Search
Scripture Reading: Ezek. 28:11-19; Isa. 14:12-20; Rev. 12:3-4; Rom. 14:17; 1 Cor. 3:9, 3:13-15; 5:1-5; 6:6-7, 9-10; Matt. 24:38-51; 25:1-30
What is the real meaning of the kingdom? A kingdom is a rule, a government; and the kingdom of God simply means the rule and government of God. From eternity to eternity God is the King, the sovereign almighty Ruler of the whole universe. The entire universe from eternity to eternity is the kingdom of God. According to Ezekiel 28:11-19 and Isaiah 14:12-20, one of the archangels, Lucifer, rebelled against God, and a number of the angels followed him in his rebellion (Rev. 12:3-4). After the creation of man, Lucifer, or Satan, came to induce man to rebel also. Due to these two rebellions — that of Satan with his angels and that of man — the ruling and government of God has been greatly interrupted, tested, and attacked. Instead of being under the rule and control of God, the earth has come under the rule and control of Satan with fallen man. This is the earthly kingdom. By the time the Lord Jesus came to the earth at His incarnation, nearly the whole earth was the kingdom of the earth, controlled by Satan with man. The Lord Jesus came to work out God’s intention of bringing His kingdom into this world. God’s intention is to have the earth controlled by the heavens. For this reason He needs to bring His kingdom to the earth. The whole earth needs to be brought under a heavenly rule and government. The Lord Jesus came to bring the earth under the rule of the kingdom of the heavens.
This is why John the Baptist cried, “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near” (Matt. 3:2). Men needed to repent and to come under the heavenly rule. When the Lord Jesus came with the kingdom of the heavens, He was rejected by the Jewish people, so He turned to the Gentiles and established His church among the Gentiles. Within the church He brought all things under the rule and government of the heavens. In the church there is the heavenly rule and government, and there is the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. During the period of the church age, however, the kingdom of the heavens, the heavenly rule, is not manifested in an open way. Rather, it is a heavenly rule in a very mysterious and hidden way. Although it is not yet manifested, the reality of the heavenly rule is present. In the church at least some of the Christians are under the ruling of the heavens. With them there is the reality of the kingdom of the heavens.
When the Lord Jesus comes back, He will subdue the whole world, and the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord. At that time the kingdom of the heavens will be manifested in an open way (Rev. 11:15). The kingdom of the heavens will become the ruling power and will govern in a manifested, open way, not in a mysterious and hidden way. Now the kingdom of the heavens rules within the church in a hidden, mysterious way, but at that time the kingdom of the heavens will be fully manifested. The kingdom of the heavens simply means the heavenly rule and government. If you are in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, you are under the rule of the heavens.
When the Lord Jesus turned the kingdom of the heavens to the church, He brought a group of people out of the world to be under the heavenly rule. Through regeneration all the Christians have been brought into the kingdom of the heavens. This means that all Christians by their regeneration have been brought under the rule of the heavens. This is a marvelous beginning, but after such a good beginning through regeneration, not many are willing to be ruled by the heavens. Therefore, they are regenerated and saved by the Lord, yet they are defeated. They had a good beginning, but they did not have a good continuation. They were brought into the kingdom by their new birth, but they did not continue practically in the kingdom by being willing to be ruled by the heavens. Within the church the true believers have been regenerated and brought into the kingdom of God. But among these true believers many are defeated. Only a small number are victorious and overcoming. The overcomers are the ones who are willing to be under the rule of the kingdom of the heavens. They are willing to live and walk and do things according to the teachings of the Lord concerning the reality of the kingdom in Matthew 5—7. They are sanctified, they are victorious over sin, self, the flesh, and the world, and they are in the process of being transformed.
Let me cite some examples to help you understand the meaning of being under the rule of the heavens. In a university there are many students who are unsaved; there are other students who are regenerated, saved Christians, but who are not victorious and overcoming. Rather, they are defeated. Only a small number of the Christians are victorious and overcoming. Because most of the students may be naughty, they need to be controlled by the administration of the school. If, however, you are a Christian under the rule of the kingdom of the heavens, you should not need the control of the administration of the school. If the rules say that the lights must be off by 10:30 P.M., you do not need someone to come by and enforce this rule. The unbelievers and the defeated Christians may even cover the light and continue to study until two o’clock in the morning. If you did such a thing and you were under the rule of the kingdom of the heavens, you would surely repent and go to the school administration, apologizing and offering to pay for the electricity. If you are under the rule of the kingdom of the heavens, there is no need for anyone to control you. If we need policemen to control us, it means we are defeated Christians. We must be those heavenly people who are under a heavenly ruling and a heavenly government. We should have no need of any other kind of rule.
Even cultured, educated ladies and gentlemen will sometimes steal something when they have an opportunity. This means they are simply under the control of this earth; they are not under the rule of the heavens. If the police were removed from any major city, what confusion and chaos would result! This is because people today are under the control of the earth and the earthly government and not under the rule of the kingdom of the heavens.
