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In previous messages we have seen many of the riches that are found in the book of Genesis. In this message we shall see another item of these riches — the kingdom. The kingdom is one of the many truths that is sown as a seed in the book of Genesis, developed throughout the Bible, and reaped as a harvest in Revelation. We have already seen that, after the flood, Noah and his family lived a life in resurrection and that such a life was a shadow of the church. Now we shall see that this life in resurrection was also a shadow of the kingdom. The kingdom is a very great subject in the Bible. It is a most significant matter.
The kingdom is implied in Gen. 9:1-7. Verse 6 says, "Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed." This is a crucial verse in the book of Genesis. All Bible teachers agree that in this verse, a verse which indicates that God has given man authority over other men, we can see here the beginning of human government. Before that time, God had never given man authority over others. All men were directly under God. But, due to the fall, there is a rebellious nature in mankind. For this reason, God established a certain authority on earth to be His deputy to rule over man. From the beginning of the book of Genesis until the time of Gen. 9:6, there was no indication that, apart from the husband being the head over his wife (Gen. 3:16), God had given man authority over others. However, after the flood, when in resurrection man lived on the earth in a new way, God established a deputy authority on earth.
Noah was God's deputy authority after the flood. As the head of a new race, he was the deputy authority under God. Adam was not God's deputy authority over man. He was appointed to have authority over the creatures, not over man. If you read Genesis 1 carefully, you will see that Adam had authority over the fish, the fowl, the cattle, the creeping things, and "over every living thing that moveth upon the earth" (vv. 26, 28). But there is not one word to indicate that Adam was given authority over other men. But after Noah became the head of a new race, God gave him authority not only over creatures other than man, but also over man.
If you read Genesis 9 carefully, you will see a shadow of the kingdom. What is a kingdom? A kingdom is a rule, a reign. There, in Genesis 9, we see the shadow of the kingdom of God on earth among men. The ruling with God-given authority among men on the new earth signifies the reigning of God's kingdom in resurrection life.
What was the situation on earth before the time of that kingdom? Firstly, the earth was filled with violence (6:11, 13). Why was the earth filled with violence? Because there was no deputy authority, no one who was authorized to rule over others. There was no deputy authority over man before the flood. Suppose that today there were no local, state, or federal government. Would we still be able to live peacefully? No, the land would be filled with violence. No one could sleep well at night, for all would fear that their possessions would be stolen. Because there was no government before the flood, the earth was filled with violence. As we shall see in the next message, the government during that time was man's conscience. In the garden, before the fall, man was directly under the rule of God, the divine government. After the fall, man was under the rule of his own conscience. However, the government of the conscience, or we may say self-government, did not work well. The result of this self-government was that the whole earth was filled with violence. Thus, after the flood, God authorized man to rule over other men and human government began.
Secondly, before that kingdom, man did not care for God's interest. According to Luke 17:26-27, before the flood, men were eating, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage. No one cared for God's interest. Eventually God's judgment came upon them.
Things were different after the flood. Under the ruling of God's deputy authority, which was a shadow of the kingdom of God, the situation was different.
After the flood the earth was filled with peace. We know this because 9:20 says that Noah planted a vineyard. Micah 4:3-4 indicates that when the people of God have a vineyard, it means that there is peace on earth. These verses in Micah, which refer to the coming kingdom, tell us that men shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks because there will no longer be war, and that every man shall sit under his own vine and fig tree. This means that there is peace. That Noah planted a vineyard proves that he was enjoying peace in the kingdom. At that time there was no violence. The proper church life today is a real vineyard where there is no fighting but rest.
In that kingdom, man was recovered back to the purpose that God had for man at the beginning: to express and represent God (9:1-7). It is very interesting to see that some of the words spoken in 1:26-28 are repeated here in Genesis 9. This means that after the flood man was brought back to the beginning to fulfill God's purpose, to have the one goal of expressing God and representing Him.
