INTRODUCTION OF THE KINGDOM
IN GLORY WHEN CHRIST RETURNS
To deal adequately with the future kingdom on its earthly side would involve taking up the books of the prophets in the Old Testament, which is beyond the scope of this outline.
Speaking generally, the prophets call Israel to repentance for their failure under the law, and threaten judgments under God’s righteous government, such as those executed upon the nation by Assyria and Babylon, which are also typical of Israel’s enemies in the future when gathered back to the land of Palestine for the final crisis. These judgments in the past resulted in the rejection and scattering of the nation, out of which a remnant was saved. The prophets also look on to the coming of the Messiah and the fulfilment of the promises made to the fathers in the establishment of His kingdom in glory on the earth. Although they speak of His coming both in humiliation and in glory (“the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow”, 1 Pet 1: 11 KJV) they do not refer directly to the present interval, the church not being the subject of their prophecies, which centre in Christ in relation not only to Israel, but also to the nations on earth as distinct from Israel. In the church 123
as we have seen all such distinctions disappear.
In attempts made by commentators and Bible students to interpret the prophetic books of Scripture, there has been much error and confusion owing to a common failure to understand the peculiar and unique position of the church, the present church period being a parenthesis in the ways and dealings of God with men. The apostle Paul speaks of the church as “the mystery hidden throughout the ages in God” (Eph 3: 9);
“hidden from ages and from generations, but now made manifest to His saints”, Col 1, 26.
This accounts for the failure of the repeated attempts which have been made to fix a date for the coming of Christ (Matt 24: 36), and for the restoration of the kingdom to Israel, Acts 1: 6-7.
Of the quotations in the New Testament from the prophets, some though not strictly referring to the church are made by way of application as containing principles which are verified in Christianity, or as being a partial anticipation of the prophecy; such as Acts 2: 16-21; 13: 47; 15: 13-17; Rom 15: 9-12. The searching appeals and rebukes of the prophets in bringing to bear upon the conscience the principles of the moral government of God, with a view to the recovery of His people, have of course a general present, and abiding value, of special importance in days of decline and 124
unfaithfulness, Rom 15: 4. The prophetical writings like all other parts of Scripture when rightly applied, are profitable for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully furnished unto every good work, 2 Tim 3: 16-17.
To refer briefly to the chief prophetic book in the New Testament, the Revelation opens with the position of the church as a responsible witness on earth, under the judicial scrutiny of the Lord; “the things that are”, seen by John under the figure of the seven golden candlesticks to the end of chapter 3. When the vision of church testimony is over, John is taken in spirit to heaven in chap 4, to see “the things which must take place after these things”. Then follow the symbolical visions of the judgments of the seven seals, the seven trumpets and the seven vials, which are to fall upon the earth. Relieving the darkness of these judgments, bright visions are seen of various companies secured for God out of the mass of Israel and the nations, whose faith is triumphant notwithstanding the terrible pressure brought to bear upon them by satanic agencies. The Lord Himself is then seen coming in chapter 19 to establish the kingdom, and the course of events is carried on through the millennial reign to the final judgment of the great white throne, and the vision of the new heavens and the new earth with the new Jerusalem in the eternal state, 125
ending with verse 8 of chapter 21. Then follows the last vision of the book, where John describes in detail in symbolical language the glories of the heavenly city (the glorified church); its administrative character being seen in its relation to God and the Lamb, and to Israel and the nations on earth during the millennial reign.
When the church fell under the corrupting influence of the world system, accepting positions of honour and dignity under the patronage of the Roman emperors in the fourth century, the hope of the Lord’s return which had been waning was practically lost, and the book of the Revelation became neglected, being looked upon as a mysterious
‘sealed book’, notwithstanding chap 22: 10, and the blessing pronounced in chap 1: 3, upon the reader and the hearers who keep the things written in it. Most of those who looked for the Lord’s universal future kingdom supposed that it would be brought about by the gradual spread of the gospel and the world-wide acceptance of Christianity.
