The Kingdom of God

Recently I have been working on a book manuscript of mine on the Kingdom of God. It was my intention to use this book to develop several themes that I see throughout the Bible on the Kingdom of God which are for the most part ignored by most mainstream evangelical Christian scholars and writers. The book began as nothing more than an eschatological[1] exegesis of Scriptural texts.

Then I read four books that changed my understanding of the Kingdom of God permenantly. They were Charles H, Dunahoo's Making Kingdom Disciples, Peter J. Leithart's The Kingdom and the Power, and John Piper's Desiring God and Let the Nations be Glad! [2]

The Kingdom in the Great Commission

I will briefly comment on what aspects of these books affected my view of the Kingdom. Dunahoo's book was written to develop a Biblical method of Christian discipleship and informal education (which he does superbly). He is convinced, and I was convicted, that biblical discipleship is a vital aspect of the Kingdom of God that evangelical Christians have been failing to fulfill for decades (centuries perhaps.) He points to the Great Commission:

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the Age." (Matt. 28:18-20) [3]

Of this passage, Dunahoo writes that the "importance of these words cannot be overstated. They express God's revealed will for his church until he returns at the consummation of all things. The church's mission is to make disciples by evangelizing and educating the believers. In turn, the believers are to be transformed into the likeness of Christ, demonstrated by a life of Christlike service within the Kingdom of God."[4] Note that vital word "educating" in Dunahoo's comment, and it's parallel in the Great Commission itself (Matt. 28:20). Also note the word "transformed." Dunahoo continues: "The Kingdom approach, which more fully lends itself to what I call the God-centered framework, not only incorporates these three [other, program-based, individual, and small-group discipleship] models, but places them in the context of the Kingdom of God. It is informational, formational, and transformational! Not until we reach the transformational stage will we be discipled in the biblical sense of being transformed into a new person by changing the way we think, bringing every thought in captivity of obeying Christ, as Paul wrote in Romans 12 and 2 Corinthians 10, and not just copying the behavior and customs of the world. This refers not just to our devotional or church life, but all of life. . . .This kingdom model produces Christians with a self-conscious understanding of an all-pervasive philosophy of life. . . .the kingdom model does not seperate faith and life (as though such were possible). It focuses on integrating God's truth into all areas of life, and because of that, it is not merely an academic, informational, or intellectual concept. The kingdom model applies to, serves, and ministers to all areas."[5]

The Bible, as God's holy and inspired word to man, is universal in application. In other words, "there is not a square inch within the domain of our human life of which the Christ, who is the sovereign over all, does not say, 'mine.' "[6]

Hence, discipleship is a vital, necessary aspect of the Kingdom of God. Discipling others in progressive sanctification to become more Christlike in every area of life is a necessity. Its importance cannot be underestimated.

The Kingdom is Not (Entirely) the Church

A further point, this one specifically addressing the Kingdom of God, by Dunahoo is that the Kingdom is not the church. The church is only one in three institutions, or spheres, of influence in the world. The three are the family, the church, and the state[7]. All three must have Christ as their central and highest authority. Each of the three have specific authority granted by God, and none of them are biblically permitted to either take authority that does not belong to them or fail to administer an authority which they were given.[8]

The Kingdom is beyond the church and while the church is a very large part of the kingdom, the kingdom is not the church. It is not social action, "social justice," social theory, political agendas, marketplace principles, picketing, protesting, creating a christian culture, racial reconciliation, racial equalization, or any other physical, human activity. Certainlly, these things are important, they are necessary, and they will eventually happen (insofar as each of them are Biblical to the best of our understanding, of course). But they are all secondary. They are not the Kingdom.

What Then is the Kingdom?

The Kingdom is the glory of God made manifest on earth (Matt. 6:10). On earth as it is in heaven. Heaven is, hard as it is to believe, coming to earth. And you had better believe that God's glory is manifest in heaven! God's intention for bringing the Kingdom to the earth is his own glory, something which everything he does makes apparent.[9] Piper writes that "if the pursuit of God's glory is not ordered above the pursuit of man's good in the affections of the heart and the priorities of the church, man will not be well served, and God will not be duly honored."[10] He continues:

Zeal for the glory of God and a servent heart of mercy for the nations are one. This is plain from the wording of verse 9:Christ came "in order that the Gentiles might glorify God." Yes! That was the passion of Christ, and it should be our passion--that the nations might love the glory of God and praise the glory of God.[11]

The Great Commission states that we are to disciple the nations all that Christ taught us. I don't really think I need to defend the idea that one of Christ's many important themes is passion for and love of God and one another, and a heart for retrieving the lost nations.

