Introduction: the Mustard Tree

In Northern Israel there is a large lake known as the Sea of Galilee. Early in the first century Jesus traveled to the area around the lake and one day went down and sat beside the lake shore. There were people there who wanted to hear him teach. So he told them a story:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.”

And this simple story perfectly explains what God’s New World will be like!

Back in the first century Jesus with his small band of disciples traveled across the Israel countryside telling whoever would listen of God’s plan to create a mighty kingdom covering the entire earth in the future. However, Jesus was despised by many and was eventually crucified. This humble small beginning of spreading the message of the coming kingdom is like a mustard seed which is very small when it starts. Yet that small mustard seed will grow into a tree and in a similar way, the humble beginnings of the message of the kingdom will grow to the eventual establishment of the greatest kingdom ever to exist on the earth! And that same man who, back in the first century, taught of this coming kingdom will now be King over the entire kingdom! The kingdom will cover the whole earth and every person on the earth will say that Jesus Christ is Lord and King!

That small mustard seed will grow into a large tree!! 

Below are questions about this kingdom. To get the answer to each question please click on the question:

The Mustard Tree

Why does the world need a new kingdom?

And Jesus said :

In this manner, therefore, pray:

“Our Father who is in heaven,

Hallowed be your name.

Your Kingdom come”. 

These words are part of the well known “The Lord’s Prayer”. When people sometimes use the Lord’s prayer and pray those words, “Your kingdom come”, have they really thought about what the answer to that prayer will be like.

Men and women have been praying similar words for many millennium and over the time the excitement has been building up as each generation of men and women look at Bible prophecy and realise that the kingdom is getting closer and closer.  . 

But why does the world need a new kingdom? Because the world is getting deeper and deeper into trouble. Just look at the past 100 years: 

Wars	There have been numerous wars – World War II (approx. 62 million dead), World War I (approx. 15 million dead), the Korean war (approx. 3 million dead), the Vietnam war (approx. 2 million dead), 2003 Iraq war (approx. 168,000 dead to date), the 1991 Gulf war (approx. 100,000 dead), 1980 Iran-Iraq war (approx. 1,000,000 dead) and the list goes on. The most recent war in July 2006 is between Israel and the Hezbollah of Lebanon. Towards the end of the 20th Century many more countries were developing nuclear weapons - an even more dangerous recipe for world-wide disaster.
Global Warming	The world is heating up. It was found that during the 20th century the average temperature of the Earth's surface increased by about 0.6°C. According to the Intergovernmental scientists working on climate change, the globe’s surface temperature could rise 1.4 to 5.8°C above the 1990 average by 2100. The effects of such a temperature increase might include: The rising of sea levels. An increase in the climate’s variability. This would mean changes in both the frequency and severity of extreme weather events More frequent extreme high maximum temperatures and less frequent extreme low minimum temperatures; A decrease in snow cover: satellite observations suggest that the area of the planet covered by snow has already declined by 10 per cent since the 1960s Alterations to the distribution of certain infectious diseases
Terrorism	The most obvious example of terrorism in the past 100 years is the September 11, 2001 attacks in the US where 2986 people lost their lives. Another example is the blowing up of the Pan Am passenger plane over Lockerbie, Scotland resulting in 270 dead. But these are just two examples of hundreds of acts of terrorism from suicide bombers in Israel to the blowing up of the US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.
Extinction of animal species	Animals like the Tasmanian Tiger, Japanese wolf, Caspian Tiger, and Pygmy hippopotamus have all become extinct during the past one hundred years. Currently in the world there are over 8,000 plant species and over 7,000 animal species which are threatened with extinction. The primary causes of species extinction or endangerment are: Habitat destruction Exploitation for commercial reasons (such as collecting plants, hunting, and trade in animal parts) Damage caused by plants and animals introduced into an area  where they are not native to that area Pollution Of these causes, direct habitat destruction threatens the greatest number of species.
Pollution	Modern industry and transport have increased pollution levels dramatically not only in the air but in the water.
Poverty and refugees	The late 20th Century will go down in World history as a period of global impoverishment marked by the collapse of productive systems in the developing World, the demise of national institutions and the disintegration of health and educational programs. In the 1990s, local level famines have erupted in Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and parts of Latin America; health clinics and schools have been closed down, hundreds of millions of children have been denied the right to primary education. In the Third World, Eastern Europe and the Balkans there has been a resurgence of infectious diseases including tuberculosis, malaria and cholera.1
Disease	Infectious disease that used to kill millions of people has been greatly reduced  during the 20th century. But modern medicine has not got the perfect answer to destroy all disease that affects man. For example, Malaria and AIDS are still major killers in Africa.

