The Purpose of God’s Kingdom | Luke 17:20-21

Okay, thank you, Patrick, for allowing me to speak today.

I know that you were busy in travels,

!

This place has been good to us,

and I'm sure it'll be good to all of you that are here today.

Amen?

Amen.

So today I wanted to talk a little bit about,

kind of like fundamentals, if you will,

the purpose of his kingdom.

And that's something that's important,

because the purpose of God in creating this world,

you and me,

is to establish his reign over all the earth.

But that reign was marred and spoiled

by the disobedience in the Garden of Eden.

So now God has to find another way,

that being Christ.

Before we jump in, let's go ahead and bow our heads

and pray that the Lord may bring his word to us today.

Heavenly Father, Lord,

thank you, Lord, for all that you have brought to us, Lord.

Your Son, who you brought to this earth,

died on the cross for our sins.

Let us always remember that that is the purpose

of you creating us, creating the world,

is that your kingdom may reign on this earth

as it does in heaven.

And we just pray, Lord, that our ears be open,

our hearts be ready to receive,

as we go through these scriptures

that have been prepared.

And I thank you, Lord, again,

for the opportunity to serve you.

And I say this in the name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Amen.

So, yes,

God created the earth

to establish his reign,

his kingdom.

But as we saw,

and we know that in the

beginning chapters of the scriptures

of the Genesis,

that was

spoiled because of the disobedience

in that Garden of Eden.

But Christ has come to reclaim

that which is his own

and to proclaim

God's rule

and reign

over the earth.

If you go with me

to the book of Luke,

Luke 8 · chapter mention

chapter 8,

and your Bible's there

in front of you.

It's on page 1027.

Luke,

Luke 8:1

chapter 8,

verse 1.

Talks about how

when Jesus began his ministry

and how the concept

of the kingdom

is central

to his teachings.

and by way

that he did it.

So,

in Luke 8,

Luke 8:1

verse 1,

it reads,

So,

afterwards,

he went on

through the cities

and the villages

proclaiming

and bringing

the good news

of the kingdom

of God

and the twelve

were with him.

It's right there.

He came to proclaim

and bring

the good news

of the kingdom

of God.

God.

That was

his purpose.

That was

his message

throughout the villages

and towns

that he visited.

And he sought

those twelve men

with him

as he knew

the task

was greater

than it could be.

So,

he came

to reclaim

that which was

his own,

proclaiming God's

rule

and reign

over the earth.

and he

proclaimed this

when he completed

the victory

when it came

time

for him

to lay

his life

for

all of us.

But he came,

he died

on the cross,

but his ministry

is still not done.

His work

is still not done

on this earth.

Because now,

along with the

Holy Spirit,

the work

continues.

And that work

continues

through you

and me

in spreading

the gospel

and bringing

the earth

and all

its inhabitants

back.

to proclaim

in the kingdom.

We can see

that

if you go

to Philippians

2,

10,

and 11.

And you can

find it

in your Bibles

on

1165,

1165.

We'll go there

to 1165.

I think

that's what

it was

in here.

Yes.

Philippians

Philippians 2:10–11

chapter 2,

verses

10

through

11.

And this

is

when we

know

God

has

proclaimed

or

reclaimed

his earth

and his

people.

So that

the name

of Jesus

at the

sound of

the name

of Jesus

every knee

should bow

in heaven

and on

earth

right

under the

earth

and everything

under the

earth

and every

tongue

confessing

that Jesus

Christ

is the

Lord

to the

glory

of God

the Father.

When

every

tongue

proclaims

it

and every

knee

shall bow

down to

him.

how do

we do

that?

In our

walk.

A walk

that we

interact

with each

and every

person that

we come

across

through

work,

play,

family,

friends,

proclaiming

his name.

and it

says here

every knee

shall bow

down.

And I'll

admit

that

that one

doesn't

always come

to me.

Sometimes

I'm in

prayer.

I don't

either

not in a

place where

I can't

actually kneel

down or

do so.

But it

is a

reverence.

It is a

show of

reverence

to him.

but

proclaiming

his name

and confessing

that Christ

is the

Lord.

