KEYS OF THE KINGDOM
(week 13/01)
Olubi Johnson
In our last article, we saw how to operate divine creative faith deliberately and diligently by faith.
In this article, we will see practically how to apply this to different areas of our lives daily by using the keys of the Kingdom.
What are the Keys of the Kingdom?
Matthew 16:13-19 (KJV): When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
In this portion of scripture Jesus shows us that the rock on which the Church is to be built is personal revelation knowledge. Furthermore the Lord tells us that this revelation will give us the keys of the Kingdom. This is further confirmed in
Luke 11:52 (KJV): Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.
Here, Peter had personal revelation from the Holy Spirit that Jesus was the Christ. This knowledge did not come through flesh and blood: the five physical senses; rather Peter’s mind was enlightened to this truth by the Holy Spirit.
Knowledge revealed to us by inner illumination of our minds by the Holy Spirit is called revelation knowledge; this is in contrast with the natural knowledge we get through our physical senses, which we may call ‘sense knowledge’:
1 Corinthians 2:9-10 (KJV): But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. (10) But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
Ephesians 1:17-18 (KJV): That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: (18) The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the
A good natural illustration of the difference between sense or head knowledge and revelation is the difference between reading a report of an event from some one who witnessed it and watching the same event live on television. One is second hand information; the other is first hand information by the power of light and electricity of modern technology, even though you were not physically present.
In the same way, by the power of the Holy Spirit you receive first hand information from God of what God had in mind when the scriptures were written and when the events in the scripture were occurring. In one sense God plays back in your mind a ‘spiritual video recording’ of what was in His mind and what happened in the scriptures; however this spiritual video is played back by words and thoughts and not necessarily by actual live pictures: which only happens when you have a literal vision.
This revelation or playback of what was in God’s mind causes you to have the mind of Christ on any issue God gives you revelation about.
1 Corinthians 2:16 (KJV): For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
Getting, Using and Keeping the Keys of the Kingdom
The word Kingdom comes from the combination of two words: King and dominion.
The keys of the kingdom are personal revelation knowledge of the dominion of the King: The Lord Jesus, in different areas of our lives.
For instance, we need to have personal revelation of God’s dominion over, sin, sickness, poverty, satanic attack and oppression.
Just like the keys to your home give you access to your home, the keys of the kingdom give you access to the dominion of the King in your life.
If, for example you change the locks of the key to your house and you don’t have the new keys you will not be able to enter your house and enjoy the comfort and shelter therein even though it is your house and you have the legal right to enjoy all that is in it.
Similarly, even though you are born again and have been delivered from the Kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son (Col 1:13), you will not enjoy the benefits of this Kingdom of God without the keys of the Kingdom.
Furthermore, just like with natural keys you must not just have the keys, you must use and keep them. If you don’t use your keys or you lose them you still will not have access to the comfort and shelter of your home; In the same way if you do not use and keep the keys of the Kingdom you will not enjoy the blessings, comfort and shelter of the Kingdom of God even though they are yours legally. The scripture says in Hosea 4:6 “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…
We get the keys of the Kingdom by:
Lowliness of mind : Proverbs 11:2
Daily prayer for revelation: Ephesians 1:17-23
Daily prayer in the Spirit continuously for at least 1 hour everyday: Eph.6:18, 1 Cor. 14:2. Matt. 26.41
Daily Bible reading: 2 Tim 3:15-16
We use the keys daily by confession, meditation and doing or practice of the revelation we have received.
We keep the keys by daily (Luke 9:23), continuously (John 8:31) and diligently (Heb. 11:6) doing all we did to get and use them.
Find below a simple prayer summary or format for getting, using and keeping the keys of the kingdom daily, which you can print out for daily use.
MANUAL FOR DAILY USE OF THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM
1. Confess your sins and repent of them at the beginning of each day.
E.G. Cleansing of Sins (1 Jn. 1:9; Heb. 9:14)
Father, I confess our sins (e.g. lack of patience, prayerlessness, intemperance, disobedience, spiritual slothfulness, lying, sexual immorality in thought, word and deed) and the sins of our people, fathers and forefathers of greed, murder and wickedness. I receive forgiveness, cleansing and the purging of our consciences from these dead works to serve You the living God.
Father, I repent of my sins and determine to do all you reveal to me, in Jesus’ name.
Thank the Father, Son and Holy Spirit for the new day, and especially acknowledge the Holy Spirit as a Person, and ask Him to help you to pray.
E.G. Receive Mercy, Grace and Help (Rom. 9:15; 2 Cor. 12:9; Rom. 8:26)
In Jesus’ name we have life.
Father, thank You for this new day that You have made, and your mercies, which are new every morning. Lord Jesus, thank You for this new day and Your grace. Holy Spirit, thank You for all Your help and for waking me up after a good nights sleep.
Holy Spirit, please help me to enjoy communion and fellowship with You so my prayers will be refreshing, exciting and will avail much. Help me to find the yoke easy and the burden light and to redeem the time as I pray. In this regard, Lord Jesus, Heavenly Father, please release Your grace and mercy upon me. I receive these things by faith now in Jesus’ name. [It is vital to acknowledge (mentally) the Holy Spirit as a person in this way so your prayer will not be mechanical but refreshing.]
2. Ask God the Father, in the name of Jesus, for lowliness of mind so that one can receive the wisdom of God through praying in the spirit (Prov.11: 2).
In Jesus’ name we have life
I am meek and lowly in heart, I humble myself by submitting to the will of God even when I don’t feel like it , especially in prayer, knowing the certainty of God’s chastening if we don’t and the security of His mercy if we do.
