Christ’s Peaceable Kingdom on Earth

Jesus established His kingdom when He was on earth. We who have entered it have found it to be a place of deep pleasure and lasting satisfaction. It is a peaceful kingdom. In it we do not make instruments of destruction, neither do we learn war any more (Isaiah 2:4). Earth has had many kingdoms in the past, but they have risen with the strength of their kings and warriors, and they have fallen with their weakness.

Christ, our king, is immortal and almighty, so His kingdom is endless and conquers all. He describes himself in the book of Revelation. "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore'' (Revelation 1:18). After He had resurrected from the dead He said to His followers, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth" (Matthew 28:18).

Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had a dream he could not remember. Daniel, the Hebrew prophet, told him both the dream and its interpretation. In his dream, Nebuchadnezzar saw a large statue made of various materials. Its head was of gold, its arms and breast silver, its belly and thighs brass, its legs were of solid iron, but its feet were of iron mixed with clay. As Nebuchadnezzar gazed upon this sight, an amazing thing happened. "Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever" (Daniel 2:34-35, 44).

The stone cut out without hands is Christ. He is the founder of the eternal kingdom that is above all others. How does one enter this kingdom? There is only one way and that is to be born into it by the new birth. Jesus said, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3). Those who by faith surrender their will to God and believe in Jesus Christ are born again and become citizens of the eternal kingdom of Christ. This opens the door for baptism into the true church of God, "which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth" (1 Timothy 3:15). "A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid" (Matthew 5:14). This church dwells securely within the kingdom of Christ on earth. The church may be identified by its pure doctrine and practice of God's Word.

The new birth not only makes us citizens of the eternal kingdom of Jesus Christ, but it also gives spiritual life. Those who have new life in Christ have power to conquer sin. They are no longer dominated by the old sinful nature with its lusts and desires. Since they have a higher allegiance, they will not take part in earthly governments, although they obey secular laws as much as their loyalty to God allows. They are in the world, but not of the world. Even though they live in this world and build houses and have businesses and families, they are always mindful of their position in the eternal kingdom (Jeremiah 29:4-7).