Isn’t it amazing how people react differently to the same situation? Take the preaching of the gospel for example. Last week we saw how Jesus was almost killed because of the message he was preaching in his home town of Nazareth. The same message in Capernaum brought a much different response. "You can’t leave now! You just got here! I’ve got relatives coming in from out of town to hear you!

But Jesus had other plans that could not be altered; he had to tell the residents of Judea about the kingdom of God, after all, that is why he was sent. Capernaum had not seen the last of the Messiah, but for now he had to move on.

The term "kingdom of God" is used 31 times in Luke’s gospel and another 6 times in the book of Acts. Matthew uses the term "kingdom of heaven", but the meaning is the same. If Jesus was sent to preach about the "kingdom of God", then it should be a priority that we understand what the "kingdom of God" is. In other words, if Jesus taught it, then I should preach it and you need to hear it. That is what we are going to do today!

From scripture we have an idea what the kingdom of heaven is like.

We also know that:

When Jesus said he came to preach about the kingdom of God, he wasn’t kidding! My list is not all inclusive and there are many more passages we could consider. The questions we must ask ourselves once we put all of these teachings together and learn about the kingdom of God are these; how does what we believe about the kingdom of God affect how we live? And, are we willing to change how we live based on what we know?

Let’s start with a definition of the term, Kingdom of God. Hendriksen defines it as "God’s kingship, rule or sovereignty, recognized in the hearts and operating in the lives of his people, and effecting their complete salvation, their constitution as a church, and finally a redeemed universe." There are four concepts brought out by Hendriksen that need to be looked at.

First, "God’s kingship, rule or sovereignty, recognized in the hearts

The kingdom of God is here and now, manifested in the individual followers of Christ. If the kingdom of God is within you, are you showing signs of it? Do you recognize his kingship over your life? Is the Holy Spirit alive and well and working in your everyday life? Do God’s rules mean anything to you?

The initial sign of God’s kingdom was the obedience of his chosen people. That has not changed to this day.

The point is this, we can have all the head knowledge in the world when it comes to theology, but unless we are living out that knowledge in our lives everyday, we may not be far from the kingdom of God, but we are not in it.

The second concept is that the kingdom of God effects the complete salvation of his people. When God is king in our hearts and we recognize and obey him as such, he will meet all of our spiritual and physical needs.

When things are not going the way we would like them to go, it is difficult to praise God for the spiritual and physical blessings he gives us everyday. Everyone in this room is dealing with a spiritual or physical need. I don’t know what they all are, but I know they exist. That is where faith enters the picture. Jesus said that we would not be able to see the kingdom, but we must believe it exists. We cannot see our salvation, but we can see it worked out in our lives by how we act and how we think differently than the world does.

In the here and now, we understand our salvation to be of a spiritual nature, but in the consummated kingdom, when our souls will no longer be in need of healing, it will be in our physical nature that we glorify our creator forever. We will never be in need or want of anything again.

The third concept has to do with the relationship of the kingdom to the church. It is within this community that God is recognized as King by his people. We can see how closely the kingdom and the church are connected in Acts 20. St. Paul, in his address to the presbyters in Ephesus, after talking about his ministry amongst them, states, "And now, behold, I know that none of you among whom I have gone about proclaiming the kingdom will see my face again….Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood."

So how does this relationship unfold in the here and now? The church is not the kingdom. Jesus said that the kingdom of God was near, not that the church was near. And he preached the good news of the kingdom, not the good news of the church. The church was created by the kingdom as a place for its subjects to enter into, live under and be governed by. God uses the church to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom to the world and as an instrument of the kingdom to show the saving work of Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Amen and Amen

Lastly, we will look at the concept of a redeemed universe. This is not entirely in the here and now but is still an important part of the kingdom of God. What it comes down to is this, do you believe that Christ has defeated Satan and can overcome the evil in this world, and eventually deliver the kingdom to the father? That is what the Bible teaches, so why do some Christians have such a hard time with it?

Allow me to share one of my favorite passages from Psalm 110 with you once again; The Lord said to my lord: "sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool." This is one of, if not the most, sited Old Testament passages in the New Testament. It dovetails one of my other favorite passages from Daniel; I saw in the night vision, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like the son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And 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 one that shall not be destroyed.

This is a picture of how things will remain until the final judgment; the incarnate Christ, sitting at the right hand of the Father, having dominion over every person and every nation. Conquering evil little by little, using his church to spread the good news to a lost and dying world. Using you, as a member of the church and God’s kingdom, to show the world that there is only one way to overcome death and judgment, and that is Jesus Christ.

I asked you two questions when I started, how does what we believe about the kingdom of God affect how we live? And, are we willing to change how we live based on what we know?

We have learned that the kingdom of God is not a place or an entity, but the kingly rule of the Triune God in a sphere which the rule is experienced. That sphere can be here on earth or in heaven. We have learned that to be part of the kingdom one must recognize Gods kingship, rule and sovereignty and summit ones self to the authority of the King. One must believe that Jesus died for their sins and that they are forgiven. They must belong to Christ’s church, through baptism, and actively participate in the building up of the kingdom. And finally, that someday Christ will return when the enemies of the kingdom have been defeated.

Based on this knowledge a decision must be made. If the kingdom of God is here and now, and I claim to be a follower of Jesus, am I going to place myself under the King in obedience and change the way I live? You will have to deal with that question on your own. My duty is make sure you have the information to make the right decision.

Christianity is not for wimps! The kingdom of God is not for the rebellious! Examine your life. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what you need to change. Ask Jesus to give you the strength to do it. And thank the Father for bringing you into his kingdom, here and now.

Amen…….