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Feast of Tabernacles-Day Two-The Realm of The Kingdom
October 11, 2022

. During this feast, we look forward to the establishment of the Kingdom of God, and every nation is defined in part by the territory it possesses. While some of a country’s territory may consist of lakes and coastal shore areas, most of a nation’s territory is land. The type of land possessed by the country plays a major role in the development and history of that nation. Nations situated in tropical climates have people who have adjusted to that tropical lifestyle. For our friends living nearer the arctic circle, they have adjusted to colder weather, longer nights during the winter, and longer days during the summer. Countries that have an abundance of fossil fuels made it possible for the many forms of transportation we have today. Those countries with little access to fossil fuels, like Germany and Japan, were major players on the same side of a major war. Who and what a nation is, the identity of the people, is linked to the land of the country.

When considering blessings and cursings on the children of Israel, there was frequently a link to the land possessed by the country. For instance, when the Lord appeared to Solomon by night after hearing Solomon’s prayer, what God said was linked to the land, specifically telling him that it was possible to send locusts to consume the land, or to cause a drought. Having lived in the United States desert southwest for decades, it’s easy for me to know when rains have recently happened because the desert takes on a different color and look, and when there has been a prolonged period with no rain, that same area of desert takes on a different look altogether.

To Solomon, God provided an insight to having a blessing on the land-humility, not the false self-flattering humility we see too much of, but the Biblical humility that results in each of us surrendering ourselves to God, and that when the people’s attitude is right before God and they turn from their wicked ways, the land will be healed. Some may immediately think of a political party when reading these types of verses from the Bible-don’t. Evil people can be found on both sides of the political aisle. With God the politics that matter to people are of no importance. God looks for humility that leads a person to turn from wicked and to do good. The Kingdom of God celebrated by this feast will be a kingdom of humility where people do righteousness instead of evil.

2 Chronicles 7:12-16
And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice. If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Now mine eyes shall be open, and mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place. For now have I chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be there for ever: and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.

The children of Israel were given instruction by God to not defile the land where they lived, because God was there. While giving instructions regarding murderers, it was told that a murderer was to be put to death for what they did, but that a death penalty should not be imposed for purposes of revenge, because to God blood of the innocent defiles the land.

Numbers 35:29-34
So these things shall be for a statute of judgment unto you throughout your generations in all your dwellings. Whoso killeth any person, the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses: but one witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die. Moreover ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer, which is guilty of death: but he shall be surely put to death. And ye shall take no satisfaction for him that is fled to the city of his refuge, that he should come again to dwell in the land, until the death of the priest. So ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are: for blood it defileth the land: and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it. Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit, wherein I dwell: for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel.

In the Kingdom of God, there will be no defilement of land, because God will not allow it. All that brings us pause for concern today will not be an issue in the Kingdom of God. Going back to the very beginning of the Book of Genesis, God was already laying the foundation for land and the Kingdom of God. Mankind was given dominion over all living creatures, and even plant life. When we look around the world we live in today, we see a world tainted by man, almost as if all plants and animals are calling out to God to be rescued from the evil that man almost always seems to bring with him.

Genesis 1:26-30
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

Territory is important to the sovereignty of a nation and sometime nations do not value what they have been given, such was the case with the children of Israel when they left Egypt. Having lived in Egypt for an extended period, somehow the concept of having their own land was not that important to them during the years after they left Egypt. They felt death was imminent on their journey to the promised land and today as we seek first the Kingdom of God and God’s righteousness in all we do, if we feel spiritual death is imminent, we like the children of Israel who plotted to return to Egypt, will likely find a justification to return to doing what we did before we knew God, even when facing the prospect of being on the cusp of arriving at salvation, because the children of Israel rejected the testimony of Joshua and Caleb who spied out the land to report back. We cannot risk rejecting the testimony of Jesus Christ who died and who was resurrected so that we can have eternal life and be part of the Kingdom of God.

Numbers 14:1-10
And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt. Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.

