The Kingdom of God

Throughout world history we have seen many forms of government. The most common being dictatorships, ruled by military strength, republics ruled by law, democracies ruled by majority vote, and two types of monarchies—constitutional monarchies (in which the monarch’s rule is limited) and absolute monarchies (in which the monarch’s word is law).

The Kingdom of God is an absolute monarchy. God has no external constitution to bind Him. He needs no consent from the governed to rule over them. He is not limited by referenda or by majority vote. His word is law; His rule is absolutely sovereign. In any monarchy, the virtues of honor and loyalty to the throne are exceedingly important. There is no monarchy where these elements are more vital than in God’s kingdom. Yet the fundamental sin of the human race is grounded in our refusal to honor God as God (Romans 1:21) and in our disloyalty to the King of kings.

The theme of the kingdom of God is a central motif that runs as a thread through both Old and New Testaments. The theme accents God’s reign over His people. The coming Messiah is announced as God’s anointed King who will be enthroned in heaven as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. The Old Testament points to the kingdom as coming in the future. The New Testament opened with the announcement of John the Baptist that “The Kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). The historical situation is described in images such as “the ax is laid to the root of the trees” (Matthew 3:10) and “His winnowing fork is in his hand” (Matthew 3:12), both indicating its radical nearness. It was the breakthrough into history of God’s kingdom that heralded the New Testament gospel. John’s message that “the King is coming” signaled urgency of the times.

The accent of Jesus’ own preaching also falls on the announcement of the gospel of the kingdom. He declares that the kingdom has come with power and is in the midst of His people. At His ascension, Jesus commanded His disciples to be His witnesses in the world. They are to witness to the reign of Jesus as King of kings. Jesus’ current status as cosmic King is invisible. The world is either ignorant of His sovereignty or denies it. It is the task of the Church to give visible witness to the invisible kingdom.

Jesus has already inaugurated the kingdom of God, He is on the throne and reigning right now. There is a “already” and a “not yet” aspect to the kingdom. Presently all authority belongs to Jesus and the kingdom is here, but it is not yet fully consummated. It is at His Second Coming that the kingdom becomes its full physical reality. Both aspects of the kingdom must be understood and embraced by Christians, it is not either or, it is both. To take it as fully here presently or to see it as all future is to do violence to the New Testament message.

The kingdom is not only a far off spiritual kingdom, it is here expanding, it may not seem like it at times, but it is growing. The kingdom of God is like a stone that will grow into a great mountain and cannot be shaken (Daniel 2). It is like leaven in a lump of doe, eventually it takes over the whole loaf or a mustard seed which eventually grows larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree (Matthew 13:31-33). The kingdom grows slowly, but it is growing. Some may say that the mustard seed parable does not mean the kingdom will be all encompassing but that it may be ignored or mocked, but nevertheless it will be there. This is not what Scripture says though, as the gospel of the kingdom will be everlasting and cannot be shaken, in fact the gates of Hell cannot withstand it (Matthew 16:18). You may accept it, be ignorant to it, or deny it, but that does not mean that when Jesus comes again that there will be a field full of weeds and some wheat, but rather a field full of wheat with some weeds. Such as in Revelation there is the 144,000 of Israel (the completeness of those to be saved/sealed) which are seen as an uncountable number all wearing white and worshipping the Lamb on the throne. (Revelation 7).

When will this all happen? Jesus will reign until every enemy is made a footstool for His feet, once that has happened He will come and destroy the last enemy, which is death, then the end will come; He presents the kingdom to the Father (1 Corinthians 15:12-34). We are living in the time of the kingdom’s expansion, where we follow Jesus’ command that since He has all authority in heaven and on earth to therefore go and disciple the nations, teaching them all that He has taught us. (Matthew 28). It may not seem like it now as trials and tribulations come, but the kingdom is growing, there are steps taken forward and back but, in the end, it is advancing; it is a process. Yet as believers and those born again through the blood of Christ, we can live in its reality of having already been accomplished and then get to work, witnessing the present reality of it and the glorious day of its completion.