But the plain testimony of the prophetic Scriptures in the other books of the New Testament is quite in accord with the symbolical teaching of the Revelation, that the present church period will close (after the translation of the true church) in the open apostacy of the Christian profession, the falling away of 2 Thess 2: 3-12.
It is remarkable that the apostle Paul should 126
call attention to this so early as his work at Thessalonica, but there were elements antagonistic to Christianity (“the mystery of lawlessness”) already working though under restraint, which gave occasion to his prophetic word. At a later day the apostle John gave a similar warning in connection with some “antichrists”, who had apostatised from Christianity, false prophets who had gone out into the world (1 John 2: 18-19; 4: 1-6), leading him to the conclusion that already the last hour had arrived morally.
Such times of crisis have repeatedly arisen in the history of the church, but the Lord has not yet come in final judgment. The longsuffering of God has been with a view to salvation, and He has again and again intervened with a revival of His work amongst men. But it is the clear and unmistakable testimony of Scripture (see also 2 Peter and Jude) that there will be a final general apostacy, followed by swift judgment at a time when it will be least expected. When men say peace and safety the day of the Lord will come as a thief (1 Thess 5: 1-2); at that hour that ye think not the Son of man comes, Matt 24: 44.
INFLUENCES TENDING TOWARDS
THE FINAL APOSTACY
It may be profitable at this point to consider at some length the question of present-day influences moving in this direction, 127
emanating from many of those looked up to as leaders of advanced thought and knowledge in intellectual circles, as distinct from, though affecting and working together with, the religious movements away from the truth of scripture already referred to in chapter V. The truth as to these influences, exposed in the light of scripture, may help to put readers on their guard against some serious
current
dangers,
especially
threatening the young in schools and colleges.
The modern development of civilisation and education and the vast extension of knowledge through scientific discoveries in the sphere of the material creation and the forces of nature, have not brought men morally nearer to God, but the tendency has been rather to lead them to false thoughts of self-sufficiency. In view of the remarkable success in achievement within its own sphere, which has attended scientific investigation by modern methods, it is apt to be overlooked that great as the discoveries have been, not all the facts are known and even those discovered are only known in part.
As the circle of knowledge enlarges there is a corresponding extension of the unknown regions beyond, where the various lines of investigation
with
their
increasing
complexity, end in profound mystery as to the ultimate nature, origin and meaning of the facts ascertained.
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The discoveries of scientists when adequately tested and confirmed must of course be accepted. Christians like other people have been more or less slow in accepting facts disclosed by science which ran counter to old established traditions and habits of thought, as for instance in the case of the astronomical discoveries in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Eventually after the needed mental adjustment it became manifest to all thoughtful Christians, that it had been a mistake to contend that the truth and authority of scripture were bound up with literal interpretations, which appeared to support the old popular beliefs in an earth, whether flat or spherical, which men had supposed to be fixed in the centre of the stellar systems. Corresponding with the physical position of the earth in space in relation to the solar system and the ‘fixed stars’; and the immense distances revealed by astronomy, there has been similar adjustment of thought called for in more recent days in regard to the unwritten history of the earth in the vast ages of past time, and the long succession of plant and animal life (many being of extinct species otherwise unknown), now brought to light in a fragmentary way in the rock strata by geological investigation. The well-nigh unthinkable immensity of the sphere of creation, and the unsearchable depths which lie behind what is disclosed by scientific 129
investigation, should only leave a Christian with a more profound sense of the infinite greatness of God as Creator and Sustainer of the universe. From eternity to eternity He is God, and a thousand years are to Him like a watch in the night, Ps 90.
It is important to remember that there is a wide
difference
between
the
actual
discoveries
made
by
the
accurate
observations of scientists, and the tentative conclusions and hypothetical theories put forward in the various attempts to account for and explain them, for the theories and hypotheses are merely provisional, and are liable to be modified or even abandoned as the facts are more fully known and new discoveries are made. This difference between the facts of science and theory is often ignored even by scientists, and this to some extent explains and justifies the caution and reserve of Christian believers as to the acceptance of the confident claims and assertions of scientific writers, who are often not in agreement amongst themselves.