When we come to the end of the Bible, we see that the kingdom will result in a very unpleasant situation — in a great rebellion. It is the same with the type in the book of Genesis. How good it was that Noah enjoyed peace in the kingdom and that mankind was recovered back to the beginning to fulfill God's purpose. However, the issue of it all was the rebellion at Babel. The rebellion of mankind at Babel was altogether due to the work of Satan.
Satan usurped man to misuse the God-given authority over others to form nations. God gave man authority to rule over others that there might be peace, but Satan usurped man and caused him to misuse this authority to form nations. Although God did have the intention that man rule over others, He did not intend for man to form nations. The forming of nations was the work of Satan. Satan caused man to misuse his authority, using it to form nations and to establish little empires for man himself.
Satan instigated man to rebel against God by building the city and tower of Babel. The building of the city and tower of Babel was a declaration of independence from God. Mankind was declaring that it had become independent of God.
That rebellion was judged directly by God Himself. When God judged the earth at the time of the flood, He did not do it directly. He sent a flood to judge that age. However, at Babel God came down personally and judged that rebellion directly. He did not send anyone else to deal with that rebellion; He dealt with it Himself.
Now we come to the New Testament where we see the real kingdom, the kingdom in reality. The New Testament is a book of the kingdom. The whole New Testament is on the kingdom. What is the first item of the preaching in the New Testament? It is the kingdom. The kingdom is preached in the opening chapters of the Gospels. The New Testament preaches the gospel in the way of the kingdom, not in the way of going to heaven. The New Testament does not say, "Repent, for heaven is ready for you." It says, "Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near" (Matt. 3:2; 4:17). Today people hear thousands of gospel messages. Have you ever heard a gospel message telling people to repent because the kingdom is coming? In my whole life I have not heard one such message. When Christians preach the gospel nowadays, most of them always talk about sin, heaven, and hell. Hardly anyone speaks about the gospel as related to the kingdom. But in its first preaching of the gospel, the New Testament tells us to repent for the kingdom.
The gospel is for the kingdom. The purpose of the preaching of the gospel is that men might enter into the kingdom. The gospel is proclaimed that people might be saved, qualified, and equipped to enter into the kingdom. Regeneration is for the kingdom (John 3:3, 5). If you have not been regenerated, you cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Have you been saved, washed in the blood, and regenerated? For what purpose? Before I came into the church life, I was told that we had to be saved, washed, and regenerated that we might go to heaven. In the church, we have seen something higher — that we have been saved, washed, and regenerated for the church (23, Eph. 5:25; Acts 20:28). The gospel of the kingdom brings the rebellious sinners into the church. But now we need to see what is the reality of the church. The reality of the church is the kingdom. If you have been saved, washed, and regenerated for the church, it means that you have experienced these things for the reality of the kingdom.
My burden in this message is to share with you what is the real church life. The real church life is the kingdom. The gospel is for the kingdom. Being saved, washed, and regenerated is altogether a matter of the kingdom.
The church is the kingdom in reality. Some Christians insist that this age is the church age and that the kingdom has not yet come. According to their concept, after the church age is over, the kingdom age will begin. Although this understanding is in a sense correct, it is not correct in every sense. As we shall see, the church today is the kingdom. The proper, real, and living church is the kingdom, and the kingdom is the reality of the church. If there is no kingdom, then there is no church. Our salvation and regeneration are for the church, and the church is the kingdom.
When the church was built, the kingdom was established. The building up of the church was the establishment of the kingdom. This is proved by Matthew 16:18-19. In verse 18 the Lord said, "On this rock I will build My church," and in verse 19 He said to Peter, "I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of the heavens." He spoke about the church in verse 18. In verse 19 He replaced the word "church" with the word "kingdom." This proves that the church and the kingdom are interchangeable terms; they refer to the same thing.
These two verses indicate that for the building of the church the keys of the kingdom would be given to Peter. I believe that Peter had just two keys. What were they and when did he use them? Every door, every entrance, has a special lock requiring a special key. Peter used the first key on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). This key opened the door for the Jews to come into the kingdom. Later, in the house of Cornelius (Acts 10), he used the second key, the key that opened the door for the Gentiles to come into the kingdom. The Lord gave these keys to Peter, and Peter used them to open the two entrances into the kingdom, one entrance for the Jews and the other entrance for the Gentiles, that the church might be built. The kingdom into which the Jews and Gentiles entered was the church.
