The Kingdom of God

Introduction

Alexander the Great is known as one of the greatest kings AND greatest conquerors of all time - not necessarily a good thing. Alexander, over 13 years, forged an empire that spanned Southern Europe to Pakistan. He was a young man, having started the campaign out of Europe when he was 22 years old.

Alexander, on the way home from his conquests, contracted a fever and died at the age of 32. It doesn’t really make sense. A strong, smart, healthy, young man dies of a fever. But such is the nature of empires and kingdoms.

It is said that on Alexanders’ deathbed, he was asked who he wanted to inherit the Kingdom. He had no legitimate children at the time, so the question had to be asked. He said, “toi kratistoi” - to the strongest. And his empire crumbled.

Alexander’s Kingdom, as large and flashy as it was, went the way of every earthy kingdom. Three words describe those kingdoms: frail, finite, and faulty.

They are frail in that the ruler of a kingdom, even a strong ruler, is a mere human with human limitations.

They are finite in that every kingdom loses their strong rulers and eventually crumbles. Our history books show that this has happened throughout history at 100% certainty.

They are faulty in that every man is deeply and sinfully flawed. Alexander was a great man in his conquests, but he was not a good man, and his decisions ruined the lives of many people.

Humanity longs for a better ruler and king. We have found one in Jesus. The Bible talks about the Kingdom of God at length. Where human kingdoms are frail, Jesus’ kingdom is strong. Where human kingdoms are finite, Jesus’ Kingdom is forever. Where human kingdoms are faulty, Jesus’ Kingdom is sinless and holy.

The Kingdom may not be what you think it is. It doesn’t look like any earthly kingdom, but it is Christ’s Kingdom nonetheless.

Today, we start a journey of discovering the better Kingdom.

Read Luke 16:14-17

Luke 16:14–17 ESV

14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. 15 And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God. 16 “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. 17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void.

Explanation

TEACHING: What is the Kingdom of God?

The relationship between a king and his nation.

In ancient days, a king oversaw public good, led a nations armies in battle, and administered justice. He was the embodiment of the kingdoms identity. The relationship between a king and his people was a great possibility for humanity to flourish or a terrifying opportunity for human suffering. // Scott Redd

A king, and the way a king ruled, had a great effect on your life.

If your king loved to build and grow a nation economicaly, you would flourish. If your king wanted war, your sons could be killed.

If your king was weak, the nation could be in danger. And if your king was strong, your nation could hold.

The kingdom, in some way, reflects the qualities of the king.

I think about King Solomon. King Solomon was wise, and he asked the Lord for wisdom. By his wisdom, he was able to lead the people of Isreal.

2. The whole of Scripture testifies to the coming Kingdom of God.

In the fall of Adam and Eve, the Kingdom of God found rebels. Humanity, the crowning jewel of God’s creation, staged a mutiny of sorts against God, his laws, and his decrees. The rest of Scripture testifies to the full restoration of God and His Kingdom.

The Torah, or law, revives hope in the Kingdom.

The Prophets and Kings foreshadow the Kingdom.

The Wisdom show us life in the Kingdom.

The Gospels show Jesus as the embodiment of the Kingdom.

The Acts and Epistles give us a picture of our community in the Kingdom.

Revelation shows the culmination of the Kingdom - the final achievement of the Kingdom.

As every souls is either reconciled to God or eternally punished for insubordination, so God’s Kingdom will see its completion.

The final blow to the rebels of the Kingdom of God will be in the final battle where Jesus will line up against the forces of evil, and at the sound of his voice, every enemy will be subdued.

3. Jesus, the King of the Kingdom of God.

As Jesus rules and reigns in His Kingdom, all of his creation will thrive under his decree.

As servants in his Kingdom, we begin to look more and more like Him. The Kingdom reflects the King. So the more the King of the universe lives in you, the more you will begin to look like Him.

APPLICATION

The world is not your home, and God is making a bigger and better home for you.

How can you sing to God when you lose your job or you get cancer?

How do you worship when your spouse faces a dilapidating illness or you don’t get into the college you wanted?

How do you settle your heart when your child makes a poor decision?

This world is not your home. You live for a Kingdom that is yet to come.

This simple fact is why what happens in this baptistry will ALWAYS be infinitely more important than an election every four years.

Long after the United States of America is out of existence, these four girls baptized this morning will be in glory.

I am not telling you that temporal things don’t matter. What I am telling you is that they matter much less than God’s Kingdom - the kingdom of souls that are being saved as the domain of darkness is being pushed back person by person, life by life, eternal destiny by eternal destiny.

1 Corinthians 2:6–7 “6 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. 7 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.”

What is valued in earthly kingdoms is not valued in Christ’s Kingdom. Look at verse 14.

David Murray, “Jesus tore off the massive price tags people put on money, sex, and lifestyle, and replace them with his own valuation. Zero. Unless God is valued most, everything else is worth nothing.”

Invitation

The citizenship into the Kingdom is by faith. To believe the Christ came, lived, and died for you is entrance into the Kingdom.

The great benefits of citizenship in the Kingdom is this: as your life begins to flourish under the Kingship of Jesus, you desire to look more and more like Him.