The Kingdom and Christian Victory

However, contrary to liberal christians, love is neither the most important nor the only teaching Jesus gave us. If it were it would result in an emasculated Christianity, and that is something Christianity is not! "Life is war." [12] Christ is also the Supreme Commander, waging a war against satan and all evil. Peter Leithart writes that

Jesus' life and ministry can be seen as a military campaign. He spent His life on earth waging a holy war. . . Jesus is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11). But Jesus is not only the Good Shepherd. He is also the One who comes from Edom with His garments stained red with the blood of His enemies (Isa. 63:1-6). Jesus is the conquering Warrior, the Captain of the hosts of the Lord, who rides a white horse at the head of a vast army (Rev. 19:11-16). Like Samson and Saul, Jesus was endowed with the Spirit of power to wage war against the oppressors of His people (Judg. 14:6, 19; 15:14; 1 Sam. 11:6-11; Matt. 3:13-4:11). [ref] Jesus was the "Nazirite," consecrated for holy war (Matt. 2:23). [ref] He Himself characterized His inauguaration of the kingdom as a violent campaign opposed by violent men (Matt. 11:12). [ref] . . . Jesus appears in the Gospels not as an Oriental guru--a proto-Gandhian proclaiming love and nonviolence--but as a princely Lover, passionately willing to suffer all things to rescue His Bride from her captor. [13]

Further, Jesus' temptation in the wilderness, rather than showing us how to deal with temptation or a manifestation of His inner struggles, shows us in a dramatic event how he engaged Satan in "hand-to-hand" combat for the fate of His people.[14] In other words, "like Prince Phillip, Jesus stormed the dragon's fortress and emerged triumphant"! [15] Praise be to God!

The Kingdom as Christ

What is the Kingdom? The Kingdom is nothing other than Christ Himself.[16] Leithart again writes that "the kingdom of God is thoroughly Christ-centered. Theologians since the time of Origen (early third century) have recognized that Jesus is revealed in the Gospels to be the incarnation and personification of the kingdom. Where Christ is present, there is the kingdom. . . The kingdom is in heaven because Christ is seated there at His Father's right hand; the kingdom is in the sanctuary because there Christ makes Himself present in Word and sacrament; the kingdom is in the church because Christ has promised to be present wherever two or three are gathered in His name. The kingdom is where the body of Christ is found. . ."[17]

"Already and Not Yet"

We should hasten to point out that there are two aspects of the Kingdom, a present reality and a future reality.[18] Many theologians call this the "already and not yet" distinction. While the kingdom's advent began with Christ's first coming and was fully enabled through His victory on the Cross, opening us to the heavenlies and delivering the death-stroke to Satan's head (Gen. 3:15), and is present wherever Christ is present, there is a sense in which the Kingdom is also not yet completely present. Leithart describes it this way: ". . . the Kingdom of God has already come, though it has not yet been fully revealed, established, and manifested."[19]

The question thus logically becomes: What elements of the Kingdom are to come? What can we expect it to be, or look like? Before we can really answer that, we must set the tone. Establish some background.

The Victory of the Kingdom

First, something had changed in Jesus after the resurrection. No longer does He say "I can do nothing for myself" (John 5:19, etc.) and "concerning that day and hour no one knows, not the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only" (Matt. 24:36). Jesus' ministry had been transformed by the resurrection. He was given the full power and authority, in heaven and on earth, of the Father upon His resurrection (Matt. 28:18). Satan's power was broken and he was vanquished (Matt. 12:26-29; John 12:31; 1 John 3:8; Col. 2:15; Heb. 2:14; Luke 10:18); the fatal head-wound (Gen. 3:15) delivered. Christ had overcome the world (Eph. 1:21-22; John 16:33; Rev. 1:5,6). He was soon, upon his ascension, to be "declared the Son of God with power" (Rom. 1:3, 4).

