerning the power of thought to
transform our life. By applying Jesus' teaching to our life (in thought and deed) we can
change our soul to be in harmony with God and live in God's Kingdom right here, right
now.

PHILOSOPHY
The following quotation from James Allen's book "As a man thinketh", summarizes one
of the meanings of Jesus' statement "As you sow, that also will you reap".

"The aphorism, as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he, not only embraces the whole of
a man's being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and
circumstance of his life. A man literally is what he thinks. His character being the
complete sum of all his thoughts. As the plant springs from and could not be without,
the seed, so every act of a man springs from the hidden seeds of thought, and could not
have appeared without them. This applies equally to those acts called spontaneous and
unpremeditated, as to those which are deliberately executed."

"Joseph Weed, in his book "Wisdom of the mystic masters", puts it this way.

"No one will deny that thought is powerful and most will admit it is the most powerful
energy available to Mankind. For this reason it is easy to accept as true the statement
that miracles can be accomplished by thought. That thought can change your life, bring
you wealth, comfort, security, what ever you need and want. And it can, if you know
how to think.
In order to employ the power of thought, it is necessary to start from the beginning and
learn how to use your mind and brain in almost the same way the infant achieves
control of his muscles. The child learns automatically, driven by its needs and desires.
You must consciously train yourself, a more difficult task because it requires the use of
the will."

SCIENCE
Dr. David Burns, in his book about depression "feeling good - the new mood therapy",
has this to say about the effects of their thoughts upon a person.

"The negative thoughts that flood your mind are the actual cause of your self-defeating
emotions. These thoughts are what keep you lethargic and make you feel inadequate.
Your negative thoughts, or cognition's, are the most frequently overlooked symptoms of
your depression. These cognition's contain the key to relief and are therefore your most
important symptoms.... Your emotions result entirely from the way you look at things. It
is an obvious neurological fact that before you can experience any event, you must
process it with your mind and give it meaning. If your understanding of what is
happening is accurate, your emotions will be normal. If your perception is twisted and
distorted in some way, your emotional response will be abnormal."

Paul Gilbert, professor of clinical psychology at the University of Derby, has this to say
in his book "Overcoming Depression".

"When we dwell on something, we turn an idea or set of beliefs over and over in our
minds. A common situation is to lie in bed and worry, your mind focusing on a
particular train of thought. This is not the same as having immediate reactions to
something and then pulling back and seeking out the evidence. When we dwell on
things, we are allowing ourselves to think along a certain path for many minutes or
even hours. When we respond rapidly and emotionally to something, we may need to
stop ourselves and focus on what we are thinking. When we dwell on something, we are
more clear about what we are thinking. The important thing here is to recognize that
dwelling on negative thoughts can have the effect of making negative feelings become
entrenched."

The previous two quotations recommend changing your thought patterns in a reactive
way. When you find yourself thinking negatively, examine your thoughts to determine if
they are logical and accurate, or if you are using logical fallacies. Then you can
determine if your thoughts can be changed to accurately reflect reality in a more
positive way.

RELIGION
The final quotation is by Kabir Helminski, a Moslem mystic, in his excellent book
"Living Presence - a Sufi way to mindfulness and the Essential self."

"How we perceive the world depends on how we understand it. Our ideas shape our
experience of reality, and it is with our ideas of reality that we should begin if we are
going to be at home in the world of Unity. Ideas alone may not bring us into that unified
reality, but those rooted in meaningless disunity, and separation need to be weeded out.
Furthermore, ideas that support experience of Unity and Presence need to be learned
so thoroughly that their significance is transferred to the subconscious mind ... What we
choose to give our attention to we energize. We should accept certain impressions and
not dwell on others. The more conscious we make this process, the less we will energize
those things that conflict with our well-being and values. Attention develops as the
gatekeeper of all impressions."

