At the end of 2014 the national and global news was more disturbing than it was the year before: wars, floods, earthquakes, famine, pestilence, rapes, murders, genocides, unspeakable immorality and depravity. There was no shortage of worldwide tragedies and transgressions of Biblical proportions. Network journalists and self-proclaimed messiahs continued to speculate if the world was on a collision course with the Apocalypse.
The good news is that every day of gloom and doom is one day closer to the final showdown between good and evil when Jesus returns and rids the world of all of this chaos and godlessness. But…after that, what then? What follows World War 3, the annihilation of nations and billions of people and the bloody Battle of Armageddon? Is there a good ending to this story?
Is There Hope?
In the Book of Revelation Jesus revealed to the author, John, a glimpse of the days in which we now live “…to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass…” (Revelation 1:1). John recorded his visions of God’s throne, the seven seals, the four horses and their riders, the two witnesses killed in the streets of Jerusalem and raised up after three and a half days, the beast with seven heads and ten horns, the fall of Babylon, and the seven plagues, vials, trumpets, and angels. Then, in the middle of all the calamity, John dropped a clue about what happens next.
But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets (Revelation 10:7) (emphasis added).
“The mystery of God should be finished”…what is the mystery of God? In short, the mystery of God is His plan to reveal and establish His kingdom here on Earth. It applies to all Christians—both Jews and Gentiles. If the mystery of God refers to His kingdom, the next step is to understand the Kingdom of God. What is it? Who is in it? When does it begin?
What is the Kingdom of God?
From Genesis to Malachi, the Old Testament records God’s promise of a savior to Israel. He spoke through the prophets, judges and kings. Then, there was silence for 400 years. Instead of deliverance, the Israelites were taken into bondage by the Persians, Greeks, and Romans. Solomon’s Temple along with the Holy of Holies was destroyed. Where were their God and promised Messiah?
After four centuries of silence, another prophet, John the Baptist, came preaching in the wilderness of Judea and heralding Israel’s salvation. John the Baptist proclaimed, “Repent ye for the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” (Matthew 3:2). Could it be Jehovah was in their midst again, and at long last His covenant with His people was about to come to pass?
Generally, a kingdom requires a king, territory, subjects and laws. “Kingdom” as used in the New Testament is the Greek word, “basileia,” (Strong’s Concordance 932) meaning sovereignty, royal power and dominion.
There are 1,518 verses in the Old Testament that speak of this coming kingdom.[i] The phrase “Kingdom of Heaven” is found over thirty times in the New Testament but only used by Matthew. “Kingdom of God” appears over sixty times throughout the New Testament and is mostly spoken by Jesus.[ii]
The kingdom of heaven and the Kingdom of God are often interchangeable. Some Bible scholars argue that the kingdom of heaven refers to a physical and political kingdom on earth while the Kingdom of God is the spiritual, future reign of Jesus.[iii] In the end, both refer to the same thing.
When Jesus began His own public ministry, He echoed John the Baptist.
Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into
Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and
saying, the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is
at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. (Mark 1:14-15)
(In this format the period should be before the reference since it’s obvious that the reference is referring to the previous words. In the other format it is necessary to keep within the period because it needs to be connected with previous words and not confused with being connected to the following words.)
Jesus defined his mission for coming to earth by saying, “I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also; for therefore am I sent,” (Luke 4:43). Jesus took this message to anyone who would listen.
And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their
Synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom
and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of
disease among the people. (Matthew 4:23-25)
Notice from these verses that the person of Jesus was not the gospel. Also, Jesus did not say his mission was to preach the gospel of salvation or the gospel of miracles. No, the gospel of Jesus was the Kingdom of God. He preached and commanded, “…The kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” (Mark 1:15)
Jesus compared the Kingdom of God to:
- A man who sowed good seed in his field (Mark 4:26-29)
- A small mustard seed that grows into the greatest of all plants (Mark 4:30-32)
- A nobleman who went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom (Luke 19:12)
- A treasure hidden in a field worth more than all earthly possessions (Matthew 13:44)
- A pearl of great price (Matthew 13:45-46)
- Ten virgins preparing to meet their bridegroom (Matthew 25:1-13)
- A man with a good and faithful servant (Matthew 25:14-30)
When Jesus called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority, he sent them out to preach the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick (Luke 9:1-2). Later, He appointed seventy more disciples and sent them into every city to announce the Kingdom of God had come (Luke 10:1-9). Jesus instructed his disciples to pray, “Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven,” (Matthew 6:9-10); and to “seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,” (Matthew 6:33).
As word of Jesus’ teachings and miracles spread, those in authority in Jerusalem, both Jewish and Roman, became uneasy that their reign was in jeopardy. Jesus’ message of the Kingdom of God ultimately led to His arrest and trial before the Jewish chief priests, elders and council. They sought His death and delivered Him to the governor, Pontius Pilate, who asked if He was the King of the Jews. Jesus answered,
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