Second, upon His ascension, Christ was brought near to God the Father, "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" (Den. 7:13). This is clearly a vision of Christ's ascension into heaven, since it clearly states that the Son of Man "came to" the Ancient of Days. Christ coming before the Father after the ascension. He was seated at the right hand of God and "crowned with glory" (Heb. 2:9) and began His rule and Kingship (Rom. 8:34; Eph. 1:20; Col. 1:3; Heb. 12:2; 1 Pet. 3:22; Rev. 3:21).

His pouring out of the Spirit at Pentacost was a demonstration of His complete authority (Acts 2:34:36). Gentry writes that this outpouring was "a celebration of His coronation in distributing gifts to His subjects, in the manner of a warrior-king returning triumphantly to his capital city upon his victory over the enemy (Acts 2:33; Eph. 4:7-12). It promises His divinely royal assistance to His people (Rom. 8:34)."[20]

Further, in Christ's enthroning at the right hand of the Father in glory and power, so are all true believers enthroned as kings and priests (Rev. 1:5), the heirs of Christ. [21] With his sacrifice, resurrection and ascention, Christ opened up the heavenlies to all Christians.[22] He destroyed the veil in the Temple, a symbol of his spiritual destruction of the division in the relationship between God and man.

God has, in several places (Psa. 110:1; Matt. 22:44; 22:64; Mark 12:36; 14:62; 16:19; Luke 20:42-43; 22:69; Rom. 8:34; 1 Cor. 15:25; Eph. 1:20; Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:3, 13; 8:1; 10:12), said to Jesus, "Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool" (Acts. 2:34-35). The phrase, "sitting at the right hand" of the Father is "a semantic equivalent to sitting on God's throne,"[23] as is stated: "I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His Throne" (Rev. 3:21).

Thus, the two thrones are one, hence there is a sense in which God the Father will make Christ's enemies His footstool, and there is a sense in which it is Jesus Himself who will make His enemies His own footstool.

What is the Future of the Kingdom?

We must ask this question: How will Jesus make his enemies his footstool? Paul answers that question for us: "The God of Peace will soon crush Satan under your feet" (Rom. 16:20). Whose feet? Our feet! The feet of Christ's church will trample Satan, who is still living yet fatally wounded, and all of his evil minions into the dust. This is a very clear verse teaching the theology of Christian victory in all of the Bible. Christ has seen fit to crush Satan through His church. We are the Kingdom because Christ is the Kingdom and Christ reigns spiritually through us.

Let us look now at one of the strongest passages in the whole Bible teaching progressive Kingdom victory (contrary to the popular idea of progressive Christian defeat at the hands of Satan):

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For "God has put all things in subjection under his feet." But when it says, "all things are put into subjection," it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God might be all in all (1 Cor. 15:20-28).

Christ is the firstfruits, the promise of our own resurrection.[24] Further, there is a specific order to this resurrection. Gentry writes, "we are now in the era awaiting the end-time coming of Christ, when all believers will be resurrected in glory. When Christ comes this will be "the end"![ref] There will be no millennial age to follow."[25] But when is the end? "Then comes the end, when[ever] he delivers the kingdom to God the Father." Whenever Christ delivers the Kingdom to the Father, then comes the end. And Christ will not deliver the Kingdom until "after destroying every rule and authority and power," and "has put all his enemies under his feet."

Thus, we can see from this passage that the requirement for delivering the Kingdom to the Father is the abolishment of all opposition to Christ's reign, and when He delivers the Kingdom the end has come. What follows is the bodily return of Christ and the resurrection of the quick and the dead. We should note here that Christ began His reign at His ascension and still reigns presently.[26] We have seen above that Christ is sitting at the right hand of the Father. This does not indicate a passive sitting on the throne, but an active rule and reign, exercising the authority given him, in order to make his enemies his footstool, and has "made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever," (Rev. 1:5). Further, "His reign from heaven extends to the end of history. Earlier, it was awaited the definitive abolition of all rival rule, authority and power (Matt. 28:18). His bodily return is delayed until progressively 'He has put all His enemies under His feet." This repitition of His sure conquest before the end is significant. . . The progressive subduing of His other enemies in history occurs before this final resurrection."[27]

