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At the beginning of this series of messages we talked about the importance of concepts in order to communicate our ideas.
Note that God the Creator chose the concept of a Kingdom to communicate His purpose, will and plan for mankind and all the earth. The message of the Bible is primarily about a Kingdom. If we do not understand kingdoms, it is impossible for us to understand the Bible and its message.
Over the past 200 years the true concept of kingdom has been lost, especially since the advent of modern governments. Those new governments they have been built on new concepts of governing, for example, democracy, socialism, communism, tyrannies, dictatorships and so on. Through out the history many kingdoms have dark histories of atrocities and oppression. The original concept of kingdom as introduce by God Himself, stands alone as the perfect prototype of government built on righteous judgment. All the kingdoms of the earth were mere attempts to imitate this perfect Kingdom of God.
The ignorance concerning kingdom and the arise of religion they converted the Kingdom of God into a moral belief system.
Many religions they advocate the separation of religion and state and see the two as opposing entities with no common relationship, but the truth is Kingdom is a state government with all the characteristics of a state.
Jesus came to earth to restore what Adam lost, and Jesus brought a kingdom message. Mathew 3:2 – "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." Said John the Baptist.
Mathew 4:17 – “From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near”
Jesus came to reestablish the government of God on earth and to reinstate His earthly kings to their place of dominion.
Let’s have a look at what a Kingdom is, in order to better understand the message of Jesus.
1.1 – What is a Kingdom?
God Himself placed the concept of kingdom in the heart of man. Despite the fact that there were many types of kingdoms throughout the history, there are common characteristics to all kingdoms. Kingdoms have:
· A King and Lord – a sovereign, a ruler
· A Territory – a domain
· A Constitution – a royal covenant
· Citizens – community of subjects
· Law – acceptable principles
· Privileges – rights and benefits
· A Code of Ethics – acceptable lifestyle and conduct
· An Army – security
· A Commonwealth – economic security
· A Social Culture – protocol and procedures
THE KING – is the embodiment of the kingdom, representing its glory and nature. Authority comes from the King and his word is supreme.
THE TERRITORY – is the domain over which the king exercises total authority. The territory, its people, its resources are all property of the king. The king by right owns all, the kings is considered lord over all.
Psalm 24:1 – “The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it”
THE CONSTITUTION – is the covenant of a king with his citizens and expresses the mind and will of the king for the kingdom. Let’s say that the constitution is the documented words of the king. The Bible contains the constitution of the Kingdom of God or in other words contains God’s will and mind for His citizens.
THE CITIZENS – is the people that live under the rule of the king. The benefits and privileges of a kingdom are only accessible to citizens. The king is obligated to care and protect for all his citizens.
THE LAW – constitutes the principles established by the king, by which his kingdom will function and be administered. The laws of a kingdom are to be obeyed by all. Violations of kingdom law interrupts the favorable position with the king. The laws in a kingdom cannot be changed by the citizens.
THE PRIVILEGES – are the benefits that the king gives to his faithful citizens. In a kingdom, the king is personally responsible for you and all your needs. Because the king owns everything within the kingdom, he can give to any citizen any or all of his wealth as he desires.
CODE OF ETHICS – is the conduct of the citizens in the kingdom and their representation of the kingdom. This code includes moral standards, social relationships, personal conduct, attitude, manner of life.
THE ARMY- is the kingdom’s system of securing its territory and protecting its citizens.
A COMMONWEALTH – is the economic system of a kingdom which guarantees each citizen equal access to financial security. In a kingdom the word commonwealth is used because the king’s desire is that all his citizens share an benefit from wealth of the kingdom. The kingdom’s glory is in the happiness and health of its citizens.
Look to what the King of the Kingdom of God said, Jesus:
“Then turning to his disciples, Jesus said, "So I tell you, don't worry about everyday life--whether you have enough food to eat or clothes to wear. 23For life consists of far more than food and clothing. 24Look at the ravens. They don't need to plant or harvest or put food in barns because God feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than any birds!” Luke 12:22-24
And the King Jesus He keeps saying to the citizens of the Kingdom:
“He will give you all you need from day to day if you make the Kingdom of God your primary concern. So don't be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.” Luke 12:31-32
THE SOCIAL CULTURE is the environment created by the life manners of the King and his citizens. Is the nature of the King expressed through the lifestyle of his citizens.
I’m going to give you an example. In Mathew 5:21-22 the Lord Jesus said:
“You have heard that it was said… But I say to you…”
This kingdom culture is supposed to be evident in our daily lives, activities through out an intimate relationship with the King.
1.2 - Kingdom Components
All kingdoms have different components necessary for them to function. All kingdoms, including the Kingdom of God have:
· A Health program (Health Ministry) – divine healing
· An Education program (Education Ministry) – Teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit
· A Taxation system (Revenue and Taxation) – Tithing
· A Central Communication system – Gifts of the Spirit
· A Diplomatic Corps – Ambassadors of Christ
· A System of Administration (Internal Affairs Ministry) – the Ministration of Spirit through the Church
· An Economy system – a system of Giving and Receiving or we can say in other words, a seed time and a harvest time)
What it is the biggest difference between the Kingdom of God and others kingdoms? It is the concept that in the Kingdom of God all its citizens are related to the Real Family and are kings themselves.
1.3 – Misunderstanding the Message and the Method
The loss of heaven’s Kingdom on earth through Adam’s disobedience and the loss of the right to be an ambassador of the Kingdom of heaven on earth, demanded restoration. Required an heavenly intervention, which became known as the redemptive work of God, and the goal was the recovery and reestablishment of the Kingdom of heaven on earth.
The plan was to return the old Adam, also known as the first Adam to his position of ruler of the earthly domain/kingdom, through the coming of the Messiah to redeem, restore an reconnect man back to heaven’s government. We have the promise in Gen. 3:15.
By divine appointment God chose an obedient man named Abraham to whom the promise was given of the coming of the Kingdom seed to redeem and restore all the nations, all mankind.
Gen. 21:2-3 “I'll make you a great nation and bless you. I'll make you famous; you'll be a blessing. I'll bless those who bless you; those who curse you I'll curse. All the families of the Earth will be blessed through you."
If we study the promise we will find that the promise was made to the nations through Abraham. This promise was the message that every prophet should carry and proclaim to the world, that’s the principal responsibility of the prophets, proclaim the coming messianic king who would restore the Kingdom our father Adam lost.
Abraham had a son of promise, Isaac. Isaac had two sons named Jacob and Esau. Jacob was chosen by God to be the line for the seed of the messiah king and his name was changed by God from Jacob to Israel. Israel had 12 sons who became known as the 12 tribes of Israel or in other words we can say they became the nation of Israel.
The Israelites were reminded of the promise from generation to generation, that the Messiah King, and by the way Messiah means the “Anointed One” or “The Prince”, would come and through Him all the nations of the earth would be blessed. However, they misunderstood the promise and made themselves the object of promise rather than the channel. The promise of God it wasn’t just for the Israelites but for the all mankind. That’s why in John we read:
“For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
“These prophets, along with the covenant God made with your ancestors, are your family tree. God's covenant-word to Abraham provides the text: "By your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed.” Act. 3:25
They developed a self-centered religion that condemned the world they were appointed to deliver the Redeemer to, or in other words, to promote a way that God can restore the Kingdom of God on earth.
This error has left scars throughout history until today. This error caused the development of many other religions. Over the past 3.000 or 4.000 years the message of the Kingdom was gradually buried by the religion.
Adapted from the book “Rediscovering the Kingdom” from Dr. Myles Munroe
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