The Kingdom

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The word "kingdom" is used over 150 times in the New testament. Over 100 of these came from Jesus Himself.
Jesus was a kingdom teacher.

To those of us in the US at least, kingdom is sort of a foreign concept. We know about kingdoms, but living it is different.
Kingdoms are about dominion and authority. In a kingdom there is a king. In a kingdom there are workers.

I'm not a video game player, but I have played them in the past. Typically I have played games like age of empires, starcraft and warcraft. What does this have to do with kingdoms? In these games you are basically "the king".
You create subjects. Then these subjects do what you tell them to do. Some gather wood. Some mine for gold. Some build houses and buildings. Some fight wars. But all of them are working together for the sake of the kingdom.

The very first time we hear the word kingdom in the New Testament, it comes from John the Baptist.
He simply says "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." ( Matt 3:2; )
Jesus himself preached the same message. ( Matt 4:17; )
In Matt 4:23; it says Jesus went throughout Galilee proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom.

The place we hear the most about the kingdom is in Jesus' longest sermon. It takes up 3 chapters in Matthew
and is known as the sermon on the mount. The kingdom is mentioned 10 times in this sermon.
In Matt 5, in the section known as the beatitudes, we see "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven". ( Matt 5:3; ) People who are truly repentant and sorrowful for the things they've done
in the past belong to the kingdom. I can't help but contrast this with people who are not sorry for the wrongs
they've done in the past... are they also in the kingdom? ( More about that later )

Seven verses later we see "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." I think many of us have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness.

I have often wondered about some people who call themselves Christians... who is their king?
Who are they subject to? Who are they obedient to? Who and what are they working for?
If the answer isn't Jesus.... what kingdom are they in?

Nine verses later ( Matt 5:19; ) we see about people who teach against the commandments, it gives a warning about those who do this and do not keep the commandments... and then it mentions
those who teach and keep the commandments.. it says these shall be great in the kingdom...

The very next verse ( Matt 5:20; ) goes on to say that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Some people worry about this verse... but it turns out the scribes and Pharisees weren't really very righteous.

The sermon on the mount continues on over to Matthew 6.... Starting in Matt 6:9; we see the Lord's prayer.
It's very interesting that it starts out... Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be your name...
Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. (Some Bibles say "in" earth, more about that later).

Who's kingdom is it? Our Father who is heaven. We as workers of the kingdom should be doing our part to bring the kingdom of God to the earth. Now there is a certain teaching (it's called "Kingdom now") that says Jesus can't come back until we humans have pretty much taken over the earth for the kingdom of God... this is a false teaching.
It fact in the time of the tribulation evil will have dominion over most of the earth. But in the meantime... we should
be trying influence those around us. We should be steering people toward the kingdom. Now it isn't our job to save them. Jesus does that. But it is our job to make sure they hear the message. Some will refuse, and that's OK. At least we did our part. The kingdom of heaven doesn't "just happen" on it's own. God uses people to spread the gospel. We all do it in different ways, some are planters, some are waterers, some are sowers, some are reapers.. ( 1 Cor 3:6-7; ) but we all have a part in it... on that day He will call of some of us good and faithful servants, and He will call some of us wicked and lazy servants. ( Matt 25:26; )

There are many people who say Jesus is their king... they even call Him Lord, Lord...
Luke 6:46; "Why do you call me Me, 'Lord, Lord; and do not do what I say?"
Matt 7:21; says not everyone who calls Jesus 'Lord, Lord', will enter the kingdom of heaven.

The Lord's prayer ends... for Yours is the kingdom .... and the power and the glory forever.

.. to be continued ...

 

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In Matt 9:35; Jesus is still preaching the same message He was preaching in Matt 4:17;
He is still proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom.