As we Christians begin to develop a more complete "world-and-life" view and bring more thoughts into captivity unto Christ, as we disciple others and help them to also become disciples of Christ and they begin living for Christ in every area of life, the Kingdom will finally and completely come. As the Great Commission rumbles forward, slowly but surely running roughshod over all opposition, we will see an incredible and increasing outpouring of the Holy Spirit, enabling more people to convert to Christ and become disciples and followers, who in turn convert more people. This will cause a greater outpouring of the Holy Spirit, which enables more to be saved, discipled and sanctified, which further allows more to be saved. What started with a spiritual trickle of the Holy Spirit will widen into a brook, then a stream, and beyond that to a roaring river, and on to a thunderous torrent of the Holy Spirit outpoured on those of the Kingdom, until the power of the kingdom of Satan is broken. The glorious Kingdom will be built and it cannot be stopped, for even "the gates of hell shall not prevail over it" (Matt. 16:18). This is the incredible future of the Kingdom, the incredible future that awaits the universal body of Christ.

Conclusion

I have developed some of the significant ideas and themes in the Bible about the Kingdom of God in the preceding. I did this for several reasons. 1) I am working on a book talking about the Kingdom of God, so I wanted to get some of the themes straight in my own mind, 2) I have the topic in the foreground of my mind, so writing an article on is less difficult than it would otherwise be, 3) it will be benefitial to you readers to read about the Kingdom since evangelicals appear obsessed with talking about it but astonishingly reluctant to define it based upon Scripture.

I have done my best to cover the largest and broadest themes of the Kingdom in this article, however, since space requirements are so limited I have naturally been unable to fit everything in that was required to make a water-tight case for Kingdom victory. Such is the nature of things. However, I have provided extensive references below. Anything that was undeveloped and has caused confusion (though I hope and pray that none of it will) can be straightened out by reading some of the books listed below.

The bottom line and fundemental theme of the Bible's various passages on the Kingdom of God is progressive and increasing Christian victory in every area of life, claiming every field and aspect of life for Jesus Christ. The methodical movement of the Christian body to total victory and the return of Christ is unstoppable. It may be slowed or sidetracked for a time in different periods of history, but the church always returns to the Bible in the end.

Many people doubt the idea of Christian victory in the world because of the horrible things that have happened in the recent past. World War I, World War II, nationalism, nazism, darwinism, social darwinism, eugenics, etc. To that, I agree with Keith A. Mathison, when he writes that "God has promised the church that the gates of hell will not prevail against her, that all the ends of the earth will turn to the Lord, and that all the families of the nations will worship before Him. Shall we, like Sarah, laugh at the apparently unrealistic nature of the promise? Or shall we, like Abraham, believe the promise of God? Throughout Biblical history, God has promised the seemingly impossible. In response, some have placed their trust in what their eyes could see. 'We have to be realistic,' they have said. But others, despite the seeming impossibility of fulfillment, have believed the promises of God."[28]

I also side with Jesus Christ Himself, who has challenged us: "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible" (Matt. 19:26; also see Mark 10:27; Luke 1:37; 18:27).

Even so, come Lord Jesus![29]

References:

[1] Eschatology is the theological term. It means "the study of 'last things.' "

[2] Charles H. Dunahoo, Making Kingdom Disciples: A New Framework (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed, 2005); Peter J. Leithart, The Kingdom and the Power: Rediscovering the Centrality of the Church (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1993); John Piper, Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (Sisters, OR: Multnomah, 1986 [2003]); John Piper, Let the Nations Be Glad! The Supremacy of God in Missions (Grand Rapids, MN: Baker Books, 1993 [2003])

[3] The Great Commission is far larger in scope than many think. For an excellent study on the full scope of the Commission, see Kenneth L. Gentry Jr., The Greatness of the Great Commission: The Christian Enterprise in a Fallen World (Tyler, TX: Institute for Christian Economics, 1990). This book is absolutely required reading for every Christian who wants to know what the Christian responsibility in the world is.

[4] Dunahoo, Kingdom Disciples, p. 3. Emphasis mine.

