How Believers Often Misunderstand Christ's Kingdom Greg L Bahnsen

Watch the snow. That will remind me that we're out of Dorothy. But we're not in Kansas anymore, so. Joe. Not in Southern California, that's for sure. When I left it was about 75 degrees and blue skies and so forth. Actually, when I looked out last night from my hotel room, I. I didn't think we'd see the sunshine here today. But I guess you all adhere to that. When things would blow over, not a big deal. I thought I'd be here for a week or two for sure. I'm glad you could come this morning and I hope that you'll be able to be back this evening. We've decided to. Although there'll be some folks here tonight that aren't with us this morning to do two different presentations. This morning I'd like to introduce you to the concept of God's kingdom. Not that you haven't heard of that, don't know something about it already, but I'd like to do a little more systematic theological presentation of what the Bible says about the kingdom of God and its nature. And then tonight I'd like to talk about the future of God's kingdom. Now, why are we talking about something that sounds so abstract and theological? Why are we going to be looking at the nature of the kingdom and the future of the kingdom? I don't subscribe to that approach to theology that says that it's perfectly alright to have an ivory tower theology that, you know, theologians get together. I'm with about 600 theologians or Bible teachers this weekend over at the Hilton, everyone doing their paper, their specializations and that sort of thing. A lot of people think, well, theologians talk to theologians, you know, and pastors talk to pastors and that's, you know, fine, but where does the rubber hit the road? And, you know, how do we get practical and that sort of thing. There really isn't much in the way of theology that is more practical, it seems to me, than a proper understanding of the kingdom of God. When all was said and done, Jesus came into this world to re establish God's rule over this world. Now, I'm speaking in Sunday school terms here. I mean, very simple, I'm not trying to be precise as a theologian, I'll do that in a minute. But just often think about it. This world's really messed up. Where do you want to begin? I mean, we could have Al talk to you about his ministry. I can talk to you about apologetics and the academic community, the university community. You look at every department in the university today and there's a crisis in just about every field. You see the family life of our lives, of people around you, individual crises and so forth, economic concerns, political concerns. We now, I mean, our nation has become so messed up in terms of the way we live our lives. We can't even have a Supreme Court nominee, you know, go through what should be a simple confirmation process without the whole nation getting traumatized, you know, by what's going on. And we've just, you know, we've lost our bearings. This world is in bad shape. That's my introductory thought. This world's in bad shape. Now, Jesus came into this world. He came to this world to set things right. Came into this world. Why are we in bad shape? Well, we have this saying. Those of us who are accustomed. I have four children. Those of us who are accustomed to being up late on Christmas Eve trying to put toys together and bicycles and so forth, we had the saying that goes, when all else fails, read the instructions. You know, in this world, you know, is in real deep trouble. And we need to be reading the instructions, as it were, need to be getting back to what the author of this world, the Creator of this world, intended all along. But you see, in the process, we can't get back on our own because in the nature of sin itself, we are cut off from our Creator. And there isn't anything that we can do that will please him, that will make up for all of the things we've done wrong corporately and individually. And we don't have the wisdom to set ourselves in the path of life and righteousness anyway. And so we need a Savior. Christ came into this world then, to put it very simply, to set things right. He came into this world to re establish the rule of God in this world. And so the kingdom of God is a highly, highly practical subject, something we should know something about and think clearly about. And what I've taught you thus far this morning, again, it's very simple. Most Christians, Bible believing Christians would say as much. But you see, here's the problem. Now, that's why we have to get technical. When people go beyond this initial understanding that Christ came into this world to, as it were, re establish the rule of God for people who are rebels against him. We come up with different theological constructs for what the kingdom of God means and what we can expect in terms of the future of the Kingdom of God. And then we live our lives individually and especially in terms of our corporate witnesses, the church. We live our lives in terms of those theological ideas. Ideas have consequences. Let's stop and think about this for a minute. If someone were to tell you that the kingdom of God is a matter of correcting all the political abuses that we see in the world round about us, and that particularly the theme of liberation is what the kingdom of God is all about. And that therefore everywhere in this world and in our own nation where we find oppression or economic want or we find people who are not being given their full due and rights as individuals, that we need to become liberators for such people. And anybody who knows the conditions of earthly existence and the psychology of oppressors knows that the only way you can liberate people is by taking up arms and by making it very clear that you're not going to, you know, what did the guy say in the movie? You know, I'm just mad as hell and I'm not, not going to take it anymore. Well, that's the attitude of the Kingdom of God. We're going to come in there and we're going to set things straight. We're going to do this in a way that pleases God. That's. Now, if someone told you that I'm using an extreme example because I know you wouldn't be here this morning if you were inclined in that direction. You wouldn't want to hear a theologian like me. That too shows you how practical it, you know, theological, you know, concepts tell you who you want to listen to as well. But anyway, I'm using this extreme example to point out that if that was your view of the kingdom of God, you'd live your life much differently than people who don't share that vision. Right. You know. Now let me give you another one. What if someone told you the kingdom of God has to do with a right relationship with God and living in the spirit and really kind of rising above the hubbub of this world. You know, the attitude that many people in Southern California have to take when they're out on the freeways, you know, at rush hour. You know, the only way you can survive, you know, and have your sanity is just pretend you're not there. You know, just kind of, I'm in this car, I'm moving. But you know, it's almost an out of body experience. You know, I got rise above the freeway, rise above all the Southern California hubbub and that sort of thing and just kind of, I don't know, almost in a Eastern mystical, just, you know, tune into the universe, you know, and get away from things. Now if that is your concept of godliness and what the kingdom of God is all about kind of this ethereal get away from this world, have peace of mind, kind of tune out, float downstream. You know, everything's going to be okay. Then of course you're not going to take up arms and try to liberate people, but it simply ain't going to do anything. You're not going to be involved at all. And so from both ends of the spectrum you can see that your view of the kingdom of God will affect the way you live your life. Your view of the kingdom of God will tell you something of the agenda that you should have as a Christian. And it's my conviction and I, and I hope that I hold it humbly and I hope I present it humbly as well, but my sincere conviction that the Christian church has for a long time now had very. Have messed up ideas about the kingdom of God to a certain degree. Correct. But then, you know, going off on a tangent here or leaving out the whole picture, Satan loves to do that. You know, Satan loves to fool people and deceive people and mislead them, not by just presenting outright blatant lies. There are some people who fall for that, but not many. What you usually have to do if you're going to successfully deceive somebody is give them just enough of the truth that you establish credibility. And then what you do is you go off on a tangent and Satan knows that. You know how the Apostle Paul tells us, we know his devices. And as Christians I feel confident I can tell you something about Satan devices. I know what he does in my life and the lives of people round about me. And what he's been doing with the Christian church for some time, I'm afraid, is by. Is letting people have, as it were, a sliver of the truth about the kingdom of God. And then they try to make that the plank, you know, as though that's the whole, that's the whole story or a little view about the kingdom of God that they take off in a certain direction, a tangent that leaves out of the picture counterbalancing considerations. So what do you do when you go to a church, have a pastor who tells you that the kingdom of God is such and such and such and such. And for that reason you shouldn't be involved in this world or it won't do you any good. You know, God doesn't intend for this world to be changed or God's not interested in the affairs of earthly existence, are the kingdom is not really here yet. I don't want to use a Lot of theological school labels with you this morning, because quite honestly, I'm not here to promote a particular school of theology. You could easily put me into categories, you know, and I don't deny that. But the important thing for all of us as Christians is what does the Scripture teach us? And so forgetting the categories of thought, if you had someone who said Jesus came to establish the kingdom of God, he wanted to, you know, bring this world back to submission to the Father. He offered that kind of kingdom and