That's

how the

kingdom

continues

to grow

from one

person to

the other.

Amen?

So the

kingdoms of

this world

go blindly

on,

believing

that their

power and

their glory

is the

only thing

that comes

to this

world.

they don't

see that

there is

an eternal

hand

working

behind the

scenes

which

determines

the destiny

and the

fate of

every

individual

and nation.

Can't say

that much

louder than

today.

Yes,

we're all,

as Jody

was saying,

have all

those individuals

that are

involved in

the conflict

in our

prayers.

and we

know

that,

as it

says,

the eternal

hand is

working behind

the scenes.

We may

not understand

it,

we may not

be able to

accept it,

but we

need to

understand and

believe and

know that

the world is

in his

hands.

Amen?

Amen?

So,

the Bible

also talks

to us

about

how

his

kingdom

is to

be.

And

I like

the way

it says

it in

Luke 17

20-21

because

we'll see

that that

kingdom is

definitely

in us.

we have

that

power

to

continue

to add

to his

kingdom.

So,

if you'll

go to

Luke 17

20-21

and it's

on your

Bibles

in 10-42

it's

Luke 17

20-21

the

coming of

the kingdom.

Okay?

And this

is when

Jesus is

going out

throughout

proclaiming

the kingdom

of God

and there

are those

that are

challenging

him

the Pharisees.

They're

trying to

get him

to

basically

they're

looking

to trap

him in

a way

or to

to be

able to

arrest

him.

