A fuller study of the kingdom of God

1) Information about “kingdoms” is found in Dan. 2, 5, 7. Key verse is Dan. 2:44.
a) Daniel foretells some world history in Dan. 2 with a great beast. Dan. 2:31-34, 36-37.
b) Gold (head) = Babylon, Medo-Persian = silver, Greece = brass, Rome = iron and clay.
c) These same nations are described in Dan. 7, only the writer uses various creatures. Dan. 7:1-7
d) A beast LIKE a lion with eagle’s wings, something like a bear, something like a leopard.
e) Then came the fourth beast: very frightening.
2) Let’s look at the lion like beast – what happened to it (Dan. 7:4)? ______________________
3) This is figurative speech – frightening descriptions to describe the overthrow of the nation.
4) V. 5 – the second beast is said to have “_____ ribs” – there are tons of guesses about these ribs.
5) Since this is figurative speech, they may not have any specific significance.
6) If they are designed to indicate something, it may be greed. They could represent countries.
7) Greece (the “brass” in Dan. 2 and “leopard” in Dan. 7) is described in a little more detail.
a) How many “heads” and “wings” did this beast have? Verse 6 – ________________.
b) We find the fulfillment of this in Alexander the Great – conquered most of known world.
c) He had four sons (the “four heads”) that divided his kingdom.
d) This same subject is discussed in Dan. 8:8-12. “Little horn” = Antiochus IV Epiphanes.
8) Rome (the fourth part of the image/the terrible beast) had ________ “horns (Dan. 7:7)?
9) Some think these horns refer to ten divisions in the Roman Empire – this could be true.
10) Others believe ten rulers are being described; this may also be true.
11) What was to arise a little later (Dan. 7:8)? _____________________________________
12) What are we told about this “horn” in Dan. 7:24? _________________________
13) This power would _______________ (Dan. 7:20).
14) It would also claim ________________ (Dan. 7:25a).
15) Domitian (A.D. 81-96) fits this power very well – he was a braggart and claimed to be deity.
16) What Daniel predicated has come true—the wild prophecies of today are false.
17) We need to know the truth and teach it. We may also benefit by asking people questions.
18) Where did Jesus ever say He would reign on the earth?
19) Rev. 20 is often a proof text for Premillennialism – is the word “earth” used in this chapter (read vss 1-6).
20) This chapter simply says “reign with Him ____________.”
21) What did Jesus say in Jn. 18:36? _______________. Was this a lie? Did Jesus not know? A joke?
22) What did the false idea of an earthly kingdom cause (Mt. 2:16)? ____________________________.
23) Explain the significance of Jn. 17:4 – ___________________________________________________.
24) If Jesus were to come to earth again, what could He do that has not already been done? ___________.
a) Acts 2:34-36 – Has Jesus been crowned king or not? _______ Rev. 17:14 (“IS”).
b) What will happen when Jesus comes again (2 Pet. 3:8-11)? ______________
25) Error says Jesus is coming back to receive a kingdom.
26) Compare Dan. 7:13-14, 22 + Heb. 12:28 – in the Bible Jesus came to receive the kingdom.
27) At His return He will give back and not “receive” the kingdom (1 Cor. 15:24).
28) What do we learn from Rev. 1:6, 9? _________________________________________.
29) How much authority does Jesus have now (Mt. 28:18)? How much would that increase w/an earthly kingdom?
30) The order of things in the Bible:
31) Accountable are either in the world or in the church. All these people die (Heb. 9:27) and enter into the Hadean world (Lk. 16:19-31). A judgment day is coming (2 Cor. 5:10). Heaven will be the destiny for the saved; Hell will be the destiny for the condemned. This will be the end.

Get a FREE on-line Romans commentary at http://www.abiblecommentary.com. You may also order this commentary in book form for just $14.95 (it is a great addition to your library, or an ideal gift for friends, a special Bible class teacher or a cherished minister. The next commentary for release will be First Corinthians and we expect that will be out soon!

King Hezekiah rent his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes when he heard the news of the great Assyrian army coming up against Jerusalem. He then went to God in prayer. The Israelites were sore distressed at seeing their king in such a humiliating fashion. However, God’s prophet, Isaiah, promised, “Your eyes will see the king in his beauty” (Isaiah 33:17a – NKJV). This passage gave birth to the hymn, “The Last Mile of the Way.”