There are many of these writers in the name of science and philosophy, who would admit as a logical necessity the existence of a ‘First Cause’ or ‘Supreme Being’. Seeing however that God cannot be reached by scientific investigation, they leave Him and His Word out of account, refusing to admit the fact of divine revelation and the declaration of God in Christ. They have attempted to build up 130
on the basis of their theories rival systems of philosophy, some leading to general scepticism as to the possibility of arriving at the truth lying behind outward appearances, others with more or less confident though vain pretensions to be true knowledge as to the meaning of the created universe, and the wonderful position of man in relation to it:—
the mysteries of life, of mind, of spirit, of personality and moral obligation, the ideas of truth, of righteousness, of good and evil, the thought of God and instinctive feeling after Him, the sense of dependence upon Him and responsibility to Him, an accusing conscience and the sense of sin, accentuated by the thought of death and fear of coming judgment. Of these things men cannot help being more or less conscious at times, but comparatively few are inclined to give sufficiently serious consideration to their profound import. Having to do in their true significance, with what is moral and spiritual, they relate to a sphere which is beyond the range of scientific methods of investigation.
Futile attempts have been made by some modern psychological theorists to explain away these moral and spiritual facts on the vain supposition that they are mere subjective illusions having no relation to any actual objective reality.
The truth is that the facts in regard to the wonderfully complex constitution of man—
physical, mental, moral, spiritual—are 131
inexplicable apart from the light of divine revelation recorded in Holy Scripture, which states clearly from the outset the truth as to the nature of man’s being. On the one side having special relations with God as created in His image and likeness, and on the other physically linked with the lower orders of creation by his body. Though materially made of the dust of the earth, he is yet a living soul by the breath of God and capable of intelligent relations with Him. Also his present condition of alienation from God, consequent on the moral fall by disobedience which brought in the reign of sin and death.
The Bible was written, not for the purpose of imparting scientific knowledge or giving merely historical information, but that we might have an abiding record giving divine light as to man’s moral relations with God, for the fear of the Lord is the beginning of true knowledge, Prov 1: 7. God made men for Himself, as was said of old, and has so constituted us that we cannot find rest either for conscience, heart or mind until we rest in Him, known not only as Creator but also as Redeemer and Saviour.
Sin has brought in moral distance, also an antagonistic will, and until men are recovered to God and brought into right relations with Him morally, increased knowledge in material things, and ability to control and utilise the forces of nature, only tend to mislead them with ideas of self-sufficiency 132
and independence of God, in the prospect of increased opportunities for carrying out their own wills whether as individuals, social classes or nations. It is a serious consideration that the tremendous powers which scientific research has placed at the disposal of mankind, threaten, in the absence of moral restraint and the wisdom which begins with the fear of God, to result in hastening the pace at which men will rush towards destruction.
Those who are carried away with the intellectual pretensions of men, end in rejecting the fact of divine revelation on the false and absurd assumption that God is shut up to the limits of their mental powers of investigation, and that He is unable to reveal Himself or communicate His mind.
This totally falsifies the true relation between God and men, and ignores their state of sinful alienation from Him. It affords a striking present-day verification of 1 Cor 1: 19-21, where the apostle sums up the wisdom of the philosophic world of his day as foolishness, in contrast with God’s power and wisdom which are effective in the preaching of Christ crucified, for the salvation of those who believe in the divine testimony.
The truth is that for the knowledge of God, what is important is not a man’s active intellectual powers of attainment, but a suitable moral condition; in the language of scripture, an opened ear, an exercised 133
conscience, an understanding heart, a single eye, with moral discernment and spiritual vision for the appreciation and reception of divine light. In view of the intellectual pretensions of men and the opposition of false named knowledge, scripture states that God dwells in light unapproachable, whom no man has seen nor can see, 1 Tim 6. We are therefore shut up to divine revelation for the knowledge of God and of His mind concerning us. Now the full light of God has shone in the world in the Person of His Son, and if men ignore or deny this they in effect proclaim their spiritual blindness.
