Kingdom of God and Great Commission

It is the Kingdom of God. Its God’s mission, God’s plan, to redeem this world as far as the curse is found, and fix what is broken.

All throughout the Gospels we are told that Jesus came preaching the gospel of the Kingdom.

We usually think of the gospel as only personal salvation. But Jesus’ vision was bigger than that.

Jesus wanted to save the world. He was the promised Messiah the would establish God’s Kingdom on the earth.

The good news Jesus preached, was that God had sent Jesus to die for the sins of the world, and rise again three days later a victorious King.

That he would forgive sin, and bring his people out of the domain of darkness, and into his Kingdom of light.

But people get confused about what the Kingdom of God is. Is it the church? Is it heaven? Is it eternity? What is it?

Let me give you a simple definition. The Kingdom of God is the universal reign of of God in every sphere of life.

It is Christ’s Kingdom of salvation where God alone is worshiped and justice, blessing, life, and peace reigns.

The place where all the former things, all the things broken in this world by our sin pass away because Jesus, the Savior-King, is making all things new.

The Kingdom of God is the blessing God originally intended for mankind before humanity’s Fall into sin.

Its a restoration and expansion of Eden to the farthest ends of the earth as the gospel goes forth to all nations.

In the Kingdom, every family, church, government, culture in general, every sphere of life as we know it worships and obeys God.

Imagine that world? What kind of blessing, life, and joy would the nations have in that Kingdom?

That is what Jesus is building right now on this earth. Psalm 110:1, the most quoted verse in the NT: The LORD says to my Lord: Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.

And the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 15 that after he’s done it, after every enemy is subjected under his feet, he will return and destroy the last enemy, which is death by resurrecting everyone who has believed in him, to live with God in the fullness of his Kingdom forever and ever, where once for all he will wipe away every tear from our eye, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away (Rev. 21:4).

That’s God’s mission. To save the world. For Christ and his salvation to have dominion from sea to sea to the ends of the earth (Psalm 72:8).

And how is Christ building his Kingdom? Through his church. That’s why he gave us the Great Commission.

We are called to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them, and teaching them to observe everything Jesus has commanded.

This is a Kingdom commission. Jesus said someone cannot enter the Kingdom of God unless they are first born again, that’s baptizing, and how does a King reign? How does a King rule?

Through his Law which is why we must teach the nations to obey all that Jesus commands.

Originally after yellow highlight in God’s Battle Plan Sermon

So the gifts we’ve been given are Kingdom gifts for a Kingdom purpose.

Maybe it helps to think of it like this.

The Kingdom of God is the universal reign of God in every sphere of life.

Its where God is worshiped and obeyed fully as the One True God, and this Kingdom holds authority over the family, church, government, culture. Education. Art. Technology. Its where every aspect of life submits to God.

Its where every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord.

And because it is God’s Kingdom, it is a Kingdom of perfect justice, life, blessing, and peace.

The church on the other hand is not the Kingdom of God. think of the church like the army of the Kingdom.

The Church is the one advancing the borders of the Kingdom by discipling the nations.

When someone comes to Christ, they submit all their life to him. They leave the kingdom of the world and they live in Christ’s Kingdom in accordance with his Law.

So how God grows and pours out the blessings of his Kingdom is by saving someone through the good news of the gospel here, and here, and here and here, until eventually, the dominion of Jesus’ Kingdom extends to the ends of the earth.

And the blessings of God’s Kingdom reach as far as the curse is found, and Jesus saves the world.

So if the church is the army, you can think of the gifts as our weapons given by Christ to advance his Kingdom on the earth as it is in heaven.