Page 114 - TH130 Kingdom of God A4 Final

The Kingdom of God

Conversely, Jesus wants us to be like a city situated on a hilltop whose
light cannot be hidden. Our kingdom assignment is to let our light shine
before men, in such a way that “they may see [our] good deeds and praise
[our] Father in heaven” (v. 16).

Kingdom Righteousness

As representatives of Christ’s kingdom, Christians are required to live
by certain moral principles. Jesus called this the way of righteousness
(5:6, 10, 20; 6:1, 33). Today, we often use the word ethics. Both words
speak of moral goodness. This moral goodness includes both internal
purity and external acts of goodness.

Superior Righteousness (Matthew 5:17–20)
The principles of righteousness found in the Sermon on the Mount
are based on God’s moral law, which has always been. Jesus said, “Do
not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have
not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (5:17). The Law that God
gave in the Old Testament was
part of the Mosaic Covenant that
He made with His chosen people
The law of Christ does Israel. He was to be their King, and
not replace the Law they were to be His missionary
people. As God’s missionary people,
and the Prophets but they were to live as He expected.

emerges from them. Their righteous conduct, and God’s
blessing on them, would serve as
a light to the nations and would
draw them to God (Isaiah 51:4;
60:3). The Ten Commandments stood at the heart of God’s moral law
(Exodus 20:1–17).

The laws of Christ’s kingdom are found in the Sermon on the Mount
and elsewhere in the New Testament. They do not do away with the
laws of God as they were presented under the old covenant. Rather,
Christ’s laws fulfill them and surpass them. They are the next step in the
establishment of God’s kingdom in the earth. Just as the butterfly does
not replace the caterpillar but emerges from it, the law of Christ does not
replace the Law and the Prophets but emerges from them.

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