As the heavenly people, we must be under the heavenly rule, under the kingdom of the heavens. This is the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. God’s intention in regenerating us is to bring us under His heavenly rule. But many of us, after being regenerated, are not willing to be ruled by the heavens. We are in the church, but we are not in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens.
The kingdom of the heavens belongs to those who are poor in spirit, who are pure in heart, who are meek, whose righteousness exceeds that of the Pharisees, and who do the will of God. Whoever lives in such a way is in the kingdom of the heavens, and the kingdom of the heavens is theirs. The Word does not say theirs will be but theirs is (Matt. 5:3). When we are poor in spirit and pure in heart, the kingdom is ours. This means we are in the kingdom now, and we are under the ruling of the kingdom of the heavens now.
In Romans 14:17 the apostle Paul tells us that the kingdom of God is “righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Righteousness refers to your relationship with others. As to yourself you must be righteous. With others you must be peaceful. With God you must be joyful. If you are not joyful before God and with God, that means you are wrong. Our daily living must match Romans 14:17.
In our meeting place in Taiwan we used to have benches, not chairs. Sometimes when we expected that not many people would come to the meetings, we announced that every bench would be for four persons. When more people were expected to come to the meetings, we announced that each bench would be for five persons. Some of the brothers and sisters would not be righteous to share their seat with another brother or sister. If you are a Christian under the rule of the heavens, in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, you surely would not occupy another person’s seat. You would sacrifice a little part of your seat to others. To fail in this matter shows that you are a greedy person. Do not believe that all Christians are wonderful people. Many Christians are selfish. They are not under the ruling of the heavens. They are not righteous as to themselves, so they do not have the full peace with others, and they do not have joy before God and with God. If you are wrong with God, you will not be happy. If you are under the ruling of the heavens, you will be righteous as to yourself, you will have peace with others, and you will be joyful with God. This is the heavenly ruling, the heavenly government. This is what it means to be in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens.
You may be a regenerated member of the church and yet not be under the rule of the heavens. Although you are in the church, you are not in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. If you are a defeated Christian, not living in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, where will you be when the Lord Jesus comes back? Some have taught in the past that although you are defeated now, you will be treated the same as the overcoming, victorious one when the Lord Jesus comes back, and you will go into the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens to be a king with the Lord. This is not logical.
Consider the case of 1 Corinthians 5. A brother who was in the church at Corinth committed a sin that even the worldly people would condemn. Let us read 1 Corinthians 5:1 and 5: “It is actually reported that there is fornication among you, and such fornication that does not even occur among the Gentiles, that someone has his stepmother...To deliver such a one to Satan for destruction of his flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.” When the Lord Jesus comes back, will such a sinful one be lost? No! Verse 5 says, “That his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.”
When the Lord Jesus comes back, surely the apostle Paul will be transferred into the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens and will rule as a king with the Lord Jesus, because he had already been living in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. But what about that sinful brother in Corinth? Do you think that he was living in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens? He was in the church at Corinth, but he was not in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. Such a defeated, sinful believer who is living in fornication surely will not be transferred into the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens to rule and reign with the Lord.
Let us also read 1 Corinthians 6:6-7: “Brother goes to court with brother, and this before unbelievers. Already then it is altogether a defeat to you that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?” The Lord’s attitude toward the brother who was in fornication and toward those who were defrauding one another is in verses 9 and 10: “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be led astray; neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor effeminate nor homosexuals nor thieves nor the covetous, not drunkards, not revilers, not the rapacious will inherit the kingdom of God.” Chapter 5 shows that a fornicator is still saved, but chapter 6 shows that such a person cannot inherit the kingdom of God. The Word does not say that he cannot enter the kingdom of God but that he cannot inherit the kingdom of God. There is a big difference between entering the kingdom of God and inheriting the kingdom of God. To enter the kingdom of God, we simply need a new birth (John 3:3, 5). But to inherit the kingdom of God, we need to live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens now.
When will the overcomers, the victorious ones, inherit the kingdom of God? Surely that will be at the time when the Lord Jesus comes back. The kingdom today is not an enjoyment but an exercise. Today we are not enjoying or inheriting; today we are being exercised in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. But when the Lord Jesus comes back, the kingdom will be an enjoyment to us. At that time we will enjoy the kingdom, and we will be kings ruling with the Lord Jesus. The kingdom will be an inheritance to us. To be saved into the kingdom is one thing; to inherit the kingdom of God is another thing.
When the Lord Jesus comes back, the apostle Paul will inherit the manifestation of the kingdom. But what about the sinful brother in 1 Corinthians 5? Shall he inherit the kingdom of God? No! What will happen to him? The answer to this is found in 1 Corinthians 3:13-15: “The work of each will become manifest; for the day will declare it, because it is revealed by fire, and the fire itself will prove each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built upon the foundation remains, he will receive a reward; if anyone’s work is consumed, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” When the Lord Jesus returns, the fire shall try every man’s work. If a man’s work abides, he shall receive, not salvation, but a reward. These verses are not related to the security of our salvation; they are related to whether we shall receive a reward or suffer a loss when the Lord Jesus comes back. Verse 15 says, “He will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” Do not consider that as long as you are saved, there is no problem. To be saved is one thing, and to be rewarded or to suffer a loss is another. You can be saved and yet still suffer a loss. And even though you suffer a loss, you will still be saved. Once we are saved, we can never be lost (John 10:28-29). But once we are saved, we can either be rewarded by the Lord or suffer a loss.
