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Scripture Reading: 1 Cor. 3:12-15; Luke 12:42-47; Acts 14:22; John 3:5; 1 Cor. 5:1, 5; 6:9-10; Eph. 5:3-5; Gal. 5:19-21; 2 Thes. 1:5; 1 Cor. 9:24-27; Phil. 3:13-15; 2 Tim. 4:1, 7-8, 18
The kingdom truths have much to do with the inner life as well as the church life. If we are going to realize the church life, we must know something about the kingdom of God and the kingdom of the heavens. If we are going to experience the inner life in a practical way, we must know the kingdom of the heavens. We have already pointed out that the kingdom of God is the rule of God, the government of God. The kingdom of the heavens is the heavenly rule, the heavenly government. We must remember that the first gospel preaching, preached both by John the Baptist and the Lord Jesus, was concerning the kingdom of the heavens. Because of our natural concepts, we are prone to consider that the first item of the New Testament gospel is the forgiveness of sins and that the second item is eternal life. Negatively our sins have been forgiven, and positively we have eternal life. But, in fact, the first word of the New Testament gospel was to repent for the sake of the kingdom of the heavens (Matt. 3:2; 4:17). We need forgiveness of sins so that we can have eternal life, and we need eternal life so that we can be under the heavenly rule. The kingdom is the requirement of the gospel, and the life is the supply of the gospel. What the gospel requires, it also supplies. The gospel requires us to be governed and ruled by the heavens. The gospel also supplies us with the divine life for us to fulfill the requirements of the kingdom.
Matthew 5, 6, and 7 reveal the highest standard of living, a living on the highest plane. These chapters reveal that we must be poor in spirit (5:3), pure in heart (v. 8), and meek (v. 5). We must even suffer persecution for the sake of righteousness (v. 10). If someone takes your tunic, you should let him have your cloak also (v. 40). If a man asks you to go one mile, you should go with him two miles (v. 41).
When Brother Nee was young, he preached the gospel, and a number of young people were brought to the Lord. These young people went to the country to preach the gospel to the farmers, and a number of the farmers were saved. Most of the farmland was on the hills, so the farmers had to bring the water up to water their fields. Two of these farmers who met the Lord had some land close to the top of a mountain. Their neighbor owned some fields below their land. After these two farmers brought the water to their fields in the evening, they went home. When they came to their fields the next day, they found that all the water was gone. Their neighbor had stolen the water from their fields by draining the water from the two farmers’ fields down to his fields.
The two farmers were very angry, but as Christians they thought that they needed to learn patience. So they brought up the water once more to water their fields. When they came again the next day, they discovered that their water had been drained to their neighbor’s fields again. They were very angry again, but since they were Christians, they thought they needed to learn patience. Therefore, they did not say anything or do anything. They brought the water up again to water their fields. The next day the water was gone again. By this time they were so troubled that they went to see Brother Nee. They told Brother Nee the story, and as Christians, they felt that they had to be patient in this matter. When Brother Nee asked them if they felt joyful within, the two brothers replied that the more they exercised to be patient, the more they suffered.
Then Brother Nee read them Matthew 5:40-41: “To him who wishes to sue you and take your tunic, yield to him your cloak also; and whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.” Brother Nee told them that if they wanted to be happy Christians, they should bring the water to their neighbor’s fields first and then bring the water to their fields. The next day the two brothers brought the water first to their neighbor’s fields, and then they brought the water to their own fields. They were flooded with joy and praise to the Lord. That night their neighbor came again to steal their water. When the neighbor arrived, he saw that his fields were already filled with water and that there was no need for him to steal. Their neighbor was so moved that, soon after that, he was saved and became a brother in the church. These two brothers exercised to be under the heavenly ruling, the heavenly government.
As Christians who are born from above, we do not need any kind of earthly government to rule over us. We already have the heavenly government ruling over us. This is the real meaning of the kingdom of the heavens. The kingdom is simply the requirement of the gospel. The gospel not only requires us to be sinless but also to be ruled by the heavenly government.
If we are going to meet the requirements of such a high standard, we must have a life that is on an equally high plane. Otherwise, we cannot meet such a high standard. Only the divine life can meet such a high standard. Only the divine life can meet the requirements of the heavenly government. The kingdom is the requirement of the New Testament gospel, and the eternal life, which is Christ Himself, is the supply. The divine life can fulfill the requirements of the kingdom. Once we see the matter of the kingdom, we can see how high a standard is required by the gospel. After we are saved, we have a heavenly requirement within us demanding us to live on a high level. This level can be reached only by the supply of the divine life.