And in

Luke 17

20-21

the coming

of the

kingdom

reads

being

asked

by the

Pharisees

when the

kingdom

of God

would

come

he

answered

them

the

kingdom

of God

is not

coming

in the

ways

that

can

be

observed

nor

will

they

say

look

here

it

is

or

there

says

for

behold

the

kingdom

of God

is in

the

midst

of

you

he's

granted

that

to

you

the

kingdom

of

God

is

within

you

but

first

we

also

understand

as

many

of us

there

was a

period

in time

in our

lives

that

we

were

void

of

the

kingdom

we

didn't

understand

or

didn't

want to

understand

it

was

just

how

we

were

as

individuals

on

this

earth

and

we

didn't

understand

his

word

why

because

we

weren't

taking

time

to

spend

time

in

his

word

maybe

it's

because

we

didn't

understand

it

we

didn't

seek

it

out

but

in

this

we

see

that

he

says

it

plainly

the

kingdom

of

God

is

in

the

midst

of

you

that

being

Christ

and

the

Holy

Spirit

and

if

we

have

Christ

with

us

Holy

Spirit

with

us

he

is

within

us

as

is

the

kingdom

amen

so

he

says

with

you

and

me

basically

is

what

God

is

telling

us

there

it

is

within

you

it's

not

sadly

it's

not

within

the

powers

of

this

earth

it's

within

us

the

believers

within

you

resides

the

power

of

the

universe

and

you

have

the

kingdom

within

we

ask

ourselves

well how

can that

be

how

can

I

be

a

person

where

his

kingdom

reigns

that's

the

question

we

have

to

ask

ourselves

does

his

kingdom

reign

in

us

is

Christ

within

me

is

the

Holy

Spirit

within

me

am

I

doing

my

part

to

help

proclaim

this

kingdom

of

God

so

how

does

that

happen

how

do

we

get

put

in

that

position

to

say

I

don't

want

to

call

it

as

my

responsibility

but

in

a way

it

is

it's

my

calling

he's

called

all

of

us

that

are

here

for

a

purpose

same

as

he

was

doing

so

when

he

was

speaking

with

Nicodemus

a

wise

man

that

wanted

to

know

more

about

he

was

intrigued

by

this

person

named

Christ

Jesus

Christ

when

he

came

to

him

basically

asking

those

questions

of

how

is

it

that

what

you're

saying

how

can

it

be

true

so

this

happens

because

when

we

accept

that

invitation

God's

invitation

to be

part

of

the

kingdom

then

we

understand

so

in

John

3

3

which

is

found

in

your

Bibles

on

page

1055

tells

us

how

that

invitation

goes

about

as

he

was

talking

to

Nicodemus

John

3

3

on

your

Bibles

it's

page

1055

John

3

3

it

reads

Jesus

answered

him

truly

truly

I

say

to

you

unless

one

is

born

again

he

cannot

see

the

kingdom

of

God

must

be

born

again

and

of

course

we

can

see

in

those

scriptures

Nicodemus

responds

how

can

a man

be

born

when

he

is

old

well

yes

we

can

because

in

John

we

see

a

strong

correlation

between

the

kingdom

of

God

and

eternal

life

nowhere

do we

see

more

clearly

that

Jesus

in

his

encounter

with

Nicodemus

basically

saying

just

as

you

have

had

a

physical

birth

so

you

must

have

a

spiritual

birth

then

we

become

subjects

of the

kingdom

within

a

kingdom

we

are

part

of

the

kingdom

of

this

world

but

our

allegiance

is to

another

kingdom

we're

asking

for that

change

to come

about

us

in that

spiritual

growth

as

we were

singing

today

lead me

to the

cross

said

rid

me

of

myself

when we

accept

that

invitation

we're

accepting

that

rid me

of

myself

put

all

that

is

not

of

you

Lord

put

it

away

because

why

because

I

belong

to

you

now

because

I've

accepted

that

invitation

it

says

lead

me

to

the

cross

because

that's

where we

find the

forgiveness

of sins

at the

cross

and I

think

that's

one of

the

areas

where

many

individuals

struggle

I

know

it

was

one

of

my

struggles

how

I

could

be

forgiven

for

what

I

had

done

how

could

that

be

obviously

I

don't

doesn't

leave

my

mind

because

it's

still

there

but

as

that

thought

comes

to

my

mind

of

who

I

was

so

does

his

calling

knowing

that

I

am

with

him

I

am

part

of

him

he

is

with

me

and

I

can

accept

that

forgiveness

that he

has

brought

forth

there

was

another

talking

about

being

within

one

kingdom

into

another

kingdom

or

being

in

the

situation

where

we

are

now

on

this

earth

but

yet

we

are

of

God

mother

Teresa

once

said

my

blood

and

my

origin

in

other

words

birth

I

am

Albanian

kingdom

my

citizenship

is

in

India

Indian

her

practice

of

faith

at

the

time

she

said

I

am

a

Catholic

nun

servant

of

the

Lord

as

to

my

calling

I

belong

to

the

whole

world

she

said

same

as

yours

your

calling

belongs

to

the

whole

world

but

she

closed

it

off

by

saying

as

my

heart

I

belong

entirely

to

Jesus

so

how

we

can

see

yes

we're

on

this

earth

we're

bound

by

the

laws

that

of

this

earth

but

we

also

must

recognize

that

yes

we

are

citizens

of

Ontario

Oregon

of

the

United

States

and

your

ethnic

origin

but

you

belong

to

Jesus

you

belong

to

his

kingdom

you

are

his

kingdom

and

it's

available

to

all

men

New

Testament

that's

what it

is

it's

God

calling

his

