26-0614p Transcript

(1:36) Well, we’re going to conclude this morning’s message, A Tale of Two Kingdoms. (1:42) And this evening, we’ll look at the Dominion of Darkness, the Other Kingdom.

(1:54) But in this world today, there are two unique kingdoms. (1:59) They are unique in that they are both invisible. We can’t see them.

(2:06) And also, every human on earth is either in one or the other. That’s how these kingdoms are divided up. (2:23) And people, usually in the domain of darkness, don’t even know that they’re in that kingdom.

(2:32) They don’t know that there is a dark, malevolent, evil—think of every negative, descriptive (2:46) adjective that you could think of and put it in front of them. (2:51) That’s what Satan is. And they’re clueless.

(3:01) We establish from Scripture that the oldest of these kingdoms is the kingdom of God. (3:08) God the Father is our invisible, eternal King, whom no man has ever seen before. (3:17) And of the Godhead Three, it has always been Yahweh the Son, (3:25) who has been the human interface, who has directly interacted and interceded on man’s behalf.

(3:34) So the second figure of the Godhead interceded for man to resolve the issue of sin in our lives. (3:44) He’s the perfect one to do it. As he came to earth, lived as a man, was tempted in every way (3:52) just as we are, and yet he was without sin.

So that made him the perfect candidate (4:02) to be a sin offering. He is what for 4,000 years the world has been waiting for, (4:12) from the time Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, all the way through the Old Testament era, (4:20) right up to that point, 4,000 years of animal sacrifices. Those sins were atoned for by an (4:31) animal that really couldn’t take mankind’s sin away until a more perfect specimen came, (4:43) a more perfect sacrifice.

And Jesus, by reason of his perfect life, became our atoning sacrifice. (4:56) Thank you, Jesus, for doing what none of us could do. So when mankind exercises his free will (5:12) and does what God does not permit us to do, it is sin, and we become guilty of sin.

(5:23) And sin is what takes us out of God’s kingdom, where we started as children, (5:30) and we end up in the kingdom of darkness. Therefore, we need to accept God’s (5:39) solution to the sin crisis in our lives. If we sin, we die.

If we accept God’s gracious plan (5:49) of salvation, we are freed from our sins, and our penalty of death has been paid for by the Son of (5:57) God. Jesus, the only sinless human, willingly went to the cross of Calvary on our behalf (6:07) and died in our place. He was God the Father’s sacrificial Passover lamb, and his blood atones (6:18) for our guilt of sin.

So who are the citizens in Christ’s kingdom? They are those who have come (6:27) to the realization of their helpless, sinful state and humbly accepted Jesus, the Son of God, (6:37) as their Savior, and being obedient to him. By accepting Jesus as our Savior, we’ve renounced (6:46) our citizenship in Satan’s kingdom and become citizens in Christ’s kingdom once again. (6:56) As was read for us earlier, I believe, by John, (7:01) let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs (7:08) to such as these.

That’s how we know children, when they die, go to heaven, because heaven belongs (7:18) to them. They’re the little innocents. And Jesus said, let the little children come to me, (7:28) and he rebuked his disciples for preventing them from having Jesus lay his hands on them.

(7:40) Shall we all sing, Jesus loves the little children? I’ll spare you. So they’re innocent, (7:51) not having sinned. So the kingdom is there for them to hold on to or for them to lose.

(8:01) Unfortunately, we all lose. We all end up at one point in our life in Satan’s kingdom. (8:14) And also those who do not have the mental capacity to know right from wrong are also (8:22) members, like children, of God’s kingdom.

So Scripture says that Jesus is the sovereign (8:31) of the universe. How is it that Satan has a kingdom too? How does that work? How can one be (8:45) sovereign of heaven and earth, and yet there is a kingdom on earth opposed to everything heaven (8:53) stands for? Doesn’t that contradict God’s sovereignty? No, not at all. There are plenty (9:09) of earthly kingdoms still active today in some capacity.

England still has its monarchy, even (9:17) though it’s slightly neutered, because they have a parliament now, but actually that’s where all the (9:24) power resides. So Satan can have his kingdom and coexist with God’s kingdom, though they are not (9:39) at peace. The two kingdoms can be explained by the distinction between God’s eternal, divine (9:49) sovereignty and Satan’s temporary and granted authority over mankind’s fallen world system.

(10:02) Because man is sinful. All men get into his kingdom. But how did he get that kingdom? (10:12) Well, God retains ultimate ownership and authority of the earth that he created.