The kingdom is also related to the wisdom and justice of God. The kingdom proves both the wisdom and the justice of God. Without the kingdom, God’s wisdom and justice cannot be proved to the fullest extent. Also, apart from the truth concerning the kingdom, it is very difficult to solve the debate between Calvinism and Arminianism. The Calvinists stress eternal security, whereas the Arminians stress that one can lose his salvation. For many generations these two groups have been quarreling and debating. Both of these sides have their points. The Calvinists can point out many passages that prove eternal security. The Arminians, however, will bring up other passages, such as Hebrews 6 and 10, which seem to indicate that a person could be saved and then could fall and be lost again. Without the kingdom truth, these two extremes can never be reconciled.
There is no doubt that once we have been saved, we are saved forever. Our salvation is eternally secure. But on the other hand, besides God’s salvation there is God’s wisdom. There is the truth concerning the kingdom. In addition to salvation, there is the matter of the kingdom. Today the kingdom is an exercise for us. After we were saved, God set the kingdom before us as an exercise. In a sense we are born in God’s home, but we are exercised in God’s kingdom. The home is a place for birth and enjoyment, but the kingdom is a place for exercise and responsibility. After we have been regenerated, we must be exercised. The home is the place to enjoy grace, but the kingdom is the place to exercise responsibility. We should not take one and neglect the other. We have to take the grace, and we also have to take the responsibility. We have to take the home, and we also have to take the kingdom. We enjoy and share in the home by partaking of the grace. We share in the kingdom by being exercised to take the responsibility. Today, in the church age, the kingdom is an exercise to us. In the age to come, the millennium, the kingdom will be a reward to us. If we exercise well today, the Lord will reward us at that day. If we do not exercise well today, we will lose the reward of the kingdom. By this the wisdom of God is proved, and the justice of God is maintained. Salvation is eternal; once we get it, we will never lose it (John 10:28-29). But we may suffer the loss of the kingdom reward, though we shall still be saved (1 Cor. 3:8, 14-15). Besides eternal salvation there is the matter of the kingdom, which requires our exercise in this age to be a reward to us in the coming age.
We need to read a number of passages that indicate that in addition to salvation there is the exercise of the kingdom. First Corinthians 3:12-15 says, “If anyone builds upon the foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, grass, stubble, 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.” These few verses show clearly that if we exercise properly, we shall receive a reward, but if we do not exercise properly, we shall suffer loss. It does not mean that we shall lose our salvation but that we shall suffer loss. Both the reward and the loss are something in addition to salvation. Once we receive salvation, we have it eternally. But besides salvation there is the matter of the reward or the loss. We must realize that after we are saved, we are put into the kingdom to be exercised. Because we are born again, we must be under the rule of the heavenly kingdom, under the heavenly government. For this exercise, there will be a reward or a loss. There is no problem concerning salvation, but there is a problem concerning the exercise.
Now let us read Luke 12:42-47: “The Lord said, Who then is the faithful and prudent steward, whom the master will set over his service to give them their portion of food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Truly I tell you that he will set him over all his possessions. But if that slave says in his heart, My master is delaying his coming, and begins to beat the male servants and the female servants and to eat and to drink and become drunk, 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 will appoint his portion with the unbelievers. And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not prepare or do according to his will, will receive many lashes.” If the steward is faithful, the master, at his coming back, will make him ruler over all that he has. But if he is not faithful, that steward will be cut asunder and will have his portion with the unbelievers. Please notice that there are two possibilities for the same steward. Both possibilities refer to the same person. This is a matter of the reward of the kingdom. Today we are in the kingdom to be ruled, but in the next age we will be in the kingdom to rule. Today the kingdom is an exercise, but in the next age the manifestation of the kingdom will be a reward. First, we must be ruled, and then we can rule over something. If we have never been ruled, we can never rule over something. We must be exercised in this age so that we will be qualified to rule in the next age. The present age is the age for the Lord to exercise His children and to prepare His kings. We all must be prepared. As a steward, we must learn how to take care of the household of the Lord. We must learn how to be exercised to be a king and to rule. Then when the Lord comes back, we will be appointed to rule in the kingdom. At that time the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens will be a reward to us.
There are two possibilities for the same slave. The first possibility is that he would be faithful and be appointed to rule over all that his master has. The second possibility is that he will be a slothful slave and will be punished by his master. Some Christians have the wrong concept that these are two different slaves. They think that one is the real slave, and the other is the false slave. But by careful reading, we can see that these are not two different slaves. It is the same slave with two different possibilities. Instead of being faithful, the steward may quarrel with the brothers and sisters and may beat them. When his master comes, he will surely cut him asunder and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. He is a believer, but he will suffer in that time as an unbeliever. This does not mean he will lose his salvation. This means he will suffer some loss. When the Lord comes back, he will be beaten. Some Christians would argue that when the Lord comes back, we all will simply be resurrected and taken up to be with Him. They cannot imagine that the Lord would punish any believers. It is not my word that says the master will beat the slave. The Bible says that he will beat the slave.
