(This is
the second paper in a proposed 7-step process for “Restoring the Kingdom-of-God
Worldview to the Church and the World”)[1]
John Noē, Ph.D.
Presented at the 56th Annual Meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society in
San Antonio, Texas, November 17-19, 2004. The meeting theme was:
“What is Truth?”
Not only was the kingdom of God the central teaching of our Lord and at the heart of his earthly ministry, it was also the very essence of New Testament Christianity.
Unfortunately, much, if not most, that has been written since then and is currently being taught and believed about the kingdom of God is wrong—scripturally wrong! Why? Because even though “the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given” [past-tense] (Matt. 13:11; Luke 8:10), this knowledge and these secrets have been covered up by subsequent traditions of Christianity.
For instance, the most prominent view in American evangelicalism (dispensational premillennialism) teaches that the establishment of the kingdom of God was postponed and God withdrew the kingdom Jesus was presenting. Hence, it is no longer here. This supposedly occurred “when the Jews rejected Jesus as their Messiah, but it will be established when Christ returns.”[2] Tim LaHaye, popular coauthor of the Left Behind series, elaborates, “When Jesus returns to this earth, He will come physically to set up His long-promised kingdom.”[3]
This postponement view, however, is not without consequences. Postmillennialist Gary DeMar aptly concludes, “What we believe about God’s kingdom will impact how we live. If the kingdom has been postponed, then God is a bystander with His hands tied and our efforts hopeless.”[4] Furthermore, what we believe about the kingdom is determinative of our concept of the whole Christian system in this life, on this earth, here and now, as well as in the future.
Fact is, inspired Scripture, written some twenty or more years after this supposed postponement and withdrawal event, still speaks of the kingdom as present and operative on earth (see Acts 1:3; 28:31; Col. 4:11; Heb. 12:28). Additionally, “the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7). And no Old Testament prophet, Jesus, or any New Testament writer ever spoke of something as significant as a postponement or a withdrawal of the kingdom.
To top it off, LaHaye emphatically declares that “When Jesus comes, He is going to be ‘King of kings and Lord of lords . . . to say Christ is ruler now is a statement that reaches almost blasphemous proportions.”[5] But once again, Scripture refutes LaHaye’s contention that Christ is not now ruler and King. In the most uncontested portion of the book of Revelation, John writes that Jesus Christ “is [not someday will be] the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth” (Rev. 1:5; also 1 Ti. 6:15). Moreover, if Jesus is not now ruler and King, as LaHaye would have us believe, what is the meaning of:
· Jesus sitting at the right hand of God (Rom. 8:34; Eph. 1:20; Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:13; 8:1; 12:2l; Acts 2:33-36; Ps. 110), Who is seated on his heavenly throne (Ps. 2:4; 11:4; 22:28; 47:2, 8; 103:19; Prov. 8:13; Isa. 66:1)? Is Jesus “now crowned with glory and honor” (Heb. 2:9)? Or, is Jesus merely sitting passively waiting to reign someday? Not according to Peter who declares that Jesus is sitting there “at God’s right hand – with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him” (1 Pet. 3:22).
· Jesus’ Great Commission and past-tense statement that “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matt. 28:18)?
· Paul’s present-tense statement that “he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet” (1 Cor. 15:25; Heb. 10:13)?
· Jesus presently “sustaining all things by his powerful word” (Heb. 1:3)?
Perhaps, it is LaHaye’s contention that is “almost blasphemous,” if not outright blasphemy. In contradistinction, A.A. Hodge offers a scripturally sound conclusion on this matter:
In the strictest sense we must date the actual and formal assumption of [Christ’s] kingly office, in the full and visible exercise thereof, from the moment of His ascension into heaven from this earth and His session at the right hand of the Father.[6]
Authur F. Glasser concurs that after Jesus completed his atoning work, ascended, and was seated at the right hand of the Father, “the reign of the risen Christ had now begun.”[7]
Another popular misconception of the kingdom today stipulates that all we have is a “foretaste”[8] or a tension between an “already” and the “not yet.” Hence, Christ has only “inaugurated the coming of the kingdom of God” and we are currently living “between the times” of the “‘already’ of Christ’s kingdom, but the ‘not yet’ of its consummation.”[9] This interim period has been termed the time of the “semirealized kingdom.”[10]
Once again, the problem is, neither Jesus nor any New Testament writer ever used these words or taught these concepts. As we shall see, this kind of ambiguity and incompleteness is not only unscriptural but undermines the willingness of God’s people to be “fellow workers for the kingdom of God” (Col. 4:11), as well as, to be the “kingdom and priests” God “has made us to be”—to serve Him and reign with Him, here and now, on this earth (Rev. 1:6; 5:9-10).
Onto Kingdom-Restoration Step #2
In contrast to these popular but erroneous concepts about the kingdom of God (more were presented in my first paper), I propose a return to a biblical understanding. In my first paper I laid out a 7-step process for “Restoring the Kingdom-of-God Worldview to the Church and the World.” See Appendix A.
In Step #1 we discovered the time for the establishment of the everlasting, eschatological kingdom and grounded it within human history. This establishment (not just inauguration, initiation, or a foretaste) was to fully occur “in the days of those kings” (Dan. 2:44)—i.e., within the time of Daniel 2 and 7’s four world empires.
As I delineated, Daniel’s two, parallel, and general time prophecies of a succession of four kingdoms (Dan. 2 and 7) and his time-restrictive words in Daniel 2:44 must be naturally, plainly, and literally understood and fully honored—something the vast majority of Christian commentators, scholars, and lay people have been unwilling to do. But this straightforward understanding firmly grounds the establishment of the everlasting, eschatological kingdom of God within human history.
Most significantly, the days of Daniel’s last prophesied empire, the Roman Empire, ended in A.D. 476.[11] The kingdom’s establishment was not prophesied to take place after that time, centuries later, or at the end of history, as is commonly assumed. It is biblically incorrect to claim, as many do, that the kingdom will not be established, or fully established, until the return of Jesus at some yet-future time.