people

back

but

in

the

Gospel

of

John

we

see

that

Jesus

is

developing

the

concept

of

the

kingdom

further

and

further

and

further

I

say

that

because

John

the

book

of

John

is

one

of

my

favorite

books

it was

one

that I

spent a

lot of

time

with

when I

first

came to

Christ

because

he's

speaking

to the

new

believer

so

it

meant

a lot

to

me

it

does

mean

a

lot

to

me

and

his

kingdom

was

achieved

by

the

way

of

the

cross

another

scripture

there

that's

in

John

12

32

and

it's

in

1066

68

of

your

of

your

Bibles

1068

excuse

me

so

we

know

that

the

kingdom

was

achieved

by

the

way

of

the

cross

and

there

in

John

John 12:32

12

verse

32

he

says

and

when

I

am

lifted

up

from

the

earth

will

draw

all

people

to

myself

that

is

when

he

proclaimed

the

forgiveness

of

sins

and

now

he

ascends

into

heaven

to

sit

on

the

right

hand

of

God

and

sends

his

Holy

Spirit

to

dwell

with

us

to

complete

the

work

and

I

was

thinking

this

when

I

was

reading

through

this

and

kind

of

preparing

it

I

was

reading

the

scriptures

where

he

was

crucified

placed

on

the

cross

and

it

came

to

me

in

an

interesting

way

that

the

cross

had

to

be

laid

down

horizontally

so

they

could

nail

him

to

the

cross

but

then

what

happened

it

was

lifted

up

that's

where

he's

saying

you're

coming

with

me

I'm

lifting

up

I'm

going

to

be

with

my

father

and

we

will

send

the

Holy

Spirit

to

continue

the

work

of

building

the

kingdom

so

Jesus

in the

verses

that we

read

here

he's

looking

of course

at his

death

on the

cross

when he

reads

when he

says

and I

will be

lifted up

from the

earth

and will

draw all

people

to

myself

the

death

that was

necessary

to

herald

the

coming

of the

kingdom

just as

he told

Nicodemus

I tell

you the

truth

no one

can see

the kingdom

of God

unless they

are born

again

so he

establishes

the church

the new

birth

is a gift

from God

that we

respond

to God's

gift by

giving of

ourselves

back to

him

and responding

to that

call of

discipleship

once you

proclaim

yes

I accept

that invitation

to be

born again

your work

now begins

as a

disciple

and that's

where we

have to

look at it

and say

okay

that's

the call

am I

ready

because

if we

were to

continue

reading in

the scriptures

when the

church was

born in

the book

of Acts

it starts

out beautifully

because we

see so

many people

coming to

Christ

but then

about

midway

we find

that the

Romans

the kingdom

or the

nation of

that time

did not

want that

word to

spread

so what

happened

we see the

persecution

of the

church

so if you

go with me

to Acts

Acts 8:1

chapter 8

verse 1

and it's on

1088 in

your Bibles

I believe

yeah

yeah

1088

there in

Acts

Acts 8:1

chapter 8

verse 1

it's called

Saul's

rabbit

the church

right

you all know

who Saul

was but

it's already

been

a change

has come

about

and Saul

approved

the execution

and those

there arose

on that

day a

great

persecution

against the

church of

Jerusalem

and they

were all

scattered

throughout the

region of

Judea and

Samaria

except the

apostles

so a

persecution

took on

you were

found to be

known as a

Christian

you were

probably going

to be put

to death

or imprisoned

so as we

read those

scriptures

and you

say yes

I accept

the invitation

I accept

to be a

disciple

because if we

look the

early church

was mercifully

persecuted by

the Roman

state in

the first two

centuries of

the first

millennium

indeed

they had

not paid

the price

if they

had not

paid the

price I

should say

we would

not be

here

possibly not

reading of

Christ in

his Bible

so God

used the

persecution

yes to

accomplish his

purpose

but the

only thing

that could

have prevented

the gospel

from expanding

and his

kingdom

continuing to

grow

would have

been found

in the

word

apathy

apathy

is a

state of

indifference

characterized

by a

profound

lack

of

motivation

or

emotion

or

interest

and is

not

goal

directed

behavior

so let me

read that

again

apathy is a

state of

indifference

not fully

accepting

possibly

characterized

by the

lack of

motivation

taking on

the work

as a

disciple

that emotion

that love

not just for

Christ but

for one

another

in the

interest to

spend time

in his

word

in its

goal directed

behavior

and I

applaud

both

Patrick and

Amber for

the efforts

that they're

doing in

this church

in trying to

reach the

community

and I

have battled

within me

because

sometimes

yes I

hate to

say I'm

busy

but

thank

goodness

that is

just an

excuse

for not

coming

alongside

them

as the

church

so today

it's a

call

basically

of

repentance

in one

that we

accept the

invitation

we're born

again

we become

disciples

and we

turn from

our own

selfishness

in ways

so that we

can follow

Christ

so the

purpose

in closing

here and

talking about

the purpose

of God's

kingdom

is found

through

repentance

I must

repent

must accept

that I am

a sinner

and I

accept

Christ's

forgiveness

obedience

obedience

in reading

the word

spending

time

in the

word

speaking

to others

discipleship

I must

say that

God

knows