THE KINGDOM OF GOD

Preached by Gregory W. Lee
21 August 2005

I. Divided Kingdoms
-- turn in your Bibles to Matthew 6:9-11

9. "This, then, is how you should pray: "`Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
10. your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
11. Give us today our daily bread.
12. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. '

-- this morning, we are going to be continuing our series on the Lord's Prayer and will be talking about the kingdom of God.
-- as we begin this study this morning, I want you to remember the concept of duality that I talked about last week, because it becomes very prominent in our discussions on the kingdom of God
-- in his book, The City of God, St. Augustine pointed out this duality by stating that on earth there were two kingdoms -- the kingdom of man and the kingdom of God and that both existed together at the same time
-- as we go through this we need to keep in mind that fact
-- we can see a clear example of that in Isaiah 6 -- if you would, turn there now and listen as I read verses 1-5


1. In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.
2. Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.
3. And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory."
4. At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
5. "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."

-- as we read in this passage on the commission of Isaiah, the nation of Israel is in turmoil at the death of King Uzziah -- the king of Israel -- the king of the kingdom of man for Isaiah -- has passed away
-- the passing of a king was a traumatic experience -- they didn't know what would happen -- they didn't know whether chaos and disorder would enter the kingdom -- Isaiah's heart was probably filled with terror and uncertainty in this time
-- but, at that very moment, God gave Isaiah a glimpse of the other kingdom -- God's kingdom -- and Isaiah is given a vision of God enthroned on high, surrounded by His mighty angels who are praising and glorifying God -- the true ruler and King of Kings
-- in verse 3, the angels call out, "the whole earth is filled with your glory" -- pointing out exactly what we want to talk about this morning -- God's kingdom was present in the world -- and despite the uncertainty surrounding the kingdom of man -- God's kingdom was secure

II. What is kingdom of God?
-- this duality also exists in another way -- not only do we need to remember that there are two kingdoms present right now -- the kingdom of man and the kingdom of God -- but we need to consider the reality and duality of the kingdom of God that is here
-- when we think of the kingdom of God, we tend to think of a future kingdom -- the millenial kingdom of Christ and His kingdom in heaven -- when Christ will physically rule over the nations as King of Kings and Lord of Lords -- Bible tells us there will be a day when Christ will return -- the Day of the Lord -- at the end of human history
-- at this time, Christ will come back with shouts of acclamation to claim His throne here on earth -- creation will be restored, the earth will be recreated, and the new Jerusalem will be the capitol city of our King
-- as it describes in the book of Revelation, this will be a time when there will be no more weeping or sorrow because we will dwell in the house of the Lord -- He will be our God and our King and we will worship Him in all our ways -- at that time, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord
-- this is what the first-century Jews had in mind when Jesus talked to them of the "kingdom of God" -- they wanted God to send a great and powerful leader -- the Messiah -- who would throw off Roman rule and restore Judea to greatness once again as an independent nation -- a nation of righteousness, glory and blessings -- a nation where everyone would come to so they would learn God's way -- this was why they missed Jesus when He came the first time -- they expected the Messiah to come and take over rule of Israel -- that is why they gathered on Palm Sunday and cried "Hosannah! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!" -- they expected Jesus to remove the Romans and set up His rule in Jerusalem at that time -- but, when He didn't, they quickly turned against Him because they thought that He could not be the Messiah
-- they didn't understand the duality of the kingdom of God -- that God's kingdom could exist in two realms -- the spiritual and the physical -- and that the manifestation of God's kingdom would have two different timings -- the present spiritual kingdom and the future physical kingdom
-- they did not understand that God's kingdom occurs where ever God is -- Jesus used the phrase "kingdom of Heaven" that every Jew knew and longed for in their heart, but He gave it a new meaning -- He wanted them to see that God's kingdom did not exist only as an actual physical kingdom, but also as a spiritual present reality -- in teaching the people, Jesus said my Kingdom is not of this world -- and when He talked to Nicodemus late one night, He told Nicodemus that God's kingdom was invisible to most people -- to understand it or experience it, a person must be renewed by God's spirit -- they must be born again

-- just like the first century Jews, we also tend to forget the fact that when we talk about the Kingdom of God, we are talking about two realities -- the future kingdom of God and the current spiritual kingdom of God here on earth
-- we look forward to the coming of Christ and the restoration of the world without realizing that we are already living in the kingdom
-- in the Lord's prayer, when we pray, "thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" -- we tend to think only of the future -- we pray in our hearts -- "come Lord Jesus -- come again and establish your kingdom on earth -- remove sin and death once and for all time -- bring down the new Jerusalem and set up your throne"
-- but, this prayer means more than that -- it is also a cry for God's kingdom to be fully established and recognized here on earth at the present time -- don't forget that Jesus gave us this prayer as a model for our daily communing with God -- this prayer for God's kingdom to come and for His will to be done is a daily prayer -- it is something that we should pray on a daily basis

-- when we pray this phrase, it means three things for us as Christians in the 21st century:
-- first, it means that God's kingdom is present right now -- it exists in a spiritual realm that is just as real and powerful as any human kingdom or government that exists -- it means that we recognize God's kingdom and recognize ourselves as His subjects in this land

-- secondly, it means, "God, be enthroned in my heart -- let your will be done in my life" -- Lord, I submit myself to you -- I surrender my will to you -- I surrender my life to you -- I step off the throne of my life and I allow you to be the Lord of my life
-- this means that we recognize that our life is not our own -- that it was bought with a price and that we no longer have the right to rule it -- it means that we trust God to manifest His power and His grace in our lives as He wills -- we see the most perfect example of this in the life of Christ -- when Christ was praying in the Garden of Gethsemene on the night before the crucifixion, Jesus prayed to God to take the cup of suffering from Him if it was possible -- but finally, Jesus cried out, "But not my will, but yours be done" -- in other words, "Father, You are God and King -- I surrender myself to You and I trust in You and your plans"
-- to pray this way means that we set aside our agendas -- our plans -- our dreams -- and replace them with God's perfect agenda -- His perfect plans -- His promises for our life -- it means we trust in His word when He tells us in Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and future"

