We Believers Live the Kingdom Life in the Church by Living in the Mingled Spirit

The genuine church is the kingdom of God in this age, and we believers live the kingdom life in the church; only when we live and walk according to the spirit do we live in the reality of the kingdom to be the church. Amen!

The Lord Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom, and when the disciples went out to preach the gospel, they preached the kingdom of God as the gospel.

Many Christians, however, think that when the Lord Jesus ascended after His resurrection, the kingdom of God was “suspended” and now we need to wait for the coming kingdom.

This is not entirely accurate, for Rom. 14:17, a verse in a chapter speaking of the practical church life, says that the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

In this verse, we see that the kingdom of God today is in the church life.

The Lord Jesus Himself, when He spoke of the church, promising that He will build His church, also said that we are given the keys of the kingdom of the heavens so that we may bind and loose on earth what has been bound and loosed in the heavens.

The kingdom is very much related to the church, for the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom produces the church.

Also, the church in its reality should be the kingdom of God, for we today should live the kingdom life in the church life.

The existence of the church is related to the kingdom of God, and the building up of the church is also related to the kingdom.

Unless there’s a group of people on earth who are actively living under the heavenly rule, there is no reality of the church.

This is the reason that today many unbelievers look at the so-called “church” and are very disappointed and discouraged, for what they see in the church is not the living of the kingdom of God but human beings trying their best to please God.

Whenever the saints do not live under the heavenly rule by living in their mingled spirit, they may call themselves the church, but they are not living in reality the church life.

Much shame has been brought to God’s name by the so-called Christians who lived themselves and did not live Christ nor did they live under the heavenly rule. Oh, Lord Jesus!

May we be those who choose to live not by our natural man or in the self or the flesh but in the mingled spirit, one spirit with the Lord, so that we may live the kingdom life in the church today!

The Genuine Church is the Kingdom of God in this Age – we Believers Live the Kingdom Life in the Church

According to the divine revelation in the New Testament, the genuine church is the kingdom of God in this age; today we believers in Christ live the kingdom life in the church (Matt. 16:18-19; 18:17-18; 13:44-46; Rom. 14:17; 1 Cor. 4:20; Eph. 2:19; Col. 4:11; Rev. 1:4-6). Amen!

The kingdom of God is the living of the church. In one sense, the kingdom age will come, and the kingdom of God will be fully manifested then; however, in relation to our daily living and experience, we need to live in the kingdom of God today in the church.

In Rom. 14:17 Paul did not say that the kingdom of God shall be this or that; rather, it says that the kingdom of God is.

Today the genuine church is the kingdom of God in this age.

The kingdom of God is here today, for the kingdom is the reality of the church and the living of the church.

How should we live the church life?

In the aspect of life, we need to live the church life by enjoying Christ, living Christ, and ministering Christ as life for the building up of the church.

At the same time, in the aspect of the kingdom, we need to live the kingdom life in the church today.

Each time the Lord Jesus spoke of the church, He mentioned it in relation to the kingdom; this indicates how intimately the kingdom and the church are related (Matt. 16:18-19; 18:17-18).

When the apostles preached the gospel in the book of Acts, they frequently mentioned the kingdom (Acts 8:12; 14:22; 19:8; 20:25; 28:23, 31). They preached the kingdom of God as the gospel.

Furthermore, Paul in Rom. 14:17 proves that the church in this age is the kingdom of God.

If we come to 1 Cor. 4:20 we see that the kingdom of God refers to the church life (v. 17), implying that in the sense of authority, the church in this age is the kingdom of God.

The kingdom of God is not in speech but in power; Paul equates the church with the kingdom.

Another verse showing us that the kingdom of God is the genuine church today and that we are part of the kingdom of God is Eph. 2:19.

In this verse we are told that we are no longer strangers and sojourners but fellow citizens with the saints.

On one hand, we are members of the household of God; on the other hand, we are fellow citizens with the saints. We are citizens of the kingdom of God.

The genuine church is the kingdom of God today, the sphere wherein God exercises His authority.

Hallelujah, we are no longer part of the kingdom of darkness, the kingdom of Satan, but we have been transferred into the kingdom of God to be fellow citizens with the saints!

