The apostle Peter wrote, “For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Pet. 1:16). False teachers can be cunning. Some have vivid imaginations. They can fabricate elaborate tales. Peter warned of false prophets who lead their followers to destruction by their imaginative heresies (2 Pet. 2:1-3). However, the imaginations of men are not the source of the account of the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Honest men, such as Peter, witnessed these events.

Later in this passage, Peter noted the divine origin of the Scriptures: “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Pet. 1:19-21).

The prophecy of the Old Testament was made more sure by the miraculous confirmations God performed when the salvation of Christ was inaugurated. God’s voice was heard from heaven confirming that Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament. Peter said, “For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’ And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain” (2 Pet. 1:17, 18). Remember Matthew 17:1-7 records how Peter was there as Jesus was transfigured on the mountain. He saw Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus. Peter’s suggestion to make three tabernacles, one for each of them, was met with the Father’s response, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” (Mt. 17:5). Thus, Jesus has fulfilled and superseded the Old Testament law (Moses) and prophets (Elijah). These two men represented the law and the prophets, a frequently used designation of the Old Testament (Mt. 7:12; 11:13; 22:40; Lk. 16:16; Jn. 1:45; Acts 13:15; 24:14; Rom. 3:21). Jesus is the fulfillment, Who gives us understanding of the law and the prophets (Lk. 24:44-46). In his first epistle, Peter mentioned how the prophets of old spoke of the grace that would come through the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow (1 Pet. 1:10-12).

Peter himself was writing his epistles by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised the apostles the Holy Spirit would guide them into all truth (Jn. 16:13). Peter received the same divine guidance as did the inspired men of old (2 Pet. 1:20-21). Over the course of 1,600 years, God used over forty individuals from different cultures, with vastly different circumstances, speaking different languages to write one unified message. God is really the one author behind the Bible. We should pay attention to the Bible as we would take notice of a bright light shining in the dark (2 Pet. 1:19).

The opening chapters of the New Testament record both John the Baptist and Jesus in their public ministries preaching the kingdom of heaven was near (Mt. 3:2; 4:17). Jesus said it would come in the lifetimes of some who heard Him speak, “Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power” (Mk. 9:1). The kingdom would result in Heaven’s will being done on earth (Mt. 6:10). The phrase “kingdom of heaven” is used in Matthew, perhaps, because the Jewish audience was accustomed to having a substituted word for “God.” It was God’s kingdom that Jesus preached was near (Mk. 1:14, 15). God is in heaven, and we are on earth (Ecc. 5:2; Mt. 6:9).

The kingdom would come to earth, but it would not be an earthly, political type of kingdom (Jn. 18:36). The kingdom is a spiritual realm into which the saved are transferred (Col. 1:13). It is a spiritual kingdom in which Christ reigns in the hearts of those who submit to His will (Lk. 17:20-21). Jesus taught many parables of the kingdom in which He likened it to earthly episodes for illustrative purposes (Mt. 13; 20:1-16; 22:1-14; 25). We do not easily grasp spiritual truths. Those who heard Jesus often misunderstood Him because they had earthly/physical preconceptions about the kingdom or took His language too literally. In His preaching, Jesus was preparing people for the impending kingdom.

A dream king Nebuchadnezzar had centuries before revealed God’s kingdom would be set up in the days of the Roman kings (Dan. 2). The Roman Caesars were in power when Jesus lived as a human on the earth, died, and rose again to sit on His throne as King of Kings (Lk. 3:1; 20:25; 23:2; Jn. 19:12-15; Acts 2:30-36; 1 Tim. 6:15; Rev. 17:9-14). Jesus promised to build His church and told Peter about the “keys of the kingdom” in the same brief statement (Mt. 16:17-19). The church and the kingdom are often used interchangeably. Power that Jesus said would accompany His kingdom came on Pentecost day following the resurrection of Jesus from the dead (Acts 2:1-4). Those who responded positively to the preaching of the apostles—particularly the inspired instructions of Peter recorded in the biblical text—through repentance and baptism were added to the church (Acts 2:38, 41, 47). The kingdom came with power. Peter, with the keys of the kingdom, opened the door for people to access this kingdom when he said, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized for the remission of sins…” (Acts 2:38).

Those in the church are in the kingdom. The saints and faithful brethren in Christ at Colossae (Col. 1:2) had been delivered from the power of darkness and conveyed into the kingdom of God’s Son (Col. 1:13). When John wrote to persecuted Christians in the seven churches of Asia Minor, he referred to himself as their brother in the kingdom of Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:9). Christians are fellow citizens (Eph. 2:19) of this holy nation (1 Pet. 2:9).

The proper response to hearing the kingdom of God preached is to be baptized (Acts 8:12). When one is baptized into Christ, a new birth occurs. In John 3:5-7, Jesus said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” This is the way to enter the kingdom of God—the church.

Christ’s kingdom has come. It was established on earth nearly two thousand years ago. It is the church of Christ. John prepared the way for its reception. Jesus preached about it, then died, and rose again to establish it. Are you in the kingdom?