Keys To Daily Living In Kingdom of God
Keys of the Kingdom, not the keys to the Kingdom, As Kingdom citizens, we are already in the Kingdom; we don’t need the keys to it. What we need—and what Jesus has given us—are the keys of the Kingdom—the keys that will unlock the power of the Kingdom and make it work in our lives. Kingdom citizens and only Kingdom citizens have these keys. Citizenship in the Kingdom is a prerequisite for getting them.
What this means is that we who are Kingdom citizens are supposed to be operating on a level that blows other people’s minds. We should have access to a power that mystifies those who are not yet in the Kingdom. We are supposed to be living life at a certain level where we are tapping into resources that others cannot explain.
Knowledge of the Secrets
The key to keys is not having keys. The key to keys is knowledge, knowing what the keys are for and how to use them. Our Father, the King of heaven, has given us the Kingdom. It is ours. In fact, Jesus Himself brought the Kingdom to us. It was His main purpose in coming to earth in human flesh. We receive the Kingdom through His death. The moment we turn from our rebellion against God and place our trust in Christ to salvage us from the consequences of that rebellion, we become naturalized citizens of the Kingdom of heaven, with all the rights, benefits, and privileges that come with it. But how do we appropriate our rights? How do we enter into the full enjoyment of our benefits and privileges? What are the keys to effective living in the Kingdom?
Keys of The Kingdom, One day Jesus asked His disciples, His inner circle of 12 most intimate followers, the most important question He would ever ask them.
Keys have to be learned. A secret is anything you don’t know, especially if somebody else does. Miracles fall into this category. A miracle is something that humans cannot explain, an event or occurrence that seems to defy the laws of nature. These men had seen Jesus walk on water, heal the sick, raise the dead, shrivel a tree by speaking to it, calm a storm, multiply bread, and many other “miraculous” things that were beyond the ken of human experience. But to Jesus, none of these was miracles. He said, “These are no miracles; I’m just using keys. I know how to put them in the locks, and they are unlocking prosperity, unlocking healing, unlocking peace, unlocking authority. Watch Me and you will see the Kingdom at work, and also how it should work for you. My Father has given you the knowledge of the secrets of the Kingdom. I will teach you how to use the keys.”
Seven Principles of Keys
Knowledge leads to understanding. Once we know the principles behind keys, we can understand how they work in the Kingdom. There are several principles that define the properties of keys.
1. Keys represent authority
If you possess a key to a place, it means you have authority in that place. Suppose your boss entrusts you with a key to the store or the office. By doing so, he shows not only that he trusts you but also that he has delegated a certain amount of authority to you. The key to your house means you have authority there. The key to your car gives you authority to drive whenever you want to. Christ says, “I am giving you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. I am giving you authority in heaven, the same authority I have.” What an awesome gift! Few of us have done more than just scratch the surface in learning what this means.
2. Keys represent access
A key gives you instant access to everything that key opens. The secret is in knowing what the key opens. The keys of the Kingdom of Heaven give us immediate access to all the resources of heaven. But we have to know how to use them. So often we limit ourselves by trusting or believing only in what we can see with our eyes or reason out with our minds. A Kingdom mindset completely changes our perspective.
3. Keys represent ownership
Possession of a key gives you de facto ownership of whatever that key opens. Therefore, when you possess the keys of the Kingdom of heaven, you have ownership of heaven on earth. Jesus said, “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
In other words, you own on earth whatever is going on in Heaven. This means that you should never judge how your life is going simply by your circumstances. Suppose you get laid off from your job. It would be easy to get scared and stressed out because you have a family and bills to pay and no money. That’s your circumstances.
As a Kingdom citizen with the keys of the Kingdom, however, you have ownership of heaven on earth. You can be confident and even rejoice in the prospect of a bright future because you have a source of supply and provision that those outside the Kingdom cannot even conceive. So go have a prosperity party! The King is preparing to bless and prosper you from a completely unexpected direction. When you “own” the resources of the King, you are never destitute.
4. Keys represent control
If you possess the key to something, you control it. You control when it opens when it closes, and who gets access to it. A key helps you control time. In other words, you decide whether to open it up at 8:00 or 10:00 or 6:00 or whenever. This gives you control over when something comes. If you need something now, you operate a key. (Example (1 Kings 17:12-16).
5. Keys represent authorization
This is similar to number 1. Authorization means to be given the authority to act in the name or in the stead of whoever gave you the authority. “The boss authorized me to do this….” Possession of keys means that you are authorized to act in the name and authority of the one who owns the keys. By giving us the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, Jesus gives us the authority to influence Heaven. He has authorized us to act in His name and on His authority to request whatever we wish that is in accordance with His will and purpose.
6. Keys represent power
Whoever gives you keys gives you power at the same time. This is similar to control. You have control—power—over whatever you possess the keys for. If you know how to use the keys, whatever they unlock is at your disposal. The keys to your house give you the power to come and go and to allow or disallow others to enter. When Jesus gave us the keys to the kingdom, He gave us power in Heaven. Whatever we bind on earth affects Heaven; whatever we loose on earth affects Heaven; whatever we close on earth, Heaven closes. Do we really have that much power as Kingdom citizens? Yes. The King does not want us to live as victims of the earth’s system, so He has given us the ability to tap into a realm that is invisible but absolutely real and can literally affect the physical earth. This is why Christ was able to live an abundant life in times of crisis. He had power from Heaven. And He has given that power to us.
