He also spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?’ But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’”

There are many people who are very religious and attend religious services religiously--every week, yet they are not effective as representatives for the Kingdom of God.  I will even venture to state that they are a hindrance to those around them from discovering the Kingdom of which Jesus spoke.

Many church members attend religious services, but fail to embrace the lifestyle that is required of us through the Word.  

Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern. For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame—who set their mind on earthly things. For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,  who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

Never forget, your citizenship is in heaven, but heaven isn't your home.  It is the Lord God's home and we are His representatives here on earth.  Go into the world and represent His Kingdom!

Luke 13:6-9   Philippians 3:17-21
~~W.R. Luchie

And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!”

But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”  

It is very important to note King Jesus' reply to the woman who made that statement.  So many of us start praising and giving glory to the individual instead of praising God, for He is the source of our blessing.  Jesus made a serious statement that all of us should read and act upon:  But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” 

Like the woman in this passage, so many of us start listening to the created, rather than obeying the Creator.  When Jesus made that statement, He was very concerned that mankind always listen and obey His Father's principles and laws.  By the way, there is only one sin.  That is the sin of disobedience to His Word.  

​Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”

So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”

Luke 11:27-28   Genesis 3:9-11
~~W.R. Luchie

Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him; and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead, and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen again. Herod said, “John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I hear such things?” So he sought to see Him.  The question is, why would Herod want to meet Jesus?  Why would Herod think that John the Baptist had risen from the dead? Because Jesus' message was the same.   In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”  John the Baptist and his cousin Jesus the Christ was of the same mindset.

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  Their message was so much alike, that Herod thought that John had risen from the dead.

That is the way those who represent the Kingdom of God are supposed to be--of the same mindset.  It is a mindset that will influence their world system with the culture of the Kingdom.

Luke 9:7-9   Matthew 3:1-2   Matthew 4:17   
~~W.R. Luchie

“You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

As I write these words of encouragement, I see all around me those who are falling away from obeying God's written Word.  He stated that this would happen.  I find many individuals are openly encouraging their members to disobey the Lord God's Word.  But I remember what Jesus stated:

Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when these things will be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.

We must keep being that light to draw those who are seeking, to the Father.  Jesus stated that this is "just the beginning of sorrows".  He went on to state:  

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.  If you will notice, Jesus stated because of wickedness the "love of many will grow cold".  We are seeing that all around the American church today.  All too often, they give you a sweet religious smile, but their hearts are far from God.  

I want to encourage you to read and study the written Word daily.  The more you do, the more sensitive to the Holy Spirit you will become. Trust in the King's Word.   You will begin to be repulsed by the sins of the world.  You will love what God loves and hate what God hates.  You will become more like your Father God. I will close with these words from Jesus:

Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

Matthew 5:14-15  Matthew 24:3-8, 9-14, 34-35
~~W.R. Luchie

So Jesus said, “Are you also still without understanding? Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man.”

While King Jesus was here on planet earth, He always had compassion for those in need.  When Jesus was speaking of the heart, He wasn't speaking of that organ that sends the blood rushing through your body, but the mind--the soul.  The question is, how do thoughts get to the heart?  Through what you see, hear, smell etc.  In essence, through the five senses.

King David put it this way:  Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.  He also stated this:  I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; It shall not cling to me.

Matthew 15:16-20   Psalm 119:11  Psalm 101:3
~~W.R. Luchie

My reminder to you today is that the Lord God is the self-sufficient One; He is the Author, the Originating Cause.  He is the Creator of all things seen and unseen.  He is the absolute rightful Sovereign over all that He has created.

For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.

Whether we accept it or not, the Creator, the Lord God, gave everything existence.  We have the choice to accept Him for who He is and embrace eternal life or reject His offer to accept His one and only Son as our Lord and Savior.

“Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But if you choose to reject the King:  But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

King Jesus should be the foundation of your faith.  Nothing--or no one--else.

Hebrews 2:10   Matthew 10:32, 33
~~W.R. Luchie

Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. 

And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”

The Father God spoke these words "This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" Why was the Lord God well pleased with His Son?...Because He was obedient to His Word.  By the way, these are the same words God had spoken at the Lord Jesus' baptism. 
 
And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”  

“I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You."  

“Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights!  I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.

