What Is the Kingdom of God?
And yet there are some in this modern day of religious confusion who believe the Gospel of the KINGDOM OF GOD is not for this age — this New Testament time of grace. They reject and therefore do not BELIEVE the true Gospel as Jesus commanded and thereby reject the very conditions to SALVATION, saying the Gospel of the KINGDOM is a gospel for some future age yet to come. But as the Apostle Paul said to the Thessalonians, I would not have you to be IGNORANT of the very Gospel which alone can bring us eternal life!
There was a definite TIME for the beginning of the Gospel — since John. The law and the prophets were UNTIL John. Since John's special preparatory ministry, THE KINGDOM OF GOD is preached. There was a definite TIME for this true New Testament Gospel to begin. And after John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, saying, "The TIME is fulfilled," and preaching the Gospel.
And so now, WHAT Is that Gospel? The English word Gospel comes from the word "Godspell," and means GOOD NEWS. Daily, we read the NEWS of world happenings — mostly BAD news! We live in a troubled, chaotic world. And the very BEST news you can hear in this day, or any other, is the GOOD NEWS of the KINGDOM OF GOD.
But what is a KINGDOM? Primarily, it is a GOVERNMENT — a NATION and the GOVERNMENT which rules it. And especially in this Biblical sense, there is the DUAL sense of the NATION, including all its subjects or citizens, and the GOVERNMENT by which it is ruled. Again — in BIBLE usage, a Kingdom is often a family from a single parent grown into a NATION.
Four things are necessary to constitute a KINGDOM: 1) The TERRITORY, with its specific location and definite boundary lines, with 2) a KING or Supreme Ruler or governing agent, ruling over 3) SUBJECTS or citizens within that territorial jurisdiction, with 4) LAWS and a form of GOVERNMENT. If we leave out any one of these vital requisites, we do not have, and cannot BELIEVE, the true GOSPEL for this time. We must know whether the Kingdom of God is here NOW, or coming later; whether its territory is THE EARTH, or up in heaven; whether it is a literal kingdom of human mortals, or a kingdom of immortals; whether it is literal or figurative, real or unreal. And on many of these things, a great many people are ALL MIXED UP!
But now what about the Gospel of GRACE — the Gospel of SALVATION?
Born Into the Kingdom
Notice, when Nicodemus came to Jesus secretly, as recorded in John the 3rd chapter, Jesus said to him: "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be BORN AGAIN, he cannot see the KINGDOM OF GOD." Jesus was proclaiming the KINGDOM OF GOD — explaining a most important phase of it. As Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth in I Corinthians 15, flesh and blood — that is, a mortal human — cannot enter IN to the Kingdom of God. The Church, then, cannot be the Kingdom of God, for it is composed of flesh-and-blood mortals. It is not, either, an ethereal something "set up in the hearts of men."
Jesus went on to show Nicodemus that we who are born of the flesh ARE flesh — just mortal flesh and blood. We were BORN that way — HUMAN — MORTAL. But it is possible for us to be BORN AGAIN — next time, not as a mortal flesh-and-blood baby, but born of the SPIRIT. Then we shall be spirit — composed of spirit!
Now in the 4th chapter of John we read that God is a SPIRIT. The Kingdom of GOD is composed of those BORN of GOD. And as I have explained previously, GOD is not a single person, but the Hebrew word for God, Elohim, portrays God as a FAMILY of persons — a single family, or kingdom, but composed of MORE than one person.
We have the mineral kingdom — the plant kingdom — the animal kingdom, The Bible reveals an angel kingdom, created by God and composed of spirit, not matter. And then, high above all is the very CREATING Kingdom — the GOD Kingdom, or, in other words, THE KINGDOM OF GOD! God is REPRODUCING HIMSELF! God created man in GOD'S IMAGE, so that man may become impregnated, BEGOTTEN, and, by a resurrection, be BORN as an immortal, SPIRIT-COMPOSED person in the KINGDOM OF GOD.
