In the same way, every saved person has a measure of the kingdom within him. Some have a greater measure, and others have a smaller measure. Every saved person has the kingdom within. If a person does not have the ruling of the kingdom within, that person’s salvation is doubtful. The Lord’s salvation brings not only the Lord’s life but also the heavenly rule into us. We know that every saved one has the Holy Spirit within. This Holy Spirit is not only life and power but is connected to the throne in heaven.
The Holy Spirit in Revelation 4 and 5 is the seven Spirits before God’s throne (4:5; 5:6), showing that the Holy Spirit is connected to the throne. The Holy Spirit brings not only God’s life but also God’s throne into us. On the one hand, He is the Spirit of power; on the other hand, He is the reigning Spirit, bringing God’s throne into our spirit. He is the Spirit who causes God’s throne to rule in our spirit within us. Unless we are unsaved, the Holy Spirit is in us; moreover, the Holy Spirit in us is not only the Spirit of life and the Spirit of power but also the reigning Spirit.
Many people speak of the Holy Spirit’s pouring out of the love of God into us, but they do not realize that the Holy Spirit not only pours out the love of God into us but also brings God’s throne and authority into us and sets up God’s throne in us. Some may ask what the throne of God is. God’s throne is the source of God’s authority. In the universe all God’s authority converges at God’s throne; God’s throne is God’s authority. Concerning God’s coming to judge the world, the first vision that John saw in Revelation was the throne (4:2). There is a throne in heaven, and the One who sits on the throne is God. He is the One who rules the universe; He has all authority. He is the ruling God, the Lord of lords, the King of kings. He is the Sovereign, the great King, sitting on the throne, and all authority is in His hand.
Fallen people do not submit to the authority of God’s throne; rather, they rebel against this authority. In 1936 when I lived in Tientsin in northern China, one day I read something spoken by Mussolini, who was then the prime minister of Italy. He boasted that if the eternal Father were to speak to him, he would punch Him with his fist. At the time I read this, Mussolini considered himself to be unrivaled in the world and thus had initiated a war to annex Ethiopia in East Africa. He boasted that the Mediterranean Sea would become an inland lake of Italy. At that time many considered him to be a great hero of Europe; historians today acknowledge this. However, when I read his boast, I said to the co-worker brothers, “This word of Mussolini’s is terrible; he is too bold.”
There is a throne in heaven, but Mussolini did not submit to the authority of the throne in heaven; he did not even acknowledge that authority. In his boast he was basically saying, “I do not care about the God in heaven or the eternal Father. If He were to speak to me and interfere with me, I would punch Him with my fist.” He did not submit at all to God’s authority; he did not even recognize this authority. However, he was not able to resist God’s authority for long. The fact is that whether or not we submit to it, the authority of the throne cannot be shaken. History tells us that Mussolini’s end was shameful and pathetic. Mussolini is dead, but the authority of God’s throne remains.
Hitler, a contemporary of Mussolini, was also one who rebelled against God. When Hitler was at his peak, a brother who loved the Lord came back to Peiping from Germany. One day this brother told me, “It was terrible. In Germany no one dared to speak about the Lord Jesus openly. When they wished to talk about the Lord Jesus, they had to shut all their doors and windows. People on the outside loudly shouted the name of Hitler, as if he were God and Christ.” Did Hitler submit to God’s authority? Not at all. However, was he able to resist God’s authority for long? History tells us that like Mussolini, Hitler’s end was a tragic death. Hitler died, but the authority of God’s throne remains.
Many today, however, still do not submit to the authority of God’s throne; they are truly pitiful and foolish. We all need to ask ourselves, “Have we not repented? Have we not been saved? Have we not been enlightened? Are we not full of light? Do we not have the life of God and the Holy Spirit? Would we also not submit to God’s authority today?” God’s throne is not objective to us but subjective; it is not merely in heaven but has been connected to us inwardly. This can be compared to the electricity from a power plant. The electricity does not stay in the power plant but flows into the house and the lamp.
When we are saved, God gives us the Holy Spirit. With this Spirit the authority of God’s throne is brought into us. From this perspective, every saved person has God’s throne, God’s reign, and God’s authority within. Some may ask, “What is this authority?” This authority is the Holy Spirit who indwells us. The seven Spirits before God’s throne have been sent forth to enter into us. Today the Holy Spirit in us is the Spirit of life and the Spirit of power; moreover, He is the Spirit of authority. He is in us not only to be our life and our power but also to be our Lord, our King, the reign of God in us, and the authority of God in us. Hence, since the Holy Spirit is in us, we have God’s throne in us.
After we are saved, if we sense a restriction in us prohibiting us from acting loosely and carelessly, this sense is not produced by any ordinances of Christianity or any teachings of the church. Rather, it is altogether the operation of the Holy Spirit within us. When the Holy Spirit indwells us, the kingdom of God is in us; that is, the kingdom of God has come upon us (cf. Matt. 12:28). Where the Holy Spirit is, God’s kingdom, God’s throne, and God’s authority are also. Today, since the Holy Spirit is in us, God’s throne and God’s authority are in us. Everything hinges on our realization of this.
It is disheartening that today’s Christianity has been deformed and that even the gospel has been twisted out of shape. Much of the gospel preached by Christianity is concerning heaven, the “heavenly mansion,” as if the gospel were heaven. This causes Catholics and Christians to have the concept of heaven in their mind, making them disciples of heaven. The thought of heaven, the concept of a heavenly mansion, however, has no position in the Bible. What the Bible shows emphatically is the kingdom of heaven, that is, the kingdom. Please recall that the word kingdom in Greek denotes sovereignty. Hence, this word can be rendered as “kingdom” or as “sovereignty.”
The purpose of the gospel is not to save us into a heavenly mansion, for no such mansion exists. Rather, the gospel is to save us into God’s kingdom and authority, the heavenly authority. As saved ones, we should not spend every day wishing to go to heaven. God never says that the goal of His gospel is to save man into heaven. However, His Word clearly indicates that the goal of His gospel is to save man into His heavenly authority, His heavenly kingdom.
There is a throne of God in the universe. God is the Sovereign in the universe, the great King, and the Ruler of the universe. He rules not only over the angels in heaven but also over the descendants of Adam on earth. He rules not only over the living things in heaven but also over the living creatures on earth. Yet the people on earth rebel against Him, following His enemy Satan to rebel against His authority. Just as Satan does not submit to God’s authority, people on earth also do not submit to God’s authority. Men such as Mussolini and Hitler best represent the people on earth who are filled with a spirit of rebellion and boastfully say, “Who is God? If He comes to intervene, I will use my fist to deal with Him.” What a blasphemy this is! Although many people treat God this way, God’s throne remains forever. When those people reach the end of their life, they will have to acknowledge the authority of God’s ruling. Lavrenty Beria, a secret police chief of the Communist party in Russia, once said, “What is God? Where is God?” But it is said that when he was about to be executed, he requested that someone read the Bible to him.
This is the situation of fallen men—they reject God’s throne. The Bible says, “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near” (Matt. 3:2; 4:17). It also says, “Who [the Father] delivered us out of the authority of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Col. 1:13). In other words, God has saved us into the authority of the Son of His love. Therefore, we saved ones are not lawless and godless people. We truly have the law of heaven and are under the ruling of the authority in heaven. When we repent, we turn back to God, receive Him as our Lord, allow Him to put His life in us, and simultaneously allow His Spirit to enter into us, bringing His throne and authority into us.