The Kingdom As Foreshadowed In The Gospels

by Bowman, J. | Category: The Kingdom Of God | Jun 1957

When the Lord began His public ministry He came preaching "The kingdom of God is at hand" (Mark 1.15). In those early days He was so popular as a preacher that men "would have stayed Him, that He should not go from them." The purpose of His coming, however, was as He declared unto them, "I must preach the good tidings of the kingdom of God to the other cities also" (Luke 4.42, 43).

Through cities and villages He went, preaching and bringing the good tidings of the kingdom of God (Luke 8.1), and whilst such as Nicodemus came to hear Him He ever had the multitude as His main audience. " What," we might ask, " was He presenting to His hearers in such preaching? " Was it the establishment of the reign of Messiah on earth? There were occasions when He did speak of that time. He said, "Ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God" (Luke 13. 28). His words, in another place, are also in reference to that day: "When ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh" (Luke 21.31). That expression of the kingdom lies in the future and did not fill the prominent place in His teaching.

He did not come from heaven to set up that phase of the kingdom predicted in the Old Testament. Though such scriptures as Luke 10.9, 11.20, 17.21, refer to the kingdom of God manifested in the Lord and His disciples, His teaching was anticipatory of something that depended upon His death. This is apparent even from His very early ministry. It was on His first visit to Jerusalem as a public teacher that He spoke to Nicodemus about seeing and entering the kingdom of God, and on the same occasion spoke, too, of His death and the need for belief (see John 3). The kingdom of which He spoke would be expressed as a result of His crosswork. His was a preparatory work as might be seen from a consideration of the parable of the mustard seed (see Luke 13.18, 19). He was the Man who sowed the seed in His own garden which in time grew to be a tree. In a selected place of His own possession He sowed the seed which in later days was seen in growth. Unto His disciples He gave the teaching concerning the kingdom but unto the rest He spake in parables.

In order to understand what the Lord was presenting to His hearers we must examine His teaching. The parable of the sower (Luke 8.4-15) was spoken to set forth truth relative to the kingdom of God (see Luke 8.10). This parable shows the close association between the kingdom of God and the word of God. God's kingdom cannot be expressed apart from His word. It was so with Israel in the past.

"If ye will obey My voice ... ye shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation" (Exodus 19.5, 6).

The sowing of the seed is illustrative of the preaching of the word which begins with the gospel message but which includes much more besides. The seed is seen to fall in four different places. In the first it does not germinate; i.e. the word does not find an entrance into the hearts of the hearers. In the second and third instances the word finds an entrance; i.e. the new birth takes place but spiritual growth and fruit-bearing do not follow. The fourth instance is illustrative of those who believe and who continue to hold fast the word and bring forth fruit with patience. Their obedience goes beyond the obedience to the gospel message. It includes daily obedience to God's word. In this way the truth of the kingdom of God can be expressed in the life of the individual believer within the sphere of the kingdom.

The parable of the sower, however, does not give us a complete picture of the kingdom of God. We must align its teaching with what is taught elsewhere by the Lord. It applies to the individual believer showing first the need to hear the word, then through obedience to that same word to bring forth fruit unto God. God looks for fruit from a collective people, as the words of the Lord clearly show.

"The kingdom of God shall be taken away from you, and shall be given to a NATION BRINGING FORTH THE FRUITS THEREOF" (Matthew 21.43).

Again, He said:

"Fear not, little FLOCK; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom" (Luke 12. 82).

The words "nation" and "flock" are both collective nouns.

Thus we see that what was before the Lord was the idea of a divinely gathered company of believers obeying the word of God. He laboured and taught with this in view. He gathered around Him a small band of disciples and by His patient teaching prepared them for the establishment of such a kingdom. They were "the little flock" to whom the kingdom was given. They were to form the nucleus of this divine movement which would grow and would include others. After His resurrection He spoke further to them concerning the kingdom of God (Acts 1.8) and in those days following upon the descent of the Holy Spirit the results of His sowing were seen when a divine testimony was set up on earth, and men and women as baptized believers under the Lordship of a resurrected Christ were found in the churches of God to express the truth of the kingdom of God, that being the sphere wherein the rule of God is obeyed.

Bowman, J. | Jun 1957
The Kingdom Of God