7. Keys represent freedom
When you have keys, you are free to go in and out. You are free to lock and unlock, to open and close. The keys of the Kingdom give us freedom from fear and all the other limiting emotions of an earthly system. I used to wonder why Jesus was so carefree, so calm, and so in control no matter what was happening around Him. It was because He had the key of freedom. One day Jesus was asleep in the back of a boat while His cabinet (some of whom were fishermen) sailed it across the Sea of Galilee. As happens frequently in that body of water, a severe storm blew up suddenly. The storm was so fierce that even the experienced sailors aboard feared that the boat was going to sink. How could Jesus sleep through such a crisis? Their lives were in danger, and He was snoozing in the stern! (Matthew 8:25-27).
Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” In essence, He was saying, “What’s the matter? Where are your keys?” Then He took out a key, locked up the storm, and it stopped. In amazement, the disciples asked, “What kind of man is this?” Just a man with keys. The keys of the Kingdom are the keys to ultimate truth, the knowledge of which brings true liberty. Jesus said: If you hold to My teaching, you are really My disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (John 8:31b-32).
By “teaching,” Jesus is not referring so much to Scripture verses as much as the principles, laws, and precepts contained in those verses. Freedom comes in knowing the truth. Truth alone is not what sets you free. What sets you free is the truth you know. The keys of the Kingdom can bring you into the knowledge of the truth.
Summary
The secret keys of the kingdom of heaven are the statutes, ways, precepts, decrees, commands, and righteous ways by which the kingdom of Heaven functions. Jesus said I will teach you the secrets of the kingdom. The secrets of the kingdom of Heaven are very simple. They are statutes, ways, precepts, decrees, commands, and righteous ways that are laid down by the government of God by which the kingdom of heaven operates. If you want to know how the kingdom operates you have to learn the statutes, ways, precepts, decrees, commands, and righteous ways theses are called the keys. You must first enter the kingdom; you cannot enjoy the benefits if you don’t enter the kingdom. You must study meditate the Word of God to learn the principles and precepts of God and then you will experience the kingdom life, there is no mysteries about this.
Seven characteristics of Keys
1. Keys are laws. They are fixed, reliable standards that never change. When used correctly, they always work.
2. Keys are principles. When Jesus spoke of “the keys of the Kingdom,” He wasn’t talking about literal physical keys to open physical locks. The keys of the Kingdom are principles, systems that operate under fixed laws. When He gives us the keys, He gives us the principles by which the Kingdom of Heaven operates. We gain access to the systems that make the Kingdom of Heaven work. And once we learn the laws, the system, and the principles, all of the heaven will be available to us.
3. Keys are systems. Every government runs on systems: the social system, the economic system, the political system, the educational system, the telecommunications system, etc. Knowledge of the systems and how they work is a key to power and influence. Control the systems and you control the government. Disrupt the systems and you disrupt the government. Destroy the systems and you destroy the nation. That’s how powerful systems are. Even more, that’s how powerful knowledge can be.
The systems of the Kingdom of Heaven are beyond the reach of those outside the kingdom and are in no danger of being disrupted or destroyed. Kingdom citizens, on the other hand, have access to those systems and can bring the influence of Kingdom systems to bear in earthly situations. That is why Kingdom citizens can rest confident in victory and success no matter what circumstances may suggest. So the most important thing any of us could do is to make sure that we are citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven.
4. Keys activate function. A car operates on gasoline. The “key” of gasoline activates the function of the car. Without gasoline, the car will not run no matter how many other keys you have. Likewise, a radio with no receiver cannot fulfil its function of converting radio waves into audible sound waves for you to hear. The “key” of a receiver is missing, and without it, the radio is only an empty, silent box. The box may be pretty, the glass clean and shiny, but it cannot fulfil its purpose because the key to activate its function is not there. To me, religion is like that attractive radio or that stylish but gas-less car that does not work. Like them, religion may look beautiful and impressive on the outside with all its regalia and traditions, but it has no keys and therefore lacks the ability and the power to activate Kingdom function.
The keys of the Kingdom activate Heaven so that we can fully enjoy our rights and privileges as Kingdom citizens. This is far more sure and secure than depending on the systems of the world for our enjoyment. On this point, Kingdom ambassador Paul counsels: Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment (1 Timothy 6:17).
The keys of the Kingdom allow us to enjoy all the rich and good things of God without measure.
5. Keys initiate action. Just as the key to a car initiates action by starting the engine, the keys of the Kingdom, when we know how to use them, initiate action in Heaven.
6. Keys are the principles by which the Kingdom of God operates. Not only are keys principles, but specifically, keys to the operation of the Kingdom. They give us access to the blueprints, the schematic, the flowcharts so that we can understand and appropriate the inner workings of the Kingdom of Heaven.
7. Keys cannot be substituted by feelings, emotions, wishful thinking, or manipulation. If you are locked out of your house without a key, no amount of begging or pleading or wishing will make that door open. If your car is out of gas, you can sit behind the wheel and dream and will all you want for it to move, but it will stay right where it is.
Religion is built on feelings, emotions, wishful thinking, and manipulation. It is different with the Kingdom. The Kingdom of Heaven operates on keys. You can wish and feel and beg and plead all you want, but without the right keys, you will still be locked out of all the things God promised you because feelings don’t open doors. Keys do.
Summary
In the world’s system, you get ahead by killing, robbing, hurting, manipulating, climbing up on people, using people, stealing, gambling— any way you can. But in the Kingdom of Heaven, everything is reversed. To get ahead, you must do the opposite of what you do in the world. Instead of getting, you give; instead of hoarding, you release; instead of grabbing, you give up; instead of hating, you love; instead of every-man-for-himself, you show the first regard to others. Yes, this is counterintuitive, but that is the way God’s Kingdom works.
Endnotes:
KINGDOM PRINCIPLES PREPARING FOR KINGDOM EXPERIENCE AND EXPANSION
By Dr. Myles Munroe
For addition information and understandings of the subject of Keys and Principle of the Kingdom of God
please see my book
“Yoking Up with Jesus and the King of God Government”
www.clmpublication.info
