The Kingdom of God
Uploaded by Admin on May 23, 1999
Pear gates, marble stairs and a throne of gold, or an inner area in the hidden depths of our own soul? Which can describe the true kingdom of God, a real physical world or a place that is only seen in ones hearts. Some would say it to be a place above man, built by God to be a home for peoples' souls after death. Others might say that it is no more than a place inside us that can only be reached through the right decisions and acts of kindness. A place that is not seen or discussed but only felt in a way that is incomparable to any feeling ever felt by the living. Yet while people retain their own images of the Kingdom of God the Bible itself gives a subtle definition through a series of parables or short stories, told by Jesus in order to pass along the message of who is God and what is the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus, through his sayings and parables showed that the kingdom was being revealed in his own life and work. He preached his message of the coming of the kingdom through memorable stories, which in his day could and did relate to things of everyday life. Though most of Jesus' followers didn't recognize the kingdom till after his death it was still brought to them by the Holy Spirit with a full understanding of his word and actions. Yet it was evidently difficult for them to understand before his death due to the previous ideas of the kingdom as a whole. Like many people of today those in Jesus' time viewed Gods' kingdom as a place above them yet unlike people today thought more literal terms actually believing that God was above them and was looking down on them. Even now, when in prayer, one may have a tendency to look up at the heaven in reverence since next to God it is the most endless, unexplainable thing in the world. Yet people are still able to know that as they look up they see God just the same as if they shut their eyes in prayer were to the people of Jesus' time God was seen as truly sitting above them in his kingdom in which only those who follow the laws exactly would ever see.
To truly understand the kingdom of God people have to have...