THE SIX KINGDOMS
INTRO.- Where are you? Where are you spiritually?
ILL.- A young Bible college student was witnessing in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia. As he approached one house, there was an elderly man sitting on the porch and he asked him, “Are you a Christian?” He replied, “No, I’m a Smith. The Christians live two doors down.”
The student said, “No, you don’t understand. I mean, are you lost?” The old man replied, “No sonny, I ain’t lost. I’ve lived here for 25 years.”
He said, “But are you ready for the Judgment Day?” The man replied, “When’s it going to be?”
The student replied, “Well, it could be today or it could be tomorrow.” The old man replied, “WELL, PLEASE DON’T TELL MY WIFE. SHE’LL WANT TO GO BOTH DAYS.”
Brethren, old Mr. Smith didn’t seem to understand what that Bible college student was talking about. HE WAS SPIRITUALLY IGNORANT! He knew where he lived, but he didn’t know where he was spiritually! He knew nothing about the Judgment Day.
MANY PEOPLE ARE JUST LIKE THAT OLD FELLOW. They either don’t know or else they don’t care. But someday, they are going to care! But by then it will be too late!
ILL.- If you were to ask most people the question, “Are you married?” They would quickly say, “Well, Yes, I’m married.” Or “No, I’m not married.” And some might say, “I’d like to be.” And others might say, “I wish I wasn’t married!”
ILL.- Or if you were to ask most people this question: “Are you a Republican or democrat?” they would be quick to tell you. But then again, maybe not, the way this election has gone.
But if you were to ask most people the question, “Are you saved and are you going to heaven?” Many people would respond, “Well, I think so.” Or “I don’t know.” Or “I hope so.” Or “I would like to know for sure.”
WHERE ARE YOU SPIRITUALLY? Do you know? Probably, most of you know where you are spiritually or what your spiritual condition is. But a great many do not know!
PROP.- In this message, I want to talk about the six spiritual kingdoms: innocence, sin, the church, apostasy, hell, and heaven. Actually, we will only consider 4.
1- THE KINGDOM OF INNOCENCE
This is the child’s kingdom or the infant’s kingdom.
Matthew 19:13-14 “Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven
belongs to such as these.’”
ILL.- Bob Entzel of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, said, “After a day-long family get-together, my niece, Katie Marie, then four, and her grandma were in the bathroom getting ready for bed. “Katie was fascinated with Grandma’s teeth-cleaning routine, especially since she had never seen dentures before. “As Grandma removed them and began brushing them, Katie sweetly asked, "Grandma, can you take
your eyes out, too?"
Brethren, children are innocent when it comes to many things in life. And the state of innocence is very sweet. Small children and infants do many cute things.
ILL.- It’s like our own Ridge Boyer and Sydney Myers. Ridgey will come to me with arms outstretched, wanting to be held and hugged and kissed. How cute! How sweet! And Sydney... I’ll say to her, “Hi! Curly Joe!” And she will say, “No! You Curly Joe!” Recently Robin was walking out of the building with Syndey and I said, “Bye, Sydney.” And she said, “Bye, Curly Joe.”
Children are cute and innocent, but it doesn’t take very long for them to get over it, does it? Children don’t seem to stay in the state of innocence very long. Why is that? I think it’s because of several factors: parents, playmates, TV, TV, and TV. TV has changed
dramatically. When I was a youngster it was Howdy Doody Time. Now it’s anything and everything! And little eyes are watching and little ears are listening and little minds are learning!
- For those in the kingdom of innocence, there is no direct doorway into the church or into Christ. Why is that? Because before a child can become a Christian, first, there has to be a recognition of sin and a willingness to turn from that sin.
ILL.- Preacher Willie White once preached a sermon entitled, “What shall I baptized my baby?” He wrote:
- when my baby sins
- when my baby believes in Jesus Christ
- when my baby repents of sin
- when my baby confesses faith in Jesus
All of these things are required in Scripture for a person to do before they are baptized into Christ. This is why we don’t baptize babies. Children need to be old enough to have faith in Christ and respond in faith.
- For the innocent, there is a direct doorway into heaven. This is in the event of the child’s death.
In II Samuel 12:15-23 we read about David’s child that went to be with the Lord in death. That child was innocent in regard to sin, even though his father and mother were not!
ILL.- Some years ago while preaching in Iberia, MO, a young couple lost their 3 1/2 year-old son in death. That couple did not attend church at that time and they were pretty devastated by his sudden death. They had some family members in our church and asked me to preach his memorial service.
