The Kingdom of God
In a previous article, I discussed the reality of the Judgment Seat of Christ, and how we as believers will stand before that judgment seat and receive either reward, for good things done, or punishment for evil things done. This is a continuation of that discussion.It is critically important that we understand the audience that the author of any passage of scripture is addressing. Too often, we see things in scripture that we do not like, and we find ways to be able to say that the passage is addressing non-believers, and not believers.
In 2 Corinthians 5:10 where Paul talks about the judgment seat, he says For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. In the context of the verse, the chapter, and the entire book, Paul is addressing believers. There is no way that we can somehow take this passage to say that it is addressed to unbelievers.
But the question still remains - when will this judgment take place? To answer that, let's consider some things from a broader perspective.
The Old Testament is full of references to the Lord ruling the earth. Consider the following:
Psalm 67:4 (NIV) - May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth.
Psalm 110:1 - 2 (NIV) - The LORD says to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." The LORD will extend your mighty scepter from Zion; you will rule in the midst of your enemies.
Micah 4:1 - 7 (NIV) - In the last days the mountain of the Lord's temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and peoples will stream to it. 2 Many nations will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths." The law will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. 3 He will judge between many peoples and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. 4 Every man will sit under his own vine and under his own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid, for the LORD Almighty has spoken. 5 All the nations may walk in the name of their gods; we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever. 6 "In that day," declares the LORD, "I will gather the lame; I will assemble the exiles and those I have brought to grief. 7 I will make the lame a remnant, those driven away a strong nation. The LORD will rule over them in Mount Zion from that day and forever.
Zechariah 9:9 - 10 (NIV) - Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will take away the chariots from Ephraim and the war-horses from Jerusalem, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.
Joel 3:16 - 18 (NIV) - The LORD will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem; the earth and the sky will tremble. But the LORD will be a refuge for his people, a stronghold for the people of Israel. 'Then you will know that I, the LORD your God, dwell in Zion, my holy hill. Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her. 'In that day the mountains will drip new wine, and the hills will flow with milk; all the ravines of Judah will run with water. A fountain will flow out of the Lord's house and will water the valley of acacias.
These references, plus several more, all talk of a time when the Lord will rule on the earth from Mt. Zion. Mt. Zion is the mountain upon which the city of Jerusalem was built, so the prophecies are about the Lord ruling from Jerusalem itself. This is the backdrop against which Jesus enters the scene in Israel. He speaks continually about the "kingdom of the heavenlies" throughout the book of Matthew. With the background of the Jewish people, they immediately believed him to be teaching about the fulfillment of these prophecies, and the establishment of his kingdom on the earth.
We, however, don't interpret his preaching that way. When we see the phrase "kingdom of God" or "kingdom of heaven", we immediately connect that in our minds to our eternity in heaven. But is that a valid connection to make? Consider the following:
Revelation 20:4 - 6 (NIV) - I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
If the Old Testament prophetically speaks of a coming Kingdom, where the Lord will rule over the earth, and the New Testament speaks of a millennial reign of Christ, doesn't it make sense to connect those two ideas into one and the same? After all, we know that God will fulfill his prophecies, and we have not yet seen the Old Testament prophecies fulfilled. In addition, this millennial reign that John speaks about is still ahead of us.
Some people believe that this millennial reign is first of all a figurative 1000 years, and that secondly it occurs right now. However, the author of Hebrews, after quoting a passage from Psalms about everything being put under the Lord's feet, says in Hebrews 2:8b (NIV) - "Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him." This seems to indicate that the time of the rule by Christ is not yet here, which leads us to the conclusion that it is still to come.
Now, I still have not answered the question posed above about when the Judgment Seat of Christ takes place. And unfortunately, this article is already getting too long, so the question will (hopefully!) be answered in my next posting.
I'd greatly appreciate your thoughts about the connection I made above - is it valid? Am I missing something somewhere? What do you think?
Posted On Oct 3, 2005 at 6:03 AM
On Oct 3, 2005 Brian's wife wrote: Which translation refers to the kingdom of the "heavenlies? Which translations have you been using? I see mostly NIV listed, which uses Kingdom of Heaven in Matthew...
Is the Psalm quoted in Hebrews the same as the one you listed above (Psalm 110:1-2)?
