- Note: The later version of this Special Light on the Kingdom of God magazine was named The last great chapter of human story.
- Picture Mike Kiev/Dreamstime.com
The Kingdom of God - an Introduction
Regular readers of this magazine will have probably noticed that the full title is 'Light on a new world'. This special edition focuses on 'The kingdom of God'. In reality 'The kingdom of God' is the 'new world' that Jesus' followers have as the central pillar of their faith and hope for the future – the last great chapter of the human story.
The magazine has the objective of shedding 'light' on the almost forgotten themes that are the true teachings of the Bible. They are the same teachings that Jesus Christ taught the people of his day, and for which he was arrested and cruelly executed by his fellow countrymen. The kingdom of God on earth is the main theme of both the Old and New Testaments.
What is so special about this edition of 'Light magazine'? The kingdom of God is a subject that is seldom aired in discussions or debates in the public media when it comes to religion.
- What is the kingdom of God?
- When will it come into existence?
- Where will it be? Who will be its king?
- Who will be its subjects? How can we be so sure about its coming?
These are all big questions along with many others that are addressed by the following articles.
The first article centres on why the kingdom of God is the central theme of the Bible and how God's promise of its establishment is rooted right at the beginning of the Biblical narrative.
Most people who claim to be religious would be surprised to find that the kingdom of God has existed on the earth before – within the last 3,500 years. The second article deals with this under the heading of 'The kingdom of God on the earth in the past'.
The real crux of Bible teaching is the subject of the third article. It is all about how various Bible writers, separated by many hundreds of years and in different geographical locations, foretold the same event – the re-establishment of the kingdom of God on a worldwide basis in the not too distant future!
As we look at the state of the world today, most people would ask: How could this kingdom possibly come about? The fourth article addresses this very question. It uses Bible prophecy to show when and how this is going to happen. It will be preceded by a time described in the Old Testament by the prophet Daniel as
"a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation ..."
and it will bring about a massive change in the world that will affect all nations.
The final article focuses on what these things mean to individuals like us; men and women all over the world who lead normal everyday lives. The gospel of the kingdom of God is about inclusion and not exclusion; God wants everyone to have a part in this wonderful kingdom that will be established on earth. It will be the start of a new age that will bring perfect harmony and worldwide peace for the first time ever. Although it is conditional, there is a way for everyone to be included in that great age to come. The writer uses the Bible to demonstrate how you and I can be part of the coming kingdom of God.
It is a subject that surely demands your attention. The aim of this magazine is to whet your appetite and encourage you to accept and embrace this amazing hope of the coming kingdom as your own. It will change your life.
The Kingdom of God - The central theme of the Bible
One of many remarkable things about the Bible is its consistent message, its single theme maintained through a variety of different writings over the course of several thousand years.
Whether we look at the 39 books of the Old Testament, covering a period of some 4,000 years before the time of Jesus; or the 27 books of the New Testament produced within 100 years of Jesus' birth, the message is the same. This in itself is powerful evidence that the writers of the Bible were guided and 'inspired' by God. The Bible answers our most important questions about the origin of the human race and sheds light on the course of human history. It also looks to the future, the destiny which God has in store for us.
Why did God create mankind?
In the first book of the Bible we read that, following the creation of life, this planet became a wonderful place in which to live:
"Then God saw everything that he had made, and indeed it was very good"
The first man was the pinnacle of God's creative work and this was to be central to God's future plan for a perfect world. Therefore He gave him dominion over all His creation:
"So God created man in his own image; in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth"
This idyllic situation in the Garden of Eden was spoilt by Adam and Eve as a result of their disobedience. They failed to comply with one simple divine instruction and as a result their lives and those of all their
descendants were changed – they became subject to mortality.
So we ask the question, did this mean that God's plan for a perfect world with men and women giving praise to Him, had failed?
The answer is NO, as the Old Testament prophets made clear:
"For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens, who is God, who formed the earth and made it, who has established it, who did not create it in vain, who formed it to be inhabited: “I am the LORD, and there is no other"
"For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea."
The Biblical account looks forward to a time when the perfection and beauty of the conditions in the Garden of Eden are restored throughout the earth as God originally intended. This is described in the Bible as the 'kingdom of God'.
The creation week – a pattern for the future
Have you ever wondered why the division of time into days, weeks and years has become universally adopted and on what basis? The answer comes from the record of creation in the book of Genesis and is based on the relative positions of the sun, earth and moon.
We read in Genesis that God made two great lights in the heavens and said
"let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years"
So we have day and night as the earth turns on its axis, months as the moon orbits the earth and years as the earth follows its precise orbit round the sun.
It is also interesting to observe from the account of creation that the work was completed in six days and then there was a day of rest (Genesis 2.1-3).
This seven-day cycle was then introduced into the national life of God's people the Jews, the seventh day being set apart as the Sabbath. We read the divine instruction in the book of Exodus:
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God ... For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth ... and rested the seventh day."
