Kingdom of God per Matthew

     The primary theme of most of the churches and people that i visited in Brazil this summer is the Kingdom of God. So i resolved that when i returned to the US that I would do a study on this subject, which i began yesterday. I found 129 references (may vary a little with other versions) in the New Testament. Forty-six are in the gospel of Matthew. Last night i had the opportunity to go through all 46 with seven brothers or sisters.
     For context we began in Genesis 1:26, 28 where God gives Adam dominion over the earth and everything in it, and where he is told to subject the earth. In the same place he is commanded to be fruitful and multiply so that he can have help in this responsibility. Unfortunately his sin ceded control of his kingdom to the devil. So it is of huge significance to find Jesus coming preaching the kingdom of God. After His temptation he begins his public ministry in Matthew 4:17 by saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven (essentially interchangeable with the kingdom of God) is at hand. Jesus has arrived to invade the devil's kingdom. In verse 23 of the same chapter we read that Jesus went around all Galilee teaching and preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God.
     Now when we think about the gospel we usually look at it from an  individual perspective; that Jesus came to save me from my sins. While this contains truth it is not the overarching theme. He came to proclaim his kingdom. Matthew 12:25-28 brings this out clearly. Jesus has been accused of casting out demons by the help of the devil. He replies that no kingdom divided against itself can stand. He concludes by saying, "But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you."
     A kingdom also requires a king. A king is one who rules. His subjects obey. Too often we receive a diluted message that Jesus only came to be our Savior. I find it impossible to maintain this view in light of the 129 references to Him as King of a kingdom, not to mention many more as Lord. We are kidding ourselves if we remain on the throne of our lives doing what we think is best, The identical proverbs of 14:12 and 16:25 say that "There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof is death."
    A final thought for now is that most of the parables in Matthew are used to explain aspects of the kingdom of heaven. Check out chapter 13 for example.