Let us turn to Hebrews 2:6.
But one hath somewhere testified, saying,
What is man, that Thou art mindful of him?
Or the son of man, that Thou visitest him?
Thou madest him a little lower than the angels;
Thou crownedst him with glory and honor,
And didst set him over the works of Thy hands:
Thou didst put all things in subjection under his feet.
For in that He subjected all things unto him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we see not yet all things subjected to him.
But we behold Him who hath been made a little lower than the angels, even Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that by the grace of God He should taste death for every man.
For it became Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Author of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
Let us have a further word of prayer.
Precious Lord, we want to thank You, because the reason we can even be seated here tonight is because Thine is the kingdom.
We thank You because we can be seated here just like Mary at Your feet. Those who speak, Lord, and those who hear, we thank You that it is by Your grace. May You fill us with Your glory in this meeting tonight.
May we see that indeed the glory is Thine. We thank You because Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory. We pray this in the victorious name of Jesus. Amen.
We have just read the portion of Scripture that very clearly uses the words found in Psalm 8.
We mentioned that in God’s heart there is but one throne in the Old Testament, and that is David’s throne. Solomon sat on David’s throne. Josiah sat on David’s throne. Solomon did not have his own throne, and neither did Josiah.
So when the Lord returns, He is to be seated on the throne of David. Therefore, the throne of David can tell us something about the kingdom.
There was no one who knew about the kingdom more than David. Even though God told him one day that he was not the person to build the temple—because he had shed too much blood—David still had a heart to build the house of God.
He had many sleepless nights because he wanted to build. That was the result of suffering because he loved the Lord. It was not simply that he wanted to do something. He wanted to do all for God.
He did not want to close his eyes until he saw that the temple was built. No wonder David was a man after God’s own heart. His suffering was because the Lord’s heart might be satisfied.
God said, “You are not that person.” Did David, because of this, take a step back? Did he become deceived by the enemy? Even though God chose somebody else, David gave his all.
When the temple was built, it was not called David’s temple. It was Solomon’s temple. It was as if God gave the glory to someone else.
If you want to serve God, what happens when you hear God say, “You are not the one”? We feel that God has to use us. But one day, when God says, “I cannot use you,” can we accept it?
When we serve God, we may feel that God has to use us because we are too important. We may feel that we need to be in a prominent position. But thank the Lord: God said to David, “You are not the one.”
At the end of his days, David did one thing: he put all of his wealth before God’s feet. All that the people offered was also placed before God.
David took his offering and the offering of all the people, and he had one prayer:
Thine is the kingdom.
How do you know that Thine is the kingdom? Where are you? Are you at His feet?
Even though God said, “You are not the one,” God can use you, and He does not have to use you. When He puts us aside, can we still diligently give our all to Him?
Of course, when God wants to use you, you give your all. But do not forget: because the kingdom is His, He can use you, and He can also set you aside.
At this moment, can you tell God, “I am going to put everything before You”? You give all to Him. Now you may be useful in His hands, but because He is Lord, if He uses you, He is Lord; if He does not use you, He is still your Lord.
David learned a wonderful lesson at the end, when he gave all before God. All of that was put under His feet. No wonder the Bible speaks of David’s throne. There is only one throne, because David not only knew the kingdom, but he could also pray, “Thine is the kingdom.”
God opened David’s eyes. In Psalm 8, we see that he indeed knew the kingdom. Genesis 1 and 2 were opened to him.
If you read Psalm 8, you will see that verse 1 corresponds to Genesis 1, and from verse 4 onward it corresponds to Genesis 1:26.
Here we see why God created man. When He created man, man was made a little lower than the angels.
God Himself did not come to deal with the enemy as Creator. With the strength of the Creator, it would not seem fitting to deal directly with a created being. The enemy would have something to say; the fallen angels would have something to say; even the angels who did not fall would have something to say.
God had to do something not only to overcome the enemy, but also to shut the mouth of the enemy. For this reason, God created man a little lower than the angels.
Angels were created beings. When they rebelled, they became Satan and the fallen angels. So how would God deal with fallen angels? He created man a little lower than the angels.