his people rejected him and crucified him instead. And therefore the kingdom has had to be postponed. Now, God doesn't have plans for external earthly reclamation. He's really just calling souls to himself and making them wait until Jesus comes back to establish in a violent way now the kingdom of God on earth. Now, if you heard that kind of teaching, that would have an effect upon your Christian life and your ministry, your outlook, your prospects, your hope. And that, by the way, is the prevailing evangelical view of the Kingdom of God. The last almost 100 years now in this country, it should not surprise us that the Christian church is virtually impotent when it comes to political reformation. This is something that I teach and administer in the area of Christian ethics and application to politics. And just recently, a number of Christian groups taken an interest, you know, in getting involved in that. And we find ourselves, we're really rank amateurs when it comes to politics. And the reason we are is because for years we've been told that has nothing to do with being a Christian. And now that we're saying, well, no way, it's got to have something to do with being a Christian. It may not be the central point of being a Christian, it may not be the most important thing, but it has something to do with it. And now we're just kind of, you know, getting our feet wet and getting used to the stuff sort of thing. Why is that? Because there was a view of the kingdom of God that was taught as biblical orthodoxy in pulpits throughout this land for so long. People took it for granted. That's why we're talking about the kingdom of God. It's very practical. I'm going to get precise. I'm going to try to be a little theological with you, but it'd be good for you. I really think, just to the degree that God makes me faithful to His Word, it will enable you to more faithfully serve him and to adore him and to be a member of his saving kingdom and appreciate what he intends to do. So this morning, I'm going to Talk about the nature of the kingdom. What does it mean that Jesus brings the kingdom of God? Where is the kingdom? What kind of thing are we talking about? And then the scene evening, Lord willing, we come back, I'll talk about the prospects for the future of the kingdom of God. You have your Bibles with you this morning? I thought I would begin with some framework considerations about the kingdom by looking at just one of the Gospels. You know very well that in the two hours that we have here, I'm not going to be able to give you a full seminary course on the kingdom. And even the seminary courses on the kingdom, they don't cover everything. So. So I purposely am restricting myself in these introductory remarks just to the Gospel of Matthew. Let's see what Matthew teaches us about the kingdom of God and its nature. We'll begin in Matthew the second chapter. Well known story at the time of the birth of Jesus. Now when, well before I read this one more piece of information. When we read stories in the Gospels, we often read them as though they're, you know, taking place right then, okay? Because it's like Matthew's watching this and giving us a report, almost an ancient TV version of reporting, you know. And I'm not denying for a minute these events took place, nor am I denying that eyewitnesses saw them. They're all accurate historical accounts. But I want you to remember that they're historical accounts written years later. That is to say, they are written not simply for saying, here's what I did on my vacation this summer, we drove to Kansas, you know, that sort of thing. These are written not just to give information about events that took place, but they're written for a theological purpose. And so when Matthew writes about the events of Christ, the birth and life and ministry, death and resurrection, he is presenting a theological concept as well as telling us very truthfully, inerrantly what took place in history. And so what does Matthew want us to know about Jesus? Jesus at his birth? What does he pick out to recount for us? What's important to him now, when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem saying, where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we saw a star in the east and are come to worship him. I love this one story. I'd get off preaching it if I were not careful here. Notice that Matthew presents people coming to Jerusalem in the days of who? Herod the king. He could have said a lot about Herod but he wants you to know this man is a king. And he's a very jealous king. He's an earthly king. He's. He exemplifies all those really wretched attributes of politicians that we read of in the Bible and we know of in our own experience. And in the days of Herod the king, wise men appeared in Jerusalem looking not simply for the savior of men, not looking simply for the Son of God. They came looking for who? The King of the Jews. And that sets up the story, you see, for Matthew's Gospel. The king, as people come asking, where's the king? It doesn't take well to them, you know, later on in John's Gospel you have a similar kind of thing. If you look at the literary setup, Pilate, who is a king and a ruler, wants to know from Jesus at his trial. So they say, you are a king. Jesus says, you've said it. Well, kings don't like to be told there are other kings around Herod, the king hears that Jesus is born or someone is born who is the king of the Jews. Matthew begins by telling us Jesus was born to be a king. See how important kingship is and the notion of the kingdom. Then in Matthew the fourth chapter, we read at the beginning of the chapter, Jesus was led up of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And again, we could spend some time looking at this entire chapter. A lot of good things could be said here. But I want to focus on the specific temptations that we read of in verse 8. Again, the devil takes him into an exceeding high mountain and shows him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, all these things I'll give you if you'll fall down and worship me. Satan knows what's going on. He knows something behind the scenes that Jesus contemporaries would not have understood. Satan knew that the, the real conflict of the ages was coming to a head now. God has now sent his son into this world to be the king. And so Satan see figures all kind of short circuit. This Jesus is going to get the kingdoms of this world. So I'll show him these kingdoms in their glory and I'll say, I'll give them to you. All you have to do is worship me. You know, Satan would have been pleased that Jesus, I don't think Satan would have required Jesus to get down on his hands and knees and, and put his face to the ground. I think Satan would have. Satan would have been pleased that Jesus go down on just one knee, say, okay, Satan, you're Lord now give me the kingdoms of the world. No, actually Satan. Jesus could have simply bowed his head and Satan would have won that encounter. Satan said, you want to be the king? You want the kingdoms of this world? I'm the conduit to that. And Jesus said, get out of here. That's the Southern California Colloquial version. Get thee behind me, Satan. No way. They won't have anything to do with it. Jesus came. He was born a king. Satan knows that the kingdoms of the world are at stake in this. So notice now we move ahead to Matthew the 12th chapter, how the coming of the kingdom is evident in Jesus power over Satan. I have skipped over for the sake of time this morning, the fact that Matthew presents us Jesus preaching ministry as the nearness of the kingdom. He comes preaching, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Okay, and now you want to see the power of the kingdom. Matthew 12:at verse 28, Jesus has cast out a demon. And his opponents come and say that he does this by Beelzebub, he does this by Satan. Jesus is a good apologist. Jesus knew how to use logic and to turn his opponents news against them. And he said, well, I mean, how is that really possible? A house divided against itself can't stand. Would that make sense really, that Satan would send me into this world to cast out his agents in this world? But there's more to it than that. Jesus now declares positively what's on going, going on in verse 28. But if I by the spirit of God cast out demons, then is the kingdom of God come upon you. If I by the spirit of God cast out demons. That's the if part of the if then that he's going to give if P then Q. Okay, that's the formulation. Logically speaking, if P then Q. The P is if I cast out demons by the spirit of God, then what follows from that? Then he says, then you know, the kingdom of God has come. Now what has Jesus just finished doing? He's just cast out demons by the spirit of God. So this is Jesus way of saying not only to Satan, who thought he could give him the kingdoms of the world through this, you know, idolatrous shortcut. But he's saying to all with his hearers now who have accused him of not being on God's side of things, he's saying, what you need to know is in my presence, the kingdom of God has come. That's remarkable. You know, that's the sort of thing when you, when you talk to people who are unbelievers and. And they'll tell you that. Oh, yeah, they, you know, they think Jesus is a good man and so forth. And there's a good Hebrew prophet. And we probably could learn a lot, you know, about loving our neighbors who listen to Jesus. I hate it when people say that to me. Not because we can't learn from Jesus, but I just hate it when they present this diminished view of Jesus that, well, to be honest with you, damns him by faint praise. You know what it is to damn somebody by faint praise. I remember a long time ago, Bill Cosby had this routine where he talked about he had to out with a girl that was really heavyset, okay? And his mother, they were going out skating, I guess, and his mother reminded him on the way out the door that he was supposed to be, you know, kind to this girl and say something nice to her. And so, you know, he's. He goes to the skating rink and so forth. He's just thinking, how, what am I going to do? What am I going to say? And so forth. And so after skating for a while, they finally sit down and he turns to me and says, you know, you don't sweat much for a fast girl. That's