The kingdom is the sphere for the reigning of the heavens. A regenerated, saved person is one whom the Lord has separated from the world; as such, he ought to submit to the Lord’s authority, allow the heavens to reign in him, and live the kingdom life in reality. However, because Satan’s work came in and caused complications, today the kingdom has three aspects—its reality, its appearance, and its manifestation.
The Gospel of Matthew is a book specifically concerning the kingdom. We can clearly see the reality, appearance, and manifestation of the kingdom in three sections of this book. Chapters 5 through 7, composed of the teaching spoken on the mountain, reveal the reality of the kingdom, that is, the life under the reigning of the heavens. Chapter 13, composed of the parables spoken beside the sea, contains prophecies concerning the appearance of the kingdom. Chapters 24 through 25, composed of the prophecies spoken on the Mount of Olives, deal with the manifestation of the kingdom, which refers to Christ’s reigning with the overcomers for a thousand years in His second coming.
Let us first look at the progression of the church. In Matthew 13, while speaking beside the sea, the Lord used seven parables to show the progression of the church. The first parable refers to the situation of the Lord’s preaching at that time. In this parable the sower signifies the Lord Jesus, and the seed signifies the word of life of the kingdom (v. 3). The Lord’s word, as a seed, contains life. The heart of man is signified by the earth. The hearts of those who hear the Lord’s word are divided into four categories in this parable. The first category is the wayside, which refers to a place close to the way often traveled on by people. It signifies a heart that is hardened by worldly traffic, which makes it difficult for the seed to penetrate it. Hence, it is easy for the birds of heaven, signifying the devil, to devour the word that is heard by those whose heart is in this condition (vv. 4, 19).
The second category is the rocky places, signifying a heart with hidden sins and the world as “rocks” deep within it. Apparently, it is easy for someone with this kind of heart to receive the Lord’s word and for the word to spring up and grow quickly. However, because the sins and the world deep within this person are not dealt with, he is stumbled when trials come (vv. 5-6, 20-21). The third category is the earth with thorns, which signifies a heart filled with the anxiety of the age and the deceitfulness of riches. Although the Lord’s word springs up and grows in such a heart, it cannot flourish or yield rich fruit (vv. 7, 22). The fourth category is the good earth, signifying a heart that does not have the aforementioned three problems but rather receives the Lord’s word and allows it not only to grow but even to bear fruit up to a hundredfold (vv. 8, 23).
When the Lord came out to sow, the kingdom of the heavens was only near; it had still not come. Hence, in the first parable the Lord did not say, “The kingdom of the heavens is (or, has become) like...” In the second parable, however, the kingdom of the heavens had come. Thus, the Lord said, “The kingdom of the heavens has become like a man sowing good seed in his field” (v. 24). In this parable, following the Lord’s sowing, the crop grew up (vv. 25-30). This indicates that the seed sown by the Lord in the three and a half years of His ministry would grow up on the day of Pentecost. Not long after Pentecost, however, because the Lord’s servants were not watchful, the devil mixed in the unsaved ones, signified by tares, among the saved ones. Hence, there were false Christians among the true. At that time the appearance of the kingdom began, and the church became Christendom. The significance of the church is that it is the called-out assembly, the gathering of a group of people whom God has called out from the world. However, Christendom includes not only this group of people but also many who have not received the life of God. Therefore, the reality of the kingdom is with the church, whereas Christendom is mainly the appearance of the kingdom. All those who live in the reality of the kingdom are definitely in the church, but all those who are in Christendom are in the appearance of the kingdom but may not be in the church.
Here we can see three realms: the reality of the kingdom, the church, and Christendom. In principle, the realm of the church should be the same as the realm of the reality of the kingdom. However, there are some who have been saved yet do not live in the reality of the kingdom. The church is composed of a group of people who have the Lord’s life and whom He has separated from the world. They may have different gifts when serving, but they do not have any distinction when gathering before the Lord. We must rid ourselves of all the things in Christendom that are incompatible with the church. We are not in Christendom. Rather, we live under the reigning of the heavens; that is, we live the life described in Matthew 5 through 7. This is to be in the reality of the kingdom.
In principle, there should be no unsaved ones in the church. However, the Lord does permit the tares, the false believers, to exist in Christendom. When the Lord’s servants suggested that they collect the tares, the Lord did not permit them; rather, He allowed the tares to grow with the wheat in the field (13:28-30). The field in this parable signifies the world. The Lord allows the genuine Christians and the false Christians to grow together in the world, because He fears that if the false Christians are destroyed, the genuine Christians may also be destroyed with them. However, the fact that the Lord does not allow the false Christians to be destroyed does not mean that He forbids the separation of the unsaved ones from the church. According to the Scriptures, even one who has believed and been saved but has committed a gross sin should be removed from the church (1 Cor. 5:2). When the Lord comes, at the time of the harvest, only then will He collect the false Christians out of the world and cast them into the fire.