Topical Studies
Kingdom of God
(From Forerunner Commentary)
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We find regarding the beginning of The Word's existence, something further described in Hebrews chapter 7. Speaking of Melchisedec, who was king of Jerusalem in the days of Abraham, it says also that he was the Priest of God Most High. This Melchisedec had existed from eternity—"without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually" (Hebrews 7:3). Since Melchisedec was "like unto the Son of God," and abides as High Priest forever continually, and Jesus Christ is now High Priest, Melchisedec and Jesus Christ are one and the same Person. Therefore Christ was "without father, without mother, without descent [in Abraham's time], having neither beginning of days, nor end of life." God also had existed eternally with the Word. Jesus, when he was "the Word," was an immortal being who had existed always—there never was a time when he did not exist—without beginning of days. He was, then, "like" the Son of God—but he was not yet the Son of God. He also was God, along with God. These passages show that the Word, in the beginning—before anything had been created—was with God, and he, also, was God. Now how could that be? There might be a man named John. And John might be with the man named Smith, and John might also be Smith because John is the son of Smith, and Smith is the family name. Yet they are two separate persons. The only point of difference in that analogy is that the Word, at the time of John 1:1, was not, yet, the Son of God. But he was with God, and he also was God. They were not yet Father and Son—but they were the God Kingdom!
Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986)
Fully Man and Fully God? (2001)
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Worldly religion has conditioned us to think of worship as something that we do briefly once a week, and then we are free to do what pleases us. This is woefully inadequate for fulfilling God's purpose of creating us in His image. His purpose involves putting His mind in us that we may imitate Him in every area of life. In this, the first commandment has very practical ramifications. If another crowds God out of first place in our thinking, affections, and conduct so that we admire, submit to, and imitate him, we will be in another's image, not God's. If we are not in God's image, will He allow us into His Kingdom?
John W. Ritenbaugh
The First Commandment
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Genesis 1:1 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The original Hebrew word for "God," here and throughout the account of creation, is Elohim, which actually indicates more than one being. It is the plural form of Hebrew Eloah, which in English means "Mighty One." So Elohim means "Mighty Ones"— more than just one person. Elohim is a collective noun, such as "church," "family," or "kingdom." In other words, Elohim stands for a single class composed of two or more individuals. Elohim, then, is the "God Kingdom" or "God Family." (In actual usage, the word was also applied to any single member of the God Family or, by analogy, even to a heathen idol.)
What It Means to Be Born Again
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Genesis 1:26 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Genesis 1:26 expresses the specific purpose statement of the Bible. God, the Creator, the Master Potter, is reproducing Himself! This is THE work of God. He is in the process of making man in His image. That project is completed in two stages, the physical and the spiritual. When the physical aspect was completed at creation, the spiritual one began. This is the overall project He is supervising. God is already a unit: "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!" (Deuteronomy 6:4). God is one, but consists of more than one Person. When Jesus came, He proclaimed the gospel of the Kingdom of God. In doing this, He publicly announced the expansion of this unit to include others besides the two Beings already revealed. A kingdom is synonymous with a nation. It consists of large numbers of people, but it, too, is one. Indeed, the church is called "a holy nation" in I Peter 2:9, and though it has many members worldwide, it is one church. Thus, Jesus announced that the Kingdom of God will consist of many more personalities. He also told us how we can become a part of it and how it will be accomplished. Through these means the project stated in Genesis 1:26 will take a giant step toward fulfillment.
John W. Ritenbaugh
In the Grip of Distrust
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Exodus 20:12 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
God wants us to honor our parents because the family is the basic building block of His Kingdom. God describes the Kingdom in family terms. He is the Father, Jesus is the Son, and the church is the Son's bride. We are called sons, daughters, and children of the Kingdom. We are created and being created as sons in His image. God also uses terms like "beget," "born," and "grow up." Immediately after creating Adam and Eve and announcing He was creating them in His image (Genesis 1:26), God established the first institution: the family through marriage. The conclusion is inescapable. The family would play a major role in creating man in God's image. Regarding marriage, family, and divorce, Malachi 2:15 says: But did He not make them one, having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring! Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth. The godly principles learned and the character built within the human family are, upon conversion, transferable into the spiritual family relationship in the Kingdom of God. Parents are His representatives, and we honor and revere the creative majesty and power of God when we keep this commandment. God expects whatever we learned from honoring our parents to transfer into our relationship with Him.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The First Commandment
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Deuteronomy 6:4 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The word "God" here is Elohim. It says, "The LORD our Elohim is one LORD." This phrase is not normally grammatically correct—a plural noun [Elohim] with a singular verb, "is." Elohim is the plural of both El and Eloah. El and Eloah mean "mighty One," "strong One," or "powerful One" according to Brown, Driver, and Briggs. Elohim, being either of these two words in the plural, therefore means "strong Ones," "mighty Ones," or "powerful Ones." Just from these definitions, Elohim consists of at least two powerful beings. But, as the New Testament shows, Elohim is not limited to two. It can actually signify an unlimited number, so Elohim is a group or assembly of powerful beings. It is jarring to the ear to say "Gods is," because there is a plural noun and a singular verb, but it is not incorrect. Consider "United States of America." States is plural, but one does not say, "The United States are going to war." One says, "The United States is going to war." One uses a singular verb with a plural noun. Gramatically, we are speaking of collective nouns. Elohim is plurality in one, and because the sense is singular, it calls for a singular verb. However, everyone using it knows that it is plural and represents many in unity. Our culture forces us to look for a singular being, but Elohim is not singular. In the New Testament, it becomes very clear that