He put two trees in the Garden of Eden. He wanted man to choose the tree of life, because in the universe only this tree represents the life of God.
When man eats of the tree of life, that life becomes a life of dependence and obedience. At the point where man appears to have no strength, he develops strength. That strength can defeat the enemy, deal with the enemy, and shut the mouth of the enemy.
How is that done? How can man reach that goal? We know that God’s purpose for man is to crown him with glory and majesty.
When we are created according to His image, glory and majesty become a crown. At the same time, God gives us a mission: to care for what God has created, so that all things may be in subjection under man’s feet.
Because this life is a life of obedience, when man is under God’s feet, all things are in subjection under man’s feet.
The human race can then fill the earth and subdue the earth. How does it subdue the earth? We see a very clear principle.
When the earth is in the hands of the enemy, when the world is in the hands of the evil one, how can we recover the lost territories from the enemy?
Only when this life fills the entire earth—when it is fruitful and multiplies. That is why the Bible says to be fruitful and multiply.
This life from the tree of life not only needs to grow; it needs to be full. No matter where this life goes, if it fills the entire earth, it recovers the earth, subdues the earth, and inherits the earth.
This is God’s will: “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it.” What does it mean to subdue it? It means that all things would be in subjection under man’s feet, so that all the territories that were fallen and lost might be recovered.
Because Adam is in subjection under the Lord, the things of the earth can be in subjection under Adam’s feet. What had been under Satan’s feet could then be brought under God’s feet.
This is the kingdom prepared from the foundation of the world. On the surface, it is the kingdom of Adam. But “Thine is the kingdom.” The kingdom is not Adam’s; Adam’s authority is delegated authority.
There is only one authority in the universe, and that is God’s authority.
Man was created to manifest God’s glory because we are like Him. Our service is the result of the flowing of life. How much you are like God, that is how much you serve.
Today we do much work. But according to Genesis, how much life flows, how much you become like Him—that is the measure of your service.
The capacity of our service cannot be greater than the measure of His life in us. Today, much of our service fails because we have too much work, too much labor, and too much performance.
When life enters us, we become more and more like Him and manifest Him. When this life flows and fills the earth, it naturally conquers that territory.
You may ask, “What strength do I have to recover that land?” Thine is the kingdom, and the power is Thine as well. If you have any victory, the power is His. Any victory, the glory is His.
You and I are created beings, created according to His image. But thank the Lord: because we have received that life, we bow before Him. Then God puts all things in subjection under our feet.
Those who are parents, live before God. Very naturally, God will put your children under your feet. Whenever your children rebel, it reveals our true spiritual condition.
Those who are husbands, if they are truly under God the Father and allow Christ to be Head, then very naturally their spouses will see that they are under authority.
All those who want people to submit to them will be admired in the end. Nobody serves as a slave. That is the Roman Empire; that is the empire of this world.
When we say the husband is to be the head, many times we follow the ways of the world. But the kingdom of God is altogether different.
At the very beginning, God explains the kingdom He prepared for man. In Genesis 2, we see how all things can be in subjection under man’s feet and how this life can fill the earth.
God created Adam in a territory that had been taken captive, and He put Adam in the Garden of Eden. What is the Garden of Eden?
The Garden of Eden is a miniature version of the New Jerusalem.
If you compare the Garden of Eden and the New Jerusalem, you see something quite amazing. In Eden, water flows out. In the New Jerusalem, water flows from the throne of God.
As the garden is irrigated, if you follow the flow of the water, you find gold, which speaks of God’s nature. Then you find precious stones, which speak of the work of the Holy Spirit. You find pearls, speaking of life out of death.
If we are to fill the earth, we need first to be at His feet. We need to be under the throne. Then, as we follow the water, we find gold, precious stones, and pearls.
If Adam had not failed, the Garden of Eden would have become the foundation. But now it is only a garden, while the New Jerusalem is the garden-city.
All beginning comes from heaven. If we are before His throne and receive the outpouring of this life, this life grows.
