24 Days to Reflect on God's Heart for RedemptionНамуна

Redemption as a transition to the Kingdom of Jesus

Colossians 1:13 says, “… and (God) brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves …” In the common Greek language of Paul’s readers, the word for “brought” is metestesen, meaning to remove, transplant into, to bring to a different point of view, or to cause someone to change his/her position. One commentator uses the word “translated” to denote the “transplanting of races and the settlement of them in a new home; a resettlement of the captives in the new kingdom of Christ.”

Rather than living under the dominion of darkness, Jesus relocates us into another realm of existence, the kingdom of light, the kingdom of the Son God loves. When Buckner clients move into our programs, they go under a resettlement of sorts. Through some programs, it’s a physical resettlement into a new living zone. More importantly, they come into a different spiritual zone of encouragement and support when they arrive at Buckner.

When Jesus taught his disciples how to pray in Matthew 6:9, he gave the three priorities to focus on in prayer: God’s name, God’s Kingdom, and God’s will on Earth as it is in heaven. The Kingdom of God was foremost in his teaching and in his ministry. Jesus taught that the Kingdom of God is near (Matthew 3:2) and he started many of his parables with this introductory phrase: “The Kingdom of God is like …” to illustrate the reality of the Kingdom in terms his hearers could grasp.

Arthur Glasser categorized the parables of Jesus into growth, banquet, stewardship, and seeking themes. The growth parables teach that the Kingdom of God, his sovereign and creative activity in history and throughout the world is constantly advancing; the banquet parables teach that kingdom service requires collaboration with Jesus in holiness and social responsibility by prophetic words and loving deeds; the stewardship parables teach personal responsibility and accountability of the good news of the kingdom; and the seeking parables teach the value and worth of the kingdom over material possessions. The Kingdom of God was not only foremost in the teachings of Jesus but also the core of his first sermon in Luke 4:14-30.

Jesus also taught that seeking the Kingdom of God should be our first priority over everything else. In Matthew 6:33, Jesus said, “But seek first the kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Jesus teaches that if we seek his kingdom and God’s righteousness, everything else we need will be given to us. This kingdom of the Son of God was such a priority to God that he sent his only Son to Earth to establish this kingdom on Earth as it is in heaven. The kingdom must also be a priority to those who call Jesus their Redeemer, their King.

Kingdom people live differently in every area of life as they begin to seek the values of the kingdom as their highest priority. This new life is made possible by the sacrifice of Jesus and the redemption of our lives.

It is through redemption that we’re reconciled to God and brought into his kingdom. The very word “atonement” means “at one with God.” Our reconciliation with God through redemption is being made right with God by God. Second Corinthians 5:18-20 tells us God reconciled us to himself through Christ and, “gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself.” Therefore, “we are ambassadors for Christ.”

Reflection question:

• If being transferred from the dominion of darkness into the Kingdom of Jesus, what does it mean, in tangible terms, for the Kingdom of God to come near to you and your family?