Matthew is a book concerning the kingdom. As we have seen, John the Baptist proclaimed the kingdom of the heavens; the Lord Jesus later followed this preaching and taught His disciples to do the same. He sent out the twelve and also the seventy to preach the kingdom of the heavens (Matt. 10:5-7; Luke 10:1, 9). The things mentioned in Matthew are related to the kingdom because the kingdom is the subject of this book. It is easy for people to be distracted when they read the book of Matthew. Many Christian readers have been distracted by the good stories and by the excellent teachings. Some Christians consider Matthew a book of stories, while others consider it a book of teachings and doctrines. Both of these approaches neglect the main topic of Matthew which is the kingdom. Matthew is not merely a book of stories or of doctrines; it is a book on the kingdom.
John the Baptist proclaimed that the "kingdom of the heavens has drawn near" (Matt. 3:2), but in fact what happened was that the man Jesus came. This indicates that the kingdom is simply the Lord Jesus, not only in Himself, but in so many people, including us. This wonderful Man, the Lord Jesus, is not so simple. He is the kingdom. Never forget chapter one of Matthew which gives us the record of this wonderful Person who is Jehovah-plus and God-plus. The Lord Jesus, the wonderful One, as Jehovah-plus and God-plus, is the kingdom. The kingdom is the Lord Jesus Himself and the Lord Jesus in all His believers. It is the totality of Christ as life spreading into us with all His activities. It is also correct to say that the kingdom is Christ. I appreciate all of these statements. The kingdom is not only a dispensation or a sphere. The kingdom is also Christ as life spreading into us, growing constantly until maturity, which will be the full manifestation of the kingdom.
The Lord Jesus referred to many mysteries, one of which is the parable of the sower. This parable is not merely a doctrine or a teaching; it is a mystery. Many people pay attention to the doctrines, but neglect the mystery of the kingdom. The kingdom of the heavens is a mystery. Even man himself contains many mysteries. Outwardly, we can behold a man's physical characteristics: his head and shoulders, his arms, legs, and skin. Because all these external features are quite evident, they are not so mysterious. Man himself, however, embodies several mysteries. One is the mystery of his physical life. It is possible to produce a wax model which is the same color, size, and shape as a real person. The only difference is that the model has no life. If we were to dissect a man to examine all his parts, the life would disappear; but if we leave him alive and whole, the life will remain. No one can adequately explain the physical life of man. Life is mysterious.
Another mystery related to man is his human spirit. What is the human spirit? Where can it be found inside a man—in his heart or head or stomach? According to the Bible, we do have a human spirit (1 Thes. 5:23), but where is it? While it is easy to locate our eyes and nose and ears, it is difficult to locate our spirit because it is a mystery.
A further mystery concerns the heart. Man has two hearts. One is the physical heart that beats constantly and pumps blood continually. However, the Bible says that man's heart is corrupt and incurably wicked (Jer. 17:9). This, of course, does not refer to the physical heart. When the Bible declares that man's heart is corrupt, it refers to another heart, his psychological heart. Thus, we have two hearts—one physical and one psychological. Although few of us have difficulties with our physical heart, every one of us has problems with his psychological heart. Where is this psychological heart? You know that you have such a heart, but it is difficult to locate because it is also a mystery. Man embodies many mysteries. The human life, the human spirit, and the psychological heart are all mysteries. Our mind, emotion, will, and conscience are mysteries.