John 18:28-36: The Kingdom of Christ

Scripture Reading

Isaiah 9:2, 6-7 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone… For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

Intro

Christ is King.

Jesus is Lord.

It is one of the great confessions of our faith.

He is the King of kings and Lord of lords and the One to whom alone belongs all power, glory, and dominion.

But what is His Kingdom?

What is the Kingdom of God?

The Kingdom is a broad theological concept in Scripture that is so widespread it is almost hard to take in and distill down to a single definition.

And yet… it is central to the Christian Message.

Jesus came preaching the first words of His public ministry The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel (Mark 1:15).

In Matthew we are told that Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom (Matthew 4:23, 9:35, 24:14).

The book of Acts ends with Paul under house arrest in Rome proclaiming the Kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance (Acts 28:30-31).

The Gospel Message is the Gospel of the Kingdom…

But What is it?…

What would you say?

John 18:28-36 gives us some of the most direct teaching concerning the Kingdom of God in all of Scripture and yet its also a passage that has been misinterpreted and misapplied to actually confuse the true nature and hope of this Kingdom…

The Good News Jesus, Paul, the Apostles, and all the Early Church came preaching.

So let’s start in John 18:28-32, where after being arrested and questioned by Annas, the Jews lead Jesus to Pilate, the Roman Governor, to seek His execution.

John 18:28–32 Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the governor’s headquarters. It was early morning. They themselves did not enter the governor’s headquarters, so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover. So Pilate went outside to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” They answered him, “If this man were not doing evil, we would not have delivered him over to you.” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.” This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die.

The Jews relationship with Pilate was tenuous at best.

Being the Roman Governor over the Jews in Jerusalem was not exactly a coveted position.

The Jews were notoriously difficult for Rome to deal with given their peculiarities regarding their Law and the fact that the Romans were an occupying, pagan force.

They didn’t exactly get along, and Pilate himself had had a few violent run-ins with the Jews.

And so you see the power dynamics at work in their conversation.

Pilate comes out and says What accusation do you bring against this man?

Why are you here?

Remember, its early morning, probably just after dawn.

Pilate’s barely brushed his teeth and he’s already having to deal with the Jews.

For their part the Jews just expect Pilate to go along… to rubber stamp what they want.

If this man were not doing evil would we have delivered Him to you?

And so Pilate says, If its something to deal with your own law deal with it yourselves.

Rome, for the most part, allowed the Jews to govern themselves according to their own Law.

They could put people in prison and even administer public beatings.

But what they couldn’t do was execute criminals under capital punishment.

That’s why they said, It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.

The law they were talking about was Roman Law.

Under Old Testament Law. they had accused Jesus of blasphemy which, for them, was deserving of death (John 19:7, Matthew 26:63-66, 26:63-66).

In John 19:7 The Jews answer Pilate and say, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.”

This is what the Jews have been gunning for since all the way back in John 5 This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, [which He wasn’t] but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God(John 5:18).

Jesus was not guilty of any blasphemy because Jesus really was the Eternal Son of God incarnate in human flesh (John 1:1, 14).

He came to die for all our sins.

As a Man He was able to die as a substitute for our sins, and as God He was able to pay for them out of His infinite perfection and worth.

As John 3:16 says For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, [the sense is His Son, His only Son, the Son of His love (Genesis 22:2)] that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Lifted Up

That’s why John says This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die.

The specific word John has in mind is John 12:32–33 where Jesus said, And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.

The same exact wording we have here.

And the key here is where Jesus says And I, when I am lifted up.

There’s an emphasis that it will be Christ Himself who will be lifted up.

Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29).

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (John 10:11).

And the lifted up refers specifically to Christ’s death on the cross.

If the Jews had been the ones to execute Jesus the Law demanded death by stoning which Jesus had already escaped twice in the Gospel of John (John 8:59, 10:31).

But Jesus was not appointed to die by Jewish stoning.

Under the Sovereign Providence and Wisdom of God, Christ was appointed to die on a tree… lifted up on a Roman cross (cf. Matthew 20:18-19).

God worked all things to bring Christ to this point.

Jesus was delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God (Acts 2:23).

Indeed… Jesus even said that the Son of Man must be lifted up… must be executed on the cross (John 3:14-15, 12:34).

Why?

Because according to the Law… a man hanged on a tree is cursed by God. (Deuteronomy 21:23).

And Jesus died on a tree to show us that Christ bore the wrath of God on our behalf.

Jesus said Shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me? (John 18:11).