Elohim is a kingdom, consisting of many! Elohim always acts in a singular way. There is never any divisiveness, only agreement. We have no problem at all saying or hearing, "The United States is bordered on the north by Canada," or, "The United States is in the northern hemisphere," or "The United States delivered a sharp memo to the Japanese today." We always speak of the United States in the singular. We speak of it as an composite of many rather than a singular entity. When Moses wrote this verse, it was no more discordant to a Hebrew-speaking person, no more grammatically wrong, than it is for us to say, "The United States is. . . ." Elohim, "the powerful Ones," is a Family of at least two divine beings, and many sons and daughters are being prepared to be born into it. A family, whether human or divine, is a unit of many individuals joined as one. The Bible reveals that a nation is nothing more than a family grown great. This is why we have the Table of Nations in Genesis 10, which shows the forebears of the nations after the Flood. They began with one man and one woman, and they grew great. So it is that Elohim is one institution—a Family—growing ever larger and more complex until it becomes a nation, the Kingdom of God. We see, then, that this is what Elohim is developing.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Nature of God: Elohim
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Deuteronomy 8:2-3 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 16 contains a vital lesson regarding humility, our relationship with God and our ultimate destiny. Here God explains why we have our experiences on our pilgrimage to the Kingdom of God. He specifically mentions humbling and testing three times. They are ultimately the means by which He will achieve our birth into His Kingdom. Humility is essential to our character and the out-working of His purpose because humility motivates us to bow before God's sovereignty. Those who submit to God's will have their prayers answered and receive additional blessings from Him.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Sovereignty of God: Part Nine
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Deuteronomy 30:15-20 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
God Almighty has given man the power to make choices regarding his ultimate destiny. As a free moral agent, man has the awesome responsibility to choose between a hapless, physio-chemical existence with a dead end or a rich and rewarding eternity as a member of God's Family. Though the choice appears easy, the challenging road to the Kingdom of God dismays many because they are unwilling to undergo the rigors of the journey. God has set before us the choice to obey or disobey, hoping we will choose obedience and giving us reasons and promises that persuade us to that end, but He wants us to make sure that it is our intention, without coercion or brainwashing on His part. It takes a free moral agent, making the right choices, to create the mind of Christ in us. Though He has a good idea how we will choose, God ultimately does not know what we will decide when given the choice. He will do all He can—short of rescinding our freedom to choose—to convince us to choose Him.
David F. Maas
Fasting: Building Spiritual Muscle
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Psalms 21:1 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
There will be everlasting joy when God's Kingdom is established on earth. Joy and gladness are not only deep inward feelings, but they are also expressed in visible celebration when God's people gather together. Speaking of the future church, Isaiah 60:15 says, "Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, so that no one went through you, I will make you an eternal excellence, a joy of many generations." In the meantime, the apostle Paul advises us to "rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, rejoice!" (Philippians 4:4)
Martin G. Collins
Joy
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Psalms 37:9 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Is there anything wrong with having the earth as an eternal inheritance? Would you "settle" for earth? The earth today would be an extremely wonderful place in which to live were it not for sin—rebellion against God and His eternal spiritual laws that bring peace, happiness, and joy! Happiness and joy are not a matter of geographical location. Happiness is a state of mind—a spiritual condition! There will be no sin in the spiritual Kingdom of God. No liars, no murderers, no thieves or robbers. Think of it—there will be no Devil to deceive anyone, no locks on doors, no jails, no hospitals, no poor houses! No strife, no war—no sickness or disease—no poverty, no hunger, no want! What a wonderful inheritance! When we put all the scriptures together, it becomes crystal clear that the reward of the saints is not strumming on harps up in heaven for all eternity. It is infinitely more glorious and exciting than that!
Will You Go to Heaven?
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Ezekiel 44:23 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
In the Millennium, when God's Kingdom is reigning on earth, the priesthood will teach the difference between clean and unclean! And after the thousand years, no abominable thing, nothing that defiles will mar the New Jerusalem! All of its citizens will be holy. This is the wonderful destiny that we are preparing for, and part of making ourselves ready is following the law of clean and unclean meats.
Staff
Clean and Unclean Meats
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Daniel 2:36-45 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Daniel 2:36-43 describes four major kingdoms, empires, or governmental systems that have ruled over the greater part of the civilized world: 1. The Chaldean-Babylonian Empire (625 to 538 BC) 2. The Medo-Persian Empire (538 to 330 BC) 3. The Greco-Macedonian Empire (333 to 31 BC) 4. The Roman Empire (Established 31 BC. The imagery suggests that it will exist in some form until the end of the age.) Clearly, these physical empires existed on earth. Verses 44-45 then say that God's Kingdom will encompass all of these previous kingdoms—on earth! Daniel 7:17-18 says much the same.
John Plunkett
Is Heaven the Reward of the Saved?
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Daniel 7:27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
God's everlasting Kingdom shall not be in heaven but "under the whole heaven"! Why then should we be surprised that God's Kingdom will be on earth? God tells us through Moses that ancient Israel was a type of God's Kingdom and, in fact, could have been His Kingdom had they obeyed Him: Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. (Exodus 19:5-6)
John Plunkett
Is Heaven the Reward of the Saved?
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Micah 4:1-3 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Beginning with Israel, God will take a much more direct and visible role in governing the nations. Representatives of nations will flow to Jerusalem to learn God's ways. They must begin at ground zero and prepare their lives to reflect the image of God, just as we have had to do. That these people come to God is an acknowledgment that they and their forefathers had made a mess of things before Christ returned, and now they want to learn from God and His people how to do things properly.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Preparing to Rule!
