Explore how the theme of the kingdom of God holds the entire Old Testament together.
Instructor: Multiple Instructors-KOT
Welcome to our small group study! Thirdmill produces teaching materials with the primary goal of helping church leaders around the globe study and teach the Bible more deeply. This 10-week small group study has been adapted from the second lesson of our series Kingdom, Covenants & Canon of the Old Testament. It considers the most pervasive theme in the entire Old Testament: the kingdom of God. Our goal is for you to gain a proper understanding of the Bible’s theology of the kingdom of God so that you can apply these truths in your life today.
This study is intended to take about 50-60 minutes each session, but you're welcome to adapt it to your own circumstances by making each section as long or short as is beneficial for your group. This study can be done individually, but it is designed to be done in a virtual group setting as a typical weekly adult Bible study or Sunday school. You can watch the videos together through a third-party virtual networking platform (like Zoom or Skype), or you can watch the videos before meeting together online to discuss. Some groups might even gather together via a group phone call. Each video is around 15 minutes long to allow ample discussion on each section. We've also added approximate times for each section in case you have a time limit you'd like to follow. Feel free to use as many or as few of the questions provided. We hope these lessons serve as a way to grow together. On a final note, if you would like to download the lesson guide or the manuscript of the full lesson, you can find those resources on the series page for Kingdom, Covenants and Canon of the Old Testament.
“When the kingdom comes …” is a phrase that Christians often use. Most of us know that somehow it must be an important idea. But what exactly does it mean? In this session, we’ll explore two interrelated ways the Scriptures refer to God’s reign or kingdom. We must keep both of these outlooks in mind as we study the kingdom of God in the Old Testament.
If someone were to ask you, “What is the kingdom of God?” would you know how to answer? Would you be able to explain how important the kingdom is in biblical faith? And what does the Bible say about it? Broadly speaking, God’s kingdom is his universal and unchanging reign over all of creation. But more narrowly, it is his incomplete and developing reign on earth.
What do you think of when you hear the phrase, “kingdom of God”?
Take some time to answer the following question: How does knowing that God is bringing his kingdom to earth help you set the priorities and choices of your daily life?
Finish with a time of prayer.
In our last session, we saw how the Old and New Testaments both view God’s kingdom in a broad sense as complete and unchanging and in a narrow sense as incomplete and developing. This session looks into where God’s developing kingdom began. If you want to know how long a trip has been, you have to start measuring from where you started. This is certainly true when it comes to the development of God’s kingdom on earth. To understand how far God’s kingdom has come, we need to go back to where it started. Only then will we see how far Christ has already brought us and how far he will bring us one day.
Think about this question. “Where does God want his kingdom to be? In heaven or on earth? The answer isn’t as simple as it may seem at first. We all know that heaven is the glorious royal court of God. All believers want to go there when we die. So, why did Jesus teach us to pray for God’s will to be done “on earth as it is in heaven?” The answer of Scripture is clear. God determined for the earth to be the place of his kingdom.
What does the creation story tell us about God’s kingdom on earth?
Write down four ways you have seen Christians neglect God’s kingdom purpose for creating the earth by overemphasizing the wonder of heaven.
Finish with a time of prayer.
Many people today are confused about who God is and what he has done. But they are often just as confused about who people are and what they are supposed do with their lives. Sadly, this is true even of faithful Christians. In our last session, we considered the place of God’s kingdom established in Primeval History. In this session, we’ll look into the identity and service that God first established for human beings.
If you haven’t asked these questions yourself, you probably know someone who has: “Who am I?” “What am I?” “Why do I exist?” The answers we receive from the world mislead and confuse us by calling on us either to think too highly or too lowly of ourselves. The opening chapters of the Bible concentrate a lot on human beings. They establish foundational truths about people upon which every other facet of biblical faith builds. In short, these chapters reveal that we are images of God called to be the instruments by which God’s kingdom will spread to the ends of the earth.
What do you think your role in God’s kingdom is?
Take some time to answer the following question: How do the daily activities of your life count as the service of a priest and a vice-regent who is fully devoted to spreading God’s kingdom throughout the world?
Finish with a time of prayer.
