The Kingdom of God
Over the next 12 months Living Word Community Church will be taking a journey into the Living Word of God. We will not rest until we have gained a fresh insight into the Kingdom life that God has drawn us into. We will seek by His Holy Spirit to put the Kingdom rule of God first in our lives, knowing that by doing so, we are truly following Jesus. Please join us on this journey, but do so knowing that it will change you.
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“Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness ... and all these things
(food to eat, clothing to wear, shelter to live in)
will be added to you as well”
Matthew 6:33
“For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking;
but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit”
Romans 14:17
“In the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a Kingdom
which shall never be destroyed; it will stand forever and ever”
Daniel 2:44
Contents:
An introduction and overview is followed by a series of sessions dealing with different aspects of the Kingdom of God and its significance in our Christian lives both individually and together.
As each session is delivered the materials available will become available by clicking on the links below.
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Number
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Title
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1
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2
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3
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The Kingdom of God foretold
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4
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The Kingdom of God is within you and is founded on love
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5
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The King and the Kingdom – the character of the King
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6
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The Kingdom of God represents an alternative society – one that is theocratic and not political (see Ephesians 2 – “an administration suitable to the fullness of the times”)
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7
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The Kingdom of God is a present reality (“A time is coming, and now is”)
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8
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The Manifesto of the Kingdom of God (The Sermon on the Mount) 1 Beatitudes
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9
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The Manifesto of the Kingdom of God (The Sermon on the Mount) 2 New Laws and Prayer
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10
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The Manifesto of the Kingdom of God (The Sermon on the Mount) 3 Money and Warnings
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11
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The Parables of the Kingdom of God (Matt 13 etc.)
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12
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Summing it all up – What on earth is this Kingdom?
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Introduction and Setting the scene – “Why the Kingdom of God?”
One of the main reasons why we are taking the theme of the Kingdom of God in our teaching programme in the coming months because it is such a vital theme in Jesus’ own teaching. In fact, if we take a look at the Gospels and the first chapter of Acts we find the Kingdom is a recurring theme. For example:
Matthew 4:17 immediately after His baptism, Jesus begins His preaching ministry with the Kingdom
Matthew 13:24-51 this series of parables is all with reference to the Kingdom
Acts 1:1-3 in the forty days between His resurrection and ascension Jesus taught the disciples on only one topic – the Kingdom of God!
However, the Kingdom of God is not just a theme of the New Testament, but is also strongly referred to in the Old Testament too. Many examples of references to the Kingdom of God come in the prophetic books; but we can also refer to the nation of Israel, and especially under King David as a type or example of what the Kingdom of God is like.
Daniel interprets Nebuchadnezzar’s dream concerning Kingdoms and Governments and in the conclusion (Daniel 2:44) shows that God will set up a Kingdom that will not be destroyed, but will grow from small beginnings to fill the whole earth – surpassing all previous Kingdoms, but being of a different nature.
We will return to all of these themes in the coming months as we go through a programme of teaching about different aspects of the Kingdom of God.
[NOTE: in the course of this teaching we will take the terms Kingdom of God, Kingdom of Heaven, etc. which are used by the Gospel writers as synonymous]
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