This is a pattern which looks forward to a future time of rest as we learn from the New Testament (see Hebrews 4.1-11). The kingdom
of God is shown to be a special time of rest like the seventh day. God will have finished His initial work with the nations and the rule of Jesus on earth will begin, assisted by those who are
Christ's true followers. The last book of the Bible projects our minds forward to this millennial rest:
"... they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years"
The promise in Eden
This promise that Christ would not only reconcile man to God, but also become a king, had its roots in events that took place in Eden, when God pronounced His judgment on the serpent after Adam and Eve's failure to obey Him.
- The serpent lied to Eve and Adam and was cursed to be a snake.
- Picture by Dirk Ercken/Dreamstime.com
We read in Genesis:
"And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike (NKJV 'bruise') his heel."
God cursed the serpent for the part it had played in bringing sin into the
world. But in these words, God revealed from the beginning His plan of salvation centred in Jesus. The power of sin represented by the serpent and its descendants would receive a fatal head wound brought about by one of Eve's male offspring. This man in turn would be struck in the heel by the serpent's descendants giving him a temporary wound.
The New Testament reminds us of the fulfilment of this promise. Jesus was 'struck' in the heel when he was crucified by the Jewish leaders and died. This temporary 'wound' was soon relieved by his miraculous resurrection from the dead. The prophet Isaiah foretold these events and looked forward to the fulfilment of that promise in Genesis:
"But he (Jesus) was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed… Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he has put him to grief ... When you make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand."
Prophecies about the future work of Messiah
The Old Testament also foretold the future work of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, the king of Israel. The Hebrew word Messiah is the same as the Greek word Christos which means the anointed one. Here are some examples from the many passages that support this:
"The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the LORD and against his Anointed (Messiah)… Yet I have set my King on my holy hill of Zion."
"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to me the one to be ruler in Israel."
"For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government will be on his shoulder ... 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 for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this."
"I will raise up your offspring to succeed you (King David), who will come from your own body… and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever."
Jewish expectations at the time of Jesus If Jesus was the one to fulfil God's plan of reconciliation and be the Jewish Messiah, then those familiar with the Old Testament Scriptures in Jesus' day would have been expecting his literal presence.
This is demonstrated by the following events:
- The wise men came to Jesus' birthplace looking for the king of the Jews.
- Shepherds from the fields around Bethlehem visited the inn to see Jesus in the manger as an angel had told them.
- Simeon could hardly believe his eyes when he saw Jesus presented to him in the temple. He exclaimed: "Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation..."
- The disciple Andrew's comment to Simon Peter was "we have found the Messiah (which is translated, the Christ)"
- At his triumphal entry into Jerusalem the people openly acknowledged Jesus as their king.
- Even Pilate insisted that a superscription was placed above Jesus' head as he hung on the cross. This read: "THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS." This was true, for he was a king in waiting, without a kingdom as yet.
 - Reconstruction of the Antonia, the Roman fortress right next to the temple court in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus.
- The Jews expected their Messiah to free them from their hated Roman overlords.
- Picture by Wikimedia CCA 3.0 Unported
So the Jews of Christ's day realised that the Old Testament Scriptures spoke in advance of his role as the Messiah to bring about the fulfilment of God's plan for the world. However, there was an expectation that he would deliver the Jews from Roman occupation and restore the kingdom of Israel straightaway. Even after his resurrection the disciples asked Jesus
the question:
"Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?"
Jesus assured them that it would happen at the time set by God, but they were premature in their expectations.
Jesus – the focal point of God's plan from the beginning
The Bible makes it clear that from creation onwards God had a plan for the human race and Jesus was the focal point of that plan. This was understood by the Old Testament prophets. They constantly spoke of God's intention to establish His kingdom in fulfilment of the promise made in Eden and promises made to men like Abraham and David. Both of these men are closely linked with Jesus in the New Testament which begins with the words:
"The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham."
The Apostle Paul also tells us that the gospel message, or the good news that Jesus proclaimed, was not something new.
Some 2,000 years before Jesus was born, Abraham had been told about it, as Paul reminded the first century Christians:
"the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the nations by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, "In you all nations shall be blessed".
The promise of God, although unfulfilled in the lifetime of Abraham, was that an everlasting kingdom would be set up on earth. This will be achieved through the work of Abraham's special descendant, the Lord Jesus Christ.
As we have seen, the Bible's central theme from Genesis to Revelation is the gospel, or the 'good news' about the coming kingdom of God on earth. It may come as a surprise to learn that God's kingdom first existed in Old Testament times. The next section will look in more detail at the origin and development of that kingdom which was founded some 3,500 years ago.
Based on the "Light on The Kingdom of God" special issue in 4 parts:
- Introduction to the Kingdom of God series and the central theme
- The Kingdom of God in the Past
- The Kingdom of God in the Future
- The change to the Kingdom of God and YOU
Next article (part 2) is The Kingdom of God in the Past
Author Many people were involved in writing and checking this article
Country UK
Source Light on a New World special edition: "Light on The Kingdom of God"
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