what. That's what we mean by damning, by faint praise. I mean, that is phrase, I guess, not to sweat much. But I mean, to put it that way, you know, you don't sweat much for a factor. It was really to say a damning kind of thing instead. And when people tell us that Jesus is a good man and he was a good teacher, they are damning him by their faintness of praise because Jesus stood among men and said, I have brought the kingdom of God. Now, what would you all think? Quite honestly, I know what I would think. What would you think if I would have shown up this morning and I would have said something like that? In your presence, ladies and gentlemen, the kingdom of God has finally appeared in the power that I now exercise by the Holy Spirit. Guy is really nuts, right? Megalomaniac. But Jesus said that. And apparently, although his opponents, you know, were really riled by that, and they behind the scenes, plotted to kill him. Ever think about how stupid people are in their unbelief? They know that Jesus has the power of God. They see him do miracles and they plan to kill him. You know, sometimes you read the Bible and you have to, you know, from, I think, taking God's point of view, you know, reading the Bible, this is silly. This is really silly. You're going to kill the Son of God. And what do you think is going to happen if you kill the Son of God? Well, Jesus says, I'm going to let you do this and I'm going to raise myself up three days later and eventually I'm going to destroy the city for doing this and so forth. What good is it going to do to try to kill the Son of God anyway? They tried to plot against him. Jesus shows up and claims that he brings the kingdom of God. If I'm casting out demons, the kingdom's come. Jesus did not say, someday down the road you're going to see the kingdom of God come. He doesn't say, someday I'm going to finally do what God wants done. He says, today it's happening. Everything that you've been looking forward to through all this, the ages of expectation that God would keep his promises to his people and he would finally break into this world and set things right, it's happening now. And I'm going right to the heart of the issue here. Because Satan, who brought the human race down, Satan's house is the one that I'm destroying. At right. At right. Presently, he goes on to say, and if I bound the strong man, I'm going to despoil his house. It's interesting how Jesus uses that figure of speech for himself. Someone breaks into your home and ties you up. What's he doing that for? Unless he's some kind of a, you know, pervert. He's doing that because he wants to get you out of the way so that he can take all your good. And he says, I've tied Satan up and now I'm going to despoil his house. Everything Satan's been doing and trying to establish a king kingdom here, I'm going to set it straight. What is the scope of this kingdom that Jesus brings into the world? We turn to Matthew, the 13th chapter now, and we find that Jesus is speaking to people and teaching them by means of parables. He teaches them by parables that he might explain to them the nature of his kingdom. Notice in verse 11, unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. This is another thing we need to know about the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God doesn't just in some kind of, you know, indiscriminate, Soupy, sentimental way, bring blessing to everybody. God's kingdom also brings condemnation to people. And Jesus said, the reason I'm teaching in parables is because with respect to some people, in hearing, they will not hear. I'M telling you parables so that their eyes will be closed and their ears will be stopped up and they will be damned. It's amazing to me how many people preach the passage. They do not preach on that. Jesus says, I not only want you to understand the kingdom, I want you to know that I'm also judging people who I will not have to enjoy benefits. Well, what is the scope of the kingdom according to Jesus teaching? We have to move ahead here. Verse 38. Jesus has told the story that we sometimes call the parable of the sower. More accurately, it would be called the parable of the seed that is sown. Or even better, the parable of the four kinds of ground, right? And so this field in which the sower comes broadcasting, you know, that's where we get the word in English broadcasting for TV and radio and so forth. It comes from this parable, the casting of seed broadly. He comes in this world broadcasting the word of God. It falls on different kinds of ground. What is this field? Verse 38. Jesus is explaining the parable. Let me back up. He answered and said in verse 37, he that sows the good seed is the son of man. Because we know it's Jesus who is the sower. Verse 38. And the field is the world. The field is the world. Now, that is very important for our understanding of the kingdom of God. Jesus said the field, the kingdom where the sower works, is the world. And we know there are different kinds of different kinds of ground in this field. Some of it's, you know, very hard and rocky, just rejects it. I don't know. Here in Kansas, you all probably tell me more about farming than I know, but I've tried to grow grass out in Southern California, and I know what it is. I know that's minimal, but it'll work. I know what it is to throw seed on hard ground. It just bounces back at you. Nothing happens. You can water it. The water just pushes it away, right? And Jesus says, this field has ground like that. It's very hard, also has very fertile ground and so forth. But the world is full of all kinds of people. And Jesus says, this is my kingdom. All of it is my kingdom. Jesus did not come and establish a kingdom that is only made up of people who believe in him. I don't know. You're awake this morning. If you're not, get some orange juice. You know what I'm telling you? I'm telling you, Jesus rules over even the unbelievers in your neighborhood. He rules over those Earthly kings that do not acknowledge him and who rather despise him. He rules everywhere and he's broadcasting his word throughout the kingdom. And not everyone's responding the same way. Not everyone's going to enjoy the blessing of this kingdom. I just told you, the reason he spoke in parables was to condemn so people, not to help them, not to bless them. The scope of the kingdom is the world. And now, having said that, this is not by way of contradiction, it's not dialectical. We need to understand that the Church is very crucial to Matthew's concept of the kingdom of God. Now I'll try to explain to you why that is. I've just said the world is the kingdom. And now I'm going to say, in a special sense, the Church has a privileged position with respect to the kingdom. Turn to Matthew 16. Look at the 19th verse. We're in the midst here of Simon's significant confession of who Jesus is. Simon Peter answered and said, thou art the Christ, you're the anointed One, you're the Son of the living God. And Jesus says, this has been revealed of the Father to him. This has come from his own earthly intelligence. Jesus renames him Peter, says he will build his church upon the rock. The gates of hell will not prevail against it. We'll hear about that tonight then, verse 19. I will give unto thee the King keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and so forth. Peter represents here, I believe, the confessing apostolic band. He does not represent himself as an individual. Often in the Gospels, Peter is the spokesman for the 12. Okay. And when he gives this confession, we know that it's not Peter personally that's important. It's the Father who's revealed this. You want to go down a few verses for those who are inclined for the Roman Catholic interpretation of this? You need to remember that Jesus says to Peter, get behind me, Satan as well, in the same chapter. So, I mean, what is he, you know, the foundation of the Church? Or is he Satan the deceiver? You know, you're going to have to take both of those into account, whatever interpretation you give. I think Peter stands here for the apostles. I have, I think, New Testament evidence for that later. Paul tells us the Church is founded upon Christ and the Apostles and so forth. The Apostles are the official representatives of Christ on earth and so forth. So to Peter, he says to Peter, I will give you. That is the leaders of the Church here, those who are overseers here to the apostles. I will give you the keys of the kingdom. What do keys do? They open doors. They lock them, too. There's bad news here, too. Sometimes the church excommunicates people and locks them out of the kingdom. Okay, but we're not here to talk about ecclesiology. Let me just point out that the keys for opening the kingdom to people are in the hands of the church or the leaders of the church, those who preach and discipline in the church. That's very important because the image then that Jesus is giving us is that if you wish to enter the kingdom now, understood in its blessed sense, if you want to know the blessing of the kingdom, you're going to have to enter through the church. Now, I'm sorry. Many of my fellow pastors and Bible teachers make the mistake of making the church the kingdom. We've just seen the field. The world is the kingdom. But if you want to enter into the blessing of this kingdom, the keys for opening that are held by the church. And why is that? Because the church proclaims the gospel. And when people hear the gospel, they become part of Christ's body. They join in the fellowship of the church. And in that sense, they enter into the blessing of the kingdom through the doors of the church, if you will. So the scope of the kingdom is the entire world. Yet the church is crucial because it holds the keys of entrance to the blessings of the kingdom. Now, In Matthew, the 13th chapter, if we can back up just for a moment, you notice that the kingdom of God is presented as the rule of God that is growing in this world. Growing in this world. Matthew 13:31, 33. Another parable set he before them, saying, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is less than all seeds. But when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of heaven come and lodge in the branches thereof. Kingdom of God right now is so small that you could liken it to a mustard