Who can say that the church today is not the kingdom? For example, your apartment house is your home. You cannot say, "I have an apartment, but I don't have a home." As long as you have an apartment, you have a home, for that apartment is your home. Likewise, as long as there is a church on earth, God has a kingdom. Do not say that the church is not the kingdom, for the church is the kingdom.
Romans 14:17 indicates that the church life is the kingdom. Romans is a book on the Christian life and on the church life. Before chapter twelve this book deals with the Christian life. In chapter twelve it begins to speak about the Body life. As you read from chapter twelve to chapter fourteen, you will see that chapter fourteen is a part of the practical Body life and that this practical Body life is the kingdom. In Romans 14:17 Paul mentions the kingdom of God. In this verse he does not speak of the church or the Body life; he says, "The kingdom of God is..righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." This is not a matter for the future; it is present right now. The Body life, the church life, is the kingdom.
Revelation 1:9 reveals that the church people are in the kingdom today. Today in the church we are under the heavenly ruling of God. We all need to be ruled by God. When we are ruled by God, then we can rule for God with heavenly authority. The first time the kingdom is related to the church (Matt. 16) there is mention of binding and loosing. This is our ruling by God's authority. When we are under God's ruling, we can exercise His authority to rule over our situation.
Do we Christians in the church life still need the outward ruling of the government or the police? It is a shame to us if we do need such an outward ruling, for we have the heavenly ruling within. Suppose you purchase some food at a fast-food store and the cashier gives you too much change. Would you be able to eat your food peacefully? No. You would have to return the extra change, for the heavenly ruling over you and within you would not allow you to take advantage of others. You would not need a policeman to order you to return the money. We, the church people, are under the heavenly ruling of God. There is the reality of the kingdom among us.
However, because we are still in our fallen nature, sometimes we need to be ruled over by others. Because our yielding to the heavenly ruling is not yet adequate, some sisters need to be ruled over by their husbands. They may be over-emotional and need their husbands to rule over them. This is the husband's ruling, not the heavenly ruling. Because many sisters are still so natural, not really living by Christ or walking in the spirit, they need to be ruled by their husbands. If they lived by Christ and walked in the spirit, the husband's ruling would not be needed. When the wives are under the heavenly ruling, they do not need the ruling from their husbands.
The young brothers and sisters who are students may need their teachers to rule over them. They may also need their parents to exercise authority over them at home. Strictly speaking, however, if all the young brothers and sisters are absolutely under the heavenly ruling of God, they will not need any other ruling. In the schools, in the stores, in the homes, and in every other place, the heavenly ruling of God will be more than adequate. This is the kingdom. We are in the kingdom, and the kingdom is in the church. The church is the kingdom, and the kingdom is the reality of the church.
The reality of the church being the kingdom is completely dependent upon the life in the spirit. What is this life in the spirit? It is a life under the heavenly ruling of God. As long as we live and walk in our spirit, we are under the heavenly ruling of God. Such a living under the rule of God is the reality of the church life. This is the reality of the kingdom today. The kingdom truly is present in the living church.
The church with the kingdom as its reality brings in the manifestation of the kingdom. There are different aspects of the kingdom. The kingdom in reality is one aspect and the kingdom in manifestation is another. In the church we have the kingdom in reality, but not the kingdom in manifestation. The kingdom is realized by our church life, but it is not manifested. It is realized inwardly, but it is not manifested outwardly. While the realization, the inward reality, of the kingdom is in the church today, the outward manifestation will come in the future.
If you are in the reality of the kingdom, you will return extra change when it is given to you by a cashier in a store or restaurant. Other people cannot understand us when we do this. They are surprised by the fact that we do not take advantage of the situation. People simply do not understand that this returning of extra change and refusing to take advantage of others is an example of the inward reality of the kingdom in our Christian life. The worldly people cannot see that this is the kingdom. But when the Lord Jesus returns, the manifestation of the kingdom will be brought in. Then all the people will say, "This is the kingdom in manifestation."