This is a list of just some of the problems besetting the world. Yet God’s New World offers solutions to all of these problems. We will look at those solutions later in this article.

What has to happen before the kingdom commences?

The Bible tells us that a number of events must happen before the kingdom is established. Click here to see what the Bible says about the events leading up to the Kingdom. Click here to see why events in Israel are a sign of the coming kingdom.

One day in the not to distant future we will read in our newspaper or watch on a television an invasion of Israel. We will see or read about it's mountains covered with armies and armaments. The events will happen quickly like a row of dominoes falling -

Jerusalem will be attacked and after a series of events involving intervention by God through natural disasters, all the invading armies will be destroyed. The Jews who have survived the invasion return to Israel and accept Jesus as their saviour. It is then that the Lord Jesus Christ returns to the earth. The dead rise and the saints meet the Lord Jesus Christ.

The judgment of these people commences and Immortality is bestowed on those who have lived according to his commands. Jesus redeems the land of Israel from violence and sets up his power in Jerusalem.

He commences to proclaim his law from Jerusalem stating that there must be obedience of all nations. He then goes about completely restoring the then living scattered Israel, and regenerating the nation as the nucleus of his world power.  

Will there be a central temple from where people can worship? 

Let’s get our imagination going and think what it will be like to be in God’s New World.

Those who are fortunate enough to be present because they were accepted by Christ, will view the overall picture with reverent awe. But at the same time they are not surprised. They knew what to expect because they had studied the Bible.

With Jesus world power established, he supervises the erection of a glorious temple in Jerusalem as a centre of universal worship and education. The people will look at the temple in utter wonderment at its huge size. The outside wall measures about two kilometres each way and is pierced with many gates. Each gate is flanked with chambers for the temple service, and the observers notice that you can enter by an upward flight of steps. As they walk up the steps they see an inner wall, about 50 metres closer to the temple. The space lying between the inner and outer wall they recognise as what is described in the Bible as the outer court. It forms a glorious spacious promenade or pavement which can be seen for its whole two kilometre length.

The inner wall also has gates which are similar to those along the outside wall. These gates along the inside wall open by eight steps into the inner court. And it is in the inner court that stands the temple. The temple is an immense circle of a grand arched and latticed building. The building alone is capable of holding one million worshippers. This is the triumphant centrepiece. When those present look at the height, breadth and elaborateness of it, they agree that it well and truly exceeds anything which men or women have ever built before.

The temple stands in the centre of an area of country measuring about 67 kilometres from east to west, and about 27 kilometres from north to south. This area is occupied by a class of people described as the seed of Zadok. These are the ones who were faithful in ancient times. To the south of this area, there is a similar tract of country measured off for the Levites, who have been given the duty of performing the menial and laborious duties connected with the temple worship. Again, to the south of this area, measuring 67 kilometres from east to west, and about 16 kilometres from north to south is a strip of land allocated for the city and also land for the fields and gardens.

The city lies about 51 Kilometres to the south of the temple. In the total when you combine the different areas, that is,

the area of the temple and its surrounds,

the area for the sons of Zadok,

the area for the Levites,

and the area for the city,

you find that it forms a square measuring 67 kilometres each way. 

So those who are fortunate enough to be present because they were accepted by Christ, will view the overall picture with reverent awe. But because of their study and reading of the Bible before Christ’s return none of this will be a surprise to them.

Part two of this article will continue our look at what the future Kingdom of God will be like.

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Last Updated: Sunday, 08 June 2008