Also, no other kingdom, form of this kingdom, or different or ultimate establishment or fulfillment beyond this one kingdom is prophesied in Scripture. Nor is there is any scriptural warrant for conceiving “a revival of the Roman Empire”[12] to accommodate a yet-future establishment and fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy. Likewise, we do not need to await an unscriptural “end of time” for the kingdom’s final establishment, as has been devised by amillennialists and postmillennialists. All these are man-made ideas that cause deception and confusion. We simply must believe what the Bible tells us and stop trying to stretch prophecy, like a rubber band, centuries out into the future.
Let us recall that when Satan tempted Jesus (Matt. 4:1-11), he quoted Scripture out-of-context. Similarly, most Christian teaching today takes the kingdom out of its time context. Consequently, there is much to unlearn. Again, the divinely determined time for the establishment of the one and only everlasting eschatological kingdom was clearly “in the days of those kings” which ended in A.D. 476.
With this perspective in mind, the purpose of this second paper, and Step #2 of 7, is to document how the kingdom was fully, finally, and completely established during the time-restricted period God placed upon it. As we shall see, God kept his word—his “perfect” and “flawless” word (Ps. 18:30).
The Establishment Process—a Phasing In and Out
The process of establishing the everlasting, eschatological kingdom was part of the work of the Messiah (redemption was the rest). Its establishment would be achieved through a phasing-in (increasing) of the new and a phasing-out (decreasing) of the old.
More than 700 years before the birth of Jesus, Isaiah provided a prophetic overview of this phasing-in and -out, establishment process:
For to us a child is born
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his
shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and
peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice [judgment] and righteousness [justice]
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this.
Isaiah 9:6-7 (italics-bold emphasis mine [KJV])
Thus, establishment would start with the Messiah’s birth and involve judgment. The King James Version puts it this way, “to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever” (Isa. 9:7). Once established “in the days of those kings” (Dan. 2:44), however, the kingdom would continue to increase, even after its establishment, since there is “no end” to its “increase.”
Andy Crouch touches on an important aspect of the couplings contained in the Isaiah 9:7 verse above:
Prophets and psalmists thought in twos: throne and kingdom, establishing and upholding, justice and righteousness. . . . justice and righteousness belong together . . . [they] show up together more than 30 times in the Hebrew Bible, nearly always in a political context. Because justice and righteousness are the foundation of God’s throne (Ps. 89:14), they are also the “measuring line” and the “plumb line” (Isa. 28:17) of earthly thrones.[13]
The Phasing-in Increase
Jesus’ Person—his birth. The stage was set when the days of Daniel’s fourth world empire were in place. Then, “when the fulness of the time had come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,” (Gal. 4:4 KJV).
Before Jesus’ birth, an angel appeared to Mary and confirmed Isaiah 9:6-7’s prophecy that her babe would bring in a new kingdom that “will never end” (Luke 1:33).
Hence, with the birth of Jesus, the new eschatological kingdom was no longer a future hope but a present reality. Notably, it had not broken into human history catastrophically or cataclysmically. Rather, as Glasser observes, it came “quietly, unobtrusively, and secretly.”[14] Literally, the new form of the everlasting, eschatological kingdom was embodied in a baby boy. And it was not partially nor already/not-yet embodied. Nor was this embodiment only a foretaste. Paul tells us, “For God was pleased to have all fullness dwell in him” (Col. 1:19). And, “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form . . . who is the head over every power and authority” (Col. 2:9, 10). This is kingdom language. And it all began, as Isaiah’s prophecy foretold, from the time of his birth—i.e., “from that time on and forever” (Isa. 9:6:7).
The establishment of the new everlasting, eschatological kingdom was underway. From this humble beginning, the new, final-form, and never-ending kingdom of God on earth would only increase, but gradually and progressively, and not catastrophically or cataclysmically.
Jesus’ words. The first increase of the kingdom beyond the body of Jesus was his words as He taught about the kingdom. From his first sermon, Jesus came into Galilee boldly announcing that “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand” or “near” (Mark. 1:14-15). “At hand” is the most graphic translation. It is a reality indicator meaning graspable, squeezable, available for the taking, then and there. It cannot be overemphasized that the presence of the kingdom was not just a frequent and recurring theme of Jesus’ earthly ministry, it was his central teaching and at the heart of his ministry (Matt. 4:17, 23; 10:7).
A few months earlier in the Desert of Judea, John the Baptist had come announcing and preaching the soon-coming rule and reign of God, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:2). John stressed the imminency of the kingdom. Jesus, on the other hand, made it quite clear that He was not proclaiming some distant future reality or event. He was announcing the arrival of a present, “at hand,” and available reality to be seen, entered, and experienced, then and there (John 3:3-5). George Eldon Ladd verifies that this “was an amazing claim . . . . He had boldly announced that the Kingdom . . . of God had come to them.”[15]
But what time was Jesus talking about that was fulfilled? As was covered in this series’ first paper, the time had come as foretold by Daniel for the God of heaven to “set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed . . . an everlasting dominion that will not pass away” (Dan. 2:44; 7:14, 27). Not only had Daniel prophesied of the general time for the coming of the kingdom of God, he also perfectly pinpointed the exact time of Jesus’ anointing which initiated his 3½-year earthly ministry (Dan. 9:24-27). Exactly 483 years of Daniel’s 490 years had transpired “from the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem” (Dan. 9:25). This was Artazerxes’ Decree in 457 B.C. (Ezra 7:11-26). “Until the Anointed One, the ruler comes, there will be seven ‘sevens’ and sixty-two ‘sevens’ (Dan. 9:25).” Jesus was anointed in the Jordan River in A.D. 27. “After the sixty-two sevens, the Anointed One will be cut off (Dan. 9:26) . . . in the middle of that [final] seven . . . .” (Dan. 9:27). Jesus was crucified in A.D. 30.[16]
This is why Paul would later write that “at just the right time . . . Christ died” (Rom. 5:6). As we shall also see, “at just the right time” the everlasting, eschatological kingdom was established, as well.
It is truly worthy re-emphasizing that in none of his teachings did Jesus give any indication that the kingdom, nor any aspect of it, was being held in abeyance for some future time. Likewise, Jesus issued no disclaimer or qualification of a partial, interim, or foretaste form of the kingdom. Nor did He mention a future-coming kingdom different from the one He was presenting. Moreover, He never insinuated that the kingdom was there only in some sense, in an already/not-yet way, or as only near or imminent. He came preaching a present experience and reality.