3. Ask the Father for the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him (Eph.1: 16-20).
In Jesus name we have life. Father please give unto me the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of you so the eyes of my understanding be further enlightened that I may know better the hope of your calling upon my life, the riches of the glory of your inheritance in me as a saint and the exceeding greatness of your resurrection power which you wrought in Christ towards me as a saint.
4. Pray CONTINUOUSLY in the spirit for one hour to have dominion over sin, preferably in the morning (Ps. 63: 1).
In Jesus’ name we have life
Jn. 10:10. Father, give life to our spirits now, in a measure more than enough to enable me to pray effectually and fervently to receive life and power from God through the word, in Jesus’ name.
E.G. Making your prayer request for dominion over sin.
In Jesus’ name we have life.
Father, give life to our spirits now, in a measure that is more than enough to enable me to pray effectually and fervently for dominion over sin in the lives of myself, members of my immediate family and household today, in tongues, by the Holy Spirit, to generate and to release more than enough of the life and power of God to cause us this day:-
(a) to be divinely protected and preserved from all spiritual and physical evil and attack, from both human and demonic sources, and from spiritual and physical sickness and death
(b) to desire and do of God’s good pleasure, so that today, we will;
-live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way
-bear fruit in every good work and
-become more like Christ, in Jesus’ name.
Now pray CONTINUOUSLY in the Spirit for one hour concerning the request you have just made, after which you praise and worship God (5-10 mins).
You should also find four extra hours of prayer weekly, one hour each, praying in this same way (using steps 1 to 4) to have dominion over the following: ignorance, sickness, poverty and failure. Simply substitute the following prayer requests in step 4 when praying for any of the other topics.
E.G. Making your prayer request for dominion over ignorance; Eph.1: 17-20 (1 hour weekly).
In Jesus’ name we have life.
Father, give life to our spirits now, in a measure that is more than enough to enable me to pray effectually and fervently for dominion over ignorance, to give me the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the present complete knowledge of you, so the eyes of my understanding may be further enlightened, that I may know better, the hope of your calling upon my life, the riches of the glory of your inheritance in me, and the exceeding greatness of your resurrection power in Christ towards me as a saint, in Jesus’ name.
E.G. Making your prayer request for dominion over sickness; 1 Pt. 2: 24 (1 hour weekly).
In Jesus’ name we have life.
Father, give life to our spirits now, in a measure that is more than enough to enable me to pray effectually and fervently for dominion over sickness, as I pray to cause a complete and total healing of my physical body by the stripes of Jesus and by his resurrection life and power, and to cause me to remain in divine health, in Jesus name.
E.G. Making your prayer request for dominion over poverty (1 hour weekly).
In Jesus’ name we have life.
Father, give life to our spirits now, in a measure that is more than enough to enable me to pray effectually and fervently for dominion over poverty as I pray to cause us to give our tithes and offerings promptly, completely and regularly; and to have knowledge, understanding, wisdom, skill, divine guidance, strength, ability, favour with God and men in all we do.
To cause us to succeed, excel and prosper in all that we do, and to have a hundred-fold return in this lifetime on every financial seed we have sown thus far, and on everything that we have given because of Jesus and the gospel.
E.G. Making your prayer request for dominion over failure (1 hour weekly).
In Jesus’ name we have life.
Father, give life to our spirits now, in a measure that is more than enough to enable me to pray effectually and fervently for dominion over failure, as I pray to cause no evil to befall us, neither any plague to come near our dwelling, so that God will give His angels charge over us to keep us in all our ways and protect our spirits, souls, and bodies, and everything we have from damage, loss and theft.
To cause us to prosper in everything we set our hands to in the will of the lord, in Jesus name.
5. Speak the word of God daily;
for dominion over sin:- sin will not have dominion over me (Rom.6: 14). I love righteousness, and hate iniquity (Heb.1: 9). I abstain from all appearance of evil (1 Thess.5: 22).
For dominion over sickness:- by the stripes of Jesus, I am healed (Isa.53: 4-5; 1 Pt.2: 24). The Lord God will bless my bread and water and will take sickness away from me (Ex.23: 25).
For dominion over poverty:- I give my tithes and offerings promptly, completely and regularly, so God opens unto me the windows of heaven and pours out His Spirit and His blessings on the ground of my heart, causing me to have knowledge, understanding, wisdom, skill, strength and ability, favour with God and men in all I do; so I prosper in all I do and my God supplies all my need and the devourer is rebuked for my sake (Mal.3: 10; Prov.8: 18-21; Phil.4: 19).
You should also pray in this way once a week for your wife (or fiance© or looking for a life partner); children (even they are not yet born or you are not yet married), your nation, your natural vocation (e.g.: business, studies etc), your service in your local church (e.g.: if you’re in the choir or you’re an usher etc.).
6. Act on the word of God daily;
for dominion over sin, abstain from all appearance of evil (1 Thes.5: 22).
for dominion over sickness, eat clean food, maintain clean habits, exercise, rest and use medicine if necessary as a corresponding action to your faith (2 Kg.20: 5-7; 1 Tim.5: 18).
For dominion over poverty, get a job, and invest in something God can bless (2 Thes.3: 10; Tit.3: 14).
7. Read your bible daily;
1 chapter (or about 20 verses) from New Testament; 1 chapter (or about 20 verses) from Old Testament; 1 chapter (or about 20 verses) Gospels; 1 chapter (or about 10 verses) Psalms; 1 chapter (or about 10 verses) Proverbs.