THAT WAS ONE OF THE EASIEST FUNERALS I’VE EVER PREACHED! At least, in one sense. How’s that? In the sense that there was no doubt in my mind as to what happened to that little boy. HE WENT TO BE WITH THE LORD BECAUSE HE WAS STILL IN THE STATE OR KINGDOM OF INNOCENCE.
At that memorial service I preached from the text in II Samuel 12 and encouraged the family members to give their lives to Christ so that some day they might see the boy again. AND I BAPTIZED THAT YOUNG COUPLE INTO CHRIST ABOUT TWO MONTHS AFTER THEIR LITTLE BOY DIED.
They will see him again!
- For the innocent, there is a doorway into sin. This is when a child comes to the age of accountability. This is when they become accountable for their sin and wrongdoing. WHEN IS THIS? It varies with children.
ILL.- I baptized both of my children when they were 7 or 8 years old. But, of course, they had been raised in a Christian home and in the church, Sunday School, youth meetings, etc. In fact, when my son Shane was just a little tyke, perhaps about three, he would run around the house saying, “Repent and be baptized.”
I must say that I was not accountable at the age of 8 like my own children were. Why? Because I had not been raised in the church.
It wasn’t that my parents didn’t discipline me, because they did! Thank God, they did! I knew most of the time when I was being naughty instead of nice. But I didn’t know I was a sinner until several years later. And that’s when I became accountable.
We must realize that children do not stay in the kingdom of innocence forever. It would be nice in some ways, but it just doesn’t work that way. I would love for my children to be babies again! But they’re not!
Brethren, when our children leave the state of kingdom of innocence we’d better pray and pray hard for them to give their lives to Christ. We need to do all we can to lead our children to Christ and in the way of Christ! Because later on may be too late.
2- THE KINGDOM OF SIN
ILL.- An evangelist was driving his car through the state of Illinois one time and picked up a hitchhiker. He asked him, “Are you saved?” “No.” “Do you realize that you’re headed for a place filled with sinners?” “I guess so.” “And only the wicked dwell there?” The young man nodded in agreement. “And do you know what that place you’re going is called?” He said, “Sure do. Mattoon.”
Mattoon is like any town across the USA. It is filled with sinners. And that’s because the Bible says in Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
The kingdom of sin is one of ignorance and disobedience to God.
ILL.- Chuck Colson wrote about MTV, which is music television and basically geared for young people. He wrote: “Not along MTV decided to tackle the subject of sin. It was a special MTV news report called ‘The Seven Deadly Sins’ featuring interviews with celebrities and ordinary teens. They were asked to talk about the seven sins condemned by Christian tradition as the most dangerous: lust, pride, anger, envy, sloth, greed, and gluttony.
“Rap star Ice-T glared into the TV cameras and said, ‘Lust isn’t a sin...these are all dumb.’ One young man seemed to think sloth was a work break. ‘Sloth...sometimes it’s good to sit back and give yourself personal time,’ he said.
“The hardest sin for the MTV generation to grasp was pride. Actress Kirstie Alley would have none of it. She snapped, ‘I don’t think pride is a sin, and I think some idiot made that up. Who made these anyway?’
WHO MADE THESE? OR SAID THESE WERE SINS? Well, duh! If you get my meaning. We Christians know even if those of the MTV generation don’t! Amen?
Colson went on to say, “No one seemed concerned about whether the seven deadly sins represented moral truth. The only standard was whether something worked for them or not. There was not a word about moral responsibility, repentance, or objective standards of right and wrong.”
Brethren, the kingdom of sin is the kingdom the spiritually blind! The sinful, the immoral, the “I-don’t-care-about-anybody-or- anything-generation,” etc.
Eph. 2:1-3 “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among
them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.”
Powerful! And that Scripture well characterizes the kingdom of sin. It is the kingdom of the lost, the unsaved, the non-Christian.
- For those in this kingdom, there is no direct doorway into heaven.
I Cor. 6:9-10 “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor
slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
People cannot live in sin and expect to go to heaven when they die. I realize that many people think they will go to heaven, regardless of how much or how little they sin. BUT THAT’S NOT ACCORDING TO GOD’S WORD!
People can think this way all they want, but they don’t make the rules. God does!
- For those in the kingdom of sin (unforgiven sin), there is a doorway into hell.
Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death...”
Rev. 21:8 “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars - their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
If people die in their sin, unforgiven, having never surrendered to Christ in faith and repentance, they will experience the second death.
- For those in the kingdom of unforgiven sin, there is a doorway into the church. And, of course, this doorway is Jesus Christ!
John 10:9 Jesus said, “I am the door; if anyone enters by me, he will be saved.”
