Karen:     Periodically, in the inner city church where you were a pastor, you began to preach on a certain topic. That topic has appeared and reappeared through 20 years of broadcasting, and many of the books that we’ve written and have been published, and it would be The Kingdom of God, was one of the most preached topics that Jesus chose to emphasize. And we often have Christians who never even think about it. They don’t really have a theology that they’ve developed about The Kingdom of God. So, we keep re-emphasizing it.

Intro:       Welcome to the Before We Go Podcast featuring Dr. David Mains and his wife noted author Karen Mains. Here’s David and Karen Mains.

Karen:     Jesus felt his followers should live with The Kingdom of God as the driving reality in their lives.

David:      Okay, the driving reality. What’s really, really important. So now we’re going to go back to some of the archives, Chapel of the Air broadcasts. We were in that for 20 years. And these are programs that were kind of picked out that I did on The Kingdom of God. How this kingdom messages all through the New Testament. Jesus was the one who introduced it, but it was picked up by his followers. They didn’t miss a beat. How one becomes a part of this kingdom of God. Okay?

“Dear David Mains” reads a letter addressed to the Chapel of the Air. “For 12 years I was affiliated with a denomination that was always talking about kingdom work. No gospel was preached, but they were as busy as bees trying to bring in this kingdom. Frankly, I see no place in the Bible where Jesus is called king of the church. So, Brother Mains, I know you love the Lord, and you can go on trying to build the kingdom, but I say when you’re all done, there’s not going to be anyone in it.”

I’ll respond. Despite her disagreement with me, I think I understand where this woman is coming from. Given her background of exposure to liberal theology and its version of the kingdom emphasis, I might have reacted the same way.

Here’s the crux of the misunderstanding. Christ’s kingdom will never be complete before his return. Believers won’t transform this earth into anything remotely resembling heaven before the great king’s second coming. I’m not advocating that Christians attempt to bring in the kingdom by themselves, although such a challenge has been falsely preached from many pulpits. No Christians cannot usher in Christ’s kingdom, but they should be involved in advancing it.

I wrote back to this woman, “Though I know you love the Lord, you’re mistaken. Jesus is king over his people, even as he’s the head of his body, the church. I think you know that, but you just don’t feel it the way I believe you should.”

Let me illustrate. A good number of years ago, my second son Joel became very interested in the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Di. Joel then was in his first year of junior high school. Knowing it would please him, his aunt Fran gave Joel a beautiful, large book with many full-color photographs of the royal couple, and he was thrilled. One of Joel’s friends, Charlie, came by and looked all through his book. Joel asked if he too was interested in this prince and his bride-to-be.

“Prince? What prince?” Charlie asked. “Prince Charles,” Joel responded, “The next in line to the throne of England, the guy you’ve been looking at in the book there.” “You mean this man in the pictures here?” questioned Charlie?

Of course, was Joel’s incredulous reply. “Who do you think he was?” “Well, how was I supposed to know he’s a prince? Here he’s playing polo, and in this picture he’s fishing. Look, here he’s got on one of those Scottish kilts. And on this page, he’s in a carriage.” “Come on, Charlie,” said Joel. “Where have you been? You can’t be that dumb. Of course, he’s a prince.”

It sounds unreal. Well, it is. I made up all of the conversation. I did it because I wanted to explain that a lot of people look repeatedly at God’s book, and still don’t perceive that there are scores of pictures in it of Christ as the greatest king this world has ever known. They see Jesus in his various roles, healer, teacher, and so on, but they entirely miss his major role as king. Jesus himself emphasized his kingship again and again. That was his major preaching theme, the kingdom. Yet somehow this great truth hasn’t clicked into place for many people, even many believers.

Perhaps you think the kingdom is emphasized in the gospels, but not in Acts or the epistles. Let me suggest that you do a Bible study. In this case, specifically looking through the New Testament for the idea of the kingdom of God or the kingdom of heaven. Begin by compiling a list of all the times those two phrases appear.

Using a concordance, write down each reference and what it says. For instance, Acts 8:12. Philip preached in Samaria about the kingdom of God. Surprisingly, you’ll end up with over two pages of verses containing New Testament references to the kingdom other than those that appear in the gospels. And that’s just a start.

Next, pursue related words to further develop the topic. Some will be obvious like king. Certain king references in the concordance will have no value to this study. For instance, in Acts, the listing of the kingdom of heaven referring to King Herod and King Agrippa will not pertain to the kingdom of heaven. But in Acts 17:7, the people at Thessalonica accuse the Christians of acting against Caesar by saying there is another king, Jesus. Now this is a helpful reference. It should be written down.

Tracing other related words like ruler, crown, throne, scepter, sovereign, reign, glory, other words reveal even more aspects of the kingdom. A third and final step is to note kingdom type references as you read through scripture in your daily Bible time. Any thoughts or words having a bearing on this topic might yield information otherwise overlooked.

