Are “The Church of Jesus Christ” and “The Kingdom of God” one and the same thing?
The short answer is, No. They are not the same. The apostle Paul writes the following:
Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
Even as the church is the body of Christ, the kingdom of God is a spiritual condition that exists among those who follow the Lord Jesus Christ. According to the prophets, such as Isaiah, Daniel, John and others, this spiritual condition will eventually supplant, or replace the wickedness that is currently prevalent in the world when Christ returns the reign over all the earth. Those that choose to obey and follow Christ will inherit the kingdom of God, while those that willingly reject Christ or that have rebelled against him cannot be part of his kingdom.
We have already seen how Nebuchadnezzar’s dream revealed that the kingdom of God will fill the earth, but Isaiah also saw this and expressed it in somewhat different terms:
Isaiah 11:9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
The apostle John also saw these things and was given the clarity to explain it for our benefit:
Revelation 21
1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
When the function of the church is complete, God will also complete his work in bringing about eternal life in his kingdom for those who “overcome” temptations and wickedness, which are upon the earth because of the adversary, the devil.
Many people struggle to understand the role of the church because they believe, or have been taught, that it is the central means for salvation, not realizing that it is a vehicle for helping in the work that God has established for bringing the Gospel of Christ to people so that it may work salvation in them.
Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
It is the Gospel Jesus gave us that works the work of salvation, because it is the Gospel of Christ that tells us what Jesus has done for us, is doing for us, and will do for us if we are not ashamed of him. The Gospel of Christ is not just a set of principles, but it is also the life-in-action of Jesus Christ using the crucifixion and resurrection as a means for bringing about reconciliation between sinful man and the Holy God that created us.
The culmination of that work of the Gospel of Christ is the eternal life and immortality of man, which is what we see in the revelation given through John, when “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”
For more information, please contact the editor of this site.
