- Did you ever wonder what “Thy kingdom come” means?!
- Is the Sermon on the Mount really telling us who’s “truly” saved?
- Actually, the King is teaching His disciples how to be “great” in His coming kingdom!
We covered this most famous sermon on YouTube in 6 parts.
Major topics include the following:
- What is “the kingdom,” as in, “Thy kingdom come”? We believe that Scripture describes a physical, literal, earthly kingdom, where Jesus will rule from His throne in a restored Jerusalem for 1,000 years while the faithful rule and reign with Him, and the devil is bound. The Millennial Kingdom is followed by the eternal phase of Christ’s kingdom, on the new earth, and that eternal phase includes the New Jerusalem, aka the Paradise of God.
- The establishment of the kingdom was postponed when Israel rejected her King. That kingdom is still yet future, which is why we still pray, “Thy kingdom come.”
- The intro to the sermon is the beatitudes. From the very beginning, the topic is inheriting the kingdom, that is, rewards in the kingdom. “For theirs is the kingdom of heaven” bookends the intro inclusio.
- That is, the Sermon isn’t about getting into heaven; it’s about inheriting the kingdom, or being “great” in the kingdom!
- Jesus teaches His disciples about how the coming kingdom will operate. For example, people in the kingdom may be called before a council for expressing anger inappropriately. He described court, prison, and monetary fines, all referring to how the future kingdom will actually operate, for mortals. Those of us in glorified, incorruptible bodies will be incapable of sin.
- Jesus will enforce the Messianic Law in His Millennial Kingdom, that is, the Law of Moses, leveled up to reflect the heart. “You have heard it said A, but I tell you B.”
- The sermon is about ethical righteousness, that is, holy living. Jesus is calling us to a very high standard of daily morality.
- Gehenna does not mean “hell.” It is a place of fire and judgment, but is often used to refer to judgment of wayward believers. There is no reason to equate this term with the everlasting lake of fire.
- The “Kingdom of Heaven” means something distinct from God’s eternal kingdom. We are searching out this matter! Revelation 21 gives us some clues about the eternal phase of the kingdom that point us back to Matthew’s use of the phrase “kingdom of heaven.”
- Revelation 21:9-10, 24-27 seems to describe three groups with regard to the New Jerusalem:
- Some believers in eternity will receive that highest reward of living eternally in the glorious Paradise of God (the New Jerusalem) as the bride with the King.
- Some won’t live there but will be allowed to visit.
- Some believers will be forbidden entrance into that place where the Lord Jesus Himself lives, even though they’re in Christ’s eternal kingdom.
Absolutely fascinating!
