Consider today’s world! Advances in technology and industry have never been greater. What was once science fiction is now everyday reality. Material prosperity abounds for millions of people across the Western world. But what about the half of mankind—billions!—who have little or nothing? And what about mankind’s rapid decline in values, morals and character—once believed to be the most vital underpinnings of any society? Is the human race equipped, and are its leaders collectively willing, to solve the greatest challenges of civilization—or must a greater unseen power intervene?

Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “Your Kingdom come!” The next thing He instructed was directly related: “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” A loving God must soon send His Kingdom to end man’s failed experiment or there will be no world to receive it!

Christ, at His First Coming, came as a first-century newscaster, bringing advance good news of staggering events to occur just beyond the horizon, and all the bad news occurring throughout today’s world. This climactic news involves you—and eventually every human being on Earth!

The word gospel is an old English word meaning “god spell” or good news. The word kingdom is also an Old English term, simply meaning “government.” Therefore, it is accurate to say that Christ preached “the good news of the government of God.”

The Kingdom of God is the dominant theme of not only the New Testament, but of the whole Bible. Yet, incredibly, most know little or nothing of it. This world’s ministers are oblivious to this gospel, and never preach about it. Therefore, virtually the whole world stands in complete ignorance of the single greatest truth in God’s Word!

Jesus Christ’s Return—His “Second Coming”—is central to Christianity. Billions are waiting for it. Scoffers deny it. But those who know anything of God’s Word know Jesus is returning. Every indicator suggests His Coming cannot be far away. The Bible speaks extensively about how Jesus will establish the Kingdom of God, sometimes called the Kingdom of Heaven. Few things could be more important. Jesus Himself plainly described how God’s Kingdom will begin—and it is not what you have learned. This Personal contains knowledge never before explained! And it represents only a tiny fraction of

all the biblical proof throughout the Old and New Testaments of how the Kingdom of God will arrive in a manner no one is hearing about!

God’s Kingdom will bring His marvelous way of life to those living in it, which will one day include the whole world. But not at first…

Multiple “Comings”

The universally held belief is that Jesus Christ will return to Earth in Jerusalem, and this will follow three-and-a-half years of Great Tribulation—involving the seven seals of Revelation. Vast numbers of mankind will die. He will then immediately establish a world supergovernment. The Bible says none of this! While all of these things will happen in their time, and will in every way be worse than anyone imagines, God’s Word is most plain that Christ’s Return will come in an entirely different manner than what anybody is looking for!

Let’s ask a surprising question, one that no one seems to consider. How many comings of Jesus does the Bible describe? Contrasting verses hold the surprising answer. The prophet Haggai wrote of Jesus’ Return: “Thus says the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations, and the Desire of all nations [long understood to be Jesus Christ] shall come…” (2:6-7). Vast numbers today are looking for and desiring Christ’s coming. While most understand little about His arrival, the Christian masses do desire it, with greater reason every day to hope for it more than the day before because of worldwide character breakdown!

Here’s the problem—and it’s big! The book of Revelation speaks of a very different reaction to Jesus’ appearance: “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign forever and ever…the nations were angry, and Your wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged…and [You] should destroy them which destroy the earth” (11:15, 18). A picture of angry nations is incompatible with Haggai.

These passages cannot refer to the same time!

Lacking knowledge of Christ’s multiple comings, many assert He comes and immediately vanquishes all enemies, establishing His Kingdom. Revelation appears to say this, but consider I Corinthians 15:25, which shows something entirely different, saying Christ “must reign, till He has put all enemies under His feet.” Those who would suggest He arrives, reigns for a split second, then annihilates all enemies are simply ignoring this verse, with many others.

Understand. The start of God’s Kingdom has nothing to do with the false Protestant belief that Christ secretly “raptures” His servants to heaven. Nowhere does God’s Word say Jesus takes Christians back to heaven with Him. (Many verses prove this.) You will see plain passages showing He establishes God’s Kingdom on Earth, using servants that are here. This will become clear.

The establishment of the Kingdom of God is our focus. No true Christian doubts that Christ is coming. But no one is explaining how He will come—when He is coming (under what conditions)—where He will arrive—why He must come—and how He will ultimately set up His Kingdom. They simply do not know.

