Ps. 145:13
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all
*generations.*
Jesus* also explained that His Kingdom is not of this world:
John 18:33-38 (NIV) -
Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him,
“Are you the king of the Jews?”
“Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?”
“Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What
is it you have done?”
Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my
arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”
“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.
Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world
is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”
“What is truth?” retorted Pilate.
Pilate had an opinion on what truth was. Sound like the cultural mantra of our day, “What’s true
for you may be true for you, but what’s true for me, is true for me.
Jesus didn’t just have an opinion about the truth, Jesus is the truth!
This was a collision of two Kingdoms*
At the center of the collision for all of us, is the question we all must answer for ourselves:
Is Jesus just another King you’ve heard about, or is He YOUR King of Kings and the Lord of**
Lords.
Matthew 16:13-19
Matthew 16:18 - And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the
gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
The rock the church is built on is knowing the absolute supremacy of Christ!
1.) *The colliding kingdoms is inevitable. *
Jesus told us, “Don’t suppose I have come to bring peace, but a sword.”
He was referring to the inevitable conflict we would face between the kingdom of darkness and
Kingdom of Light.
God’s people can’t avoid this conflict.
The collision is happening within the major spheres of influence, but it’s not about those things
in and of themselves.
It’s about the lies in the culture versus the truth of the Kingdom of Light.
It’s important to STAND OUR GROUND.
James 4:7 (NIV) -
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
When we stand up for God, He will stand up for us!
**
2.) The church has the keys to the Kingdom**
Matthew 16:19 -
I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on
earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Culture keys cannot open Kingdom doors.
Keys of the kingdom are part of the belt of truth.
1 Timothy 3:14-15 (NIV) -
Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing you these
instructions so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in
God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.
The church is the pillar and foundation of the truth.
As Kingdom citizens we have no authority apart from our King.
Our obligation is to our King and His Kingdom, not to the preferences of other people.
As we stand for truth, Jesus will back us up!
Discussion Questions:
1. How would you interpret the meaning of Jesus saying, “My Kingdom is not of this world?”
What does the “absolute supremacy of Christ mean to you?
In what ways have you seen the collision of the Kingdom of Light and the kingdom of
darkness in your own life?
What are some ways you are “standing your ground” in this collision?
What are some Kingdom keys you could implement to better stand your ground?
In what ways have you seen Jesus stand with you as you have stood for truth?