“For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.” ... Continued.
This kingdom of God is not an external imposition coming from
outside but a loving relationship that radically transforms our lives
and unfolds from the inside outward. Mulholland Jr. writes, "the New
Testament reveals in Jesus the consummation of the old covenant, the
fulfillment of the promise through the prophets that the law of God is
not an arbitrarily imposed external structure but the deep reality of
human wholeness in loving relationship with God." [1]
Jesus spoke that during the end times before He returned that there would be great tribulation and people would be looking outside themselves for an external kingdom coming. Jesus spoke in Matthew 24:23-27, "Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand.
Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be."
Matthew 24:30 goes on to say, "Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory:
Revelation 1:7 says something similar, "Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.
Cloud is Strongs# G35074. It speaks of God's glory. Another place that it is used is Matthew 17:5, "...a bright cloud [of glory] overshadowed them:..." The first time a cloud is brought up in the Bible is in Gen. 9:13-14 where the Lord says, I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. "It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud,…"
This [Him coming with the clouds] is immediately after the tribulation when even the powers of heavens are shaken (Matthew 24:29). What I get from these verses is to not look externally for a man to show up and claim to be Christ showing signs and wonders. But look for the kingdom to begin to manifest in His return first through His people as the earth is filled with His glory (Ps. 72:19 & Is. 6:3).
Luke 17:20-21 says it the verse in Matthew 24:23-27 a little different,
"Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst [within you]."
Jesus goes on to say in Luke 21:25-28, "And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring, men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the art, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.
Redemption, lutrōsin, Strongs #G6085 comes from the root word lytroo, Strongs #G3084 and it means to liberate, release (set free) something by paying the full ransom and restoring something back into the possession of its rightful owner (rescuing from the power and possession of an alien possessor). [2]
The east is significant in that God's glory seems to come from the east in several significant bible verses. For example, in the Old Testament, the priests and Moses encamped on the east side of the tabernacle. In the New Testament, the wise men came from the east to worship Him as a baby, and there was a star they followed from the east. It is the east gate that Jesus is to return through. And in Ezekiel, God's glory poured through by the east gate.
Ez. 43:1-2 says, "Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory."
As an everyday reminder of Him coming from the east, the sun rises in the east and sets to the west.
It is in this place of His glory being ushered from within that we become one. Francis Frangipane writes, "But the last stage of unity is the highest and most wonderful. For into hearts prepared by the Word He descends in the living splendor of His Presence. He said,
"And the glory which Thou hast given Me I have given to them; that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, that the world may know that Thou didst send Me, and didst love them, even as Thou didst love Me." —John 17:22–23
...This is the height and goal of true Christianity: the revelation of Jesus Christ through His church... This is not something that will only happen in the sweet by and by, but something that is so explicitly here that even 'the world' may come to 'believe.'" [3]
Lord, let Your kingdom come and Your will be done. We long for Your return.
1. Mulholland, M. Robert Jr. Shaped by the Word: The Power of Scripture in Spiritual Formation. Upper Room Books, Nashville TN. 2000.
2. Strong's Concordance. Located at : http://biblehub.com/greek/3084.htm. Last Accessed: 12/16/13.
3. Frangipane, Francis. Becoming the Answer to Christ's Prayer. Email Teaching. Unsure original date.
Jesus spoke that during the end times before He returned that there would be great tribulation and people would be looking outside themselves for an external kingdom coming. Jesus spoke in Matthew 24:23-27, "Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand.
Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be."
Matthew 24:30 goes on to say, "Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory:
Revelation 1:7 says something similar, "Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.
Cloud is Strongs# G35074. It speaks of God's glory. Another place that it is used is Matthew 17:5, "...a bright cloud [of glory] overshadowed them:..." The first time a cloud is brought up in the Bible is in Gen. 9:13-14 where the Lord says, I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. "It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud,…"
This [Him coming with the clouds] is immediately after the tribulation when even the powers of heavens are shaken (Matthew 24:29). What I get from these verses is to not look externally for a man to show up and claim to be Christ showing signs and wonders. But look for the kingdom to begin to manifest in His return first through His people as the earth is filled with His glory (Ps. 72:19 & Is. 6:3).
Luke 17:20-21 says it the verse in Matthew 24:23-27 a little different,
"Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst [within you]."
Jesus goes on to say in Luke 21:25-28, "And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring, men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the art, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.
Redemption, lutrōsin, Strongs #G6085 comes from the root word lytroo, Strongs #G3084 and it means to liberate, release (set free) something by paying the full ransom and restoring something back into the possession of its rightful owner (rescuing from the power and possession of an alien possessor). [2]
The east is significant in that God's glory seems to come from the east in several significant bible verses. For example, in the Old Testament, the priests and Moses encamped on the east side of the tabernacle. In the New Testament, the wise men came from the east to worship Him as a baby, and there was a star they followed from the east. It is the east gate that Jesus is to return through. And in Ezekiel, God's glory poured through by the east gate.
Ez. 43:1-2 says, "Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory."
As an everyday reminder of Him coming from the east, the sun rises in the east and sets to the west.
It is in this place of His glory being ushered from within that we become one. Francis Frangipane writes, "But the last stage of unity is the highest and most wonderful. For into hearts prepared by the Word He descends in the living splendor of His Presence. He said,
"And the glory which Thou hast given Me I have given to them; that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, that the world may know that Thou didst send Me, and didst love them, even as Thou didst love Me." —John 17:22–23
...This is the height and goal of true Christianity: the revelation of Jesus Christ through His church... This is not something that will only happen in the sweet by and by, but something that is so explicitly here that even 'the world' may come to 'believe.'" [3]
Lord, let Your kingdom come and Your will be done. We long for Your return.
1. Mulholland, M. Robert Jr. Shaped by the Word: The Power of Scripture in Spiritual Formation. Upper Room Books, Nashville TN. 2000.
2. Strong's Concordance. Located at : http://biblehub.com/greek/3084.htm. Last Accessed: 12/16/13.
3. Frangipane, Francis. Becoming the Answer to Christ's Prayer. Email Teaching. Unsure original date.
Comments