Tuesday, Oct. 22

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Matthew chapter 13 contains a series of stories that Jesus told known as the “Kingdom Parables” and Jesus told these parables to teach His followers about the reality of His kingdom.  In fact the theme of the entire book of Matthew is “the Kingdom”.  Jesus begins almost all of his parables with this phrase, “The kingdom of heaven is like...”

In Matthew’s gospel, Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to: a man who sowed good seed in his field, a granule of mustard seed, to leaven, or the working of yeast, to a hidden treasure, to a pearl of great value, to a net, to a king who called his servants to settle accounts, to a landowner who hired servants, to a king who arranged a marriage celebration for his son, to ten virgins meeting the Bridegroom, to a master who gave his servants talents to invest and increase.

The Hebrew word for kingdom is malkut and its Greek counterpart is basileia. Both terms primarily mean “rule” or “reign.” Only secondarily do they denote a realm, sphere, or territory over which a rule or reign is exercised. Both terms have a dynamic or active meaning, and refer to the exercise of God’s power, dominion, or sovereignty.  According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary, “kingdom” is a designation both of power and the form of government as well as, especially in the later writers, the territory and the rule - the Kingship and the Kingdom. Hence, the basic meaning of kingdom involves three things - a ruler, a people who are ruled, and a territory over which they are ruled. 

We all know about The United Kingdom, especially since the royal wedding and now more recently the royal baby, but most of us tend to think about kings and kingdoms as things of the past, but it might surprise you to find out that there are 27 active kingdoms in the world today!  You might know that Spain & Norway are kingdoms, but what about 

Bahrain, Belgium, Tonga, Lesotho and Liechtenstein?  Each of these kingdoms is ruled by...yep, you guessed it, a King!  (actually a few are ruled by a queen).

So, when we talk about the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven, what are we talking about?  

For a first century Jew, the kingdom of God meant the restoration of Israel as a dominant religious and political power in the world.  It meant the return of God’s glory to His people on earth and the defeat of Israel’s enemies, namely Rome.

But Jesus rather scandalously redefined these expectations of the kingdom.  He did not talk about the kingdom in terms of a military overthrow or political power structures.  He spoke about the kingdom primarily in terms of its transforming power in the hearts of individuals.  

Simply put - God’s Kingdom rule was established at creation; It was attacked and damaged by Satan at the fall; It was announced at the coming of Jesus Christ into the world; it is being restored on earth through the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ who defeated Satan, death, and sin at the cross; it will be finally realized when the King (Jesus Christ) returns to judge the world and sit on His throne! 

No wonder He taught us to pray in this way: “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven!”

Jeff Frazier