Therefore, the central teaching of Jesus Christ can be characterized as the “good news [gospel] of the kingdom” (Matt. 4:23; Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:16-30; 4:43; 8:1). As He said, “that is why I was sent” (Luke 4:43b). Once He told the Pharisees that “the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21). But the kingdom was not within them. The better translation is “in your midst” or “among you”—right before your eyes.
Then beginning with the Beatitudes and the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7), Jesus taught about the nature of the kingdom and what real life submitted to the will, reign, and rule of God was all about. A new way of living and reigning with God was under way. It was not a future hope. Yet much of Western Christianity has consistently removed this understanding of the kingdom from Jesus’ own enunciation of it. As Darrell L. Guder admits, “our reductionism with regard to Jesus’ concrete teachings . . . has been massive.”[17]
But Jesus spoke emphatically. He did not say, “I think” or “we may suppose.” Nor, did He quote other learned men. He spoke with certainty and authority, as One Who knew. And, the people of His day [and ever since] were astonished by his teachings (Matt. 7:28-29). Through many kingdom parables and discourses, He taught about the kingdom’s personal and public nature and one’s response to it by saying, “the kingdom is like . . . .” (not is equal to). The operative word here is, IS ...[not “was” (past tense) or “will someday be” (future tense) ], but IS a glorious, present-day, real-life reality, there and then. He revealed, “The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it” (Luke 16:16; Matt. 11:12). At other times Jesus speaks of entering or receiving this present reality (Matt. 5:3; 23:13; Mark 10:15, and parallels). His teachings covered almost every part of life and called for an individual response.
In his parables of leaven and the mustard seed, Jesus reinforces Isaiah’s prophecy that the kingdom would not break into human history catastrophically, but gradually, and would progressively increase with no end to its increase (Isa. 9:7). That means there will be no future, catastrophic ending-up of the kingdom as it fills “the whole earth” (Dan. 2:31-34).
Matthew states that “He [Jesus] went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom” (Matt. 4:23).
Luke even reports that after his resurrection Jesus’ teaching is still centered on the kingdom (Acts 1:3). The most characteristic and distinctive aspect of Jesus’ teaching was that of a present and available kingdom.
But there is much more. This brings us to our next phase of increase.
Jesus’ works. The increasing presence of the kingdom was not only being realized in Jesus’ Person and his words, but would be further manifested by his works (John 14:10; Acts 1:1), as Jesus obediently performed the “will of him who sent me” (John 6:38).
Dramatically and dynamically, He demonstrated the kingdom’s internal and external, spiritual and physical characteristics by:
· the life He led
· by his relationship with the Father
· by his dependence upon the Father
· by forgiving sins
· by healing the sick
· by casting out demons
· by taking authority over nature
· by performing miracles
· by releasing the oppressed
· by taking care of physical needs.
Jesus regarded all these as essential and intrinsic elements of his kingdom. Thus, his kingdom affected the whole person. It produced both spiritual transformations and physical blessings or consequences.
His kingdom works made it more obvious that the kingdom was no longer a future hope but a present reality full of eschatological significance. As Stassen and Gushee remark, “the embodied drama of the reign of God lies at the heart of the biblical record . . . Jesus came preaching and incarnating the long-promised and desperately awaited kingdom of God.”[18]
The kingdom, which had been awaiting fulfillment in Old Testament times, now resided in Jesus’ Person, his words, and his works. So throughout his earthly ministry, Jesus, anointed with the Holy Spirit, manifested kingdom authority, power, and character. He went around proclaiming the kingdom, saving the lost, doing good, feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and even raising the dead.
One of Jesus’ most prominent works was the casting out or exorcism of demons which He interpreted as clear proof that “the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Matt. 12:28; Luke 11:20; Matt. 8:16-17; Mark 1:32-34). The verb “come upon” implies something is present—not near but there. Once again, He made no qualifications, such as a “foretaste,” “already/not yet of,” “partialness, ” or “in some sense.”
In Jesus’ ministry the “mystery” of the kingdom was manifesting itself by defeating the enemy. With this increase, the kingdom had now become “an open secret” (Mark 4:11-12, 21-23). Signs of its presence were growing. Expectations were heightening. And the people of Jesus’ day were amazed (Mark 1:21-28). But opposition loomed as the nature of his kingdom was markedly different from popular expectations.
Jesus’ Prayer. In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus prayed and taught his disciples to pray (as well as us today): “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10 KJV).
Dallas Willard rightly reminds us that this model and enduring prayer plays “an absolutely vital role in kingdom living.”[19] Yet it raises three foundational questions. 1) Has this first-century prayer been answered? 2) What do these words mean? 3) And why would it make any sense to pray for the kingdom to come when Jesus was teaching that it was already present (also see Col. 1:13; Heb. 12:28; Rev. 12:10)?
First, God’s kingdom originates in the heavenly realm where it (his will, reign, and rule) is realized throughout. It then comes out of or from heaven down to this earth where its governance is to be universally manifested, and not just in Israel. Hence, the kingdom functions in both locations. On earth, the kingdom was and is here. It is just not from here (John 18:36).
Secondly, “Thy kingdom come” is in parallel with and coupled to God’s will “be[ing] done.” It is an invocation for God’s kingdom and will to become a present reality, fully and completely, realized in and through the life of every Christian, and in and through every aspect of existence on this earth, just as it is throughout heaven. Ladd states it this way:
As men enter into Jesus’ experience of God, the Kingdom of God, his rule, ‘comes’ to them. As increasingly large circles of men enter into this experience, God’s Kingdom grows and is extended in the world.[20]
Many Christians, however, have been misled to believe that when God’s kingdom comes to earth—someday in a future cataclysmic event—then his rule will be established and his will done in all the world. In the meantime, they falsely assume that the kingdom has not come yet, or not come fully.
But as we have seen, God’s kingdom has already come and is here. And as his will is increasingly done by his faithful followers on earth, the kingdom “expands,” “grows,” “extends,” “advances,” “spreads,” is “realized” and “manifests” into new areas and/or more fully functions in existing areas. Hence, it becomes an increasing reality in individual lives and in society at large, as more people submit their wills to his will.
