The Kingdom of God (1) The Meaning of the Kingdom of God

The Bible passage God is giving us today is from the gospel of Matthew chapter 6 verses 9-10. Let’s read it together. 
“This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” (Mt 6:9-10)
 
Review
Two weeks ago, I shared about the biblical meaning of the gospel. The word “gospel” comes from the Greek word euangelion, which means “good news.”
In the Bible, the gospel is used in two senses. The first is the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the news that God’s Son, Jesus Christ, came to this earth in human flesh like ours, died, rose again, and ascended into heaven. This news is good news to us because it is the only message of salvation that rescues us from sin and death and allows us to enjoy eternal life.
However, this is not the whole story of the gospel in the Bible. Another aspect of the gospel that we as Christians must know is the gospel of the kingdom of God. It carries the message that God rules over the world with His sovereignty.
 
The Story of the Entire Bible
This is the central theme of the whole Bible. If we summarize the story of the entire Bible in one sentence, it is the story of God establishing His kingdom in this world through His people.
The very first chapter of the Bible begins with God creating the world and humanity in His image, commissioning them to rule over the world on His behalf. As we see in Genesis 1:26-28,
“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’” (Gen 1:26–28)
This is the original pattern of the kingdom of God: God ruling over the world He created through humanity, whom He made in His image.
And the final chapter of the Bible ends with a vision of God’s kingdom fully established on the earth, where God’s people reign forever with Jesus Christ. Revelation 22:3-5 says,
“No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.” (Rev 22:3–5)
This is the biblical picture of the end of human history. When the ascended Jesus Christ returns to this earth, God’s people will reign forever with Him, in the presence of God, who is our eternal light, and His Son, Jesus Christ.
In other words, God’s purpose for humanity, from beginning to end, is for us to rule over the world He created. However, this does not mean that we become kings in our own right. Rather, it means participating in the reign of God—the Creator of all things and the true King—and ruling on His behalf. Only those who live with God as their King can live in this way.
However, God’s plan to establish humanity as His representatives and rule the world through them was disrupted when sin entered the world. At the heart of sin is the desire to become like God—to refuse to acknowledge God’s kingship and to cast God out of our hearts.
This sin separated God and humanity. Human beings lost God’s image, the purpose of life given by Him, and the eternal life possessed by Him alone. As sinners, they began pursuing their own selfish desires rather than the kingdom of God.
Yet God loved even those sinners. He made a grand plan of salvation to save them from sin and death, reconcile them to Himself, restore them to the image in which they were originally created, and grant them eternal life.
This grand drama of God’s salvation is the main content of the Bible. And the climax of this story is that God's Son, Jesus Christ, came down to this earth in the flesh, demonstrating a perfect model of a human living in the image of God. He took upon Himself the sins of all people, dying on the cross to reconcile them with God. That is the content of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
So, with the coming of Jesus Christ, the kingdom of God began to break into this world with power once again. Through Him, a holy people began to emerge—people who had been saved from sin, reconciled to God, and restored to His image.
They went out into the world, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, praying for God’s kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven, and bearing witness to His true kingship. In this way, God’s plan to rule the world through His people began to take concrete shape.
This kingdom of God continues to advance today, and God’s plan for His kingdom will be fully accomplished on the day our Savior, Jesus Christ, returns—the day when all the saints will share in His reign.
We are standing right in the middle of this story. This is the story of the entire Bible, and it is also the story of all human history. God saved each of us individually through Jesus Christ so that we might become part of this story and participate in His kingdom purposes. Therefore, the gospel of Jesus Christ and the gospel of the kingdom of God cannot be separated from each other, because the gospel of Jesus Christ ultimately points us toward the kingdom of God.
The kingdom of God is the central theme of the entire Bible, the core of Jesus’ proclamation and ministry, the message at the heart of the gospel proclaimed by the early apostles, and the great message that we, who have been saved by the grace of Jesus Christ, are called to continue living out and proclaiming today.
The kingdom of God is not some spiritual realm that our souls enter only after death. The kingdom of God began to break into this world with the first coming of Jesus Christ. It continues to advance today through God’s people, who have been saved by faith in Jesus Christ, as they proclaim the gospel and live out the good works God has called them to do. And it is the kingdom that will be fully established on this earth when Jesus Christ returns, just as He promised.
This is the perspective on the kingdom of God that we as Christians must have. Without it, our faith can easily become individualistic and self-centered. Our faith can be reduced to nothing more than a religious routine of coming to church once a week. We can end up living lukewarm lives, with one foot in the world and the other in the church. And in the end, we may never truly experience the kingdom of God that has already come to this earth, but simply live our lives waiting for the day when we die and go to heaven.
That is not what God wants or expects from us. What God set out to accomplish—even by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to this earth to die on the cross—was to save us from sin, restore us to His image, and help us grow into the full measure of Christ. He wants us to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness in this world, live under His rule wherever He has placed us, and work to advance His kingdom. This is God’s calling for every Christian—and for each of us today.
 