(10:19) Satan exercises rule over the current world system through his deceptions and the continued (10:28) sinful rebellion of humanity, a state established after the fall of Adam. These kingdoms operate (10:38) simultaneously through spiritual allegiances rather than physical geography. (10:47) You can’t say, here’s the kingdom of God, there’s the kingdom of Satan.

(10:53) It’s a spiritual matter. The kingdom of God is a spiritual realm in the hearts of believers, (10:59) as we’ve talked this morning about. It’s comprised of those who are transformed by (11:06) faith in Jesus Christ, by believing his word and receiving mercy and grace, and are at peace with (11:13) God, and are transferred back into his righteous kingdom where they started out as kids.

The kingdom (11:22) of Satan is a realm of rebellion under the influence of the fallen angels, demons, and Satan (11:32) himself. And also, people who follow their own natural desires, natural instincts like animals, (11:43) Peter explains in his second letter. And like animals, they too will be slaughtered and destroyed (11:51) if they don’t repent.

This duality of kingdoms continues until the end of this present age, (12:00) the Christian age, at which time God’s kingdom will fully prevail (12:08) when Christ returns a second time. And Satan’s temporary rule will be terminated. (12:16) But Satan has a kingdom? How did it get established? Jesus told us.

So with this statement (12:27) he made to the crowd, that Satan does have a kingdom. In Matthew 12, 26, he says, (12:34) if Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? (12:45) So how did Satan get the kingdom, this rule of power? But we have to go back to the beginning, (12:53) as was read for us just minutes ago.

Genesis 1, 26 through 28, God said, (13:03) let us make man in our image after our likeness, let them have dominion over the fish of the sea (13:11) and over the birds of the sky, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over every creeping thing (13:17) that creeps on the earth. God created man in his own image. In God’s image, he created them, (13:23) male and female, he created them.

God blessed them and said, be fruitful, multiply, fill the (13:30) earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, (13:37) over every living thing that moves on the earth. So God made man and gave mankind dominion.

(13:50) God is the eternal king, and he transferred that authority to man to run his creation. (14:01) He put man in charge. This is man’s domain.

So what is it to exercise authority over a domain? (14:17) Well, according to Webster, the definition of domain is sovereign or supreme authority, (14:25) the power of governing and controlling. So does man still have this God-given (14:32) supreme authority over God’s creation? Let’s keep digging. Luke 4, 5 through 8, we all know this.

(14:46) Matthew 4 and Luke 4 both are the temptation of Christ. (14:52) And in Luke, he gives us a little more information about the interchange between Jesus and Satan, (15:02) a little more detail. It says, and then the devil, taking him upon a high mountain, (15:09) showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.

And the devil said to him, (15:16) all this authority I will give you and their glory, for this has been delivered to me, (15:25) and I will give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if you worship me, all will be yours. And Jesus (15:34) answered and said to him, get behind me, Satan, for it is written, you shall worship the Lord your (15:41) God, and him only shall you serve.

But isn’t that interesting? Matthew doesn’t record these (15:49) particular words, all this authority I will give you and their glory, for this has been delivered (15:58) to me. Who delivered it? To Satan. Satan’s proposal to Christ, as perversive as it was, (16:09) must have had an element of truth to it, for Jesus would have corrected the record.

What do (16:17) you mean, all this is yours and you give it to whoever you want? He did not say that. (16:31) By his statement, all this authority I will give you and their glory, for this has been delivered (16:39) to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. We can conclude that someone handed over to Satan (16:50) this authority, because apparently it is transferable.

And likewise, Satan can transfer (17:01) this authority to whomever he wishes. So when and who transferred this power? And as was read for (17:09) us earlier, Genesis 3, 1-7, now the serpent was more crafty than any other of the wild animals (17:19) the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, did God really say you must not eat from any tree (17:28) in the garden? The woman said to the serpent, we may eat fruit from the trees of the garden.

(17:40) But God did say you must not eat of the fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, (17:47) and you must not touch it, or you will die. You will not surely die, the serpent said to the (17:54) woman, for God knows that when you eat of it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, (18:02) knowing good and evil. When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food (18:10) and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate.

(18:18) She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them (18:26) were opened, and they realized they were naked, so they sewed big leaves together and made (18:34) coverings for themselves. Adam and Eve chose to listen to the serpent, whose version of truth (18:49) was the complete opposite of what God had told them.

They chose to listen to the serpent who (18:56) told them they would not die if they ate the fruit. They disregarded God’s command, God’s (19:05) authority, rejecting God and what he said, and subjected themselves willingly to the serpent’s (19:16) version of truth. It was like they said, God, I’m not listening to you anymore.