The Apostle Paul made very plain to the Corinthians that while mortal flesh and blood cannot inherit, or enter into, the Kingdom of God, that through the resurrection of those BEGOTTEN BY THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD during this mortal life, this MORTAL then puts on IMMORTALITY, and we, like the very God Himself, become IMMORTAL, INCORRUPTIBLE, actually, literally, BORN of God's Spirit INTO the very GOD FAMILY.
Conditions of Entering
Now, HOW may we enter into that glorious KINGDOM? Jesus came preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, and saying, "REPENT," and "BELIEVE THE GOSPEL."
Just TWO things we do — REPENT, and BELIEVE. We must BELIEVE the Gospel, and that means also believing on JESUS CHRIST, the KING of the Kingdom of God, and coming KING of kings over all the families of the earth.
It means believing in Him as personal SAVIOR, as High Priest now, and as coming KING.
But to repent is to completely CHANGE THE MIND in respect to SIN, and "sin is the transgression of the LAW" (I John 3:4) — the Law of GOD by which God RULES the Kingdom.
It means a total, complete CHANGE OF MIND AND OF LIFE. It means we REPENT of transgressing the rule, the will, the laws, of GOD. What did Jesus say to the young man who asked Him How to inherit eternal life? He said, "IF thou wilt enter into life, KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS" (Matt. 19:17).
He went on to show that He referred to the TEN COMMANDMENTS, God's great SPIRITUAL LAW, summing up, in principle, the WHOLE duty of righteous living. It is a WAY OF LIFE, and a way contrary to human nature, and to the ways and customs of this world! It is the basic spiritual Law, and way of life, of the KINGDOM OF GOD — the WAY to peace of mind, to world peace, to happiness, prosperity and JOY — the WAY to eternal life.
Kingdom of God to Be Preached TODAY
Yes, JESUS proclaimed and taught the GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD. But did He command His ministers, in BUILDING HIS CHURCH, to preach this same Gospel? Quickly let us notice the Scriptures.
Luke 9:1-2: "Then He called His twelve disciples together . . . and He sent them to PREACH THE KINGDOM OF GOD."
Luke 10:1, 2, 9: "After these things, the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before His face into every city and place whither He himself would come. Therefore said He unto them . . . heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The KINGDOM OF GOD is come nigh unto you."
In Jesus' prayer, so commonly called "The Lord's Prayer," He prayed, "THY KINGDOM COME" — then it wasn't here yet, and it isn't here yet, today — but He taught us to pray for it to COME, for His KINGDOM and that ALONE shall bring PEACE and HAPPINESS to this sin-sick, war-weary earth! "Thy Kingdom COME — THY WILL BE DONE on earth, as it is in heaven." The FATHER'S WILL.
What Gospel did the early evangelists preach, in first sending out the FAITH ONCE DELIVERED? How did the early Church carry out the commission?
Notice PHILIP preaching at Samaria! Acts 8:12, "But when they BELIEVED Philip, preaching the things concerning THE KINGDOM OF GOD, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women." Philip preached the things concerning THE KINGDOM OF GOD.
Paul? Acts 20:25, 21: "I have gone preaching THE KINGDOM OF GOD . . . testifying both to the Jews and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and FAITH toward our Lord Jesus Christ."
And notice the Gospel Paul preached to GENTILES, after he had turned completely away from the Jews.
Acts 28:30-31: "And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, preaching THE KINGDOM OF GOD, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ."
And, lastly, WHAT GOSPEL did Jesus say should be preached TODAY?
Matthew 24:14, speaking of the PRESENT: "And this GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM shall be preached in ALL THE WORLD for a witness" — for a WITNESS — "unto ALL NATIONS, and then shall the END come!" — the end of this AGE.
That is the true Gospel proclaimed in TOMORROW'S WORLD — proclaimed, over the World Tomorrow on the air worldwide — "IN ALL THE WORLD."