Please note:  The Lord God made it very clear when Moses and Elijah disappeared that the Lord Jesus was left and that Jesus was the King.  Also that all should obey and listen to Him.

For Moses truly said to the fathers, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you. And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’ Yes, and all the prophets, from Samuel and those who follow, as many as have spoken, have also foretold these days. You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’

It is because of Abraham (the Promise), that we are blessed.  Thank the Lord God for His Promise to Israel.  For He always keeps His promises.

Matthew 17:1-5   Matthew 3:17   Psalm 2:7   Isaiah 42:1  Acts 3:22-25
~~W.R. Luchie

I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.

Jesus likened Himself to a shepherd. The shepherd feeds and protects all of the sheep.  He provides for all of the sheep's needs.

In the same way, the Kingdom provides and protects all of His citizens.  In a kingdom, the king provides for all of the needs of their citizens.  This is why King Jesus made this statement:

 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

We should never worry about what will happen to us.  In the Kingdom that is never a concern.  Rest in Him.

John 10:9-11   Matthew 6:25-34
~~W.R. Luchie

 “I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!

"I came to send fire"  

Fire is an image associated with the Lord God's judgment.  Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts: “Because you speak this word, Behold, I will make My words in your mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them."   “Is not My word like a fire?” says the Lord, “And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?

Jesus' coming brings judgment on those who refuse to accept His message, and accept Him as Lord.  His coming divides those who have faith in His Word from those who fail to listen and obey His Word.  For the Lord God sent His Son to restore the Kingdom.   For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Keep in mind, though King Jesus was ready for the judgment of mankind, other things had to begin its process first.  Remember, Jesus has to be your number one priority.  He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.


Luke 12:49-50  Jeremiah 5:14 & 23:29   John 3:16-18   Matthew 10:37-39
~~W.R. Luchie

Husbands!  You should always appreciate your wife's role as a helper and assistant.  She is a 'facilitator' of your vision for your family.  But if you don't have a vision...if you are just sailing through life without a purpose, she has no vision to facilitate!  Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.  Wives!  You should exercise discernment when giving your assistance.

Whatever the man isn't, it is the wife's responsibility to help him reach his full potential.  Marriage is not a competition. You are a team.  You are one, with one vision and one purpose.  He might not yet be the best husband.  He might not yet be spiritually mature, but it is her responsibility to assist him to reach that goal of maturity.

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.

Habakkuk 2:2   Ephesians 5:22-27
~~W.R. Luchie

"I and My Father are one."

Remember this one thing:  In order for us to truly represent the Kingdom of God we must first be on the same page as He is.  Jesus and His Father had the same mindset.  If we are to be His representative, we must be of the same mindset.

Jesus was the Son of God and, doing the work of His Father, performed good works.   Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, “Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?”  The Jews answered Him, saying, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God.”

When we speak, we should only speak things of our government, to encourage others to embrace and seek the Kingdom.

John 10:30   John 10:31-33
~~W.R. Luchie

But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

Abiding in him is habitual obedience to the King's Word.  Jesus made this statement while speaking to His disciples.  Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  It has the idea of settling down in Christ or resting in His Word. 

When John  made the statement "ought....to walk", he is stating that we should follow Christ's example and stay in the Word.  We are not to live in hypocrisy.  Our responsibility is to lead others to Christ through our behavior.  By doing so they will seek the Kingdom and seek to learn the Kingdom concept.  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

John made it plain that walking in God's Word was no new commandment.

Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning.  Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.

I John 2:6   John 15:4   Matthew 6:33   I John 2:7-8
~~W.R. Luchie

And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”  As you can read, in responding to His opponents, Jesus changed the verb they used from "pay" to "render", which literally means "to pay back". Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”

Kingdom citizens have an obligation to earthly government and to the Lord God.  It is the citizen's responsibility to obey the law of the land until it becomes in conflict with God's Word.  

Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.

Remember when the two laws are in conflict, citizens of the Kingdom of God are to follow the King.  Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.

We are to obey the Lord rather than the government of planet earth.  We are to be citizens in good standing in both worlds, but our first allegiance is to the Kingdom of God.

So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men.

Matthew 22:20-21   Matthew 22:17   Romans 13:1-7 
I Peter 2:13-17  Acts 4:18-20   Acts 5:29
~~W.R. Luchie