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Habakkuk 1:5 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Secular historians believe that what happened in the sixth century BC is marvelous almost beyond belief. Events of that magnitude do not happen that swifty in such a short period of time. We have seen evidence, however, in God's Word of what happened and why it happened that way. God Himself did it to bring about a radical change in the history of man. Since God did it, it was part of His purpose. In Habakkuk, He is speaking about a work He will do that is so amazing that "If I told you, Habakkuk, what I am going to do, you would not believe it." What is that amazing work? God is going to turn the world upside down again, only this time He will replace the nations with the Kingdom of God.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Prophets and Prophecy (Part 3)
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Habakkuk 2:4 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
God, in this verse, sets out the two universal sides. The proud are on one side. Their deeds are not upright. On the other side are the just, those who live by faith. In a way, He is asking Habakkuk—and us, "Which side are you on? Can I count you among the proud, who will be destroyed, or the just, the faithful, who will be rewarded? Choose your side." This verse is quoted three times in the New Testament, all by the apostle Paul. In Romans 1:16-17, he shows that the gospel Christ brought reveals God's righteousness, the way we are to live, which is by faith in Jesus Christ. Thus, he writes, "The just shall live by faith." It is a common misconception that the gospel is merely the announcement of the Kingdom of God. But it is much more than that: It is the instruction of God on how we are to live. It is the faith we must live. We are to live the gospel, the way Christ revealed in His life and teaching. We can live confidently according to God's Word because we trust God—we have faith in Him and His revelation. A second quotation of this verse is Galatians 3:11, a usage slightly different: as a proof that God does not justify us by the law but by faith. To paraphrase, he says that God has granted us eternal life because of our faith in Christ not by our adherence to the law. The apostle makes this verse say, "The just shall have eternal life by faith, or because of faith"—our faith in Christ, and so we will live. Finally, Paul quotes this verse in Hebrews 10:38-39: "Now the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those who draw back to perdition [or to destruction], but of those who believe to the saving of the soul." Paul uses the quotation from Habakkuk much like Habakkuk himself does, showing the two sides of the issue: the just on the one hand, who go forward to reward, and on the other side the proud, those who draw back and are destroyed. If we desire to enter into His Kingdom and live eternally, we must believe God and live our lives accordingly. The proud draw back from God, and they receive destruction. If we live by faith, we go forward to perfection (Hebrews 6:1-2) and thus to salvation, not to destruction. Paul says in II Corinthians 5:7, "We walk by faith, not by sight." The lesson is, whatever the circumstances, we must obey God and let the chips fall where they may. We must always be faithful to be counted among the just.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Habakkuk
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Malachi 3:1 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Jesus came to this earth as a Messenger from God the Father: "'Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,' says the LORD of hosts" (Malachi 3:1). Two messengers are mentioned in this verse. The first is John the Baptist, who prepared the way for the second Messenger, "the Messenger of the covenant," Jesus Christ. It is helpful to understand that, as Messenger, He did not speak His own words. John 8:38-42 combined with John 12:49-50 confirms this. Thus, the message He brought is not primarily about Himself but about the good news of the Kingdom of God that the Father ordained to be announced on earth. This does not discount Jesus in any way because He is clearly the most important person ever to inhabit this earth. Rather, it emphasizes the fact that the gospel Jesus preached is not just about Himself. The inspired Word of God makes it quite clear that the good news Jesus brought is about the Kingdom of God. Mark 1:14-15 is typical: "Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. repent, and believe in the gospel.'" Luke 8:1 shows that proclaiming this good news was His customary activity, "Now it came to pass, afterward, that Jesus went through every city and village, preaching and bringing glad tidings of the kingdom of God." He says plainly in Luke 4:43 that this was His appointed task: "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also: because for this purpose I have been sent." Even in those last days before He ascended to heaven and the church was born, He used His time with the disciples to teach the same message. ". . . to [the apostles] He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3). Jesus was not alone in preaching the gospel of the Kingdom of God. He charged His disciples with this responsibility, and they followed through as commanded. "Then He called His twelve disciples together and . . . He sent them to preach the kingdom of God . . ." (Luke 9:1-2). Later, others like the evangelist Philip joined in this effort: "But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized" (Acts 8:12). Just in case one might think the apostle Paul preached a different gospel, he himself states in his farewell to the Ephesian elders, "And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, will see my face no more" (Acts 20:25). As Paul reached the end of his life, Acts 28:30-31 states of him, "Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house, and received all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him." One final reference, Galatians 1:8-9, is pertinent to this important issue: But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed. The Father's message, purposely given to Jesus to deliver to mankind, had already been corrupted just a few decades after Christ's death, and the Galatians had been deceived into believing the corrupted one! Similarly, the gospel Jesus Christ brought has been corrupted in modern times. Rather than focusing on the coming Kingdom of God, the message being palmed off in our day primarily focuses on the Messenger. Without a doubt, within the context of the message, Jesus is important as God in the flesh, our sinless Savior, and our resurrected High Priest. However, the message He preached focuses on other important issues besides Himself. If this were not so, why did God not title the message with something focusing directly on Jesus? God intends the title "gospel of the Kingdom of God" to fix our attention on the issue He wants to be the focus of our lives after we are called and converted, since it is the only hope for the resolution of mankind's numerous and presently unsolvable problems. The Kingdom of God is of such importance that, once we grasp the essence of its instruction, we can honestly say, without exaggeration, that it is the theme of the entire Bible. Spiritual resurrection into the Kingdom of God is held out as the goal of those making the New Covenant with God. A covenant contains requirements that are to be met by both parties entering into it. Will those of us who have done so escape the responsibility to make efforts to live up to the New Covenant's terms comparable to those required of Israelites under the Old Covenant? Many—those who say that no works are required of Christians—believe so.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Is the Christian Required To Do Works? (Part Five)
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Matthew 4:17 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Christ links repentance with the Kingdom of God and believing the gospel. Once one hears the true gospel and believes it, he begins to change the way he thinks. Peter ties repentance with forgiveness of past sins and God's giving of His Spirit. Once the Ethiopian eunuch heard Philip's explanation of the Bible, he changed his thinking (repented) and was baptized. Initial repentance includes recognition, acceptance, and belief of the true gospel and making changes in one's life to conform to the new way.
Martin G. Collins
Basic Doctrines: Repentance
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Matthew 5:3 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Here, Christ says that the "poor in spirit"—those who recognize their own spiritual poverty—will have "the kingdom of Heaven." But in Matthew 5:5, Christ says that the meek will inherit the earth. Are the meek Christians going to have a different reward from the "poor in spirit" Christians? Is this a contradiction? Of course not! The "meek" and the "poor in spirit"—in other words, humble Christians—shall inherit the earth for an everlasting possession, and shall enter the "Kingdom of [owned by] heaven" which will be set up on earth! That Kingdom is the divine, ruling government of God which Christ will establish on earth at His return (Revelation 5:10). To enter into—or "inherit"—the divine Kingdom of God is a destiny of such marvelous glory that the human mind cannot fully grasp it! Men today have no conception of what is in store for the obedient. The inheritance that awaits every true Christian surpasses anything we have ever conceived in our minds! As we read in I Corinthians 2:9, "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." The full extent of the inheritance God has promised the righteous cannot even be remotely imagined by the natural mind of man—but God does reveal it to us "by His Spirit" (verse 10).
