[In the New Testament the first preacher was John the Baptist. The first word preached by him was “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near” (Matt. 3:2). When the Lord Jesus began to preach the gospel He said the same thing as John the Baptist: “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near” (Matt. 4:17). When the Lord sent the disciples to preach the gospel He charged them to say, “The kingdom of the heavens has drawn near” (Matt. 10:7). The book of Revelation tells us that at the Lord’s coming back after His judgment upon the nations, the kingdom of the world will become the kingdom of Christ (11:15). Eventually, in the millennium the Lord will rule as a king with all His victorious saints (Rev. 20:4, 6). Revelation shows that in the accomplishment of His eternal purpose God eventually will have a kingdom in which He can exercise His authority to the fullest extent. The Scriptures clearly reveal this line of the kingdom of God in which or through which God can exercise His authority to accomplish His eternal purpose.]
[A kingdom is not a simple matter. For example, the United States as a nation, a kingdom, is not a simple matter. The kingdom of God includes many things that need to be understood. In the Old Testament there is the kingdom of Israel. In the New Testament there is the kingdom of the heavens. Then after the church age there will be a period of a thousand years known as the millennium. The millennium is a kingdom of a thousand years (Rev. 20:4, 6). If we read the Scriptures carefully, we will see that even in the millennium there are some further divisions. The kingdom of Israel in the Old Testament, the kingdom of the heavens in the New Testament, and the millennial kingdom after the church age are parts of the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God runs from eternity to eternity. It is a realm, a sphere, in which God can rule and exercise His authority. From eternity past to eternity future there is such a thing called the kingdom of God. In this kingdom, God exercises His authority to rule over all things.]
[Some Bible teachers claim that when the Lord Jesus came, He came with the kingdom and presented it to the Jewish people. When the Jewish people rejected Him, He received back the kingdom and the kingdom was suspended. According to these Bible teachers, the church age is not the time of the kingdom because the kingdom has been suspended. When the Lord comes back He will also bring back the kingdom. Even Dr. C. I. Scofield taught in such a way, but the Bible reveals that the kingdom of God has never been suspended. In Matthew 21:43 the Lord said clearly that the kingdom of God would be taken from the Jewish people and given to another people, that is, to the church. This indicates that the kingdom of God has never been suspended. Then after the Lord’s resurrection and before His ascension to the heavens, He stayed with the disciples for forty days. In those forty days the Lord spoke concerning the things of the kingdom of God: “To whom also He presented Himself alive after His suffering by many convincing proofs, through a period of forty days, appearing to them and speaking the things concerning the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). This again indicates that the Lord has never suspended the kingdom of God. Acts 8:12 says, “They believed Philip, bringing the good news concerning the kingdom of God.” When the apostles preached the gospel, they preached the kingdom of God. The kingdom has never been suspended. The kingdom of God was preached by the apostles even after the ascension of the Lord and after Pentecost. Acts 14:22 says, “Establishing the souls of the disciples, entreating them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter into the kingdom of God.” Some Bible teachers say that the kingdom of God is merely a matter for the Jewish people, but here the apostles were exhorting the Gentile churches to continue in the faith so that they could enter into the kingdom of God. Romans 14:17 is another verse which shows us that the kingdom of God has not been suspended: “For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” With the period of the Holy Spirit, there is still the kingdom of God. Also, the context of this verse is dealing with the church life in the present age. Other verses which show us that the kingdom of God has not been suspended are 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, 1 Corinthians 15:50, Galatians 5:21, Ephesians 5:5, 2 Thessalonians 1:5, Revelation 11:15, 12:10, and 2 Timothy 4:18 which says, “The Lord will deliver me from every evil work, and will save me unto His heavenly kingdom, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” Near the end of Paul’s journey as a Christian, as a servant of the Lord, he said that the Lord would save him unto His heavenly kingdom.]
[With the kingdom of the heavens there are three aspects: the external appearance of the kingdom of the heavens (Matt. 13), the reality of the kingdom of the heavens (Matt. 5—7), and the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens (Matt. 24—25). If we are going to understand the kingdom of the heavens we must know these three aspects. On the day of Pentecost, the appearance of the kingdom of the heavens and the reality of the kingdom of the heavens began. The manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens begins with the coming back of the Lord Jesus. When the Lord comes back, the kingdom of the heavens will be manifested. On the one hand, we can say that the kingdom has started already, but this is just the appearance and the reality, not the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens. The appearance of the kingdom of the heavens includes all of the false Christians, but only the victorious, overcoming Christians are in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens. When the Lord Jesus comes back, that will be the time of the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens.]
We should exercise to be in the reality of the kingdom every day throughout the day so that we will be the ones to bring in the manifestation of the kingdom. The simple way to accomplish this is to get revived every morning by calling on His name and contacting Him through pray-reading two or three verses. We can overcome by pray-reading throughout the day. This type of exercise will prepare us for the kingdom as well as hasten the coming of the kingdom.