These scientific theories have been spread abroad in a crude and popular form (often presented as though they were ascertained facts) in much of the education, journalism and literature of the day; as also the speculative theories of ‘higher critics’ as to the composition of the books of scripture, with the result that in the minds of an increasing proportion of the people, the truth as to the divine inspiration of the Bible has been lost, and its authority undermined. Consequently the power of its moral appeal to the conscience is weakened and in the end nullified. This has opened wide the door to a flood of worldly influences, and the mass of the people in all classes of society are becoming absorbed in merely secular interests—business activities and attempts to find satisfaction in pursuit of wealth, worldly 134
position, amusement and pleasure in all their varied forms—God being ignored and left out of their lives.
When people in Christendom definitely apostatise or turn away from the knowledge of the true God as declared in Christ who is the truth, they will lay themselves fully open to the delusive influences of the spiritual powers of darkness, whose activities are already manifest to the enlightened eye, notwithstanding that they often seek to be accredited by adopting and perverting the language of scripture. The evil, which in various forms more or less specious is now working in the world but under divine restraint, will, when the limit of God’s longsuffering is reached, be allowed to develop and head up, as energised by Satan in corruption and lawlessness, and will end in open defiance of God.
Three notable forms are indicated in the New Testament under which evil reaches its climax in a combination of corruption, violence and falsehood:
(1) Great Babylon—the false church (in contrast to the heavenly Jerusalem) a corrupt religious system decking itself with worldly glory, which for a time will appear to influence and dominate the political power, but before the end will be cast down and destroyed by the latter (Rev 17 and 18);
(2) the ten-horned beast—the revived imperial 135
political power which is satanic in origin and character, will claim universal homage, and make war on the Lamb, the King of kings; and (3) the anti-christian false prophet who will support the claims of the imperial beast with miraculous powers and lying wonders which will deceive those who have refused the truth as presented in Christ, Rev 13 and 19; 2
Thess 2.
These together with their supporters, will be dealt with in judgment before the divine kingdom can be established on the earth in blessing. The sword of warrior judgment must precede the sceptre of peaceful rule, Psalm 45.
THE HEAVENLY AND EARTHLY
SIDES OF THE COMING KINGDOM
The scene on the Mount of Transfiguration was an anticipation of the day of glory and the coming of the kingdom of God in power, Mark 9: 1; 2 Pet 1: 16-18. The kingdom will be publicly displayed in the world (or age) to come when the Lord returns with His heavenly saints, when He will put down all adverse power and exercise universal dominion, bringing all under the sway of divine authority administered by Him in righteousness, peace and blessing. This period is often spoken of in scripture as “the day of the Lord”, which will be brought in by judgments at “the appearing” or “revelation”
136
of Jesus Christ.
The Lord calls it “the
regeneration” (Matt 19: 28); the apostle Peter calls it “the restitution (or restoring) of all things”, Acts 3: 21.
In the divine system heaven and earth will be brought into accord, all things being headed up in Christ and reconciled to God by Him, the will of God being done on earth as it is in heaven. The heavenly saints, previously raised or changed at the rapture and in spiritual bodies, including all who have part in the first resurrection, are associated with Christ in His kingdom, and the centre of administration, light and blessing will be the church with its collective influence as the heavenly Jerusalem, the link between heaven and earth. The nations shall walk by its light and bring their glory to it, Rev 21: 9-27. We may compare in this connection John 17: 22-23 as indicating the wonderful place the church will have in that day, when associated with the Son in the glory which He has received from the Father. The saints will then be one as the Father and the Son are one, and as perfected into one in this displayed glory, it will be known by the world that the church has been loved by the Father as He has loved the Son. The special place which the church will have in the future kingdom, is referred to in the New Testament epistles in connection with its own relations with God and with Christ. This has already been touched upon in chapter IV, and it may now suffice to refer 137
the reader to such scriptures as Rom 8: 18-30; Eph 1: 9-10, 22-23; 2: 7; 3: 21; 5: 27; Col 3: 4; 1 Thess 3: 13; and the promises to the overcomers in Revelation 2 and 3.