The kingdom of the heavens is used by God for two purposes: the first is for the exercise of His children, and the second is for a reward to His children. Today the kingdom of the heavens is an exercise. Do not say that we have been saved by grace and that everything is by grace. Yes, we do have Christ as grace, but we also have the kingdom as an exercise. Even with a proper family life there are these two sides. In the Bible there is surely the side of enjoyment and grace, but there is also the side of exercise and responsibility. Christ is the grace, and the kingdom is the exercise. By His resurrection, the Lord Jesus has regenerated us (1 Pet. 1:3). But now that we are regenerated, we must be exercised in the kingdom. We are not simply in the house of God; we are also in the kingdom of God. The house is a place for grace and enjoyment, but the kingdom is a place for exercise. Many Christians simply enjoy the family life of the household of God, but they neglect the exercise of the kingdom life. The kingdom of the heavens is used by God to cause us to be exercised.
The kingdom of the heavens is also used by God as a reward to His faithful children. If we exercise ourselves in a proper way after we are saved, we will enjoy the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens as a reward. Today the kingdom of the heavens is an exercise to us, but tomorrow it will be an enjoyment to us. The big question is whether or not we will be qualified to inherit the kingdom of the heavens. God is very gracious, but He is also very wise. He saves us by His grace, but in His wisdom He causes us to be exercised by the kingdom, and He will reward us with the kingdom. If we are defeated, surely He will punish us when He comes back. We will not enjoy the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens as our inheritance.
Let us read Matthew 24:45-51: “Who then is the faithful and prudent slave, whom the master has set over his household to give them food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Truly I say to you that he will set him over all his possessions. But if that evil slave says in his heart, My master delays, and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eats and drinks with the drunken, the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, and will cut him asunder and appoint his portion with the hypocrites. In that place there will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.” Do not consider that the slave who was cut off signifies an unbeliever. The fact that he is a slave indicates that he is saved. Consider your own situation: You are saved, but are you a faithful slave of the Lord? Are you the first slave or the second? If you are the first slave, the Lord Jesus will appoint you to be the ruler over His goods when He comes back. But if you are the second, you will be cut off from this ruling manifestation, and furthermore, you will suffer. You will weep and gnash your teeth.
The second parable in Matthew 25, the parable of the talents, shows the same principle. All are slaves, and yet some are not allowed to enter into the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens. Let us read from verse 22: “And he who had received the two talents also came and said, Master, you delivered to me two talents; behold, I have gained another two talents. His master said to him, Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful over a few things; I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your master. Then he who had received the one talent also came and said, Master, I knew about you, that you are a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not winnow. And I was afraid and went off and hid your talent in the earth; behold, you have what is yours. And his master answered and said to him, Evil and slothful slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I did not winnow. Therefore you should have deposited my money with the money changers; and when I came, I would have recovered what is mine with interest. Take away therefore the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he shall abound; but from him who does not have, even that which he has shall be taken away from him. And cast out the useless slave into the outer darkness. In that place there will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.” The faithful slaves were invited into the joy of the master, but the slothful slave was rebuked by the master and cast into the outer darkness where he would experience weeping and gnashing of teeth. The slothful slave was punished so that he might become ripe and matured.
The kingdom of the heavens is the heavenly ruling, the heavenly government of the Lord Jesus. After we have been regenerated, we have to be under this ruling. If we are under this ruling, we will be victorious and overcoming. We will be in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, and we will enter into the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens to rule and reign with the Lord. But if we are defeated Christians, we will suffer a loss when the Lord Jesus comes back, and we will be punished so that we may become mature. When the Lord returns, we will be rewarded or punished according to our exercise in the kingdom. If our exercise has been proper in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, the Lord will reward us with the manifestation of the kingdom. If we have not been exercised in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens, the Lord will render a certain kind of punishment to us at the time of the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens. This does not mean that we will be lost but that we will suffer something to help us ripen.
We are the Lord’s children, His crop, His cultivated land (1 Cor. 3:9). As the Lord’s crop, we must eventually be matured, whether in this age or the next. If we are not willing to be ripened in this age, the Lord Jesus will deal with us when He comes back, and we will be forced to be ripened in the next age. On the one hand, we have eternal security; once we are saved, we are saved forever. But on the other hand, there is a serious warning. Today the Lord gives us the kingdom of the heavens as an exercise to test us. When He comes back, He will give us the kingdom of the heavens as a reward if we exercise ourselves properly. Otherwise, He will render a certain kind of punishment to us so that we can pay the price to be ripened. May the Lord be gracious to all of us.
