Leaders can choose to do good things before men or demonstrate the invisible kingdom with power from on high. The good things may bring recognition from men, but the foreordained works of the kingdom bring glory to the Father. “God planned in advance our destiny and the good works we would do to fulfill it” (Ephesians 2:10 TPT). Only those who choose to do the foreordained works to glorify the Father are kingdom leaders. Jesus prayed to the Father, “I glorified you on the earth, having accomplished the work which you have given me to do” (John 17:4). In this study, you will learn how to use the Spirit’s power to do the works of the kingdom.
Introducing Works of the Kingdom
Doing what the Holy Spirit says to do demonstrates the kingdom. Believers demonstrate the kingdom according to the power that works within them. “The kingdom of God does not consist in words but in power” (1 Corinthians 4:20). While authority is delegated by the Lord, power has to be activated. You are only able to demonstrate the kingdom according to the power that works within you. The Holy Spirit waits patiently until an individual has received his power and has activated it by faith and then he is able to use that person as a vessel for kingdom works.
Spiritual Fruit
In order to demonstrate the kingdom, a person must bring forth spiritual fruit. For the kingdom is not built on carnal things but on spiritual things. Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). The world knows not his kingdom for it is spiritual. The fruit of the kingdom is “righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17). The kingdom is made up of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Righteousness is about the Father. The kingdom is demonstrated God’s way which is righteousness. Peace is about Jesus who is the Prince of Peace. In the midst of chaos, Jesus will bring peace. The Holy Spirit is the one who brings the joy to believers. Demonstrate righteousness, peace, and joy and you will be demonstrating the works of the kingdom.
God’s Ways
To demonstrate the kingdom, one must know the ways of God by the renewing of the mind. Renewing the mind means to come in line with God’s thinking. Study God’s word to renew the mind and then do what the word says. “Prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves” (James 1:22). When believers are demonstrating the kingdom, they are showing the acts of God. Your servants will speak of the glory of your kingdom and your power to make known your mighty acts (Psalm 145:11-12). “Be imitators of God, as beloved children” (Ephesians 5:1). Show forth his glory on the earth.
When believers are demonstrating the kingdom, they are doing what God is doing and speaking what he is speaking. Jesus demonstrated the kingdom because he did exactly what he saw the Father do. “Whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner” (John 5:19). Demonstrating the kingdom is not just doing good things for there are many doing good things, but not kingdom works.
Stephen knew how to demonstrate the kingdom. “Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people” (Acts 6:8). Even though they stoned him to death, they could not destroy the kingdom within him.
Jesus Demonstrated the Kingdom
Jesus did only the works God ordained for him to do. He followed three powerful concepts in doing these works. First, Jesus knew that he could do nothing by himself (John 5:19). Second, he only did what he saw the Father do (John 5:19). Third, he only spoke what he heard the Father say (John 8:26-28). For example, when Jesus told the lame man to rise up and walk, he had already seen the Father heal him and heard the Father say that he could walk. Jesus was acting on the healing being performed in the supernatural realm.
Jesus saw immediate changes in the lives of those he encountered. After Zacchaeus met Jesus, the tax collector was so changed that he gave half of his possessions to the poor (Luke 19:2-8). After meeting Jesus, a woman of ill repute spread revival fires among the men in her city (John 4:7-42). A man possessed by demons was delivered and restored to his right mind by Jesus, and he began evangelizing several cities (Mark 5:1-20). These are just a few of the people who were changed dramatically by encountering Jesus.
Applying these same concepts to your life will cause you to demonstrate the foreordained works of the kingdom. Jesus told his disciples that they could do nothing by themselves. He said, “apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Once you realize that you can do nothing by yourself, you can begin to rely on the Christ within you. “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me (Galatians 2:20). By the Spirit of God, see what the Father is doing and do only what he has already accomplished in the supernatural realm. Also, hear the Father speak and speak only what you first heard him say. Then you will be able to lay hands on the sick and see them recover. You will be able to say to those who are lame to rise up and walk and they will walk away glorifying the Lord. Everything in your life will glorify your heavenly Father. Imagine the impact that you will have on the lives of others by allowing Christ to operate in you and through you.
4 Ways to Demonstrate the Kingdom
God’s kingdom is built on the revelation of Jesus Christ and who he is. Demonstrating the kingdom is all about the Father’s work. At the age of 12, Jesus sat among the leaders doing what leaders do. He said, “I must be working for my Father” (Luke 2:49 VOICE). The following sections discuss some practical ways for kingdom leaders to do the works of the kingdom.