And Galatians 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree.”

Jesus is the Curse-Bearing Redeemer who endured the curse of the Law on our behalf. (Acts 5:30, 13:29).

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree… By his wounds you have been healed (1 Peter 2:24-25).

The Son of Man must be lifted up to bear the curse on our behalf.

On the cross, Jesus became a curse for us and bore the full weight and punishment our sins deserved so that now, by grace through faith in Him, there is no condemnation in Christ and all our sins are forgiven (Romans 8:1).

The cross is literally good news because the cross itself proclaims that the curse and debt of our sin has been paid!

On the cross Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse for us!

And on the cross Jesus was lifted up… literally and physically suspended between heaven and earth as a bridge between the two… why?

Because spiritually by the cross, Jesus makes intercession for us.

He is the bridge… the Mediator… the Way, the Truth, and the Life between a Holy and Righteous God and sinful Man (1 Timothy 2:5, John 14:6).

This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die… the Son of Man must be lifted up to save us from our sins.

King of the Jews?

From there, Pilate goes back into His headquarters and calls Jesus to Himself.

Verse 33…

John 18:33–35 So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?”

Elsewhere Luke tells us that the Jews tried to convince Pilate that Jesus needed to die by saying, “We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, a king” (Luke 23:2).

For them, they wanted Jesus dead on charges of blasphemy but they knew that would never fly with Rome so they made Jesus out to be a rival to Caesar.

Someone making Himself a King who was trying to raise up and army to overthrow the Roman Empire.

You see, Rome couldn’t have that.

They didn’t care who you worshiped as long as you didn’t threaten the Pax Romana… the Roman Peace…the stability of the Empire.

And so any hint of rebellion or insurrection had to be dealt with swiftly and decisively. …

Especially when it came from the already difficult to control Jews who had it as part of their religion that a new King David would one day come and rule over the world… including Rome!

So Pilate asks Jesus, “Are you the King of the Jews?”

In all four gospels this is the first question Pilate asks and in all four the “you” is emphatic.

Really you?… You are some King that’s going to conquer and rule over the whole world?

And so Jesus asks “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?”

Jesus is not here being elusive.

He was not trying to get out of the cross somehow. The Son of Man must be lifted up.

He wasn’t trying to find a way to escape the cross through Pilate. The road led to the cross.

Own Accord

If Pilate is asking the question of His own accord then he’d be asking Jesus, “Are you a political King raising yourself up against Caesar and conspiring to overthrow Rome?”

In which case Jesus’ answer would be, “No.”

Others

But if Pilate is asking Jesus because others had said this about Him, as in, “Are you the Promised Messiah King of the Jews promised long ago?”

Jesus’ answer would be, “Yes.”

So Pilate almost spits the question in verse 35… Am I a Jew?

Do I look like someone hoping for a Messiah?

“Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?”

What’s really going on here?

Its obvious you are no threat to Rome, and there’s some reason they want you dead.

I’m asking this because they said it about you.

And so Jesus answers Pilate.

He made the good confession before Pontius Pilate and said, “Yes, I am a King… and Yes… I have a Kingdom… but not in the way you think (Titus 1:2, 1 Timothy 6:13).

Verse 36…

John 18:36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.”

Now this verse gets ripped out of context just about as much as any other verse in the Bible and adds to the confusion as to what is the Kingdom?

Usually people are fine when you limit Jesus’ Kingdom to a Kingdom of our hearts, a Kingdom of our church, or Kingdom of our families.

But they start getting really uncomfortable when you say Jesus isn’t just a King of our hearts, our church, or families… Jesus is King Everywhere…

Christ is Lord.

All authority in Heaven and on Earth has been given to Him… and all power and authority and dominion belongs to Him (Matthew 28:18, Ephesians 1:21).

And at His feet every knee must bow.

And where they really start to get uncomfortable is when you start applying the gospel and the implications of the Gospel to the political sphere.

The immediate pushback you are going to get is Now, now, now… Jesus said My Kingdom is not of this world.

That’s right… but that doesn’t mean His Kingdom has nothing to do with this world or is not active in this world or does not have an impact on this world.

Over the World

First, of all Christ’s Kingdom is over the world.

He said All authority in Heaven and on earth has been given to me (Matthew 28:18).

Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16).

The Civil Magistrate is His servant.

That’s unpopular today.

When you bring Christ into the civil sphere that’s when you’re going to get the most pushback of My Kingdom is not of this world.

