Signs of the Kingdom: What is the Kingdom?
A few years ago I began to realize that my understanding of the Kingdom of God was really skewed. Oh, I had read the right books and listened to many sermons and could give a textbook explanation of the Kingdom ("the rule of God"), but I just was not satisfied on a heart level. I felt a little like Neo groping after the elusive, mysterious Matrix -- I knew there was something more out there, something big that could wreck my world and redefine it completely. I'd like to share some of my journey as I've come to an understanding of the Kingdom that is more satisfying, though far from complete -- and I invite you to journey with me.
I noticed that I, like others, often use the phrase "the Kingdom" at times as a sort of generic to describe the worldwide church. Another common usage is to equate "the Kingdom of God" to Heaven -- you know, that world "somewhere up there" where everything is perfect... Other times we use it to refer to the future "perfected state" of church, when this present age comes to an end. But does Jesus' primary usage (see Matt 4:17) of the term fit any of these ideas? How was I to "seek the Kingdom" if I could not even get a handle on what Jesus was really referring to?
The Church is not the Kingdom
One of the first things that I realized was that the Kingdom cannot be identified with the church. The church is not the Kingdom. The in-breaking Kingdom birthed the church, but the Kingdom itself is something "other" -- something that is greater than the sum total of the worldwide church.
But let me root this idea in Scripture. To me, this concept was most clearly driven home in Jesus' teaching in Luke 12:31-32. Here Jesus commands his disciples to refuse "survival anxiety" -- the pernicious worry that quietly consumes our life when we are not trusting in the goodness of the Father's heart. Instead he commands us,
"Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom."
We, the "little flock" (the church), are to seek and receive the Kingdom. Can Jesus' usage of the phrase "the Kingdom" in this passage refer the Church itself? Isn't it something else that we're commanded to seek and receive?
In fact, let me pique your interest by saying this: I've come to the conclusion that a thriving, growing, influential, powerful, wealthy church is not necessarily a sign of the Kingdom. There have been hours in the history of the church where the church flourished, but the Kingdom was resisted, quenched and all but ignored! But I'm getting ahead of myself...
The Kingdom, here and now: not just "up there" or "out there"
Though Jesus used the phrase "the Kingdom of God" at times to refer to the future perfect age and to refer to the perfect world "up there", I'm convinced that the Gospel of the Kingdom must reference a present reality in the "here and now". I do long for and seek heaven "up there". And I do long for the coming perfect age, when Christ's reign is fully established, and all evil and suffering are vanquished. But what if there is more I could taste, touch and experience now? There are many, many portions of Scripture that provoked me to think in this direction, but let me refer to these three: Mark 9:1, Luke 16:16 and Luke 11:20
"And he said to them, "Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power."
"The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it."
"But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. "
To me, Scriptures like these challenged my unconscious, deep-seated, traditional understanding of the Kingdom as I studied them and the context in which they were spoken. Was I being blinded from a deeper grasp of the present reality of the Kingdom? If I don't discern the Kingdom, I cannot truly seek it or encounter it in its fullness. What if the Kingdom is not merely "up there" in heaven or "out there" in the future -- but it is something we, the church, are to seek and receive here and now, as a present reality? I'm convinced the Kingdom of God is not just about personal salvation, though it's where it all begins. And it's not just a hope for the future, when this life or this age is complete -- it is something that we can and should experience here and now! We, as God's people are meant to seek and receive the Kingdom from the Father. And it is his good pleasure to "give us the Kingdom", as a present experience (Luke 12:31-32). I'm hungry for this... are you? I think this hunger can only be satisfied, not in the theoretical understanding, but in the experiential reality of the Kingdom.
So I was left with these questions: "How do I discern and seek the Kingdom? How do I know if and when I receive it?".
Bearing the Fruits of the Kingdom
I found one clue to this unraveling this enigma in Matthew 21:43
"Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits. "
(I realize I am quoting snippets of Scripture, but I trust that you will look up the context to see if it fits what I say or if I'm simply proof-texting my way to heresy!)
Jesus talks about the Kingdom being taken away from the unbelieving Jews and given to another people (the church) who then will produce it's fruits. Aha! Whatever the Kingdom is, when we truly receive it, it will produce it's visible fruits in us. The problem with the Jews was that they resisted and did not yield to God's rule and consequently were barren -- and God removed the Kingdom from them.
So I began to look for the things that could be called fruit or signs of the Kingdom's presence and sway over our lives. I came up with 7 fruits or signs that are the essential and necessary results of receiving the Kingdom. When we receive the Kingdom, we will see these signs in our midst. To seek the Kingdom is to actively seek all of these things. I would go as far as to day to ignore one of these, is to ignore a Kingdom essential. So here is my list of seven signs or fruits of the Kingdom fullness in our midst...
Seven signs of the Kingdom
- The presence of God - "the manifest reality of God on earth"
- The Gospel of the Kingdom - "the message and the vehicle of the Kingdom"
- Works of power - "the clash of two kingdoms"
- Repentance and New Birth - "soul bending"
- Joy, Peace, Righteousness - "inner life and outward fruit"
- The People of God - "community of radical obedience"
- Multiplication and Expansion - "dominion, the urge to fill the earth"
Let me close by saying this: The greatest tragedy in our generation would be that we, the church, allow ourselves to settle for anything less than the Kingdom's fullness. The flip side of this, is that "it is the Father's pleasure" to give us the Kingdom, so we need not fear. This is our inheritance through Christ!
