Posted on 08/28/2020 10:06:47 AM PDT by Cronos
Because she is a reflection of the ideal Kingdom of Heaven, Christ's Church on earth is called the Kingdom of God in the Holy Scriptures. In its regular usage, "kingdom" means a high degree of a society's development, a state with its law-making, legal, executive and all other authorities. A state consists of citizens, government, administration; it has laws, customs, language, army and so on. The Church is also a Kingdom, and a peculiar one as she is filled with grace. She consists of people in the process of moral regeneration. Being a Kingdom, she has her Head, the Heavenly King, Lord Jesus Christ and also her own laws, internal structure, ministers (hierarchy), and citizens — faithful Christians. Without these features she would not be a kingdom, but something shapeless and vague. Christians enjoy all privileges of the spiritual Kingdom that they belong, but not merely as consumers but as active "citizens," co-working for the common good.
The Holy Scripture speaks about the Church as a Kingdom of God in a number of places: Matthew 3:2, Matthew 4:17, Matthew 6:10, Matthew 6:33, Matthew 9:35, Matthew 18:3, Mark 10:14-15, Luke 12:32, Luke 17:21, John 3:5, John 18:36, Romans 14:17, 1 Corinthians 4:20, Colossians 1:12-22.
The Savior often began teaching with the words, "The Kingdom of Heaven is likened..." "Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom," which is the good news that the Kingdom of God is coming (Matthew 9:35). It shows that people shall not be saved individually and solitarily, but jointly, as one family, making use of the graceful means that He lodged His Kingdom.
The conditions for entry to the Kingdom: "Repent (literally, change the way of thinking): for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 4:17). This entry is possible only through the Sacrament of Baptism, in which man becomes reborn for spiritual life: "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:5-6).
The Church has in her foundation the atoning sacrifice of Christ that allows us, by faith and through new birth, become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4). That is why the life of the Church is supernatural in essence, although it flows in quite ordinary circumstances and visible forms. It is also explanatory of the Savior's words (so confusing for non-believers) about the position of the faithful in worldly life: "... and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world" (John 17:14). "If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you" (John 15:19). These words of the Savior demonstrate the incompatibility of righteous life with sinful and out-of-Church customs of the secular world. "My kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36).
Thus, the Church is a graceful, supernatural, unity of born-again people who form the mystical Body of Christ, founded by Christ on Calvary, filled with the Holy Ghost, and headed by Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself.
Gawd. The one bad part of being Republican.
So, if all these Joe Biden wannabe kid huggers and worse priests and nuns are an example of heaven, no thanks!!
The church is the body of Christ. The Kingdom is God’s domain of heaven. In the New Testament, the kingdom coming is God’s revelation of the second coming of Jesus as told in Revelation. Each of the passages you included all point to this; none of them point to the church being the kingdom. The church is necessary or the holy spirit to inhabit the hearts of worshipers through Jesus Christ. Without communion with other Christians, the holy spirit cannot take root and grow.
Only if you ignore the entire OT ...
You are in for one big surprise!!! Christ is returning with a double edged sword ... He will take NO prisoners... All this worship of a flesh created ‘church’ is described in Revelation 2 and 3 ... ONLY two of those churches are in good standing ... Yours does NOT make the cut...
“none of them point to the church being the kingdom.”
I’m sure glad you noticed that too because I went through all of Scriptures and was saying to myself they refer to Jesus Christ Himself, not His church.
All we have to do is look at Acts 1:6-8, Jesus clearly says that it’s not for you to know when the kingdom will be established v.7, but then He indicates when His Church will be established, v.8.
When we investigate v.6 we see that the kingdom is when Jesus Christ sits on His father David’s throne, Isaiah 9:7, Luke 1:32-33 in Jerusalem and establishes His earthly kingdom and rules with a rod of iron, Rev 2:27.
Acts 1:6-8
6 So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; 8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
Remember that at the time of Jesus, the Jews were (many still are) awaiting the Messiah who was prophesied to restore the throne of David and restore the kingdom of Isreal. The reason the Pharisees rejected Jesus as Messiah is because Jesus rejected the return of the Jewish kingdom and instead shared the Lord's "good news" of the arrival of God's kingdom. This was too hard an idea for many devout Jews at the time, which is why they tried Jesus for blasphemy and had the Roman governor Pontius Pilot crucify him as a warning to others.