THERE IS HOPE FOR THE PERSON WHO IS LOST IN SIN! There is no hopelessly sinful situation in life! All can be forgiven and saved in Christ!
Acts 2:38 “Repent and be baptized....”
3- THE KINGDOM OF THE CHURCH
The church is the kingdom of the saved. It is the Christian’s kingdom.
ILL.- A lady named Karen said, “Our three-year-old daughter, Abby, was having trouble sleeping through the night. She kept waking up because she was afraid. Each time as I re-tucked her into bed, I would remind her that Jesus was with her and he would keep her safe.
The sleepless nights continued, with Abby seeking comfort in our bedroom. Finally, one night, I asked her if she had prayed for Jesus to take her fear away and help her fall asleep. She said, “Oh, yes, He told me to come and get you!”
Prov. 3:5 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart...”
Prov. 3:24 “When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.”
Brethren, I know of some people who have a lot of trouble sleeping because of one reason or another. Fear, worry, heartaches and headaches.
ILL.- I once knew of a grown man in his 30’s who couldn’t sleep at night whenever there was a terrible thunderstorm. He confided in me that he was scared to death. AND ONE OF THE MAIN REASONS WAS BECAUSE HE WAS NOT A CHRISTIAN! He was not in the kingdom of the saved!
Brethren, I personally have found “sweet sleep” by being in Christ. But that’s just one of many blessings of the kingdom of the saved!
ILL.- A lady named Sue said, “At a ladies prayer meeting, I asked God for a car to replace the ‘lemon’ we were using. A week later, my parents came to visit, and let me borrow their Lincoln Town Car. As I pulled into the church lot, my amazed friends remembered my prayer from the previous week. One woman exclaimed, “Hey! Our daughter needs a car for college. Let’s pray for her!”
Prov. 3:9-10 “Honor the Lord with your wealth (or what wealth you have), with the firstfruits of all your crops (or the first of your paycheck); then your barns will be filled to overflowing...”
Matthew 6:33 “Seek ye first the kingdom of God...”
God has promised that if we will remember Him then He will remember us! He has promised his children, those in the kingdom of the saved, that He will take care of us.
I would say He’s done a pretty job for most of us, wouldn’t you?
Brethren, I’m saying that the kingdom of the saved is a pretty good place to be. Why? Because God has promised to protect us, to provide for us, to be there for us, to give us grace for our trials, to pick us up when we’re down, etc. Ps. 46:1, etc.
When a person believes in Christ, puts their trust in Christ, and surrenders their life to Christ through faith, repentance and continued obedience he or she has a lot going for them!
- For those in the church, the kingdom of the saved, there is no direct doorway into hell.
Rom. 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Rom. 4:7-8 “Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him.”
The person who walks with Christ, continues to live the Christian life should have no fear of hell.
ILL.- I knew a lady some years ago who was dying. The doctors didn’t know how long she had to live, but they knew and she knew it wasn’t long. One Sunday morning after I preached and we offered an invitation, that lady came forward. I asked her, “Why did you come today?” She said, “I just want to know that I’m saved for sure.”
And I tried to reassure her, because she was practicing her Christian faith and the fact that Jesus’ word can be trusted, she didn’t have to worry. AND FROM THEN ON, SHE DIDN’T SEEM TO WORRY!
Brothers and sisters, please don’t fear the torment of hell! You have a Savior who tasted hell for you!
II Cor. 5:21 “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
- For those in the kingdom of the saved, the church, there is a doorway into heaven.
When the Christian dies, they will go to heaven!
John 11:25-26 Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”
II Cor. 5:8 To absent from the body is to be at home with the Lord.
- For those in the church, there is, however, a door into apostasy or perhaps the backslider’s kingdom.
I do believe that a person can backslide in their relationship to Christ. Many people have.
ILL.- While preaching in Iberia, MO, one time a man passed away who was a member of the First Baptist Church.
Since they didn’t have a preacher at that time, the family called on me to preach his funeral. When I went to the home, to call on the family, the father who had just lost his grown son in death, said, “Come on in, we’re all a bunch of backsliders here.”
And the sad thing true was: they were! From what I had been told the whole family hadn’t been to church in years! Brethren, all I know is this: That’s a dangerous place to be living!
1- The kingdom of innocence
2- The kingdom of sin
3- The kingdom of the Church
4- THE KINGDOM OF APOSTASY
Basically, the kingdom of apostasy is the kingdom of the backslider. However, there appears to be two different types of backsliders in Scripture.
1- The person who believes the truth about Christ but has ceased to practice it. This is the backslider.
2- The person who completely turns away from Christ and possibly turns against Christ. This is the apostate.
James 5:19-20 “My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.”