Christians have also seen their King in His humiliation, emptying Himself in order to be fashioned as a man (Philippians 2:7-8), being spat upon, scourged and crucified on a cross. But we too have the promise of seeing our Great King in His beauty someday. When He walked upon this earth, there was nothing about His physical appearance that attracted people to Him (Isaiah 53:2). But that has all changed. Now He has been glorified, and His beauty is such that when the apostle John saw it, he was thrown into a comatose-like state (Revelation 1:17).

How superlative must the beauty of Jesus be? Who can be more beautiful than the One who is perfect in love? Who can be more beautiful than One, though exceedingly rich, preached the Gospel to the poor? (Luke 4:18) Who can be more beautiful than One who has never lost a battle against evil? How beautiful must the One be that ten thousand times ten thousand angels worship Him? Who can be more beautiful than God?

We have never seen our King in His beauty, but we shall someday (Philippians 2:10). Today, we can only see Him through the eye of faith (Hebrews 11:1), but one day face to face. –Toby Miller

Get a FREE on-line Romans commentary at http://www.abiblecommentary.com. You may also order this commentary in book form for just $14.95 (it is a great addition to your library, or an ideal gift for friends, a special Bible class teacher or a cherished minister. The next commentary for release will be First Corinthians and we expect that will be out soon!

1. There are some things that baptism does and some things baptism does not do.
2. The Corinthians were informed about this matter in 1 Cor. 10:1-4.
3. 1 Cor. 10 is based upon what is said in the previous two chapters.
4. In 1 Cor. 8 there is a lot of instruction about eating meat sacrificed to idols.
5. Paul responded to the Corinthians’ false conclusion in 1 Cor. 9.
6. There he pictured the Christian life to an athletic contest and said God’s people are like athletes.
7. Based on this background we come to 1 Cor. 10; in this chapter Paul drew some parallels.
8. He went back to the nation of Israel to show how God had dealt with the Jewish people.
9. One of the key points is that the Hebrew people felt secure.
10. They had memorial feasts. Israel had a “baptism” unto Moses (verses 1-2).
11. Israel came to realize that having a feast was not enough.
12. Having Moses, the law, and many other things did give the nation of Israel certain blessings.
13. At the same time, these blessings did not take care of some things.
14. Paul said: remember Israel – know that things like baptism and the Lord’s Supper are not enough.
15. There were some things that baptism and the Lord’s Supper could not do for these Christians.

TODAY WE WANT TO TAKE THIS CORE POINT AND DEVELOP IT IN SEVERAL WAYS. WE WANT TO SEE WHAT BAPTISM WILL AND WILL NOT DO FOR PEOPLE.

1) Baptism will not give someone a license to sin.
2) The Corinthians thought they could use their baptism to trample on fellow saints.
3) If they had been immersed, they felt like they could do whatever they pleased with the idol meat.
4) Rom. 6:1-6 says a person chooses to leave behind sin when they are baptized.
5) When we decide to become a Christian we make a decision and we are to stick with it.
6) A related point on what baptism does not do is becoming “immune” to sin.
a) Let’s compare this idea to 1 Cor. 9:27 – READ
b) By using the present tense Paul showed this was an ongoing battle in his life.
7) If baptism does not remove the temptation to sin, what does it do.
8) Baptism helps a person obtain forgiveness of sins (Acts 22:16). Acts 2:38.
a) There can be some lasting consequences from sin.
b) If a person likes to drink and kills a person because of drunk driving, he can be baptized.
c) The guilt from that sin can be successfully addressed by the blood of Christ.
d) There will still be a scar from that sin. A man is still dead.
9) When a person is baptized they may feel like they have fulfilled their responsibility to God.
10) Paul says in Rom. 6:4 that after baptism we begin a “new life” (there is a new way to live).
11) Some have had the false idea that baptism does away with the need for repentance.
a) Baptism is not designed to take the place of repentance. It will not take the place of repentance.
b) Baptism and repentance go together. A person first repents (they begin to make changes).
12) Thinking about what baptism will not do reminds us that it will also not overcome a lack of faith.
13) Baptism will also not change a person into something he is not.
14) In our culture people are often told to be baptized to “join the church.”
15) We never—not one time—find that information in the Bible.
16) Men say baptism is “for the saved.” Jesus said baptism is “to get (become) saved,” Mk. 16:16.
17) Many have the idea that one baptism is as good as another.
a) God does not believe that. Eph. 4:4-5 – “one God” just as there is only “one baptism.”
18) Baptism does not mean “just do it some place and somehow.”
19) Baptism does mean “do it as God has said and just as God has said.”
a) That one way is immersion, a dipping, plunging, submerging.
b) Baptism is called a “burial” in places like Rom. 6:4 and Col. 2:12.

