Christ's Kingdom

Early in His model prayer, the Lord teaches us to pray, “Thy kingdom come.” (Matthew 6:10, Luke 11:2) Much can and ought to be said about this, for the Holy Spirit seems to have much to say about it in His Scriptures. David was promised a Descendant Who will sit on his throne forever. Daniel prophesied about this everlasting kingdom. Wise men from the east came seeking the “King of the Jews” (Matthew 2:2). John the Baptist preached, “Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). When questioned by Pilate, “Jesus answered, ‘You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. …’” (John 18:37). Near the end of the Bible, we are foretold of a time when “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).

The Holy Spirit inspired much more to be written by Matthew, John, & others concerning the kingdom of God. So we can begin to understand why we are given an early reminder in the Lord’s prayer to pray, “Thy kingdom come,” and why we are instructed from Matthew 6:33, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness.”

Indeed, the gospel much includes the doctrines associated with Christ’s kingdom – the Scriptures even specifically state that Christ Himself and His disciples went “preaching the gospel of the kingdom” (Matthew 4:23, 9:35, 24:14; Mark 1:14). This leads us to the following consideration: If the good news is more about Christ and His kingdom and not so much about us and our formula for obtaining eternal life, then the entire foundation for our theology and the building which stands upon it may need seriously revamped. Let us be encouraged toward a deeper study of this “[good news] of the kingdom” so as “to show [ourselves] approved unto God, [workmen] that needeth not to be ashamed” of a false emphasis, but “rightly dividing the word of truth” (II Timothy 2:15).