I submit that these above two, ongoing, and ever-widening increases are what the Lord’s Prayer means to us today, in our post-establishment time, when we pray, “Thy kingdom come.” Willard agrees as he explains, this “does not mean we should pray for it to come into existence. Rather, we pray for it to take over at all points in the personal, social, and political order where it is now excluded.”[21] Yet, Willard also acknowledges that “these matters are now widely misunderstood.”[22]
This long-term perspective of increase for the kingdom extends indefinitely into the future. In his growth parables Jesus also talked metaphorically about the spreading of the kingdom (Matt. 13:31-35; also see Dan. 2:34, 35; Isa. 9:7). He had brought God’s will, reign, and rule to earth, fully, and in a new and more personal manner than ever before—in his Person, words, and works. In this prayer, Jesus is praying for the expansion of what God had begun in Him, and for the lifting of earthly existence to the new level of heavenly life. It began small and was growing. Soon, it would make a gigantic growth step.
In retrospect, ever since Jesus taught his disciples to pray this way, the followers of Jesus—who took these words seriously—have not only prayed but also labored that the kingdom may come and God’s will be done “on earth as it is in heaven.” Some thirty years later, for example, the Apostle Paul described the way in which the gospel was “producing fruit and growing . . . all over the world” (Col. 1:6; 1 Cor. 3:6). But this new beginning was not yet complete.
Thirdly, in addition to speaking of the kingdom as present, Jesus also spoke of a future dimension of its coming with power. But He was not speaking of a far-distant future event beyond the life span of some of his then-living disciples. Jesus told them that “some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power” (Mark 9:1; also Matt.16:28; Luke 21:31). Clearly, this time-restricted event was relevant to them. Moreover, it, too, would occur within “the days of those kings” (Dan. 2:44). If this dimension of the kingdom’s establishment did not come during the lifetime of some of those to whom He spoke, then the liberals and skeptics are right—Jesus was a false prophet and the Bible is not inerrant here. But as we shall see in “The Phasing-out Decrease” section of this paper, the kingdom did come and manifest itself in power before all of Jesus’ first disciples died.[23]
Coincidentally, Jesus’ two statements during the institution of the last supper also pointed to this future fulfillment: “ For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God . . . For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes” (Luke 22:16, 18). Again, Jesus was clearly speaking of a coming eschatological event. But He never mentioned any other kingdom, a millennial kingdom, or a different-natured, next phase of his kingdom as being yet-to-come. Nor did He teach or suggest that its fulfillment might be put on hold or delayed beyond the lifetime of his contemporaries.
For us today, as we shall soon see, this time of the kingdom’s final establishment is past. Hence, we no longer need to pray for the kingdom to come, eschatologically, or in its fullness one day, as many have been mistakenly taught. That fully established kingdom is here and we should be celebrating its full arrival and experiencing its present-day, established reality. Unfortunately, this is not the message being taught or the reality being practiced today.
Instead, for many of us, the Lord’s Prayer is merely a devotional, if not a hollow prayer or meaningless ritual, that we oftentimes pray, unthinkingly. In contrast, Guder judiciously warns that praying “the Lord’s Prayer is a dangerous activity” because it “is not about getting what we want.” Hence, when we truly pray this powerful prayer it is “life-creating and life-changing.”[24]
First, praying the Lord’s Prayer in a sincere manner is an acknowledgement of a present and active kingdom. Secondly, as Ladd terms it, it is a “petition . . . for the coming of God’s Kingdom . . . for the prefect realization of God’s will.”[25] Thirdly, it draws God’s will, reign, and rule from heaven to earth and invokes it to come more extensively throughout our world. Fourthly, it invites God’s kingdom powers to invade one’s life and become dramatically active in and through us. Fifthly, it submits our will to his will so that we can lead holy lives. Sixthly, it expresses our desire to be used in a significant way in doing God’s will and in demonstrating his kingdom on the earth, here and now. And, seventhly, it is a continual reminder that the coming of the kingdom is one of continuity with our 1st-century heritage—a point which will be further addressed in Step #3 of our kingdom-restoration series.
Thus, “Thy kingdom come” is no longer a prayer awaiting a future-coming kingdom, but rather, of an arrived, established, and expanding kingdom. The kingdom still “comes,” expands, grows, or increases whenever anyone recognizes and obeys the will, reign, and rule of God in and through his or her life. For some reason known only to God, He has chosen we humans as one of his primary means for expanding his kingdom into and throughout the world from its source in heaven.
Consequently, God has not called us to forsake the world. Rather, He has called us to impress heaven’s pattern on the world and to herald Christ as King over the whole earth. In the words of the second verse of the great hymn, “Lead On, O King Eternal,” “With deeds of love and mercy, The heavenly kingdom comes.” Yet in God’s economy, “the initiative in the realization of the Kingdom is in the hands of men.”[26] Therefore, we must continue praying this prayer and submitting ourselves to be used in expanding God’s kingdom. But this does not happen without opposition—which brings us to our next big aspect of increase.
Jesus’ transference to others. Initially, the kingdom was present only in the Person of Jesus, his words and works. But this soon changed. Jesus dramatically increased and expanded the kingdom when He made a radical demand of his disciples. He called together the Twelve, and later the seventy, empowered them, and sent them out. As his representatives, they were to proclaim the same gospel of the kingdom and perform its same mighty works exactly as He had been doing. He “gave them authority” to:
· Preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
· Heal the sick
· Raise the dead
· Cleanse those who have leprosy
· Drive out demons
(Matt. 10:1, 7-8; Luke 9:1-2, 6; 10:1-17)
He also warned them that they would face opposition (Matt. 10:14-25). But He assured them of something quite profound—those who received them received the Lord Himself Who sent them (Matt. 10:40).
Later on, He gave them “the keys of the kingdom” and promised that “whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matt. 16:19). Note, that these are the same two locations mentioned in the Lord’s prayer (Matt. 6:10).