-- Thirdly, when we pray this prayer, it means that we are praying for God's power and authority to be made manifest not only in our lives but in the life of the world around us
-- this means that we recognize the authority and power of God to change hearts and transform lives in every circumstance -- it means that we ask God to extend His power through us and through His church to reach out into a dying world to redeem lost souls and bring them into the light of His kingdom
-- when we pray this prayer, we are asking that God's light would shine forth into a dark world, sending evil spirits fleeing and standing as a lighthouse of safety for those around us

III. Application and Closing
-- do you understand what you are saying, then, when you pray this prayer? -- you are saying that there is nothing that our God cannot do -- there is no life He cannot touch -- no heart He cannot change -- no situation He cannot work for His good
-- sometimes, we can get discouraged in this day and age -- every morning when I go to work, the first thing I do is quickly scan the national, state, and local news -- I can tell you, there are many mornings when I sit at my desk with tears in my eyes and a heavy heart because of the terrible, terrible things that are going on in the world -- and I have often prayed, "thy kingdom come" longing for the day when Christ would come back and make all the wrong right -- when He would come and establish His kingdom on earth and get rid of the sin and trash and strife in our land
-- but lately, God has been showing me that this promise of His kingdom coming is not a future promise but can be a present reality -- God can reach down and change any situation -- if we trust Him and believe in His power and let Him work through us

-- right now, I think the best example of this that we can see is in the story of Rose Sims and what God did through her in Trilby, FL -- we have talked about this before and I have pointed out several times how she led that church from seven people over 70 years of age to over 350 in worship in just three years -- but, that isn't the whole story -- that's just the end result of the story
-- when Rose Sims got to Trilby, it was described by the papers as a third world country -- it had been written off -- it was a place where life was cheap -- where murder and drugs and crime was common -- where babies were getting pregnant and having babies -- where families lived in squalor and poverty -- it was a place without life -- without love -- without hope
-- but, Rose Sims believed in the manifest power of God working through His people -- and so she prayed for that town -- she prayed "thy kingdom come, thy will be done -- here, in Trilby, FL, just like it is in heaven" -- in other words, she prayed, "God, this is a horrible place -- there are horrible things going on here -- Satan has set up his throne in this place and claimed it for his own -- but we want you to come and evict Satan -- we want you to come and let your power and majesty flow through this community -- we believe that your matchless power can change the hearts of this people -- we believe that you can change their hearts and transform their lives -- we believe that your presence is enough to cause the darkness to flee and we are praying for that to happen right now"
-- and, in response to this prayer, God came -- and His power and His presence swept through that town and His will was done -- lives were changed and a community was transformed -- the crime rate went down -- the drug dealers either left or were converted -- the young men and women there saw the promise of hope and the promise of a future for the first time in their life -- and God's kingdom was established in that place
-- it can happen here, too -- it can happen in your home, too -- it can happen in your life, too

-- this phrase in this prayer -- "Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" -- is my battlecry
-- you know of some of the things that we battle in our family -- it appears hopeless -- there is nothing that can be done to change it -- there is no way for anyone to bring change or healing to our lives -- but, when I pray this prayer, I am recognizing that only God has the power and authority to change it -- I am asking Him to come into my life and to pour out His healing grace in my life and in the life of my family
-- when we pray this prayer into a situation, we are asking God to work -- we are trusting and believing that He can work
-- when I read in the paper about some of the things going on in this nation -- the crime and the sin and the hurts going on -- I pray to God that His kingdom would come -- that His presence would be felt in their lives and that His will would be done instead of the will of the world -- the will of the flesh -- or the will of Satan -- I pray and I trust and I believe that God will come in power and majesty and authority and will redeem all of these situations

-- there is not a life that He cannot touch -- there is not a heart that He cannot change -- our job is to pray forth His kingdom here on earth and to live as citizens of His kingdom -- not as citizens of this world
-- our churches should be God's embassies in a foreign land and we should be amabassadors of His grace -- this means that when we see lives that need the presence of God, we should pray for His kingdom to be made a present reality in their lives and that we should reach out to them as the hands and feet of Christ -- as His subjects in a royal kingdom -- to minister to their physical and spiritual needs as He directs

-- I want to close with a quote from Rev. Charles Roesel of the First Baptist Church of Leesburg, FL -- Rev. Roesel is another who believes in the current reality of the kingdom of God and who was dissatisfied with the way the church was living out kingdom principles in reality
-- He said, "Doing nothing when you can save or transform a life is condemned by the Sixth Commandment -- Ministry is not an elective -- it is a divine mandate -- any church not involved in ministry is guilty of high treason and spiritual disobedience -- for too long we've evaluated a church by how many people stream in the front door on a Sunday -- we should evaluate a church by how many people serve the Lord Jesus by serving the hurting all week long."
-- what Rev Roesel is talking about here is praying, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" and working with God to see it come to pass in the land -- there is nothing that God can't do -- there is no one He can't touch -- there is no life -- no situation -- no sin -- that is too big for God and that He cannot overcome
-- He wants to expand His kingdom in our lives and in our homes and in this church -- and in this prayer, we pray for this to happen -- and with our hands, we work with God to see it come to pass
-- will you pray this with me this morning -- will you pray, "Thy kingdom come" and work to make it happen through God's power made manifest in you and me?
-- Let us pray