Because this life grows upward and vertically, very naturally it goes outward and horizontally. It becomes broader and broader, fills the Garden of Eden, fills the entire earth, subdues the earth, and brings all things back under His feet.
Brothers and sisters, what is the secret? The secret is the Garden of Eden. But sadly, because man failed, we see the Garden of Eden but not the building up of the New Jerusalem.
Even though Abraham was in a tent, he was waiting for a city which hath foundations, whose Builder and Maker is God.
From eternity to eternity, God’s purpose is to have His tabernacle with men. This refers to the New Jerusalem. If you compare Genesis and Revelation, you know what is in God’s heart and what kind of kingdom He desires to build.
Sadly, this kingdom did not materialize because Adam did not choose the tree of life. Adam chose the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Man fell. Man failed.
In Genesis 3, man sinned. In Genesis 6, man fell into the flesh. Then man fell into the world.
There was a hero named Nimrod. Nimrod conquered the world of that time and built the first Babylonian Empire. Not only an empire, but the city of Babylon; not only the city, but also the tower of Babel.
They wanted to magnify their name by building the tower high so that they would not be scattered. Satan, through Nimrod, wanted all things to be in subjection under his feet. This is called an empire.
The first empire in human history was a counterfeit of God’s thought. God wanted man to be under His feet, but Satan wanted to do the same thing for himself. That is the beginning of Babylon.
When we arrive at Genesis 14, Jerusalem and Babylon face one another. The Garden of Eden presents a tale of two trees; then we see a tale of two cities.
Babylon represents the world, and the world is in the hands of the evil one. In Genesis 10, we see seventy nations.
Do you remember when the Lord sent out the seventy disciples? There were seventy nations. He also sent out twelve disciples, corresponding to the twelve tribes.
Why does Scripture say, “Love not the world”? If we love the world, we do not have the love of the Father.
Man did not merely fall into sin as an individual rebellion. In Genesis 10, there is corporate rebellion. At this time, the kingdom of the world began.
Where did the phrase, “The kingdom of the world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ,” begin? It began when Adam ate of the tree of knowledge and all that belonged to Adam fell under Satan’s dominion.
All this territory includes Adam’s race. God’s first question was, “Adam, where art thou?” Adam not only fell into sin and flesh, but also fell into the world.
For this reason, the Lord prepared salvation. He chose Abraham so that one day the seed of the woman would be born.
Adam failed. The human race failed. But the seed of the woman was to gain the victory.
After man fell, what was the first promise?
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman,
And between thy seed and her seed:
He shall bruise thy head,
And thou shalt bruise His heel.
The first Adam was completely defeated. How would the seed of the woman gain the victory? On the cross.
On one hand, on the cross, He overcame the enemy. On the other hand, He bled and was wounded. But His wound was only in the heel; the enemy’s wound was fatal.
It was as if Adam was completely defeated, but God said there would be a Savior for the human race. On one hand, He would save us. His name is Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins.
This Savior is an overcomer. When the first Adam failed, the second Adam gained the victory. When the first man failed, the second Man gained the victory.
God did not give up because Adam failed. He still wanted to accomplish His will. Therefore, He promised the seed of the woman.
We know that the Savior would appear. But if Jesus is the Savior of the human race, He is also the Son of God.
If He were only the Son of God, He could save us, but God does not die. If God does not die, how could He be nailed to the cross?
Therefore, to accomplish the work of salvation, the Word had to become flesh. God had to become man.
Through Mary, the Word became flesh. Remember, He was the seed of the woman. We are all the seed of man; therefore, we are sinners. But God did something special.
When our Lord came, He was the seed of the woman. On one hand, He was God; on the other hand, He was man. Inwardly, He was God; outwardly, He was man.
When He fell asleep in the boat, He was man. But when He stood and rebuked the wind, He was God.
When He was nailed to the cross, during the first three hours He said:
Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.
That was the intimate fellowship of the Son with the Father. But from noon until three, there was the cry:
My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?
These are words that we should have said. Hitler should have said them. I should have said them. All sinners should have said, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?”
Jesus stood in the position of the Son of Man. In the first three hours, He was very God. In the last three hours, He was very man indeed.
