6. The Kingdom of God

1. In our last study, you learned how the true Church of God was started with Jesus' coming to earth and dying on the cross -- that he was raised again, not to live on earth, but in heaven with his Father, Jehovah God.

2. In this lesson we shall learn how to become a part of that Church that will reign with Christ when he returns to set up his kingdom on the earth.

3. In John 3:3, Jesus tells a man named Nicodemus that no one could see the Kingdom of God unless he is "born again".

4. Nicodemus was puzzled and asked Jesus, how could a man be born again when he was old? Jesus explained to Nicodemus that the way he meant for one to be born again was to accept him as his Savior and be born of the water and the Spirit and then he enters the Kingdom of God. (Jn. 3:5-8)

5. Now water means being made clean and being baptized, by having someone hold you and put you under the water. This is a way of showing others that you want to be washed clean of your sins. When the one baptizing you lifts you up from the water, this is showing that you want to walk from then on with Jesus. This is walking or living the way God would want you to in a new, sin-free way of life.

6. Being born of the Spirit means that when you walk with Jesus, you receive the gift of God's Holy Spirit. This means His Spirit will work in you and help you to grow in goodness and love, like our Master, Jesus.

7. In Romans 5, we learn why it is necessary to be born again. There we are told how Adam brought sin and death into the world. (Romans 5:12) In verse 15, we learn that God's grace brought Jesus Christ. Continuing on in that chapter, we are told that Jesus brought release for all mankind from the grave by dying on the cross.

8. Then in Romans 6:3, we learn that if we are baptized, we are baptized into Jesus' death. This means we will no longer live in sinful ways and all our past sins are buried. It also means that we now set our feet upon the new path of life, eternal life. (Romans 6:4)

9. So if YOU want to be born again, you must first realize you are a sinner. We are all sinners since we are all children of Adam. His disobedience to God in the Garden of Eden made us all imperfect, so we were all born in sin.

10. Then the next step is to ask God's forgiveness for all your past sins. He will forgive you, for Christ did die to make you "right" before God again. This is the meaning of being "justified." (Romans 4:25)

11. The next step is to show that you want to show others that you are right with God and have come into His family. You do this by being baptized.

12. Once you have been justified, God's Spirit will work in you, as long as you obey Him. He gives you a new life -- one that means you have the promise of living and reigning with Christ one day. So this means you are in the Spiritual Kingdom of God's Son now. Colossians 1:13 tells us we have been delivered from the power of darkness. After we are brought into Christ's Kingdom, Satan's hold on us is gone.

13. Now that you have been taken away from Satan's world and brought into the Kingdom of God’s Son, you are "sanctified" or "set apart" -- made holy. This means you are to live for God and Jesus and no longer just to please yourself. (Jn. 17:19)

14. Not living for self but for God and Jesus means doing good to all that you can, especially to those who are also Christians. When we say Christians, we are referring to those who, like you, have accepted Jesus as their personal Savior, have been baptized, and have received God's Holy Spirit. We are told to do good in Galatians 6:10.

15. This will mean growing in love. True Godly love, called "agape" love, is different from any other kind of love. It is the same kind of love our Savior Jesus had; and if you have it, you will love your neighbor as you do yourself. "Neighbor" means all mankind, and we should be willing, if necessary, to even lay down our lives for them as did Jesus. (Mt. 22:36-39 & Jn. 15:13)

16. So, in order to be of the true Church, we see how we have to want to love everyone. We need to be like our Savior, Jesus. God will do this for us if we let Him. (Phil. 1:6).

17. This might seem hard to believe, but nothing is impossible for God. Think of the reward that is given to those who will be of His true Church. They shall reign with Christ as a Kingdom of Priests as Revelation 5:10 and 20:6 tell us.

18. In Romans 2:7, we are told that the Church will gain glory and honor and immortality. This means we shall never again have to fear death or judgment but rather will be with Jesus and God forever.

19. In Romans 2:8-9, we see that those who don't want to obey Jesus and live his way will have trials and sorrow.

20. So don't you want to be a member of God's true Church and reign with Christ? I know I do, so I can have a part when Christ sets up his earthly Kingdom. I can help the rest of the dead as they come out of the grave so they can learn about God's love. Also, I can help them to learn the Way of Holiness so that they can live forever in a perfect world. Just think about how this hope can be your privilege too! So, may you desire, I pray, to repent of all past sins, accept Jesus as your Savior, be baptized, and live for God and Jesus instead of self.

1. In the second part of this study, you are going to learn a little bit about the earthly part of God's Kingdom. In the first part, you learned about the heavenly part of the Kingdom. The Church will be taken up by Jesus before the earthly part begins. (1 Thes. 4:16, 17).

2. When Christ returns again, the Church will be with Jesus to help those coming out from the grave. "All in their graves shall come forth ... the just and the unjust." We learn this in Acts 24:15 and in John 5:28 and 29.

3. The time when all will come forth from their graves is called the resurrection of the dead. At that time, the Church with Jesus will reign a thousand years, which is called a millennium. (Rev. 20:6).

4. We know that God always tells us about His promises in the Old Testament as well as in the New Testament. With this in mind, we learn from the prophet Daniel that the Church (called the Saints of God) will be given power to rule in the sooncoming earthly Kingdom (Dan. 7:13-14 & 27).

5. In Acts 3:19-21, we are told there is to be a time of restoring all things when Christ returns to earth again.

6. Before that can take place, Satan will have to be bound and kept from doing evil. (See Revelation 20:1 and 2)

7. In Luke 12:47 and 48, we see severe punishment come upon those who knew the will of God in this age (this period of time) and did not do it; while those who did not know His will receive less severe punishment. In Acts 3:23 we see that those who come forth from the grave in the next age and continue to refuse to do the Lord's will shall be destroyed.

8. We are told in Isaiah 11:9 that then “the earth will be full of the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea.” So we see that if any do sin then, it will be because they want to of their own choice and not because Satan or anyone else is making them sin. This is what we are told in Jeremiah 31:29 and 30.

9. God will at that time wipe away all tears, for there shall be no more sorrow, nor crying, nor pain. Even death itself shall eventually be destroyed (See Isa. 25:8, Rev. 21:4, and 1 Cor. 15:26).

10. At the end of the Millennium, Satan will be loosed again for a little while. God wants to test the people in order to find out who are really desirous of doing His will. Those who are not willing to do it will be destroyed in the Second Death along with Satan and all his followers (Rev. 20:10, 15 and 21:8).

11. After this, Christ will turn the perfected earth and perfected mankind back to God. (1 Cor. 15:25-28) He will have finished his work, for all shall have then been restored to that perfection that existed in the Garden of Eden before Adam and Eve sinned. Praise God for His wonderful love for all of us!

- End of Study -

The Joy of the Redeemed

Isaiah 35:1-10

1 The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like
the crocus,

2 it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.

3 Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way;

4 say to those with fearful hearts, "Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you."

5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped.

6 Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.

7 The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.

8 And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not journey on it; it will be for those who walk in that Way; wicked fools will not go about on it.

9 No lion will be there, nor will any ferocious beast get up on it; they will not be found there. But only the redeemed will walk there,

10 and the ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. (NIV)

Isaiah 65:23-25

23 They will not toil in vain or bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the LORD, they and their descendants with them.

24 Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.

25 The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent's food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain," says the LORD. (NIV)

Isaiah 11:1-10

1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him -- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD

3 and he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears;

4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.

5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.

6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them.

7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox.

8 The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest.

9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

10 In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious. (NIV)

Revelation 21:1-7

1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

5 He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."

6 He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. (NIV)