Throughout the Bible, from the opening chapters of Genesis to the final chapters of Revelation, it is clear that God intends to dwell among man; to commune with man and to be his God. In the beginning, Adam and Eve know the presence of the Lord. God walks on the earth and everything is under God's authority. After the Fall, however, Adam and Eve are separated for God's presence; one might say God's initial creation of heaven and earth are separated from each other. It is this separation which God is in the process of overcoming by re-establishing His visible presence in the earth (the kingdom of God). Toward this goal, God separates the people of Israel as a vessel to serve as a pattern of God's kingdom. The first action God takes after establishing His covenant with Israel is to have them build a sanctuary for Him to dwell among them (Exodus 25:8). Later, in Israel's history, the prophets speak consistently of God coming to judge (actively rule over) the earth (Psalms 96:13, 98:9). Isaiah, for example, speaking of the day when God's kingdom is established writes: "For the law will go forth from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And He will judge between the nations, and will render decisions for many peoples ..." (Isaiah 2:3b-4a). Again, the picture of God actively reigning in the earth. The words of Jesus, whose stated mission was to proclaim the kingdom of God (Luke 4:43), also reveal God's plan to establish His kingdom in the earth. As Jesus teaches His disciples, He speaks to the Father: "Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10). Finally, in Revelation, the pattern is again revealed, as John describes his vision of the New Heaven and Earth. As He has from the beginning, God again asserts His intention to dwell among His people in the earth:
- "And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying 'Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them.' "
Without regard to the message of the Bible, the emphasis in Christianity today does not focus on the kingdom of God but upon the individual person's eternal destiny. In other words, "Am I / are you going to heaven or hell when I / you die". This is the question against which Christian activities tend to be measured. Though Christianity expresses the belief in Jesus coming to the earth, it is not generally thought that He is coming to establish His kingdom and government, but to rapture the Church to heaven. This idea of "going to heaven", or leaving the physical behind for the spiritual, originates in Gnostic teaching.
To understand the gnostic influence, let us examine some foundational beliefs of Christianized Gnosticism. According to Walker's A History of the Christian Church, the gnostics believe the physical world has been created as the result of a struggle in the spiritual world; to rid the spiritual world of evil and redeem Wisdom, which has fallen into error, it is necessary to eradicate passion from the higher, spiritual world to the physical world. As this occurred, some spirits became entrapped within bodies of flesh. Their redemption consists in their coming to the knowledge (gnossis) that they are really spiritual and not physical beings who await their return to the purely spiritual world. From a gnostic perspective, everything of the lower physical world (earth) is ultimately evil while everything of the higher, spiritual world (heaven) is ultimately good. Also, the two worlds, though parallel, are ultimately irreconcilable. While the elect, who are essentially spirits entrapped in physical bodies, are destined for heaven, the rest of humanity is hopelessly caught in the material world and are destined to destruction with the rest of the physical universe. It is important to note that the means of salvation (or life) in this teaching is not righteous living but knowledge.
The effects of this teaching are easily identified in Christianity today. There is not nearly the emphasis on living righteously as there is on the importance of preaching what is called the "gospel". This is the "saving knowledge" which enables a person to "go to heaven" and avoid destruction. Of course, the message of Jesus' death as covering for our sins is a valid one and it must be proclaimed. However, it should not be confused with the message of the kingdom of God! To help us see how the Gnostic message has come to take the place of the message of the kingdom of God, we will examine two parables. The first is the parable of the dragnet:
- "The kingdom of God is like a dragnet cast into the sea and gathering fish of every kind, when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down, and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad fish they threw away.
- The kingdom of God is like a life preserver thrown into a sea of drowning people; those who take hold of the life preserver are saved while those who do not reach the life preserver are lost.
The first parable may be found in Matthew 13; it is the parable Jesus tells to describe the function of the kingdom of God: to bring all people to a point of judgment before God. Apparently, this is Jesus' understanding of the function of the kingdom of God. Jesus never uses the parable of the life preserver, however, and it is not found in the Scriptures. Yet it is the inspiration which drives the focus of Christianity today. Accordingly, the "gospel" must be heard or humanity is doomed to destruction. As a result, a sense of panic often characterizes the urgency of modern evangelism. The truth, however, is if someone ends up in the lake of fire, they are there because they deliberately rebelled against God and not because they were not aware of the "gospel" -- each of us are judged according to what we do with what God gives us.
The parable of the life preserver has so come to dominate Christianity's thinking and actions that the message of the kingdom of God is neglected; indeed, it is little understood within Christianity today. Instead, Christianity seeks to alleviate the fear of going to hell by assuring people of a means by which they will be accepted by God and go to heaven. As a result of this teaching, Christianity resembles other world religions far more closely than the vessel initiated by Jesus to proclaim and participate in the establishment of God's kingdom in the earth. Like any other religion, Christianity tells people what they need to do to get in and what they need to do to stay in. Furthermore, it separates itself from others by maintaining a person must be a Christian or they are doomed for destruction. The message of the kingdom of God, however, says, God is coming to the earth to reign over all of humanity; therefore, stop doing evil and turn and do good for He is holding each of us responsible for our decisions. He does not delight in anyone's destruction, but desires all to turn from evil, do what is right and live. The good news is that in His love and mercy He has provided the blood of Jesus that we might overcome and find life in obedience to the Lord. He is putting a stop to all rebellion and establishing His righteous rule in the earth. As John records:
- "And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, 'Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth and sea and springs of waters" (Revelation 14:6-7).
[ Published: October 1994 ]
