Luke 17:20-21, "And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingodm of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! Or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you."

This morning, people mistakenly think that the public opinion of the masses is what is important to understanding truth. The truth of the matter is that public, popular opinion is generally very wrong, and it has been that way for centuries. Public opinion about our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ was wrong in all counts, for it did not ever mention Him as the Lord of glory (just one of the prophets raised back to life). So, let us consider what popular opinion has to say about the church (or kingdom of God). Upon what basis does someone measure church? Upon what basis do they measure the health of a church? Indeed, these are important questions today as they are posed to us frequently.

Here, our Lord clears up any notions about what folks may think that the kingdom of God is. The kingdom is residing within His people, and it is manifest here on earth when they congregate together in one accord for the express purpose of worshipping God in spirit and in truth. The kingdom is not the meeting house. The kingdom is not the things that are seen. The Lord's kingdom is not of this world, and therefore the substance of it did not come from this world either. The substance of the kingdom is the regenerate heart that has the ability to offer up acceptable praise to our Almighty King. The kingdom of God resides in the hearts of God's regenerate children. However, many of them do not display it as they should, and therefore are absent the same winds, floods, and rain. (Matt. 7:24-27) Have a builder’s mind and build on a sure foundation.

Satan cannot destroy the Lord’s people so they lose their home in heaven. He cannot destroy or prevail against the Lord’s church because it is built on Jesus Christ as the rock. However, He makes every attempt to destroy the lives of God’s people as a roaring lion after its prey. (I Pet. 5:8) There are certain things that the people of God can do to thwart these efforts of Satan. The scriptures are a perfect thorough furnisher with all the information needed to meet this foe.

Our freedom is being increasingly infringed upon in this nation, and the foundations upon which this nation has been established are in danger of being destroyed. The traditional and Bible family is under attack with various perverted lifestyles while parents are losing the right to educate their children in a morally and biblically accepted manner. The Psalmist poses this question that seems most relevant today. “If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Psalm 18:3) Notice that it is only the righteous that can do anything as the unrighteous are just interested in continuing this gross perversion.

Part of the answer to the question of what the righteous can do when the foundations are about to be destroyed is intimated in the following verse: “The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD'S throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.” (Psalm 11:4) The Lord is still in His holy temple. He still hears the cry of the righteous. When we seem to be overwhelmed by the issues facing today’s people of God, we have a biblical way of responding. “Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” (Psalm 61:1-2) That same rock on which the foundation of the church rests.

Jesus as the foundation is the way, the truth and the life. Truth is important to freedom. Jesus said, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32) We read of a time in the Bible where truth was at a premium as Isaiah writes,  “And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.” (Isa. 59:14) Truth had fallen in the streets and there was no justice or judgment. The prevailing attitude among the elite today is that there is no truth; it is only relevant as each individual perceives it.