Will You Go to Heaven?
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Matthew 5:5 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Jesus said: "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth" (Matthew 5:5). That is part of the Sermon on the Mount—and certainly every Christian must believe the Sermon on the Mount! Then we must believe, if we are Christians, that what the saved inherit is the earth—and not heaven! Jesus plainly said, "No man has ascended up to heaven" (John 3:13). David was a man after God's own heart. David has the promise of being in the Kingdom of God, ruling over Israel under Christ, when Christ will rule all nations. But on that day of Pentecost when the New Testament church began, the inspired Peter said: "David is not ascended into the heavens" (Acts 2:34). The wisest man who ever lived was inspired to write, as part of the divine Word of God, "The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall not inhabit the earth" (Proverbs 10:30). I think most of you have read those scriptures. That is the "Thus saith the Lord" on the question. There is absolutely no scripture in all the Holy Bible that promises heaven as the reward the saved shall inherit. And yet, have not most people just sort of blinded their minds to these positive, plain statements from God Almighty, and carelessly taken for granted, without question, the idea of going to heaven? Notice when the Kingdom shall be inherited—when the heirs of the promises to Abraham shall come finally into their reward, and receive the actual inheritance. It is recorded in Matthew 25:31, 34: "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory. . . . Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." Yes, the Kingdom of God is the place prepared. Jesus said He went to prepare a place for us. He also said He went to get for Himself a kingdom, and to return. And when He returns, as King of kings, and that Kingdom is established (we find it is the place prepared), then it is that the joyful call goes out, "Come! ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you."
Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986)
What Is the Reward of the Saved?
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Matthew 5:12 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
What did Jesus mean when He told His disciples, "Be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven"? (Matthew 5:12.) And why—only a few verses before—did Christ say, "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth" (verse 5)? Do some of the saved—"the persecuted" (verses 11-12)—go to heaven to collect their reward, while others—"the meek"—inherit the earth? Or did Jesus Christ contradict Himself in His very next breath? The apostle Peter was inspired to write, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you" (I Peter 1:3-4). Notice it! The reward of the saved—the inheritance of true Christian—is reserved in heaven. That is where it is kept at this present time. But do Christians go to heaven to receive their reward? Jesus Christ explained it in the book of Revelation: "And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be" (Revelations 22:12). When Christ returns from heaven the second time, He will bring the reward of the saved with Him! Though now temporarily reserved in heaven, Jesus will bring the reward of the saints (true Christians) to this earth! Daniel wrote, "And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him" (Daniel 7:27). Jesus did not say Christians will inherit their reward in heaven. Rather, the reward—authority, an office of power in the Kingdom of God—is being temporarily reserved in heaven because that is where Jesus is. But it will be brought to the earth, where Jesus will reward His saints, in the Kingdom of God, with positions of rulership and authority over the nations.
Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986)
What Is the Reward of the Saved?
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Matthew 6:33 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
What was the first of the Seven Laws of Success? Set the right goal! Jesus clearly established the highest-priority goal for His disciples in this verse. He did this because He knows that the main goal, our highest priority, determines the preparations, efforts, and zeal for reaching it. Suppose someone offered us a tremendous sum of money, perhaps billions of dollars, but the exact amount would be determined by how well we could learn to speak German in two month's time. We would embark on the most intense crash-course program of learning in our life! We would study from morning to night, burn the midnight oil, listen to language tapes, carry flash cards wherever we went, and seek out fluent German-speakers so we could practice with them. During those two months, no one could drag us near a time-wasting television program. We would probably allow nothing to interfere other than necessary physical activities to sustain life itself. All for money! Notice what Jesus says earlier in Matthew 6: Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (verses 19-21) Consider these scriptures in the context of what Jesus says in verse 33. Our hearts are in the things to which we devote ourselves, the things we spend our time pursuing. He is helping us prioritize by stating and illustrating principles that will help us make right choices in managing time. Every day another 24 hours or 1,440 minutes or 86,400 seconds is credited to our account, and we have to spend them. Whether we are a billionaire or a dirt farmer, except for those who die that day, all have the same amount of time. Jesus says how we spend it shows where our heart is. Of course, Bible Study and prayer are very high priority activities. But Satan also knows this! He also knows it would be very difficult to change our minds regarding their value if he confronted us directly. So he makes use of subtle, indirect approaches, and all too often he succeeds in diverting our attention from these high priority concerns.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Simplify Your Life!
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Matthew 7:21 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Notice that it is the Kingdom "of" heaven—not in heaven! "Of" does not mean "in." It is the Kingdom of, or owned and ruled by, heaven in the same sense that "the Bank of Morgan" was not in Mr. Morgan—but was owned and ruled by him. Matthew's Gospel always uses the term "kingdom of heaven" to express exactly the same thing that Mark, Luke, and John express as "kingdom of God." It does not mean a kingdom in heaven, any more than it means a kingdom in God! But it does mean a kingdom owned and ruled by God, whose throne and dwelling place is in heaven.
Will You Go to Heaven?
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Matthew 11:12 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Christ was perhaps recalling His wrestling match with Jacob, centuries earlier, when He commented that "the violent take [the Kingdom] by force". J. B. Phillips has it: "The Kingdom of heaven has been taken by storm and eager men and forcing their way into it." It takes sweat.