seed. Yeah, I've seen mustard seed. Maybe you have as well. I mean, it's like a little speck, you know, in your hand. Jesus says, that's what the kingdom's like. You plant that, though. And what happens? Gradually it grows and grows and grows until it's larger than the other herbs, starts small, has surprising growth, and actually turns be out to. To be bigger than the other herbs. You may start with a larger seed with different kinds of herbs, but it won't turn out to Be as large as the mustard plant. And so Jesus says that's what the kingdom's like, starts small, grows to be very big. The kingdom is the world. So there's a sense in which Jesus has already asserted he rules over all. But we've learned in looking at Matthew's gospel that not everyone is enjoying the blessing of that rule. He tells parables to shut some people out. We know that not everyone goes, you know, through the doors of the church, as it were, where the keys of the kingdom open up. The blessing of God in this room. But Jesus says it may start small. I think he's talking here now about the king kingdom in its blessed redeeming sense. It starts small and it grows and grows and grows. And then this is reinforced in another parable in verse 33, another parable spake he unto them, the kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened. Like leaven, it permeates all of life. So this is something of the nature of Christ's kingdom, kingdom established over the entire world, proven by the fact that he is destroying Satan's house. He rules even over unbelievers. You know, that hard rock soil that will not receive the broadcast seed of God's word. He rules over them all. But the blessing of his kingdom is for those who go through the doors of the church where the keys enter, open up the blessing of redemption and what Jesus has in store for his people, and that is growing and growing and growing. In Matthew the sixth chapter. If we can continue our backward march now through the Gospel. In Matthew the sixth chapter, you notice that Jesus teaches us how to pray. And we are to pray. Thy kingdom come. This is verse 10. Thy kingdom come. We're to pray for this coming kingdom. We're to pray that it will continue to grow. We're to pray that more and more we'll see the saving effect of the power of God that has come into this world to set things right. We're to pray for that. Now, if you don't understand the nature of the kingdom when you pray for it to come, you may not know what you're praying for. Some people pray for the coming of the kingdom. You know what they mean by that? Jesus, please come back and get us out of this mess. To pray for the kingdom they think means. Can't you finally, you know, do something about all the suffering and misery we're going through? This tribulation is going to become the tribulation and save us from that and bring your kingdom. But you know, if you read the very next expression in the Lord's Prayer, you understand what Jesus means when he says that we pray for God's kingdom to come. Thy will be done on earth. We pray that the will of God will be done here on earth. There's really nothing more categorical in terms of its sweep of what we expect to take place in terms of the kingdom of God. That in every walk of life and in every area of the world, in every way possible, that what takes place among men and their conduct and their interrelations, so forth, their behavior will reflect the will of God and not their own willfulness, not their own self sin and selfishness and rebellion, not their hatred, not their breaking of God's commandments, not their unholy passions, not their failure to live in the power of the spirit, but rather to show the will of God in everything that they do. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth. That tells us something about the nature of the kingdom. The whole world is Jesus kingdom. He is proven. He doesn't need to bow to Satan to get it. He is now destroying Satan's house. And the church proclaims the gospel with keys that open up to people the blessing of this kingdom. And that is growing. This kingdom of redemption is growing. And we need to pray for it to come, that God's will would be done on earth. But we need to realize that this kingdom will not have completely finished its work until Jesus does come back and finally separates for all eternity those who work iniquity from those who have bowed to him and are trying to serve him. Look at Matthew 7:21. Jesus here in the Sermon on the Mount says, not everyone who says unto me, lord, Lord shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. It would be worthwhile. Again, just to stress the fact that Jesus here. This doesn't sound like what most evangelicals preach is gospel. Most evangelicals say you just sign a decision card, you're a believer, and you get to go to heaven. That isn't what Jesus says. He says, not everyone who says to me, lord, Lord will go. We have people who say, hey, all you have to do is confess the name of Jesus, call him Lord, and you'll be saved. Jesus says, not everyone who says to me, lord, Lord's going to be saved. It's right in the Bible. I didn't make this up, you know. I'm not trying to be some kind of hard legalist. Or something here. What do you do? Jesus says, you come and claim to have faith in me and call me Lord. And it isn't enough. Not because you're trying to earn your salvation. But you see, when you call on Jesus as Lord, that means you have to live like he's your Lord. So only those who do the will of the Father in heaven. But here's the point for today's lesson, though. I could talk to you about the nature of the gospel too. Jesus says, not everyone who says to me, lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven. The day is coming on the day of judgment when we will finally enter or not enter, enter the kingdom of heaven. So we have to take account of Matthew in this one gospel. That's all we've looked at so far this morning has told us already. Jesus came as the king. He established his kingdom. He declared that it was here. He called people to it. He gave the keys of the kingdom to the church. We know the kingdom is here. And yet Jesus also teaches the kingdom's future, that the day is coming when he will consummate that work that has begun here on earth. He will finally complete the work of separating the wheat from the tares, if you will, good from evil. Those who give a hypocritical confession of his lordship and those who really live subject to his lordship. The kingdom, in another sense is future. It's going to be consummated. Verse 22. Many will say to me in that day, lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy by your name and by your name cast out demons, and by your name do many mighty works? That's a frightening one. Here are people who do miracles. They cast out demons. Now, some would say they're just claiming to do this and they really didn't do it. It's kind of like, you know, they're. They're lying. Kind of like the guy who puts his resume together and he pumps it up a bit, you know, I've done a few other things, more than I've done. So here's what they're doing. They're telling Jesus we cast out demons. But they didn't really. That's what we call exegesis, by embarrassment. It's like trying to back away from something that's very difficult to deal with. I don't think many people on the Day of judgment are going to try to fool Jesus. I don't think they're going to stand up and say, didn't we cast out demons? And Jesus, you're gonna say, oh, you did. Okay. No way. When they say this, I'm sure Matthew means us to believe that they did it. And that's what's scary. There are people who cast out demons and call on the name of the Lord, do mighty works. And what's Jesus going to say? He's going to say, I don't know who you are. I don't know you. In fact, I never knew you. He never belonged to me. So this is the day of judgment. And on that day, the kingdom of God will be seen in its purity. We live in a day right now where it's not always clear, is it who belongs to the kingdom of God. There are a lot of people who claim to be Christians, very sadly, in my own experience, in churches that I've known, friends that I've known, my own family, known people who for many years claimed to be Christians and lived apparently like Christians and then finally gave it up, walked away and disobeyed. But, you know, not everyone who is a hypocrite shows it in this life. The day is coming, though, when the kingdom of God will be seen in its purity and all of its glory. And on that day, the hypocrites will be separated out, the wheat and the tares are going to be separated, and the kingdom of God. God will go on in its glory. Now, I've been trying to restrict my comments to Matthew's gospel. If you will allow me, I'll expand to a little bit more of New Testament theology and fill out this picture. It's a legitimate method. But you have some idea of Matthew's notion of the kingdom. Jesus brought it. It's already here. It rules over all the world, but not all the world's blessed by it. Through the preaching of the Gospel, it comes more and more. And through the coming of the kingdom, God's will is done on earth, but it will not be done perfectly. And we will not see it in all of its glory until Jesus comes back and separates those who just claim his name and those who really belong to him. Peter tells us in Second Peter, the third chapter, that in the day of judgment, God is going to bring a new heavens and a new earth wherein righteousness dwells. Wherein righteousness dwells. We pray for the coming of God's kingdom and his will being done on earth, but it will not be done perfectly. It will not be a consummated kingdom until the new heavens and the new earth wherein righteousness will truly dwell. In the meantime, while we're waiting for the perfection and the consummation of God's kingdom. I want to emphasize that we. We enter that through. We enter the blessing of God's kingdom through new birth. Turn now to John's Gospel, Chapter three. You know the well, you should know the story of the encounter of Jesus with Nicodemus, who was a teacher and a ruler among the Jews. Now, there was a man of the Pharisees, he is named Nicodemus, ruler of the Jews. The same came unto him by night and said to him, rabbi, we know thou art a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that thou doest except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, truly, truly, I say unto you, except one be born again. He cannot see the kingdom of God. Verse 5. