THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE HEAVENS
AND THE KINGDOM OF THE HEAVENS
The heavens spoken of here refer to the third heavens where God and the Lord Jesus dwell. The third heavens are a dwelling place where God and the Lord Jesus are today. The kingdom of the heavens is a kingdom, the ruling of the heavens today, wherein the seeking believers are submitting to the heavenly authority and receiving the heavenly discipline, control, and training. In the future, the kingdom of the heavens is the manifestation of the ruling of the heavens during the millennial kingdom. At that time, the Lord Jesus and the overcoming saints will be ruling over the world. The third heavens are in heaven; the kingdom of the heavens is on the earth.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
THE KINGDOM OF THE HEAVENS
AND THE CHURCH
The church is neither a physical building, nor a place, nor an organization, nor a denomination, nor an evangelistic group. The church in the original language is ecclesia, which means "the assembly of the called-out ones." The church is a group of people whom God has called out from the world. The totality of this people on one hand is "the Body of Christ" (Eph. 1:23); on the other hand it is "the house of God" (1 Tim. 3:15). The Body of Christ denotes both the relationship and function of the church to Christ. The house of God denotes both the relationship and the function of the church to God. Related to Christ, the church came out of Christ and has His life. Hence, the church is the Body, the fullness of Christ—His continuation, extension, and spreading. It is able to express and testify Christ anytime and anywhere. Related to God, the church was born of God and has His life. Hence, the church is God’s household, His dwelling place, enabling Him to have a place on the earth where He can rest, express His desire, fulfill His purpose, and manifest His glory.
We have to be clear about one thing: the church is different from Christianity. In the world’s eyes, Christianity is the church. But in the eyes of God and in the eyes of those who know God, there is a great difference between Christianity and the church. Christianity is that which men have organized in the world; the church is that which God has delivered out of the world. Christianity is the religious organization, that is, the outward appearance of the kingdom of the heavens; the church is a living organism, that is, the Body of Christ and the spiritual dwelling of God.
To be a part of Christianity requires only a ritual of being baptized and joining Christianity. By this, one can become a nominal Christian. To participate in the church requires regeneration through repentance to God and faith in Christ, causing one to become a member of Christ and a child of God. In the world’s eyes, those who are in Christianity are in the church. However, in God’s eyes those who are in Christianity may not all be in the church. This is because in Christianity there are many who have not been regenerated through repentance to God and faith in Christ. Hence, they are neither the members of Christ nor the children of God.
The church is the Body of Christ and the house of God as well, while the kingdom of the heavens is a heavenly kingdom. The church denotes a believer’s position and blessing along with his life and function; the kingdom of the heavens denotes a believer’s living and responsibility today with his authority and glory in the future. The church is the grace which a believer receives; the kingdom of the heavens is the training which a believer receives today and the reward which he receives in the future. A believer in the church is a member of Christ enjoying Christ as life and also a child of God enjoying the blessing in the house of God. A believer in the kingdom of the heavens is a heavenly subject submitting to the heavenly authority and receiving heavenly control and discipline today, and in the future he will be a heavenly king exercising heavenly authority to rule over the world and to enjoy heavenly glory and joy with Christ. As long as one has the life of God, he is in the church, but he must have a heavenly living in order to be in the kingdom of the heavens. All the saved ones are in the church, but not all the saved ones are in the kingdom of the heavens. This is because not every saved one is living in the reality of the kingdom of the heavens today, receiving the discipline of the kingdom. Nor will he be in the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens in the future to receive the reward. Only those believers who are presently submitting to the heavenly authority, receiving the discipline of the kingdom of the heavens, are in the kingdom of the heavens today and will be thus able to enter into the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens to reign as kings. Those who participate in the kingdom of the heavens, that is, the reality and the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens, naturally participate in the church, but those who participate in the church may not necessarily participate in the kingdom of the heavens. A saved one merely participates in the church; a saved and overcoming one participates both in the church and in the kingdom of the heavens. To participate in the church requires only salvation through faith, but to participate in the kingdom of the heavens requires further seeking to overcome, submitting to heavenly authority, and receiving heavenly control and discipline after experiencing salvation.
(The Kingdom, Chapter 47, by Witness Lee)