Brian Replied: To my knowledge, none of the actual translations uses the word "heavenlies". This comes from the Greek word (ouranos), which has, among its meanings both "the sky" and "heaven". I use the word "heavenlies" to distinguish the "sky"(above the earth) from "heaven"(the abode of God), as both are possible translations. I believe that connecting these passages back to the Old Testament prophecies where the Lord is ruling from "on high", or from Mt. Zion, conveys the notion of a rule that is not in heaven, as in the abode of God, but rather a rule that is above the earth.
The Psalm that is quoted in Hebrews is Psalm 8:4 - 6 (NIV) - What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet:
On Oct 6, 2005 James Newman wrote: Excellent observation in Hebrews 2:8. This world is not the kingdom of our Lord! He is not ruling this world with a rod of iron like He will when He sits on His throne in millennial glory. I have had some dealings with preterism, which claims that we are currently living in the kingdom, and that Jesus came back in AD 70 when Jerusalem was destroyed. Sadly, it is spreading like a cancer through the churches in these last days (Where is the promise of His coming?} and I believe will be the cause of much lasciviousness in believers. Remove the expectation of the Lord's return and you have removed the expectation of judgment on that day. Good stuff, brother!
On Oct 7, 2005 Bartholomew wrote: You are absolutely right about the millennium being the kingdom God promised to Israel. Isaiah 11, for example, describes an era of national restoration for Israel, when the "root from the branch of Jesse" (i.e. Messiah) will reign. Revelation 20 tells us this will be the time Messiah will reign: "and they lived and reigned WITH CHRIST a thousand years."
Also the parable in Luke 19 is very instructive. The passage declares that Jesus told this parable because the people thought the "kingdom of God would immediately appear." The parable tells of a master (Christ) who goes into a far country (heaven) to receive for himself a kingdom (the kingdom of God) and to return (2nd coming). He distributed money ("pounds") to his servants, and then AFTER he returned WITH THE KINGDOM he judged his servants for their service. This is important because it identifies the "kingdom of God" as the kingdom Christ will establish when he returns, and Rev 19 and 20 show that Christ will establish the millennial kingdom when he returns. This agrees with Daniel 2:44, which shows us that the kingdom of God is the kingdom which will replace the current gentile kingdoms at Messiah's appearing. Finally the parable in Luke 19 also perfectly agrees with the idea that believers (Christ's servants) will be judged according to their service BEFORE the kingdom, and those that are commended will rule with him.
Keep up the good work, brother!
On Oct 31, 2005 Trent wrote: Hey Brian,
It's been too long. I see that you have been doing some excellent pieces on the "patio". Your present topic is one well worth considering.
In conversations with a good friend of mine he made the statement, "People are a lot more willing to "build the kingdom", then to "build the church". Most of the folks around who speak of "building the kingdom", have no idea about preterism. They may not be able to tell the difference between the amill position and the Postmill postion. But they are "working for the Kingdom". For that we can give a sarcastic thank you to Augustine. But don't get me started.
The Gospel's record the following statement's of the Incarnate Creator of the Universe:
Matthew 16:18 (NKJV)
And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
Then just before he is led away to the Sanhedrin, the council that is representative of a nation rejecting their Messiah He says
John 18:36(NKJV)
Jesus answered, 'My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.'
We are witness for the Savior Acts 1:8(NKJV) and not presently workers in a Kingdom.
Keep writing Brian, you're an encouregement.
Trent
Brian Replied: Hi Trent
Thanks for your comments! I'm always eager to hear from other people outside my immediate circle of the church, because that's one of the best ways to insure that I don't drift into areas that are not true.
Unfortunately, I'm not getting things posted as quickly as I had hoped I might. I'm finding it's taking me a lot of time to write these articles, and think through the best way to explain things. I hope that doesn't discourage people from checking back!
Brian.
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Brian's BlogMost articles on this blog describe what is known as "Kingdom Theology" - they deal with the doctrine of the Millennial Kingdom.If you are just finding this Blog, I would suggest that you start with the first article, rather than picking up in the middle. Enjoy your reading! ABOUT ME Current PostsA scriptural scavenger huntWhat do we want to be remembered for? How do we measure our churches? The Parable of the Sower What is Worship 
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