How could He be the Son of God and the Son of Man? Only in this way could He accomplish the work of salvation.
For the sake of the young people, I want to explain a little more. Jesus our Savior was man, but He was God as well. He is the Son of God indeed, and He has power to save us.
If He were only the Son of God, He could not die on the cross. Therefore, He became the Son of Man. On the cross He was, on one hand, the Son of God; on the other hand, truly the Son of Man. Is that not a mystery?
Let me tell you another story. The Bible says that God is light. What is light?
Newton told us that light is like a bullet moving at a very great speed. We call such a particle a photon.
But afterward, scientists performed experiments and found that light is also like waves—like the waves that spread outward when you throw a pebble into water.
Maxwell, another Christian scientist, found four equations in his research. Because he believed that God is one, he brought the four equations together. According to those equations, he found that light behaves like a wave and travels at the speed of light.
Newton and Maxwell were both Christians. Newton said light was like a bullet moving forward. Maxwell and other scientists said light was like waves. So what do we do?
At one time in England, if you taught physics, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays you could teach that light was like a bullet. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays you could teach that light was like a wave, so everybody could be satisfied.
Today, physicists tell us that if we truly want to know what light is, on one hand it is like a particle, and on the other hand it is like a wave. If you see only one side, you do not embrace the truth. Only when you embrace both sides do you see the truth.
Remember, our Lord had to be the Son of Man in order to save us. Yet the Word became flesh: one hundred percent God inwardly and one hundred percent man outwardly. He is very God and very man.
When man fell, he needed a Savior. But here is the problem: is not the kingdom His? How did all these people end up under the feet of Nimrod and Satan?
If the Lord promised us a Savior, He is going to do a mightier work. Let us return to Hebrews 2.
In Psalm 8, man was made a little lower than the angels. Here we have a very good explanation:
But we behold Him who hath been made a little lower than the angels, even Jesus.
As the Son of God, Jesus is greater than the angels. But because He became the Son of Man, for a little while He was made lower than the angels.
Jesus had to deal with the enemy. He could not deal with him merely as Creator. Therefore, Jesus became flesh. Because He was the Son of Man, He could hang on the tree.
Our Lord stood in the position of the second Man. The first man failed, but our Lord stood in the position of the Son of Man. His life was a life of dependence and obedience.
He did not consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but took the form of a bondservant. At the end, He died on the cross, and then He was exalted.
His was a life of obedience, a life willing to die on the cross. Not only was He lower than the angels; for three days and three nights He was in the lowest parts of the earth. God allowed Him to go from the depths to the highest height.
After He gained the victory in this way, all things were put in subjection under His feet.
Let us look again at Philippians 2.
Who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped,
But emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men;
And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of the cross.
Wherefore also God highly exalted Him.
On the cross, He was not only lower than the angels. He humbled Himself to the point of being numbered among thieves. On that cross, He bruised Satan’s head.
Three days later, He rose from the dead. God raised Him from the dead.
Let us turn to Ephesians 1:19.
What the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe.
The power of God’s creation may be seen in the universe, even in nuclear power. But the power of salvation is revealed in resurrection and ascension.
The earth is like the bottom of a coffin, and heaven is like the top. For many years nobody could break through the coffin. But on the third day, when Christ rose from the dead, that was the day death died.
When Wellington and Napoleon fought, people waited for the result. A message appeared in the sky: “Wellington defeated.” The people thought Wellington had been defeated and went to pray. But when the clouds cleared, they saw the complete message: “Wellington defeated Napoleon.”
When the Lord was crucified, it appeared as though we had failed. But when He rose again, He conquered and conquered again. He is the victorious One.
He not only rose from the dead. He is alive. Yet there is also the power of ascension, the power that takes us from earth to the heavens.
God has two powers: the power of creation and the power of salvation. The power of salvation is revealed in resurrection and ascension.
Many people see only the power of resurrection and remain bound to the earth. They become depressed and may depend upon medication. What they need is the power of ascension.
The power of resurrection raised our Lord from the dead. The power of ascension brought Him to sit at God’s right hand.