We must see several points very clearly. Surely this steward is saved, because once we are saved we can never be lost. Yet because of his unfaithfulness, the steward will suffer a beating from his master. The master will reward the faithful one and will punish the unfaithful one.
We must realize that there are four dispensations, or ages, in which the Lord will accomplish His work. There was the age from Adam to Moses (Rom. 5:14), the age from Moses to Christ (John 1:17), the age of the church, and the age of the millennium. The last of these four ages, the millennium, will be an age of restoration but not an age of perfection. This means it will still be an age of dealing, an age for the Lord to accomplish something. In the age of the millennium there will still be some of the curse, and some will be dead due to that curse (Rev. 20:5). In addition, at the end of these thousand years the nations will rebel again (vv. 8-9). Although mankind will be restored for one thousand years, his rebellious nature will still remain. This proves that the millennium is not the age of perfection but the age of restoration. The Lord’s dealing with the believers is mainly in two ages: the church age and the millennium. If we are willing to be dealt with by the Lord to the fullest extent in this age, we will enjoy the reward in the next age. But if we are not willing to be dealt with by the Lord to the fullest extent in this age, He will still deal with us when He comes back. At one time or another we must be dealt with — either in this age or the next. But there is a big difference. If we are willing to be dealt with by the Lord in this age, we will be rewarded. If not, we will be punished during the next age. Either way we will be dealt with by the Lord.
Why would the Lord still deal with us during the next age? It is because we are His harvest (14:15; 1 Cor. 3:9), His crop. As a crop, we must be ripe; otherwise, the husbandman cannot receive us into the barn. If we would not be ripened in this age, the Lord will make us ripe in the next age. If we are not mature in this age by the time the Lord comes back, He will cause us to be matured in the next age. For a crop to be matured is a fixed principle. We must be matured. As the Lord’s crop, we must be mature and ripe. If we are not willing to be ripened and matured in this age, the Lord will cause us to be matured and ripened in the next age, but we will suffer.
Many Christians today mistakenly think that once they die, everything will be all right. That can never be! Even after we die, whatever problems we have with the Lord will still remain. If we are not ready and mature before we die, we remain in the same condition after we die. Then, when the Lord Jesus comes back and we are resurrected, He will tell us that we are not ready and that we need to pay the price to become ripe and mature. This principle is quite logical. On the one hand, it corresponds with Calvinism, which says that we are saved eternally, and on the other hand, it corrects Arminianism by the fact that we will not be lost again but that we may suffer some punishment. At the Lord’s coming back, immature believers will not be lost, yet they will suffer some kind of punishment. If we are not living in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens today, under the heavenly rule, we will not be able to go into the manifestation of the kingdom in the next age as a reward. If we want to enter into the manifestation of the kingdom in the next age, we must live in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens today. In other words, if we would rule in the next age, we must be ruled in this age. We must be exercised in the matter of the kingdom in order to enter into the kingdom to rule.
The kingdom is the requirement of the gospel, and the life we receive at regeneration is the supply of this requirement. It is not a loose and light matter to become a Christian. It is a very serious matter. We have been saved, and we have been born into a royal, heavenly family. Therefore, we have to be exercised in a heavenly way and to be ruled and governed by a heavenly rule in order to be qualified to be heavenly kings in the next age.
Many verses in the New Testament show the need of exercise for the kingdom. Acts 14:22 says, “Establishing the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith and saying that through many tribulations we must enter into the kingdom of God.” By comparing this verse with John 3:5, we can see a great difference. John 3:5 simply says that by being born of water and of the Spirit, we can enter into the kingdom of God. According to John, entering the kingdom is a matter of another birth. But Acts 14 says that we must suffer much tribulation to enter into the kingdom of God. These two verses show two aspects. To enter into the kingdom of God is one thing, but to enter into it in the way of inheritance is another. If we would inherit the kingdom of God, we must suffer the tribulation. We must be tested and exercised.
We can see the same principle in 1 Corinthians 5 and 6. Chapter 5 indicates that a brother who is living in fornication will still be saved. Even such a sinful, defeated believer will still be saved. But in chapter 6 we are told that fornicators will not inherit the kingdom of God (vv. 9-10). This means that such a fornicator cannot enjoy or inherit the kingdom of the heavens as a reward.