Let me give you an example from my own study. 2 Peter 1:11 caught my interest because Peter writes, “There will be provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”

Checking my master’s sheet, I saw I had recorded that reference already. But at verse 16, I hit paydirt. Here was a strong word I hadn’t found before and how descriptive.

“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths,” writes Peter, “When we may known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.”

The phrase almost jumped off the page when I read it, His Majesty. I recall one time asking myself, “How would I address a real king?” And I decided I would probably call him “Your Majesty.” But would I be comfortable saying that to God? After reading the passage from Peter, I had to bow my head, greatly moved and say thanks. He had taught me the grandeur and the appropriateness of these words, His Majesty.

The fact is the truth of Christ’s kingdom is sprinkled all through Acts, the epistles and Revelation. Consider such well-known phrases as these, “…every knee shall bow.” “Christ is seated at the right hand of God.” “All things are under His feet”. “God hath highly exalted Him above all rule and authority and power and dominion.” “Made worthy of the kingdom of God. Heirs of the kingdom which He promised.” “A kingdom that cannot be shaken.” “By His appearing and His kingdom.” “Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.” “Fellow members of the kingdom of God, transfer us to the kingdom of His beloved Son.” “I, John, your brother who shares with you in Jesus the tribulation and the kingdom.”

That’s just a sampling of the riches of kingdom imagery that the Bible has to share and none of these phrases came from the Gospels. Some Christians may be like rebellious Anna in the play The King and I. When she sees the Siamese ruler lording and over people, she sings, “Yes, your majesty; No, your majesty. Show me how low to bow your majesty. But her sarcasm doesn’t alter the fact that the king is still the king. And in the same way we do well to be reminded of the majesty of Christ. Say it again. We do well to be reminded of the majesty of Christ.

In terms of being raised in the church, I’m not much different than that woman whose letter I read at the beginning of this broadcast. Yet in all those years right up through high school, the kingdom somehow escaped me. I don’t think it was ever mentioned in the church where I was. Then I studied at Wheaton College where the school motto is “For Christ and His Kingdom.” Even more importantly, as a student under the ministry of Dr. V. Raymond Edmond, the president of the college, I came to have a new appreciation of the kingdom.

Doc Edmond died while preaching at college chapel service. Although I had graduated by that time, I know the story well. He was talking about the proper way to come into the presence of a great king. His illustration was of a time he had an audience with Haile Selassie, then the ruler of Ethiopia. Dr. Edmond detailed the preparations that were necessary. Then his message shifted as he talked about believers coming into the presence of a much greater king. He spoke of how we need to be clothed in the robes of righteousness. And while he talked, in the middle of that sentence, he was gone.

From Wheaton College Chapel, he was issued into the courts the king of the universe about whom he spoke. How fitting. I have no doubt that he was ready. Just as Dr. Edmond helped me understand the kingdom, maybe I could help others as well, and that would please me greatly.

Karen:     Thanks, David. That was a great review. Now you’re going to talk about how does a person become a part of this remarkable kingdom of God.

David:      A very thrilling message.

But I suspect some people hearing these programs aren’t sure whether or not they belong to Christ’s wonderful kingdom. This visit is for them. Even if you’ve gone to church for many years, you may still experience some long-standing confusion on this matter. Perhaps it’s painful to admit you’re insecure as to whether Jesus, God’s anointed king, has confirmed that you really belong to his kingdom. If we were talking face-to-face, you might say, “David, I understand about not being able to point to Christ’s kingdom on a map. That makes sense. But it still confuses me as to who’s in the kingdom and who isn’t. At least in men’s kingdoms, the roads are marked so you know when you get there.”

Simply stated, my topic today is how do you find your way to Christ’s kingdom? And how do you know when you have made entry?

Let me put matters into perspective for you by asking five key questions. One, if Christ were to welcome you into his kingdom today, how would this affect the way you presently live? What changes would be being a subject of this king make in your life?

Jesus himself said that it was wise for a person to count the cost of such a decision. He told about a man who put up a tower and only half finished the job. Everyone laughed at him because he hadn’t carefully thought through the project before jumping into it. The point is that people contemplating kingdom involvement should seriously consider what it would be like living under royal law.

That last phrase, royal law, comes from James, the half-brother of Jesus, who writes in James 2:8, “If you really fulfill the royal law, that is the law of the king, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The other half of the royal law, or great commandment, as Christ expressed it in Matthew, is that “You should love the Lord with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”

Now that’s a big change for most of us. So, are you ready to show God the love he deserves and demonstrate real concern for others also? Well, that’s a basic requirement in the kingdom. It was both taught and modeled by the monarch himself and its expected behavior for all the king’s subjects.

Think it through, if you don’t want to show love for God and love for people, then you probably shouldn’t consider becoming one of this king’s followers.

