Luke 17:20-21:  20 Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.”

Matthew 6:33 says “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

So what can we say about these things?  If the kingdom of God is within us (apparently even within the Pharisees) then how can we seek it? How can we find it?   What do we do to gain entry into the kingdom of God?

First let me tell you: I’m pretty sure that “the kingdom of God”, and “being saved”, and “having eternal life”, and “knowing God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit”, and even “walking after the Spirit” are all interchangeable expressions for “having a personal relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ”.

So how do you have a personal relationship with Jesus?  The Bible talks about several different ways to reach that relationship. Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe (trust) in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart one believes (trusts) unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation.”

In John 3:16, John says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes (trusts) in Him, will have eternal life.

In Genesis 15:6 and again in Romans 4:3, God said, “For Abram believed (trusted) God, and it was counted to him for righteousness.”

So what is the common element in all these verses?  If you trust Jesus as a total commitment of your whole being, then you immediately begin to experience that personal relationship that is called by all those names cited above, and because you have Jesus’ Spirit residing in your heart, that very day you enter into the kingdom of God.  And if you’re still trying to figure out how to trust Him; the only way to do it is to surrender your whole self to Him.