Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Has anyone ever noticed that Jesus spoke time and time again about the Kingdom of God? Some think He was speaking of dying and going to heaven, when all the while it was the opposite! Pray for the Kingdom to COME HERE, and seek the Kingdom before everything else.

Meanwhile, most usually tell the world about new birth and Spirit infilling, etc. But when we read where that is mentioned in the Bible, it was never the public message of Jesus, but what He said to disciples apart from the public. He is recorded ONE TIME speaking about new birth, and that was in private, about 2am to one person who was seeing Him secretly. He did not even publicize the cross, but told that to his disciples in private. What He DID speak publicly was KINGDOM KINGDOM KINGDOM.

He then went aside from the public and told the disciples, "Men, I am under pressure since I am going to die on a cross. But I will rise again the third day."

The last verse in the book of Acts also shows Paul the apostle locked up in house arrest ministering to all who came to him. And notice how it reads about what he ministered.

Acts 28:31 KJV Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.

He PREACHED KINGDOM, but TAUGHT JESUS.

Even Peter on the D.O.P. heard the questions of people regarding the Spirit before he taught CROSS.


It seems the Lord and apostles emphasized KINGDOM in public ministry far more than we've ever heard it today.

Comments?

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

AMEN. Luke 16:16, Jesus said; The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Right! :thumbsup!

Even Jesus preached KINGDOM for 40 days after He resurrected!

It's like KINGDOM is hardly even understood, let alone PREACHED.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Brother Mike, We know that the Jehovah Witness organization teaches a kingdom message and theirs is one were they are the chosen and they will over come the earth with the things they are teaching as truth.
Now I don't believe in their particular doctrine but. Would it be safe to say, there is the kingdom of God which is in heaven, the kingdom of God which is established by him in the earth, and also the kingdom of Christ which is to be when Jesus returns.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

I certainly disagree with JW Kingdom teaching, too. Amen. I personally do not distinguish between "Kingdom of Heaven" and "Kingdom of God", since the two terms are used synonymously in one and the same instance, and between gospels using the same stories. The distinction in KINGDOM OF GOD and KINGDOM OF HEAVEN seems to be purely a dispensational distinction, not really founded in scripture.

Watch this:

Matthew 19:23-24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. (24) And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

The way I see it is that The Kingdom of Heaven/God is identically one and the same entity, and is called "of Heaven" because what is in Heaven is meant to likewise be in earth. Mirrored. I think that is what is meant by "thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven" right after we pray for the Kingdom of the Father in Heaven to come.

I also personally see no difference in what is here now as the Kingdom and what will be after Jesus comes, except for it being exponentially greater when he comes than it is now.

Kingdom of Heaven, Kingdom of God, or whatever one wants to call it, is a NOW thing that is a restored garden situation where Adam had dominion over earth.

Neither do I accept KINGDOM NOW teaching which believes Jesus comes after we take over the governments of the world. lol

It seems JW Kingdom and KINGDOM NOW teachings have abused the true KINGDOM message about the KINGDOM in the here and now where we are presently kings and priests.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

John the Baptist preached "the kingdom of heaven (or kingdom of God) is at hand" (Matthew 3:1-2)

After John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God (Mark 1:14) and saying, "The kingdom of God is at hand..."

In Luke 17:21 Jesus said, "The kingdom of God is within/among you." I know there are differences of opinion as to what that word "within" means. Some think it means the Kingdom is something "inner" or inside of a person. In my opinion, Jesus was looking at that group of people, realizing that some of them were part of the kingdom and some were not and said, "The Kingdom is within this crowd" or "Some in this crowd are citizens of the Kingdom of God." in other words the Kingdom was within that crowd or among that crowd.

In Acts chapter 8 when persecution drove some from Jerusalem, Philip went to Samaria and "preached Christ unto them" (Acts 8:5). In verse 12 it says he preached "the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ."

In Acts 14:22 it says that Paul visited churches, confirmingstrengthening them and telling them that "we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God." This was probably in the summer of AD 47.