From the forgoing quotations, it seems obvious that thought can be a powerful tool for
transformation. In fact, if you do not direct your thoughts, they will be directed for you
by your environment and others who may not have your best interests at heart. The
question then becomes, what should we think. If we wish to apply Christian spirituality
to our lives, we should use the teachings of Jesus Christ as a role model. The sermon on
the mount is a good starting place. As I mentioned earlier, at first reading, those
teachings seem unreachable by the average person. But with our intention to live in the
Kingdom of God while we are on earth, and by the Grace of God, we can live those
teachings. Directing our thoughts is a key to the Kingdom of God.
One version of the sermon on the mount is found in Mathew chapters 5-7. Its main
theme is love. When the Pharisees asked Jesus which is the greatest commandment in
the law, He said:
"You shall love the Lord your God will all your heart and with all your soul and with all
your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And the second is like it: You
shall love your neighbor as yourself". (Matthew 22:37-39)
Jesus also said: "A new commandment I give to you, that you also love one another,
even as I loved you. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have
love for one another." (John 13:34-35)
Jesus also said: "Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will never enter the kingdom of Heaven." (Matthew 5:20) The righteousness of the
scribes and Pharisees was in deed only. James Allen referred to this in his book "The
way of Peace":
"The giving-up of self is not merely the renunciation of outward things. It consists of
the renunciation of the inward sin, the inward error. Not by giving up vain clothing; not
by relinquishing riches; not by abstaining from certain foods; not by speaking smooth
words; not by merely doing these things is the Truth found; but by giving up the spirit of
vanity; by relinquishing the desire for riches; by abstaining from the lust of self-
indulgence; by giving up all hatred, strife, condemnation, and self-seeking, and
becoming gentle and pure at heart; by doing these things is the Truth found. To do the
former, and not the latter, is pharisaism and hypocrisy, whereas the later includes the
former.
You may renounce the outward world, and isolate yourself in a cave or in the depths of
a forest, but you will take all your selfishness with you, and unless you renounce that,
great indeed will be your wretchedness and deep your delusion. You may remain just
where you are, performing all your duties, and yet renounce the world, the inward
enemy. To be in the world and yet not of the world is the highest perfection, the most
blessed peace, and is to achieve the greatest victory."
One of Jesus' beatitudes is "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness,
for they shall be satisfied." (Matthew 5:6) Righteousness means not only to be right in
your behavior, but also to be right in your thinking. It will do you little good to act
rightly unless you think rightly too. If a person acts kindly and friendly, but inwardly
thinks badly of others and seeks only his/her own good, he/she will resent others and
will not be satisfied. Only if you think and act for the benefit of a other people and
yourself, will you be satisfied. In fact, this beatitude summarizes the purpose of this
cyber-paper.
The following bible passage was directed to the people of God's kingdom here on earth.
"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt has become tasteless, with what shall it be
salted? It is no longer good for anything except to be cast out and trampled underfoot by
men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill, cannot be hidden. Nor do men
light a lamp and place it under a bushel, but on the lamp stand; and it shines to all who
are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see
your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven." (Matthew 5:13-16)
Salt that has lost its taste looks like salt, but its usefulness is gone. Thus if the people of
God's kingdom on earth do not put into practice the teachings of Jesus, in thought and in
deed, they will be cast out of the Kingdom. If our thoughts and our souls are not in
attuned with the Kingdom, we will no longer be in it. It is not that some judge will pass
sentence on us, but that if we are out of harmony with the Kingdom, it is impossible to
be in the Kingdom. If our "radio" is not attuned to the right frequency, we cannot hear
the radio station. The radio station is broadcasting, but we are not hearing it.
The good deeds of the Kingdom people will shine as a beacon for others, and they will
glorify God. But we must be better than the Pharisees. Our thoughts must be in harmony
with our deeds. If they are not, our deeds may be useful on the surface, but we are not in
the Kingdom of God.
Not only should we love our neighbor as our self, but we should not even be angry or
hold a grudge. "You have heard it said of the ancients, you shall not murder, and
whoever murders shall be liable to the judgement. But I say to you that every one who
is angry with his brother shall be liable to the judgement.... Therefore if you are offering
your gift at the altar and there you remember that your brother has something against
you, leave your gift there before the altar and first go and be reconciled to your brother,
and then come and offer your gift. (Matthew 5:21-24)
Being angry with someone prevents us from experiencing God's presence. So does
seeking revenge.
"You have heard it said, an eye or an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I tell you not to
resist him who is evil; rather, whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the
other also." (Matthew 5:38-39)
Obviously, if you see a crime taking place, you should call the police. But don't
personally try to deal with it. In fact, the same goes for any evil thinking on your part.
By focusing on the evil thought and struggling with it, you actually energize and
strengthen it. Rather, you should replace it with Kingdom thinking. In time, it will
wither away from lack of attention. This does take some practice. It is important not to
