King Jesus & The Kingdom of God

Scripture: Matthew 6:9-10...”Our Father who art in Heaven; hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, thine will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. KJV

Let's imagine a conversation between Joshua and the Lord. “Now, Joshua, I have called you to take the leadership from Moses and I want you to take my people across the Jordan River into the Promised Land. And, once you cross the Jordan River, I want you and all your people to just sit there and do nothing. Your mission is done. Just sit and don't do anything else.

“Ridiculous”, you might say. And, I would agree with you. But, in many ways, this is exactly what the American Church has done in the last fifty years. We have preached the Gospel of Salvation, but we have not taught the people to apply the message of the Gospel in its fullness to our everyday lives. This is the difference between the Gospel of Salvation and the Gospel of the Kingdom.

Jesus did not come to merely give us a free ticket to Heaven. He came to bring us much more. He came to teach us about the Kingdom of God and bring the Kingdom to this earth through us. Nowhere in the scriptures will you find the term, the Gospel of Salvation. The Church does not exist for Heaven but for earth. If it existed just for Heaven, each one of us would immediately be taken to Heaven.

“It is not just a question of being saved from hell but in being saved in order to 'manifest' the Son of God in and through our lives.” There would be no reason for us to remain on earth if there was not a work to be done here. So why has God allowed us to receive the new birth and remain on the earth? It is so we might bring the Kingdom of God into our world, to our families, to our workplace, and our communities through His Spirit of love into others hearts and lives.

Jesus talked about the Kingdom of God much more than He mentioned salvation. While salvation is part of bringing the Kingdom on earth, it includes much more. When Jesus came to earth, He came in order to penetrate the very kingdom of darkness with God's 'light'. He came to bring healing to sickness, replace sadness with joy, and fill meaninglessness with purpose. He came to change things for the better for a world that had no hope outside of God.

'Genuine Christianity is more than a relationship with Jesus, as expressed in personal piety, church attendance, Bible Study, and works of charity, more than believing a set of doctrines.' The Lord wants you to bring His Kingdom into the area He has given to you so that His will can be seen and done on earth as it is in Heaven.

The easiest way to understand the distinction is the Gospel of Salvation deals only with salvation of your soul. The Gospel of the Kingdom deals with all things that the cross affected including salvation and reconciliation of all things, including the restoration of a material world that was lost through the fall.

The kingdom is the sovereign rulership and governing influence of a 'king' over His territory, impacting it with His will, His intent, and His purpose, manifesting a culture reflecting the king's true character and nature, values, and morals . A kingdom is the governing impact of a king's will over an area, and not just over Him and His influence but over a people who bow down to Him as their King, by their actions, words, and deeds not just by being their Savior.

Looking back to the time of Moses, Moses was led by God not to establish a religion but to establish a kingdom of people who would love, serve, obey, and honor God. In other words, God wants His Kingdom to be seen through the lives of those who have given themselves over to Him completely. Now, go...proclaim our King and His Kingdom to a lost and weary world.

Like Christ, be that example of who Christ and His Kingdom really are. Amen? Amen.


Footnotes: Scripture taken from KJV of the Bible.

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