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The Daily Word of Righteousness
Orientation to the Kingdom of God
From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 4:17)
And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. (Matthew 24:14)
And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. (Mark 16:15)
What is the Gospel of the Kingdom of God?
The Gospel of Christ is the Good News of a Kingdom coming to the earth. The Kingdom of God will establish righteousness, peace, and joy throughout the creation.
The Christian saints through and with the Lord Jesus Christ will inherit the earth and its peoples. Can you imagine anything more glorious than that?
First of all, let us make certain we know that there is a Heaven, that Heaven is more real than the present world, and that the godly in Christ go there the moment they die physically (Luke 23:43; II Corinthians 12:4). The writer is anticipating with joy entering the Presence of God and the Lamb, and to reunion with loved ones, at the moment of passing from the body.
So while we are orienting the reader toward the Gospel of Christ, the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, we are not in any way taking away the hope of going to Heaven when we die. That hope remains firm.
It remains true, nevertheless, that the Christian Gospel is not a plan whereby we attain eternal residence in Heaven. Eternal residence in Heaven is not the goal of the Kingdom of God. It is not the goal of the Christian discipleship and pilgrimage.
Consider the following:
God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect. (Hebrews 11:40)
They, in the above verse, are Noah, Abraham, Moses, Joseph, and the other heroes of faith of the eleventh chapter of Hebrews.
Are these patriarchs and prophets in Heaven around the Throne of God and of the Lamb? Are they beside the crystal sea, casting down their crowns before God and His Christ, worshiping and adoring God continually? We are persuaded that they are.
Have they reached perfection by attaining residence in Heaven? Have they attained the goal of their pilgrimage? Have they found the "country," the "city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God"?
No, they have not. Look once more at the verse:
God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect. (Hebrews 11:40)
What is better than the present state of the patriarchs in Heaven? What is the perfection that is better than eternal residence in Heaven? Perfection is the Kingdom of God. Perfection is the bringing of the Lord Jesus Christ into every atom of the material creation.
The better thing, the perfect state, is union with the Lord Jesus. The union (marriage) of the saints with the Lord will be revealed in the first resurrection from the dead. In terms of the Book of Hebrews, the "better thing" is the rest of God.
The Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, of the Kingdom of God, is the coming of the rule of Heaven into the earth. The Kingdom of God is Christ: Christ with us, Christ being formed in us, Christ dwelling in us, Christ central in all things in the heavens and on the earth (Ephesians 1:10).
To be continued.