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The Kingdom Seminar

The Kingdom Seminar. The Kingdom of God in the Future. Session Overview. Recap of the promises of a Kingdom What will this Kingdom be like? What is the ‘Millennium?’. The Promises of a Kingdom.

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The Kingdom Seminar

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  1. The Kingdom Seminar The Kingdom of God in the Future

  2. Session Overview • Recap of the promises of a Kingdom • What will this Kingdom be like? • What is the ‘Millennium?’

  3. The Promises of a Kingdom • In previous sessions we have seen that Abraham was promised that through his Seed people from all parts of the world will be blessed Gen 12:1-3 1 The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

  4. The Promises of a Kingdom • Rom. 4:13 extends this to mean that the whole earth will be inherited by those people who are 'in' Abraham's Seed, i.e. Christ. Rom 4:13 It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.

  5. The Promises of a Kingdom • The image prophecy of Dan. 2 explains how Christ will return as the little stone, and then the kingdom will gradually spread world-wide • cp. Ps. 72:8 Ps 72:8 He will rule from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.

  6. Kings And Priests • Those who follow Christ in this life will be "kings and priests; and we shall reign on the earth" • Rev. 5:10 • We will rule over settlements of various sizes and number; one will rule over ten cities, another over five • Luke 19:17 Luke 19:17 “Well done, my good servant! Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.”

  7. Kings And Priests • Christ will share his rulership over the earth with us • Rev. 2:27; 2 Tim. 2:12; Isa. 32:1Ps. 45:16 Rev 2:26-27 To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations. He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery'-- just as I have received authority from my Father. 2 Tim 2:12 “If we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us”

  8. David’s Throne in Jerusalem • Christ is to reign for ever on David's re-established throne which was in Jerusalem. • Luke 1:32,33 • As Christ will reign from Jerusalem, this will be the capital of the future Kingdom. It is in this area that a temple will be built • Ezek. 40-48

  9. The Kingdom Seminar What will this Kingdom be like?

  10. All Nations Worship God • People will be praising God at various places world-wide • Mal. 1:11 • A temple will be the focal point of the world's worship • Ezek. 40-48 • Nations "will go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles" around the temple in Jerusalem • Zech. 14:16

  11. Enthusiastic Worship • This annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem is also prophesied • Isa. 2:2,3 • This appears to be a picture of the early days of the Kingdom • people spread the knowledge of Christ's reign to others • they go up to the "mountain" of God's Kingdom, which will be slowly spreading world-wide. • Here we have a picture of real enthusiasm in religious worship.

  12. God’s Will is Done • Instead of the confusion and unfairness created by man's legal systems and administration of justice, there will be one universal legal code • "All nations shall flow unto" these teaching sessions • This implies a common desire to find the true knowledge of God • Lessen the natural friction between nations

  13. All Nations Worship God • This description of all the nations flowing unto Jerusalem is similar to the picture presented in Isa. 60:5, where the Jews "flow together" along with the Gentiles (non-Jews) to worship God in Jerusalem. Isa 60:5 Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come.

  14. All Nations Worship God • This connects perfectly with the Kingdom prophecy of Zech. 8:20-23 Zech 8:20-23 20 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Many peoples and the inhabitants of many cities will yet come, 21 and the inhabitants of one city will go to another and say, 'Let us go at once to entreat the LORD and seek the LORD Almighty. I myself am going.' 22 And many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the LORD Almighty and to entreat him.” 23 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “In those days ten men from all languages and nations will take firm hold of one Jew by the hem of his robe and say, ‘Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you.’”

  15. A Time Of Peace • Given this greater commitment to godliness, it is not surprising that Christ shall judge among the nations with awesome results Isa 2:4 He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war any more.

  16. A Time Of Peace • The absolute authority of Christ and total justice of his arbitration in disputes will result in • military hardware becoming into agricultural machinery • abandoning all military training

  17. A Time of Righteousness • "In his days the righteous shall flourish" • Ps. 72:7 • Spirituality will then be exalted, and respect will be paid to those who reflect God's characteristics: • Love • Mercy • justice etc. • Contrast this with the present exaltation of the proud, self-assertive and selfishly ambitious.

  18. A Time of Plenty • The willing beating of "swords into plowshares" will be part of a much greater agricultural change which will come upon the earth. • As a result of Adam's sin, the ground was cursed for his sake • Gen. 3:17-19 • great effort is presently needed to get food from it.

  19. A Time of Plenty • In the Kingdom there shall be bountiful crops and harvests • Ps. 72:16, Amos 9:13 • Such will be the improved fertility of the earth, and the reduction of the curse on the ground pronounced in Eden. Ps 72:16 Let corn abound throughout the land; on the tops of the hills may it sway. Let its fruit flourish like Lebanon; let it thrive like the grass of the field.

  20. A Time of Self Sufficiency • Such immense agricultural enterprise will involve many people. • The Kingdom prophecies give the impression that people will return to a self-sufficient, agricultural lifestyle Micah 4:4 Every man will sit under his own vine and under his own fig-tree, and no-one will make them afraid, for the LORD Almighty has spoken.