In Matt 10:7; Jesus tells the disciples to do the same thing.
And as you go, preach, saying 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'

All through the Bible there have been forces opposing this. Much like the video games I mentioned earlier,
there is a war for dominion of the earth. Satan has already been defeated, but he's still trying to drag as many as he can down with him.
In Matt 11:11-12; it says John the Baptist was the greatest of "those born among women".. Yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John was. It goes on to say that the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men try to take it.
Eph 6:12; says our struggle isn't against flesh and blood, but against rulers, and powers, the worldly forces of darkness, the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
In Matt 12; Jesus gives a long discourse about a kingdom divided against itself. The Pharisees accuse Jesus of casting out demons by Beelzebub. Jesus makes it clear which kingdom He is fighting for. ( Matt 12:28; )

In Matthew 13, Jesus mentions the kingdom 11 times. More than any other chapter in the Bible.
The disciples ask Jesus why He always speaks in parables. Jesus explains to them.. "To you it has been granted to know
the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. In verse 13 Jesus says, they can hear but
they do not hear, they can see but they do not see, nor do they understand. It is much the same today.
Even amongst those who call themselves Christians. "For the heart of this people has become dull" ( Matt 13:15; )

Jesus goes on to say it isn't God that blinds them in this case. they have closed their ears, they have closed their eyes,
if they opened them and understand with their heart and return to me, I would heal them. ( Matt 13:13-15; )
It seems many people have closed their ears and eyes to the gospel of the kingdom.

In Matt 13:18-23; Jesus explains one of His more well known parables. The parable of the sower.
It talks about those who hear "the word of the kingdom and does not understand it" it goes on and mentions various other reasons why
the word (of the kingdom) might not take root in someone.

... to be continued...

 

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In Matt 13:24-30; we see the kingdom of heaven is like tares (weeds) amongst the wheat.
For some reason the tares aren't immediately destroyed but allowed to grow along with the wheat.

In Matt 13:31-32; we see the kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed. It starts off very small, but when
it is fully grown it becomes a tree, "so that the birds of the air" come and nest in its branches.

In Matt 13:33-35; the kingdom of heaven is like leaven.

In Matt 13:36-43; the parable of the wheat and tares is explained in plain language.
It's interesting, it says there are stumbling blocks and and "those who commit lawlessness" in the kingdom.
But eventually they will separated out of the kingdom "and thrown into the furnace of fire". ( Matt 13:42; )
Even those who are stumbling blocks to others are called tares. ( Matt 13:41; Matt 18:7; Luke 17:1; )

In Matt 13:44; the kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field, a man finds it and sells everything he has and buys that field.
A whole sermon could be taught on this one verse. But my summary of this verse is get rid of everything else in the world
if it keeps you being close to God. Sell the things you don't need in order to get the one thing you really need.

In Matt 13:45; the kingdom of heaven is like a pearl. This is very similar to the previous verse. the man sells all that he has
in order to obtain the pearl. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?
Yet some of us have a hard time letting go of the things that hold us back from God.

In Matt 13:47-50; the kingdom is like a net full of fish. Much like the wheat and the tares... the net has both good fish and bad fish in it.
similarly, the angels will separate the fish and throw the bad fish "into the furnace of fire".
Not everyone in the kingdom escapes the furnace of fire. I know that will offend some people. But it's in the Bible.
( Matt 13:42; Matt 13:50; ) not every servant in the masters house will escape being thrown out ( Matt 25:30; )

Finally in Matt 13:52; Jesus says every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings out his treasure things old and new.

... to be continued ...

 

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In Matt 18; we see something of a requirement to enter the kingdom.

Matt 18:1; At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
Matt 18:2; And He called a child to Himself and set him before them,
Matt 18:3; and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matt 18:4; "Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Matt 18:5; "And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me;
Matt 18:6; but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
Matt 18:7; "Woe to the world because of its stumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes!

This passage about becoming like a child has been discussed and debated many times.
But I think it has a few meanings. Complete trust in the Father.. not in ourselves.
Complete trust in things we don't understand. Coming to God with an open mind, not coming with pre-conceived
notions, religions, and ideas about how everything should be. Letting God be in charge instead of ourselves.

Another requirement is forgiveness. This isn't a suggestion. It's a command.
Matt 18:21; Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?"
Matt 18:22; Jesus *said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.
Matt 18:23; "For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves.
Matt 18:24; "When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him.
Matt 18:25; "But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made.
Matt 18:26; "So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.'
Matt 18:27; "And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt.
Matt 18:28; "But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe.'
Matt 18:29; "So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you.'
Matt 18:30; "But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed.
Matt 18:31; "So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened.
Matt 18:32; "Then summoning him, his lord *said to him, 'You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.
Matt 18:33; 'Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?'
Matt 18:34; "And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him.
Matt 18:35; "My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."

