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Are we in the kingdom today?
Luke 17:20-21 “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; nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.” There is a spiritual kingdom that was introduce first and a kingdom that the whole world will one day be under when Jesus returns. When Jesus said this he was certainly was not endorsing the Pharisees to look within themselves, that the kingdom was already there for them. The word he used was in Gr. Entos, meaning the kingdom was among them, not IN them! The Spiritual kingdom in ones heart is established before the literal kingdom begins when he returns. To have this spiritual kingdom within one must be born again by Gods spirit (Jn.3) by believing the gospel message that he is God come in the flesh and that he died for your sin to cleanse you andf reurrected on the third day. Then we are made in the sons moral image, we will not be made complete without sin by his power until the resurrection of our bodies (Roman 8). 1 Cor. 15:50 “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.” We are flesh and blood until that day of transformation.
There is a spiritual
Kingdom, which is God’s rule in the heart of every believer. This is an
invisible spiritual kingdom. In this way the kingdom resides in us and we are in
the Kingdom. When we speak of the expansion of
God’s kingdom today, it means the spiritual aspect. The spiritual kingdom is explained in John 3:3 Jesus told Nicodemus, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Jesus further explains in v.6 that one birth is of the flesh (natural) the other is a new birth, (a spiritual birth), which is a necessity. This birth which brings one into the Kingdom (we are to enter the kingdom of God Luke 18:17, 24, 25). It is produced by the seed (the word of God) being scattered on different soil (our heart) and springs to life and grows on the right ground. These seeds that produced sons (children) of the Kingdom grow together along with the sons of the Evil One until the end of the age – which is the harvest time. Those of the Kingdom, who have been born into it, will enter into the Kingdom Age with Christ ruling, known as the Millennium; those who do not believe will be rejected. This is his literal - physical kingdom has not appeared yet.
In Greek, the word Kingdom is Basileia, which denotes “sovereignty, royal power, and dominion. It further denotes the territory or people over whom a King rules” (From Vine’s Expository Dictionary, p. 344). Thus, “kingdom” is a designation both of power and the form of government as well as, especially in the later writers, the territory and the rule - the Kingship and the Kingdom. Hence, the basic meaning of kingdom involves three things - a ruler, a people who are ruled, and a territory over which they are ruled.” (Moody Handbook of Theology p. 352) The literal kingdom we are to wait for, is the messianic rule of Jesus that will commence from His Second Coming, when He will be physically present to rule from Israel for 1,000 years, and the saints will co-reign with Him. This is the “true kingdom” on earth that we are to be patiently waiting for. The Lord being the king over all the earth (liken to David being King over Israel). The prophets prophesied of a time when a descendant of David's would take the throne as king. He would be the Lord's anointed, the Messiah (Jer. 33:15-16; Amos 9:11; Micah 5:2). The Kingdom is not the church! If it were, this would mean that God is ruling the earth by the Church which is still sinful. There are several distinctions between the Church and the Kingdom. The terms “church” and “kingdom” are never used interchangeably in Scripture as the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven are used. Of the 114 occurrences of the word “church” (Gr. “Ekklesia”), it is never used with the Kingdom that Jesus will rule. Again, there is a spiritual aspect to the Kingdom and there is a literal physical aspect.We are now servants, we enter in through Christ by the New Birth, but there is still a literal future Kingdom to come by Jesus’ physical return to earth that will rid the earth of evil and have 1,000 years of peace under his kingship. |
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