Authority is a key issue because a kingdom must embody three elements: a King, his subjects and authority.

The Old Testament book of Daniel shows that God has delegated authority to world rulers. God installs and removes kings (Daniel 2:21; 4:31). But the “son of man”, Jesus, was given authority and enthroned as ruler over the whole earth and his kingdom is forever, and one that will never be destroyed. Daniel 7:13-14. In the kingdom of God, Jesus is our King.

The Church – God’s people – are the subjects of the kingdom. (We have said that the kingdom creates the Church).

Authority
Now the word in Greek used in the Bible for authority is exousia. It can be defined as unrestrained right or freedom of action. The verbal form of the word means to exercise one’s right. The word can also mean the authorization of an officer or a messenger to carry out a specific task. Exousia is used only of people, never used of things.

The Hebrew word for authority rasuit is not found in the Old Testament but among the writings of the Rabbis. It means delegated power of action like the power of attorney which is given or the power of an ambassador to represent his sovereign. There is a judicial sense to rasuit as designating the right to marry or inherit.

Kingdom authority is delegated
All authority in heaven and earth has been given to Jesus (Matthew 28:18). Jesus passed the same authority to the twelve (Matthew 10:5) the seventy two (Luke 10:1-20); and after that, all of us (Matthew 28:18-20).

Kingdom authority has to be exercised
John’s Gospel tells us that everyone who receives Jesus receives from Jesus the exousia to become his child – John 1:12.

God gives to those who believe the authority to become his child.

Exousia or authority gives us the freedom of action to act according to the status, which you have attained. Jesus gives us the right, which we must exercise, to behave according to our changed status. When we believe, we are given authority to act in accordance to changed status, from children of Satan to children of God.

Authority, in terms of modern financial instruments, is like an “in the money” call-option, which you must exercise to obtain the full benefits of its intrinsic value!

Use of kingdom authority
Delegation of authority is for the purpose of caretaking, for conserving or protecting what belongs to the Master. In the parable of the servants found in Matthew 25:13-40 we learn that you can incur the wrath of your master by caretaking which avoid any risking taking, or inaction which is tantamount negligence and a shirking of responsibility.

Jesus used his authority to expel demons. He deprived Satan and his demonic host of their power, that is, their ability to do evil, thus destroying the works of Satan by snatching men from his rule. In Luke Jesus teaches that we have been given authority to tread on serpents and scorpions.

Example of delegation, exercise and use of authority by the Church
Jesus left the keys to the kingdom in the hands of Peter. Matthew 16:19. This builds on the concept in Isaiah 22:22 where God gave Eliakim the keys to the House of David commissioning him with its care.

To ensure that the Church understands that it has great authority, Jesus said, I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

The authority to bind or loose involves admission or exclusion of men and women from the kingdom of God. How does this happen? Loosing denotes freeing those under the control of Satan. Binding means to prohibit or forbid Satan from harming the Church. Our proclamation and demonstration of the kingdom provide opportunities for people to enter the kingdom!

But binding and loosing do not automatically mean that God will do what the Church speaks. Binding and loosing means that the Church does in this age what the Father has already ratified and determined in the age to come.

In binding and loosing, God’s rule in grace and power is attained. The Church must be attentive to what God is doing, binding what he has bound, and loosing what he has loosed.

Faith comes when we have confidence in kingdom authority
The Centurion of Matthew 8:5-13 understood authority very well, for he himself was a man under authority. He had been delegated his authority by his superior. Those under him had to follow his command. His authority to command was granted because he was also under the authority of his senior officer and finally Caesar himself. Ultimate authority came from Caesar, but the Centurion issued the orders. This was a one time gift of authority to the Centurion. He did not have to run to Caesar each time he needed to give an order to his followers.

It is important to see that great faith comes having confidence in kingdom authority. For Jesus said of the Centurion, “I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.”

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

Jesus’ mission and ministry and brought the Church into the picture.

