Information Related to "The Kingdom of Heaven"
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The true Kingdom of Heaven speaks of infinitely greater things than the graphically violent 2005 movie of that name. Jesus taught that the Kingdom of Heaven affects your whole physical life and your eternal future.
Of all the world's religions, even modern Christianity comprehends but little about this Kingdom. Fortunately, here vertical thinking comes into its own; you can know this Kingdom and be part of it!
Why is it called the "kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 3:2; 5:10)? Is it because good people go to heaven when they die?
In fact, the Bible clarified this matter, stating, "No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven" (John 3:13). The only human being who has ever gone to heaven is Jesus Christ.
The Kingdom is called the Kingdom of Heaven not because it is exclusive to that location but because it is ruled by God, who now dwells in heaven. In the Bible only Matthew's account of Christ's life used this descriptive phrase because he wrote primarily to the Jews of his day who made it a point to avoid speaking God's name. They used "heaven" as a substitute for God's name, as is done in the modern expression "Heaven only knows" (meaning God only knows).
Thus, "kingdom of heaven" just means "kingdom of God," which is what the rest of the Bible calls it (Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:43; John 3:3; Acts 19:8; Romans 14:17; 1 Corinthians 4:20). Even Matthew's account occasionally called it that (Matthew 6:33; 19:24).
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