| No one actually
teaches this idea, but it is implicit in the teaching that Jesus
must return to establish the Kingdom. This age is the age of the
Spirit. We live in a time when God is working in the world through
the Holy Spirit. God has given the Holy Spirit the task of
establishing the Kingdom (working through the church). If Jesus
has to return to establish the Kingdom, the Holy Spirit has
failed.
The truth is the other way round. Jesus
came to earth as a man, so he was limited to working in time and
space. His influence was limited to the country of Palestine. This
meant that it was impossible for Jesus to establish the Kingdom.
He laid the foundation for the Kingdom by his death, resurrection,
but he could not make the Kingdom of God a reality. Ruling the
world from Jerusalem would have been impossible. This is why Jesus
said it was better for him to leave the earth (Jn 16:7). By
departing, Jesus released the Holy Spirit to work in the world.
While living on the earth, Jesus had no influence beyond Israel.
Once he left the earth and began to work through the Spirit, his
influence soon extended throughout the earth.
The Holy Spirit has the capability needed
to establish the Kingdom of God. The only obstacle to the coming
of the Kingdom is human sin, but through the salvation of Jesus, the
Holy Sprit has the power to overcome sin. He can empower his
people to witness to Jesus throughout the earth (Acts 1:8). Jesus
promised that the Holy Spirit would "convict the world of
guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgement" (Jn
16:8). He is able to give sinful people a new heart" (John
3:5). We can expect the Holy Spirit to be successful in these
tasks. The presence of the Holy Spirit in the church means that it
has dynamic power. Since he has all the infinite power of God,
we should expect the Spirit to bring the Kingdom of God to
victory.
Over the last century, Church has
rediscovered the power of the Holy Spirit, but our understanding
of his role has been limited to his work in the Church. We need a
revelation of his role in establishing the Kingdom of God. |