In regard to our responsible service as disciples, individual faithfulness to the Lord now in the time of His absence (shown practically by our walk and conduct being true to the moral character of the kingdom), will find its public reward at His appearing.
After we have been manifested before the judgment seat of Christ, our place in the kingdom will be determined by the Lord according to His own estimate of the works of each one. The following are some of the New Testament Scriptures which look on to the kingdom in its future aspect, as it will be established by Christ when He returns: Matt 6: 10; 7: 21-23; 8: 11; 13: 43; 19: 28-29; 25: 34; Luke 13: 28, 29; 19: 11-27; 21: 31; 2 Tim 4: 1, 8, 18; Rev 11: 15; 20: 4; 22: 3, 12.
The special place which Israel will have on the earthly side of the kingdom as the centre of world-wide blessing, is seen in such scriptures as Ps 2, 45, 72, 145; Isa 9, 11, 32, 35, 60; Jer 30 to 33; Ezek 36 and 37. The deep exercises through which the Jewish remnant will go in passing through the great tribulation, “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jer 30: 7-9) find expression in many of the Psalms. Their cry for deliverance involving the destruction of their enemies will be suited to the dispensational dealings of God at that 138
time. Such prayers of course do not express the character of Christian piety during the present day of God’s grace towards all men.
Then the new covenant of which Jeremiah speaks (chap 31) will be made by God with Israel, whose exercises in connection with the writing of the law in their heart are beautifully expressed in Psalm 119, leading on to the songs of degrees, and the blessing of the Lord, even life for evermore, commanded in Zion where His throne and His house will be established on earth, Psalm 133. The glory of the new earthly Jerusalem is described in Isaiah 60; and of the new temple in Ezekiel 40 to 44.
In the book of Daniel it is the universal extent of the kingdom on earth that is emphasised, set up by the God of heaven and committed to the Son of man, in contrast to the successive world-kingdoms or empires which it displaces—Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome—symbolised by the great image, and the four beasts, chaps 2 and 7.
On the earthly side of the world to come the blessings of the kingdom will be enjoyed by Israel and the nations in flesh and blood conditions. People will be under the good influence of the kingdom which will make it easy for them to walk in the paths of righteousness. The earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, Satan the deceiver will be bound, and there will be relief from the pressure of disease and death, although 139
death will not be finally destroyed until the end of the millennial reign and the judgment of the great white throne, when Christ will give up the mediatorial kingdom to Him that put all things under Him as Man, that God may be all in all, 1 Cor 15: 24-28; Rev 20.
God having been thus publicly vindicated and glorified in the presence of the wide creation, in the very scene where He had been dishonoured by sin, the end for which the kingdom
was
brought
in
will
be
accomplished, and after the nations have been put to a final test, Satan and evil will be confined for ever within the limits of the lake of fire. When the kingdom is spoken of as everlasting, it is in the sense that it will never fall nor be destroyed like the kingdoms which have preceded it, Dan 7: 14. In its moral elements, as having established the righteousness and the will of God, it abides for ever.
THE ETERNAL STATE
The final issue is seen in the new heavens and the new earth, where distinctions of the time scene, such as kings, nations, and the tribes of Israel, which have their place on the millennial earth, will have disappeared.
There righteousness (secured on the basis of redemption and in the light of the full revelation of God) will dwell undisturbed in a scene of eternal rest, where neither sin nor 140
deceiver will ever enter to challenge the right of God to the supreme place in the affections of His intelligent creatures. He that sits on the throne makes all things new, and the Church as the holy city, new Jerusalem forms the tabernacle in which God will dwell with men, Rev 21: 1-6.
Although Christ will give up the position of delegated authority committed to Him by God, and become Himself subject as Man (1
Cor 15: 28), yet He retains for ever His universal Headship, as well as His special place as Head to the church, and will fill and give character and impulse godward to the whole universe of bliss, for the pleasure of God and to His eternal praise and glory, Eph 1: 22-23; 3: 21; 4: 10.
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