But Jesus cares about your politics because politics have to deal with Righteousness and Justice.

God tells kings to Kiss the Son (Psalm 2:12).

And Jesus even tells Pilate just 15 verses after Jesus says My Kingdom is not of this world… You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above (Romans 13:4, John 19:11).

Kings and rulers are not independent of God… they are accountable to Him.

They are His Servant and God calls them to acknowledge Christ is Lord and rule after Him.

So Jesus’ Kingdom is not of this world but it is over this world.

In the World

It is also in the world as we are going to see growing like as a mustard seed and working like leaven.

In Daniel it is a great mountain that fills… the whole earth! (Daniel 2:33-35)).

What is Christ’s Kingdom?

So what is Christ’s Kingdom?

What is the Kingdom of God?

How are we to understand it?

What does it mean to live in it and what are we to expect for it?

As I said… there is no tight definition in Scripture that defines for us the totality of the Kingdom of God.

It is a rich and broad theological concept spanning from Genesis to Revelation.

But this verse can help get us close.

So here’s what I want to do… I want to look at this verse in context to learn Jesus’ understanding of what the Kingdom is and from there hopefully get a clear simple definition so that we can better understand what we mean when we say, “The Kingdom of God.”

Jesus says, My Kingdom is not of this world. and this tells us at least three things about the Spiritual Nature of Christ’s Kingdom.

Number 1…

1. Christ’s Kingdom is a Heavenly Kingdom

It is not a Kingdom of this world or from this world… that’s what He says at the end of verse 36.

What this means is that Christ’s Kingdom does not find its source, or power, authority, or origin in this world.

It is a Kingdom that comes from Heaven and a Kingdom that comes from God.

In John 8:23 using some the same language Jesus said You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.

Well where was Jesus from?… From God.

So is the Kingdom.

So its God’s own Kingdom breaking in and invading this world.

Its a Kingdom of Light and Life and Peace breaking in and overcoming the Kingdom of Darkness, Death, and Curse.

Its Eden restored… Creation as it should be… I will be their God and they will be my people (Exodus 6:7, Leviticus 26:12, Jeremiah 32:38).

Shalom

I think its so difficult to communicate because we are so used to this Curse-torn world.

The Biblical concept is that of Shalom… Peace… Wholeness… Everything in perfect Harmony and Balance.

No brokenness, no pain, no disaster around the corner.

A Kingdom where everything is as it should be.

Paul says all creation groans waiting for this balance (Romans 8:22).

Already, Not Yet

In this way… the Kingdom is “already, not yet.”

We are already new creations experiencing the blessings of God and His Kingdom… some of this shalom… (2 Corinthians 5:17).

But there is a fullness coming when Christ returns where all things are being made new but they will be made new once and for all and every trace and stain of sin will be washed away (Revelation 21:5, 3-4).

Higher/Over

But what this also means is that Christ’s Kingdom is a Kingdom that is over and above all other kingdoms.

Its a Higher Kingdom with greater authority of all the Kingdoms of this World.

Heaven is literally over the earth.

As the Bible says, Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool (Isaiah 66:1).

So lest we think that it is a Heavenly Kingdom that has nothing to do with us down here… there could be nothing further from the truth.

Like we said… Christ’s Kingdom is Over this world and has Jurisdiction over every Tribe, Tongue and Nation and every aspect of life.

There is a real authority that all men everywhere… both High and Low… in all the great things in life down even to the smallest details… are accountable to.

Christ is Lord and at His feet every knee must bow.

Number 2…

2. Christ’s Kingdom is a Spiritual Kingdom

Not an earthly kingdom as Pilates sees it. Pilate hears kingdom and He sees…

Remember who Jesus is talking to… He’s talking to Pilate…

When Pilate hears Kingdom what does He see.

A rival Kingdom to challenge Rome.

A Kingdom of natural territory and earthly conquest.

A Kingdom that raises and army and tries to take over the world.

But Christ’s Kingdom is a spiritual Kingdom… not a physical Kingdom.

In Luke 17, Jesus said…

Luke 17:20–21 The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.

Its a Kingdom that is an internal, spiritual reality.

Its not the king of Kingdom that Pilate has in mind.

Its an inside-out Kingdom that flows from regenerate hearts.

That’s why Jesus said unless you are born again you cannot even see the Kingdom of God (John 3:3).

Its not coming in ways that can be observed… troops, armies, conquest…

John 3:8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.

You can’t see it!

So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.

