Saturday, September 1, 2012

Blessings of the Prophetic Kingdom


               The Kingdom will be a blessing for all believers and there are a number of ways that the Kingdom will be a blessing.  There are 6 ways of function for the Millennial Kingdom --Spiritual, Ethical, Social, Physical, Political, and Ecclesiastical.   These various blessings are communicated to us in the scriptures and in this paper we will be looking at them a little closer. 

The Kingdom will be Spiritual.
               Probably the most apparent blessing of this kingdom will be its spirituality.  Since this kingdom is going to be set up and ruled by the Almighty and all powerful God, who is a spirit being, of course the kingdom will be spiritual.  This point needs to be clarified a little bit further.  The kingdom will be spiritual in the sense that the HOLY SPIRIT will guide and direct in the hearts of men and through the laws that are set.  Because the Holy Spirit will have such an integral part in the kingdom, there will finally be inward harmony among the people with God’s rule.  At the beginning of this kingdom, every person will be a believer and so be in agreement with everything that God commands. 
Joel 2:28 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh;…”   

This verse in Joel chapter 2 is a pretty common verse that is used to explain the Spiritual aspect of God’s kingdom.  As was already stated previously, everybody that is in this kingdom, at the beginning stage, will be believers.  A believer has the Holy Spirit indwelt in them at the moment of salvation, so I feel that it is safe to use this part of the verse to explain one of the characteristics of the coming kingdom.
Christ will be the central ruler of this kingdom and therefore all the worship of the earth will then be God-centered and Biblical instruction will also promote the God-centeredness of this great kingdom age.    

The Kingdom will be Ethical.

               Since the fall of humans, the moral climate of the world system has decayed.  We can clearly see this fall in the lack of acknowledgement of One God, the rejection of His divine word and His immortality becoming more and more familiar, and our freedom as a nation is being jeopardized.   As the coming Kingdom gets closer, it seems that decay expedites.  I don’t even want to imagine what the moral decay will be like right before the Kingdom comes.  Another great characteristic of this Kingdom will be that there will be no more questions on moral issues.  There will be only one ruler to set the standard, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is God and the standard of this Kingdom.  He will, of course, readjust all of the imperfections that are clearly seen throughout.  At the beginning of human history, capital punishment was endorsed.  All throughout history we can see the various injustices that have occurred around the world.  So many murderers, thieves, and all kinds of criminals have lied their way through the court system.  This will not be the case in the millennial kingdom. 

Isaiah 40:4 “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:”

Isaiah reminds us that, not only will this Kingdom be perfect, but one day the world will be perfect as well.  O what a blessed thought!!  Along with the readjustments of morality in the facets of life, the moral retribution will once again be active. 

                Jeremiah 31:30 “But every one shall die for his own iniquity…”

 The Kingdom will be social.

               During this Kingdom reign, there will be a socialization among the entire world.  This means that all military warfare will stop.  All the industries that produce such weapons will go out of business as there will be no need for any harm.  Isaiah states this very clearly.
Isaiah 2:4 “And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.”

There will be no more war, which means that there will always be peace and joy.  One thing that has been degraded in our society is the marriage union.  All marriages during this time will be restored to the honor and respect that God intended for it.  Again, Isaiah tells us, very plainly, that “Of the increase of……………. peace there shall be no end,…” 
               In today’s world, the government has done ‘experiments’ with the economy and other departments.  In the book of Psalms chapter 72, we’re reminded that ever person is precious in the sight of the Lord.  Nobody will be harmed in any way because there needs to be a certain ‘progress’ for the social good of the world. 

The Kingdom will be physical.
The fact that the Lord will one day reign, physically, on this earth is the consistent interpretation of the Bible.   There are so many prophecies that have been predicted in the Old Testament and then LITERALLY and PHYSICALLY fulfilled.  For example, the prophecy of Christ’s birth in Bethlehem written about in the book of Micah chapter 5:2, also, the simple prophecy that the everlasting ruler would ride into Jerusalem on a donkey in Zechariah 9:9 both were quite literally fulfilled.  The precise description of Christ’s crucifixion in Psalm 22:16 was, as we know from the records of the gospels, a literal fulfillment.   In addition to the literal physical reign of Christ on earth, many geographical changes will take place.  Just to name a few, there will be a prolonging of physical life, immediate healing of the sick, and the animal realm will be tame.
Isaiah 35:6 “Then shall the lame man leap as a hart…”
Isaiah 65:20 “There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die a hundred years old;...”

