Bible Questions & Answers
If you have a specific question you would like to ask, send it to Dan Allen jd03325@gmail.com You must give your name and e-mail address.
When I answer your question I will not show your name or e-mail address when I post your question to this blog.
I will make every effort to answer your questions within 3 days.
Each answered question will include a Scripture reference for the question. I urge you to read all scriptures from your Bible accepting only what the Bible teaches.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
QUESTION: If the kingdom is the church, as you teach, and it has already
come, then why did Jesus teach us to pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will
be done, etc.?”
ANSWER: Jesus, through His Word, does not teach people today to pray “Thy
kingdom come!” In Luke 11:1, “one of His disciples said unto Him, Lord, teach
‘us’ to pray.” Jesus was teaching His disciples of that time to pray for the
kingdom to come, because it had not yet come! In fact, both He and John the
Baptist were preaching at that time, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand (near)”
(Matthew 3:1-2; Matthew 4:17). In Mark 9:1, Jesus said to those standing by that
the kingdom would come and be established in their lifetime.
Matthew 16:18-19 clearly shows that Christ intended to build His church and give
Peter the keys to that which He had built, i.e., the kingdom, or the church! That
the church was established on the Day of Pentecost of Acts two cannot be
denied (Acts 2:47). Neither can it be denied that Acts 2:29-36 is an account of
the resurrection, ascension, and enthronement of Jesus Christ at the right hand
of God! Daniel tells us in chapter seven, verses thirteen and fourteen, that upon
the ascension of Christ and His return to the Father that He was to be given a
Kingdom that would never be destroyed. Obviously then, Christ, upon His
ascension, was enthroned over the kingdom that He had been given, and over
which He had been given “all” authority (Matthew 28:18). Shortly after this, we
see Philip preaching to the Samaritans things concerning the kingdom of God
and the authority of Jesus Christ (Acts 8:12). As a result, those to whom he
preached were baptized. Into what were they baptized? Obviously, into that
which he was preaching about, i.e., the kingdom of God. But in Acts 2:37-47, we
find that those who were baptized were (placed into) added to the church.
Certainly, both the people on Pentecost and the Samaritans were baptized into
the same institution! The only conclusion to be drawn is that when one is
baptized he or she is baptized into the kingdom, which is the church! This is why
Paul could say in Colossians 1:13, that we were “translated” into the kingdom of
God. Can one be translated into something that doesn’t exist? Of course not!
Baptism is clearly the point of translation! We are baptized into “one body” (I
Corinthians 12:13), which is the church (Ephesians 1:22-23). It is the very act,
the only act, by which we are translated into the kingdom of God!
Why do we not pray for the kingdom to come? Because it came two thousand
years ago! To pray for something to come that is already here would be a
violation of scripture (James 4:3; I John 5:14).