Charles Whitaker
The Israel of God
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Matthew 11:12 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The Kingdom of God will be the recipient of slings and arrows and wars and temptations, and its own people will need to be violent in return. He means "forceful." It will take a titanic struggle to enter it because so many things are acting against us. Jesus warns us it will not be easy. We are going to have to work vigorously and "violently" at times, to force ourselves to do what is right, because the Kingdom of God is now under siege in so many ways. Therefore, we have to fight as warriors in battle and violently engage the enemy. From John 17:11-18, we know that the Kingdom functions in the world, and Jesus is not going to take us out of it. But He asks His Father to give us His protection from the Evil One so that we can at least have that added strength. We must constantly deal with the world, human nature, and the Evil One himself, as well as his demons.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Parables of Matthew 13 (Part 2): Leaven
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Matthew 13:11 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Jesus' frequently uses the words "Kingdom of Heaven," especially in Matthew 13, as in "The Kingdom of Heaven is like..." We should be careful not to be fooled by this. It does not mean "the Kingdom of God when Jesus Christ returns." That is not what Jesus means. The Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven is not just a future matter, but also a present reality. It is not on earth right now as a government, in the form of a nation or a kingdom, but the Kingdom of God exists. Colossians 1:13 says that we have already been translated into the Kingdom of the Son of His love. The word translated is better rendered as "transferred." This is not the Protestant idea of "the Kingdom of God is within you," but the Kingdom of God does exist. Notice Matthew 12:28: "But if I cast out demons by the spirit of God, surely the Kingdom of God has come upon you." It was present then in the person of Jesus Christ and working. Mark 12:34 contains another example: "So when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, 'You are not far from the Kingdom of God.' And after that no one dared question Him." In Luke 10, Jesus uses the term in a present-tense situation. The Kingdom of Heaven is something that happens now or can happen now. Jesus is speaking to His disciples, telling them what they are to do when they go out preaching the gospel: "And heal the sick who are there, and say to them, 'The Kingdom of God has come near to you'" (Luke 10:9). This is similar to what He says to the scribe in Luke 17:21: "Nor will they say, 'See here!' Or 'See there!' For indeed the Kingdom of God is among [as it is better translated] you." These examples show that Jesus taught His disciples that the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven exists now, but it is in a different form from what it will be when Jesus returns and sets up His government. When we yield to God, and when we are accepted by Him as His embryonic sons and daughters, as it were, we become citizens of the Kingdom of God. In a sense, then, we all are in the Kingdom of God now, but in the begotten sense, not in the born-again sense. Nevertheless, we are aiming for that future reality when Jesus Christ comes back and sets His throne upon this earth—when all people will stream to Jerusalem to become part of God's Kingdom. The entire Bible looks forward to this time, but there is a present reality of the Kingdom among His sons and daughters. Paul concurs: "Our citizenship is in heaven" (Philippians 3:20); "We are ambassadors for Christ" (II Corinthians 5:20; our allegiance is to Christ, the King of the Kingdom of God); we are "strangers and pilgrims" in a foreign land (I Peter 2:11). Our land is the Kingdom of God. The country we live in is an alien nation. In true members of God's church, the Kingdom of God is already ruling in them. This is what Jesus means when He speaks of the Kingdom of Heaven. Some scholars want to throw out the word kingdom when it is used this way, feeling that it is a misleading translation. Of course, many of them are Protestants, who look at it from the understanding of "the Kingdom of God is within you." Nonetheless, they believe that the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven in Matthew 13 should be rendered the realm, dominion, or reign of God. He is already our King, reigning over us right now. Another rendering is a word we should all be familiar with—the sovereignty of God. Have we come under the sovereignty of God? Yes, indeed. We did it voluntarily when we accepted Christ as our Savior. So in this sense, we are in the Kingdom of God, and its rules apply to us. This is what Jesus means in Matthew 13. He is not doing away with the idea that He will return to this earth and set up His government here after putting down all other government's rule, but He is saying, "Those of you whom I have called out are in the Kingdom of Heaven right now—in a spiritual sense—and you have to live by its rules and fight its enemies. So beware! This is what your life in My Kingdom now will be like."
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Parables of Matthew 13 (Part 1): The Mustard Seed
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Matthew 13:44 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a treasure hidden in a field. One has to work hard to find a hidden treasure, and in the same way, we have to work hard to find and understand God's truths. God wants to know whether we really hunger and thirst for Him. Will we work at it as if our lives depended upon it? In reality, it does!
Pat Higgins
Are We Opening the Door?
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Matthew 16:27 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
If anything is certain about the future, there is a judgment according to works for all who live and die. How can anyone who says he believes the Bible claim that works are not required of the Christian when God emphatically declares that they are required of us, even though they do not justify us before Him? The truth is plain. If a Christian does not work, there will be nothing for God to judge and thus no evidence the person is prepared for His Kingdom. God will not give him salvation because there will be nothing to verify that he belongs there. The lack of evidence proves that he does not belong there! Such a one is not a son of God. A faith that does not work is dead (James 2:17, 20, 26). God is the God of the living, and according to James 2:22, faith is perfected, brought to completion, by works. Sanctification is necessary as a witness to the Christian's character as he passes before the judgment seat of Christ. Do we not all desire to be in the Kingdom of God? Certainly, we must if we are at all impressed with the glory to which God has called us. However, have we considered deeply whether we would enjoy being there, should we be given that privilege? God's Kingdom will be a holy place inhabited by holy people. Is it not apparent that those in God's Kingdom will have spent a great deal of time being prepared, trained, and formed and shaped for living there? The concept of deathbed repentance and absolution is a lie palmed off by Satan. Likewise false is the belief in a purgatory following death, in which a person prepares for living in paradise. These are nowhere found in Scripture, nor is the idea that one needs only to be justified through Christ's blood. If these things were so, Romans 5:9-10 would not declare: Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. The false concepts above do not take into consideration that God's purpose includes more than just atoning for our sins through Christ's blood. God's purpose includes the work of Jesus Christ as our High Priest, perfecting our character by means of living in us through His Spirit (John 14:18-23). It is our High Priest, Jesus, who intercedes in our behalf (Romans 8:26-27). As Head of the church, He inspires and corrects us, and He gives us gifts to fulfill our responsibilities (Ephesians 4:7). He labors to create in us a clean heart, purified and in the character image of the Father (II Corinthians 3:17-18). We need to be sanctified as well as justified. Sanctification requires the works of submission to and cooperation with Almighty God to bring to completion His purpose for us. King David writes in Psalm 16:11, "You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures evermore"—a brief snapshot of what life will be like in the Kingdom of God. No one can be happy where he is not in his element. An unsanctified person would not find God's Kingdom congenial to his tastes and character. Being there would be a condemnation rather than a blessing.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Is the Christian Required To Do Works? (Part Four)
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Mark 1:14-15 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The word "gospel" means good news, or glad tidings. Jesus went about preaching the good news of the coming Kingdom of God! The gospel of Jesus Christ is simply the very same gospel He preached. Jesus' gospel is not primarily a message about Himself personally, or about "receiving Jesus." It is not primarily a message about the events in His life and of His becoming the Savior of the world—although it most certainly does include all that. Notice the four things necessary to constitute a kingdom: 1) territory, 2) a king or ruler, 3) subjects or citizens, 4) laws and government. In the coming Kingdom of God, the territory will be this earth; the king will be Jesus Christ; the subjects will be this earth's peoples; and the laws will be God's Ten Commandments and spiritual principles administered by the divine government of God.
