Sermon Tone Analysis

What Is The Kingdom of God?

1 Corinthians 6:9

John 3:1-

Pastor just taught on Heaven a few weeks ago

Pastor just taught on Heaven a few weeks ago

But what happens after The Rapture?

Is Heaven just an endless praise and worship session?

What about earth?

Is it destroyed and we just stay up in this unseen dimension?

What are we telling people about why we live the way we live, or should be living?

Do you know what you’re hoping for?

This came out of something that was on my heart toward the end of last year.

I started taking a journey by reading through The Prophets and wanting to see what G-d has to say about the World or Age to come.

That is what I feel He wants to speak to all of us about tonight.

Lord willing and time permitting, we’ll cover as much of this subject as possible.

When I was a child, I heard a quote made by the great Sherlock Holmes to his assistant Watson, “It’s elementary my dear Watson”, so let’s get into some elementary things, that is some basic or foundational things.

The definition of Kingdom is:

a realm or region in which something is dominant

b: an area or sphere in which one holds a preeminent position

Merriam-Webster, I. (2003).

Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary.

(Eleventh ed.).

Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, Inc.

Sovereign:

one possessing or held to possess sovereignty

one possessing or held to possess sovereignty

b: one that exercises supreme authority within a limited sphere

c: an acknowledged leader

Sovereignty:

supreme excellence or an example of it

2 a: supreme power especially over a body politic

b: freedom from external control: autonomy

c: controlling influence

So when we read or hear about Jesus, our (Creator who created Himself a human life to live on our level) being Sovereign, we are saying He Is The Supreme Excellence, Supreme Power, The Controlling Influence, The One Who Is free from external control.

He possesses and exercises that Supreme Authority

Merriam-Webster, I. (2003).

Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary.

(Eleventh ed.).

Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, Inc.

He Is, or Is supposed to be our Acknowledged Leader.

The Kingdom of God then is:

Sound about right?

Reign or sovereignty of God as contrasted with the kingdom of the worldly powers.

(Jewish Encyclopedia)

It is the place where He has Supreme say.

This is presently supposed to be The Church that baptizes in Jesus’ Name and is filled with His Spirit with the same demonstrated evidence that Peter and Apostles had, that Cornelius and his family had, as well as the disciples of John The Baptist had when they were rebaptized in Jesus’ Name and filled with The Holy Spirit.

Which was/is speaking in tongues or other languages as The Spirit of God gives us the ability to speak.

Sound about right?

I’m breaking this down as simply as possible because we want you to be able to share it as simply as possible.

Let’s keep moving.

Jesus and His generation, to a big degree, had a decent understanding of what the Kingdom of G-d would be like based on what G-d Himself revealed throughout what we now call The OT writings.

This is why Jesus could come from being tempted by lucifer/satan himself and make a statement like:

So let’s discover, rediscover, or refresh for others, where the coming Kingdom is spoken of and what it is like.

The Prophet Daniel wrote his book about 550yrs before Christ

Israel and Judah in exile

Certain Jews chosen to serve in Nebuchadnezzar’s government

Daniel, Shadrach, Meshech, Abednego, and Nebuchadnezzar’s dream

Scripture and interpretation

Daniel 2:

Daniel 2:39-

It is here at the tail end that we read about G-d setting up a Kingdom that will never be destroyed and shall stand forever.

Decades later in , while under the rule of Nebuchadnezzar’s Grandson Belshazzar, G-d gives Daniel another vision clarifying a bit more about His Kingdom.

In this one He says among other things:

Our Creator entrusts His Kingdom to The Saints that make it into that period of time.

This is a New Age with a new way of living for the WHOLE world, not just those of us called out of it.

Moving on, and yet back a bit.

Isaiah wrote about 680-700 years before Christ

He delivers G-d’s calls to The Kingdom of Judah to turn from their moral rebellion (sin) and to get back into keeping their Covenant with Him so that they can truly prosper and that they won’t have to suffer the fate of rebels.

In the midst of one of these deliveries, G-d tells Isaiah about a period coming that no one on earth had ever seen aside from Adam and Eve, which will be overseen or ruled by The Messiah/Christ:

Isaiah 11:1-10

This ruling King will be morally upright in ALL His ways, The Divine Spirit of our Creator living in Him will be His guide.

He will always seek to do the will of G-d and not be biased by what He physically sees or hears.

This is exactly the life that Jesus lived, this is why He stayed so prayerful, so that His Human nature would stay in submission to His Divine Spirit.

This is why our relationship with Jesus through our time spent with Him in prayer (not just a religious duty), and reading what He Is saying in the Holy Scriptures is so important.

We want our corrupted and rebellious human nature to stay in submission to His Perfect and Righteous Divine Nature within us

During this time of His oversight of the world, animals will be at peace with each other as prior to the flood of Noach’s day.

Wild animals will not hurt people as they do today.

Can you imagine a life like that?

Adults?

Children?

Let me jump forward a bit to the Gospels and then we’ll return to The Prophets.

In The Sermon on The Mount, Jesus says something that I don’t think we give much thought to.

He says in

Jesus speaks on The Kingdom of G-d as if The People of Israel were already familiar with it.

But then He says “They shall inherit THE EARTH”!

Why not Heaven?

So let’s go back a bit

Shlomo, King David’s son said this:

Deuteronomy

So there is coming a time, the final judgment, when those who have lived righteously, that is, living in a initiated and flourishing relationship with Jesus as His child, will inherit The World.

One more Scripture before we get to The New Testament

Anybody heard of The New Heaven and The New EARTH?

The Apostle John wasn’t the first one to be told about it when Jesus gave Him The Book of Revelation

Again, 700yrs before Christ, almost 800yrs before Revelation we read:

Isaiah 65:

Parts of this cover the thousand year reign where people can and still will die, hence the mention of sinners (rebels).

During this time, those who enter the millennial reign who survived Armageddon but were not part of The Church, will continue to lives as mortals and will still have to face the final judgment.

But before you think you can live an ungodly life and possibly make it past The Great Tribulation, let me warn you:

Ezekiel, writing 560-590yrs before Messiah, under the inspiration of The Holy Spirit wrote this:

Ezekiel 33:12