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1.
INTRODUCTION: THE MEANING OF THE KINGDOM
'Repent, for the Kingdom
of heaven is at hand!' was an electrifying announcement to
those who heard it in Israel. Both John the Baptist and Jesus
proclaimed the coming of the Kingdom, and certainly their
statement made sense. It was an innovation. The idea of the
Kingdom of heaven (or, the Kingdom of God) was not a new
one. There was nothing novel about it, to them. What then
was its origin, and its related ideas of God as King, and
the action of His Kingship?
There are two ways of
approaching the subject:-
(i) The elements of
the King-Kingdom idea can be traced from early in the Scriptures
to the end, so following the fact and principle of the
Kingdom, and
(ii) the Scripture can
be seen as a whole and the principles by which Scripture
itself is understood.
We mean that by nature
of the case, God is King and His rule is the Kingdom, its
ultimate climax being what God has predetermined. In this
way we do not so much seek to abstract subject material from
its background, but rather simply trace its innate constituent
elements. In fact, both principles can be used together.
We can trace developing elements of the Kingdom from Genesis
to Revelation, and we can understand Scripture by the great
fact of God being King, and His rule being the Kingdom in
the affairs of creation, redemption, and the final restitution
of all things. |