James is writing to Christian people. He is speaking of the backslider who still believes in Christ but has ceased to practice his faith.
What will happen to such a person? I’ve heard all kinds of arguments, both pro and con, about such people.
There are two basics philosophies or ideas about backsliders:
1- Some say they are still saved and will go to heaven because Christ offers eternal security. People who believe this often say, however, that a backslidden believer will not enjoy some of the benefits of heaven that a faithful believer will. Many people who take this position will often say that a backslider who truly believes will not stay a backslider. They will eventually come back to practicing their faith.
2- Some other people believe that a backslider will not go to heaven because the Bible teaches that “faith without works is dead.” And the backslider is not practicing their faith. There is no evidence that their faith is real and active and alive. Their faith is dead.
II Peter 2:20-21 “If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it, and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not to have
known the way of righteousness, then to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.”
What a powerful Scripture! From the looks of this Scripture the kingdom of the backslider doesn’t look so good! All I can say is, don’t go there! Don’t backslide! Don’t go back and get involved in the world to the point where you are no longer practicing the faith of Christ! THAT’S A DANGEROUS PLACE TO BE!
Now for the apostate.
Heb. 6:4-6 “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the coming age, IF THEY FALL AWAY, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss
they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.”
Many commentators agree that this Scripture refers to the person who is an apostate or someone who commits apostasy. The apostate or person who commits apostasy is one who has stopped believing in the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, that person may even oppose the Christian faith.
I don’t know that I have ever met anyone who has turned completely against Christ. I’ve met a lot of backsliders however.
ILL.- Here is a letter that was written by a university student who had definitely been affected by his studies at college. He wrote: “I guess you could say I’m typical...raised in a Christian home, went to church all my life, was in youth meetings..the whole bit. I’m now 20-years-old, photographer for my school paper. I smoke grass and hash. I like to relax with wine and beer.
“I’m engaged. We plan to be married someday but sleep together now... The way I see it, Christ isn’t the only way to God. I just can’t believe anymore than accepting Christ is the deciding factor in salvation. Living a good life and believing in god is the important thing... If someone doesn’t believe in Christ, that’s okay too. Whatever he believes in, is another form of God - a personal God. No matter what I do, it’s all right if I think it’s okay. Then God understands.”
“The Bible isn’t divine revelation. The truth is what I have. If there is something after death then I will be saved, but I don’t believe there’s a hell....”
Brothers and sisters, that young man is walking on dangerous ground! He believes just like an awful people in our world. That whatever we do is ok and whatever we want to believe is ok.
What bothers me about him is that apparently at one time he believed in Jesus Christ and lived a Christian life. And now that the world has affected him and infected him, he no longer believes that Christ is the way, the truth and the life.
If he is not an apostate, he is getting awfully close to it. And I wouldn’t want to be in his shoes!
Brethren, some people fall away from Christ and eventually repent and come back to Him. But some do not. Some actually stop believing and oppose the Christian faith. SUCH PEOPLE ARE HEADING FOR SOME SERIOUS TROUBLE WHICH THEY WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO GET OUT OF!
1- The kingdom of innocence
2- The kingdom of sin
3- The kingdom of the church
4- The kingdom of apostasy
CONCLUSION---------------------------------------------
There are two other kingdoms which I would like to talk about which are: heaven and hell. But time doesn’t permit me to do this today.
ILL.- One time a young Filipino, traveling in Chicago, registered at the Hotel Sherman. He decided to take a walk and soon became lost. He could not remember the name of his hotel, the location or even its appearance.
Finally, after a time of searching, he decided to check into another hotel; Hotel Astor. Unwilling to acknowledge to the authorities, the police, that he was lost, he tried for five days to find the other hotel where he had left his suitcase.
At the end of those five days, he finally admitted to the police that he was lost. They soon found his suitcase at the Hotel Sherman, and informed him that for five days he had been living right next door tothat hotel!
That young man lost five day’s peace of mind simply because he would not admit that he was lost!
Brethren, there are many people in our world today who lose a whole lot more than five days peace of mind because they will not admit they are lost!
Some people lose nearly a lifetime of peace either because they don’t know they are lost spiritually or else they don’t want to admit they are lost spiritually!
A person must go down before they can ever go up. They must humble themselves before they can ever be lifted up.
James 4:8-10 “Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.”
Ah ha! There it is: humble yourselves before the Lord and He will lift you up. You have to go down inhumility before the Lord can ever lift you up. You have to admit your lost before the Lord can ever lift you to the heights of salvation.
Brothers and sisters, let’s continue to bow down before the King! Let’s humble ourselves the best we can in complete surrender so that He can lift us up!