What Is the Kingdom of God?
Today, let us take a closer look at what we mean by the kingdom of God. In the Bible, the word “kingdom” carries three meanings.
 
1) Kingdom as a People
First, the word “kingdom” can refer to a people. After leading the people of Israel out of Egypt, God brought them to Mount Sinai and made a covenant with them. This is what God first said to the people of Israel at Mount Sinai:
“You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” (Exo. 19:4–6)
Here, God calls the people of Israel “my treasured possession,” “a kingdom of priests,” and “a holy nation.” This was the new identity God intended for Israel.
Originally, they were slaves in Egypt, serving Pharaoh and living under his rule. But now God calls Israel “my treasured possession” because He chose them as His own people and delivered them from Pharaoh’s hand.
The purpose of this election was for them to become a “kingdom of priests.” This reveals the role God intended for the people of Israel whom He had chosen as His own. The essential role of a priest is to serve as a mediator between God and humanity. Therefore, when God called Israel a “kingdom of priests,” He was calling them to serve as a channel between God and all the nations—to make God known to the nations and to lead the nations to God.
To fulfill this role, they had to be a “holy nation.” Just as priests were consecrated to serve in the temple, Israel, as a kingdom of priests, had to live a set-apart and holy life, obeying God’s word and laws rather than following the ways of the world. In doing so, they were to display God’s holiness to the nations and lead them to God. This holy way of life was essential for them to fulfill their calling as a kingdom of priests.
And this calling from God applies not only to the people of Israel in the Old Testament, but equally to us as Christians living in the New Testament age today.
Echoing Exodus 19:6, the Apostle Peter writes in 1 Peter 2:9:
“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” (1 Pt 2:9)
In this passage, Peter calls Christians a “chosen race,” “royal priesthood,” “holy nation,” and “a people for his own possession.” These correspond to the exact same concepts as “my treasured possession,” “a kingdom of priests,” and “a holy nation” in Exodus 19.
God’s will for His people has always been the same. God saved us from sin and death through Jesus Christ and made us His own people, His treasured possession, so that we might be a royal priesthood and a holy nation. We are called to represent God to those around us who do not yet know Him, making Him known to them and leading them to Him.
To carry out this ministry, our lives must first be holy. If we follow the ways of the world rather than God’s will, if our lives look no different from those of the people around us, and if we are consumed by the same concerns as they are, people will not be able to see God’s holiness through us. They will not find a life of faith in God compelling, nor will they be drawn to seek God.
However, if we live in this world without being shaped by it, following God’s Word rather than the ways of the world, the people around us will see God’s holiness through our distinct lives—lives that honor Him as King. They will see the beauty of a life lived under God’s rule and be drawn to seek Him. This is how we are called to live as God’s people, as a “kingdom of priests” and a “holy nation.”
 
2) Kingdom as a Territory
Second, in the Bible, the word “kingdom” can also refer to a “territory.”
Numbers 32:33 says: “And Moses gave to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben and to the half-tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land and its cities with their borders, the cities of the surrounding land.” (Num. 32:33)
In this verse, “kingdom” and “land” are used in parallel, referring to the same thing. This shows that the word “kingdom” in the Bible can also refer to a territory or a physical realm.
 
