THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, THE KINGDOM OF GOD: an introduction

In this first part of many forth-coming series, we share about the Kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven. The primary focus of Jesus’ three year ministry when He walked this earth as a man and was later crucified for our sins, and rose again conquering hades and death, and ascended into heaven where He is seated at the right hand side of God and preparing places for us in the Father’s house of many mansions. The message of the Kingdom of heaven, Kingdom of God represents Jesus’ whole teaching; also we can perhaps say it was the determinative subject of his discourse.

Briefly, I’ll labour an explanation of the two different phrases as might perhaps be confusing unto some of us. The Kingdom of heaven versus the Kingdom of God; in the Bible, those two statements are one and the same thing that were only used interchangeably. In reading the synoptic gospels, we notice that it is only Matthew who used the title “the Kingdom of Heaven. Take for instance:

Matthew 3:2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. versus Mark 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Matthew 5:3, 10 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven... Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. versus Luke 6:20, 22 And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God... Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.

Matthew 11:11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. versus Luke 7:28 For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.

The term "Kingdom of Heaven" occurs 31 times in Matthew. And it is worth mentioning that it appears nowhere else in the New Testament. In contrast, the term "Kingdom of God" occurs 63 times in the New Testament. 9 times in Acts and Paul's epistles, only 5 times in Matthew -- the balance being found in Mark, Luke and John. In tackling the question as to why Matthew preferred "kingdom of heaven" to "kingdom of God," the explanation has long been that Matthew, writing to specifically Jewish readers, inserted "heaven" for "God" so as not to offend the Jewish sensibilities regarding uttering the name of God or the term that describes Him. So for our readership here, it is important that you know this bit of history so that we can then go on together with the same mind that in this new series, the two phrases have no difference in meaning.

Having established this truth, we are still left with the question, "What is the Kingdom of Heaven/God?" In trying to define something, I also labour to find out what it is not. Applying the same concept here, I have found out that the Kingdom of Heaven is not the same thing as heaven. When the New Testament uses the phrase “the Kingdom of Heaven” it is not referring to heaven. Instead it is referring to the Millennial Kingdom which has been ordained from heaven, that is, from God -hence the interchangeability between "Kingdom of Heaven" and "Kingdom of God." The Kingdom of Heaven is a kingdom from heaven, not a kingdom in heaven. God reigns supreme in heaven. Heaven is the locus of His authority. Heaven is the point from which God rules the universe. The words “of heaven” in this case are referring to the origin of this Kingdom. It is the place from which the Kingdom is coming, not a destination to which we are going. So we see that although the Kingdom of Heaven is heavenly in character and origin, it is not the same thing as heaven.

From the book of Matthew to Mark and Luke and to John, it is plainly visible that Jesus, whenever he taught, was always constantly talking about the Kingdom of God. “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”. Matt. 4:17. And then to one of my favourite passages from the Bible, God’s own account:

“Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not life more than meat, and the body more than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” Matthew 6:25-34

The point ladies and gentlemen, that we’re trying to make here is that while we live out our earthly lives, we actually are living in one of two kingdoms. And if you’re not living in the kingdom of God, then you are by default living in the other kingdom, the kingdom of Satan and his demons. I remember a movie I watched once where someone said the biggest lie that the devil has had very many people believe and still wants to keep them believing is that he (the devil) does not exist. In this series, we are dispelling that. It is your choice to which kingdom (of the two) you are going to live, but it isn’t your choice who your king is going to be in either kingdom. God, our Heavenly Father is the king of this kingdom and in being “our Heavenly Father”, He is not the Father of sinners. To listen to some folk talk ‘we are all children of God; God is the Father of all of us, and we are all brothers and sisters’ is not something right, I believe. Because the Bible does not say so! Because you see, the devil is the father of some people. John 8:44, Jesus said to some of the most religious people of that day, “Ye are of your father the devil”. Jesus didn’t say our Heavenly Father was their father. He said the devil was their father. For the natural man is motivated by demons. He is ruled by Satan. I’m not saying he is demon-possessed. What I mean is all those who have never been born-again have Satan as their god, king and father, whether you knew it or not. They are in the kingdom of darkness; a kingdom ruled by Satan and demons. “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” I Cor. 2:14

By faith, we shall continue to share with you in our subsequent posts, each one, our opinions on the message of the Kingdom of God and what it means for you/us. But in all, the question still begs, in which kingdom are you living or choosing to live? And is that the best choice you could make? God bless you.

My Prayer For You Today: And may the grace of God enable everyone reading here to have their minds and eyes opened up by the Spirit of God to the realisation of the power that lives and operates in the kingdom of God. And may as many as read here choose wisely which kingdom of the two that they shall choose to live in this day. In the name of Jesus Christ, AMEN.