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         When man sinned by disobeying God, a division came between man and God. A division was also manifested between man and creation. Creation rebelled against man, as man had against God, and it became difficult for man to cultivate the earth, as we read in Genesis 3:17-19:

“Cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.

“Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; and you will eat the plants of the field.

“By the sweat of your face you will eat bread, until you return to the ground.”

         Before the fall of man there was peace and harmony on earth between God and man and man and creation. When division came between God and man, it also came between man and creation, and then between man and man, as we see with the first two sons, Cain and Abel. Since the fall, people on earth have related to one another with strife, conflict, and division.

Periods of peace have been rare in human history. Division and conflict have been almost continuous. As we come to the end of this age, division and conflict are increasing and will increase until man is close to destroying all life on earth. As Jesus stated in Matthew 24:22, “Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved…”In His mercy, God will intervene in the chaos and conflict and return to set up His kingdom on earth and reverse all the consequences of man’s fall.

Isaiah 11 contains just one of many prophecies and promises of this ultimate restoration of earth to its original paradise. The divisions between God and man, man and man, and man and creation will all be healed, and harmony restored. We are told there will be such peace on earth in His kingdom, lambs will lie down with lions, children will play with cobras, and no one will hurt anyone else.

The biblical prophecies given concerning the coming kingdom of God are the greatest messages of hope the world has ever heard. This is the message, the gospel, the “good news” of the kingdom, which must be preached throughout the earth before the Lord can come. As He said in Matthew 24:14, “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.”

         The most important thing we can do to help prepare the way for the Lord and His coming kingdom is to preach this gospel of the kingdom. As many Bible teachers have stated, and I agree, this message has not really been preached on the earth since the first century. Parts of it may have been preached occasionally, but most of what has been preached has been a gospel of salvation, which is part of the gospel of the kingdom but not the entire good news of the kingdom.

         The gospel of salvation is so glorious it’s easy to understand why many become centered on it. No doubt we will forever be thanking God for our redemption. However, this aspect of the gospel is man-centered, not God-centered or kingdom-centered. Even in its man-centricity, what has been preached as the gospel of salvation is but a fraction of all the benefits believers have as citizens of the kingdom. Some have done more of this than others, but the gospel of the kingdom is mostly about the King. That is why the apostolic gospel preached in the first century preached Jesus and the resurrection from the dead (see Acts 4:2, 17:18).

         We would expect those just born again to be self-centered for a time, since newborn infants are certainly self-centered. However, as babies mature, they become less self-centered, and so should Christians. True maturity is living more for others than ourselves, but mostly living for the Lord and seeing Him receive the inheritance He paid for with such a great price. Thus, Hebrews 12:14 should be a basic devotion in our lives: “Pursue peace with all people, and the holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (NKJV).