What Is the Kingdom? | New Creation

by Alan Smith

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away …  And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away."  Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new."
Revelation 21:1, 4–5

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17

Four of us checked in to a Marriott Hotel in Guatemala City when we first arrived in the country. We stayed one night and then drove four hours into the mountains for three full days of ministry. We then returned to Guatemala City and checked back into the same hotel, but it wasn’t the same hotel at all. Marriott sold the hotel to a company called Barcelon, and the transformation took place quickly between our stays. No trace of the old Marriott identity was anywhere to be found. There was new management, new branding, even new towels and new soap!

That’s what it will be like when God’s kingdom comes in fullness. All the old will pass away and everything will be made new. All that Jesus purchased for us through His death and resurrection will be fully appropriated. All that God purposed for creation will be fully realized. The only appropriate term for this is “new creation.”

We do not have to wait for that day to know what this will be like! God is now doing in you what He will one day do in all creation. He is causing all the old things to pass away and making everything new in your life now. You are a new creation! Those who have opportunities to observe this transformation will, through your life, get a foretaste of the new creation that is yet to come.

That’s what happens when the kingdom of heaven comes. Old things pass away. Everything is made new. Tears, death, sorrow, pain— these are old things. The kingdom brings such newness that these old things are displaced with God’s presence, voice, joy and health.

1. What are some old things that need to pass away in your life?

2. How is experiencing God’s kingdom a better solution for getting rid of these old things than simply trying harder?

3. In what ways have you already experienced new creation as a result of God’s kingdom in your life?

What is the Kingdom? | Already and Not Yet

by Alan Smith

In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
Ephesians 1:13–14

Years ago, my dad was selling his truck. The ad he placed in the newspaper generated several calls, and before too long, we had a series of potential buyers kicking tires in the driveway. The fourth one decided to buy it, but wouldn’t be ready to pay the full price for a couple of days. No problem. He gave $500 as a guarantee of the full price he would pay later in the week.

We all understand the concept of a down payment. We receive a portion of something now as a guarantee of the fullness of what we will receive later. The kingdom of God works kind of like that too. Many think of the kingdom only as a future reality, with no benefit in the present. Others consider the kingdom only in terms of the present, with no sense of anticipation for that which is yet to come. But this is not an either/or proposition. God’s kingdom is a present reality. God’s kingdom is also a future reality.

We have entered God’s story during the in-between. Jesus has fully provided for the complete restoration of all that is broken in God’s good creation. One day, when Jesus returns, His full provision will be fully appropriated. What a great day that will be! In the present, God has given us the Spirit as a down payment on what is to come. We can live according to that future reality now by the Spirit; we can begin to implement Jesus’ complete victory now by the Spirit.

When we choose to live as kingdom people, we choose to live in the present in light of that future reality and on the basis of Jesus’ finished work. We are spending the down payment! Our faith determines how much of that future reality we get to experience in the present.

1. What will God’s future kingdom be like?

2. How would your life be different if that future kingdom began to invade your present reality?

3. If faith grows as a result of hearing God’s voice (Romans 10:17), then how is learning to hear God’s voice connected to our experience of the kingdom in the here and now?