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee. All right, chapter two, we read in verse 23. Now, when he was in Jerusalem at the passover during the feast, many believed on his name, beholding his signs, which he did. But Jesus did not trust himself unto them, for that he knew all men. And because he needed not that anyone should bear witness concerning man, for he himself knew what was in man. Jesus here is he's not entirely impressed with people who follow him simply because of the signs and wonders that he does, right, because he knows what is in man. We've just finished commenting it in Matthew's Gospel. Some people apparently can even do these sorts of things and they don't belong to Jesus. Now Nicodemus, who as a ruler of the Jews comes to him, and we find out that what is really important is that people have the spirit of God giving them new life, not just that they enjoy the power of the Spirit by doing things or seeing Jesus do things, but that they have to have that spirit give them new life as well. One cannot belong to the kingdom of God and enjoy its blessing unless that person enjoys new birth regeneration by the Spirit of God. And those who do know that saving mercy of God belong to his kingdom. Jesus says Paul himself reflects on this in Colossians 1 at the 13th verse, Colossians 1, verse 13, Who delivered us out of the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. The nature of God's kingdom is that it brings redemption to people, the forgiveness of their sins. And here we are told by Paul that we, we actually belong to that kingdom. If we are saved, if we are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we now are delivered out of the power of darkness. We no longer live subject To Satan. We no longer live under his control. One remembers how John says, greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world. We're not in the power of darkness anymore. We should bear that. I think in mind when believers feel that they are being oppressed by Satan, or they think that they might be demon possessed or their friends might be demons possessed, Paul tells us, right here, you've been delivered out of the power of darkness. You belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. Just like Jesus cast out demons, showing that he had brought the king kingdom, Satan no longer holds on to you. You're not under his power. You have one that is greater than the one that is in the world living in you. You've been delivered out of the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of the Son of His love. The emphasis I want to put here, though, is that the kingdom first and foremost brings redemption. It brings forgiveness of sins, and so that we are no longer unregenerate and subject to the power of Satan. And so Paul tells us In Romans the 14th chapter, verse 17, something about the nature of God's kingdom right here and now. Romans 14:17. For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Those who enjoy the present blessing of the kingdom because they have been born again, they have come, as it were, to the church, confessed their sins, they have believed the gospel, they've been joined to the body of Christ. Those who know a salvation enjoy the kingdom because of its righteousness, peace and joy in the spirit. The kingdom is spiritual. It pertains to redemption. This is very important. You may be wondering, why are you stressing this, Dr. Bonson? We don't doubt that you would believe this. Well, I'm going to tell you some things later about the application of the kingdom to all affairs of life. I'm going to talk about the future of the kingdom. I'm going to suggest that this world is going to be Christianized someday. And when you hear those sorts of things, you say, oh, this guy doesn't believe in the gospel. So I'm not. I don't want there to be any doubt in your mind. That is the most important thing about the kingdom. Yesterday, by God's grace and providence, I was on a panel with some other theologians, Talking to about 600 theologians and Bible teachers around here. And I had been at this conference all weekend talking about Kingdom of God, a lot of good things, a lot of good papers presented there and so forth. But, you know, theologians sometimes can Lose what's the most important thing too. And I tried to remind them that in Luke's gospel to change the venue. Here Luke tells us about Jesus sending out his disciples to have power over the demons and over scorpions and serpents and so forth. And they come back wondering at that the power of the kingdom is here. It's almost like Jesus. You should see what we were doing. Jesus says, wonder. Not at that. I take that for granted. I love it the way Jesus. Oh, yeah, sure, yeah, that's good. That's good. But wonder more at this, that your names are written in heaven. You see, that's the most important thing about the kingdom, is that we've been saved. That those of us who were rebels who were fighting against the rule of God, who wanted to be our own little kingdom, who wanted to be, you know, rulers over our own lives, who wanted to lord it over others and. And over our own desires and so forth, he's taken that away from us. He's. He's taking care of our guilt by dying on the cross in our place. He's taken away our rebellious nature by giving us life from above and Holy Spirit within us. And I want to make sure that we understand that at the end of this session that the nature of the kingdom is first and foremost the saving rule of Jesus Christ in our hearts, so that we know that our names are written in heaven. I'm an evangelical. I believe in the good news, the gospel. And I believe that that is the most important thing that should be proclaimed to men about the coming of Christ's kingdom into this world. But Satan is a very sly creature. And Satan would easily take this, the most important truth. I've already told you that. And try to teach us that it's the only truth about the kingdom of God. That if you are born again, that's all that it's about. Being a Christian, that's all the kingdom of God is about. And we can just leave it at that. That. And what happens then? I'll give you a little preview of what's coming. What happens then is that we have the idea that we have satisfied God and we are completely pleasing to him. If we just keep our Christianity locked up into the private recesses of our hearts. If we just know the joy of the Holy Spirit and the salvation that is ours, that is the most important thing. Nothing can happen apart from that. But if that's all that we think the kingdom of God involves, falls, what earthly good will we be as Christians? There won't be in any because we'll say, oh, this world, you know, it's going to hell in a hand basket anyway. So what are we supposed to do about that? Nothing. You know, the important thing is through all the hubbub and so forth, I've got salvation in my heart, I'm going to heaven. And that's really all that it's about. And Satan has used that in this century. I'm sure he's used it throughout the centuries. But in our country, in this entry in particular, this very narrow, if you will, internal salvific understanding of the kingdom, which is important in itself. And I said, it's the heart of the matter, really. Satan would like us, however, to keep that locked up in our hearts and not have it go anywhere else. And you know what? Jesus has bigger plans than that. So what I'd like to do is give you all maybe two or three minutes to relax and catch your breath and then maybe get something to drink. When we come back, I'd like to talk for another hour and have you dialogue with me about this and answer your questions. We're going to make just a few more comments about the nature of Christ's kingdom and then open up the floor for you to talk to me about this and ask the questions you have. Maybe you want to correct things that you've heard here that I didn't get right or ask how to apply it or whatever it may be. I ended before our coffee break by reminding you that the kingdom of God is first and foremost, but not entirely a matter of our being saved. That is not to say having our sins forgiven, belonging to Christ as the Savior, knowing that we're going to live with him forever, we're going to have eternal life. The kingdom of God, however, is all encompassing in its scope. Though it begins in its blessed sense with the regeneration of the human heart, stopping us from being rebels against the King and giving us new life in the Spirit that we might follow him and believe in Him. The fact is that Christ calls us to be his disciples and to follow him, not just in enjoying righteousness, joy and peace in the Holy Spirit and the prospect of heaven, but he calls us to be his disciples and to follow him in all areas of life and in everything that we do. I think that this all encompassing perspective with respect to the kingdom is found in the Epistle of Paul to the Colossian Church. So turn with me in your Bibles to Colossians chapter one. And we'll see what Paul tells us about this kingdom that we enjoy. Those of Us who are saved. Colossians 1:1. At verse 16 to begin with. For in him were all things created in the heavens and upon the earth. Things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things have been created through him, and unto Him. All things were created by Jesus Christ and were created for Him. Unto Him. Notice that there's nothing in this world that doesn't belong to Jesus. He's the King, and everything has been created for his purposes. Everything. Computers were created for Jesus. It's going to be the title of one of my sermons one of these days. Computers for Jesus. We have Jews for Jesus and other sorts of computers, too. Everything. Basketballs were created for Jesus. Everything in this world. I'm just trying to be, you know, mundane here, so you get the point. Everything was created for Jesus. And then verse 20 tells us, and through him to reconcile all things unto Himself, having made peace through the blood of his cross. Notice that everything was created by Jesus and for Jesus, and