A Practical Approach to Understanding the Bible’s Kingdom Message
There is a lot of confusion about what the kingdom is in the Bible, leading to many controversies around its meaning. The kingdom is the main subject throughout Scripture, and it provides the foundation for understanding the motivation, purpose, plans, promises, and actions of God. To comprehend God’s actions throughout history, we must grasp the kingdom concept. Let’s look at what the Bible has to say about the kingdom.
God has a kingdom in heaven, and His mission was to extend this heavenly kingdom to earth through humans. We first see the kingdom mentioned in Genesis 1:26.
Genesis 1:26 (NKJV): Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
The Greek term for dominion is “basileia,” which also translates to the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven—God’s kingdom.
Basileia (bas-il-i’-ah): dominion, royal power, kingship, rule, kingdom of God, or kingdom of heaven.
The central theme of the Bible is humans having dominion to rule over God’s kingdom, and it’s God’s purpose creating us.
Psalms 8:6-8 (NKJV): You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, All sheep and oxen— Even the beasts of the field, The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas.
Psalm 115:16 (NIV): The highest heavens belong to the LORD, but the earth he has given to mankind.
The kingdom is mentioned multiple times throughout the Old Testament.
2 Samuel 7:16 (NIV): Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.
1 Chronicles 29:11 (NIV): Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.
Psalm 103:19 (NIV): The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all.
Psalm 145:11-12 (NIV): They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might, so that all people may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Psalm 145:13 (NIV): Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.
Daniel 4:3 (NIV): How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; his dominion endures from generation to generation.
Daniel 7:18 (NIV): But the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.’
Obadiah 1:21 (NIV): Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.
Prophets like Daniel and Isaiah foresaw the coming Messiah would establish the kingdom as a governing entity with authority and power.
Isaiah 9:6-7 (NKJV): For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Daniel 7:13-14: (NIV): “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”
John the Baptist publicly declared that the kingdom was coming, and to be a part of it, people needed to repent, or change their ways.
Matthew 3:1-2 (NIV): In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
The Greek term for repent is “metanoeō,” which means to change one’s mind or to think differently. Repentance was needed because, after the introduction of sin in Genesis 3, human minds struggled to stay focused on God due to Satan blinding believers from seeing the kingdom (2 Corinthians 4:4).
When Jesus arrived, His first public statement was the kingdom.
Matthew 4:17 (NIV): From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Jesus continued to talk about the kingdom throughout his ministry.
Luke 12:32 (NKJV): “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
Matthew 6:9-10 (NIV): Pray then like this “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Luke 9:11 (CSB): “When the crowds found out, they followed him. He welcomed them, spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing.”
Jesus also announced that the gospel, or the good news, is the kingdom.
Matthew 4:23 (NKJV): And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.
Matthew 9:35 (NKJV): Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
Matthew 24:14 (NKJV): And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
Mark 1:15 (NIV): “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
Luke 8:1 (NIV): After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him.
Luke 16:16 (NIV): “The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing their way into it.”
Jesus declared that His purpose for coming to earth was to preach the kingdom.
Luke 4:43 (NKJV): But He said to them, “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent.”
Jesus instructed His disciples to spread the word about the Kingdom.
Luke 9:1-2 (NKJV): Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
Luke 9:60 (NKJV): Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”
Luke 10:8-9 (NKJV): Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. And heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’
Matthew 10:5-7 (NIV): These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’
Jesus often used parables—simple stories with a moral lesson—to describe the kingdom. This was necessary because people had lost their understanding of the kingdom over time.
Matthew 13:31-32 (NIV): He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”
Matthew 13:33 (NIV): He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
Matthew 13:44 (NIV): “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.”
Matthew 13:45-46 (NIV): Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
Matthew 13:34-35 (NIV): Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet: “I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”
Jesus stressed that the kingdom should be our number one priority, even surpassing basic necessities like food, drinks and clothing.
Matthew 6:31-33 (NIV): “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Paul continued Jesus’ message by preaching the kingdom.
Acts 28:23 (NIV): “They arranged to meet Paul on a certain day, and came in even larger numbers to the place where he was staying. He witnessed to them from morning till evening, explaining about the kingdom of God, and from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets he tried to persuade them about Jesus.”
Acts 28:30-31 (NIV):“For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ—with all boldness and without hindrance!”
1 Thessalonians 2:12 (NLT):
We pleaded with you, encouraged you, and urged you to live your lives in a way that God would consider worthy. For he called you to share in his Kingdom and glory.
In addition to being about dominion, the kingdom is about power.
Mark 9:1 (NIV): And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.”
1 Corinthians 4:20 (NIV): For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.
The kingdom is invisible and part of the unseen world.
Luke 17:20-21 (NIV): Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”
2 Corinthians 4:18 (CSB): “So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
John 18:36 (NIV): Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”
The true nature of the kingdom lies in the power of the Holy Spirit within us.
Acts 1:8 (NIV): “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Romans 14:17 (NIV): “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV): “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
The Holy Spirit provides unseen guidance and wisdom for bringing the kingdom’s culture, morals and values to life to earth.
John 14:26 (NIV): “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
When we submit to God’s rulership, follow His commands, and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us, God grants us rulership and authority over His kingdom. In doing so, God’s kingdom reigns in our hearts, and we fulfill his mission by establishing His heavenly kingdom on earth.
Revelation 5:10 (NIV): “You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”
Revelation 11:15 (NIV): Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”
A Quick Recap
The concept of the kingdom is mentioned throughout Scripture, and refers to God’s plans, promises and the central idea of humans having dominion over the earth. God’s initial purpose was to extend His heavenly kingdom to earth through humans, granting us dominion. The Holy Spirit serves as our guide, helping us bring the kingdom from the unseen heavenly realm into our daily lives. Understanding the kingdom is like unlocking a superpower—it gives us the ability to exercise our spiritual authority by allowing God’s influence to reign in our hearts. The more we grasp what the kingdom is about, the better we get the full picture of the Bible, and we are able to live a fulfilling life the way God intended.
Final thoughts—the enemy wants to steal your understanding of the kingdom.
The Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13 warns us that Satan sees the message of the kingdom as a threat, and he tries to snatch away our understanding so we are unable to live it out.
Matthew 13:19 (NIV): “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path.”
We must remember that we have power and authority over the enemy through Jesus (Luke 10:19), and when we diligently seek the kingdom (Matthew 6:33) and remain equipped with the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:11), we defeat the enemy and his schemes and use our dominion to reign on earth.