(19:25) I’m listening to this serpent from now on. They’ll follow him. Guess what they just did? (19:37) Here’s my authority.

You’re in control now. They gave up their authority, (19:46) and that, my friends, is the transfer of power from mankind to the serpent. (19:52) And so thus starts God’s reign as king of the dominion of darkness.

(20:00) Everybody who rejects the word of God, disobeys the word of God, are subject to Satan and his (20:09) rules in this world, in that kingdom, the second oldest kingdom on earth. (20:19) So who’s in the dominion of darkness? Well, at that moment, Adam and Eve, they were the first (20:28) citizens in his kingdom, and all who have sinned and disobeyed the eternal king in heaven after (20:36) that. And that means that when Cain killed Abel and was banished, God sent him off into the world (20:49) to wander.

That started an entire line of peoples who rejected God. There is Satan’s kingdom, (21:04) and it grew fast, and it became corrupt fast, so fast that by the time Noah came around, (21:15) God had to get rid of them all because they were so corrupt. After God confronted Adam and Eve (21:26) in the garden about eating the forbidden fruits, he quickly intervened to get them out (21:35) of Satan’s domain, to draw them safely back into his kingdom by sacrificing enough animals (21:49) to cover them and their newly realized nakedness with animal skins.

So Yahweh (21:59) sacrificed animals to cover their guilt, cover their sin. They were forgiven, (22:11) and their sins were rolled forward, so to speak, till a more suitable sacrifice (22:18) could be made. From that time on, animal sacrifices were made on behalf of mankind (22:29) to cover man’s sin until the Christ would come along.

It took 4,000 years. It was (22:39) from the time of Adam, 2,000 years, to the time of Abraham. From the time of Abraham, (22:48) it took 2,000 years to get to Christ.

So for 4,000 years, how many animals do you suppose died (23:00) to cover man’s sin? Countless. That same holy being in the garden, the second figure of the Godhead, (23:17) Yahweh, came to earth, was born of a virgin, and lived a perfect sin-free life. (23:24) Jesus, the Son of God, would become God the Father’s perfect sacrificial Passover lamb.

(23:34) As everyone in Israel was sacrificing their Passover lamb, God permitted His Son to be the (23:43) true sacrifice that took the sins away of all mankind on the cross at Calvary. (23:52) To believe in the Christ and obey His commands is the only way out of Satan’s dominion of darkness. (24:03) Paul tells us in Colossians 1, 13 and 14, God has rescued us (24:12) from the darkness, the dominion of darkness, and brought us into the kingdom of His beloved Son, (24:20) in whom we have redemption and the forgiveness of sins.

So once we are back in the Good Shepherd’s (24:28) fold, we have to be on our guard and alert, because Satan wants us back, and will do everything (24:39) and use every trick and scheme and while to reclaim us. And Paul warns in the Ephesian letter, (24:54) chapter 6, verses 10 through 18, I won’t mention that that’s probably an answer to somebody’s (25:00) Bible quiz, it says, finally be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. (25:09) Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.

(25:17) For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, (25:26) against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (25:37) Therefore, put on the full armor of God so that when the day of evil comes, you can stand. (25:48) Stand firm then with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of (25:53) righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of (26:00) peace.

Take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil (26:14) one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, and pray (26:21) in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. And with this in mind, (26:28) be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

We’re not left as orphans here on earth. (26:41) God gave us His Spirit, God gave us His Word, and God gave us each other, the church, our brothers (26:50) and sisters in Christ. We know each other.

We feel each other’s pain. We’ve had some pretty (27:01) serious talks with each other. That’s why Paul says, pray, always keep on praying for all the saints (27:15) as Satan warms us back.

Thankfully, we’ve got a God who’s got such a grip on us. (27:26) There’s a whole page listed of all the things that cannot get us out of His hand, but what can get us (27:34) out of His hand? Us. We can believe.

Brothers and sisters, don’t ever do that. That’s turning your (27:45) back on God. Then when the time is right, God will send Christ back with a trumpet blast to (27:59) retrieve the remaining church, to meet Him in the air, and go on to eternity.

Finally, let’s finish (28:06) with Paul’s description of the end time, 1 Corinthians 15, 24-26. Then the end will come (28:15) when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, (28:23) and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.

The last enemy to be (28:31) destroyed is death. There will be no more death because we’re going to have our eternal bodies (28:40) up in heaven. We’ll live forever with the eternal King.

So at this time, if you have any need from (28:50) the church, if you need strength from the prayers of the church, come forward and let your request be (29:01) known. (29:02)