The kingdom of God is a prophetic revelation of reality. And our present reality is living in this present evil age under the rule of Satan. But because of Jesus we can experience what we call breakthroughs, of God’s power and God’s rule from the future age into this present age.

Now when you open the pages of the New Testament you may be struck by the fact that the mission of Jesus was to destroy the activity of Satan in the world.

Matthew’s gospel (12:22-31) clearly demonstrates that the war between Jesus and Satan is not a civil war within a kingdom. Rather it is a battle between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan. Accordingly the term, the kingdom of God, was frequently on Jesus’ lips and it was central to his proclamation and works. What Jesus did was just as important as what he said. And what he did carried the same message. Jesus brought the rule of God from the future into the present in his ministry of healing the sick and casting out demons.

The kingdom of God can provides a basis or framework for understanding and relating to God’s word and work as recorded in the Bible. In fact, it is interesting to note that in the beginning of the Bible we are told about the way it was, and at the end of it, how it’s going to be (the future age).

In the beginning, Genesis 1, 2, & 3: Chapter 1 & 2 is set before the event, which Christians call the Fall of man. God is revealed as the creator. Everything he created is good (1:10, 12, 18, 21, 25, and 31). No sin, no pain, no sickness, no death, no heart-aches, no shame; there is intimate fellowship with God.

In Chapter 3, we lost it all. We entered into total depravity – and there is no way home, by our own strength or abilities.

God alone can save the day, and from the very beginning, God is prepared to step up and do the work of restoration. God prophesies that one day there will be a complete restoration. There would be a sacrifice involving the shedding of the blood of an innocent to give us a covering. We will be able to freely approach God, without shame and condemnation. And the Enemy would be defeated and crushed. 3:21, 15.

Satan is therefore the original usurper of authority. By deceiving Adam and Eve and he become the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4). Satan together with the other angels who join forces with him in the rebellion against God takes charge of this world. Sin (wrong doings and wickedness), sickness and death have come into this present evil age.

At the end, Revelation 21 & 22: In Chapter 22, verse 7 John the Apostle is reminded that Jesus will come soon, and the age to come will start. 21:3-4 describes the full restoration: Again there will be no sin, no pain, no sickness, no death, no heart-aches, and no shame. There is intimate fellowship with God, for the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. There is a new heaven and a new earth and the old order of things has passed away. The consummation of the kingdom of God occurs and as expressed in the song of Moses (Exodus 15:18) the Lord will reign for ever and ever.

In between, Genesis 4 to Revelations 20, we learn more about the character, ways, purpose and provisions of God. There is the outworking of the consequences of Adam’s choice, and the story of how God lives up to and works out his declaration that he would step up to restore what was lost.

The Messiah, Christ (the Anointed One) is promised in the Old Testament. He is the one who would come to defeat all evil, demons, sickness and death, and save his people. God promised to establish His kingdom by destroying the kingdom of darkness, and heaven will come to earth! And so in Revelations chapter 20 (before the vision of the age to come) John saw Satan and his angels damned and thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where they will be tormented day and night for ever and ever, and the dead are judged.

God is passionate about his work of restoration and he gives us in the Bible many imageries of the richness, fullness and beauty of the kingdom of God. Just a few (non exhaustive) examples are:

(1) Solomon’s party (1 King 8:63,65)
(2) David’s party (Psalm 23:5-6)
(3) Life giving river (Ezekiel 47:9-12)
(4) God’s power and dominion (Daniel 7:13-14, 27)
(5) God’s protection (Psalm 91)

These imageries should inspire us to join in God’s work of invading this present evil age with his kingdom rule, and the power of the age to come.

As for John Wimber, he simply looked at Jesus’ pattern of ministry: his proclamation and demonstration of the kingdom of God.

Even when he was a successful pastor, John remained uneasy and sensed a gap between the early Disciples’ experience as they spread the gospel of the kingdom of God and what his own congregation experienced. Learning about the kingdom of God made all the different for John and the Vineyard churches. John began to express our mission in terms of rescuing those who have been captive as a result of Adam’s fall. He was so excited about the prospect of the people being equipped to go out and preach and demonstrate the gospel, engaging in power encounters and experiencing the signs of the kingdom.

Click on the link to see the list of other posts on the kingdom of God.