Most Christians know the basic storyline of Genesis 1-11: creation, the fall of Adam and Eve into sin, Cain’s murder of his brother Abel, the generations that followed them and the story of the great Flood in Noah’s day. There are many lessons to be learned from these events. In earlier sessions, we concentrated on the place of God’s kingdom and the people of God’s kingdom associated with these events. But in this session, we’ll look at how these chapters trace the progress of God’s kingdom during this period of time. The biblical account of the progress of God’s kingdom during the Primeval History is not simply a record of what happened long ago. It depicts the early stages of God’s purposes in ways that explain realities that God’s people have faced throughout the ages.
If God had wanted to, he could have turned the entire world into his kingdom in a split second. Still, in his unsearchable wisdom, God determined that he would receive glory by extending his kingdom through wondrous displays of his mercy and judgment. In many respects, the first eleven chapters of Genesis were given to Israel to explain how God set the stage for what he would continue to do through the people of Israel and through Christ in the New Testament age. In fact, the history of earth’s earliest years reveals the basic structures and processes that God followed throughout the Scriptures. If you want to know how the rest of the Bible portrays the kingdom of God on earth, it’s crucial to grasp what these chapters of Genesis explain about the early progress of God’s kingdom.
Why do you think God didn’t make the entire world into his perfect kingdom from the beginning?
Write down five ways that the progress of God’s kingdom in Primeval History still impacts the world today.
Finish with a time of prayer.
It’s difficult to read much of the Bible and not notice that the land God promised to Israel is a prominent theme in both the Old and the New Testaments. In previous sessions, we saw how God ordained the Garden of Eden as the place of God’s kingdom on earth during the Primeval History. In this session, we’ll consider how — like the Garden of Eden — the land that God promised to Israel wasn’t an end in itself. Rather, God gave Israel the Promised Land as the place from which his kingdom would extend throughout the entire world.
It’s quite common for Christians to go to extremes when it comes to considering the Promised Land. Some followers of Christ believe that the land God promised to Israel is only significant for us today in that we must ensure that the nation of Israel possesses it. Other Christians believe that the land of Israel simply calls on us to focus on heaven as the place where we will enjoy the kingdom of God. But Scripture teaches that God chose the Promised Land as the starting point from which his kingdom would spread throughout the earth. For this reason, what God did with the land of Israel is central in the lives of everyone who follows Christ and seeks to serve the kingdom of God today.
What does God’s promise of a land to Israel mean for Christians today?
Take some time to answer the following question: How has what God did in the Promised Land during the time of the ancient Israelites impacted the world far beyond the borders of the Promised Land?
Finish with a time of prayer.
In our last session, we considered how God gave the Promised Land to the nation of Israel as the place from which his people would spread his kingdom to the ends of the earth. But who were these people? As the world fell under the ruin of sin, God chose Abraham’s descendants, the people of Israel, as his treasured possession, a holy nation of royal and priestly images of God. It was Israel’s privilege to serve God first in the Promised Land and from there to spread the blessings of God’s kingdom to all nations on earth. God’s call to Israel set the course for service that Jesus and his followers now fulfill.
We often speak of the people of Israel as God’s chosen people. Why are they known as such? It was not because they were more deserving than any other people on earth. Rather, it was because God selected them by his grace and made them his special chosen people. They became a royal priesthood in service to God. God gave Israel the privilege of leading every tribe and nation on earth in furthering his kingdom throughout the earth to his endless praise. In a similar way, we often speak of Christians as God’s chosen people today. Why are we considered as God’s chosen people? It is not because we’re more deserving than others. On the contrary, it’s because, by God’s grace, all who believe in Jesus become true children of Abraham and heirs to the promises given to Abraham. We too become a royal priesthood in God’s service as we further the kingdom of God throughout the earth to the glory of God.
What does it mean for us today that God chose Israel to be the special people of his kingdom?
Write down four ways that God’s call to Israel as his chosen people has impacted your life as a follower of Jesus.
Finish with a time of prayer.
The story of God’s kingdom in Israel is a mixture of positive accomplishments and abysmal failures. As we learned in our last session, Israel plays a central role in the Old Testament because God called for Abraham’s descendants to build and expand his kingdom on earth beyond where it had been during the Primeval History. In this session, we’ll look at three major times in the history of Israel when God’s kingdom took major strides forward: the time of God’s promises to Israel’s patriarchs, the time of Israel’s exodus from Egypt (including the conquest of the Promised Land), and the time of human kingship when Israel became a great empire. Yet, as much as God’s kingdom in Israel moved forward, Israel also fell into flagrant rebellion against God and suffered severe consequences.
