A “kingdom” is a place – – typically with borders, a ruler, subjects, laws, government, culture, resources, responsibilities, benefits, and a fighting force. Such is the Kingdom of God.
Through Christ, God inserted His Kingdom into Satan’s territory on the earth. It is a monarchy with Christ as Head.
Life in God’s Kingdom satisfies our soul hunger in a way that nothing of the world can even get close to. It connects us to the Life of God Himself and is more like Life in the Garden than we have allowed ourselves to imagine.
The KOG Is. . .
The Kingdom of God is spirit in essence and function. It is invisible but is manifested in the Church of Mt. 16:18 which is led by His Spirit through His Body. It functions as a priesthood of believers without a spiritual hierarchy.
The KOG is as likely to be present where two or three meet over coffee as when 1000 gather in a beautiful building with a “church” sign.
Men attempt to capture the KOG by housing it; giving it their private label; creating their own laws, government, and culture; and usurping its leadership to pursue their own agenda.
TODAY
But God is confirming His Kingdom to many today, and only those who draw a bold line between it and today’s institutional church as their resource and authority will do well in the Day to come. Some are already engaged in this challenging transition and many will follow.
Godly leaders will call the church into Kingdom life and identity even if it compromises the advancement of their institution by decentralizing, and by relinquishing much of the authority they have held over the saints.
We become kingdom citizens by believing in Jesus (John 1:12), but to “believe” means more than mental assent. It implies to entrust oneself to the object of belief in a way that leads to action, and we’ll get to that after we look at the meaning of “eternal life.”
Ken Stoltzfus
Kidron, Ohio USA
July 20, 2021
Psalm 139:33-34
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