Every Tribe

So its not a Kingdom like the kingdoms of this world that is tied to earth and dirt and national borders.

Its a Kingdom that transcends all borders.

Its of every tribe, tongue and nation… (Revelation 7:9).

Because its a Kingdom, not of earth and dirt like the kingdoms of this world, but a Kingdom of, as Paul says, righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17).

So Christ’s Kingdom is not of this world…

Its a Heavenly Kingdom…

Its a Spiritual Kingdom…

And finally… Number 3…

3. Christ’s Kingdom is a Redemptive Kingdom

The spiritual nature of the Kingdom means that its an inside out Kingdom through preaching and regenerate hearts and not carnal weapons or natural, political means (John 18:36, 2 Corinthians 10:3-6).

Christ’s Kingdom is salvific in nature and therefore grows spiritually.

As we said… its a Kingdom of Light, Life, and Peace. and the only way to enter into it is to enter into it spiritually.

You must be born again (John 3:7).

Unless you are born again you cannot see the Kingdom of God (John 3:3).

Where Pilate here’s Kingdom and hears conquest and world domination… armies, war, and bloodshed… Christ’s Kingdom is not of this world and does not grow like the kingdoms of this world.

Paul said For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds (2 Corinthians 10:3-6).

And those strongholds are not earthly fortresses but arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God.

This is the immediate context of Jesus saying My Kingdom is not of this world.

The thing Jesus says immediately after that is If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world (John 18:36).

In other words, Christ Kingdom is not one of armies and bloodshed like the Kingdoms of this world.

It does not come from or grow in Power like the Kingdoms of this world.

Christ’s Kingdom does not grow through a Proclamation of War and shedding the blood of His enemies.

Christ’s Kingdom grows through the Good News of Gospel Peace and the King of the Kingdom shedding His own blood for His enemies.

It is a different Kingdom altogether.

3 Ps

Its an inside-out redemptive Kingdom that grows through the three Ps…

Prayer, Preaching, Power of the Holy Spirit.

It does not come through human or natural means but by the power, will, and supernatural working of God in regenerate hearts.

Christ as King rides forth conquering and to conquer with two weapons of His Kingdom (Revelation 6:2, 19:11-21).

A sharp sword coming from His mouth which is the Word of God and the Good News of the Gospel (Revelation 19:15, Ephesians 6:17, Hebrews 4:12).

And the Iron Rod of His providence by which He reigns and rules over all things and holds all things together shattering kings and nations that do not bow down to Him and dashing them like a potters vessel (Colossians 1:17, Psalm 2:9).

Christ doesn’t raise up an army called the church to overthrow human governments.

He rules them by ruling over History… by raising raising up kings and lowering them… lifting up nations and bringing them down (Daniel 2:21, Psalm 75:7).

But at the end of the day Christ’s Kingdom being not of this world primarily means it is not a Kingdom of War and Conquest but one of Salvation and Gospel Peace.

If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting.

It is a Salvific, inside-out, Redemptive Kingdom.

Preaching

This is why the Kingdom is so closely associated with Preaching.

We saw earlier… Jesus came preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom (Matthew 4:23, 9:35, 24:14).

Paul proclaimed the good news of the Kingdom which he equated in Acts 20 with the gospel of the grace of God… repentance towards God and faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 28:30-31; 20:21-27).

And in Acts 17 the enemies of Christ said the early had turned the world upside down preaching another king, Jesus (Acts 17:6).

The Kingdom is directly tied to the good news of the Gospel and that Christ is Lord and Savior of all.

Definition

Now with all that in place and those three things in mind I think we can come to a simple, clear definition.

Like I said, there is tight, single sentence definition in Scripture that encompasses everything theologically about the Kingdom of God.

But with how central it is, we obviously what it is.

So here’s my humble attempt I’ve been working on the last couple of years.

The Kingdom of God is Christ’s Sovereign and Redemptive reign over all things to save His elect and make all things new in fulfillment of all of God’s promises.

In fulfillment of all of God’s promises highlights the fulfillment of all the Promises of Messianic Kingdom from the Old Testament.

Things like all enemies will be made a footstool under His feet (Psalm 110:1).

Of the increase of His government and of peace there will be no end (Isaiah 9:7).

He shall have dominion from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth… all kings shall fall down before Him, and all nations serve Him… (Psalm 72:8, 11, 17).

The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea… (Isaiah 11:9).

And that knowledge of the Lord is the New Covenant Knowledge of God where God promises they will all know Me (Hebrews 8:11).