The kingdom in this context refers to the return of the Kingdom of Isreal to the Jews, but the true kingdom is God's kingdom as told by Jesus. The church is not God's kingdom, but a tool to spread the holy spirit and lead people, Jews and Gentiles, to salvation through Jesus Christ. God's kingdom is heaven and when Revelation plays out, heaven will be brought to Earth by Jesus Christ.
“This was too hard an idea for many devout Jews at the time,”
1 Peter 2:8
“true kingdom is God’s kingdom as told by Jesus.”
Isn’t that the millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ upon earth when the kingdom is restored to Israel, Gal 3:7-8 and its true King our Lord Jesus Christ reigns? Are you preaching something diffent?
Christ with the double edged sword in apocalypse 16 echoes Isaiah 11 - and this is God’s covenant judgement on Jerusalem of 67 to 70 AD — the city that crucified the Lord
Ultimately these, with one exception are not "way off the tracks" - and that one example is due to sola S of the Nicolaitans rather than holding fast to the traditions and faith taught to them by the Apostles.
Now the Church that held on to this was the Church following the teachings of the Apostles, with the faith and traditions handed down.
This is in orthodoxy.
The evangelicalism, mormonisms etc. are as you point out of Sardis or of the Nicolaitans
I am mainly making the hermeneutical point that the true Kingdom is heaven (not the church), which is what all Christians are supposed to be striving for via our faith in Jesus Christ and our desire to have a relationship with God through him. I used the historical context of the restoration of Isreal to attempt to explain where the old testament Jewish prophecies diverge from the reality of Jesus and God's plan.
However, in Mystici Corporis Pius XII identifies the Mystical Body of Christ as the Catholic Church: "the Mystical Body of Christ and the Roman Catholic Church are one and the same thing," and to which one must belong. Thus since souls entered the kingdom of God before the church began, then Catholicism must imagine that believers which came before her where Catholics, as are the baptized Prots she now affirms are Christians.
However, if the kingdom is the Catholic church then no one is saved except those who belong to her, while the Catholic kingdom is an unholy admixture of true and false believers, and is not the NT church church since distinctive Catholic teachings are not manifest in the only wholly inspired substantive authoritative record of what the NT church believed (which is Scripture, in particular Acts through Revelation, which best shows how the NT church understood the gospels).
Because she is a reflection of the ideal Kingdom of Heaven, Christ's Church on earth is called the Kingdom of God in the Holy Scriptures... The Holy Scripture speaks about the Church as a Kingdom of God in a number of places: Matthew 3:2, Matthew 4:17, Matthew 6:10, Matthew 6:33, Matthew 9:35, Matthew 18:3, Mark 10:14-15, Luke 12:32, Luke 17:21, John 3:5, John 18:36, Romans 14:17, 1 Corinthians 4:20, Colossians 1:12-22.
Wrong, which is par for the course when a Catholic posts promotions of their church. No texts described the kingdom as the Catholic church.
And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 3:2) From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 4:17)
This is not about a physical kingdom, but a spiritual one which everyone enters into when they believe:
Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. (John 18:36) Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son. (Colossians 1:13) Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. (Luke 17:21)
For "the kingdom" has two meanings, one refers to the spiritual kingdom in which Christ rules, which is synonymous with the mystical body of Christ (which even a relative few RCs are part of), while the other refers to the Lord's reign on earth, which the former reign with Christ in. (Revelation 5:9)
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:10)
This is referring to the coming physical kingdom on earth, not the church:
I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; (2 Timothy 4:1) And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 8:11) The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 13:41-42) And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me; That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (Luke 22:29-30) And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. (Revelation 12:10) Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: (Matthew 25:34) Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. (Matthew 13:43)
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matthew 6:33)
Meaning seeking what supports and is consistent with Christ's rule.
Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? (2 Peter 3:12)
And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. (Matthew 9:35)
The "gospel of the kingdom" is that souls need to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus and thus do works correspondent to repentance. (Acts 20:21; 26:20) This preaching began before the church began on Pentecost, which when the gifts that enabled its function were poured out. (Ephesians 4:7-16; Hebrews 9:16)
And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:3)
But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. (Mark 10:14)
Which simply describes the character of believers in the spiritual kingdom of God referred to before.
But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. (Luke 12:31-32)
Amen and again, believers enter into the spiritual kingdom and the mystical body of Christ when they believe, (Col. 1:13) which they did before the church began.
Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. (Luke 17:21)
Which was affirmed before the church began, and refers to Christ's reign in believers heart, which in essence is what the kingdom is, and the spiritual kingdom consists of those obedient to the Lord Jesus, and who will make up His visible kingdom on earth.
Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. (John 3:5)
Which again refers to the spiritual kingdom of God on enters into when they believe.
Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. (John 18:36)
Which attests to the above fact, in contrast to the church which has traditionally affirmed it has the right to use physical force in order to discipline its members.
For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. (Romans 14:17) For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power. (1 Corinthians 4:20)
Which simply describes the character of the kingdom, and as with the other proffered proof texts, does not teach that the Catholic church is the kingdom.
Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: (Colossians 1:12-22)
Being translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son occurs at conversion by regenerating, heart-purifying faith, which is expressed in baptism but can can precede it, (Acts 10:43-47; 15:7-9) whereby the Spirit baptizes one into the mystical body of Christ, (1 Co. 12:13) which is the only one true church and to which Christ is married. For it alone only and always consists only of true believers, while the organic fellowships in which believers are to be part of end up being admixtures of wheat and chaff.
The conditions for entry to the Kingdom: "Repent (literally, change the way of thinking): for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 4:17). This entry is possible only through the Sacrament of Baptism, in which man becomes reborn for spiritual life: "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:5-6).
Actually, if this was the case then no one could become born again until there were baptized, while in reality, Peter shows that it is the regenerating, heart-purifying faith that is expressed in baptism that is what make son born of the Spirit. But since faith effects obedience, then the Spirit can also be promised to those who will do what faith effects, first of all baptism. (Acts 2:38)
And he shewed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter; Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved. (Acts 11:13-14)
And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. (Acts 10:42-43)
While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days. (Acts 10:44-48)
And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe. And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. (Acts 15:7-9)
ONE?
Nearly as good as the 'is' obfuscation Slick Willy pondered.
The apostles and elders, your brothers,
To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:
Greetings.
24 We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. 25 So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. 28 It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29 You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.
Farewell.
"One indeed is the universal Church of the faithful, outside which no one at all is saved, in which the priest himself is the sacrifice, Jesus Christ, whose body and blood are truly contained in the sacrament of the altar under the species of bread and wine; the bread (changed) into His body by the divine power of transubstantiation, and the wine into the blood, so that to accomplish the mystery of unity we ourselves receive from His (nature) what He Himself received from ours."
--Pope Innocent III and Lateran Council IV (A.D. 1215)
Basing itself on Scripture and Tradition, the Council teaches that the Church, a pilgrim now on Earth, is necessary for salvation: the one Christ is the mediator and the way of salvation; he is present to us in his body which is the Church. He himself explicitly asserted the necessity of faith and baptism and thereby affirmed at the same time the necessity of the Church which men enter through baptism as through a door. Hence they could not be saved who, knowing that the Catholic Church was founded as necessary by God through Christ, would refuse either to enter it or to remain in it.
This affirmation is not aimed at those who, through no fault of their own, do not know Christ and his Church: Those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the gospel of Christ or his Church but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart and, moved by grace, try in their actions to do his will as they know it through the dictates of their conscience—those too may achieve eternal salvation. "Although in ways known to himself God can lead those who, through no fault of their own, are ignorant of the gospel, to that faith without which it is impossible to please him, the Church still has the obligation and also the sacred right to evangelize all men" (CCC 846-848)
Pick one.
Your in-depth knowledge of the Catholic church and its history always astonishes me, and your handle on Scripture is quite solid.
Daniel1212, you are a warrior for God from whom we are blessed to have the opportunity to learn.
May God grant you many more years of life!
Not so. The scriptures uses the "kingdom of God" and the "kingdom of heaven" interchangeably. They are one in the same. For example:
Matt 19:23-24 And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
From this text along Christ isn't telling us the kingdom is the Church as you're using it. Rather it is a spiritual realm. It is not some earthly realm.
I would suggest that the Church (church) on earth is a corrupt institution, just like the temple practices became corrupt. Though it is meant as a place to have sweet fellowship, one should never forget there are wolves among the flock. It is the spiritual church (those remnant) who are true born again believers that make up the kingdom of heaven (God).
Glory to God for what is good, while there is far more to know.
Indeed, and as explained, the RCC cannot be this kingdom for besides its novelties and contrary beliefs, it has sanctioned the use of the sword of men in order to deal with theological dissent. Thus the RC will argue that in the spiritual realm their church is a pure spiritual body, so that all without are damned, but if they are V2 RCs, they can say that faithful baptized Prots are part of the Catholic church, if imperfectly. Which is absurd, since the RCC and the body of Christ is not one and the same, though a few RCs are in it, by the grace of God. And it all gets into the conflicting interpretations of Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus.
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