What does it mean that He sits at God’s right hand? It means that He surpasses all. Before He ascended, He passed through the realm where the enemy had exercised dominion, for Satan is the prince of the air.
The power of ascension enables all His enemies to be under His feet—not only in this age, but also in the age to come.
Because He was on the cross under the Father’s feet, God raised Him from the dead. When He went to the heavenlies, all things were put in subjection under His feet.
How do we explain all things being put in subjection? It is because He became Head over all things. He is the Head of all things, and all is under His feet.
What is between the Head and the feet? That is the body of Christ. Do not forget: the church is the body of Christ.
On one hand, there is a kingdom. How do you know that it is a kingdom? Because all things are in subjection under His feet. How do you know that? Because He is Head over all things.
To Adam, the things of the earth were in subjection under his feet. But because our Lord went to the heavenlies, all things are in subjection under His feet. He is Head over all things, even to the church.
This kingdom is the kingdom of the Son of Man. This kingdom is also the kingdom of heaven.
When He first came, He became flesh. He died, rose again, ascended to heaven, and all things were put in subjection under His feet.
On the day of Pentecost, God made Him both Lord and Christ.
In the time of Paul, the word lord was often used for an emperor. One might say, “Lord Augustus,” because Augustus was the emperor of the Roman Empire.
When Paul preached to the Philippian jailer, he said, “Lord Jesus.” In effect, he was declaring that it was no longer “Lord Caesar.” Brothers and sisters, He has to be Lord and Christ.
Something that failed in the life of Adam is now successful in Christ. When did the kingdom of heaven begin?
When God made Him Lord and Christ and He ascended to heaven, that is when the kingdom of heaven began. On the day of Pentecost, God opened the gates of the kingdom of heaven through Peter, who had the keys.
John the Baptist said, “Repent ye; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He prepared the people for the kingdom of heaven.
After the resurrection, only one hundred and twenty were gathered in Jerusalem. On the day of Pentecost, the one hundred and twenty were baptized into one body. That was the birth of the church and the inauguration of the kingdom of heaven.
When the Bible speaks of the kingdom of God, it speaks of that which is from eternity to eternity.
The kingdom of heaven was manifested when the Lord was born in Bethlehem, but its inauguration was at Pentecost.
There is another passage: 1 Corinthians 15:24.
Then cometh the end, when He shall deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when He shall have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
This speaks of the Lord’s return. At that time, all rule, authority, and power will be abolished. Then He delivers up the kingdom to God the Father.
The kingdom of heaven extends from His first coming to the end of the millennium. Then He gives the kingdom of heaven to God the Father, and we return to the kingdom of God.
The kingdom of heaven began two thousand years ago, but it also has a future aspect. On one hand, the kingdom of heaven is present today; on the other hand, it is future.
When He first came, it began. It continues until He returns. Then He will deliver up the kingdom to God.
For He must reign, till He hath put all His enemies under His feet.
What was depicted in the Old Testament is the kingdom to come. Our Lord is to sit on David’s throne.
And when all things have been subjected unto Him, then the Son also Himself shall be subjected to Him that did subject all things unto Him, that God may be all in all.
Even our Lord, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, that God may be all in all.
That means, “Thine is the kingdom.” Through our Lord’s overcoming the enemy and dealing with the enemy, the enemy is put to shame.
The kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven overlap, but they are not identical. When you come to Portland, you come to the United States; but when you come to the United States, you do not necessarily come to Portland.
Let us also look at this from the viewpoint of prophecy. Let us turn to Daniel.
When John the Baptist and the Lord spoke of the kingdom of heaven, they did not need to explain the phrase to the multitudes. The phrase must have come from the Old Testament. From where? Daniel 2.
King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream of a statue: the head of gold, the breast of silver, the belly of brass, and the legs of iron.
From the head to the breast, time moves downward. Toward the end of time, you arrive at the feet. The stone falls upon the feet and crushes them.
The Jews understood that this had to speak of the Messianic kingdom. The Messiah would arise.