If we live under the rule of the living God within us, that is, if we live under the rule of the kingdom of the heavens, we will live the genuine church life as the kingdom of God on earth.

If we live under the rule of the kingdom of the heavens, we will have the kind of life recorded in Matt. 5-7, for Christ in us will live such a life as the kingdom life in the church.

Praise the Lord, we are fellow citizens with the saints, and as citizens of the kingdom of God, we have rights and responsibilities!

We enjoy the rights of being citizens of the kingdom of God and we learn to fulfill our responsibilities of being in God’s kingdom.

We are not only members of God’s household to be part of God’s family, enjoying Him in life and love; we are also citizens of the kingdom of God, and together we are the church, living the kingdom life in the church.

In Col. 4:11 what Paul and his fellow workers were doing in the gospel work was for the establishing of the churches for the kingdom of God.

What we do today in the church life, both in the gospel and in the shepherding and in the service of the church, should be for the establishing of the church for the kingdom of God. Amen!

The word kingdom in Rev. 1:6 reveals that where the church is, there the kingdom of God is, for the church represents the kingdom.

The reality of the church is just the kingdom of God.

We need to allow the kingdom of God to assert its authority over us so that we may participate in the building up of the church.

If we do not allow the Lord to rule and reign in us, we have nothing to do with the building up of the church; we merely carry out some activities outwardly.

Matt. 13:44-46 shows us that the church is both the treasure and the pearl; as we live under the heavenly rule, we are at the same time both in the kingdom and in the church. Hallelujah!

Lord Jesus, unveil us to see that the genuine church is the kingdom of God in this age! Hallelujah, we as believers in Christ live the kingdom life in the church! Amen, Lord, we exercise our spirit today to live one spirit with You and to be under Your heavenly rule. May we not only live in the realm of the church life having much enjoyment of Christ with the saints but even more, live in the kingdom of God in the church today! Praise the Lord, we are fellow citizens with the saints, for we are part of the kingdom of God. Amen, Lord, we want to enjoy the rights and privileges of being citizens of the kingdom, and we want to learn to carry out our responsibilities of being such citizens today. May everything we do today be for the building up of the church for the kingdom of God! Hallelujah, where the church is, the kingdom of God is also, for the church represents the kingdom! Oh Lord, may our living today be the kingdom life in the church!

We are in the Kingdom in Reality only when we Live, Walk, and have our Being in the Spirit

All believers in Christ are citizens of the kingdom of God (Eph. 2:19), but not all believers in Christ may live in the kingdom of God in reality today.

In the church as the kingdom of God today we need to realize that our daily living needs to be under the kingdom’s rule, government, discipline, and exercise (1 Cor. 6:9-10; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 5:5).

On the one hand, we have Christ as our life, for He is our Savior who became our life, imparting Himself into us as the life-giving Spirit.

On the other hand, through regeneration, we have been brought into the kingdom of God, and now we need to live the kingdom life in the church.

Although the church today is God’s kingdom, we are in the kingdom in reality only when we live in our spirit, for only when we live, walk, and have our being in the spirit are we in the kingdom of God in reality. Wow!

If we do not allow the Lord with His kingdom to assert His authority over us, we will not live the kingdom life in the church life today.

We may be in the realm of the church and we may be in many meetings, even being active in the service of the church and the shepherding of the saints, but unless we live in the mingled spirit, having our whole being in the spirit, we are not living the kingdom life in reality. Oh, Lord Jesus!

This means that, whenever we’re not in our spirit, we are not in the kingdom of God in reality. This is very sobering.

We may be in our spirit as we have a time with the Lord in the morning, but when we go to work or take care of the daily things, do we still remain in our spirit?

We all have to admit that so many times throughout the day, maybe even most of the time during the day, we are not living in the mingled spirit.

May we learn to turn to our spirit again and again until it is normal for us to be in the spirit.

May we exercise to contact the Lord throughout the day until it will be a habit that we have our whole being in the mingled spirit.

When we behave in the old man or live in the flesh or in the self, in a practical way, we are not in the kingdom of God in reality.

Our spirit is the kingdom of God, and the kingdom of God is in our spirit.

If we live in the flesh, we will be in the realm of the kingdom of Satan, the kingdom of darkness, and he has a way to usurp us. Oh, Lord!