all things in this world are restored by his redemptive work. And because everything was created by Jesus, and everything is restored or redeemed by Jesus, it's no surprise that verse 18 tells us he's head of the body, that is, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, in order that in all things he might have preeminence in all things. Christ preeminent. Christ preeminent in our economics. Christ preeminent in our education. Christ preeminent in our families. Christ preeminent in my interpersonal relationships. Christ preeminent in my recreations. Christ preeminent in the arts and the sciences. Christ preeminent in politics. Christ preeminent everywhere. Why? Why do we have such a wide scope for the kingdom? Because Jesus made it all. It was all made for him, and he redeemed it all. Jesus didn't come into this world simply to get a few souls snatched away from Satan. They might go to heaven and live with him forever. He came into this world to set everything right. And we don't yet see everything right. I'm not preaching utopianism. I'm not preaching perfectionism. But I'm telling you, Jesus came to deal with everything that's wrong in this world, to set it right, so that he would be preeminent in all things. In First Peter 1:15, Peter tells us that we are to be holy in all manner of life. Holy not just in our affections. Holy not simply in our evangelism or prayer or our church life, but wholly in everything. That we do. In First Corinthians 10:31, Paul says, Whether therefore you eat or drink or whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God. We've been looking at Matthew's gospel earlier this morning. Let's turn back there just for a minute. I want to show you an expression that Matthew uses that Jesus used and Matthew reports for us. Matthew 13:23. Here again in the parable of the four kinds of ground. And he that was sown upon the good ground. This is he that hears the word and understands it, who truly bears fruit and brings forth some a hundredfold, some 60, some 30. Notice that he doesn't simply hear the word, he brings forth fruit. It makes a difference. It changes his life. Jesus elsewhere tells us, by their fruits you shall know them. What's the outward character of your life? What's it like? If you really belong to him and are part of his kingdom, you're going to bear fruit for the kingdom of God. That's why Paul could say that even eating and drinking are matters of the kingdom of God and glorifying him. Let me take one example of how religion is not simply a matter of the heart. If you read the New Testament, James, chapter one and verse 22. Be doers of the word and not hearers, only deluding your own selves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like to a man beholding his natural face in a mirror, who beholds himself and goes away immediately forgets what manner of man he was. He who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so continues, being not a hearer that forgets, but a doer that works, this man shall be blessed in his doing. So James tells us, not enough just to hear. Jesus already said that, you know, you hear the word of God and bring forth fruit. James says, you need to be a doer of the Word, not just a hearer of the Word. And now verse 26 clinches it. If any man thinks himself to be religious, but doesn't bridle his tongue, he deceives his heart, this man's religion is vain. If this. If this religion doesn't take control of your conduct and behavior, the way you talk, and that's crucial because you know we'll learn in James, third chapter, that if you could control your tongue, you could control your entire body. Sometimes I preach on that the tongue's the strongest muscle in the body, not because of the external feats that it might be able to perform, but because if you could Learn spiritually to control that. You'd have a key to your sanctification and everything else. You stop to think about how much of our sinning has to do with the way we talk. It's amazing. Anyway, if a man doesn't bridle his tongue, his religion is vain. Now verse 27, pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this. It doesn't even mention profession of faith, going to church and those sorts of things. Pure religion is to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction and keep oneself unspotted from the world. This is very sad. I don't need to mention names, but yesterday I was on this panel of other theologians and one of the things that one of my brothers there didn't really like in my presentation, they said, you know, this is where we would disagree, is that he wanted to say that as far as he was concerned, according to that school of thought, the kingdom of God right now, until Jesus returns, is internal. I wanted to really emphasize that in the New Testament the kingdom is internal. What have we just been looking at here? I was in a sense kind of flabbergasted that he would make such a categorical remark because, you know, there's just so much in the New Testament what's pure religion. So go out there and visit the people who are hurting the fatherless and afflicted and so forth. It's to control your tongue. It's to be a doer of the word and not a hearer. Only. You see, Christ doesn't settle for a part time or a restricted reign as king. Jesus didn't come into this world to declare his kingship, only to be told, well, Jesus, you can rule over some parts of my life, but in other areas I'll take control. Thank you. Jesus doesn't settle for that kind of thing. He demands obedience from us in everything that we do. And the Bible tells us that his aim as the king is to subdue all resistance to that which stands against God. In First Corinthians, Paul tells us in chapter 15, he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. He must rule until everything that opposes him has been subdued. Now, just so we don't misunderstand, as I think some schools of theology do, I'm not claiming when I say that, that everyone's going to be saved, and I'm not claiming that everyone who obeys is going to do so from the heart. But I am saying that all opposition is going to be subdued. Now, those of you who have children probably realize sometimes you can get the compliance of your children, even though you know in their hearts they don't like it. You've subdued them, though, right? And the Bible tells us Jesus is going to subdue all of his enemies. That isn't to say he's going to convert everybody. Everybody's going to obey because they like it. Some people may obey just because things go better when they obey. Some people may do it just because that's what they've been taught. And everyone else, not everyone's going to love Jesus from the heart. But Paul tells us he's going to subdue all his enemies so that all opposition in all areas of life eventually are going to be overcome by the king. So we pray, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, even as it is in heaven. The kingdom of God, undeniably then, is this worldly and present tense. Its effects and its manifestation are to be seen not just in our inward lives, the saving of our souls, but also in our external conduct in the affairs of the this world. Now, one last remark, and then you get to talk to me about this. In John 8:36, you notice that Jesus assures Pilate, my kingdom is not of this world. And I say, well, Dr. Bronson, now how can you. How can you say all these things to me? And it sounded so good while you were saying it. But now, doesn't that verse disprove it all? Well, no, as a matter of fact, it doesn't. In John Gospel, we have Jesus appearing before Pilate, whose concern is that he has a revolution on his hands. Of course he does. He doesn't have any idea how, you know, how powerful and far extensive it's going to be. But he's worried that people are going to foment some kind of, you know, geopolitical revolution. And Jesus says, my kingdom's not of this world, or else my servants would fight that if my. If. If my kingdom were like your kingdom, one that derives its authority from this world and operates according to the principles of this world. Sure, we take up swords and we'd let you have it, but that's not the kind of kingdom I have. What does it say? At the end of that verse, Jesus explains how his kingdom's not of this world. He says, my kingdom, kingdom is not from here. And that's why we don't need to use earthly means and swords to get our way. Pilate, my kingdom's from above. And by the way, you notice how Jesus says to Pilate, and your rule is given to you from above. And that's why my being delivered to you will bring the greater condemnation, because you answer to God too. But my kingdom's not of this world. I receive my rule from above. I'm a king from heaven. If Pilate really understood that, he probably would have dismissed him as a madman. You know, kind of like, oh, yeah, you're from outer space, right? Jesus. But Jesus, when he says, my kingdom's not of this world, does not mean to say, my kingdom does not pertain to this world. What he's saying is, my kingdom doesn't come from this world, doesn't arise out of this world world. I didn't go collecting a band of people, you know, and create this kingdom out of earthly resources. And we don't use earthly means. My kingdom's from above. Now, when people then look at this verse and say, well, then Jesus kingdom shouldn't have anything to do with this world, I think they missed the point of Jesus kingdom is from above. It has everything to do with this world because it's the Creator from above above who made this world and he rules over all. But I'm going to do a little apologetical work on this too. When people say, Jesus kingdom is not of this world, therefore it shouldn't have anything to do with this world, then I want to reply sometimes, well, then live according to what you're telling me. Be consistent. If Jesus kingdom doesn't have anything to do with this world, then don't let it have anything to do with this world. Some of you maybe are getting the point. If it doesn't have anything to do with this world, well, then you shouldn't be preaching in this world. It doesn't have anything to do with this world. It shouldn't be gathering converts from this world. It shouldn't have anything to do with the way we live within the confines of the church and shouldn't have anything to do with your prayer life in this world. As long as you're in this world, you can't have anything to do with the kingdom of Jesus Christ. On that interpretation, the reason I'm doing this is because that interpretation has done so much damage. But even the people who profess that, that that's what the Bible teaches, don't live that way. They know better in their heart of hearts. Jesus kingdom does pertain to this world. That's why we send out missionaries in this world. That's why we have churches in this world. That's why we do deeds of mercy and love toward the afflicted and the poor in this world. Because Jesus kingdom does pertain to this world. And all I want to point out is it pertains to all of it. Not just our special projects, not just our own individual desires or the way we've been brought up. But everything in this world was affected by the kingdom. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth even as it is in heaven. Not your will be done in heaven instead of on earth, but let your will be done on earth just like it is in heaven. And so that's the nature of the kingdom. And if you'll come back this evening, I'll try to persuade you that it's got a. It's got a glorious future even on earth, and an even better one in eternity beyond that. But for right now, what would you like to ask or, or challenge or apply from what you've heard this morning about the nature of God's kingdom? I think you've got about 10 questions. Okay, 10 more over here. So in the nature of the mustard seed and the concept of the kingdom always growing, does that mean that from what we understand in scripture about the kingdom, that it would have a geographical identification? Although it's small in the general scope, it will not be identified with any particular nation on earth, it will not be identified with any particular piece of geography. But the outward effects of that kingdom with people coming to Christ and salvation and then living their lives in a sanctified way, we'll see more and more and more and more and more and more and more of that. That's the idea of the gradual growth of the mustard seed. Okay, that's what I mean. Because, you know, you hear reports and you know personally of people who. Certain regions of the world, you hear of this great growth in the church. You see believers, people come to believe. And so, you know, God is doing a work. And so that gives you a geographical identification of something going on. Yes, I think God manifests the power of his kingdom in revivals and seeing nations over longer periods of time turned from their idolatry and things like that. So you can identify it geographically in that sense. I just didn't want to give the idea that we see a revival in Ethiopia and that means that's where the kingdom is. Kingdom's everywhere. The other question is you mentioned about evangelically been under this narrow scope of thinking about the kingdom, and that's because of the inception of a little bit of a truth and then going off on a tangent, if pounded long enough in the wider scope of what you've been sharing to us, can it be reversed so that we can the truth in its polar scope and pounded long enough that we would act in the reverse direction, but also in the area of temptation? Would that give us greater successes in eliminating some of the areas of temptation we so frequently fall into by having the wires go? What kind of temptations are you envisioning here? Everybody seems to call themselves, but we see now for people who call themselves Christians and who we have seen, like you mentioned before, for a long period of time or have been in that process of war, May be set over and over again by sexual immorality, immoral thoughts. Let's stop right there. Why would the church preaching a broader concept of the kingdom, open it up more to sexual temptation? I mean, less. In other words, if I have a narrow. Oh, oh, yeah, I got you. More susceptible to temptation. If I have a wider view that's based on truth, then I'm not susceptible. Yeah, I'm sorry. I misunderstood you at first. Yeah, and I think you're absolutely right. You see, as long as we teach that the kingdom of God is this internal reality and doesn't apply to everything that we do, then it's very easy for Christians to have the idea that they're pleasing God as long as they said the sinner's prayer and they're planning on going to heaven and they love Jesus in their heart. But then the way they treat their brother outwardly, they may defraud him, they may gossip, they may talk around his back, they may be involved in sexual temptation and so forth. But the important thing is my soul's going to heaven when I die, you know. And the ancient church had a similar kind of problem with what was called Manichaeism and Gnosticism. The Gnostics sometimes taught the only thing that really counts is the spiritual part of man. And so that means either you deny the body. Some Gnostics went the way of a asceticism. You punish the body. You don't eat, you don't have sex, you don't sleep much, don't have outward wealth and so forth. Comforts of this world. But you see, if the body's not important, you can go the opposite direction just as readily. They say the important thing is the soul. So it makes no difference if I engage in sexual immorality or if I overeat or if I, you know, don't treat my neighbor right and so forth, if I'm greedy and all those sort of thing, because that's just body, you know, who cares about the body? So I think you're right by having a broader view of the kingdom, then we have a broader view of sanctification too. God wants holiness in all areas of our lives. Well, I know there's probably more questions there, but let's, let's see what else we have here around the table. Come back back here. The background of the Gospels along with the book of Revelation, especially the first three chapters of Revelation where Jesus speaks to the Church. The keys you say are given to the church. Now are you talking about the Catholic Church? Not Roman Catholic Church, but the Catholic Church, Vicar of Christ is not Pope, but the Holy Spirit. I believe the keys of the church are held by those who are overseers in the church. That would be elders. I'm a Presbyterian, so I think that's biblical terminology. But other churches use different, you know, titles and so forth. But that function. The one who is going to answer to God for the souls of these people, who is to be their overseer and guide and shepherd. They have the keys of the kingdom, I believe. Well, to me it's the church within the church. In other words, there are those who have been added to the body of Christ. It's a God job. Take Larry Kraft's book Inside Out. I don't see the inside and the outside as mutually exclusive. When God tells me to work out my own salvation, fear and trembling towards God and work within me, that means it's first an inside job that only God can do. Repentance even is only what the Holy Spirit through the Scriptures can bring. A change of mind so I can start seeing myself in the world from God's perspective rather than my own. And that's a lifelong thing. Salvation is not just justification. It begins with that ends in glorification. Right, okay. And so what's the point of your question? Well, I guess the point of my question is do you see hell as a purgatory? Is hell a purgatory where God will eventually reconcile everything to himself? No, I don't believe that. The Bible teaches that hell is just a temporary stop off point to purge off the remaining dross and evil that's in us so that we can then finally go to heaven. I don't think it's a place that, as it were, people are going to be given a second chance and then finally enter into the kingdom. It's appointed unto men once to die and after that the judgment Hebrews tells us. And so I don't believe in any the notion of a purgatory before judgment. And I don't believe after one enters into judgment that there's any second chance, Jesus says in Luke, the 16th chapter in the story of the rich man and Lazarus, that there's no crossing over after the destinies of men have been determined. That's not a popular view in the Christian church to say. I didn't think years ago when I first started the studying for the ministry, that I would see this day. But, you know, the more I think about should have been expected the way the Christian church was defecting with respect to biblical authority and any number of other problems we've had. We're giving up biblical teaching left and right when it comes to controversial social issues, hard doctrines of the faith and so forth. It really stands to reason the doctrine of hell would eventually be questioned too. And that's what's happening among evangelicals. They're. They're actually throwing out the. The notion of everlasting damnation. Now. Yeah, this gets to my other question, but just inside out. It's a God job, all right. Often I go to support groups and I realize after I'm in there a while, I do the German. There's very little spiritual discernment. And I'm not just talking about these groups that have the higher power. I'm even talking about within Presbyterian, where it's where I go in several support groups. But I have to get to the point where I say, you know, I can appreciate having come from a dysfunctional family, all of the psychological gospel can do. But I also realize that if it only ministered to us, either given a temporary relief or temporal relief, so that if I want permanent solutions, I must go to Jesus Christ. Now, what's my point there? It's that now I don't say how theological this is, but when Jesus is talking about the different kinds of soil, I kind of think like I've been in every one of those state. And I think sometimes in our support groups we see people who are in that first stage, they've been beaten down, they're hard. The gospel doesn't enter in yet. We work with that spoil. We do what we can to like one in our group the other night, he said, I don't know that Jesus. Everyone else in the group is talking about this so fought they got with Jesus. But he says, I don't even know that Jesus was the son of God any more than anyone else. And I said, you know, honest doubt leads to genuine faith. You are right where you ought to be when you say I don't know. Because if you are pretending you've got