The Kingdom of God

Order of Service

• Hymn — Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty
• Call to Worship — Isaiah 6:1-7
• Hymn — Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty
• Prayer of Invocation
• Prayer of Confession
• Assurance of Pardon — Psalm 103:11-13
• Scripture Reading — Joshua 9:16-27
• Hymn — Great Is Thy Faithfulness
• Pastoral Prayer
• Offering
• Prayer of Dedication
• Hymn — Shout, for the Blessed Jesus Reigns
• Scripture Reading — John 18:28-40
• Sermon
• Hymn — I Love Thy Kingdom, Lord
• Benediction — 2 Corinthians 13:14
• Gloria Patri

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Sermon Title: The Kingdom of God

Scripture: John 18:28-40

I. The Sacrifice of the Kingdom of God

A. John uses irony to highlight both the guilt of Jesus's accusers and His innocence

1. The Jewish authorities refuse to enter Pilate's headquarters to avoid defilement, yet they are simultaneously delivering up the true Passover Lamb
2. Their concern for ceremonial purity contrasts with their moral corruption in seeking Jesus's death

B. The Jewish authorities' declaration that it is unlawful for them to put anyone to death fulfills Jesus's own words about the manner of His death

1. Rome had removed capital jurisdiction from the Jews in AD 6, investing it in the Roman governor
2. Jesus had foretold in John 12:32-33 that He would be "lifted up" — pointing to crucifixion, not stoning
3. Crucifixion was associated by Jews with being hung on a tree, and therefore with the curse of God per Deuteronomy 21:23

C. Jesus's refusal to resist arrest reflects His submission to the Father's cup of wrath

1. In John 18:11, Jesus rebukes Peter for drawing his sword: "Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?"
2. In John 18:36, Jesus confirms His servants are not fighting — the cross is no accident but the foreordained instrument of God's purpose

D. The holy God's Kingdom cannot take up residence on earth without His holy justice being satisfied — the sacrifice is necessary

1. The Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9-10) calls for the holy God's Kingdom to come; that holiness demands a substitute for unholy subjects

II. The Source of the Kingdom of God

A. Pilate's question "Are you the King of the Jews?" requires nuance — Jesus responds by asking what Pilate means by "king" (John 18:33-34)

B. Jesus declares twice: "My kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36)

1. This does not mean the kingdom has no in-breaking into this world — Acts demonstrates the kingdom invading hearts and cultures throughout the globe
2. It means the source of the kingdom's power and authority is not derived from the world

C. The kingdom of God owes nothing to the powers of this world

1. Illustration: Early American founders exempted the church from taxation because paying taxes to the government would imply the government is the church's governing authority
2. Illustration: Reformed Theological Seminary refused government funding so that Christ, not the state, remains the source of its authority
3. Jesus does not beg Pilate for clemency — He owes no loyalty or resources to any earthly power

D. Satan's temptation in the wilderness was a suzerainty-treaty offer — kingdoms of this world in exchange for Christ's loyalty (Matthew 4:8-9)

1. Adam exchanged his vice-regency under God for a vassal relationship with the serpent
2. The Last Adam, Jesus Christ, remained loyal and obedient to the Father unto death, owing nothing to the fallen world's ruler
3. Therefore the gates of hell can never prevail against the church — the King owes Satan nothing

E. The cross is simultaneously a defeat of sin and death and a defeat of the kingdoms of this world

1. Christ's Regal power flows entirely from divine, heavenly resources
2. His kingship is sourced wholly in God — as stated in Ephesians 1:3, all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places are found in Him

III. The Servants of the Kingdom of God

A. Jesus declares His purpose: to bear witness to the truth, and those who are of the truth listen to His voice (John 18:37)

1. The Greek word for "witness" is the root of the English word martyr
2. Tertullian: "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church" — but more precisely, the blood of the Martyr (Christ) is the seed of the church

B. Pilate's question "What is truth?" is deeply ironic

1. His ignorance of Truth — standing before him in person — became the very means by which God propagated that Truth throughout history
2. For over 1,700 years the church has recited in the Apostles' Creed that Christ "suffered under Pontius Pilate" — Pilate's name is permanently bound to the truth he rejected

C. Historical illustration: Walter Mill (1558), an 82-year-old man burned at the stake in Scotland for denying the Mass as a sacrifice

1. Mill declared he suffered not for any crime but for the defense of the faith of Jesus Christ, willingly offering his life to God's glory
2. John Knox wrote that Mill's execution immediately stirred new fervency among all the godly people — his defeat became the means of the gospel spreading throughout Scotland

D. Augustine in The City of God distinguished two cities — those who live according to man and those who live according to God

1. "There instead of victory is truth" — the servants of the kingdom long for truth, not the victories of this world

E. The servants of the kingdom hold to a truth that derives its authority from no earthly power

1. Subjective, relative, convenient, or politically expedient truth belongs to the city of man
2. The world hates the truth of Scripture precisely because its source is divine and beyond the world's control
3. The servants of the kingdom are those who inherit the earth, waiting and longing for a new heavens and new earth where righteousness and truth dwell (2 Peter 3:13)
4. We are commanded to pray: Maranatha — Come quickly, Lord Jesus