The Kingdom and the Church: Participating in God’s Redemptive Activity

What do we mean by the Kingdom of God, and how does it relate to the Church?

What is our identity, our place, and our part in the Church?

We can understand what the Kingdom of God is and how it relates to the Church by exploring the following;

The redemptive work of God is manifested in and through the Church. God designed the Church to make His manifold wisdom known to the principalities and powers in heavenly places.

Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, “I will build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Jesus loved the Church and gave Himself for her that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the Word and that He might present her to Himself a glorious Church, holy and without blemish (Ephesians 6:25-27). 

It is very important to recognize that there are two kingdoms at war with each other.

One is the Kingdom of God, where Jesus is the King with all of the angels as His hosts and the believers as the royal priesthood.

The other is the kingdom of Satan, where Lucifer is the king with all the demons as his servants. God’s Kingdom is the Kingdom of light where God reigns in righteousness, and the Devil’s kingdom is the kingdom of darkness where the Devil rules with wickedness and sin.

We all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and have entered into the kingdom of Satan (Ephesians 2:1-3), after which we became enemies of God (Romans 5:6-10).

Jesus came in human form to redeem us from our sin that separates us from the Kingdom of God (Hebrews 9:22). In this, the love of God was manifested toward us—that God sent His only begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him (1 John 4:9).

God has delivered each one of us “from the power of the darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14; Revelation 1:5-6).

The Church is built by our Lord Jesus who promised that “the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Many people are looking for the perfect church. There is no perfect church on this earth. However, God continues to call His Church into repentance so that we will represent His Kingdom in this world. That is why Jesus gave visions of the fallen condition of the Church to the Apostle John in the Book of Revelation (Revelation 2:4, Revelation 2:9, Revelation 2:13-15, Revelation 2:20, Revelation 3:1-2, Revelation 3:8, Revelation 3:15-17).

Someone once said, “If we are looking for a perfect church and find it out, the moment we joined, it would no longer be perfect, because we are not perfect.” So the Church is the place where we learn from one another and shape one another to represent the Kingdom of God.

In the world today, thousands of people from all tribes, languages, and people groups are hearing the Gospel and accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Jesus is building His Church to fully represent the Kingdom of God here on earth. There’s a call for holiness, unity, and peace in the Body of Christ.

As you understand your function in the Body, God will use you in a powerful way for His glory.

If each of the individual members of the Body of Christ is functioning to full capacity, then the body is healthy. If even one member is missing, however, both that member and the rest of the Body are damaged.

Until we have a deep commitment to the Body of Christ and its ministry, our spiritual maturity will be hindered. There are many ways to function in the Body of Christ, but one of the most important is through fellowship.

Many think that they can sufficiently provide for their own spiritual needs, but this is simply not the case. Being “in Christ” does not remove us from the responsibility we have to the other members of the Body of Christ; on the contrary, not only does being involved in the Body allow our needs to be met, but it also allows us to meet the needs of others as we function in our proper roles.

If every member of the Body of Christ would obey John 13:34-35, it would not only transform the Church, but it would turn the world upside down as the early Church did with true love and fellowship.

May God use our ministry of serving His Body and our knowledge of Him to be the real representation of His Kingdom!

Global Disciples Canada is a Christian mission organization that trains local leaders living near least-reached communities to multiply disciples for Christ. One-third of our world hasn’t heard the Good News of Jesus. Yet. Global Disciples refers to these as “least-reached” people, and fewer than 10% of all missionaries work among these groups. We live in a time where many of these people are within reach of a local church. Through our simple and effective strategy of training and coaching, believers share the Gospel in their own nations and cultures. Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations,” and we’re committed to doing just that. If you are looking for a Christian mission organization to partner with to become a better disciple and help make disciples, connect with us today!