God speaks and his words powerfully reveal to us answers to the basic questions that mankind has always asked: Where is it all going or what is the destiny of mankind? How does it work and what are the implications for us living in this present age?

There is a story shared by a Vineyard Pastor about two men at work by the roadside and they were carrying warning signs: Beware, the end is near. A car drove by and the driver dismissed the signs as they appeared to be the kind of religious message that most people hardly pay any attention to. A short while later there was the sound of screeching tires as the car desperately braked and attempted to stop. One of the work man turned to the other and said, Do you think we should change our message to say that the bridge is broken?

The story drives home the point that the implications of the kingdom of God are always in play or in operation in all our lives: whether we know it or not; like it or not. It is not a religious message. We ignore this prophetic revelation of reality at our own peril!

The theology of the kingdom is best presented by looking at history, which is basically about events, dates and periods. And the principal events in the history of mankind are the Fall (near the beginning), the coming of Jesus to die on the cross, Pentecost, and the Second Coming of Jesus (right at the very end).

The Second Coming of Jesus will mark the end of history and this event therefore divides the history of mankind into two periods, this “present evil age” and the “age to come” or the “future age”.

The Bible calls this period of time which we live in as this “present evil age”. Gal 1:4. Example of references to the two ages, are Matthew 12:32, Matthew 24:3, Ephesians 1:20-21.

The kingdom of God is the rule of God’s power (the power which is evident and universally at work in the future age) that has arrived suddenly, or broken through, in this present age. The promise of God to put an end to this present evil age was fulfilled when Jesus came forgiving sins, healing sicknesses, driving out demons, and raising the dead. In Jesus’ life, but even more so in his death on the cross, resurrection and ascension was Satan and his rule decisively defeated. At Pentecost the Holy Spirit was poured out. 1 John 3:8, Matthew 12:28.

We accept the mystery of the kingdom of God that it is simultaneously here, almost here, delayed and coming in the future and at the end of time because this reality was taught and lived by Jesus. However it becomes clear when we see that the kingdom of God has become present, and was inaugurated and fulfilled in the first coming of Jesus, but without being consummated.

In legal terms, Jesus fulfilled and satisfied all the conditions precedents that will bring in God’s rule on earth. God has the moral right and authority to reclaim what was originally his.

However, in his sovereign purpose and wisdom, it is “not yet” time for a complete end to this age, and God has not taken over completely. This will only happen at the second coming of Christ!

Christians are born from above and have already entered the kingdom of God, according to John 3:3-7. But we are also born into this present evil age. This explains why in our lives we experience the tension of two ages: the future age and this present age.

We live in between ages or times. We are already, not yet people. This is one of the biggest implications of the kingdom of God: We have a role to pray (Matthew 6:10) and to play to bring the kingdom to earth. The people of God (the Church), whether they know it or not, like it or not, are combatants in the thick of a war! We are the instruments of God’s rule to confront and destroy evil by being vessels that God can use to bring the power of the age to come, to invade this present age!

Click on the link to see the list of other posts on the kingdom of God.

Vineyard is all about zealously or passionately “doing the stuff”. Why do we feel this way? What has influenced us?

One of the main influences, if not the major influence on John Wimber’s life was an understanding of the kingdom of God. Learning about the kingdom of God gave John a new perspective. In his own words, his Christian life took on an entirely different meaning. Attending church was no longer a dreaded activity, but became, exciting gatherings in which the people of God are equipped to go and preach and demonstrate the gospel.

The kingdom of God gave John (and all of us who are a part of the Vineyard movement which he founded) our biblical and theological key for power evangelism and experiencing signs and wonders today. The kingdom of God has shaped our approach to ministry, and given us the basis and motivation for equipping the saints and joining the fight against Satan. Teaching about the kingdom of God has become a deeply ingrained practice in Vineyard churches.

We will reproduce below a number of blog posts about the Kingdom of God in the coming days, that had been featured in discontinued NLV online site, and include a video in which John Wimber teaches on the kingdom of God..

TOPICS
Ignore at your own peril!
Beginging to end: About restoration
Rejecting Jesus is rejecting the kingdom
The kingdom creates the Church
Kingdom authority
Being filled with the Spirit
Overwhelming our personality