Question two, have you fallen short of this standard? Do you miss the stated target, love for God and love for fellow human beings? If so, then you understand what scripture calls sin, which simply means to miss the mark. If this sounds too simplistic, think what a phenomenal change would occur in society if everyone hit the mark. Can you imagine what it would be like in your community if everyone consistently loved God and other people?

Refusing to give God the love he deserves and putting oneself ahead of others is at the very center of the curse man experienced in the Garden of Eden that made living so difficult. And do you realize that when you miss the mark, you personally contribute to the problems this world knows?

So, question three, do you think you can bring about these necessary changes through self-effort? Are you capable of loving God and others by mere self-determination? Can you pull this off without divine help?

The biblical answer to those questions is obviously no. Even if you could love both God and people for a while, how would you deal with the problem of your past offenses? If past sin isn’t forgiven, you’ll never experience what Paul writes about in Colossians 1:13 being delivered from the dominion of darkness and transferred to the kingdom of God’s beloved Son.

But further in that chapter, you’ll discover that in spite of our estrangement from God, Colossians 1:21 and 22, we were hostile in mind doing evil deeds. Christ has reconciled us to God. In other words, he’s made us friends with God again in Christ’s body of flesh by his death. And do you believe that?

Question four, do you believe that Christ is able to supernaturally change who you are? In Christ, through his death and resurrection, infuse your life with power to walk a new and better way. Do you think Christ can hear your request and by an act of his mercy forgive you and grant you this great favor?

If you believe that Christ can do that, even though you can’t prove it, there is within you the beginning of what the Bible calls faith. If your heart whispers, “Yes, I believe Jesus can do that,” then you’re very close to the kingdom. This is exactly the kind of faith a person needs to enter in.

So now question five. If you feel Christ can change you, when would be a good time to ask him to do this? If you answered now, I suggest you bow immediately before this king.

Literally, bowing is the best, perhaps alone in your room. But if that isn’t possible, then at least mentally, go down on one knee and picture yourself as a subject before your sovereign. From that kneeling position, tell the king you want to change; that you want to live in the way that will please him as your monarch. You want his spirit, the king’s spirit, to enter you, to cleanse you of all past disobedience, all your offenses against him and your sins against others. Tell him that you’re desiring his spirit to make your body his home, that you want him to begin the process of tutoring you in the royal law of his kingdom.

Just one more thing. While you’re bowing, imagine that you’re at the foot of a cross. Why? Because bowing before the great king’s cross is a good way to enter the kingdom.

Let me say it again. Bowing before the great king’s cross is a good way to enter Christ’s kingdom.

Do you have that picture in mind? As you kneel, realize your Lord is on the cross because of you. Because you have fallen short of his glory. Because you consistently missed the mark.

Now listen to the thief who agonizes on the cross next to Christ. Over here, him say to the third dying man, “Do you not fear the Lord? We’re receiving due reward for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong. Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

As you picture this scene and hear the thief make his plea, quickly add, “Me too, Jesus, I want the same thing. I feel the way that man does. Can you hear me praying also?”

In this greatest drama of all history, now playing itself out on your personal behalf, with darkness and the earth trembling and bystanders weeping, I believe you will hear the king’s answer in your heart. Jesus, above whose head are the words, this is the king of the Jews, will silently whisper to your soul, truly I say to you, you also will be with me in paradise.

Hundreds of times in my life I’ve brought people to this sacred place where I first came to know him. Never once have I been with someone who heard Jesus say, no.

I spoke with a young woman in her late 20s. She was weary and marred in many ways by the world, its sin and her participation in it. She asked me, “What if Jesus says no? Or worse. Suppose he refuses to answer me. So many have treated me that way. If Jesus does, I fear it will be the final insult I could take.”

“I sense your fear,” I told her. “But I’ve known this king a long time. Never once have I seen him act that way toward anyone. It would be inconsistent with what I know about him.” And I was right. In a matter of minutes after she made her request at the cross, she was saying, “Oh thank you Jesus, thank you so much for hearing me.”

And I see this prayer of gratitude being yours as well. When you request deliverance from the dominion of darkness, and when you ask to be welcomed into the kingdom of God’s beloved Son. The apostle John, a beloved friend of our Lord, wrote in the first chapter of his gospel “To all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become the children of God, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of man, but of God.” Two chapters later in his gospel, John uses a similar expression, being born anew as a way of entering the kingdom of God.

Karen:     So that is how a person becomes a part of the kingdom of God. And some of you have a yearning in your heart. There’s a warming in you toward this message. And we would invite you to do the things that David has suggested right now, right where you’re sitting.

Outro:      You’ve been listening to the Before We Go Podcast. And if you would like to write to us, please send us an email at the following address, hosts@beforewego.show. That’s all-lower-case letters, hosts@beforewego.show.

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