Jesus’ words and works demonstrated that the kingdom arrived with his coming. He brought the presence of the future. He brought the rule of God from the future into the present, and taught that we can now live in the presence of the future. Mark’s Gospel makes it clear that the mission of Jesus was to destroy the activity of Satan in the world. Jesus and Satan were in a cosmic conflict. The works of Jesus and the signs of the kingdom were healing of the sick, demons cast out, and raising of the dead. Men and women are part of that battle field as what is at stake are ownership and ruler-ship in their lives.

In like manner other battles were afoot: hunger, John 6, natural catastrophes, Mark 4:35-41, sickness, Luke 7:21, and death, Luke 7:11-17.

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. The strong man, Satan, is bound (deo: to bind—a metaphorical term indicating the curbing of power) so the strong man’s house (Satan’s kingdom) may be plundered. Satan’s power is curbed, but not rendered completely powerless (Matthew 16:23; Mark 8:33).

Rejection by Israel and her Remnant
Jesus did not begin his mission with the focus of starting a new movement. He insisted that his mission was to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Matthew 15.24. When he sent his disciples out to minister, he told them to go to Israel only. He proclaimed to Israel that God was acting to fulfill his promises and bring Israel to her true destiny as his children.

However Israel rejected the message of Jesus about the kingdom of God. His proclamation drew instant denial, Mark 3:1-6, intensified during his ministry and culminated in his death on the cross.

While Israel refused to accept the offer of Jesus, and the kingdom, a small group, a remnant, did respond in faith. They were the ones that responded to Jesus’ call to discipleship, to a commitment to himself and his message.

The kingdom creates the Church
The call by Jesus of twelve disciples symbolizes the continuity of the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28). By choosing the twelve Jesus taught that he was raising up a new people to replace the nation of Israel who had rejected his message. These disciples were to become known as the Church, the true Israel of God.

Jesus’ mission is still being accomplished by followers who have received his message and become his disciples. The rule of God as presented in the words and works of Jesus confronts men and women to respond and come under his rule, forging a new relationship with him as King. Mark 3:31-35.

When the powerful rule of God impregnates an individual, he or she is made a part of the body of Christ, the Church.

The Church’s mission is to witness to the kingdom to all mankind
The mission of the Church is to bear witness to the kingdom of God. The Church cannot build the kingdom or become the kingdom. The Church is the vessel through which the powerful redeeming acts of Jesus are performed.

This is illustrated in the commission of Jesus to the Twelve, Matthew 10, and to the Seventy, Luke 10. The proclamation of the Apostles in the book of Acts reinforces it. The Church is to witness to all mankind about the kingdom. The seventy disciples that Jesus sent out was symbolic. Jewish tradition believed that there were seventy nations in the world and that the Jewish Torah had been first given in seventy languages. The sending of seventy missionaries appears to be an implicit claim that the message of Jesus must be heard not only by Israel but by all mankind.

Since the Church is the recipient of the life and fellowship of the kingdom, then one of her main purposes is to demonstrate in the life and power of the age to come in this present evil age.

The Church is the people of the age to come, living in this present evil age, and they must provide a model to display the life of the future perfected order.

The Church is a conduit through which the kingdom acts
The Church is the conduit through which God’s kingdom acts are performed. Matthew 10:8; Luke 10:17. This makes discipleship important. The Church has often fallen short of making true disciples of Jesus.

The Church also tends to promote character and community to the neglect of performing such kingdom ministry as praying for the sick and casting out demons.

Proclamation of the kingdom must be words and works combined.

Summary
The kingdom of God is his rule and reign. The mission of Jesus was to invade this present evil age with his kingdom rule. His ministry was to preach repentance, proclaim the good news of the kingdom, and demonstrate that the kingdom had come in him. Those who chose to receive the proclamation of the rule of God are, in fact, the Church. It is the fellowship of those who have experienced the rule of God and entered into its blessings. The kingdom creates the Church, works through the Church, and through her demonstrates the rule of God to the world.