In a sense, the kingdom is here; in another sense, the kingdom is coming. This is just like the Lord Jesus Himself. In a sense, the Lord Jesus Himself is here with us. Wherever we are, the Lord is with us. But, in another sense, the Lord is coming. While the Lord is with us in an inward way, He is still coming in an outward way. Today it is necessary for us to tell people that we believe in the Lord Jesus and that we have Him in us. We need to explain to them what it means to believe in the Lord and to have Him in us. But when the Lord comes in the outward way and brings in the manifestation of the kingdom, there will be no need for any further explanation. Everyone will see the kingdom in manifestation. This manifestation of the kingdom, the kingdom in manifestation, will be brought in by the church which is the reality of the kingdom. The manifestation of the kingdom will not come suddenly; it will come through the church life. Why? Because there is the need for the overcomers to conquer the evil one, to overcome the world, to prepare the way, and to establish the beachhead to enable the Lord Jesus to return. Then the manifestation of the kingdom will be brought in.
The church produces the overcomers. This is fully revealed in Revelation 12. In this chapter we see the woman who signifies the entire body of God's people (v. 1), including both the Old Testament saints and the New Testament believers, who (the New Testament believers) are the church. Do not think that the whole church with everyone in it will be the overcomers. No, some in the church will be overcomers and others will not. This is very similar to a family in which there are old ones, young ones, and strong ones. Who are the overcomers in a family? The strong ones. According to the book of Numbers, those who were over the age of twenty and under the age of fifty were the fighters (Num. 1:20; 4:3). All those under the age of twenty and over the age of fifty were the enjoyers. The fighters were the strong ones, those who were over twenty and under fifty. In the church life today we have some who are spiritually over fifty; they are enjoyers. Thank the Lord that we also have some younger ones, the ones who are spiritually under twenty; they are the young enjoyers. But we thank the Lord even the more that we have some who are spiritually over twenty and under fifty. These are the strong ones who fight the battle. These are the fighters. The battle is in their hands. All the rest are the enjoyers. The church is producing the strong ones, the overcomers, who will fight the battle against Satan, God's enemy, and against his world.
According to Revelation 12, when the overcomers are caught up into heaven, Satan will be cast down to the earth (vv. 5, 9). Then there will be the declaration that the kingdom of God has come (v. 10). The kingdom of God comes through the overcomers. The church produces the overcomers, and the overcomers defeat the enemy and usher in the manifestation of the kingdom. We shall say more about this when we have our life-study on the book of Revelation.
The church is the reigning of the kingdom. But this reigning is not in our flesh or in our natural life. It must be a reigning in resurrection. This kind of reigning is not only for the future; it must be in our spirit today. Suppose the elders among us assume their position, exercising authority to rule over others in the church life. This will never work. If the elders try to do this, deep in our spirit we will realize that the elders are not reigning in resurrection; they are reigning in their position. We all must learn that in the church, where the reality of the kingdom is, we must behave ourselves in our spirit. We must live and walk in resurrection. As long as we walk in resurrection, we will have authority. It is true to say that the brothers are the head and that the sisters should be under their headship. However, if the brothers do not live and act in the spirit, but the sisters do, we will have the deep sensation that the brothers have no headship, but that the sisters do have a kind of authority. In such a case the sisters have authority because their life is in resurrection. When we speak from our natural man, we lose ground immediately. But when we speak and act in the spirit, we maintain the position of authority. The ruling in the church is not human or natural; it is in resurrection.