Thus, for Jesus during His earthly ministry, the coming of the kingdom of God meant the progressive expansion and growth of the rule of God through Himself and into the lives of his obedient followers. He instructed them in the close inter-relationship between the preaching of the kingdom and the demonstration of its works of power (Matt. 22:29). He claimed this was the “key to knowledge” (Luke 11:52; Matt. 23:13-14). He gave them temporary authority over demons and diseases— enemies of his kingdom—and the empowerment to perform miracles. Thereby, they experienced the “powers of the age to come,” (Heb. 6:5) and victories over evil in advance of the coming of the Holy Spirit and the age-changing consummation.
Just as importantly, He trained them to care for the physical and emotional needs of the “least of these” as unto Him: the hungry, the thirsty, the strangers, those needing clothing, the sick and those in prison (Matt. 25:34-46; Rom. 12:20-21). And He clarified, “For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother” (Matt. 12:50).
Finally, prior to his ascension, He promised another increase and expansion of his kingdom. He told his followers they would receive a permanent empowering after the Holy Spirit had come upon them (John 14:16-17). From then on (Pentecost), the proclamation and the powers of the kingdom were no longer limited in time or space—i.e., to those who had personal contact with Jesus or were specially commissioned by Him. They would be available to all believers without distinction—e.g., those who through obedience would become “fellow workers for the kingdom of God” (Col. 4:11). They would be empowered to be his kingdom witnesses, to preach the same kingdom message, and do the same kingdom works in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1:8; 2:1-21).
Jesus’ Great Commission command. Jesus not only commissioned his first followers to “baptize” and “make disciples of all nations,” but He also commanded them to “teach them to obey everything I have commanded you to do” (emphasis mine, Matt. 28:19:20).
Jesus’ “everything” certainly included the preaching of the kingdom and the performance of its miraculous, merciful, and fruit-producing works. But this understanding is in sharp contrast with the contemporary teaching that “witnessing” only involves telling the message of Christ and salvation. Practically speaking, the tendency of many scholars and pastors is to ignore, downplay, or explain away the full meaning of Jesus’ Great-Commission. Again, Guder explains:
In spite of Jesus’ admonition at the end of Matthew’s Gospel . . . to “teach the nations all that I have commanded you,” our reductionism with regard to Jesus’ concrete teaching . . . has been massive.[27]
While many of us profess faith in Him, we hesitate or simply do not want to do what He had/has plainly commanded them/us to do. Perhaps, the Great Commission is much greater than most of us have been led to believe. Willard poignantly bemoans that, most Christians “do not really understand what discipleship to him . . .is, and it [the Kingdom Among Us] therefore remains only a distant, if beautiful, ideal.”[28]
In a similar vein, one week before his death, Jesus specifically mandated that “the gospel of the kingdom” was to be the gospel “preached in the world as a testimony to all nations . . .” (Matt. 24:34). He did not say “the gospel of salvation.” Jesus further commanded his disciples to “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Matt. 6:33). What kingdom was He talking about? There is only one—the one He embodied, announced, taught, ministered, prayed for, transferred, and commissioned them to carry forth.
Thus, Christ’s Great Commission is intimately related to the Lord’s Prayer. Both express the same intention, namely that the Father’s will should be done on earth as it is in heaven. And both call believers by prayer and action to be his witnesses and instruments to display kingdom powers and expand its governance throughout this world. So what happened?
The Results. Christ’s small band of 1st-century followers grew into a mighty and world-transforming force. Their obedience to Christ and his kingdom, along with the supernatural empowerment of the Holy Spirit, turned the world of their day “upside down” (Acts 17:6). The book of Acts is a record of the continuation of Jesus’ teachings, his works, and his kingdom by his followers. It was preserved as part of the Holy Scripture not only as a confirmation of all Jesus began to do and to teach (Acts 1:1), but also as a record of their continuing obedience in presenting the kingdom of God they had received from Jesus. “In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power” (Acts 19:20). Please notice that it was “in this way,” and not in some other way, that these results were achieved (see Acts19: 8; 17:6; 28:31).
Nowadays, ironically, most of the Church does not practice this type of Christianity. Not surprisingly, most of the unbelieving world does not view the Church as a force to be reckoned with. There is no question that the modern-day Church is paying a price for its dilution, devaluation, and dismissal of the kingdom Christ came to establish “in the days of those kings” (Dan. 2:44). (This aspect will be further explored in Step #3 in this kingdom-restoration series.)
In contrast, the Apostle Paul, for one, “. . . entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God” (Acts 19:8). In house prison in Rome, he “boldly and without hindrance . . . preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 28:31). As a result their obedience, Christ’s first followers were bold, energetic, empowered, and unstoppable.
Still, one more major event remained before the kingdom could be fully established. For that, we must turn to the decrease side of the kingdom- establishment process.
The Phasing-out Decrease
At the time of Jesus’ birth the manifestation of God’s kingdom on earth (i.e., his will, reign, and rule) was the Old-Covenant temple system. But with Jesus’ life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension that “type and shadow” system was made “obsolete” and would “soon disappear” (Heb. 8:5, 13). These words were penned in circa A.D. 65.
Back around A.D. 57, the Apostle Paul had written something quite similar. “What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short . . . . For this world in its present form is passing away” (1 Cor. 7:29, 31). Question is, whose “time is [was] short” and what “world” is [was] passing away” back then? The answer is the same. It was the world of the Old-Covenant temple system.
Several times, Jesus spoke about this decreasing aspect of the kingdom-establishment process. At the well, He told the Samaritan woman, “a time is coming when you will worship neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem” (John 4:21). He also forewarned the chief priests and the elders in the temple courts that “the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to another people who will produce its fruit” (Matt. 21:43). DeMar correctly writes that “Jesus could not take from them what they did not have.”[29] Jesus further informed them that this would happen in the future at a “coming” of “the owner of the vineyard” (Matt. 21:33, 40). Matthew assures us that these Jews “knew he [Jesus] was talking about them” (Matt. 21:45) for they had killed “the son” (Matt. 21:37-39). They also knew, from Isaiah, that “the vineyard” Jesus was referring to in this parable was “the house of Israel and the men of Judah,” and that it was to “be destroyed” by the owner, “the Lord Almighty” (Isa. 5:1-7; also Matt. 21:41). Once again, Jesus made no mention of a postponement or a withdrawal of the kingdom.