Acknowledgement: We wish to acknowledge that most of the material we have presented at this stage, are derived from the kingdom of God seminars conducted by John Wimber.

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

Here is a video in which John Wimber teaches on Worship.

By Francis Frangipane
www.frangipane.org

“The disciples came to Him, saying, ‘The place is desolate, and the time is already past; so send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.’ But Jesus said to them, ‘They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!’ And they said to Him, ‘We have here only five loaves and two fish’” (Matt. 14:15-17).

I want to talk about how the Lord raises up a mature man or woman of God–the drives and attitudes that propel a person into a fully committed walk with Jesus Christ. It is essential to realize from the beginning that, when it comes to doing God’s will, both the person and God’s provision will always seem inadequate. Oh, you will have been prepared, somewhat. You will have studied and prayed, but not enough. You will have faithfully given of your time and finances, but nothing you do will be something you can confidently rely upon. Indeed, when you’ve done all you could, you will mutter to the Lord your equivalent of the disciples’: “We have here only five loaves and two fish.”

Yet, to know that you are inadequate is a tremendous advantage in spiritual growth. It is a milestone en route toward true spirituality, which is born of dependency on God, not human self-sufficiency. Once a person knows he is inadequate, he will not waste years discovering it.

Not a day goes by that I am not aware of my inadequacies. Besides struggling with “feelings” of inadequacy, I know I actually am inadequate. I know the very best of my efforts, in and of themselves, are totally insufficient. The moment I think otherwise, I guarantee failure for myself.

While the Lord has many ways to inspire my spiritual growth, the greatest seasons of increase come almost in spite of myself. The process begins with the Lord revealing some task or need that is both absolutely necessary and totally impossible for me to fulfill. My first reaction is to pray, “Lord, raise up someone who’ll do the job.” But then, when no one else shows up, I realize He wants me to step forward. As I do, I soon hear Him say the words He spoke to His disciples, “You give them something to eat.”

Sometimes, I hide in the “familiar” tasks I know I can accomplish, but a time of reckoning comes. It usually is a time of pressure or stress that, beginning with the rediscovery of my frailties, ends with me broken and waiting upon the Lord. It is right here, as I am contemplating the pitifully small “five loaves and two fish” which I am offering Jesus, that He says to my heart, “Bring them here to Me.” And here is where the miracle of grace begins. For as I surrender myself afresh into His hands, a new dimension in my walk with God starts to unfold, one of supernatural multiplication.

“He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave to the multitudes, and they all ate, and were satisfied” (v.19).

Whatever you give to Jesus He will bless and break. A true disciple always carries these two seeming contradictory characteristics. We know His wonderful, undeserved blessing; and we are broken of pride, self-sufficiency and boasting. He lets us know assuredly that, as Christians, we have one source for all of our power. The sooner we realize our effectiveness does not originate in us, but in Christ, the quicker we will experience the miracles that He produces. Indeed, when He reveals to us our weaknesses, it is only because He is preparing us to receive more of His power into our lives.

Consider: When Jesus performed the miracle of the loaves and fish, He and His disciples were already weary and needed strength (see Mark 6:31). Added to this came the distressing news that John the Baptist had been beheaded. The Lord was seeking to take His disciples to a place where they could “rest a while.” Yet, great multitudes came, perhaps over twelve thousand men, women and children. It was in this very circumstance of weakness that He performed this great miracle of grace.

As it was with Jesus, so it is with us: It is when we sense our weaknesses most vividly, that God can use us most mightily! The Lord will continually present to us tasks that we have never done before. He will require of each of us to give our all, even as inadequate as we seem. There will be no “knights in shining armor” in God’s kingdom; our armor will have many dings and dents. No, no perfect Hollywood heroes will ride to save the day; just wearied saints who look to God and, in weakness, find Christ’s strength. This, indeed, is the essence of God’s kingdom: divine greatness manifest in common people.

