Kingdom as translated in the New Testament is from the Greek
word “Basileia”—meaning: rule, dominion and realm. It means royal right or
authority. A kingdom also means a territory or realm that is governed or ruled
by a King.
From scriptures, it is clear that our
Lord Jesus’ coming to earth was to establish the Kingdom of God on earth. His
birth; his Ministry; his death and resurrection was for that sole purpose. And
of course, he is the king and Lord of this same kingdom of God, he came to
establish.
He governs this kingdom of God for the Father by the help of
the Holy Ghost—who is the Power of the Godhead. Here is what the scriptures
says concerning this in Isaiah 9:6-7
“For
unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be
upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called wonderful, counsellor, the
mighty God, the everlasting Father, the prince of peace. Of the increase of his
government there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom,
to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth
even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.”
This kingdom of God that the Lord Jesus Christ came to establish is also referred to in some portions of the scriptures as the kingdom of heaven. So according to scriptures, the kingdom of heaven is another name for the kingdom of God.
The Phases of God’s Kingdom
From scriptures we can understand that there are majorly two phases to the kingdom of God. And these are:
- Heart
Reign: The number one and the primary phase of God’s kingdom is the reign,
rule or dominion of Christ in the heart of an individual by faith (Ephesians
3:17). So an individual that submits his
heart to the dominion or direction of God in his heart through the Holy Spirit
is already in the Kingdom of God right here and now.
He is already a son of God. And as such, he is already qualified for the second phase of God’s Kingdom. Immediately someone submits his life to the rule of God in his heart, he gets delivered from the power (or kingdom) of darkness into the kingdom of the dear Son of God—Jesus Christ. That is, the spiritual kingdom of God in the heart.
- The
Territorial Reign: The second phase of God’s kingdom is the territorial
reign of God over all his saints and ministering spirits (Angels). Heaven is
God’s Territorial Kingdom. It is the realm of God’s kingdom. Everyone who
submits himself or herself to God’s reign in the heart already has access to
the territorial realm of God’s Kingdom both now and hereafter…
This realm is called heaven. And it will finally become the New Jerusalem (New Heaven and New Earth) after the end of this world (See Ephesians 2:6-7; Revelation 4:1-11; Revelation 21:1-7)
The Key Features of The Kingdom of God
The two phases of God’s Kingdom we’ve discussed above is characterised by four striking Features from scriptures. These are:
- Righteousness—Justice or Equity—( see Isaiah 9:7; Romans 14:17)
- Peace (See Romans 14:17)
- Joy (See Romans 14:17)
- Demonstration of Power—Miraculous or Supernatural Power (dynamis) and Authoritative Power (exousia)—see 1Corinthians 4:20)
Qualifications For the Kingdom of God
Below are the two scriptural qualifications for the kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven:
- Being
Born Again: “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto
thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God”–( John 3:3)
The Lord clearly says from the above scripture, that without being born again, no one can see the kingdom of God. So the number one qualifier for seeing the kingdom of God now and hereafter is to be born again by the Spirit of God by receiving Jesus as your Lord and Saviour through faith.
- Godliness:
“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance,
emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness,
revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told
you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom
of God”—Galatians 5:19-21.
The above scripture says anyone who practices the above mentioned works of the flesh and such likes, shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Which means if we must inherit the kingdom of God, we must depart from the works of the flesh and walk in godliness or in the Spirit. Having been saved, we need to also live a sanctified life to be guaranteed of our inheritance of the kingdom of God or the kingdom of Heaven.
To receive the Lord Jesus today as your Lord and Personal Saviour, in order to have instant access to the kingdom of God right now, Click Here.
Remain Blessed!
Emeke Odili
