The Kingdom Mission

Key Texts:

Matthew 6:10, Matthew 24:14, Acts 1:3, Romans 14:17

Big Idea:

The Kingdom of God advances through the Church because the Church is the Body of Christ—and the mission of the Kingdom belongs to the Body, not isolated believers. God does not advance His Kingdom through spiritual freelancers. He advances it through a formed, ordered, sent people.

The Kingdom is not a concept. It’s a mission. It is God’s active reign entering human space—through His Church to represent God to the world and destroy the works of the devil.

INTRO

STORY: As a young 19 year old college student, I served as a worship leader at great youth ministry in Dallas Texas. The ministry had rapidly grown to nearly 200 students and our worship team was planning on recording an album. But not long before that took place, our Youth Pastor left to take another ministry assignment across town in Farmers Branch. This did a couple things for me. One, it promoted me - I became the worship director of this great youth group. Second, it offended me and I really did not like the new youth pastor. He and I disagreed on a lot of things, and I eventually - it a not so respectful way, stepped aside from the leadership team.

I had not really thought this through well - I lived in intern housing, and had no idea where I was going to live.

I also planned on continuing to lead worship and lead that department - In short - I wanted influence without the authority figure.

I remember one day the Youth Pastor came to me and set the record straight.

Aaron, you can’t build for me if you are not with me!

The Kingdom is not a concept. The Kingdom of God is both Spiritual and Natural, It is timeless and yet it manifests within time and space. The Kingdom of God comes with Spiritual rulership and a Spiritual body - but it is manifested in a natural, visible and tangible way. The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 1 says it the best.

Ephesians 1:18–21 NASB95

18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

This is dominion language here - Above all rule, and authority, power and dominion. Now look at verses 22 and 23

Ephesians 1:22–23 NASB95

22 And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Jesus - raised by the Father, seated at His right hand - far above every rule and authority - and head over the Church, which is His Body. Now, later, Paul will clarify for us that Gods design is that the Church would execute Kingdom mission, and exercise kingdom dominion here on the earth.

Ephesians 3:10 NASB95

10 so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places.

Now, I want you to see one more thing - look one verse later

Ephesians 3:11 NASB95

11 This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord,

This reveals to us that the church, and it’s expression of the Kingdom, was Gods eternal and ultimate plan, it’s not a parenthesis is Gods plan, it’s not Gods plan B, we are not replacing Israel. This is what God designed from eternity past and future. Here me out. The church is how the Kingdom Mission Moves Forward.

The Church is God’s active reign within human space for the purpose of representing God to the word and overcoming the works of the devil.

JESUS WAS THE KINGDOM ON MISSION

To look at Jesus is to look at the Kingdom mission in action. If His VISION was the Church then His MISSION was

Luke 19:10 NASB95

10 “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Everything Jesus did was toward this mission:

healing the sick

raising the dead

casting out demons

proclaiming repentance and forgiveness

But the works of dead raising, casting out demons, healing the sick - this is not kingdom vision, this is kingdom mission. And far too many believers are making a vision out of a mission. We chase healing as if it is the kingdom, we’re chasing Holy Sprit baptism and manifestations as if they are the Kingdom.

I once was asked to lead worship at a “dead raising” conference. We spent three days talking about how to raise the dead, and lead not one person to Jesus.

The mission of the kingdom serves the vision of the kingdom and the vision is “Save the Lost”.

THE KINGDOM DID NOT REMAIN IN ONE BODY

Now, this means that the Kingdom of God was on the move. When we look at the map of Jesus journey - we find that Jesus did not wander - Jesus moved strategically.

He began His ministry in Galilee for the first two years.

Why Galilee Matters

Politically marginal

Religiously despised

Culturally mixed (Jew + Gentile)

Far from Jerusalem’s power structures

“The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light…” (Matt 4:16)

What Happens Here

Jesus calls disciples

Preaches: “The Kingdom of God is at hand”

Performs most miracles

Trains the Twelve

Establishes Kingdom ethics (Sermon on the Mount)

Phase Two of Jesus ministry includes a lot of ethnic tension in the gentile regions

Samaria

Decapolis

Phoenicia

Transjordan

What Happens Here

Woman at the well (John 4)

Demoniac in Decapolis

Feeding multitudes

Confession at Caesarea Philippi

And this is strategic because Jesus is preparing the disciples with a global vision.

Jesus ends His three year ministry in Jerusalem with Kingdom Confrontation.

Luke 9:51 NASB95

51 When the days were approaching for His ascension, He was determined to go to Jerusalem;

What Happens Here

Cleansing the Temple

Woes against religious leaders

Olivet Discourse

Last Supper

Crucifixion

Resurrection

But the cross was not the end of the Kingdom mission, it was the launch pad. Following the resurrection we find the Acts 2 Holy Spirit outpouring, Church is birthed and 37 years later the church is scattered though out Egypt, Asia Minor, Syria, Mesopotamia, Rome, Italy Greece and North Africa. This was Jesus plan.