be angry with yourself and dwell on how bad your thoughts are, but rather, think good
thoughts instead.
In the Greek language, there are three words that have been translated as love in the new
testament. Eros indicates love with desire. It may or may not be sexual desire. Philos,
means love between family members or friends. It involves affection. The word most
often used for Christian love is agape. It is more like a genuine concern for the welfare
of another. Affection or desire are not involved.
"You have heard that it was said, you shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But
I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may
become children of your Father who is in Heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil
and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust... you therefore shall be perfect,
as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-45,48)
St. John in 1st John 4:16-21 says: "God is Love, and whoever abides in love, abides in
God, and God in him. In this has love been perfected with us, that we have boldness in
the day of the judgement because even as He is, so also are we in this world. There is no
fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear because fear has punishment, and he who
fears has not been perfected in love. We love because He first loved us. If anyone says, I
love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother, whom
he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have
from Him, that he who loves God, love his brother also.
I think the forgoing quotation needs no further explanation. St. Paul, in his first letter to
the Corinthians (13:1-7,13) has this to say about love.
"And If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels but do not have love, I have become
sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and know all the
Mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but do
not have love, I am nothing.. And if I dole out all my possessions to feed others, and if I
deliver my body that I may boast, but do not have love, I profit nothing. Love is patient,
love is kind; it is not jealous. Love does not brag and is not puffed up. It does not
behave unbecomingly and does not seek its own things; it is not provoked and does not
rejoice because of unrighteousness, but rejoices with the Truth. It covers all things,
believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things... Now there abide faith, hope,
love, these three; and the greatest of these is love."
By now it should be clear that love is of primary importance in Christian living. But
how is it possible to go from mundane thinking, which centers on ourselves as the most
important person, to Kingdom thinking, which embraces all with love? Jesus has a
recommendation for starting the way of love.
"Do no judge, that you be not judged. For what judgement you judge, you shall be
judged; and what measure you measure, it shall be measured to you."
This is a good starting point. Before we can love, we must first learn to tolerate. We
frequently become angry about trivial things like how someone else is driving, or the
kind of music they listen to. We tend to judge all others based on our idealized
conception of how we think they should behave, but usually do not apply the same
judgement to ourselves. When beginning this practice, it is helpful to remind yourself,
when you wake up in the morning, that you do not wish to judge others about trivial
matters. Then keep reminding yourself during the day.
St. Paul wrote, "There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus". I
propose a slight change to this.There is therefore no condemnation for or from those
who are in Christ Jesus. When ever you find yourself judging others concerning trivial
things, just say to yourself "no condemnation". The same goes for times when others are
judging your, or you think they are judging you, concerning trivial matters. Just think to
yourself "there is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus". In time,
you can start working on the bigger things that you judge others about. An important
caution however, is to beware of apathy. By this, I mean that the non-judging must be
done in a loving manner. If we just don't care what others are doing or what happens to
them, we have missed the point.
Another thing that will help is to start doing a type of contemplative prayer. Sit
comfortably in a place where you will not be disturbed. For the first five minutes, feel
love and peace flowing from God through you to all people. Even people you don't like.
You should not send this love and peace to any particular person, but as a general
radiation to everyone including yourself. If you have difficulty doing this at first, you
might think about a time when you felt loving and a time when you felt peaceful.
Eventually, you will be able to feel peace and love on demand. For the second five
minutes, try to remain physically, emotionally, and mentally still. At first, this might
seem impossible, but don't get upset about it. Just stop the train of thought and re-enter
the silence. Remember what St. Paul said; "love is patient, love is kind". Be patient and
kind to yourself. It is unlikely that you will ever be able to be completely mentally silent
for the full five minutes. But the point is to stop following the train of thought and enter
the silence. Do this at least twice per day.
Eventually, you will be able to send peace and love with your eyes open and while you
are doing something that doesn't involve much thought or concentration. You will come
to enjoy it. Perhaps, in time, you will do this continuously. While you are doing this
during your daily affairs, it can act like biofeedback. Whenever a judgmental or
unloving thought comes into your consciousness, you will immediately notice it
because the loving feeling will be gone or reduced. You may notice that as you feel
peace and love during your daily activity, you aren't bothered as much by trivial matters.
You would rather live in love than judge others and struggle with them. Remember what
St. John said; "God is love. Whoever lives in love, lives in God; and God in them."

