Thy Kingdom Come (BFM #15)
Text: 1st Corinthians 15:24; Colossians 1:13
By: Ken McKinley
(Read Texts)
This morning we are looking at article 9 of the BFM – the Kingdom, so follow along with me as I read that article to you (Read). Now this theme of the Kingdom of God is found in both the New Testament and in the Old and when taken all together it embodies the purpose of God for man on earth, and in heaven. That’s why we see it spoken of as both a present – realized Kingdom and from the perspective of it being a future reality, where believers will spend eternity. And we are going to be looking at it in these two ways today. We can look at this idea of the Kingdom almost like we would look at an inheritance from a will. Or more like a trust fund. Let’s say that we had a great uncle that was very wealthy, and he died when we were very young, say 5 or 6 years old, but this great uncle left us his home and fortune in a trust fund. Now by law, that trust fund is ours from the moment of our great uncles death, but we don’t take possession of it until we reach the age of 21. That’s sort of the idea we get from the Biblical teaching of the Kingdom. Jesus died and has left us an inheritance. In 1st Corinthians 15:24 we see that the Kingdom is realized. Revelation 1:6 says that Jesus has made us kings and priests unto God… And then in verse 9 of Revelation chapter 1 John, in writing to his fellow Christians says, “I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island of Patmos…” Christians are companions in the Kingdom of Christ, because Christ the King dwells within each and every one of us. He dwells in us, He rules over us and governs us, and so His dwelling within us is what makes us the Body of Christ, or we could say – the Kingdom of God on earth.
Now a lot of times we think of the Kingdom of God as some future reality that takes place after the tribulation, and we are studying about this in discipleship class but we forget that the Kingdom is also present with us now. Turn with me to Luke 17:21 (Read).
Everyone who is saved has a part in the Kingdom right now, by being in Christ, and He in them. But it is also a future reality as well. 1st Corinthians 15:50 says that, “Flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.” That’s talking about the Kingdom consummated! It’s talking about the future, when we rule and reign with Jesus. That’s talking about when we finally take possession of that inheritance. Now you notice that it says, “Flesh and blood can’t inherit it…” That’s why Jesus said to Nicodemus in John 3 that, “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Because in this future reality of the Kingdom, we have to put on the incorruptible, we have to be in our glorified bodies that we receive when Christ comes again. The Kingdom that we reign in is now, and the consummated Kingdom is the final state of our reign. We could actually think of it like a bride, who is married in the morning, but doesn’t consummate her marriage until the evening. Or if you understand Jewish tradition, a woman could be betrothed, or promised to a man, but it would not be until later that they were actually married. For all intents and purposes they were married, but not actually. Remember the story of Mary and Joseph?
So the resurrection is what has made the Kingdom of God a present reality, but His return will be what will consummate it and make it a realized reality.
Turn with me to Matthew 13:24-30, 13:36-43 (Read).
Here again, Jesus is teaching that the Kingdom is now, and that He is sowing seed (the children of the Kingdom) in it.
So the children of the Kingdom are now, and Christ’s rule and reign in that Kingdom is now, and that the future Kingdom is one which flesh and blood cannot inherit and that no one can see unless they are born again. Our text from Colossians tells us that God has delivered us from the Power of darkness and has translated us into the Kingdom of His dear Son, again that’s a present reality for Christians.
But again in Matthew 25:34 Jesus speaks of a future Kingdom when He says, “Come, blessed of My Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”
Now the reason I’ve gone over this so much is because I want you all to understand that the Bible teaches that the Kingdom is a present reality, and yet it is to be fully realized in the future. But that’s not all there is to the Bible’s teachings on the Kingdom of God. And so if we want to better understand the Kingdom, then we first need to ask ourselves what the word “Kingdom” means. The Hebrew word is malkuth and the Greek word is basileia and both mean basically the same thing: Dominion and sovereignty of a King. So we look at the word “Kingdom” and we understand that it means a King’s dominion, and a King’s domain, and His dominion over that domain. His authority to rule as he sees fit. So when we see in the Bible the word or phrase, “Kingdom of God” we can understand that it’s talking about the rule and reign and power and sovereignty of God first and foremost.
Turn with me to Luke 19:11-12, “Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the Kingdom of God would appear immediately. Therefore He said: ‘A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom (a basileia in the Greek) and to return.” The noble man didn’t go away to get a realm and then come back. The realm he wanted to rule over was already there, it was the place he left. He went away to get the right to rule. He went off to get a kingship, or authority.
So write this down, the Kingdom of God is His Kingship, His rule, His sovereignty, His authority, and His power. And then when you have the time, go through your Bibles and think about that as you read all the passages that speak of the Kingdom. For example in Mark 10:15 where Jesus said we must “receive the Kingdom of God as little children” Was He talking about receiving heaven? Or some future place in the Middle East? No, He was talking about receiving the rule of God in our lives. That’s why the Bible says in Romans 14:17 that, “the Kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” In-other-words, the more submitted to the rule of God in our lives, the more peace and joy we will have, and the more righteous living we will do. We are to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness… meaning that we are to seek God’s way, His rule, His reign in our lives.
So we can say that the Bible’s teachings on the Kingdom of God is threefold. It is God’s rule and reign in our lives and over all of creation, the Kingdom is also a realm that we enter into presently and experience the blessings of God’s rule and reign, and thirdly – it is a future realm that comes with the return of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords Jesus Christ! When He returns we who are His will experience the fullness of the Kingdom.
This is important because Jesus tells us in the Lord’s Prayer that we are to pray, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” That’s something that we are supposed to be praying for. So when we understand what the Kingdom of God is, we can understand that we are praying that God’s will be done here and now, today. Let me just tell ya’ll I make it personal. I say, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done in my life as it is in heaven.” And, “In my home, as it is in heaven,” and “in my church, as it is in heaven.” I want to be in submission to God’s will in every aspect of life, every facet of life. We are praying that God’s will would be done here and now, and also for the return of the Lord, so that we might fully realize the Kingdom, and the King who rules and reigns over it.
Now let me just say this quickly, the Kingdom is present now, and it will be fully realized sometime in the future. But the “now” is what I want us to look at. I once heard someone say that, “The people in the front of the line in heaven will probably not have white skin.” And what that means is that we have Christian brothers and sisters in other countries who have truly sacrificed much more than we ever have for the Kingdom of God. In the worlds eyes, those people were the losers, they were the failures, but Jesus said that whoever will be the greatest in the Kingdom will be the servant of all.
And so before I close I want to ask you all a question: How does the Kingdom of God affect you? How does it affect your life? How does it affect the decisions you make?
You see; if you’re a Christian then you are a citizen of the Kingdom of God and all that the Bible has to say about the Kingdom applies to you.
Do you want to see the honor and the glory of God advanced in your world? Would you rather live a life of comfort and ease and not rock the boat, or would you rather live a life of holiness – even if it meant persecution and maybe even loosing everything?
What I’m trying to say here is that, we need to make our decisions based on eternity. That’s something that I didn’t always understand myself.
Turn with me to Hebrews 11:13-16 (Read). We should be no different. By faith we can rise above the tug of earthly materialism and vain desires, and instead seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Rather than seeking all the things of the world and the comforts they offer, we should be seeking first the rule and reign of God in our lives, and the future Kingdom to come.
Someone once told me, “Don’t be so heavenly minded or you’ll be no earthly good.” But that’s an incorrect statement, because it’s only when we are heavenly minded that we are of any earthly good.
CLOSING AND PRAYER
