Kingdom of God

lunamoth · Apr 7, 2006

The Kingdom of God/Heaven--what is it? Where is it? It is certainly one of the richest metaphors of the New Testament, the Heart of Jesus' teachings, and one of my cherished places for contemplation. Is it here on earth or somewhere else, another dimension perhaps? Is it now, or is it later? Is it a promise, or is it fulfilled? I'd love to hear your thoughts about this.

Some passages to get it started:

17From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." (Matt 4:17).

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matt 5:3)

"The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. (Matt 13:31)

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."(Matt 19:14)

"I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God." (Mark 14:25)

I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God." (Luke 9:27)

Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within[b] you." (Luke 17:20-21)

Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. (John 3:5)

Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place."
(John 18:36)

I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.( 1 Cor 15:50)

Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?(James 2:5)

The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever." (Rev 11:15)

peace,
lunamoth

Buttons* · Apr 7, 2006

is this for Christians only? (i'd like to know, that way i know if it's even in my interest to post an opinion)

lunamoth · Apr 7, 2006

Buttons* said:
is this for Christians only? (i'd like to know, that way i know if it's even in my interest to post an opinion)

Hi buttons, this is open for everyone.

luna

Buttons* · Apr 7, 2006

lunamoth said:
The Kingdom of God/Heaven--what is it? Where is it? It is certainly one of the richest metaphors of the New Testament, the Heart of Jesus' teachings, and one of my cherished places for contemplation. Is it here on earth or somewhere else, another dimension perhaps? Is it now, or is it later? Is it a promise, or is it fulfilled? I'd love to hear your thoughts about this.

I believe the Kingdom already is, within and without us. All you have to do is open your eyes (and i mean this on many levels) to see it ... *smiles*

because you can look, yet not see,
and hear, but not listen...

lunamoth · Apr 7, 2006

I *like* that buttons.

My favorite, from Luke:

Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within[b] you." (Luke 17:20-21)

lunamoth

may · Apr 7, 2006

lunamoth said:
The Kingdom of God/Heaven--what is it? Where is it? It is certainly one of the richest metaphors of the New Testament, the Heart of Jesus' teachings, and one of my cherished places for contemplation. Is it here on earth or somewhere else, another dimension perhaps? Is it now, or is it later? Is it a promise, or is it fulfilled? I'd love to hear your thoughts about this.

Some passages to get it started:

peace,
lunamoth

(Revelation 12:10) And I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come to pass the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ, because the accuser of our brothers has been hurled down, who accuses them day and night before our God!.................... this is one of my favourites about the kingdom , Jesus is now king of that kingdom, and one of the first things that Jesus did after being made king in 1914 was to get rid of the rebels out they were thrown

Buttons* · Apr 7, 2006

lunamoth said:
I *like* that buttons. My favorite, from Luke:

Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within[b] you." (Luke 17:20-21)

lunamoth

yup, that quote seems EXTREMELY gnostic to me

Popeyesays · Apr 7, 2006

I think I draw a distinction between "Kingdom of God", and "Kingdom of Heaven".The first being the Divine Civilization established on earth, and the second being a metaphor for feeling one's self near to God. The second does not wait for death to come, we either live in that state or don't.Regards,Scott

lunamoth · Apr 7, 2006

Popeyesays said:
I think I draw a distinction between "Kingdom of God", and "Kingdom of Heaven".The first being the Divine Civilization established on earth, and the second being a metaphor for feeling one's self near to God. The second does not wait for death to come, we either live in that state or don't.Regards,Scott

Interesting distinction Scott. What lead you to think about it that way? I've always thought that KOG, Kingdom of Heaven and eternal life are all the same thing. I recall reading that Matthew used Kingdom of Heaven to avoid saying G-d repeatedly, out of respect for his audience.

Anyway, although one term is 'eternal life,' I don't think that this means that it only starts in the afterlife. It starts when you turn toward God, realize the Spirit, and continues on into the afterlife.

peace,
lunamoth

lunamoth · Apr 7, 2006

Buttons* said:
yup, that quote seems EXTREMELY gnostic to me

I guess gnostic phrases, like beauty, are in the eye of the beholder.

It seems that people have often viewed parts of the Gospels and some of the letters of Paul as gnostic, or as replies to a gnostic perspective. I don't know. It does not surprise me that other religions have different interpretations of the Gospels and the rest of the NT, but that does not mean that those writings were meant to be gnostic to begin with. Scripture has many layers of meaning and as we grow and change we can uncover those layers so that we continually learn from it.

So do you have a thread where you discuss what you believe, buttons? Aside from Choodianism that is.

peace,
lunamoth

Buttons* · Apr 7, 2006

lunamoth said:
I guess gnostic phrases, like beauty, are in the eye of the beholder.

It seems that people have often viewed parts of the Gospels and some of the letters of Paul as gnostic, or as replies to a gnostic perspective. I don't know. It does not surprise me that other religions have different interpretations of the Gospels and the rest of the NT, but that does not mean that those writings were meant to be gnostic to begin with. Scripture has many layers of meaning and as we grow and change we can uncover those layers so that we continually learn from it.

So do you have a thread where you discuss what you believe, buttons? Aside from Choodianism that is.

peace,
lunamoth

yup, we actually have a discussion going about the Secret Gospel of John too. Gnosticism forum under revealed religions

Dont know if you'd be too terribly interested though... its a bit .... strange (like me)

Kingdom of God

lunamoth

Will to love

Buttons*

Glass half Panda'd

lunamoth

Will to love

Buttons*

Glass half Panda'd

lunamoth

Will to love

may

Well-Known Member

Buttons*

Glass half Panda'd

Popeyesays

Well-Known Member

lunamoth

Will to love

lunamoth

Will to love

Buttons*

Glass half Panda'd