At another time, Jesus specified that “not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished” (Matt. 5:18). In perfect harmony, the writer of Hebrews discloses that the new could not fully come as long as that old type-and-shadow system still stood (Heb. 9:6-10). This is why Jesus prophesied to the Pharisees that “your house” would be “left to you [i.e., them] desolate” (Matt. 23:38) and that this desolation would “come upon this generation” (Matt. 23:36; also 24:34). Here, again, Jesus was talking about them, his contemporaries, and not some future generation centuries removed.
So here is the conundrum. If this coming to remove the kingdom from the Jews and give it to another people has not yet occurred, then the kingdom still belongs to the Jews. Likewise, if everything has not been accomplished, then the Law is still in full force and to be obeyed as it was in the Old Covenant times. Jesus’ words are that straightforward and that profound.
The good news is, a strong scriptural and historical case can be made that the coming Jesus referred to in Matthew 21 occurred, precisely as and when He said it would. Yet most Christians have been led to believe that it has not yet happened.
In their textbook on hermeneutics, William W. Klein and others, raise two relevant questions in this regard. “What do we do when interpreters disagree? How do we proceed when well-intentioned Christians come to different interpretations about the meaning of a text or passage?” Their answer sets forth a basic hermeneutical principle:
The historically defensible interpretation has greatest authority. That is, interpreters can have maximum confidence in their understanding of a text when they base that understanding on historically defensible arguments.”[30]
It is to this task of historic defensibility that we now turn.
The Long Biblical Precedent. Early in his earthly ministry, Jesus announced a major change that had taken place among the Godhead. In Old Testament times, the Father was the deliverer of judgment. But Jesus divulged that the Father “has entrusted all judgment to the Son” (John 5:22).
Next, regarding his coming again, Jesus specified how this would happen. Twice, He said He would come “on the clouds” (Matt. 24:30, 26:64). What did He mean?
If you were a 1st-century Jew raised in the synagogue, you would have known exactly what it meant. This type of coming of God in judgment had a long biblical precedent. To appreciate the rich Jewish terminology for cloud-coming, we must enter the mind of a 1st-century Jew. On the other hand, if we insist on looking at these things only through 20th-century eyes, we will become prisoners of what has become the traditional mindset of misunderstanding and confusion.
Christ’s “coming on the clouds” is a common metaphor borrowed from Old Testament portrayals of God the Father descending from heaven and coming in power and glory to execute judgment on a people or nation. In all the historic comings of God in judgment, He acted through human armies, or through nature, to bring destruction (“the Lord is a man of war” [Ex. 15:3 KJV]). Each was a direct act of God and each was termed “the day of the Lord.” They were always described with figurative language and empowered by supernatural support. These “day[s] of the Lord” brought historical calamity upon many nations and people, for example:
Isaiah 13:10, 13. The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light . . . .Therefore I will make the heavens tremble; and the earth will shake from its place at the wrath of the Lord Almighty, in the day of his burning anger.
Fulfillment. The prophet was not speaking of the end of the world, the final judgment, or a solar or lunar eclipse. He was giving a figurative prediction of the literal destruction of Babylon by the Medes in 539 B.C. (Isa. 13:1). The use of cosmic language means the Presence of God was involved and revealed in this judgment upon these people.
Isaiah 34:4. All the stars of heaven will be dissolved and the sky rolled up like a scroll; all the starry host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shriveled figs from the fig tree.
Fulfillment. This was not the end of the world, or the end of the cosmos, but a figurative description of the coming divine destruction of Edom in the late 6th century B.C. (Isa. 34:5).
Ezekiel 32:7, 8a. . . . I will cover the heavens and darken their stars; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light. All the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you.
Fulfillment. This prophecy was God’s warning to the Pharaoh of Egypt of his impending fall in the mid-6th century B.C. (Eze. 32:2).
Nahum 1:5. The mountains quake before him and the hills melt away. The earth trembles at his presence, the world, and all who live in it.
Fulfillment. The subject is God’s coming in judgment on the city of Nineveh, and not the physical world, in 612 B.C. (Na. 1:1).
This Old Testament pattern of figurative language usage and numerous fulfillments by literal, divine judgments sets the precedent. If the words of these passages were to be taken literally, it would mean that massive changes or destructions of the cosmos and earth occurred numerous times. But the language transcends its literalism and has to be understood figuratively.
The Jews of Jesus’ day had studied these “day of the Lord” occurrences and were familiar with “cloud-coming” phraseology, as well as the application of one with the other.[31] The Hebrew scriptures are rich in similes and figurative language that poetically portray a heavenly perspective of God the Father coming among men in judgment:
· See, the Lord rides on a swift cloud and is coming to Egypt (Isa. 19:1). (For the earthly fulfillment, see Isa. 20:1-6).
· Look! He advances like the clouds, his chariots come like a whirlwind (Jer. 4:13).
· For the day is near, the day of the Lord is near—a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations (Eze. 30:3).
· Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the clouds . . . (Ps. 68:4).
· . . . He makes the clouds his chariots and rides on the wings of the wind. He makes winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants (Ps. 104:3-4).
· Also see Ezek. 30:18; Ps. 18:9-12; 2 Sam. 22:10-12; Nah. 1:3; Joel 2:1-2; Zeph. 1:14-15.
With familiar cloud-coming imagery Daniel prophesied the coming of the Son of Man (Dan. 7:13). Jesus, by deriving his “coming on the clouds” phrase directly from Daniel, was revealing Himself as God and the promised Messiah (Matt. 24:30; 26:64). The high priest Caiaphas immediately understood this claim of Jesus to be Deity and responded, “He has spoken blasphemy!” (Matt. 26:65). Jesus was also applying his coming in judgment and power of war in the same technical way as the Father had come down from heaven many times before:
Look! The Lord is coming from his dwelling place; he comes down and treads the high places of the earth (Mic. 1:3).
See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins (Isa. 26:21).
But your many enemies will become like fine dust, the ruthless hordes like blown chaff. Suddenly, in an instant the Lord Almighty will come with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with windstorm and tempest and flames of a devouring fire (Isa. 29:5-6).