this close walking pieces and you don't even really know what we're talking about. And he hasn't said over the months that I've been there anything about his walk with Christ. I think you're absolutely right. You work with people like that, you know, and at that point you may find them as this hardened soil that doesn't receive the word of God. You know, their lives have got to be plowed up so the seed will take root and so forth. It's all very true. I'm not. I'd have to be honest. I'd have to say from a literary standpoint, Jesus probably didn't mean that application by the parable of the hard soil and so forth. But I think your application is true enough. We keep working with the new individuals like this. The nature of the kingdom, though. What does this tell us about the nature of the kingdom? What questions would you have about the nature of the kingdom and what you've heard? This morning I was thinking of the parable that dragnet. How do you go fishing? Overcome fear of fishing. What results from fishing in the kingdom of God? Okay, well, go on, you're doing great. No, I've heard you say some good things about it. What would you like to know about the parable of the dragon? Your understanding of it, first of all. Application. Well, I think the first application, as I understand it, I could improve my view here, perhaps. My understanding is that Jesus says, when you set out the nets, you're going to bring in, I think of people, you know, what comes into the church, those who surpass you bring a lot of. A lot of rotten stuff into the church along with the good fish too. Right. And so he says that that's the case, that we have to understand the kingdom has this mixed nature until he returns to separate the wheat from the tares and the good fish from the bad fish and that sort of thing. That seems to be the general point. Maybe you want to say more about that, though. Well, I've seen some folks stop fishing when they bring in some bad fish and they quit. You know, they say, well, I'm not effective. I'm not doing any good. Get discouraged and not want to keep fishing. Yeah, I agree. I think that's a good application to make. You have to tell people Jesus told you that's going to happen. If you go out there and evangelize and try to spread his kingdom, you're going to have that. Of course there's going to be bad fish that come in along with good fish and it isn't our job. Now I'm switching parables. But the wheat and the tares. It isn't our job to go into the world to try to get the wheat and the tares separated out perfectly. We know that they grow together in God's kingdom until the harvest. Good point. Did I understand you to say that the elders are the keys to the kingdom? No, I meant that the elders of the church hold the keys of the kingdom in the sense that they preach the gospel and they discipline the church when someone wants to come to join the church. If it's a church that's operating in a biblical fashion, people don't join the church simply by signing a card saying, hey, I'd like to join your club. I really like the things you do. I like the way you guys dress. These are not. These are good songs you sing. Now, when people come to join the church, the elders say, well, who is Jesus as far as you're concerned? Do you profess him to be your savior, your lord? You know, and so in that sense, they are standing at the door. I mean, not in the literal sense. They say, you can't come in, but they're standing at the door saying, who gets to come into the kingdom? In the sense that we declare that your sins are forgiven by believing these things and who doesn't? They're holding the keys. Okay, then. As opposed to the story about when Lazarus. When he brought Lazarus out of the tomb, he didn't run over and start unwinding the bandages. He said, loose his bandages so he can walk among you. He let us do that. So the elders are not going to loose the bandages. We, as his children can all loose the bandages. Yeah, we're probably mixing the two stories and the two images of. Of opening and closing, loosening and tightening and that sort of thing. But he doesn't just delegate the elders to lose the bandages. Oh, no, no, no, no, no. Okay. No, by the keys. Oh, no. Okay, now I. I see what concerns you. Yeah. Everyone. Everyone. Say it again. Everyone is supposed to be an ambassador. All of. We're all supposed to. We're all supposed to raise. Represent Jesus Christ and his saving mercies to people. And I believe God has a wonderful diversity of ministries in his church. The ways in which we do that, the way we help people and proclaim the gospel and live out the gospel. Everyone is to do that. I only meant that when Jesus spoke of the keys of the kingdom, he was in that place talking about the leaders of the church. Not everybody has the keys of the kingdom. You know, to enter the kingdom, one must be part of the church. And not everyone rules in the church. Now, there are some churches that have tried that have everyone rule, but it's not God's way. And if you don't believe me on the basis of the Bible, then go out and do it. And you'll believe me. Try to do it and you'll believe me. Yeah. I'm sorry if I gave the impression that only the elders of the church have an effect on helping people or spreading the gospel and so forth. I only meant that they oversee who belongs to the church. Okay, Greg, as far as your view of the kingdom, how would it differ from the view of Oscar Kuhlmann and the realized eschatology that Christ initiated the kingdom with the cross, and then it is now advancing kind of the D Day VE Day analogy that he uses? Would you differ with that, or would you. No, no. Although I would differ with Kulman on a number of points theologically, in terms of that brief summary of his idea of the kingdom, that it's been established, D Day has taken place. B day is yet coming, and it's moving toward that. That's what I've been teaching you this morning, Jackly. Christ has come. He's broken into history. He has, in principle declared all this world is mine. And now he's mopping up. Okay, now we know that there are pockets of resistance, and this is what discourages us as Christians. Yesterday, some of you were there at this panel discussion I presented among people who don't believe this kind of stuff at all. I mean, at least they were nice, and they let me present my view, and they didn't, you know, throw me out. But, you know, people in the audience, they couldn't help it, you know, and this always happens when you present this idea of the kingdom. People say, but people are suffering, and Romania, and they're doing all these horrible things are happening in the world. And so it sounds funny to call that pockets of resistance because there's so much of it. But in terms of the military image. Okay, it's a metaphor. Now, in terms of that image, it is true. Christ is landed on shore. D Day has taken place, and now we're mopping up. What we're doing now is we're going through this world and taking care of those pockets of resistance that are out there. And there are a lot of them, and they're pretty powerful. And you would say that the church is the agency that God uses to advance his kingdom of harmony. I want to Be very careful in answering that question. I don't believe it's a church should do political work. And I don't believe that the church is to do all the things that God's people are called to do. I think it's a specific institution with a specific task. But I would say the church is the key, pardon the pun there for keys of the kingdom. But the church is the key to all those other tasks being done because the church must teach God's people His word and must motivate them to go out and do things. I don't think the church, for instance, has got to be the agency that sets up an orphanage, although that would be okay, too. The point is the church should preach that you people ought to be setting up orphanages. They ought to be taking care of, you know, children that are abandoned and so forth. So that's why I wanted to be careful in answering. The church is going to be the quarterback, as it were, calling the players and giving direction that God's people are going to have to go out in the world and do all these things. I just wanted to guard from turning the church into every area of life. The church is not every area of life, but the people heading up those trees. And the church preaches to every area of life and teaches God's people what they need to do. But I don't want to see congregation meetings or elders meetings bogged down and having to make decisions about how the local athletic arena should be used. I mean, that's an extreme example of the failure of people to understand the different spheres of government. Right. And would you just take a moment to kind of address that? Because I think that helps people understand, you know, that there's different spheres of governmental authority that God established. Right. Let me use corporation analogy here for a second. If I'm the CEO of some huge corporation, I have people working under me, but not everybody who works under me has the same authority. Okay? The guy who runs the mail room is not the same as the guy who's head of the sales force or production line or whatever it may be. There are different areas of authority, but they all answer to me, okay? Now, do we all work in the same. If you work in the mail room and I work on the production line and you have authority where you are, and I have authority where I am. Are we working in the same corporation or not? I think some people have the idea, well, I guess we really aren't. I mean, it's kind of silly. We all park in the same parking lot. Going to the same building and go to our respective that we're not the same. Of course we're in the same corporation. It's just we have different callings and different authorities. Now Jesus is the king. You see what I'm trying to tell you today. He's right now the king. And he's king over everything. But you know, he doesn't make everybody have the same task and he doesn't have the same kind of authority for everybody. And there is a. There is first of all the authority of self government, which we often over. Look, we live in a day and age where people think of authority always as something external. You know, my mom and dad, Teacher.