Gods Kingdom
(Rev 11:14-19)
God saved those who were ready for His grace through the two witnesss ministry and showed His Kingdom before pouring the seventh woes on earth. World history and our life are on their way to the Last Day. In order to enter the kingdom of God, we are to stand in the court of Gods judgment. But can we reach the kingdom without judgment? What is Gods kingdom like?
1. It is the earthly kingdom becoming the kingdom of the Christ. The seventh trumpet sound signifies the completion of Gods kingdom. The world is full of fleeting things the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does. Yet it can be turned into Christs kingdom when it is ruled by the Lord. Christs reign comes when we are ready to accept his ruling and be buried in our circumstances as Jesus was. The new heaven and earth is where Gods people live, believe, and rejoice in Him. We become the real citizen of the heavenly kingdom through our constant earthly rehearsals of living in it even though nothing is changed in our circumstances. In the episode of Luke 11 about the man possessed by the seven spirits after cleansing the first evil spirits rest place in him, Jesus points out our decorative religious life without self-denial, mediation on the Word, and prayer. In Luke 13, he calls the woman who had been bent over because of her 18-year spiritual infirmity 'a daughter of Abraham.' Thus one person of spiritual infirmity can make his whole family godly. Gods kingdom comes into existence along with our constant efforts to forgive others and endure the trials of our life.
2. It is the kingdom of giving thanks. We are called to be grateful for everything. We can truly give thanks to God by accepting that the almighty Lord has come into our life and He is the only one who finishes all our sufferings. Those who dont thank God are unable to know His kingdom. The elder brother of prodigal son in Luke 15, who worked hard, wasnt pleased when his brother returned home and he kept grumbling because he was only interested in property. The true prodigal son was the elder brother, totally blind to himself. Those who arent ruled by Christ can not make thankful confession to God. Yet the 18-year spiritual infirmity of our daughter leads us to the mind-set of spontaneous thanksgiving. We all have our own spiritual infirmity, the facilitator of our thanksgiving heart, which works with our changed values.
3. It is the kingdom established through the last judgment. The kingdom of our spirit can not be established without the fall of our flesh. It cant be built in us without our last judgment situation. The last judgment puts an end to the kingdom of the world while completing the kingdom of God. All men, whether good or evil will rise from death to be judged by God. Hell is where our human body undergoes eternal suffering in an unquenchable fire without being burnt. Gods saving us from this hell is the biggest prize that He gives us. Revelation is not a record of Johns direct dictation from God but a divine meditation on the Old Testament. It has the same theme of Gods wrath and judgment against those who reject the Messiah as that of Psalm 2. The intentional misinterpretation of the Revelation focusing on literal calculation of the day is nothing but an evil trick of heresy.
4. It is the kingdom where the ark of the covenant is seen and the Word is fulfilled. The fulfillment of the covenant comes to us as Gods powerful word, but it comes to evil people as judgment like flashes of lightning and peals of thunder. QTin shows us a similar testimony to that of Gods ark. A deacon who had divorced his unfaithful wife because of her affairs confessed that he had idolized his wife over the Lord and he tried to disguise himself as the best husband in the world. Another deacon who had an operation because of his stomach cancer confessed that his suffering was used as a healing herb for many people suffering from the same infirmity and this ministry was a way of reviving himself as well as others. Repenting of our sins through the Word is our spiritual resurrection. Jesus resurrection is a historical fact and his kingdom is the nation to come as he often said in his public life. If we live out every single day of our life as our resurrection day, we will be able to restore our earthly life and our hope for the heavenly kingdom.
Then Gods temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant (Rev 11:19a).
