1. “No one who puts his hand on the plow and looks behind is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62).
The things of the world hinder people from pursuing the kingdom of God. Anyone who is unwilling to give up the world and is constantly looking behind to the world is not worthy to enter the kingdom of God. In order to pursue the kingdom of God, we cannot put our hand to the plow and look behind, wanting to obtain the kingdom of the heavens yet be unwilling to give up the world. If we want to enter the kingdom of the heavens, we must give up the world and not look behind.
1. “Run in this way, that you may lay hold”; “Forgetting the things which are behind and stretching forward to the things which are before, I pursue toward the goal for the prize” (1 Cor. 9:24; Phil. 3:13-14).
The prize spoken of in these verses refers to the reward of entering the kingdom of the heavens. If we want to obtain this reward, we must run as a person runs in a race, forgetting the things that are behind and stretching forward to the things that are before to pursue toward God’s goal. While we are on the path of following the Lord and pursuing the kingdom, looking behind is a great hindrance. We must forget the things that are behind to pursue toward the goal. If we want to obtain the reward of the kingdom, we must forget the things which are behind, all the things of the past, whether good or bad, successes or failures; we must forget the things of the past and stretch forward to the things before us on the path.
1. “Exercises self-control in all things...that they may receive a...crown...I therefore run in this way, not as though without a clear aim; I box in this way, not as though beating the air; but I buffet my body and make it my slave” (1 Cor. 9:25-27).
If we want to obtain the crown and enter the kingdom, we must exercise self-control in all things, rule ourselves, restrict ourselves, and not run without a goal or clear aim. Neither should we be impractical as those who box by beating the air. Rather, we must buffet our body and make it our slave; we should not be loose in any way or indulge in the slightest lust. Those who restrict themselves in this way and buffet their bodies are qualified to enter into the kingdom to reign over others and to deal with the world.
1. “Take heed how he builds...Gold, silver, precious stones...He will receive a reward” (1 Cor. 3:10, 12, 14).
How we work today is absolutely related to receiving the reward of entering the kingdom of the heavens in the future. Our work today must be of gold, silver, and precious stones in order for us to receive the reward of entering the kingdom of the heavens. In the Bible gold refers to God’s nature or essence (Exo. 25:11, 17-18, 24, 31); silver refers to the Son’s redemption (30:16); and precious stones refer to the Spirit’s transformation for the expression of God’s glorious image (Rev. 4:3; 21:11). Therefore, doing a work of gold, silver, and precious stones is to do a work that comes out of God and corresponds to God’s nature, that deals with the things of the old creation according to the principle of redemption through the cross, and that manifests God’s glory through transformation. This work is entirely out of God and does not involve any human mixture; it is full of the Spirit and has a heavenly element and condition. It is not a work of wood, grass, and stubble, which is out of man, of the flesh, and full of the earthly element and condition. We must be careful to not do a work of wood, grass, and stubble, but to do a work of gold, silver, and precious stones so that we would not suffer loss but receive the reward of entering into the glory of the kingdom of the heavens.
1. “Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God...The dead will be raised incorruptible”; “They lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years” (1 Cor. 15:50, 52; Rev. 20:4; see also v. 6).
These two portions refer to the believers’ resurrection and transfiguration. The principle of being delivered from flesh and blood for our transfiguration in resurrection is an indispensable condition for entering the kingdom of the heavens. If we want to inherit the kingdom of God, we must be delivered from our flesh and blood through resurrection and transfiguration in the future; consequently, we must be delivered from our natural life through resurrection today, that is, through the power of Christ’s resurrection, which is His resurrection life. Despite the fact that we have not yet obtained the resurrection of our body, that is, a resurrected body, we have the Lord’s resurrection life. Although we need to live in our natural body today, we do not need to live in our natural life. We have obtained the Lord’s resurrection life, and we can live each day by this resurrection life and be delivered from our natural life. We must live in this resurrection life, not in our natural life, so that we can inherit the kingdom of God in the future. The kingdom of God is spiritual, incorruptible, and in resurrection. If we want to inherit this kingdom, we also must be spiritual and in resurrection. This requires more than obtaining God’s resurrection life through regeneration; it requires us to live by this resurrection life, to be freed from the natural life of the old creation, and to reject everything of the old creation and the natural life.
The Bible shows that reigning is related to resurrection. Aaron’s rod had authority because it budded in resurrection (Num. 17:8). The Lord obtained all authority in heaven and on earth in His resurrection (Matt. 28:18). Those who are martyred will obtain authority and reign together with the Lord in resurrection (Rev. 2:10). These verses prove that authority is based on resurrection. Therefore, if we would enter the kingdom of the heavens to rule and reign, we must live in the resurrection life today. Resurrection is a condition for exercising authority.