Sharing the Truth and Healing
Once believers have received the power of the Holy Spirit, they have the power to become effective witnesses for Jesus. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). Three dear friends, who are sisters in their 90s, have spent their lives sharing the truth and God’s love with others all over the world. They teach God’s word wherever doors are open to them, but they intercede for the people and love those who are not yet ready to hear the word. They carry the presence of God with them and call what they do presence evangelism. Many have seen a tall angel, called the Teacher, with them to protect them.
The kingdom exists wherever the truth reigns. Jesus proclaimed the kingdom and demonstrated the kingdom by healing all who were sick. “Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness” (Matthew 9:35). Healing is a powerful way to get people’s attention so they can be drawn to God.
The core of Jesus’ message on the kingdom is about how the Spirit empowered him to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom and demonstrate the kingdom. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord” (Luke 4:18-19). He healed the sick, raised the dead, and performed works that no one else had ever done. The messages taught and preached by Jesus caused faith to arise in the people, and they expected God to heal them and set them free. Then God did what the people expected him to do.
Paul’s teaching and preaching were with the power of the Spirit. “My message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in a demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (1 Corinthians 2:4). Like Jesus, Paul performed miracles and raised the dead.
Kingdom leaders follow the examples set by Jesus and Paul to bring hope to the people that God will heal them and set them free. They can lay hands on the sick and see them recover. Also, they can operate in the power gifts of faith, healing, and miracles to bring healing and other miracles.
Praying and Interceding for the Kingdom
Do not think too small or pray for too little. “I exhort, therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men” (1 Timothy 2:1). If believers are praying only for their own families, then some families and some things the Father wants to be done are not being addressed by prayers. Kingdom prayers bring the Father’s will into all the earth. The Lord’s prayer is a kingdom prayer (Matthew 6:9-12). In that prayer, Jesus taught believers to pray for the Father’s kingdom to come and his will to be done on the earth. When believers are led by the Holy Spirit, they are praying for the Father’s kingdom to come and his will to be done.
Kingdom prayers and intercession are a part of the Father’s business. Who is taking care of the Father’s business? It is the role of kingdom leaders to bring the Father’s will into the earth in families, governments, and nations. Their prayers and intercession help accomplish his will.
Praying in the spirit releases a person’s control of the prayer to the Spirit, but the person still has control over when to pray. Praying without ceasing and praying in the Spirit completely releases the control of prayers to the Holy Spirit. “The Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (Romans 8:26).
Kingdom prayers and intercession promote the good of the kingdom. Intercession is the manifestation of Jesus being the head. When he is being lifted up as head of the body, there will be prayers going up from his body. Jesus ever lives to intercede (Hebrews 7:25). Without prayer, the kingdom will not increase.
Intercession, which comes straight out of the love of God, pours out his love on the body. Intercessors are like farmers who break up the fallow ground and get it ready to receive the seed. With prayers and intercession, they plow the ground and plant the seed of God’s word. God watches over his word. He waters it and brings it forth. The time will come to plant the seed and see it grow into maturity. God wants his word to grow in his people. Plow with your prayers, and plant the seed in those who are ready.
Intercessors stand in the gap for those who are being attacked by the devil and who feel alone. The wolves seek to separate out the sheep who are lost and wandering. They will kill them unless an intercessor stands between the wolf and its prey. Intercessory prayer will stop the attack and keep the believer safe. As an intercessor, one can speak the word of God into the situation and bring deliverance.
Prophetic intercession is a special endowment which includes the ability to pray and the gift of prophecy. As the intercessor is praying, the Spirit may begin to show what is happening in another person’s life and give the intercessor scriptures to speak out over the person and the situation. This type of intercession carries a weightier amount of power and glory than the prayers of others who are not being led by the Spirit.
Freeing the Oppressed
Kingdom leaders confront evil and its consequences to heal those who are broken by external calamities or by their own sinfulness. They do not bring condemnation for in Christ Jesus there is no condemnation (Romans 8:1). Let the power of God flow through you to present every person complete in Christ (Colossians 1:28-29). It is only by the power of God that you are able to bring forth redemption, restoration and reconciliation.
Redemption
Redemption means deliverance from sin and freedom from bondage. Redemption is made possible by the blood of Jesus which was shed for all mankind (Ephesians 1:7). Truth with love brings redemption. Do not compromise the truth but embrace it, speak it, and live it in God’s love. The men who brought the adulteress to Jesus for judgment used the truth to condemn but offered no love (John 8:2-11). They only brought judgment. On the other hand, love without the truth causes deception and compromise to creep in, but Jesus offered both truth and love. He offered redemption to the adulteress, as well as everyone else.
Many are in bondage to addiction, poverty, sickness, etc. Spiritual judgment brings forth the righteousness of God and deliverance. Those who are spiritual judge all things by the Spirit and the truth of God’s word. “The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments” (1 Corinthians 2:15 NIV). These judgments lead to victory (Matthew 12:20).