John 20:21 NASB95

21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

Jesus 33 years of ministry was the Kingdom of God dwelling in and through one body, one personality, in one 33 year period in one location. But now through the Church, the Body of Christ, the Kingdom moves through every continent, every city, in every time period. But being the body of Christs means performing the function of the Kingdom, with the spirit of the Kingdom, and authority of the Kingdom. If Jesus was the Kingdom in the flesh - then we as the body of Christ should be the same! Hear Me Church - Living Faith Church is the moving manifestation of the Kingdom of God in the Greater Hermiston Region.

7 STEPS TO LIVING KINGDOM MISSION

1. Submit Daily to the Kingship of Jesus

John 5:19 NASB95

19 Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.

Kingdom mission begins with absolute submission.

Jesus did nothing independently

Authority flowed from obedience

Power followed surrender

You cannot advance the Kingdom while resisting the King. It requires daily alignment.

2. Plant Yourself in a Local Church

Ephesians 4:11–12 NASB95

11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;

The Church is not a support system — it is God’s missional structure.

Gifts are activated in community

Authority is stewarded in the Church

Mission is sustained through the Body

There is no biblical Kingdom mission apart from the Church. If you say you love Jesus but don’t want to go to church you are a walking dichotomy.

3. Starve the Flesh and Feed the Spirit

Mark 9:29 NKJV

29 So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.”

Kingdom resistance cannot be overcome with natural strength. What you continually feed will eventually rule you.

The flesh must be disciplined

The spirit must be nourished

Appetite determines authority

6 Spiritual Benefits of Fasting

A. Deepens Connection with God

Fasting removes physical and mental clutter, creating space for focused communion with God.

Joel 2:12 — “Return to Me with all your heart, and with fasting…”

Matthew 6:17–18 — Fasting is done unto the Father, not for appearance.

Psalm 63:1 — “My soul thirsts for You… in a dry and weary land.”

Kingdom Insight: Fasting doesn’t make God closer — it removes what dulls our awareness of Him.

B. Increases Spiritual Self-Awareness

Fasting exposes where appetite has replaced dependence.

Deuteronomy 8:3 — “Man does not live by bread alone…”

Matthew 4:4 — Jesus resists temptation by anchoring hunger to God’s Word.

Psalm 42:1–2 — Hunger becomes a diagnostic of the soul.

Kingdom Insight: What you crave when the flesh is quiet reveals what truly rules you.

C. Fosters Humility and Repentance

Fasting is a physical posture that reflects an inward surrender.

Ezra 8:21 — “I proclaimed a fast… that we might humble ourselves before our God.”

Isaiah 58:6–7 — True fasting aligns the heart with God’s purposes.

James 4:10 — “Humble yourselves before the Lord…”

Kingdom Insight: Fasting doesn’t earn favor — it positions the heart to receive correction.

D. Strengthens Faith and Spiritual Authority

Fasting trains trust and sharpens authority in spiritual conflict.

Matthew 6:16–18 — Jesus assumes fasting as a normal Kingdom practice.

Mark 9:29 — “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.”

Acts 13:2–3 — The church fasts before mission and commissioning.

Kingdom Insight: Some breakthroughs are not accessed through effort — but through discipline.

E. Clears the Mind and Sharpens Discernment

Fasting quiets distractions and sharpens spiritual perception.

Daniel 10:2–3, 12 — Fasting precedes clarity and revelation.

Romans 12:1–2 — The renewed mind flows from bodily surrender.

James 1:5 — Wisdom is given to those who seek rightly.

Kingdom Insight: A surrendered body often precedes a renewed mind.

F. Promotes Emotional and Soul Healing

Fasting exposes internal patterns and invites God to heal beneath the surface.

Psalm 35:13 — “I humbled my soul with fasting.”

Lamentations 3:40 — “Let us examine and probe our ways…”

Matthew 11:28–29 — Rest comes through yielded souls, not escape.

Kingdom Insight:

Fasting doesn’t numb emotion — it brings it into God’s presence for healing.

Fasting is not about punishing the body — it is about putting the body back in its rightful place under the rule of the Spirit.

4. Be Formed Before You Are Sent

Matthew 4:1 NASB95

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

The desert is not delay — it is preparation.

Deuteronomy 8:2 NASB95

2 “You shall remember all the way which the Lord your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.

Identity is tested before influence

Matthew 4:3 NASB95

3 And the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

Obedience is proven before authority

Hebrews 5:8 NASB95

8 Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.

Temptation exposes what truly rules the heart

James 1:14 NASB95

14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.

If you avoid formation, you will distort mission.

5. Conform to Kingdom Ethics

Matthew 6:33 NASB95

33 “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Kingdom mission is carried by how we live, not just what we say.

Kingdom ethics include:

forgiveness over offense

mercy over judgment

humility over self-promotion

generosity over accumulation

The credibility of the Kingdom is tied to the character of its messengers.

6. See Your Whole Life as Mission Field

John 20:21 NASB95

21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

Kingdom mission is not event-based — it is incarnational.

Homes are mission fields

Workplaces are mission fields

Relationships are mission ground

Jesus did not wait for platforms. He walked ordinary roads with Kingdom authority.

7. Operate in the Power of the Holy Spirit

Acts 1:8 NASB95

8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Kingdom power is not a switch you control.

It flows through obedience

It disrupts schedules

It demands availability

Key emphasis:

You don’t schedule Kingdom work; you respond to it.