In Matthew 21, the Lord said:
The stone which the builders rejected,
The same was made the head of the corner.
He also said that upon whomsoever the stone falls, it will crush him. Do not forget: He is that stone. One day all things will be in subjection under His feet, and that stone will become a great mountain and fill the earth.
The kingdom of heaven is therefore future. But after fifty years, Daniel was no longer seventeen years old; he was almost sixty-seven. He saw the vision in Daniel 7.
No longer did Daniel see gold, silver, brass, and iron. He saw four beasts: a lion, a bear, a leopard, and an unknown beast.
After fifty years, the prophecy had not changed. It was still four great empires. But one vision was the dream of a king, and the other was the vision of a captive.
A king sees the world as gold, silver, brass, and iron. He sees the outward appearance, not the inward reality.
In Daniel’s eyes, the first empire was a lion, and the people of Israel were like sheep in the mouth of the lion. After Babylon disappeared from history, they came into the mouth of a bear, and then into the mouth of a leopard.
For Daniel, there were blood and tears. But do not forget: fifty years earlier, Daniel had seen the four empires in another form.
The nations of this world reveal the consequences of man’s fall and Satan’s desire to put all things in subjection under his feet. But thank the Lord: we see a fifth kingdom.
This fifth kingdom is the kingdom of the Son of Man.
In Hebrew, because there are fewer adjectives, two nouns are often joined to describe something. “Son of sorrow” does not mean that sorrow gave birth to a son; it means a sorrowful man. “Son of consolation” means a man who comforts others.
What does “Son of Man” mean? It means the Man of man—the very Man indeed.
When Adam fell, the Son of Man came to the earth. About eighty times, the Lord called Himself the Son of Man.
Now we see a kingdom called the kingdom of the Son of Man. Before the foundation of the world, a kingdom was prepared for man. It was the kingdom of Adam and of the human race. But man fell. The second Man overcame.
Therefore, this kingdom is the kingdom of the Son of Man.
These four beasts represent four kings, and these kings are named in Scripture. Nebuchadnezzar represents Babylon. Cyrus represents Persia. Alexander represents Greece.
When the fourth kingdom appeared, the Son of Man came. Let us read Luke 2.
Now it came to pass in those days, there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be enrolled.
Everyone recognizes that Caesar Augustus represents the Roman Empire. He brought peace to the Roman Empire for two hundred years.
When Caesar Augustus came to the throne, Rome was a city of bricks. When he left the throne, Rome was a city of marble.
Under Augustus, all roads led to Rome. The Lord was not only born under the Roman Empire, but under the fourth beast, represented by Caesar Augustus.
Then we have the story of Bethlehem. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. The virgin Mary gave birth, and He was born in a manger.
The shepherds were tending their flock when the angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them.
Fear not; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people:
For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
He, the seed of the woman, can be our Savior. But not only that: He is Christ the Lord.
Before, it was “Lord Augustus.” Now it is Christ the Lord. The kingdom of the Son of Man was established in enemy territory.
How do you know He is Christ the Lord? What was the sign? Caesar sat upon a throne with a crown and a scepter. That was the king on earth.
But where could you find Jesus? There was a sign. You would find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. That is Christ the Lord.
The kingdom of the Son of Man, the kingdom of heaven, began in the manger. That is the sign.
The sign of this world is the throne and glory. But the kingdom of the Son of Man began in a manger.
Psalm 8 tells us that through infants and nursing babes, God establishes strength. This is the life of the tree of life.
There was no room for Him in Bethlehem. He humbled Himself to the point of going to a manger. The manger became His cradle.
When you see the infant in the manger, you see a life of dependence. But do not forget: He is Lord. He is Christ.
The kingdom of heaven that we see in Daniel 7 began when the Word became flesh. But when did the Son of Man gain the kingdom?
Daniel saw a picture of the Son of Man ascending to heaven and coming with the clouds. The Son of Man came to the throne. Is that not ascension?
After He ascended, God made Him Christ and Lord. On one hand, He received the Spirit and poured Him out—that is Pentecost. On the other hand, He opened the seals.