3) Kingdom as Sovereignty and Reign
While the meanings of “kingdom” as “people” and “territory” are important, the third meaning is the most fundamental. In the Bible, “kingdom” refers not only to the people who belong to a king or the territory over which he rules, but also to his “reign” and “sovereignty.”
Psalm 103:19 states: “The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all.” (Ps. 103:19)
Here, the Hebrew word translated as “kingdom” is malkuth, a word that carries the meanings of kingship, royal authority, dominion, and reign. In this context, it emphasizes God’s sovereign rule and authority over all creation.
Thus, the word “kingdom” can also carry the meaning of “kingship.” We see this clearly in Psalm 22:27–28:
“All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. For kingship belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations.” (Ps. 22:27–28)
Here, the expression “kingship belongs to the Lord” means that all authority and sovereignty belong to God. We see this in His sovereign rule over all things. He is the true King who possesses ultimate authority and rules over all the nations of the earth.
David also confessed in Psalm 145:10–13:
“All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your saints shall bless you! They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your power, to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations.” (Ps 145:10–13) 
Here, “your kingdom” is described as a kingdom whose dominion endures throughout all generations. This is the glory and majesty of God’s kingdom that God’s people are called to proclaim. The good news of the kingdom of God is that the good and almighty God reigns over all the nations.
 
We can also see this meaning of “kingdom” as “sovereignty” or “reign” in the New Testament. The Greek word translated as “kingdom” in the New Testament is basileia (βασιλεία). The word is derived from basileus (βασιλεύς), which means “king.” In other words, basileia, translated as “kingdom,” refers not merely to a people or a territory, but to the king’s royal authority and reign. In ancient Greek, the word could refer to kingship, royal authority, the king’s reign, and the realm over which the king rules.
Therefore, in many passages of the New Testament, it is perfectly appropriate to understand “kingdom” in terms of “reign” or “rule.”
For example, the first words Jesus proclaimed as He began His public ministry are recorded in Mark 1:15,
“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15)
When we first read this verse, we may not immediately grasp its full meaning because “the kingdom of God” can seem like an abstract concept. But when we understand “kingdom” as “reign,” the meaning becomes much clearer:
“The time is fulfilled, and the reign of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
Why must we repent and believe the gospel? Because God’s reign is at hand—because the time has come for God to rule. His kingdom is a kingdom where only those who turn fully back to Him in faith and repentance can truly live under His reign.
We can also discover the meaning of kingdom as “reign” in the prayer the Lord taught us:
“Your kingdom come…” (Matt 6:10)
Replacing “kingdom” with “reign” here does not alter the meaning. If “kingdom” referred merely to a place, the expression “Your kingdom come” would sound unnatural. But if “kingdom” means “reign,” then the coming of the kingdom refers to the manifestation of God’s reign and the establishment of His rule on earth.
This connects directly with the prayer that follows: “…your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matt. 6:10)
Jesus also said:
“But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” (Matt 12:28)
Here too, the coming of the “kingdom of God” does not mean that a location has arrived, but that God’s royal power and reign have begun to break into this world. When Jesus drove out demons, it was a visible demonstration that God’s reign had broken into the realm of Satan and was defeating his power.
Furthermore, Jesus said:
“The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you” (Luke 17:20–21)
Here, “kingdom” is naturally understood not as a physical place, but as God’s reign breaking into the world and being manifested in the midst of His people.
 
We can also see this understanding of “kingdom” as “reign” in the writings of the Apostle Paul. In Colossians 1:13–14, he writes:
“He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Col 1:13–14)
Here, we see the “domain of darkness” and the “kingdom of His beloved Son” set in direct contrast with each other. When we believe in Jesus Christ and experience the saving power of His grace, what truly changes is who has authority over our lives. We are no longer under the dominion of Satan; we have been brought under the reign of the Son. Satan no longer has rightful claim over us, because Jesus Christ has rescued us and now rules over us with His love and grace.
This is the biblical meaning of “kingdom.” It is used in the senses of “people,” “territory,” and “reign or sovereignty.”
These correspond to the three basic elements of a nation: people, territory, and sovereignty. A nation cannot exist without its people. It cannot exist without a territory for those people to inhabit. And without sovereignty—the authority to rule and govern—it cannot truly be a nation.
Likewise, no matter how many people and how much territory a nation has, without sovereignty, it cannot truly function as an independent state. This was the case with Korea during the Japanese colonial period. The Korean people and their territory remained, but Korea had lost its sovereignty to Japan and could no longer govern itself. That is why we remember that era as a time of great sorrow—the time when we lost our national sovereignty.
Thus, the essence of a nation lies not merely in who lives on a certain land, but in who rules over those people. Citizens and territory are important components of a nation, but the core element that makes them a nation is sovereignty—the authority to rule.
This is the biblical meaning of the kingdom of God. It does not refer to some spiritual place in the sky that only our souls enter after death. The kingdom of God, as it is presented in the Bible, is the realm where God’s people acknowledge His sovereignty, submit to His reign, and live under His kingship. When we submit to God’s reign and live under His kingship, His kingdom is manifested wherever we go—in our homes, our workplaces, and our relationships.
This is the life we are called to live as those who have been saved by the wondrous power of Jesus’ precious blood and made God’s children, His people, and His treasured possession.
 
