Biblical Evidence for the Kingdom
of God
The Bible is essentially a narrative that chronicles the
relationship between mankind and God. The Doctrine of God tells us that the
Bible is the special revelation of God to man and the reality is that the
Kingdom of God is part of what God is revealing about Himself. God has revealed
His rule in both the Old Testament and New Testament. As the Bible is
interpreted an understanding of God’s vast influence over all things is made
evident.
The
Old Testament Kingdom
The Kingdom of God is not referenced as
such in any Old Testament text.[1]
The fact that the Israelites understood Yahweh as king has been presented
earlier and the evidence is that the Old Testament refers to God as King
forty-one times.[2]
Therefore, even without an announcement of the Kingdom of God, there appears to
be a form of Kingdom to examine in the Old Testament. Some extrapolations of
the Kingdom of God begin as early as the Garden of Eden and God’s relationship
to Adam and Eve. While those views may have some merit, God’s relationship to
Abraham sets the course for what is to become the physical and possibly
spiritual kingdom realities.
Promise
to Abraham
A kingdom is understood to have several criteria which
are a ruler, a realm and an active reign.[3]
The call to Abram to leave his homeland established these three criteria in a
personal way that was not previously seen in Scripture. The Israelites
continually pointed back to Abraham as their founding father.[4]
The call from God contained two promises to Abraham which are a land to poses
and a heritage (Gen 17:1-8).
God
has set Himself up as a ruler with a realm and an active reign with Abraham
acting out as the primary citizen. God elects the land of Canaan to serve as
the physical realm for His Kingdom which will include a takeover (v. 8). God
also promises descendants who will be kings and nations with the declaration
that His promise will always be kept (v. 6-7).
Abraham believed God and the Old Testament details the story of his
descendants till they become the Israelite nation with a King. The Kingdom of
God in physical form on earth is established and with another promise the
extent of this kingdom is understood.
Promise
to King David
The Israelite nation is firmly established in a portion
of the Land that has been promised to Abraham when David becomes king. David is
much like Abraham in that he was selected by God to fulfill a purpose in the
larger Kingdom of God. The promise to David is similar in extent to Abraham’s
promise but has some significant differences. God promises David a kingdom and
a nation for all time (2 Sam 7:11-17). Where God gave Abraham numerous
descendants, He dictates a national identity for David’s offspring that will
last forever (v. 16). Again, God has provided the three criteria for His
Kingdom, an heir, a kingdom and active reign. The Kingdom of God is established
and extended in the Old Testament. The argument could be that this is not the
Kingdom of God but a kingdom set up by God. However, the nature of the kingdom
set up by God proves His authority and Kingship.
Nature
of the Old Testament Kingdom
The kingdom and nation that God established in the Old
Testament was the Kingdom of God because they were under His jurisdiction. The
promises to Abraham were accompanied by conditional clauses of the covenant to
be fulfilled and an eternity clause given to David which was not conditional. This firmly
showcases God’s sovereignty over the throne of David and the descendants of
Abraham.
The
clause to Abraham was obedience accompanied by an identifying mark (Gen 17:
9-11). If the mark was not observed by God then the person could not be
considered one of God’s people. The
conditions allowed for the benefits of the covenant or promise to be conferred
which was the land and heritage, now known to be of faith and descendant. The
nature of the Kingdom of God is that God has established his authority over the
continuity of the Israelite people.
The
final aspect that must be considered for the nature of the Kingdom of God in
the Old Testament is that God dwelt among His People. God established His
worship through the tabernacle of Moses and the temple in Jerusalem. The presence of God on earth established the Kingdom of God. The
presences of the temple and God’s presence represents a higher authority than
the throne of David or Solomon, who built the temple.[5]
The Temple was destroyed and rebuilt but continued to represent the Kingdom of God until
the 1st century. However, in the New Testament there is a shift in the representation of the Kingdom of God on earth and how it is manifest to God’s people.
The
New Testament Kingdom
The New Testament was written over a short time frame and covers only a few years, respectively, from 4 B.C. till about 90 A. D. That period of time saw a complete
change in the relationship between God and man. The nation and temple that
evidenced the Kingdom of God were no longer present after 70 A.D. Did the
Kingdom of God cease to exist? The writers of the New Testament do not give
that conclusion, for in the New Testament there are multiple explanations of
the Kingdom of God. The primary speakers on the Kingdom of God were Jesus Christ and
the Apostle Paul.