The inauguration of the kingdom of heaven was not merely when He returns. After He ascended to heaven, He gained the glory.
When the disciples saw the Lord ascend, they saw Him go from the Mount of Olives into the clouds. But after the clouds, they could not see Him.
For John, this was a mystery until he wrote Revelation. The Gospel of John reveals Christ on earth; Revelation unveils what occurred from the clouds to the throne.
Peter declared at Pentecost that God had made Him both Lord and Christ. The Holy Spirit revealed this through words that God had already spoken.
Daniel 7 gives us this revelation. Daniel’s life had grown. When he was young, he may have seen only the outward; later, he could see the inward.
Those who are oppressed need salvation. But do the oppressors, such as the Romans, not need a Savior? Whether you are oppressed or an oppressor, you are a sinner. His name is Jesus.
The kingdom of the Son of Man came after the first four kingdoms. When He ascended to heaven, He gained the kingdom. That is the kingdom of heaven.
Adam’s kingdom was limited to the earth. But the kingdom of heaven shows that Christ is King of the universe, because God has put all things in subjection under His feet.
Daniel used the telescope of time and saw Someone on the throne. What Daniel saw is what John and Peter could not see after the Lord entered the clouds.
Paul shows us that, after the Lord ascended, He is above all. God placed all things under His feet. His name is above every name, every knee bows, and every tongue confesses that He is Lord.
That means, “Thine is the kingdom.”
After the inauguration of the kingdom of heaven on the day of Pentecost, the Spirit came down. They were born of the Spirit; they were born from above.
The one hundred and twenty were like paratroopers descending upon enemy territory. Then three thousand who had cried, “Crucify Him, crucify Him,” were brought out from under Satan’s feet.
Because the one hundred and twenty were in subjection under God’s feet, they had food from heaven and rules from heaven. They would turn the other cheek and walk the second mile.
That is the establishing of a beachhead. That is the revealing of the kingdom of heaven in Jerusalem, Antioch, Ephesus, Beijing, Taipei, Portland, and throughout the world.
Before the Lord’s return, what did He say? The gospel of the kingdom must be preached throughout the whole world, and then the end shall come.
That is the responsibility of the church. Wherever the church is, the reality of the kingdom of heaven is there.
When you preach the gospel, people go from darkness into light, and from idols to the true God. Through the church, the kingdom recovers lost territories.
It is like World War II. France was taken captive by Germany. On June 6, 1944, came the invasion of Normandy.
But before midnight on the preceding day, British and American forces had already sent paratroopers behind the enemy lines. They had established many beachheads.
When the invasion of Normandy occurred, all of France was recovered.
One day our Lord will set His feet upon the Mount of Olives. When His feet stand there, it will be like the invasion of Normandy. The church will have been made ready.
The church will reign with Christ. What is bound on earth is bound in heaven, and what is loosed on earth is loosed in heaven.
When the Lord returns, the kingdom of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.
This means that God will bring all things into subjection under His feet. At the end, God will defeat all enemies, and then Christ will deliver the kingdom to God after the millennium.
Then we shall reign with Him forever and ever. The kingdom of God goes to the kingdom of God.
When Satan rose up and challenged the kingdom of God, there was a question: “Is this kingdom really His?” Thank the Lord, from eternity to eternity, God will have success.
When the Lord delivers the kingdom to God the Father, Scripture says:
That God may be all in all.
What does that mean? It means, “Thine is the kingdom.”
May the Lord open our eyes so that we may see that the kingdom is His. What He could not gain from the first man, He gained from the second.
Jesus, the Son of Man, not only is our Savior, but for this reason He can build the kingdom, put the enemy to shame, and bless His children.
His is the power and the glory.
Let us pray.
Lord, we want to commit these words further into Your hands. We especially pray for those who are here for the first time, and we pray for the young brothers.
We pray that Your Holy Spirit would do the work of translation and speak to them so that they can understand.
May they see, even from today, that Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory.
We do prostrate before You. We thank You for giving us such a message. Because Thine is the kingdom. Because Thine is the power. Because Thine is the glory.
In Jesus’ victorious name.