Restoration
Restoration means returning something to its original condition. Anything which has been destroyed by man or the devil can be restored by the Lord. He is the restorer of those things which are broken. The earth groans for his sons to show themselves (Romans 8:19-23). When his people are in their rightful position, they will have authority and power needed to bring restoration. He is placing his people in key positions to rule and restore that which is broken.
The Lord desires to bring restoration to each life. He will lead a person by the still waters and restore his/her soul (Psalm 23:1-2). Believe that the Lord will use you as a vessel to discern what is in the hearts of others to cleanse and restore righteousness. “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother” (Matthew 18:15). Even if he will not listen at first, God has a plan for reconciling that person to himself and to you (Matthew 18:16-17).
Those who are responsive to the guidance of the Spirit can restore those who have fallen. “If anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness” (Galatians 6:1). Provide the same gentle restoration that you would want to receive if you fell.
Reconciliation
Reconciliation is salvation or peace between man and God, as well as among men. If a person has been injured or hurt by the words or deeds of others, the Lord will heal him/her. Let the Lord use you to pour the anointing oil into his/her wounds and bind up the brokenness in order to bring reconciliation of relationships.
Reconciliation is the message and ministry of kingdom leaders. God covers the body of Christ with reconciliation. Jesus by his death and resurrection has reconciled each of us to the Father. God “reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18). You have been given the ministry of reconciliation which enables God to move and pour out his blessings through you. Forgiveness is the first part of reconciliation and blessing the other person is the second part. Both forgiveness and blessings are important.
Empowering with All Power
Empowering other believers to do the work of the kingdom and to reach their destiny is a major responsibility of kingdom leaders. In this section, you will discover how God uses kingdom leaders to empower believers with all power. Paul prayed to God for the believers at Colossae that they would “be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding” (Colossians 1:9). With spiritual wisdom and understanding, a believer knows what to do to fulfill God’s will and when to do it. As a result of being filled with knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, the believers would be “strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might” (Colossians 1:11). Literally, this phrase means empowered with infinite power.
Empowering others comes from teaching them the truth and how they can operate with God’s indwelling presence through the Holy Spirit. This continuous empowerment of the Spirit is essential for a victorious and fulfilling life. By operating in the empowering gifts, kingdom leaders can help others learn to follow the Spirit. For example, prophecy and words of knowledge and wisdom can be used to give people direction and let them know that they are hearing from the Spirit themselves. Do not let others become dependent on you for directions from God, but help them learn how to be led by the Spirit themselves.
Let the believers know that purity and humility must be in the heart of believers in order for them to fulfill destiny. Teaching others to believe what God says about them and to cast their cares over on the Lord will help them stay humble before him. Great power lies within the heart of a humble person. Paul prayed for the believers at Ephesus that they would know God’s “incomparably great power for us who believe” (Ephesians 1:18-19 NIV).
Having a vision and goals will help empower believers to reach their destiny. God is able to do above what a believer envisions according to the power that works inside of him/her (Ephesians 3:20). Without a vision, God’s people wander astray (Proverbs 29:18). It is God that gives the vision and puts the desires into the believers’ heart and then helps them accomplish the goals. The goals for accomplishing the vision come through prayer and spiritual counsel. As a kingdom leader, you can help kindle the faith of believers and encourage them to complete their vision. Destiny is all that matters to God!
Personal Story on Kingdom Intercession
Sherry prayed for Africa for nine years without ever having been there. She was led by the Spirit of God to pray for many situations in Africa, especially the ministers and the people of Africa. In her heart, she knew that one day she would go to this place. Every day she would listen to the Spirit and pray prophetically over the situations. Then the call came, and she was asked to join a women’s team going to Africa. The trip was going to cost several thousand dollars that she did not have at the time, but she said yes. Her labor of intercession was about to be rewarded. “Pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:6). Immediately, funds began to come in from every direction. Before the deadline for the money to be submitted, she had more than enough. In fact, there was enough to buy sewing machines and material for the women in the villages who made the school uniforms. God provided, but it all started with intercessory prayer.
Conclusions
Be about the Father’s business. He has already deposited in each person’s spirit what he would have him/her do. Doing the works which God planned for you to do demonstrates the kingdom. Doing other good things may cause you to be recognized by man, but these things do not impact the kingdom.
Study Questions
#1 How can you strengthen your faith in healing?
#2 How can you become more effective as a kingdom prayer warrior?
#3 What can you do to help restore hurting people?
#4 How can you empower other believers to live a victorious life?
#5 What are your plans to demonstrate the kingdom?