As we look back at the Old Testament story of God’s kingdom in Israel, we must be sure to cherish what God accomplished. Every facet of Israel’s faithful service to God was a positive step toward the goal of extending the kingdom of God throughout the world. At the same time, we must also acknowledge the failures of Israel. The sins of Israel draw our attention to the wonder of the redemption God has provided for all of us in Christ.
Why did God’s kingdom in Israel continue to progress despite Israel’s failures?
Write down five things you can learn about Christ’s saving work by studying the progress of God’s kingdom in Israel’s history.
Finish with a time of prayer.
All too often, sincere Christians are unaware that the kingdom of Christ will fulfill the geographical destiny of God’s kingdom that began at the creation of the world. Some progress was made during Old Testament times, but nothing compared to what Christ accomplishes in the period of the New Testament. In earlier sessions, we considered God’s kingdom in the Primeval History and in the nation of Israel. In this session, we’ll begin to look at God’s kingdom in the New Testament. In particular, we’ll look at the place of God’s kingdom during the New Testament period.
Jesus ministered on earth by proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God (Matthew 4:23). The good news he proclaimed was that he was overcoming humanity’s failures and accomplishing his heavenly Father’s purpose to spread his kingdom to the ends of the earth. When we think about the hope of our Christian lives, we often think that our destiny is to live our lives on earth so that when we die, we will spend eternity in heaven. But, when we look closely at the New Testament, we find that our ultimate goal as followers of Christ is to see Christ spread God’s kingdom throughout the earth and to reign forever with him in that kingdom. Grasping this New Testament teaching will radically reorient everything in your Christian life.
What place do you envision when you think about the kingdom of God today?
Write down five ways the New Testament emphasis on expanding the kingdom of God on earth challenges you to reconsider the priorities of your life now.
Finish with a time of prayer.
Our last session focused on what the New Testament says about the place of God’s kingdom. We learned that Christ’s kingdom work began in the same geographical center as the place of God’s kingdom in the Old Testament. We also learned that God intends for his kingdom to spread to the ends of the earth. In this session, we’ll consider the people of God’s kingdom in the New Testament. To understand what the New Testament teaches about the role of human beings in serving the kingdom of God, we must focus in two directions: the service of Christ, the perfect image of God, and the service of believers in Christ who are renewed in the likeness of God.
It’s quite common for Christians to believe that the failures of human beings throughout the Old Testament made it necessary for God to set aside his original purpose for his images. But don’t be misled. God did not set aside human beings in the New Testament. The eternal Son of God took on flesh and became one of us. Christ became a human being to rectify our failures, to fulfill humanity’s kingdom service and to enable us to serve with him. He himself fulfills what God ordained for the human race. Moreover, he redeems us from sin; we are conformed to his likeness; and in the power of his Spirit, we serve with Christ in extending God’s kingdom throughout the earth.
According to the New Testament, who are the people of God’s kingdom?
Write down four ways the New Testament’s teaching on the role of human beings should impact how you look at Christ, yourself and your fellow believers.
Finish with a time of prayer.
In our previous session, we learned about the people of God’s kingdom, including both Christ himself and his church. In this session, we’ll consider Christ’s teaching about the progress of God’s kingdom. This teaching was so radical in the first century that most Jews rejected it — and him. Jesus explained that he was bringing the last stage of God’s kingdom to the earth, but in a way that no one expected. Rather than suddenly transforming the entire world into the kingdom of God, he declared that the kingdom would unfold over a long period of time. He would inaugurate the last stage of the kingdom in his earthly ministry, it would continue to grow throughout the history of the church, but the kingdom would come in its fulness only when he returned in glory.
Followers of Christ often have difficulty believing that Jesus fulfills God’s kingdom purposes because we have been waiting for the kingdom to come to earth as it is in heaven for more than 2000 years. Faith in Christ means that we must trust in what Christ did to inaugurate the final stage of God’s kingdom in his life, death, resurrection, ascension and the outpouring of his Spirit. We must also trust that, despite the troubles of the world, Christ has continued to expand God’s kingdom more and more throughout the history of the church. When we trust, we are able to keep our hope alive — the hope that one day Christ will bring God’s kingdom to its consummation by making all things new when he returns in glory.
What evidence do you see of the progress of God’s kingdom in the world today?
Write down your thoughts about God’s kingdom, including how your thoughts about the kingdom may have changed since the beginning of this study.
Finish with a time of prayer.
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