Mustard Seed Kingdom

Everyone knows Jesus spoke often in parables. In Matthew 13 alone, He presented seven—most very short. Each illustrates aspects of the Kingdom, collectively painting a full picture. The place to start is verse 31: “The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becomes a tree, so the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof” (vs. 31-32). The mustard seeds Jesus’ audience was familiar with were extremely small—very hard to see. This is why He called them the “least [meaning small in size] of all seeds.” God’s Kingdom is akin to microscopic when it arrives! No one focuses on this. It eventually grows into a world government, becoming the “greatest among herbs”—a “tree”—but it does not start that way. This parable is never mentioned because nobody truly understands it.

So there could be no doubt of the Kingdom’s small beginning, the next parable confirms this: “The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened” (vs. 33). The Greek word “hid” is egkrupto, meaning concealed in. Think of the modern equivalent—encrypted. Jesus says—literally—He is bringing an encrypted Kingdom. It is initially hidden but it expands because leaven always spreads.

Jesus underscores this in a third parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man has found, he hides, and for joy thereof goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field” (vs. 44). “Hid” here comes from krupto, meaning “to conceal by covering.” Christ’s message is again made clear: God’s Kingdom starts tiny, hidden—and covered. One must go and find it!

Yet another parable confirms this: “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls” (vs. 45). Rare and precious, naturally occurring pearls are hard to find. “Who, when he had found one pearl of great price [it was hidden and he had to look for it], went and sold all that he had, and bought it” (vs. 45-46). Besides reinforcing the mustard seed and leaven parables, the hid treasure and pearl parables also add focus to the value of entering the Kingdom.

Before looking at the three remaining parables of Matthew 13, realize that every kingdom on Earth today has four necessary components: (1) Land, property or territory—however large or small. There must be clear boundaries establishing the size of the kingdom. (2) A ruler or king leading the government. (3) People—subjects—living within the territory governed. And (4) a system of laws and rules with a basic structure of government.

Despite its size, when the mustard seed Kingdom arrives, it does have all four elements. When Christ repeatedly spoke of the Kingdom being “tiny” and “hidden,” He was referring to the numbers of subjects—which would grow dramatically in the second and third “measures of meal.” Christ’s power and the territory He will govern will be anything but tiny.

It is a literal Kingdom. Do not spiritualize it away as a church, or something “in the hearts of men.”

Three More Parables

A fifth parable shows expansion of God’s Kingdom from a small beginning, as well as something else no one seems to notice: “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea…” (vs. 47). The net starts out empty. Over time it fills with fish of “every kind”—people from all nations. But not all “fish” belong: “When it was full, they drew to shore, sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world [or age, when Christ moves to Jerusalem]: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just [note this!], and shall cast them into the furnace [or oven] of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (vs. 48-50). (The end of the wicked is incompatible with an ever-burning afterlife. For more on this, the reader will want to read our booklet The Truth About Hell.)

Abandon any notion that the Kingdom of God begins with only divine spirit beings. This parable dispels that misconception. The wicked can get into the Kingdom and must at a point be removed!

Yet another Matthew 13 parable describes wheat and poisonous tares initially growing together in the Kingdom of Heaven. Obviously the Kingdom is not in heaven. Christ instructs that the tares must remain with the wheat until the harvest—when He shifts to Jerusalem. He explains that, at this point, as when the net is pulled to shore—after the mustard seed Kingdom has been on Earth for some time—angels gather “out of the kingdom” the tares and “all the things that offend and do iniquity,” repeating that these are burned in a furnace.

So then, the Kingdom is such that, as it grows, the wrong kinds of people can get in. Christ said this twice, using easy illustrations so the point cannot be missed. Verse 43 calls the harvest the time when the righteous in the Father’s Kingdom “shine forth as the sun.” The Greek means “become resplendent.” Other passages make clear it is at this point many more saints, people who qualified for rule in God’s Kingdom, join Christ and the Father in Jerusalem where He will superimpose His Kingdom over all nations. It will have by then sprouted into the large mustard tree that started from the smallest seed.

The very first parable in Matthew 13 brings yet another perspective, showing those who ultimately succeed in the Kingdom. Jesus spoke of a sower that cast seed, with some falling on good ground, some on stony ground, some where thorns could choke it, and some falling by the wayside. As with the wheat and tares, Jesus went on to interpret it for us: “Hear you [or understand] therefore the parable of the sower. When any one hears the word of the kingdom, and understands it not, then comes the wicked one [Satan], and catches away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side. But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that hears the word [of the Kingdom], and…with joy receives it; yet has he not root in himself, but endures for a while: for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word [many do not want to hear of the Kingdom], by and by he is offended” (vs. 18-21).

Notice also that tribulation and persecution are associated with subjects in the Kingdom! Yet the rewards will be awesome. No one ever hears that such a thing is possible.