And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day the Lord will be one and his name one (Zechariah 14:9).

And Psalm 22 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. [Why?] For kingship belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations (Psalm 22:27-28).

Remember this is before the eternal state because there there is no remembering and turning to the Lord.

This is a promise in the present church age.

And that’s just a sample of the good things to come that we can expect through the preaching of the gospel in the Gospel, New Covenant Church age… not just the eternal state.

Jonathan Edwards… one of the greatest theological of the American church said, “The future promised advancement of the kingdom of Christ is an event unspeakably happy and glorious. The Scriptures speak of that time, as a time wherein God and His Son Jesus Christ will be most eminently glorified on earth.”

(Mathison, Postmillennialism, P&R 1999, 45).

A picture would be the Lord’s Prayer.

Our Father in Heaven hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

The Greek construction makes all these go together so God’s Kingdom coming means His name being hallowed and His will being done on earth as it is in heaven.

And would Jesus teach us to pray a prayer he had not intention to answer?

Parables

But don’t just take Jonathan Edwards’ word for it.

Jesus had His own expectations for the Kingdom in the parables of the Mustard Seed and the Leaven.

And these two parables are important because they highlight to prominent themes of the Kingdom found throughout all of Scripture.

Both the Growth of the Kingdom and its Victory in the World.

Mustard Seed

Matthew 13:31–32 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

So the Kingdom starts small but it grows.

Its the smallest of seeds, but when its grown its larger than all the other garden plants and becomes a tree.

If we are going to keep with the theme of the parable then all the other garden plants would be all the other kingdoms of the world, and Christ’s Kingdom outgrows and overtakes them all.

Though it starts with small beginnings it becomes greater and more glorious than all the Kingdoms of the world where the birds of the air… all the nations of the earth… come to make their home in it’s branches… every tribe, tongue, and nation will roost in the Kingdom of God.

Its the same thing as Daniel 2:34 where In the days of those kings… [so the Roman Empire]… there was a small stone that was not cut by human hands and it struck the other kingdoms and broke them into pieces and the wind blew them away with no trace to be found…

While that small stone grew into a great mountain that filled the whole earth. (Daniel 2:34-35, 44-45).

Growth and Victory.

Jesus’ Kingdom is not of this world but that does not mean it is some spiritual Neverland that has nothing to do with this world.

It grows into a great mountain that fills the whole earth.

Leaven

Matthew 13:33 He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.”

Where the Mustard seed highlighted the growth and dominance of the Kingdom the leaven highlights the pervasive and transforming power of the Kingdom.

The Kingdom won’t just grow larger and more glorious than all other Kingdoms…

It will pervade all things like leaven and transform the world all the way down.

Everywhere the Gospel goes it will change everything.

If we are truly born again its impossible not to live out the gospel from a truly regenerate heart.

Even the smallest details of life will be consecrated to the Lord.

Zechariah 14:20–21 And on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses, “Holy to the Lord.” And the pots in the house of the Lord shall be as the bowls before the altar. And every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holy to the Lord of hosts.

Even the smallest, most inconsequential details of life like bells on horses and common things like pots in the house will be holy to the Lord and devoted to His glory.

The transforming power of the gospel comes out of our fingertips and out from our mouths from a regenerate transformed heart.

The Kingdom like leaven works its way in and transforms everything… till it was all leavened.

Again Growth and Victory.

As the Gospel grows it will take over and transform the world.

Not like the kingdoms of this world from outside-in with Military might and warfare but from inside-out from the regenerating and sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the Gospel.

Conclusion

The Kingdom of God is Christ’s Sovereign and Redemptive reign over all things to save His elect and make all things new in fulfillment of all of God’s promises.

And the Mission of the Kingdom is proclaiming that Good News.

That Christ is Lord and Savior who alone can save us from the Fall and make all things new.

Now does all that seem impossible?

Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1).

Faith believes what God’s Word say more than what our eyes can see.

And God tells us in Daniel 7… In Christ’s Ascension in going up to the Ancient of Days… (cf. Philippians 2:8-11).

And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed…

And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High;…

Meaning Christ shares the spoils of His Kingdom and His Victory over Satan, Sin, and Death and the present powers of this world with the saints and we now we are partakers of His Kingdom and all the promises of God [that] are yes and amen in Him (2 Corinthians 1:20).

With this great promise…

his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him (Daniel 7:13-14, 27).

Let’s Pray