Why Study the Bible in the Space Age?
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Mark 1:14 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The message God sent by Jesus Christ was the "gospel of the Kingdom of God." The Kingdom of God is the government of God that will rule all nations. But also it is the Family of God into which we may be born—the divine Family that will become a spirit-nation, ruling all nations on earth as a world-ruling government! Jesus was sent merely to announce that message—not force men to accept it, believe it, and act upon it. Never did Jesus plead with a single one to be converted. He just announced the good news of the Kingdom of God, and then left it to the Father to call, through that announcement and His Spirit, those whom He would select (John 6:44). Christ did not come then to convert the world! He did not start a "soul-saving" crusade. He came to announce the gospel—the good news—of His coming Kingdom on earth!
What Is the True Gospel?
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Mark 1:14-15 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Notice Jesus says, "Believe the gospel." What gospel? The one He is proclaiming. Jesus says we must believe the gospel—the good news of the coming Kingdom of God—to become a Christian! It was then and is today an advance news announcement. It is tremendous, wonderful news—the most important news ever announced to mankind! But, one may ask, do we not need to believe on Jesus? Of course. Other scriptures teach that. But at this particular time Jesus says we must believe Him—believe what He says—believe the gospel message of the Kingdom of God which He proclaims! The gospel of Jesus Christ is not man's gospel about the person of Christ. It is Christ's gospel—the gospel Jesus preached—the gospel God sent by Him, and therefore it is also called in Scripture "the gospel of God." The gospel of God is God's gospel—His message—His good news that He sent by Jesus.
What Is the True Gospel?
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Luke 13:23-28 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Many will seek to enter the Kingdom of God but be barred from it because of flagrant sin. Jesus will refuse to answer the knock of unruly sinners who have rejected salvation, though they weep and grind their teeth when they find out they cannot enter God's Kingdom. When the third resurrection arrives, all humanity will have had the opportunity to be saved; everyone's ultimate destiny will have been eternally set. It will be too late for anyone who, after coming to the knowledge of the truth, sins willfully and thereby rejects eternal life. Those who reject God and His way of life must then reap the consequences of that decision—the second death following the third resurrection to judgment.
Martin G. Collins
Basic Doctrines: The Third Resurrection
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Luke 13:28 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The promises God made to the fathers included entrance into the Kingdom of God! And so their inheritance will include 1) eternal life in 2) the Kingdom of God and 3) the earth on which that Kingdom will reign—the very same inheritance we may receive through Christ!
Will You Go to Heaven?
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Luke 16:16 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
"The law and the prophets"—referring to Old Testament Scriptures—were preached until John the Baptist began his special ministry. After John's mission was over, Jesus began proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom of God. Christ's gospel is the prophetic proclamation of the coming world government to rule all nations and bring peace and joy to today's confused, chaotic, war-weary earth! It is the vital, dynamic, powerful, living message of God's government, first over individuals in God's church who have voluntarily come under that government, then later over all nations in the future Kingdom of God! Of course, the message from God includes the knowledge about our Savior, High Priest, and coming King! Of course, it includes the true way of salvation, which the churches of this world do not understand! It also includes knowledge of the location of the territory to be ruled over by the King of the coming Kingdom of God—the fact it will be on this earth, not in heaven! But there can be no government without laws, and so the true gospel also must proclaim the law of God, which will bring peace and everything good to those living in the age to come, and success, happiness and joy to the individual who keeps God's law now. The true gospel has to do with the nations of today's world, world conditions today, and Christ's reign over all nations in the World Tomorrow! It is a "full," complete, dynamic, and powerful gospel which has been kept from the world for by the god of this world—Satan the devil! (Revelation 12:9.)
What Is the True Gospel?