  21. A Time of Self Sufficiency • This self-sufficiency will overcome the abuses which are inherent in any system of employment of labour for cash. Spending a lifetime working to make others rich will then be a thing of the past Isa 65:21-23 21 They will build houses and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 22 No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and others eat. For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands. 23 They will not toil in vain or bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the LORD, they and their descendants with them.

  22. A Time of Restoration • Isaiah 35:1-7 contains a matchless prophecy of how infertile land will be changed, resulting in an aura of joy and happiness almost oozing from the land, due to the easier and more spiritual way of life of those who work it: • The wilderness shall be glad • The desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. • Rejoice even with joy and singing • In the wilderness shall waters break out • Streams in the desert • Parched ground shall become a pool

  23. A Time for Giving Glory to God • It cannot be too strongly emphasized that the Kingdom of God should not be seen as a tropical island paradise • The fundamental purpose of the Kingdom of God is to give glory to God, until the earth is full of glory to Him "as the waters cover the sea" • Hab. 2:14

  24. Seek First the Kingdom of God • Even when viewed in slightly more physical terms, being in the Kingdom of God should be our supreme motivation to despise worldly advantages and materialism. • Instead of taking excessive thought for the immediate future, Jesus advised, "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" • Matt. 6:30-34

  25. Summary of the Kingdom • Kings And Priests • David’s Throne in Jerusalem • All Nations Worship God • Enthusiastic Worship • God’s Will is Done • All Nations Worship God • A Time Of Peace • A Time of Righteousness • A Time of Plenty • A Time of Self Sufficiency • A Time of Restoration • A Time for Giving Glory to God • Seek First the Kingdom of God

  26. The Kingdom Seminar The Millennium

  27. Mortality in the Kingdom • At this point in our study of life in the Kingdom, you may well ask “Doesn't this picture of the Kingdom of God all seem rather human?” • People in the Kingdom will still… • …produce babies (Isa. 65:23) • …die (Isa. 65:20). • …have disputes which Christ will settle (Isa. 2:4), • …work the ground in order to survive

  28. Mortality in the Kingdom • This seems a far cry from the promises that the righteous will receive • eternal life • a nature like God's • being made equal to the angels, who do not marry or reproduce • Luke 20:35,36 • The answer lies in the fact that the first part of the Kingdom of God will last for 1,000 years - a 'Millennium' • Rev. 20:2-7

  29. Mortality in the Kingdom • Two groups of people on earth:- • The saints - those of us who have followed Christ acceptably in this life, who will have been given eternal life at the judgment seat. • The ordinary, mortal people who did not know the Gospel at the time of Christ's return - i.e. they were not responsible to the judgment seat. • When Christ comes, two men will be in the field, one will be taken (to judgment), and the other left • Luke 17:36 • Those who are "left" will be in this second group.

  30. Mortality in the Kingdom • Having received God's nature at the judgment seat, the saints will be unable to die nor need to produce children. • The descriptions of people experiencing these things in the Kingdom must therefore apply to the second group • those who are alive at the time of Christ's return, but who did not know God's requirements.

  31. The Saints in the Kingdom • The reward of the righteous is to be "kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth" • Rev. 5:10 • Kings have to reign over somebody • those people who were ignorant of the Gospel at the time of the second coming • Through being "in Christ" we will share His reward - which is to be the king of the world • Rev. 2:26,27

  32. The Saints in the Kingdom • When Israel was the kingdom of God previously, the duty of the priests was to teach the knowledge of God • Mal. 2:5-7 • For this purpose they were placed in various towns throughout Israel. • In the more glorious re-establishment of the Kingdom, the saints will take over the role of the priests • Rev. 5:10

  33. Should Christ come today: • The responsible dead will be raised and, along with the responsible living, taken to the judgment seat. • The responsible wicked will be punished with death, and the righteous given eternal life. Judgment will also be given to the nations who resist Christ. • The righteous will then rule over those people who are then alive, but who are not responsible to God; they will teach them the Gospel as "kings and priests" (Rev. 5:10). • This will last for 1,000 years. During this time all the mortal people will hear the Gospel and therefore be responsible to God. These people will live much longer and happier lives. • At the end of the Millennium there will be a rebellion against Christ and the saints, which God will put down (Rev. 20:8,9). • At the end of the 1,000 years, all those who have died during that time will be resurrected and judged (Rev. 20:5,11-15). • The wicked amongst them will be destroyed, and the righteous will join us in having eternal life.

  34. God’s Master Plan! • The purpose of God with the earth will then have been completed. • It will be filled with immortal, righteous beings. • God's Name 'Yahweh Elohim' will then befulfilled. • Never again will sin, and therefore death, be experienced on earth • the promise that the seed of the serpent would be totally destroyed will then have been completely fulfilled • Gen. 3:15

  35. The King of Kings • During the Millennium, Christ will have reigned "till he hath put all enemies under his feet. • The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death... • 1 Cor. 15:25-28 1 Cor 15:25-28 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For he "has put everything under his feet". Now when it says that "everything" has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. 28 When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God maybe all in all.

  36. In the Millennium… • Two Classes of People • Mortality in the Kingdom • The Saints in the Kingdom • Christ’s Return is near • God’s Master Plan will be finalized • The King of Kings

  37. Next Week • The Nearness of Christ’s Return • The signs of His coming • The revival of Israel • The decline of Israel • The world around us

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