This kingdom will be perfect in all of its characteristics and thus there will be immediate physical healing for the sick.  Today, so many people might have to apply for state or governmental aid if they become ill.  During the kingdom, that will all stop and no one will have to worry anymore about the healthcare that they need.    Along with this, there will also be drastic changes in the animal kingdom.  Using a synecdoche later on, he describes for us that the wolf and the lamb will feed together.  I feel that all of the animal kingdom will one day be tame and not the ravenous beasts that they are today.
               The Bible also mentions that the atmosphere will once again be perfect, which will increase the agricultural industries.   Again in Isaiah, we’re told of this increase by use of a synecdoche.

        Isa 32:15 “…the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest.”
       
All the places on the physical earth will, not only be fertile, but the fertility rate will increase abundantly.  Early in the book of Isaiah, we are told that the desolate places of the earth will be protected by a “defense” that the Lord will set over all his creation.
       
Isaiah 4:5 “And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defense.”

               During the kingdom, there will also be a full acknowledgement of Christ.  Unlike today, people need to believe that there is a God, in the kingdom, God will be the ruler and judge of all things and will be visible to all mankind.  Belief in God will still be relevant, however it is much easier to have faith when accompanied by physical proof.  Many during this kingdom age will still disbelieve, for whatever reason, but will also be judged right away for their disbelief.  God has always revealed himself in all the ages, but one day He will Rule and be reigning WITH us.  What a glorious thought!!

The Kingdom will be political in its effects.

               All international disputes will one day have to go before the central authority of this kingdom.  This means, of course, that because the Lord is the authority, there will be no more war among any nation.

        Isaiah 2:4 “And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.”

On our nations Liberty Bell, inscribed on the front is the latter part of this verse, “Nation shall not lift up sword against nation”, a lot of our nation’s history is rooted from Biblical morals.  One day this verse will finally be true and no nation will have a reason to cause war. 
Our country, and a lot of other country’s national security concerns will also one day be no more of a concern.  Isaiah reminds us of this “…peaceful habitation…” There will be no need of any of the fears that many countries have today.  The prince of peace is just that and will spread peace throughout ALL his kingdom.    O what a blessed thought that one day there will be peace and harmony in our political agenda! 

The kingdom will be ecclesiastical in its effects.

As was mentioned previously, this kingdom will be spiritual, but it will also be ecclesiastical.  Everyone in the kingdom will be centralized around Christ.  There will once again be a central place of worship on the earth. 

        Ezekiel 37:27 “My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

There will one day be an ecumenical movement that will be divinely inspired.  In Isaiah, “All mankind will come to bow down…”.  There have been many claims over the years that there have already been ecumenical movements.  For example, in 1948 the United Nations supported an “ecumenical movement” in Amsterdam.  At the beginning of the 20th century, An “ecumenical movement” for which was “a movement understood as an effort of Churches and many committed Christians to overcome past quarrels, to find new denominators for the Churches’ common witness and service to the world and thus to prepare the conditions which would facilitate the restoration of their unity.”  Currently, there is an “ecumenical movement” which challenges the youth of our naion to be involved.  The world council of churches is sponsoring numerous program in which young people can apply to attend training seminars and various internship programs that teach the students and provide them with experience in an ecumenical field. 
The kingdom will be ecclesiastical in its effects.  We need to understand a few terms in order to clear up any confusion.  The term ecclesiastical does pertain to the church as a whole, what church specifically is unclear.  The term ecumenical pertains to a general or universal organization.  When the bible describes the ecclesiastical effects of the kingdom, I am inclined to think this will involve all sincere believers.  Denominations, at this point in time, will not be as important of an issue.  It seems to me that the more denominations there are, the more confusion there will be.  Everybody seems to design their own religion and focuses on what the people want and not bother with what the Bible actually says.  The first early churches that were started have been so far lost and disregarded.  In those days there was ONE church in a town, today when you go to any town, there is a church on every corner and they’re all different.  Even the fact that the millennial kingdom is going to be ecclesiastical in its effects, there are so many groups that have construed that to mean what they want and try to attract a following.  It will be such an amazing thing to see the kingdom have a worldwide effect.
 


Bibliography:
The Greatness of the Kingdom- Alva J. McClain

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