In Acts 19 (October AD 53) Paul went to Ephesus and in the synagogue spoke for 3 months "concerning the kingdom of God" (Acts 19:8). In chapter 20 he met with the elders/shepherds/overseers of the "Church of God" in Ephesus and said that he had preached "the kingdom of f God" among them (verse 25). This was probably in the spring of AD 57.

The Book of Acts closes out with Paul in prison in Rome at the end of AD 61 and Luke the historian says that he (Paul) dwelt 2 years in a hired house (house arrest?) preaching the
kingdom of God (Acts 28:30-31)

And John closes out the New Testament in exile on the island of Patmos and speaks about being a companion in tribulation and in the kingdom (Rev 1:9)

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

In my opinion,
--the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven are synonymous terms.
--the kingdom of God is made up of those who have submitted themselves to the Lord and made Him Sovereign in their lives
--the church and the kingdom are the same thing but are pictured or described differently

But, the kingdom of Heaven/God can also be used more loosely to include the visible church/kingdom which would include both professors and possessors.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

I agree.

And to add to it, I would say it is the Garden position of dominion restored through the church.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

I like this thread.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

The Kingdom of Heaven is not meat and drink but peace and joy and righteousness in the Holy Ghost,so how can one be apart of The Kingdom of God if they aren't filled with The Holy Ghost ?

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

I would like to add something here but I can't. These meat heads have already said all the good stuff. There's nothing left of any appreciable significance that I could add here.

Thanks guys. You didn't even leave me a bone to add to the pile.

:D

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Come on and add something.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

OK...

For the Kingdom of God is not meat and drink but righteousness, peace and joy in THE HOLY GHOST....got it???? HOOOOOOOOlllyyy Ghoooost. The tongue talking, devil chasing, sick healing, hell shaking, tumor remover, blind eye opening, prison bar breaking, captive freeing, chain breaking, darkness removing, heaven loving, Jesus exalted, kind of old fashioned, sin destroying HOOOOOOLLLY GHOOOST!!!!!!

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Amen.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

The order in Romans 14:17 in the King James Bible is
1. righteousness
2. peace
3. joy in the Holy Ghost.

I think that is the correct order.
1. first we are justified or made righteous or receive the imputed righteousness of Christ by faith
2. Then we have peace with God
3. That of course results in joy

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Man alive!

Wouldn't you have loved to have been with him during that 40 days of INTENSIFIED training after his resurrection?

They (his disciples) saw him crucified, pierced with spikes, thorns and a spear. They saw his dead body removed from the cross. They saw him laid in a tomb, a dead man. They saw it. They witnessed it. It was indisputable. He was dead as any man can be.

Then, they saw him alive just three days later. Something was different. He had no blood in his body. He had fresh nail scars in his hands, fresh wounds from thorns on his head, fresh spear wound in his side....just three days later. Can you imagine how startled they were?

Do you think by now they were ready for some very INTENSIFIED training and indoctrination concerning the Kingdom of God. Jesus used the whole 40 days to pour it into them. I would have love to have been there. With the immortality of the body of Jesus he had no need of sleep or rest. I believe that I could have stayed awake with him for the whole 40 days. I would have loved to latched onto every word that he spoke. Only eternity will reveal the great mysteries that he spoke to his Apostles during that most eventful 40 days as he spoke those things concerning the Kingdom of God.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

yeppers, that would have been neat.

I wonder how far along they were in the teaching sessions when Peter decided to go fishing (ref John chapter 21) and some of the others went with him.

Also, after spending those 40 days with them they still had some confusion on how or when He was going to restore the kingdom to Israel (ref Acts chapter 1)

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Sam,

You are on top of it, my friend.

In John 21, vs 3 the disciples were in a state of disbelief, knowing not what to think about Jesus being just recently raised from the dead. In Act 1 when he asked about restoring the kingdom to Israel, it came to pass after they received the Holy Ghost, just as Jesus said, all things whatsoever he told them was brought to their remembrance and was instructed by the Holy Ghost concerning those things which he had taught them.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Excellent posts my friends.

Here is a verse..

The kingdom of God suffereth violence and the violent take it by force.. lol

There is power to being a child of Jesus!