[5] Ibid., 11-12

[6] Abraham Kuyper, Souvereiniteit in Eigen Kring. Rede ter Inwijding van de Vrije Universiteit (Kampen: Kok, 1930, p. 32, as cited in Ibid., p. 11.

[7] When I use the term "state" I refer to that institution of civil government. I do not refer to the designation of "states" as in the "united states."

[8] For more information regarding the three institutions of family, church, and state, see Gary North, Unconditional Surrender: God's Program for Victory (Tyler, TX: Institute for Christian Economics, 1994), ch. 5-7, pp. 177-258.

[9] See Piper, Let the Nations Be Glad, ch. 1. Also see the following scriptures: Eph. 1:4-6; Isa. 43:6-7; Ps. 106:7-8; Ex. 14:4, 18; 1 Sam. 12:22; 2 Kings 19:34; John 7:18; John 14: 13; Rom. 15:7; John 16:14; 1 Cor. 10:31; Phil. 1:11; Acts 12:23; Hab. 2:14; Rev. 21:23. These passages could literally be multiplied on end.

[10] Ibid., 18.

[11] Ibid., 34.

[12] Ibid., 45

[13] Leithart, The Kingdom and the Power, 34-35.

[14] Ibid., 35-40.

[15] Ibid., 36.

[16] Ibid., 20.

[17] Ibid., 20-21.

[18] See Allen Mitsuo Wakabayashi, Kingdom Come: How Jesus Wants to Change the World (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003), pp. 49-69; Leithart, Kingdom and the Power, 17-18.

[19] Leithart, Kingdom and the Power, 18.

[20] Kenneth L. Gentry, He Shall Have Dominion: A Postmillennial Eschatology (Tyler, TX: Institute for Christian Economics, 1992 [1997]), p. 229.

[21] See Ibid., 231, 263, 347, 426, 430, 473, 498, etc.; Leithart, Kingdom and the Power, 111-114, 145-155

[22] See Leithart, Kingdom and the Power, 65-139.

[23] Ibid., 229.

[24] I am endebted to Ken Gentry's discussion of this passage in He Shall Have Dominion, 253-256.

[25] Ibid., 253-254.

[26] See Gentry, He Shall Have Dominion, ch. 11.

[27] Ibid., 255-256. For more on the progressive element of the establishment of the Kingdom, see pp. 257-261; Greg L. Bahnsen and Kenneth L. Gentry Jr., House Divided: The Break-Up of Dispensational Theology (Tyler, TX: Institute for Christian Economics, 1989), pp. 221-222.

[28] Keith A. Mathison, Postmillennialism: An Eschatology of Hope (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1999), pp. xi-xii.

[29] For more information on the Kingdom of God from and expositional and Biblical perspective, see Gentry, He Shall Have Dominion; Leithart, The Kingdom and the Power; Bahnsen and Gentry, House Divided, pt. II; Mathison, Postmillennialism; Dunahoo, Making Kingdom Disciples, ch. 3; John Jefferson Davis, Christ's Victorious Kingdom: Postmillennialism Reconsidered (Grand Rapids, MN: Baker Books, 1986); John Jefferson Davis, The Victory of Christ's Kingdom: An Introduction to Postmillennialism (Moscow, IO: Canon Press, 1996); David Chilton, Paradise Restored: A Biblical Theology of Dominion (Ft. Worth, TX: Dominion Press, 1985); David Chilton, The Days of Vengence: An Exposition of The Book of Revelation (Ft. Worth, TX: Dominion Press, 1987); Gary North, Unconditional Surrender; Gary North, Dominion and Common Grace: The Biblical Basis of Progress (Tyler, TX: Institute for Christian Economics, 1987); Loraine Boettner, The Millennium (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1958 [1984]); Roderick Campbell, Israel and the New Covenant (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1954 [1981]); David S. Clark, The Message from Patmos: A Postmillennial Commentary on the Book of Revelation (Grand Rapids, MN: Baker Books, 1989); Gary DeMar and Peter J. Leithart, The Reduction of Christianity: A Biblical Response to Dave Hunt (Ft. Worth, TX: Dominion Press, 1988); Rousas John Rushdoony, Thy Kingdom Come: Studies in Daniel and Revelation (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1970).