KINGDOM AT HAND “Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent ye, and believe the gospel.’” (Mark 1:14-15). Have you ever contemplated the true meaning of this Scripture? Actually, I do not believe we fully understand what Jesus was trying to tell us. I mean, after all, “For now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face.” (I Cor. 13:12). I believe Scriptural Truth is revealed to us layer upon layer. Just look at the previous verse, “When I was a child,.I understood as a child… but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” (I Cor. 13:11). Scripture is teaching us that our understanding comes based on the level of our spiritual maturity. Reading this, can we conclude that every verse offers a “childish” revelation? If we conclude such, then we also must conclude that every verse also offers an “adult” or “mature” revelation; and even beyond. In 2007, I spent time meditating on Mark 1:14-15 and arrived at a new layer of understanding. I sought to put away the childish understanding I’ve always had. For me, to gain a richer understanding of something, I study the Greek words. Sometimes, our English translations only offer a single tree in an entire forest. I have found the Greek can many times help me see the forest as well as the beauty of the individual trees. So, let’s look at the Greek forest offered here. While definitions may be vast, I am going to focus on the portions that spoke this new vein of understanding to me. However, as always, I encourage you to do a study of your own (Acts 17:11). There are fresh understandings waiting to be discovered by you, for your specific need. Let’s start with “Kingdom”. It is a royal dominion or rule. Moreso, it is the right or authority to rule over a kingdom. This seemed to be telling me that God has a right, which he purchased on the cross, to have authority over me. I will discuss this in more detail later. Next, “at hand” seemed to be the portion I felt was not firm in my heart. I had always thought that Jesus’ having made the Kingdom of God available to us through his death and resurrection was the basic meaning. Suddenly, it felt as if there was a more mature meaning. So, off I went to the Greek. It means, “To join one thing to another.” Wow. In other words, Jesus was fusing us with His Kingdom. Think on that for a moment! Okay, I know. If the Kingdom was made available to us, then it meant we sign up as citizens through our belief in Who Christ is. Then, once we leave this earthly body, we get to live in that Kingdom. BUT that thinking is only partial truth. We know in Revelation, God will give us a new Heaven and new earth which will be joined together (Rev. 21). Yet, in this study, I discovered the Kingdom of God was at hand that very day Jesus spoke of it. Before I explain how I came to that belief, let me ask that you not label me as a Kingdom Now teacher. In fact, I prefer you not label me as anything other than Believer in Jesus as my Messiah. I can only share what Holy Spirit reveals to me through prayer and study. I would venture to say it does not fall in any specific category or denomination. It is birthed out of my relationship with my Bridegroom Jesus. Now, back to my afore mentioned explanation. I looked up the tense of this Greek word. Check this out, it is perfect, active, indicative. What these represent are incredible. First, active states that the subject (the Kingdom) is the performer of the action. Next, indicative is simply a fact. Oh, but look at perfect. This implies that the action has been “perfected”. In other words, “completed, past, does not need repeating.” What a picture Jesus painted here. I am going to rewrite it in the mental picture I saw. Jesus came preaching the good news of the right and authority God has to rule and have dominion over our lives. He taught me I have been bound, yoked, and married to His rule over my life, and the things which affect my life on a daily basis. It is a fact that the Kingdom itself has completed this work. This living, moving, growing (Luke 13:18f) Kingdom thrives within my soul (Luke 17:21). After gaining this insight, I began to wonder how I can continue to live as if everything were normal. How can I treat this Kingdom as something trivial. See, in Mark 1:15, the next thing Jesus says is, “repent ye and believe the gospel.” “Repent” means to change your mind. Once again the tense came into play here: present,imperative. Yep, present mea ns now. Interesting how the Kingdom’s adjoining to us was a past action, but repent is a NOW action. It is something the hearer must do upon hearing this command. See, imperative, is as it sounds…amust. The imperative tense “expresses a command to the hearer to perform a certain act by the order and authority of the one commanding”. Incredible, Jesus has just given a command to repent. Once we understand the Gospel that the Kingdom has come, we must change our minds and be convinced this gospel is absolute Truth. There is a great deal of debate in America about securing our borders. We have a legal way to becoming a citizen of this “kingdom” - if you will - of America. We want people to adjoin themselves to our kingdom by going through the legal process. One day, a person may be a citizen of another country, but then becomes convinced America offers a better opportunity for advancement. That person just changed his mind about what nation he wishes to be his home. I am an American because I was born in and continue to live in America. One can become a citizen in God’s Kingdom (called a Christian) by being reborn into and living in Christ. There is no dual citizenship in Christ. There is only one way to the Father’s Kingdom…. through Jesus (John 14:6). I also believe that I must continually repent when I long for worldly things…things outside the borders of God’s Kingdom. Arriving at a deeper understanding of God’s Truth about His Kingdom being at hand, led me to change my mind. I decided that the Kingdom offers all I need. The U.S. Secretary of State represents our country and it’s opinion to other nations. He carries himself with great dignity because of what he represents. Do we ever fail to carry ourselves with the dignity God’s Kingdom deserves on a daily basis? This is I must stay focused to confess when I fail to be such an ambassador of Christ’s Kingdom. Are there days where you just suffer through work or life, and placing Christ in the forefront seems to be far from you? That certainly was the case for me. I realized I could no longer live the same after gaining this fresh insight. After all, this Kingdom we are discussing dwells inside me. I must be professional for Jesus daily by first professing Him through my actions and thoughts. When the U.S. Secretary of State walks into a room with dignitaries from other countries, it may as well be the U.S. President himself entering. Those people know he carries the words of his leader, and is looking out for his interest and the interest of the people of America. We are the same. We each should be known as one who carries the Words of our King, while looking out for God’s interest as well as that of our fellow Christian. There is so much more I could say, but will refrain. Even as I write this, I am reminded of John’s writing, “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen” (John 21:25). Yet, we think we know all there is to know about Christ. I dare say, I have not even scratched the surface. I want to be the feet of Jesus everywhere! Please meditate in God’s presence on what you have read. Ask Christ, if these things are so. Study them for yourself. If you find this to be the heart of God, ask Him to teach you how you can become the citizen He created you to be. I find myself newly compelled to, “seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness.” (Matt. 6:33). I am grateful that He has given me the privilege to become a citizen of His Kingdom. God, please help me to live as such! u GLAD TIDINGS 7 FEBRUARY 2026 Signs of Life from The King's Highway Evangelistic Ministries SARA GOLDSTEIN
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