Opening Up The Kingdom

 "And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom 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." (Luke 17:20-21)
The inward path leads to the Kingdom of God and meditation and prayer are two integral ways of getting there.  Meditation is mentioned in the Bible....
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are   noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever   things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is   any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these   things." (Php 4:8)   Paul clearly teaches us to "meditate on these things", and   "meditation" is certainly a Biblical subject:
   Isaac meditated in the field at eventide - Gen 24:63   Joshua was charged by God to mediate "day and night" - Josh 1:8   The "blessed man" in Psalms 1 is one who meditates - Ps 1:1-2   David became wiser than his teachers through meditation - Ps 119:99   Paul commanded Timothy to "meditate on these things" - 1Ti 4:15
 Wikipedia offers this insight into Christian meditative practices:Hesychasm (Greek: ἡσυχασμός, hesychasmos, from ἡσυχία, hesychia, "stillness, rest, quiet, silence")^[1] is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Churches of Byzantine Rite practised (Gk: ἡσυχάζω, hesychazo: "to keep stillness") by the Hesychast (Gr. Ἡσυχαστής, hesychastes).
Based on Christ's injunction in the Gospel of Matthew to "when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray",^[2] hesychasm in tradition has been the process of retiring inward by ceasing to register the senses, in order to achieve an experiential knowledge of God (see theoria).
It's a type of prayer but there is a link between prayer and meditation. Here wikipedia gives us a look at where we get the word meditate into English from and the Hebrew word for it, the Greek and the practices of the Jews which bear some resemblance with meditation.
"The English meditation is derived from the Latin meditatio, from a verb meditari, meaning "to think, contemplate, devise, ponder".^[10]
In the Old Testament, hāgâ (Hebrew: הגה) means to sigh or murmur, and also, to meditate. When the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek, hāgâ became the Greek melete. The Latin Bible then translated hāgâ/melete into meditatio.^[11] The use of the term meditatio as part of a formal, stepwise process of meditation goes back to the 12th-century monk Guigo II.^[12]
The Tibetan word for meditation "Gom" means "to become familiar with one's Self" and has the strong implication of training the mind to be familiar with states that are beneficial: concentration, compassion, correct understanding, patience, humility, perseverance, etc.^[13]
Apart from its historical usage, the term meditation was introduced as a translation for Eastern spiritual practices, referred to as dhyāna in Buddhism and in Hinduism, which comes from the Sanskrit root dhyai, meaning to contemplate or meditate.^[7][14] The term "meditation" in English may also refer to practices from Islamic Sufism,^[15] or other traditions such as Jewish Kabbalah and Christian Hesychasm.^[16] An edited book about "meditation" published in 2003, for example, included chapter contributions by authors describing Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist, Jewish, Christian and Islamic traditions.^[17][18] Scholars have noted that "the term 'meditation' as it has entered contemporary usage" is parallel to the term "contemplation" in Christianity.^[19]
According to Ariel, David S. says that mediation was not something practiced without deliberation and prior commitment to the Jewish faith. from the fraternities of Merkava meditation to the whole Hasidic communities engaging in meditative act, Jews were expected to follow Jewish laws and customs at the very least moreover, as seen in cases of the Prophets and later meditation techniques, a certain level of purification was needed.(4)"
 The question I would ask is why is it this particular practice so common amongst so many different religions and cultures across such great distances in space and time?  It may be because the inward path is invaluable to spiritual cultivation.
Jesus said the Kingdom of God lies within, not without us so if we want t travel to it, if we want to open up the doors of the Kingdom we do not journey to a foreign land, we must journey inward to find it.  Prayer and meditation are how we do this.
Cultivating our spiritual potential necessitates we take up practices which will inevitably focus on the inner dimension of life and the universe.  This article by Phil Mclemore demonstrates how the practice of meditation lead to achieving actual Christlike qualities in his personality and in his life.
By consistent and frequent inward bound practices like meditation and prayer we develop a better understanding of the Kingdom because we spend more and more time in touch with it, more time in communion with God and it shows in our daily lives and that is the proof that we are on the right track.  As opposed to all the "outward" signs of righteousness that the pharisees among us over emphasize.
Because all these benefits have to do with how we feel.  About ourselves, others and how we perceive God.  You know whether or not someone is Christlike when you meet them not based on a checklist.  The ways in which we treat others, strangers, loved ones, enemies will prove how Christlike we are or are not and if we are not that's fine because we can progress to that end.  But we must put effort into our spiritual development.
The purpose of going inward is to experience the Kingdom but more importantly it is to open up its gates to allow it to embrace all those you meet.  When we enthusiastically practice our own religion it is easier to see the merits of other religions and meditation, though having a Biblical basis, may still seem an Eastern practice.  But there is a scientific link between prayer and meditation.  These are both inward paths, and an inward path is the best path to spiritual cultivation given the Kingdom lies within.
If the Kingdom of God is within then it is also everywhere, in the hearts and minds of every person out there in the world.  It may be unseen so to speak but it is also all around us.  If we really want to build up Zion we must open up ourselves and allow the Kingdom to enter into the world through us.
   ^"For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." (Matthew 18:20)     
If two or three have that ability then what happens when we multiply that by thousand or millions in a city intended to be or to function as Zion?  As the city of God, a focal point for the Kingdom to enter into the world that we could make real if we were to commit to it.
We through the inward path could manifest the Kingdom into the world through a city on a hill which cannot be hid any more than a lighthouse on a stormy night.
We could provide that lighthouse to the world when its needed most.  And we would benefit every bit as much as all our brothers and sisters by communing with God, seeking the Kingdom within and opening it up for all to enjoy.