"That expression, 'children of the kingdom,' occurs twice in the Bible. In the first instance, Jesus (for in both cases it is our Lord who uses this word) says, referring, it is supposed, to the Jewish nation, 'The children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' God forbid that you or I should, like those Jews, be cast out of the kingdom as unworthy to belong to it!"
"Again, our Lord, in explaining His parable of the sower and the seed, says: 'The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one.'"
"How I wish I could persuade you, my friends, to aim at being like the good seed in this great field in which God has placed you. Who is willing to be a child of the kingdom?"
"I am," murmured Beryl, who had been listening with intense interest to the speaker's words. "I am willing."
The gentleman heard the child's low response. He was silent for a few minutes, and then went on with growing earnestness:—
"I heard some one say, 'I am willing,'" he said, not looking at Beryl, but so far beyond her that she fancied he could not know that she had said the words. "God be praised for one willing heart! But I trust there are others amongst you ready to become children of the kingdom; and in order that we may understand what this means, let us try to form some idea of what the nature of this kingdom really is."
"First, let me say that it is not a kingdom of the future, but a kingdom existing now. Some people mean heaven, the world of joy and rest, which they believe death will open to them, when they speak of the kingdom of God."
"But God has a kingdom now, in this world, a kingdom into which we may enter if we will. The kingdom is not yet perfected, it is true; but it is daily growing and increasing. We cannot describe its form, for it is an invisible kingdom. Jesus 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.' And St. Paul, taught of the Spirit, said, 'The kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.'"
"Now do you begin to see something of what the kingdom is? The realm over which our Father would reign is the hearts of men. It is His by right; He is its lawful ruler; but He desires to win its loving submission. Wherever there is a heart bowing to the will of its Father, striving to do His will, struggling to live worthy of its Divine birth, there is the kingdom of heaven. The Lord Jesus Christ is the door into that kingdom. The man who, loving Christ, tries to follow His example, living a true, pure, honest life, working his hardest when work is to hand, and trusting his Father without grumbling when times are bad, is a child of the kingdom."
"The woman who does her lowly household work as to the Lord, loving her husband, caring for her children, keeping her home clean and bright, and living peaceably with her neighbours, is a child of the kingdom. The boy or girl who tries to be like the child Jesus, obedient, gentle, loving, making the sunshine of glad smiles and the music of happy voices in this sad earth, is a child of the kingdom."