Get a FREE on-line Romans commentary at http://www.abiblecommentary.com. You may also order this commentary in book form for just $14.95 (it is a great addition to your library, or an ideal gift for friends, a special Bible class teacher or a cherished minister. The next commentary for release will be First Corinthians and we expect that will be out soon!

1) Our study starts in the first book of the Bible. Gen. 1:27 – READ
a) God made “man” in His image. Does “man” mean “male” or “man” in the sense of mankind?
b) In verse 28 we have information about this “man” subduing the earth.
2) “Man” describes both – clear from the Hebrew text as well as our English translations.
3) Male and female have been created in the image of God and both have dominion over the earth.
4) In some very significant ways men and women are equal. They both have authority over all of God’s creation.
5) By saying “male” and “female” God also implied there are some differences.
6) Adam needed a helper; he had a chance to look at the animals God had created.
a) Whatever a woman’s role is, equality must be part of the conclusion.
b) Equality does not mean that a person will have the exact same role as another individual.
c) The rest of my information is specifically designed to describe a woman’s role.
7) In describing the role of women we may offer this general answer: she is to follow the will of God.

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT A WOMAN’S ROLE?

a) My remaining information will fall into two categories and be from Proverbs.
b) We can define the role of women positively and negatively from the book of Proverbs.
c) In Prov. 5-9 we read about wicked women.
d) God wants women to be righteous (just as men), but some do not make this choice.
e) Prov. 5:3 refers to “strange women” (the writer is describing a prostitute).
f) Verse 3 describes enticing men – he says “her mouth is smoother than oil.”
g) Women can talk, dress, and act provocatively as they interact with men not their husbands.
h) Prov. 5 says this is not God’s will for any woman no matter what her age.
i) This teaching applies to all women – young and old. “Run” from such a woman (5:8).
2) When a woman chooses this type of role, she may be carrier of a sexually transmitted disease, verse 11.
3) The writer speaks of a person’s “body and flesh” being consumed. STD is not God’s will.
4) Another bad choice that we find in this book is found in Prov. 12 and prov. 19.
5) A woman can be like “rottenness” in a man’s bones (Prov. 12:4).
a) By a woman’s looks, actions and words females can inflict great damage on men.
b) Prov. 19:13 makes this point in an even more dramatic way.

RATHER THAN LIVE IN VIOLATION OF GOD’S WILL, GOD WANTS WOMEN TO FOLLOW WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS. THIS IS THEIR PROPER ROLE, AND MUCH ABOUT THE POSITIVE SIDE OF THIS TOPIC IS FOUND IN THE BOOK OF PROVERBS.

a) Prov. 31:17 has a good summary of the “worthy woman.”
b) Verse 17 serves as a mini conclusion to the first few verses; it says a fine lady is a hard worker.
c) What is the proper role for a woman? She is to work. This does not mean she does it all.
d) is to be able to trust her. His “heart” trusts her.
2) Verse 12 says a wife helps her husband; in the home a wife has some responsibilities to her mate.
3) This verse says she “does him good and not evil.”
4) Verse 26 in Prov. 31 speaks of a woman offering “wise” words to her husband.
a) Prov. 31:10 – READ – text does not say a “worthy king” – he wanted a wife!
5) There are passages in the New Testament such as 1 Tim. 2 that talk about leadership in the church.
6) In those verses Paul specifically says men (males) are responsible for preaching and teaching in mixed assemblies.
7) Women have work to do – more work than they could ever hope to accomplish in a lifetime.
a) Prov. 12:4 says a wife is her husband’s “joy and crown.” What a wonderful description.
b) A woman’s role is “building her house” (Prov. 14:1). This does not mean she is a carpenter.
c) Some women work outside the home and that is recognized in Prov. 31.
d) This is a matter of personal judgment (Rom. 14). If you make this choice, bear this in mind.
8) Everything that is done outside the home should have a lower priority than work in the home. 1 Pet. 3:3-4

Get a FREE on-line Romans commentary at http://www.abiblecommentary.com. You may also order this commentary in book form for just $14.95 (it is a great addition to your library, or an ideal gift for friends, a special Bible class teacher or a cherished minister. The next commentary for release will be First Corinthians and we expect that will be out soon!