What is the Kingdom of God and what does it matter to my life here and now? We have a hard time understanding what any Kingdom is, much less the kingdom of God! We often think of God's Kingdom in terms of heaven - a place where we will go live some day. But, Jesus gives a much different picture of God's Kingdom. The Kingdom is the unexpected work of the Gospel that brings us into God's presence here and now. It touches every part of our life, transforming us by its power, and setting us free from every kind of bondage Satan may have over our life. It is not what people expected - a crushing military power defeating the nations. Instead, Jesus came to conquer Satan and the powers of darkness, paving the way for the nations to dwell in God's presence. The way of the Kingdom is the way of the cross - weakness, defeat, suffering, and serving. It began with Jesus death, but the way of the Kingdom through a cross continues to this day. The Gospel moves forward through humble servants who are willing to sacrifice in a spirit of meekness and serving. The Kingdom is living in the joy of God's presence under His care, protection, and dominion. It is the whole Gospel transforming the whole person to make us fit and holy vessels worthy of the Kingdom. There is no divide between secular and sacred - all that we are becomes truly spiritual as the power of the Cross influences and impacts the whole lump of our human being.
