It’s fascinating how much the Kingdom is mentioned in the New Testament. Jesus seemed to think it’s a big deal, yet many believers don’t understand what the Kingdom is. I did a Kingdom word search in the bible and came across this site listing scriptures that mention the Kingdom.

After reading the book Rediscovering the Kingdom, I’d define the Kingdom simply as: Heaven on Earth.

The Fall and Loss

When we visit the creation story in Genesis, we gain a clearer picture of God’s intent when creating the world and mankind. God created using his mouth speaking the world into being, and with that same mouth, God describes Adam’s purpose and directs Adam.

DESCRIPTION OF MAN
Genesis 1:26-31
²⁶ Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

²⁸ And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

²⁹ And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. ³⁰ And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.

 ³¹ And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

DIRECTION TO MAN
Genesis 1:15-17
¹⁵ The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. ¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, ¹⁷ but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat^[a] of it you shall surely die.”

What does all this mean? God created man with great purpose and value. Our value is that are made in His image. We represent an aspect of God’s character. Our purpose is described as “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

We are not victims but created to reign as God’s kings and queens. We are given tasks and duties as well as a stipulation: don’t eat of the Tree of Knowledge.

Why a stipulation? Perhaps because only then does Love look like Freedom. You can’t force a person to obey/love you, you have to give them the option to disobey. That is freedom. So, having the option to sin or mess up is actually the structure of a loving worldview. Controlling everything is not love.

You know the story; man ate of the tree resulting in the curse. The entire Old Testament is man’s attempt to restore their mistake, but they keep making more mistakes and fall short of perfection.

Our Redemption

Jesus restored what was lost in the Garden and establishes access to the Kingdom (Romans 8). The Kingdom is superior to the Garden, and all mankind can have access to the Kingdom by believing. No longer does man have to strive to execute the law perfectly, but faith in your heart and confessing with your mouth saves.

Romans 10:9-10
⁹ because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved

Jesus created the new reality that there can now be communion with God, as there was in the garden, when we bring our beliefs (heart-position) and actions (confession) into union with Jesus. We gain the ability to believe when we repent and turn to Jesus for cleansing.

Thy Kingdom Come

Jesus demonstrated the Kingdom: blind eyes opening, lepers cleansed, food multiplying, walking on water, demons cast out, etc.

Jesus mentioned many parables that described the kingdom, not mentioned here but illustrated in scripture. Here are some of the phrases he shared:

• seek the Kingdom
• the Kingdom is near
• the Kingdom is at hand
• the Father gives you the Kingdom
• the Kingdom belongs to children
• we’ll see the Kingdom when born again
• blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness
  for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
• not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

There is a correlation between our inner world and our outer world that allows us to access the Kingdom and truly possess our true identity as sons and daughters of God.

Our inner world is our belief system, thoughts, and emotions, which are being renewed by the Lord as we’re sanctified. The word cleanses us and washes us. God’s words, spoken and written, have the ability to recalibrate us into the likeness of Christ. The Holy Spirit gives us true understanding and brings His word, which changes our reality into a Kingdom reality.

Our outer world looks like obedience to the Holy Spirit, who never contradicts the Word. Unfortunately, many have been scarred by a strict religious duty to perform and execute “God’s law.” This view of obedience will leave any believer grasping for love and freedom. So, what is obedience? It’s acting out your love relationship with your redeemer, Jesus. Obedience will naturally flow as we grow into His likeness.

John 14:23-24
²³ Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. ²⁴ Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me.

Galatians 3:1-5

3 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. ² Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? ³ Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? ⁴ Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? ⁵ Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith—

When we seek first the Kingdom, we are seeking first our restoration with God. This is for the purpose of restoring the Kingdom, the King Jesus’ reign, which means our reign on earth. God wants us free.

John 8:34
Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.

As God’s children grow into union with Jesus, and as the bride of Christ becomes spotless, we will see an increase in the Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven.

May Thy Kingdom come.