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Luke 16:16-17 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
It is helpful to realize that at its establishment on earth the Kingdom of God will be ruling over unconverted people who have just passed through the most horrific period of tribulation in the history of mankind. These people will need guidance from absolutely trustworthy standards. No nation, not even the Kingdom of God, can govern human beings without laws. There must be standards of conduct for citizens to follow, or chaos and anarchy will result as each person does what seems right in his own eyes (Judges 21:25). But "God is not the author of confusion but of peace" (I Corinthians 14:33). His Kingdom will be peaceful and orderly because people will be led to submit themselves voluntarily to His rule of law—His commandments. Unfortunately, many believe that the commandments are done away, having been replaced by love. This can easily lead a person to believe the opposite of what is true regarding the commandments. People have a strong tendency to think of them in terms of restrictive bondage, whereas love is perceived as liberating. The apostle John says, however, that the commandments of God are love and not grievous (I John 5:3). What does Jesus teach? In Matthew 22:36, He was asked, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" His reply is instructive: Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:37-40) Notice that both of the two Great Commandments encompass love. The first four of the Ten Commandments show man how to love God, and the second group of six shows man how to love fellow man. The commandments remove love from being merely an emotion and reveal how to apply love practically. As one commentator stated, "Love is what you do." It was Jesus, as God of the Old Testament, who gave to ancient Israel God's laws in their codified form from Mount Sinai. When He became a man, what did He teach in reference to these very commandments? » "If you love Me, keep My commandments." (John 14:15) » "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him." (John 14:21) » "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. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me." (John 14:23-24) The apostle James calls the Ten Commandments "the royal law," meaning it came from a King and is worthy of His Kingdom (James 2:8-12). God has never done away with His Ten Commandments, and they never shall be done away. They will be lived by all those given eternal life forever. They will also be the basic law of those possessing mortal life when Jesus returns. From God's commandments, all laws governing every aspect of a moral life will be drawn and applied in their spirit. Their standards will be the rule of law against which people's lives will be guided and judged.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Is the Christian Required To Do Works? (Part Five)
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Luke 17:20-37 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The original question posed by the Pharisees was, "When is the Kingdom of God coming?" (verse 20). The long section from the end of verse 20 to verse 37 is Jesus' answer, first to the Pharisees (verses 20-21) and then to His disciples (verses 22-37). His reply to the Pharisees is rather curt: "You won't be able to discern the coming of the Kingdom because you haven't recognized that I am its chief representative, though I have been among you." In His longer explanation to His disciples, Jesus goes into quite a bit more detail about the timing and conditions of establishing His Kingdom. First, He says, do not be deceived when people tell you Christ has come (verses 22-23). We will know very well when He returns; it will be like a flash of lightning that everyone will see (verse 24). However, before this can happen, Jesus must be tortured and crucified as man's Redeemer (verse 25). From our vantage point, which the disciples did not have, we know that this condition has already been met at Golgotha or Calvary. Then He gives details about the conditions in the world when He returns. It will be as it was in the days of Noah and Lot (verses 26-30). He highlights two major signs of the end here: 1. He will come suddenly when people do not expect Him to return. Most people will be going about their normal activities, unaware of the times. 2. When He returns, society will be degenerate and wicked just as it was before the Flood came and before God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah (see Genesis 6:5-7; 18:20; 19:1-11). Luke 17:31-33 shows that, for His disciples, His coming will result in a test of faith. They will have to be willing to leave everything behind—their homes, their possessions, even their loved ones—in order to obey the call of God. Lot's wife turned back in longing for what she had left behind, and God's judgment fell swiftly upon her. We may have to be willing even to give up our lives for salvation, because in trying to save our physical lives, we would have to renounce our beliefs. Verses 34-36 illustrate three scenes of judgment. These show that Christ will judge us individually, and despite how close we may be to another—a spouse, a neighbor, a co-worker—our obedience and good works will not deliver anyone else (see Ezekiel 14:12-20). We will have to prove ourselves to the righteous Judge of all (Acts 17:31; Romans 14:10). Finally, the disciples ask Jesus where these things will take place (Luke 17:37). His reply is better translated in the Revised English Bible: "Where the carcass is, there will the vultures gather." This seems somewhat enigmatic, but if we take what He says literally, He implies that He will return at a place of great carnage. This would parallel the scenarios prophesied in Zechariah 14:1-5 and Revelation 19:11-21 (see especially verses 17-18, 21b). All through this section Jesus is describing real circumstances, real people, and real places. He speaks of a literal Kingdom to be established at His return "with power and great glory" (Matthew 24:30). Since the context of Luke 17:21 is Christ's second coming, and Jesus is speaking in great detail about the time, place, and conditions of His return, we must see His Kingdom as a literal government—just as real as any government of man. We cannot divorce "the Kingdom of God is among you" from this larger topic. Doing so distorts the true meaning of a literal, soon-coming Kingdom ruled by Jesus Christ that will grow to fill the whole earth after His return.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Is the Kingdom of God Within You?
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Luke 17:21 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
"Within" is translated from entos, used only twice in the New Testament. Its primary meaning is "inside," as it is rendered in Matthew 23:26: "Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also." However, when used in conjunction with a plural noun, entos means "among" or "in the midst of." In Luke 17:21, entos is used with "you," and from the context, we can see that Jesus was speaking to a crowd of Pharisees, who had come to question Him about the Kingdom of God (verse 20). "You," then, is plural. "The kingdom of God is among you" is best. Most modern translations have recognized this grammatical error and translate entos as "among" or "in the midst of." Some texts, like the New King James and the New International versions, persist in using "within," though they note in the margin that "among" is an alternative. Even without this technical knowledge of Greek, we could have easily understood that "within" is a poor and misleading translation. Christ was answering a question posed by the Pharisees, and He replied directly to them: "He answered them and said, . . . 'For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.'" But how could the Kingdom of God be within His most bitter enemies? How many times did He reveal them to be hyprocritical and misleading the people? Theologically, it is quite impossible to think that His Kingdom would be in the Pharisees. It is only after He had made this remark that He turned to His disciples (verse 22) and explained what He meant. The subject of the entire section (verses 20-37) is stated most explicitly in verse 30: "Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed." All along, He had been explaining His second coming! When He returns, He will set up His Kingdom on earth (Zechariah 14:9). If the Kingdom is still future, how could He say that "the kingdom of God is among you"? To answer this, we must return to the four common traits of a kingdom: a king, who rules by law over a number of subjects who live within a certain territory. The primary trait is that a kingdom must be ruled by a king; otherwise, the country has some other form of government. A king of any nation is the chief representative of that nation. And the King of the Kingdom of God is none other than the living Jesus Christ! Pilate specifically asked Jesus, "'Are You a king then?' Jesus answered, 'You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth'" (John 18:37). So as the King of God's Kingdom, He could truly tell the Pharisees that the Kingdom of God was among them.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Is the Kingdom of God Within You?