Because of this background, Jesus’ disciples would have understood what He was talking about in his Olivet Discourse (Matt. 24:30). The high priest understood it. That’s why he was so offended by and accused Jesus of blasphemy (Matt. 26:64-65). Let us note that Jesus made no disclaimers to change the meaning or nature of this type of coming, and neither should we (there are other types of comings).
Another important factor is that in all these real biblical comings of God in judgment in the Old Testament, God Himself was never physically visible; He was unseen by human eyes!
Thus, cloud-coming is the language of divine imagery. It denotes divine action. In every instance, humans were fully aware of God’s Presence and personal intervention in those events of history. Obviously, this Jewish perspective is quite different from the way we moderns have been conditioned to think of Christ’s coming on the clouds. We imagine his coming to be spectacularly visible on the tops of literal fluffy cumulus clouds transporting Him down to earth.[32] Yet every biblical instance of a cloud-coming was a real coming of God. Or were they?
Opinions Vary—OT Comings. Scholarly opinions vary greatly on how to understand and treat the many comings of God in judgment and a “day of the Lord” in Old Testament times.
Some regard these as simply typological.[33] For progressive dispensationalists, Blaising and Bock, they readily acknowledge that Jesus’ return will be a day of the Lord that “correlates generally” with “Old Testament predictions” and “literary descriptions of God coming in wrath.”[34]
For historic premillennialist Ladd, “the Day of the Lord for the prophets was both the immediate act of God expected in history and the ultimate eschatological visitation. . . . The two events are viewed as though they were one.”[35] Therefore, Ladd concludes “God did act. The Day of the Lord did come; and yet, the Day of the Lord continued to be an eschatological event in the future.” Ladd calls “this tension between the immediate and the ultimate future . . . the prophetic perspective”[36] and “the prophetic tension between history and eschatology.”[37]
Classic dispensational premillennialist Showers concurs that “several times in the past, God has broken into the day of Satan and mankind with the interventions or Days of the Lord . . . . to give them a foretaste or forewarning of the ultimate Day of the Lord that will come at the end of world history.”[38]
Ladd objects, however, to treating these several “day of the Lord” events in the Old Testament as “secondary eschatological interpolation.” He proposes that they be understood “in their context as a symbolic portrayal of God’s judgments in history”[39] and typologically of “the future eschatological day” at “the final salvation,”[40] at “the end of the world,”[41] and at “the final consummation . . . at the end of history.”[42] Thus, Ladd understands this dual usage of the Old Testament term “day of the Lord” to designate “a day in the immediate historical future when God would visit his people in judgment . . . . [and] It could also designate the final visitation of God.”[43]
Postmillennialist DeMar reports that most dispensationalists understand that the many Old and New Testament uses of the “day of the Lord . . . always has reference to the end times, specifically an interval called the ‘Great Tribulation’ that is in the future.” But he argues that “the ‘day of the Lord’ is often used to refer to a time of judgment without referring to the final judgment. He contends that it is the ‘day of the Lord’ any time God acts”[44] and “there could be many such days.”
Ironically, classic dispensational premillennialist John F. Walvoord appears to agree with DeMar:
The “day of the Lord” is an expression frequently used in both the Old and New Testaments to describe any period of time during which God exercises direct judgment on human sin. The Old Testament records a number of times when Israel endured a day of the Lord, lasting a few days or, in some cases, several years.[45]
Another classic dispensational premillennialist Larry Spargimino opts for partial fulfillment. Regarding the above-cited Isaiah 13:19-20’s day of the Lord prophecy about the fall of Babylon, he claims that “it is not true that the passage can be limited to the fall of Babylon in 539 B.C. . . . This was definitely not fulfilled in 539 B.C. . . . [it] simply does not match all the particulars given in the prophecy of Isaiah 13 . . . .Isaiah 13 was not completely fulfilled . . . but still awaits future fulfillment.”[46]
In the amillennial camp, Anthony A. Hoekema perceives that when the day of the Lord comes “the new heavens and new earth will be the culmination of history . . . all history is moving toward this goal.”[47] The saints will live “on the new earth in the life to come.”[48] In the meantime, he understand all historical judgments of God as “provisional” and part of “the ambiguity of history” awaiting the “last judgment.”[49] For most amillennialists this includes Christ’s coming in judgment in A.D. 70.
Amillennialist R.C. Sproul suggests, “Is it not reasonable that the doom of Jerusalem should be depicted in language as glowing and rhetorical as the destruction of Babylon, or Bozrah, or Tyre?” He cites Isaiah 13:9, 10, 13 and is impressed by the fact that “the imagery employed by Isaiah is striking in its parallel to that of the language used by Jesus in the Olivet Discourse.” Sproul terms this “one of the strongest points of Russell’s argument.”[50] [J. Stuart Russell is a preterist.] Sproul concludes that “Scripture commonly describes the visitation of God’s judgment with images of convulsion and cataclysms.”[51]
19th-century preterist J. Stuart Russell summarized regarding the Bible’s use of this type of language in Isaiah 13:9, 10, 13:
. . . the imagery employed in this passage is almost identical with that of our Lord. If these symbols therefore were proper to represent the fall of Babylon, why should they be improper to set forth a still greater catastrophe—the destruction of Jerusalem?”[52]
Postmillennialist J. Marcellus Kik clings to a similar understanding about the “ideas of judgment, and apocalyptic language and style.” He claims that in the New Testament “there is not a single figure [‘sun, moon, and stars,’ ‘the son of man riding on the clouds,’ ‘the fig tree’] employed whose use has not been already sanctioned and its meaning determined in the Old Testament.” He concludes, therefore, “all events mentioned by Christ have found their fulfillment.”[53]
Postmillennialist Keith A. Mathison stakes out his position by clarifying that “the term ‘coming’ is used in different senses in Scripture.” Hence, the Old Testament comings of the Lord “in judgment upon a particular nation . . . did not involve a literal coming of God from heaven to earth.” He, therefore, concludes that “the ‘coming of the Lord’ spoken of in James (and implied in Philippians) is a coming of Christ’s judgment upon his enemies” in a similar manner. He differentiates these comings from Jesus’ future, visible return to the earth, which he calls “a third kind of ‘coming,’”[54]
The ‘Once-More’ Shaking Prediction. Circa A.D. 65, the writer of Hebrews confirms an up-coming judgment of God by quoting the Old Testament prophet Haggai, “Once more I [God] will shake not only the earth but also the heavens” (Heb. 12:26b, from Hag. 2:6-7).