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Brother Mike that was very good appreciate it. It's strange that a lot of believers don't understand that. I have another question. In this kingdom message and in relation to what Adam had in the Garden with the Lord, what authority and power do we have as children of the kingdom in this present evil world. I guess I'm referring to, the devil, mankind in his wicked lost condition, sickness, trouble, victories, etc.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

:woohoo

I always think of how Israel had 40 days to search out the promised land before they entered it. Jesus preached forty days of the KINGDOM before they entered in on the day of Pentecost! And they crossed the chilly Jordan as with the Ark of the Covenant breaching the way! The ark with the blood of atonement on top of it, signifying the Throne of Jesus Christ where He sat after having shed his blood! Peter mentioned that very thing on the day of Pentecost! Jesus sat down at the throne and made the great Baptism of the Holy available!

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

I believe we have full and complete power over these things, and it is just our limited thinking due to lack of hearing the Kingdom message that causes us to have little faith to believe for these things.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

Amen. Jesus is the door and the door gets us into His theme of preaching... the KINGDOM. He is the door to the sheepfold, the Kingdom. And if all we focus on is the doorway, which is an awesome doorway, then we will lack understanding of the Kingdom itself. And I think this has been the problem. Jesus did not tell us to kiss his feet and tell him how nice he is forevermore. He said He is the door, and there is no other way through, but where the door leads us into is what he preached about more than anything else -- THE KINGDOM! We stopped at the door and stayed there for 2000 years!

No wonder people think heaven is just an eternity of sitting on clouds playing harps. Here is God's purpose for man... (and it is more than playing harps on clouds):

Genesis 1:26 KJV And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

Re: Kingdom Emphasis of Jesus
 

I am not affiliated with the ICOF (International Circle of Faith) which is made up of Apostolics and Pentecostals world wide. Two places where you can find out about them are
http://www.icof.net/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interna...ircle_of_Faith
I do receive emails from them. Today I received an email containing teaching on this subject.

Here is what was presented:

9 "This, then, is how you should pray: "'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:9-10) Part 8
Last week we learned that God's 'will' is a progressive will, the fulfillment of which is a process rather than an event.

The whole pattern of the prayer, thus far, is one of progression, as reinforced in Corinthians.....

18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18)

.....or as the King James more literally puts it, from glory to glory.

What refers to us individually applies to the kingdom also, for we know that the kingdom is in us.

Let's now have a look at the two following words, be done.

These two words describe the manner of the link between heaven and earth.

The Greek word translated as 'be done' is ginomai. Its meanings include- to cause to be, to become or come into being, be brought (to pass), be fulfilled. From this word we get the "gen" in the English word generate.

We are literally calling out for the spiritual 'gen'esis of heaven to be established in the natural realm of the earth! This is not a nice thing to say in a prayer, nor is it just wishful thinking. It is an activating prayer that calls this transfer into being, one that causes it to happen! It is a such powerful prayer - even when we don't realize it!

To repeat, as we pray, Your will be done, our declaration reaches out into the spiritual realm and serves as a catalyst for His will to be 'gen'erated, a spiritual 'gen'esis to be established in earth, here in the natural realm. It is much more than just wishful thinking! It is a creative genesis! We are literally calling heaven down to earth!

Can we understand the implications? Earth is not simply a place of preparation for heaven, as is commonly taught! Heaven is indeed to be established upon earth through us! And at our request, through this prayer - even though we have not really understood what we have been praying!

What a change is required in our thinking - and in our living! Earth is not just a temporary place of habitation before we escape to heaven, but rather, is the place where God is progressively establishing His kingdom, through you, and through me!

Sorry about all the explanation marks, but I am excited to be a small part of God's kingdom establishment plan! I hope you are too!

Lord, may your will be done in and through me!

What a responsibility! What a privilege! What a motivation for living a holy and righteous life - now! As Jesus did!

14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. (Acts 3:14)

And, as Jesus did, we are to do so too.......

15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." (1 Peter 1:15)

....... as we ready ourselves for the wedding of the Lamb.

6 Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: "Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. 7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. 8 Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) (Revelation 19:6-8)

Are we making ourselves ready?

(To be continued next week.)

PS: I understand that some of these concepts may be very different to you but I just ask you to read for the next few weeks, without rejecting them out of hand. Please pray about it also. Thanks. David.