Even though their are people in the kingdom who have already been forgiven, it's still a requirement to forgive others, or else...

In Matthew 19... Jesus makes a few more comments about the kingdom.
A eunuch was typically someone who had their testicles removed. Some slaves had this done in order to be servants
of female masters. Some had this done voluntarily ( see Matt 18:8-9; about removing parts of the body that cause you to stumble ). Others were born this way, not necessarily without testicles, but unable to perform sexually for various reasons.
Somehow homosexuality has been twisted into the term eunuch, but for all intents in the Bible, eunuchs were sexless.

Matt 19:12; "For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother's womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it."

Matt 19:13; Then some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them.
Matt 19:14; But Jesus said, "Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

... again the kingdom of heaven belongs to children also ...

... to be continued ...

 

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Matt 19:21; Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."
Matt 19:22; But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.
Matt 19:23; And Jesus said to His disciples, "Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matt 19:24; "Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
Matt 19:25; When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, "Then who can be saved?"
Matt 19:26; And looking at them Jesus said to them, "With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Another much discussed passage.... but this comes down to where your heart is.
Is your trust and faith in your material possessions and your money, or is it in God?
Do you have a lot of money.. or does your money have you? Are you a slave to your bank account?

In Matt 20:1-16; we see the kingdom is like a land owner who hired workers at different times of the day.
Yet at the end of the day they all got paid the same amount.
The summary of this parable seems to be, it doesn't matter when you get saved... you could be young,
you could be middle aged, or you could get saved later in life towards the end of it... but it doesn't matter.
Every who accepts Jesus is equally saved no matter when they entered the kingdom.
In Matt 20; the mother of James and John (the sons of Zebedee) came to ask Jesus a request about the kingdom.

Matt 20:21; And He said to her, "What do you wish?" She *said to Him, "Command that in Your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit one on Your right and one on Your left."
Matt 20:22; But Jesus answered, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?" They *said to Him, "We are able."
Matt 20:23; He *said to them, "My cup you shall drink; but to sit on My right and on My left, this is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father."
Matt 20:24; And hearing this, the ten became indignant with the two brothers.

Some traditions hold that James and John were crucified like Jesus. However Acts 12:2; says John was put to death by the sword.

.... to be continued ....

 

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In Matt 21:28-32; Jesus tells a parable of two sons.
One did the will of the father, and one didn't.
He goes on to tell the Pharisees that tax collectors and prostitutes will enter the kingdom of heaven before they do.
He tells them John the Baptist came proclaiming the kingdom to them, but they didn't believe him.
But the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him.

It seems the chief priests and Pharisees felt that they had the keys to the kingdom (more about this later).
But Jesus tells them the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who are producing the fruit of it.
( Matt 21:43-45; ) Are you producing the fruit of the kingdom? If not.. what are you producing?
Is it possible your part in the kingdom will be taken away and given to someone showing the fruit of it?

In Matt 22 Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like a wedding feast for a kings son. ( Matt 22:2; )
The king prepares everything for the guests and invites them. But verse 3 says they were unwilling to come.
It seems God is inviting many people to his son's wedding... yet many of them refuse to come. He even sent
servants to remind of the feast (verse 4)... but they paid no attention and went on about their business (verse 5)
Some of them even went so far as to take the kings servants and kill them. (verse 6)
How many martyrs have been killed telling people about God's kingdom/ and the wedding feast? They didn't have time
to hear about it... they didn't want to hear about it. In verse 7 the king takes vengeance on these people.

He even goes so far as to say.. ok, forget the invited guests.. just go out and find some people.. ( verses 8 and 9)
So they found people.. both good and evil (verse 10) and the wedding feast hall was filled.
However when the king shows up at the feast he sees a man who isn't dressed in wedding clothes.... (verse 11)
The king asks him... how did come in here without wedding clothes? Then he is thrown out into torment (verse 13)

For me personally this passage ties many other passages together in the Bible.
For example Matt 8:11; many people will dine at the table (wedding feast) with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom.
but the sons of the kingdom (invited guests) will be thrown out. ( Luke 13:28-29; )
In Matthew 25:1-10; we see the parable of the 10 virgins who were about to enter a wedding feast... yet only half of them were
actually able to enter in.
In Revelation 19:7; Rev 21:2; Rev 21:9; etc... we see the bride making herself ready for the bridegroom.
Jesus identifies himself as the bridegroom in Matt 9:15; Mark 2:19-20; Luke 5:34-35; and John 3:29;
Finally in Rev 19:7; there is the marriage between the bride and the lamb... (any doubts about who the lamb is? )

... to be continued ...

