The Church as the Kingdom
CHURCH ARTICLE | Jesse Flowers | Baytown, Texas
The word of God presents the church of our Lord in descriptive and marvelous terms. The description that is used more than any other in depicting the church to us in the Bible is “kingdom.”
The expression “the kingdom of God” is used approximately sixty-nine times in the New Testament. Most of those occurrences are in the four gospel accounts, with only fifteen instances outside of those first four books. The expression “the kingdom of heaven” is used thirty-two times in the New Testament, all of which are exclusive to the Gospel of Matthew.
Let us notice the following points about the kingdom:
1) It was at hand during the earthly ministries of John and Christ.
The very first truth that was declared about the kingdom in the New Testament was that it was at hand, and the very first person to announce and preach about the kingdom was John. “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!’ For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the LORD; make His paths straight'” (Matthew 3:1-3). Try to imagine if you heard this sort of message for the very first time. What thoughts would go through your mind as a Jew?
Jesus as well, when He began His earthly ministry, announced the approach of the kingdom. “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand'” (Matthew 4:17). Later, we find Jesus sending out the twelve apostles with the command: “But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand'” (Matthew 10:6-7).
Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom. Leading up to the Sermon on the Mount, we read how “Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom…” (Matthew 4:23). In Mark’s gospel, we read: “Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel'” (Mark 1:14-15).
2) The kingdom was foretold in prophecy.
When the multitudes heard John, Jesus, and the twelve apostles preach the gospel of the kingdom, proclaiming that “the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” what would have come to their minds? Surely, specific Old Testament prophecies that foretold of the kingdom would have excitedly come to mind.
About a thousand years before Christ, God sent the prophet Nathan to King David with this message: “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-13). Later we read in Psalm 132:11, “The LORD has sworn in truth to David; He will not turn from it: ‘I will set upon your throne the fruit of your body.'”
Around seven hundred years before Christ’s coming, Isaiah prophesied: “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this” (Isaiah 9:6-7)
Over 500 years before Christ’s arrival, Daniel interpreted King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, prophesying: “And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever” (Daniel 2:44). “All these kingdoms” refer to four earthly kingdoms spoken of in the context of chapter 2: Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome. “And in the days of these kings,” both biblically and historically refers to the Roman Empire, which ruled the world at the time of John (Luke 2:1-2) and Christ (Luke 3:1).
Another key prophecy about the kingdom in the book of Daniel is in chapter 7. “I was watching in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed” (7:13-14; cf. 2:44; Ephesians 1:20-23).
3) The nature of this kingdom is unique.
The kingdom is not of this world. When Jesus stood before Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, He declared: “‘My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.’ Pilate, therefore, said to Him, ‘Are You a king then?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice'” (John 18:36-37).
The kingdom is spiritual in nature. “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'” (Luke 17:20-21). This kingdom was not physical or earthly like Babylon or Rome.
The kingdom is eternal in its duration. The angel Gabriel came to Mary announcing: “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end” (Luke 1:31-33). Consider how this connects to the prophecies found in 2 Samuel 7:12-13; Isaiah 9:6-7, and Daniel 2:44; 7:13-14.
4) Jesus identified the kingdom as His church.
“And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:18-19). The church built by Christ and belonging to Christ is the kingdom of Christ!
5) Jesus prophesied the establishment of the kingdom.
“Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power“ (Mark 9:1). Jesus promised that within the lifetime of His disciples they would witness the powerful arrival of the kingdom.
Before His ascension into heaven, Christ instructed His apostles: “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:49). Similarly, in Acts 1, we read Him saying, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witness to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (v 8).
We see the fulfillment of the Lord’s prophecy on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2 when the apostles received the baptism of the Holy Spirit and preached the gospel of Christ. The apostle Peter declared Jesus of Nazareth to be the Christ, the Son of God whom they crucified, whom God raised from the dead, and is not seated at the right hand of God in heaven (Acts 2:22-36).
6) The Scriptures present the kingdom as being established following Pentecost.
Philip preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Christ in Samaria (Acts 8:12). Paul preached the kingdom of God in all of Asia (Acts 20:25). In writing to the saints in Colosse, Paul stated how God “has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Colossians 1:13). And the apostle John spoke of himself as being a companion with his brethren in the kingdom of Jesus (Revelation 1:9).
7) Salvation depends on entering the kingdom.
Jesus taught: “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). The Spirit revealed the word of God, the gospel, that must be heard, believed, and obeyed (Romans 10:17; 1:16). “Born of water” refers to the new birth that occurs in baptism (Romans 6:3-4). Jesus later commanded His disciples, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15-16). The apostle Peter wrote: “Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever” (1 Peter 1:22-23). On the Day of Pentecost, the same apostle explained to sinners, pierced in the heart, by the preaching of the gospel how to enter the kingdom, the Lord’s church. “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit … Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them … And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:38, 41, 47).
8) Christians are to seek first the kingdom of God.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught: “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). Our daily purpose and priority must be the kingdom of God. We must advance the kingdom of Christ among men. We do this by making the King’s will the priority of our life. Our interests, motives, objectives, and conduct are for its honor and advancement. As a result, Christ and His gospel are advanced!
______________________________
January 2020 | GROW magazine
