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Just what is the Kingdom of God anyway? To most Christians, the Kingdom of God is some mystical entity made up exclusively of Christians. But let's just do a simple word substitution here to put things into perspective. Let's substitute the word "Nation" for "Kingdom". The resulting phrase is "the Nation of God." Can there be any doubt at all that "the Nation of God" is the restored Kingdom of Israel? Israel was to be "a light to the nations," "a kingdom of priests," "a holy people." Every Jew in the first century understood what the Kingdom of God was. The prophets spoke of a time when Moshiach (Messiah) would rule over the reunited Houses of Israel and Judah. This was to be the Kingdom of Elohim (God). One thing that really confuses most Christians is Matthew's use of the euphemistic phrase "Kingdom of Heaven." Matthew is the most "Jewish" of the writers of the New Testament in terms of Torah and mitzvot (commandments). He chooses to use the word "Heaven" as a substitute for the name of God. Even to this day many people use this same euphemism: Instead of saying, "God knows" they will say, "Heaven knows." So "the Kingdom of God" is the reunited nation of Israel. If this is true then just what is "salvation" anyway? ← Click here to see the answer. Help this ministry with a tax deductible donation.
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