To find what this Old Testament, post-exilic prophet meant by this next shaking we must discover the last time God shook the “heavens and earth,”[55] since this event will serve as the precedent and type for this next shaking.
As previously demonstrated, cosmic-collapsing, light-darkening, and earth-moving apocalyptic language is employed throughout the Old Testament to vividly portray and prophesy an impending “day of the Lord,” when God would pour out his judgment on a wicked nation or people. But once God specifically warned through Isaiah, a pre-exilic prophet:
Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger (Isa. 13:13 KJV).
This pre-exilic shaking and removing prophecy chronologically preceded Haggai’s post-exilic, “once more” shaking prophecy. This drastic language is employed to show the greatness and completeness of these two judgments. The immediate historical setting for the fulfillment of the Isaiah 13:13 prophecy was God’s overthrow and desolation of the Babylonians (see Isa. 13:19-22). Previously, God had foretold through the prophet Habakkuk that He would use the Babylonians to bring chastening upon Judah (the southern kingdom of Israel), to destroy Jerusalem and the Temple, and to deport many Jews into captivity (Hab. 1:5-11). This occurred in the 6th century B.C.
This first prophesied “shake” and “remove” judgment of Isaiah 13 was to come against those same Babylonians (Isa. 47:5-10; Jer. 51:6-10; Zeph. 1-3; Hos. 11:5; Amos 6:14; 9:8-10). With God’s divine assistance, the Persian army was to be God’s next instrument of judgment. It defeated the Babylonians, laid waste to their country, and took over the Babylonian Empire. Afterwards Cyrus, the Persian king, released the captive Jews to return to their land. The Jews then rebuilt their capital city and the Temple and reinstituted the practices of biblical Judaism.
As devastating as the 587 B.C. fall of Jerusalem and ensuing seventy years of Babylonian captivity were for the Jewish people, they were only temporary and mild desolations compared to the greater, cataclysmic judgment yet to come. Furthermore, God’s shaking and removal of Babylon was to serve as the precedent and type for that future, “once more” shaking and age-ending judgment of Old Covenant Israel. This prior and divine judgment of Babylonian was well-ingrained in 1st-century Jewish thought and remembrance.
Early in Israel’s history, God had promised that as long as his chosen people kept the covenant, He would bless and protect this nation more than any other. On the other hand, if they broke the covenant He would withdraw his protective Presence, chasten and scatter his people (Lev. 26:14-39; Deut. 28:15-68). Over the course of Jewish history a cycle of apostasy, oppression, repentance, and deliverance was repeated numerous times, and as a result of this perpetual, national disobedience, Israel’s sin mounted. That is why Jesus not only borrowed the same “shake” judgment language of the Prophets (Matt. 24:29 from Isa. 13:10; 34:4), but confirmed another of Isaiah’s prophecies by saying that Israel would “fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers” (Matt. 23:32; Isa. 65:6-19). This “filling up” would include the rejection of Jesus as the Messiah. When full, Haggai’s prophesied “once more” shaking judgment would come¾but this time that judgment would be upon the Jews.
The Jewish writer of the New Testament book of Hebrews readily made this connection. Again, writing in the decade of the A.D. 60s, he warned his readers that he and they were living in “the last days” of which Haggai had prophesied (Heb. 1:2). He quoted Haggai directly and referred to the last major judgment of God upon the Jewish people (Heb. 12:5-7, 25, 26 [i.e., the 587 B.C. destruction of Jerusalem and subsequent 70 years of Babylonian captivity]), but he emphasized the imminency and permanency of that second, “once more” shaking prophecy and judgment. Here is how he put it:
At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, ‘Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens’ [from Haggai 2:6]. The words ‘once more’ indicated the removing of what can be shaken¾that is, created things¾so that what cannot be shaken may remain (Heb. 12:26-27).
Clearly, the writer tells us that to shake what can be shaken signifies removing it. The Apostle Paul taught the Jews the same thing¾that their “world” in its present form was passing away (1 Cor. 7:31; also 1 John 2:17). In Acts 13:40-41, Paul quoted directly from Habakkuk 1:5 and cited God’s previous punishment of Israel through the Babylonians some six hundred years earlier. He, too, warned that this type of judgment was about to come upon them. This is no doubt why the Jews in Asia later accused Paul, saying, “This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against our people and our law and this place” (Acts 21:28).
Indeed, Old Israel was facing judgment, and a massive judgment was forthcoming. Not only was God going to “shake” and “remove” the Judaic “heavens and earth” world (Isa. 51:13-16 KJV); He was never going to bring them back. Instead, He promised to supersede them with that which “cannot be shaken.” And what was that? The writer of Hebrews explains that it was the new kingdom of God, a kingdom that was already breaking into human history.
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom [then and there] that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe (Heb. 12:28).
Obviously, this second, “once more” shaking was not a promise or prophecy to shake and remove the physical creation. Not one shred of evidence exists that these early Christians expected a destruction of the planet, an end to the cosmos, or the termination of human existence.[56] Instead, God, in total consistency with the prophetic pattern of divine judgment upon nations in Old Testament times, and in line with the prefigured “shaking” and “removing” of the Babylonian “heavens and earth” via the Persian armies, was about to pour out this second judgment. But this time it was to be upon a rebellious and apostate Israel.
So it happened, in that 1st Century time period, precisely as prophesied. “The saints of the Most High will [were] “receive[ing] the kingdom and will [would] possess it forever – yes, for ever and ever” (Dan. 7:18). It would “not pass away” and “never be destroyed” (Dan. 7:13). This “everlasting dominion” (Dan. 7:14) was being “handed over” to them, then and there (Dan. 7:27), and “they possessed the kingdom” (Dan. 7:22).
The writer of Hebrews also emphasized the nearness of this consummating event. He wrote, “in just a very very little while, He who is coming will come and will not delay” (Heb. 10:37).