I’ve called the current sermon series through the first book of the New Testament, Matthew’s account of Jesus’ life and ministry, “Mission: Kingdom” because Matthew chronicles Jesus’ single-minded purpose to restore God’s kingdom among the people God created. We see this in the accounts surrounding Jesus’ birth – in his genealogy (Matthew 1:1) and in the visit of the wise men seeking the one who had been born “king of the Jews” (Matthew 2:2). We see it in the accounts of Jesus’ ministry – in his primary message, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 4:17) and throughout his teaching every time he said, “The kingdom of heaven is like…” as he did in Matthew 13. We see it the accounts of his final days and moments before his death – in his entry into Jerusalem, welcomed as the promised Messianic King, and in Pilate’s question, “Are you the king of the Jews?” and Jesus’ answer, “You have said so” (Matthew 27:11). Matthew makes it clear that Jesus came as the king of God’s kingdom and that he came to make it possible for sinful people not only to enter God’s kingdom but to participate in Jesus’ mission and bring others into the kingdom, which we find in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).
Even though we have a clear description of Jesus’ mission and even our own as commissioned by Jesus, it seems that the church struggles to understand God’s kingdom and how our mission relates to it. Throughout Matthew, we see that Jesus most often refers to the kingdom of God as “the kingdom of heaven.” This phrase is distinctly different from the other New Testament writers who refer to God’s kingdom, and its emphasis on heaven points us toward a good understanding of what God’s kingdom is and how we can relate to it.
This distinction was very important for the people of Jesus’ day, especially since many were expecting the promised Messiah to come as a king who would conquer Rome and reestablish the nation of Israel to its former greatness, as when David and Solomon were kings. With Matthew’s emphasis on Jesus’ identity as the Messiah, as a descendant of David, it was important to emphasize that God’s kingdom is not an earthly kingdom ruled by earthly kings.
On the other hand, our understanding of the kingdom often goes to the opposite extreme. It’s easy for us to think of God’s kingdom as existing in heaven and to anticipate going there “some day,” so it’s also easy for us to forget about the kingdom in the here and now.
However, God’s kingdom is not merely the place where God reigns; it is the reign of God in and through the people who submit to his reign. Because God is the Creator of the universe, he reigns over absolutely everyone and everything in the universe across all time. As the King of kings, Jesus taught his disciples to think about God’s kingdom in terms of God’s heavenly reign in our everyday lives right here, right now. He taught them this when he taught them to pray, beginning in Matthew 6:9-10: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Jesus came from the Father in heaven to do his will on earth. He taught his disciples to pray for the coming of God’s kingdom, which is the accomplishment of God’s will on earth as it is in heaven. God’s will is to restore a relationship with sinful people, and his will is accomplished through Jesus’ death and resurrection and through those who have been restored to God through faith in Jesus. Our mission is to join in Jesus’ mission by making disciples of Jesus, preaching and teaching the Good News of God’s love, forgiveness of sin, and new life through Jesus. Pray for the kingdom; join the mission.