 

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I mentioned in the last post ( #6 ) that the Pharisees thought they had the kingdom of God in their hands.
Jesus said it would be taken away from them. ( Matt 21:43; )
In Matt 23:13; Jesus warns the scribes and Pharisees.. "because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people"
You yourselves do not enter in, nor do you allow those who are seeking to enter into the kingdom to go in.

Is it possible there are preachers and teachers of our time, who are far from the kingdom teachings? Is it possible
some of them will not enter in? Is it even possible that some of them prevent other people who are seeking the kingdom to enter into it?

In Matt 24; Jesus talks about the end times... in verse 9 he says you will be hated by all nations because of my name.
At that time many will fall away ( verse 10) and betray one another and hate one another...
Many false prophets will arise and mislead many.... (verse 11 )
Lawlessness will increase and people love will will grow cold ( verse 12)

.. But... the ones that endure until the end, he will be saved. (verse 13 )

Matt 24:14; This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

In todays time of technology.. television, smart phones, youtube and the internet... it seems that more and more people have heard
about Jesus... they don't all accept him. But Matt 24:14; doesn't say all will accept him... it simply says it will preached to the whole world.

... to be continued ...

 

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I meant to mention this earlier but got sidetracked...

Remember the guy at the wedding feast who was thrown out because he wasn't wearing the right clothes
( post #6 ) Matt 22:11-13;

What are the right clothes?
I wonder if these could be the white robes mentioned in Rev 7:9; Rev 7:13-14; and Rev 22:14;

.... are you dressed for the kingdom?

... a few more to come... almost finished.

 

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One more quick note about the marriage of the lamb....

Rev 19:7; Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.”
Rev 19:8; It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
Rev 19:9; Then he *said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’” And he *said to me, “These are true words of God.”
Rev 19:10; Then I fell at his feet to worship him. But he *said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Back to being "correctly" clothed for the wedding... could it be possible the fine, bright and clean linen in verse 8 above
is the correct clothing for the wedding? Where does this linen come from? The last 9 words of verse 8 give a clue.

Enough about that...

In Matt 25:1-10; we see the parable of the 10 virgins.
All ten expected to be at the wedding feast. I suspect there are a great many "Christians" in the world today who expect to
be at the wedding feast. But when the bridegroom returns, some of them will be "out of oil".

Finally, the last passage I had in mind here was Matt 25:34;
In Matt 25:31-46; we see the story of the sheep and the goats. One thing that is interesting here, it wasn't what they
believed that made them a sheep or a goat, it was what they did.
Verse 34 says.. "inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world".

 

[Listening]

All our righteousness is like filthy rags
We are saved by grace through faith
We cannot be saved by works
But if we have peace with God through jesus christ
we will do righteous acts,
And those in faith are blameless
But go through fire trials of testing of the faith
As to helping others in need
It should be a given
Should t it?

We are to do the work of God which is to believe in the one he sent
But to have faith we must rely on the truth that we are saved not by works
But by faith that allowed us to love in the spirit and obey the command to love, which means helping those in need when they are.

 

[Listening]

For me personally this passage ties many other passages together in the Bible.
For example Matt 8:11; many people will dine at the table (wedding feast) with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom.
but the sons of the kingdom (invited guests) will be thrown out. ( Luke 13:28-29; )
The invited guests refers to the jews who refused jesus.

This verse is about faith in jesus by a gentile Soldier as opposed to the jews
Is it not about anything to with a righteous act of faith?

 

[Listening]

Do not judge or you shall be judged

And when he the spirit of truth comes he shall convict the world of sin; righteousness and judgment

Sin; because man dont believe in jesus
Righteousness ; because jesus has gone to the father and cannot see him
And judgment; because the Prince of this world is judged.

I write this to stop the children of God from being made guilty by misunderstanding the beatitudes.
For the enemy seeks to accuse the children of God and causes men to point the finger at the children of God to judge them.
We are to love each other and teach that which can bring peace and joy in the holy ghost
So the children of God can do righteous works In Peace and joy And not Because of fear trying to save themselves by works.