As genuine Christians, if we live in the flesh instead of in the spirit, we live in the kingdom of Satan in a practical way, not in the kingdom of God.

This is why sometimes we see Christians whom the Lord used for a long time suddenly fail.

This is why many times during the day, if someone meets us and sees what we do and what we say, they will never get the impression that we are citizens of the kingdom of God. Oh, Lord Jesus!

It is only when we live, walk, behave, and have our being altogether in our spirit and not in our natural man, that we are in the kingdom of God and, in reality, we are the kingdom of God!

It is very good for us to know that the genuine church is the kingdom of God in this age, that we are fellow citizens of the kingdom of God, and that we should live the kingdom life in the church.

But we need to take one step further: in our daily living, we need to learn to live by the spirit, walk by the spirit, and do all things in the mingled spirit.

It is only when we are in the spirit that we are living the kingdom life in the church.

It is only when we are in our spirit that we are in the kingdom of God and even are the kingdom of God.

How much we need to repent before the Lord for living in the flesh and in the self, allowing our natural man to be expressed!

How much we need to learn to turn to our spirit again and again so that we may live in reality in the kingdom of God!

Lord Jesus, we want to live in our spirit today so that we may be in the kingdom of God in reality. Oh Lord, we choose to turn to our spirit right now! We refuse to live in the self, in the flesh, or in the natural man. We exercise to contact You and live one spirit with You! May our living and walking today be in the spirit and according to the Spirit! Amen, Lord, keep us contacting You throughout the day. May we have frequent times of prayer and calling on Your name during the day so that we may have our being in the mingled spirit. Save us, dear Lord, from being only in the realm of the church but not being in reality in the kingdom of God! We give ourselves to You, Lord Jesus, and we give You our daily living with all its activities and things. Keep us turning to our spirit. We want to live the kingdom life in the church by exercising our spirit, living in our spirit, and walking according to the spirit! Oh Lord Jesus, we allow the kingdom to assert its influence and authority in us today!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother James Lee in the message for this week, and portions from, The Conclusion of the New Testament, msgs. 209, 240-241 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Living in the Reality of the Kingdom of God (2024 October ITERO), week 3, The Kingdom and the Church.
• Similar articles on this topic:
  – The mingled spirit – the key to the Christian life, article by Ron Kangas in, Affirmation and Critique.
  – Oneness in the mingled spirit, a portion from, The One New Man, Chapter 3, by Witness Lee.
  – Living the Kingdom Life by Living a Hidden Life & The Kingdom and the Church, video sharing via, Heavenly Foods.
  – The church being the kingdom of God, a portion from, The Kingdom, Chapter 3, by Witness Lee.
  – Living the Kingdom Life for the Growth of the Seed of the Kingdom within Us, outline via, The Church in Dunn Loring.
  – Living in the mingled spirit, article by Ron Kangas in, Affirmation and Critique.
  – Living in the Mingled Spirit, The Secret of the Christian Life, via, Holding to Truth in Love.
  – The Spirit and Life, a portion from, Four Crucial Elements of the Bible, The—Christ, the Spirit, Life, and the Church, Chapter 8, by Witness Lee.
  – We Have Come to the City and the Church of the Living God, via, New Jerusalem blog.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – O Lord, Thou art the Spirit now / Who in my spirit makes His home; / He mingles with my spirit too, / And both one spirit thus become. / Lord, teach me how to exercise / My spirit now to contact Thee, / That in Thy Spirit I may walk / And live by Thy reality. (Hymns #483 stanzas 4-5)
  – Submitted to God’s ruling, / All virtue thus will win; / Rebellion to His Headship / Is but the root of sin. / The evil aim of Satan— / God’s throne to overthrow; / Our aim and goal is ever / His rule to fully know. / Within God’s sovereign kingdom / His Christ is magnified; / When Christ in life is reigning, / The Father’s glorified. / When God is in dominion, / All things are truly blessed; / When Christ for God is reigning. / God’s glory is expressed. (Hymns #941 stanzas 4-5)
  – O Lord, give us grace for Thy Kingdom to live, / To be trained that Thou may the reward to us give; / Make the Kingdom’s reality our exercise, / That its manifestation may be our great prize. (Hymns #947 stanza 7)