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Luke 17:21 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
This sadly mistranslated verse has led many sincere people astray. Without even knowing the Greek language, we can see that Jesus could not mean that the Kingdom was some ethereal quality in the hearts of the Pharisees! To the contrary, He castigated them often for their unbelief! Entos, translated "within," should be translated "in the midst of" or "among." Jesus, the coming King of the Kingdom of God, was in their midst or among them! The thrust of His teaching in this section is that unbelievers will not recognize the working of God's Kingdom among them, just as the Pharisees had not recognized their Savior among them.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
The True Gospel
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John 3:5-6 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The Kingdom of God is something that can be entered into. But only those who are "born again" can enter into it. We who are born of the flesh are flesh—just mortal flesh and blood. We were born that way. But it is possible for us to be born again—this time not as a mortal, flesh-and-blood baby, but born of the very Spirit of God. Then we shall be spirit—wholly composed of spirit as God is (John 4:24)! God is not a single Personage. The Hebrew word for God, elohim, denotes more than one person. It shows God is a single Family, or "Kingdom," but composed of more than one person. We have the mineral kingdom, the plant kingdom, and the animal kingdom. The Bible reveals an angel kingdom, created by God and composed of spirit. And then, high above all is the very creating kingdom—the God Kingdom. In other words, the "Kingdom of God"! God the Father and Christ the Son presently compose the Kingdom or Family of God. The astounding truth of the Bible is that God is reproducing Himself! God created mortal man in God's own image so that we may become impregnated—begotten—by the Spirit of God. Then, by a resurrection (I Corinthians 15:50), we may be born of God—"born again"—as immortal, spirit-composed persons in the Kingdom or Family of God!
What Is the True Gospel?
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John 10:30 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Jesus said that He and His "Father" are "one" (John 10:30; 17:11), yet it is plain that the Father is greater in authority (John 14:28; I Corinthians 11:3). The Father and Son are one in purpose and attitude, but the Father is greater in authority since Christ—the "Word," or Logos—made all things by His authority. The Father has always been in supreme command in the Family or Kingdom of God—long before the Word became a human being.
What It Means to Be Born Again
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John 12:49-50 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Where did Christ's message originate? Jesus spoke only what His Father in heaven told Him to speak! Thus, our Messiah, Jesus Christ, was a Messenger from God the Father, bringing the message of God's plan for all mankind, the message of the New Covenant (Malachi 3:1). The gospel of God, the gospel of Jesus, and the gospel of the Kingdom are the same gospel! It originated in God, was proclaimed by His Son, and tells of the coming rule of God and our part in it!
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
The True Gospel
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John 14:2-3 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Many Protestants try to use these verses to "prove" that the saints go to heaven. Here, too, they make assumptions, such as understanding "house" only as a dwelling, rather than as a family or dynasty. Thus, they narrowly define place as "an ornate abode, a mansion or palace" instead of a "position," "office," "role," or "spot." They gloss over the fact that Jesus says directly in this context that He would "come again." Where? To earth! He then says He will receive the saints to Himself. If He remains on earth to rule the nations, then the saints will rule with Him on the earth! Many scriptures show very plainly that God's Kingdom will be on the earth (Psalm 2:6-8; Jeremiah 23:5; Daniel 2:35, 44-45; 7:27; Zechariah 9:9-10; Revelation 11:15).
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Caught Up in the Rapture
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John 18:36 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Before His resurrection, Jesus made it clear that His Kingdom was not at that time, nor ever would be, "of this world." Therefore, the churches of this world cannot constitute God's Kingdom, as so many seem to think. This "world" or system (Greek cosmos) encompasses all that is characteristic of the age of man. And certainly, as history reveals, the churches are a part of this age! They have engaged in political struggles, ruled empires, caused the shedding of much blood, especially in the Middle Ages. Therefore, if the churches of Christendom constitute God's Kingdom, then that kingdom is a part of this world, and Jesus did not know what He was talking about! Jesus stated plainly: "But now is My Kingdom not from hence" [did not begin at that time]—though His spiritual church (Matthew 16:18) did begin on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). So Jesus Christ Himself emphatically denied, in advance, the false concept that later formed the basis for church-political dominance in the Middle Ages.
The Sensational Return of Jesus Christ!
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Acts 1:3 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Even after Jesus died, He could not wait to get back and tell them more and more about the Kingdom of God, which then He was sending them out to preach. It almost seems as if He was not quite finished telling them everything by the time He died, so He appeared to them during forty days time to give them further instruction. If we could say such of Him, He was "obsessed" with—driven by—the idea of preaching the Kingdom of God. He instilled that "obsession" in His apostles, as we see in spades in the apostle Paul.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Itching Ears
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Acts 1:6-8 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
The return of Jesus Christ was on their minds too. And like us, they would have liked to have seen the Kingdom established right away. They did not understand that they needed to be prepared for the Kingdom of God. They were not ready yet—they did not even have the Holy Spirit yet! Nor had they entirely put together all the elements of God's truth. It is interesting that Jesus tells them, "It is not for you to know the times or seasons," but it has been given to us in far greater measure. We know many things that they did not know. We know that we are very close to the end. We do not know the day, but we know that we are in the time and season, and if there was ever a people on the face of the earth in all the history of Christianity who needed to get prepared for something, it is we. We are not yet ready, and in God's mercy, He has given us time to prepare. It was a good while before the disciples came to grips with the fact that the return of Jesus Christ would not occur in their lifetimes, a fact evident from what is written within the New Testament. The first thing they had to come to grips with was that they had a job to do before that time would come.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Don't Be a Prudent Agnostic
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Acts 1:6-8 (Go to this verse :: Verse pop-up)
Notice that the apostles were not given to know the time of the establishment of the Kingdom, but were to be filled with the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Jesus' disciples did not at that time receive political power to rule the nations. The Kingdom of God was not then to be set up. But they were to receive spiritual power that would enable them to be "witnesses" to the world of Christ's resurrection and to "teach all nations" the ways of God (Matthew 28:18-20). | | |
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