Let me say a word to the husbands and wives. If a husband exercises authority in a natural way, he immediately ceases to be the head and becomes the tail. However, if he lives in the spirit, the Spirit of God will tell everyone that this is the head and that they must submit to him. Even the little children in the homes can realize this. Many times, when the mother and father are quarreling, the children will say, "Mother, you are wrong. Daddy is right. You must listen to him." At other times the children will say, "Daddy, you are in the flesh. Since you are in the flesh, how can you be the head?" Such things have happened many times in Christian homes. Not only the Holy Spirit within us but even the little ones in our homes know whether we are in the flesh or in the spirit. Even your little daughter who is two or three years of age knows where you are. Husbands, do not exercise your headship only in a positional way. You have to live and walk in the spirit and be a person absolutely in resurrection. If you do this, you will be the head.
Reigning in the kingdom of God is a matter in resurrection. To be in resurrection is to be in the spirit. Oh, how we need to be in the spirit! Although the wives at times may not be fair, the Holy Spirit within them is fair. They also have a fair spirit within telling them, "Your husband is right." However, if we are not in the spirit, we lose the ground. We lose the heavenly ruling. In order to be in resurrection we must be in the spirit. When we are in the spirit, we are under the heavenly ruling, and spontaneously this ruling is exercised over the entire situation.
One day the overcomers will rise up and reign with Christ (Rev. 20:4, 6). As long as we are dead, we can never reign with Christ. The resurrected ones will reign with Christ in a new age during the thousand years.
The resurrected ones will reign with Christ over the nations (Rev. 2:26-27; 12:5). When as a young man, I read about this, I could not believe it. I said to myself, "Certainly you are not qualified to rule over the nations." Do you really believe that in resurrection you will be Christ's co-kings reigning with Him over all the nations? If you believe this, I would ask you to look at yourself. Do you look like a king? In the church life, in the reality of the kingdom, we are being disciplined for kingship. We need to live in the spirit, walk in the spirit, be dealt with in our natural life, and always stay in resurrection. If you are in resurrection, you will be the most dignified person. You will be a king.
Suppose I am an elderly man in my family and an elderly man among the brothers. If I behave myself with natural dignity, I will say to my family, "Don't you children know that I am the head of the family? Don't you realize that I am the grandfather and that all you grandchildren are under me?" If I behave in this way, I will become like a turtle. Although I may try to act dignified, I will actually lose all my dignity. If I say to the brothers, "Don't you realize that I am the oldest one, that I am the most qualified one? I need to enjoy the dignity among the brothers." If I adopt this attitude, I will become like a scorpion and have no dignity whatsoever. However, the more I live in spirit, walk in spirit, and have my being in resurrection, the more I will have true dignity. This is kingship. Our kingship is in the proper walk in the spirit, in the life in resurrection. There is no need to strive for power or authority. The best way to gain authority is to keep yourself in resurrection. It was the budding, which signifies resurrection, of Aaron's rod that gave him authority in his ministry (Num. 17:3-10).
According to the type of the kingdom found in Genesis, the kingdom issued in the rebellion at Babel. Now, in the fulfillment of the kingdom in Revelation 20, we see the real rebellion. Can you believe that after a thousand years of heavenly ruling under the kingship of Christ in restoration (Acts 3:21) there could be such a rebellion? But the fulfillment in both the type and the reality is the same. The result is rebellion.
Many Christian teachers say that as long as the Lord returns everything will be all right. I strongly say that this is not so. Even after the Lord returns, the rebellious nature is still in man. Even after the restoration during the thousand years, the rebellious human nature will still be in man.
At the end of the thousand years, Satan will be loosed out of his prison (Rev. 20:7). Why will God allow Satan to be loosed? Satan will be set free to expose the hidden rebellious nature in mankind. Revelation 20:8 speaks of Gog and Magog. If you look at a biblical map, you can realize that Gog and Magog are in the north of the earth. The tendency of the human race today indicates this rebellion. Even after a thousand years of heavenly ruling, the rebellious nature will still be in man. Therefore, God will loose Satan from his prison to expose the rebellion in man.
After that rebellion, God will come and exercise His judgment over both man and Satan. That judgment will clear away the rebellious nature of mankind.
We should not learn about the kingdom as a doctrine. We all must see where we are today. We are in the church life under the heavenly ruling. Now we need to be in resurrection and to live and walk according to the spirit that we may have the reality of the kingdom among us.