In these days ahead, the Lord is going to show you a need that will seem absolutely beyond you to perform. Your natural response will be, “I’m just an average person with limited resources. I can’t do what He’s asked me to do.” Yet, if you will be still, you shall soon hear your Master’s voice quietly, confidently saying, “Bring the need to Me.”

Do as He commands, for as you give the insufficiency of your skills and your pitiful provisions to Him, He will begin to bless and break you, and then multiply what you give Him miraculously. In all my years of ministry, I know of no transforming grace greater than that which comes when, in spite of our inadequacies, we obey God in the face of the impossible.

Dr. James Kallas suggests in his book, Jesus and the Power of Satan that Jesus never explained the kingdom of God because the people to whom he was speaking knew what it meant or thought they knew what it meant.

Jesus actually built on the popular accepted meaning of the kingdom of God to explain why he had come. Importantly Jesus sought to transform their views about the kingdom of God through his teachings and his works.

The words and works of Jesus form a unity in which the kingdom of God is spoken about and demonstrated. What Jesus did was as important as what he said. Twenty First Century Christians are often more preoccupied with what he said. Too often we forget that what he did carries the same message. He taught as much by doing as by saying.

Continuing with our study of the kingdom, let’s look at the two ways which it was understood by Jesus’ audience. They are called the Davidic concept and the Apocalyptic concept of the kingdom of God.

The Davidic concept of the kingdom
Israel had reached its apex during the rule of King David and King Solomon. At the death of Solomon the kingdom divided into two kingdoms with their own kings and governments. This division set in place a longing among the Jews for God to restore to them their past blessings. Israel’s hope was that God would send a king like David. The focus was militaristic and geographic. Israel wanted a nationalistic kingdom to return.

The prophets of the Old Testament began using a phrase “the day of the Lord,” which was a two-sided belief system including restoration and judgment. Israel believed that the “day of the Lord” was a time when Israel would be fully restored (Amos 9:14; Isa.11; Zech. 8:4-8). The nations would be judged (Amos 1).

The kingdom of God was thought to be a kingdom of this world which would be peopled by the Jews. There was nothing spiritual or future about it. The kingdom was a dream of Jewish nationalism.

The Apocalyptic concept of the kingdom
During the Intertestamental Period (404 B.C. – 6 B.C.) there arose a new kind of writing within Judaism called Apocalyptic Literature and the term kingdom of God came into popular usage.

The hope of the Apocalyptic writers was for a heavenly kingdom which would end this present evil age. A new world would break into the present world and bring the rule of God. The belief was that Satan dominated this present evil age; it was under his rule. When Antiochus Epiphanes unleashed his persecution on Israel (175-164 B.C.), this view began to flourish. This horrific deluge of evil could only be the result of a cosmic conflict.

This view of the kingdom saw God himself ushering in his kingdom and reversing the evils of Satan. Good would triumph, healing would occur, the demonic would be defeated.

Rejecting Jesus is rejecting the kingdom
It should be clear to us that Jesus’ concept of the kingdom was broader than the Davidic concept, the nationalistic material (militaristic and geographic) kingdom the people dreamt of having. It is actually pervasive and inclusive, more than just for the Jews.

The idea of a return to the good old days, of full restoration is correct. So is a day when everything is consummated, “the day of the Lord” for restoration and also judgment. But it is a return of all that men and women have lost, and when God takes over completely.

The Apocalyptic concept was spot on in terms of the cosmic conflict and the understanding that Satan dominated this present evil age; good would ultimately triumph etc.

However, both views could not anticipate the mystery of the kingdom (that’s why it’s called a mystery and needs prophetic revelation): that that the kingdom of God could be fulfilled in the first coming of Jesus, but without being consummated.

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. But sadly, Jesus’ proclamation and demonstration that the kingdom had come in him fell on many deaf ears, and many of his listeners rejected him as the long awaited Messiah.

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