Jesus Was Not Homeless, Part 12 by Larry Huggins

JESUS WAS ACCUSTOMED TO STAYING IN GRAND HOMES

Evidently, Jesus was comfortable staying in grand homes. Tell me, would a vagabond carpenter expect to stay in grand homes? No, but a King would.

The fact that Jesus invited himself into Zacchaeus’s home implies Kingdom authority. What’s more, this wasn’t a one-time incident; it was Jesus’ standard operating procedure. He commanded His ambassadors to demand the same treatment:

And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter [Luke says,. ..into every city and place, whither he himself would come] inquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence. (Matt 10:11)

Inquire who is worthy? That means go straight to the top! The disciples were commanded by Jesus to always lodge in only the most important houses.

Worthy means a person of weight or importance. We use similar expressions today. We might hear, “That Senator carries a lot of weight in Washington.”

In other words, Jesus ordered His disciples: When I send you out as the duly-commissioned representatives of My Kingdom, requisition only the best household of each city to be your base of operations.

He also charged His agents to invoke kingdom authority by decreeing, “The Kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.” (Luke 10:9)

That was the equivalent of declaring, Hear ye, hear ye! Therefore, by command of His Majesty, the Prince of Israel, this home is hereby appropriated to serve as a temporary Royal Embassy and Ambassador’s Residence. The reign of the King will now proceed from this household.

This is the rule of Eminent Domain – the right of a Head of State to requisition a house (or a boat, or a donkey, or a banquet hall, or anything else he may need to conduct Kingdom business)

Likewise, would a true-blue Englishman turn down the Queen of England if she sent her ambassador to lodge in his home? Which red-blooded American would turn down the President of the United States of America if he requisitioned his house?

You know how this works. When the President goes to Camp David, Camp David becomes the seat of the government. When the President goes to his private residence, that becomes the seat of the government. If he were to come to your home, your home would become the seat of the government. He could run the country from your living room!

It wasn’t supernatural favor that caused people to surrender their houses to Jesus. It was Kingdom authority.

To this day, governments have the right to exercise legal authority over all private property by invoking the right of eminent domain. That means, for the good of the nation, any property can be commandeered, including private homes.

Jesus was exercising His right of eminent domain, “The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof…” (Ps 24:1)

When you open your house to Jesus, His Kingdom comes into your home, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” (Matt 6:10)

Here’s a question for you: Does Jesus have a right to claim anything you have? If He is your King, He does!

This blog is one of a series of excerpts of my manuscript called Codex Rex — The Book of the King. Your comments and questions will help me improve the manuscript before publication.

Larry Huggins is a father, a husband, a pastor and a missionary, an author, and a broadcaster. He has traveled to scores of nations, planting churches and bible schools, and conducting seminars and evangelistic crusades.