I would like to end this cyber-paper with the seventh chapter of James Allen's "As a
Man Thinketh".

As A Man Thinketh
by James Allen
Chapter Seven
Serenity

"Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom. It is the result of long and
patient effort in self-control. Its presence is an indication of ripened experience, and of
a more than ordinary knowledge of the laws and operations of thought.
A man becomes calm in the measure that he understands himself as a thought-evolved
being, for such knowledge necessitates the understanding of others as the result of
thought. As he develops a right understanding, and sees more and more clearly the
internal relations of things by the action of cause and effect, he ceases to fuss and fume
and worry and grieve, and remains poised, steadfast, serene.
The calm man, having learned how to govern himself, knows how to adapt himself to
others; and they, in turn, reverence his spiritual strength, and feel that they can learn of
him and rely upon him. The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater is his success, his
influence, his power for good. Even the ordinary trader will find his business prosperity
increase as he develops a greater self-control and equanimity, for people will always
prefer to deal with a man whose demeanor is strongly equable.
The strong calm man is always loved and revered. He is like a shade-giving tree in a
thirsty land, or a sheltering rock in a storm. "Who does not love a tranquil heart, a
sweet-tempered, balanced life? It does not matter whether it rains or shines, or what
changes come to those possessing these blessings, for they are always sweet, serene,
and calm. That exquisite poise of character which we call serenity is the last lesson of
culture; it is the flowering of life, the fruitage of the soul. It is precious as wisdom, more
to be desired than gold - yea, than even fine gold. How insignificant mere money-
seeking looks in comparison with a serene life - a life that dwells in the ocean of Truth,
beneath the waves, beyond the reach of tempests, in the Eternal Calm!
"How many people we know who sour their lives, who ruin all that is sweet and
beautiful by explosive tempers, who destroy their poise of character, and make bad
blood! It is a question whether the great majority of people do not ruin their lives and
mar their happiness by lack of self-control. How few people we meet in life who are
well-balanced, who have that exquisite poise which is characteristic of the finished
character!"
Yes, humanity surges with uncontrolled passion, is tumultuous with ungoverned grief, is
blown about by anxiety and doubt. Only the wise man, only he whose thoughts are
controlled and purified, makes the winds and the storms of the soul obey him.
Tempest-tossed souls, wherever ye may be, under whatsoever conditions ye may live,
know this - in the ocean of life the isles of Blessedness are smiling, and sunny shore of
your ideal awaits your coming. Keep your hand firmly upon the helm of thought. In the
bark of your soul reclines the commanding Master; He does but sleep; wake Him. Self-
control is strength; Right Thought is mastery; Calmness is power.
Say unto your heart, "Peace, be still!""