English

 

The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence

 

Matthew 11:12 『And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.』

The Bible says that the kingdom of heaven suffers violence. The kingdom of God does not mean the spiritual heaven where the God of the throne resides, but it means the kingdom of God on this earth. As Jesus said in Matthew 6:10, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

In the phrase 『From the days of John the Baptist until now』, "now" means Jesus Christ who came to this earth. In other words, from the days of John the Baptist to Jesus Christ, the kingdom of God suffers violence. In Matthew 3:2, it is said, “And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The kingdom of God means Jesus Christ. John the Baptist said that the kingdom of God was at hand. It is said that Jesus was born into the world and soon began the activities of the public kingdom of God. Public activity began after Jesus was baptized and tempted by the devil. 』

And Jesus said in Matthew 4:17, “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Jesus is proclaiming that He is the Kingdom of God. So he tells people to repent. What is repentance for? Those who have left the kingdom of God are told to turn and return to the kingdom of God.

It is said that the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, but in the original Greek it is said that violence will take away the kingdom of God. who takes it? They refer to the religious leaders such as the Pharisees and the scribes and priests.

In Matthew 12:24, “But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.”They not only did not recognize Jesus Christ and slandered him, but they also prevented people from entering the kingdom of God. And in Matthew 23:13, “But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

Even today, fake gospels prevent believers from entering the kingdom of God. The false gospel means legalism, humanism, and gnosticism. This fake gospel is so prevalent in most churches.

In today's church, through the words of Matthew 11:12, we emphasize that the saints should work more actively for salvation. That is why fake pastors are talking about salvation as if they had to enter the kingdom of God through their own efforts. They are expressing that they are struggling to enter the kingdom of God. How can we invade the kingdom of God? Is living a hard life of faith aggression? So, they are speaking as if something had to be added to entering the kingdom of God by faith in Christ.

Jesus was put to death by violent men. He lost the kingdom of God to this earth. But because God resurrected Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ restored the kingdom of God on this earth. Those who are in Christ also become the kingdom of God. Through the Holy Spirit in the saints, those who are in Christ are also restoring the kingdom of God.

The role of the saints is to restore the kingdom of God. All people born into this world have become slaves of Satan. So, those who are in Jesus Christ are freed from Satan through the redemption of Christ and become God's people. Redemption means buying a servant at the price of blood. God buys sinners from Satan with the blood of Jesus Christ.

We must plant a cross on all those who are bound by Satan. The reason is to restore the kingdom of God in them. The kingdom of God on this earth has been attacked by Satan. But now those who are in Christ must plant a cross in them to restore the kingdom of God.

Restoring the kingdom of God on this earth is like a spiritual warfare. Just as the exodus people entered Canaan and fought with the descendants of Anak, a spiritual war is taking place for us as well. Planting the gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ in your neighbors is the way to save them spiritually.