Jesus taught a lot about the Kingdom of God. They highly anticipated this occurring in their lifetime. After all, they have seen Jesus. They saw Him heal the lame, raise the dead, teach righteousness, and they believed the Kingdom of God was imminent. They had heard of this their whole life from the Old Testament Prophets. The Kingdom was referred to from the beginning and alluded to throughout history. This was true from the moment God told the serpent, the seed of the woman would crush His head. It has weaved its way through the days of Noah, Abraham, Moses, and every generation as time marched on.
Furthermore, the Kingdom was spoken of in 2 Samuel 7, Psalm 2, Isaiah 2, 11, 30, 35, and 65. Also in Jeremiah 23, 31, and 33; Ezekiel 34 and 40-48. Plus the Kingdom of God is mentioned in Daniel 2 and 7. As well as in Hosea 3, Joel 3, Zephaniah 3, and Zechariah 14. That is only to mention a few.
This mystery they did not understand. Jesus, born of a virgin, would die to pay the penalty for our sin. Then He would be raised again, conquering death. Without this there was no redemption for sin. Although, this was also all foretold in scripture. But they did not want to hear that.
Jesus Taught Often and Much About the Kingdom of God
He taught them of the Kingdom of God in many parables in Matthew 13. Also, He taught them to pray, “Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will be done.” I want to dissect these a little here in this section. When Jesus spoke in a parable about the Sower and the seeds, the apostles asked Him why did He spoke in parables? He Answered,
“To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. 12 For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. 13 Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 And in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘You shall keep on listening, but shall not understand;
And you shall keep on looking, but shall not perceive;
15 For the heart of this people has become dull,
With their ears they scarcely hear,
And they have closed their eyes,
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
Hear with their ears,
Understand with their heart, and return,
And I would heal them.’16 But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. 17 For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
Matthew 13 (NASB)
Their hearts were dulled. They did not want to truly hear or see. Their only desire was to experience miracles and gain the comforts of life. They desired the gifts, not the giver of gifts.
The Parable of the Sower Explained
18 “Listen then to the parable of the Sower. 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one sown with seed beside the road. 20 The one sown with seed on the rocky places, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution occurs because of the word, immediately he falls away.
22 And the one sown with seed among the thorns, this is the one who hears the word, and the anxiety of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 23 But the one sown with seed on the good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces Matthew 13 (NASB)
Through this Jesus was already telling his disciples, their labor of spreading the word would be hard. There would be many obstacles and they must not be discharged if it appears the harvest is few.
Parable of the Wheat as It Pertains to the Kingdom of God
24 Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and left. 26 And when the wheat sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also became evident. 27 And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’
28 And he said to them, an enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ 29 But he *said, ‘No; while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of the harvest, I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the weeds and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” Matthew 13
Jesus Explains:
36 Then He left the crowds and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 And He said, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, 38 and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the weeds are the sons of the evil one; 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels.
40 So just as the weeds are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, 42 and they will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine forth like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. The one who has ears, let him hear. Matthew 13 (NASB)
When the shoots are little, it is hard to distinguish the wheat from the weeds. They sometimes look the same. That is true of our churches today. The chaff hidden among the true wheat.
Further Parables Regarding the Kingdom of God
The Mustard Seed
31 He presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a person took and sowed in his field; 32 and this is smaller than all the other seeds, but when it is fully grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.” Matthew 13
One might say “Wow, a seed of truth grows into a magnificent tree.” We misinterpret this as the church spreading good everywhere. After all the first Universities and Hospitals came because of Christian influence. Also, the abolishment of slavery began among the Christians. Then the emancipation spread both in England and the United States. Much good has come from the followers of Jesus and the church He established. But note the warning hidden as well. Birds were considered unclean. Scripture spoke of the birds snatching away the seeds. Therefore, as the church grows, there will be evil influences also that light within her branches.
The same would be true of the leaven. The same would be true of the leaven. Elsewhere in scripture refers to an evil influence. It could slip in and destroy.
The Leaven
33 He spoke another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three Sata of flour until it was all leavened.” Matthew 13
Then in Matthew 19: Jesus Speaks of the Kingdom of God
When speaking of the rich, young ruler came to Jesus asking how to be saved. He had done all the law requires. Or so he thought. But Jesus saw his heart and knew that his wealth was of greater importance than God. Therefore, he had failed to keep the first commandment—to love the Lord Your God above everything else. When he had gone away Jesus commented that it is harder for a rich man to be saved than a camel going through the eye of a needle.
When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” 26 And looking at them, Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19 (NASB)
27 Then Peter responded and said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” 28 And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms on account of My name, will receive many times as much, and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last; and the last, first. Matthew 19 (NASB)
The Kingdom of God on Earth
Did you get that? They did. “The regeneration when the son of Man sits on his throne of glory.” The Kingdom of God on earth will be during the millennial reign of Christ. The apostles all understood that.
To Clear up One Confusing Point
Jesus at one point did say to the Pharisees, the Kingdom of God is in your midst. Here and now. Or some even translated these Greek words as in you—but that is not accurate. The truth is the while Jesus was on earth, to that degree it was already in their midst. He was healing the sick, enacting justice and righteousness—albeit to a smaller degree as to when He takes His throne.
20 Now He was questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, and He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs that can be observed; 21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.” Luke 17: (NASB).
Empowered to Do Kingdom Work—until the Kingdom of God Arrives
Now that I have finished the introduction, let us jump into the lesson for today.
1 The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had given orders by the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom He had chosen. 3 To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of things regarding the kingdom of God. 4 Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
6 So, when they had come together, they began asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time that You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” 7 But He said to them, “It is not for you to know periods of time or appointed times which the Father has set by His own authority; 8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and as far as the remotest part of the earth.”
We Are to Tell Everyone of the Kingdom of God
Not only are we to tell everyone of the Kingdom of God, but we are also to live a life reflecting the glimpses of Glory we have been given. We are for the moment dual citizens who have not yet seen our true home. Born in a foreign land, anticipating and longing to go to our home. We are given glimpses of that home. As to our security it is as though we are there. The Holy Spirit indwells us, guiding us always forward.
Since Jesus has gone to prepare a place for us within His Father’s house, we are to be the beacon of light into this darkened world. Our task is to show the world His love, His joy, and His glory that they by some slim chance might desire Him.
And we, like Paul should be able to say,
9 For you recall, brothers and sisters, our labor and hardship: it was by working night and day so as not to be a burden to any of you, that we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. 10 You are witnesses, and so is God, of how devoutly and rightly and blamelessly we behaved toward you believers; 11 just as you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his own children, 12 so that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.
13 For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of mere men, but as what it really is, the word of God, which also is at work in you who believe. 14 For you, brothers, and sisters, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea, for you also endured the same sufferings at the hands of your own countrymen, even as they did from the Jews, 15 who both killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out. I Thessalonians 10
DO YOU KNOW CHRIST AS YOUR SAVIOR AND LORD? He is our only Hope in Life and Death! Our Joy is found in Him.
Therefore if you don’t know Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord: I urge you today. Go to my page titled How to Be Saved by clicking on this link. There is nothing more important than this; because He is the way, the truth and the life. Therefore, I urge you to seek Him today.
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DISCLOSURES
©Effie Darlene Barba, 2023Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. Furthermore, I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned except for my own books. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising
CreditsNew King James Version (NKJV)Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.New American Standard Bible (NASB)New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.New English Translation (NET)NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.
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