Now let us read Ephesians 5:3-5: “Fornication and all uncleanness or greediness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints, and obscenity and foolish talking or sly, filthy jesting, which are not becoming, but rather the giving of thanks. For this you realize, knowing that every fornicator or unclean person or greedy person (who is an idolater) has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.” The kingdom of Christ and of God is the part of the kingdom of God which is the kingdom of the heavens. As a whole, it is the kingdom of God, but particularly, it is the kingdom of the heavens. In the kingdom of God and of Christ there is no inheritance for the sinful one. If you are still in filthiness and sinfulness, although you are a saint, a saved one, you will have no inheritance in the kingdom of God and of Christ.
Galatians 5:19-21 says, “The works of the flesh are manifest, which are such things as fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, divisions, sects, envyings, bouts of drunkenness, carousings, and things like these, of which I tell you beforehand, even as I have said before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Thus, three portions of the Bible, 1 Corinthians 6, Ephesians 5, and Galatians 5 tell us basically the same thing: you may be a saved person, but if you are still living in sin and filthiness, you will not inherit the kingdom of God. You will have no share in the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens, because you are not qualified.
Second Thessalonians 1:5 says, “A plain indication of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be accounted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which also you suffer.” This verse indicates that to suffer persecution causes one to be worthy of the kingdom of God. This can enable one to inherit the kingdom of God.
Let us also read 2 Timothy 4:18, 7-8, and 1: “The Lord will deliver me from every evil work and will save me into His heavenly kingdom, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” “I have fought the good fight; I have finished the course; I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, with which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will recompense me in that day, and not only me but also all those who have loved His appearing.” “I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom.” These verses, written near the end of Paul’s life, indicate that he was sure of being in the heavenly kingdom because he had fought a good fight, he had run the course well, and he had kept the faith.
Surely we have been saved eternally. But whether or not we will be able to share in the manifestation of the kingdom is the problem. As a concluding word, we need to consider the history of the apostle Paul. First, let us read 1 Corinthians 9:24-27: “Do you not know that those who run on a racecourse all run, but one receives the prize? Run in this way, that you may lay hold. And everyone who contends exercises self-control in all things; they then, that they may receive a corruptible crown, but we, an incorruptible. I therefore run in this way, not as though without a clear aim; I box in this way, not as though beating the air; but I buffet my body and make it my slave, lest perhaps having preached to others, I myself may become disapproved.” Surely Paul had the assurance that he was saved. Yet he emphatically told us that he was running the race. During the time Paul was living, there were the Greek Olympic Games where people ran the race in order to receive a prize. Paul used this as his example, saying that he too was running a race to receive a prize.
Philippians 3:13-15 says, “Brothers, I do not account of myself to have laid hold; but one thing I do: Forgetting the things which are behind and stretching forward to the things which are before, I pursue toward the goal for the prize to which God in Christ Jesus has called me upward. Let us therefore, as many as are full-grown, have this mind; and if in anything you are otherwise minded, this also God will reveal to you.” At the time Paul wrote Philippians, he had been a believer for many years, but he was still pursuing toward the goal for the prize. The prize is the uttermost enjoyment of Christ in the millennial kingdom as a reward to the victorious runners of the New Testament race. In 1 Corinthians 9 the apostle was running the course (v. 26). In Philippians, one of his last Epistles, he was still running (3:14). It was not until the last moment of his running, in 2 Timothy 4:6-8, that he had the assurance that he would be rewarded by the Lord at His appearing. When Paul knew that his martyrdom was imminent, he had the assurance to tell us that he would be awarded with the crown of righteousness. The crown is a symbol of glory given as a prize, in addition to the Lord’s salvation, to the triumphant runner of the race (1 Cor. 9:25). This prize is not of grace nor by faith, as salvation is (Eph 2:5, 8-9), but of righteousness through works (Matt. 16:27; Rev. 22:12; 2 Cor. 5:10). Such a reward will be awarded to the believers, not according to the grace of the Lord but according to His righteousness. Hence, it is the crown of righteousness. The Awarder of it is the Lord as the righteous Judge. Paul was assured that such a prize was reserved for him and would be awarded to him at the day of the Lord’s second appearing. This is to be rewarded with the kingdom of the heavens. We must all be clear that to be saved eternally is one thing, and to be exercised to bear responsibility in the kingdom is another thing. Based upon our exercise in the kingdom, we will either be rewarded with the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens or suffer loss in the next age. We must realize that as Christians today we are in the kingdom of the heavens — today to be exercised and tomorrow to be rewarded.