Now, we must ask ourselves a serious question: Is God truly ruling over my life?
We say that Jesus is our King. But is He really our King in the way we live? Is His will truly the highest authority in our lives? Or do we still want to be the kings of our own lives, deciding for ourselves what is right and wrong, what we will pursue, and how we will live?
If God is truly our King, then His reign must be visible in our lives. It must be seen in the way we use our money, the way we treat our families, the way we do our work, the way we respond to those who hurt us, and the way we make decisions about our future.
So let me ask you again, who is really sitting on the throne of your life? Is it Jesus Christ, or is it you?
God did not send His Son, Jesus Christ, to this earth and give Him up to die on the cross simply so that we could be forgiven of our sins and receive eternal life. He saved us to restore and renew us, so that through us He might establish His kingdom on this earth.
Therefore, if we claim to believe in Jesus Christ and have received salvation, yet have no desire to live under His reign and no interest in building His kingdom, we must honestly examine whether we truly possess the kind of faith that the Bible describes.
We must never forget that God saved us so that we might live under His reign as our King and that, through His people, His rule might be manifested throughout this world.
At this time, let us remember God’s calling to us—to be a royal priesthood and a holy nation. And I pray that a renewed passion for this calling will rise up within our hearts once again. May we live under the reign of our true King, Jesus Christ, and build His kingdom wherever God has placed us.
Let’s pray.
 
Closing Prayer
Heavenly Father, we offer You our praise and thanksgiving for Your grace—for loving us and having mercy on us when we were headed toward eternal death because of our sin, and for saving us by giving Your only begotten Son, who shed His blood and died on the cross for us.
At this time, remembering the purpose for which You saved us, we dedicate our lives to You once again. Lord, You have called us out into this dark world as Your treasured possession, a royal priesthood, and a holy nation. Now, enable us to live faithfully according to this calling.
As we confess that You are the true King and Lord of our lives, help us to live under Your reign. May the thoughts of our hearts, the words of our lips, and all that we do reflect Your holiness. Take full possession of our lives. Be our King and rule over us.
In every area of our daily lives, may we experience the coming of Your kingdom. As we seek first Your kingdom and Your righteousness, may Your kingdom advance through our lives.
Until the day our Lord Jesus Christ comes again, until the day Your kingdom is fully established on this earth, and until the day we reign with You forever and ever, help us to faithfully fulfill the mission You have entrusted to us. We are weak and lacking, so please sustain us by Your grace and strengthen us by Your power until the very end.
May You alone receive all the glory through our lives.
We pray all these things in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Amen.
 
  
[Reflection Questions]
1. Everyone who believes in Jesus Christ and receives salvation becomes a citizen of the kingdom of God. It is a kingdom where God reigns as King. Are you currently living under God’s reign? How can you demonstrate that God truly rules over your life? What is one specific area of your life where you need to surrender more fully to God’s reign?
 
2. God saved us through Jesus Christ to make us a royal priesthood and a holy nation, so that through us, the people around us may come to know Him and become citizens of His kingdom as well. Do you have a desire to pursue this calling? How will you practically obey and live out this calling?
 
3. The kingdom of God is established wherever God’s people submit to His reign and live under His rule. What area of your life do you most desire to see God’s kingdom established? What can you do to see His kingdom come and His will be done in that area?