Continuing the parable, “He also that received seed among the thorns is he that hears the [same] word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful” (vs. 22).

Here is the last category: “He that received seed into the good ground is he that hears the word [of the Kingdom], and understands it; which also bears fruit, and brings forth, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirty” (vs. 23). This is the only category of hearer who survives—and these thrive.

Matthew 13 alone is enough to understand that all popular Kingdom narratives are woefully incomplete—and often totally wrong! Be careful of rejecting or spiritualizing away plain teachings about how God’s Kingdom will come simply because you have never heard them before—because no one else teaches them. God has His Church and this is where He reveals His truth.

But there is much more to learn.

The “Little Flock”

Jesus used a fascinating term to describe a group that would be the early administrators in His tiny Kingdom. Like the Kingdom itself, this group will not be large to start. In Luke 12, Jesus instructed His servants to “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (vs. 32). “Little” is mikros in the Greek. It is a micro-flock that takes a tiny Kingdom—how logical and easy to understand!

Another parable in Luke 19 describes a nobleman (Christ) who went to a far country (heaven) to “get for himself a kingdom” (vs. 12). This parable carries an extraordinary message for Christians. It describes a judgment, a reckoning, that comes to a group of “servants” when Christ brings His Kingdom. Notice: “…when He was returned [from heaven], having received the kingdom, then He commanded these servants to be called unto Him, to whom He had given the money, that He might know how much every man had gained by trading” (vs. 15). Some servants had passed God’s test, others failed it.

Reading the whole account reveals that those who succeed are placed over cities on Earth (not yet the entire Earth).

God has been working with people all over the world, preparing them for leadership positions in the initial phase of the Kingdom. Only after a reckoning of past performance before Christ’s judgment seat (Rom. 14:10; II Cor. 5:10) will these specially called and trained servants be permitted to rule.

Matthew 25 contains a related account, in which some are told, “Well done, you good and faithful servant: you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things: enter you into the joy of your lord” (vs. 21). The “joy of the Lord” involves what is the first phase of salvation as well as receiving a part in governing what will be a fast-growing Kingdom—a role with the purpose of helping others enter the Kingdom during its first short phase, so that they also can qualify to rule at a point a little later. Anyone desiring to come into and under the Kingdom will have opportunity.

Christ as King

Jesus Christ, as King of the mustard seed Kingdom, also Himself starts “small” in how He manifests Himself in the phase leading up to His rule. The account of Christ’s ascension to heaven holds an eye-opening clue that no one ever notices. The apostles asked the question: “Lord, will You at this time restore again the Kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6). After His answer it adds, “While they beheld, He was taken up; and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel” (vs. 9-10). These two men, actually angels, asked, “Why stand you gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus [a man, not a spirit being in glorified form], which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen Him go into heaven” (vs. 11).

The phrase “this same” in reference to Jesus is an all-important key. The angels were emphasizing that Jesus would return in the identical human form He had when He ascended.

It is not surprising then that Christ is so often called “the Son of Man.” This is because He intends to continue (initially) His first-century form when He returns. Let’s see more proof.

The prophet Jeremiah described Christ in His expanding Kingdom by an unusual name, while also calling Him its King: “Behold, the days come, says the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days [at a point, but not right away] Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is His name whereby He shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS” (23:5-6). The Hebrew for “Branch” is sprout. Like mustard seeds, sprouts are also tiny to begin. This “sprout” depiction is completely incompatible with an all-powerful Jesus Christ returning in glorified form.

Ten chapters later Jeremiah adds more, confirming something crucial about sprouts: “I [will] cause the Branch [sprout] of righteousness to grow up unto David; and He shall execute judgment and righteousness…” (33:15). The Hebrew “grow up” is simply the verb form of sprout. God is saying, literally, He will cause the sprout to sprout. Ponder the enormity of what we are being told. Jesus’ role will grow from small to large.

Both accounts in Jeremiah tie the “Branch” to King David. Notice another prophecy about Christ from the angel Gabriel to Mary: “He [Christ] shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David: and He shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end” (Luke 1:32-33). After His mustard seed coming, Christ sits on King David’s throne before later assuming His own throne in Jerusalem (when David comes up to receive the vacated throne Jesus had just occupied).

Ponder all that you have read. Now consider that this is only a fraction of the proof—the TRUTH—of how God’s Kingdom will come. Do not allow yourself to blindly hold to old beliefs or traditions. Read How God’s Kingdom Will Come – The Untold Story! Take the time to prove for yourself what the Bible says about the most important events to take place in the very near future.