The
Kingdom According to Christ
The evidence of the Kingdom of God in Christ’s teachings
and life are many. He told parables about the Kingdom, claimed its very
presence, and proclaimed His kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36). The
idea that can be gathered from Christ is that the Kingdom of God was active
during His life on earth.[6]
However, Christ was not conforming to the role of messiah that the Jewish
people were looking for which was a national leader to overthrow the oppressors.
Even John the Baptist was unsure of Christ’s identity because he was looking
for a Jewish messiah that came from the vengeance of God.[7]
The Kingdom of God though was not born out of John’s ministry of repentance but
Jesus’ ministry; which was the sovereign acts of God being expressed through
healings, preaching and casting out demons.[8]
Jesus Christ was the expression of the Kingdom of God in
the New Testament era. Jesus instructed His disciples to continue in His ways
after He ascended and that they would continue on when the Holy Spirit came
upon them (Acts 1:8). Where the Old Testament Kingdom was a localization or
national presence, The New Testament Kingdom is revealed to be where Christ’s
disciples are. This Kingdom of God is
continued in the teachings of the Apostle Paul with some more emphasis on experiencing
and inheriting the Kingdom.
The
Kingdom According to the Apostle Paul
The themes of the Kingdom of God according to the Apostle
Paul revolve around the ideas of righteousness, peace and joy and power. Paul
does not talk about the Kingdom of God as much as Christ did and often when he
does mention it there is an eschatological implication.[9]
However, the theme of righteousness, peace and joy should be understood to
incorporate both an eschatological and present meaning for the believer.[10]
The
believer is, by the power of the Holy Spirit, able to experience righteousness,
peace and joy which are aspects of the Kingdom of God now.[11] Effectively
this means that the Kingdom of God is evidenced in the life of a believer and is
present on earth currently. Paul expresses that these three aspects of the Kingdom
are experienced through the Holy Spirit.
Paul also states that the Kingdom of God is a Kingdom of
Power (1 Cor 4:20). The context of this statement compares two methods of
expression which are words or power. The emphasis of power for Paul almost
always is derived from an experience with the Holy Spirit. All the gifts of the
Spirit and fruit of the Spirit are extensions of His personal work on the
Earth. A kingdom of power should be understood to represent a Kingdom of God
through the Holy Spirit. This understanding points to the very nature of the
New Testament Kingdom of God.
The
Nature of the New Testament Kingdom
The nature of the Kingdom of God in the New Testament is
a constant reality in the lives of believers. If the Holy Spirit is the source
of the Kingdom of God through His activity on earth, than everything that a
believer does through the power of the Holy Spirit is experiencing the Kingdom
of God. The Holy Spirit was sent as a comforter who will interact with the
world concerning righteousness (John 16:6-8). The interaction with the world is the
inheritance that Paul talks about in his vice lists.
The Kingdom of God can be inherited, according to Paul,
through a life evidenced by kingdom influence. While the views on how the
inheritance is merited, earned or kept often differ and question the stability
of salvation, the present experience of the Kingdom of God is not ruled out. One view expresses that God has made believers
a heritage like the Israelites with benefits that the believer receives from
God.[12]
Paul even addresses our interaction with the Holy Spirit as a beginning of our
inheritance in Ephesians.[13] The
nature of the Kingdom of God may not be localized as it was but the experience
of the presence of God is equally available or more so than in the Old
Testament Kingdom experience.
I hope you enjoyed this bit on the Biblical evidences for the constant reality of the Kingdom of God. The next post will look at the Modern Application of Kingdom doctrines. How we interact with God's kingdom and live in it. I believe this is an exciting topic and relevant to the church today. If you like what you read share it with someone, it may make their day ;)
[1] Murray, Jesus and the Kingdom
of God, 17.
[5] Selman, Martin J. 1989.
"The kingdom of God in the Old Testament." Tyndale Bulletin 40,
no. 2: 161-183. 170.
[6] Murray, Jesus and the Kingdom
of God, 144.
[8] Ibid, 81.
[9] Thomas
R. Schreiner, Romans (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic,
1998), 740.
[10] Ibid., 741.
[12] López, René. "A study of Pauline passages on inheriting the
kingdom." Bibliotheca Sacra 168,
no. 672 (October 1, 2011): 443-459. 449.
No comments:
Post a Comment