What God Really Wants Us to Know -- (Part 5) -- Understanding the Kingdom of God

As the kingdom of God was the essential message of Jesus, it follows that all of his teachings had something to do with bringing understanding to the world of what the kingdom of God is and what we must do to "enter" into it. Given the very limited education and awareness of the people at Jesus' time, explaining the "kingdom of God" was surely a daunting task.

Human beings tend to grasp things in terms of ideas and concepts. Could their be any greater challenge for the limited human mind to actually grasp than the concept of the kingdom of God?

How could the infinite, the sublime, the indescribable be put into words which humans with limited minds could even begin to understand?Surely Jesus would not tease his disciples telling them, 'It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom' (Luke 12:32) and not describe what the kingdom of God actually is in terms they could understand. Surely, God, speaking through Jesus would take several different approaches to gently introduce and develop the reality of the kingdom of God in the minds of the disciples.

If we look for understanding of the kingdom woven throughout Jesus’ teachings we find an amazing, consistent and quite logical thread of understanding of what the kingdom is and what it means to us in practical terms. Let us look at five significant themes associated with the "kingdom of God". Let's start with "abundant life". Jesus said that he came to earth that, "we might have life and have it more abundantly". Surely there must be a strong connection between the experience of "abundant life" that Jesus promised and his emphasis of the "kingdom of God". Other essential teachings of Jesus which help us to understand the kingdom include:

·       A description of what it is like to enter the kingdom – a state of being  which Jesus called "Blessed".

·       A description of the "fruit" of one who has entered the kingdom: the "fruit of the spirit".

·        A fundamental, identifying characteristic of one who has entered the kingdom: unconditional love.

·       The ultimate objective of God for our lives: that we grow in Christ, becoming "Christ-like". 

 

"Abundant Life" Jesus revealed to his disciples two very specific purposes for his coming: to preach the kingdom of God and to show mankind the way to abundant life

• I preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent. Luke 4:43
• I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly. John 10:10

Given these very direct statements of Jesus' purpose, it seems reasonable to make the connection that there is a strong relationship between the concept of the "kingdom of God" and the concept of "abundant life". We could say that for a child of God, the “abundant life” represents the experience of the "kingdom of God" – the experience of life when our will and intentions are aligned with the will of God in us. As we follow Jesus' command to "seek first the kingdom of God", the spark of God in us gradually grows; we gradually grow in Christ, and as we do, we gradually begin to experience "abundant life".

The Gospels say that wherever Jesus went he proclaimed, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 4:17). How would Jesus say it today? Perhaps, something like, "My beloved, the kingdom of heaven is within your reach right here, right now, because it is within you right now."

The significance is that the experience of the kingdom of God and the experience of abundant life are one and the same and that experience is available to us right now. The idea of a more abundant life within our reach right now is a powerful human motivator. God wants us to know about the "good news of the kingdom" and the experience of abundant life. Why? Because awareness of the kingdom within us and the potential of abundant life provide the awareness that there is more to life than struggle and strife. And until and unless we are aware of something more in our reach right now, we have no reason, no motivation to seek, ask or knock – no motivation to strive for anything more than our current experience of life. Imagine a treasure of millions of dollars worth of gold and precious gems buried somewhere on your property. When would you start looking for it? Obviously, the very moment you become aware of it, but not before. Only until we are aware of the existence of the kingdom of heaven and abundant life within our reach, will we begin to seek it.