Just like a rebellion happened with the children of Israel after the spies returned from spying out the land, we cannot allow a rebellion to cause us to part company with Jesus Christ. When the spies returned to Israel, they did not just bring the testimony of their exploration, they brought back samples, a cluster of grapes so large it had to be carried on a stave by at least two people. They also brought fruit suited for the environment of the promised land, pomegranates, and figs. Even with this visual proof of what was awaiting them, the children of Israel instead wanted to return to Egypt.

Numbers 13:21-25
So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath. And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt. And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs. The place was called the brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence. And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.

When prophets had visions to relay to the people, some of these visions involved land elements and some of these also seemed to point towards the Kingdom of God. Isaiah wrote of a fenced vineyard and how when the hedge is taken down, the surrounding vegetation takes over the vineyard. Isaiah then compared Israel to a vineyard and when God was expecting to find justice and righteousness, God found oppression and sin.

Isaiah 5:1-7
Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill: And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes. And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard. What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes? And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down: And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it. For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

In the Kingdom of God there will be no oppression and people will want to live according to how God has always taught. When telling the children of Israel about blessings and cursings, God linked land to these. For instance, as a blessing God promised rain which would cause the land to have a good harvest, such a good harvest that this year’s crop will last until the next crop comes in. Another blessing linked to the land was a blessing of territorial integrity, where people will feel safe in their country, where enemies would never consider taking on the nation through military action.

Leviticus 26:3-13
If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely. And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land. And ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword. For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you. And ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new. And I will set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people. I am the LORD your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that ye should not be their bondmen; and I have broken the bands of your yoke, and made you go upright.

God uses the imagery of trees to describe the reach and influence of the Kingdom of God, also showing how God will bring down powerful nations to boost his people. In the Kingdom of God, all things will be made right in part through the land. If you have ever felt you have been treated unfairly at any time in your life, the Kingdom of God will be where equity under the law of God is established for all. No more will those in power amass wealth at the hands of the people. No more will laws be enacted with an intent to help people that in the end hurt people. When the Kingdom of God comes, to those who have been the oppressors, it will seem like they have entered the upside down of Stranger Things fame. Everyone else will see what a great deal the Kingdom of God is. In the Kingdom of God not only will the exalted nations be brought low and the base nations brought to a place of prominence, but the same will happen for the people. Imagine how you would react if waking up tomorrow the foliage around your house suddenly changed, if your tallest tree became your shortest tree, the tree that had been near death was suddenly flourishing, and what was your most vibrant tree was near death. When the Kingdom of God arrives, it will arrive with the return of Jesus Christ and cause everything we know to suddenly change for the better with no regrets for anyone, possibly with the exception of those who oppress people today.

Ezekiel 17:22-24
Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will also take of the highest branch of the high cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, and will plant it upon an high mountain and eminent: In the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it: and it shall bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar: and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing; in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell. And all the trees of the field shall know that I the LORD have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the LORD have spoken and have done it.

Isaiah writes of a new heaven and new earth that will cause the pain of what we know today to forever be forgotten. Whatever weighs us down today, whether that be financial limitations, health problems, emotional baggage-whatever, will not be remembered nor will it ever be thought of again. The Kingdom of God built through the laws of God will be a time of incredible peace where we all find a sanctuary within and around us. Nothing will trouble us. If you have ever woken up or stayed up late with a worry, these worries will be no more.

The Kingdom of God will be a time of incredible happiness, not the happiness that most experience today when they have temporary joy over something in their life, but a permanent sense of happiness, euphoria, and joy, and none of it brought about through indulgence in alcohol or other drugs. Within the Church of God we are so entrenched in our views that we overlook one reality that is present with those who abuse alcohol and drugs. All tried what they abuse in an attempt to find happiness, euphoria, and joy, and instead of finding that they have found an additional obstacle in their life. We can choose to look down on people who abuse alcohol and drugs or we can choose to recognize that in their own way having no knowledge of the Kingdom of God, people who abuse alcohol and drugs are unknowingly crying out for the establishment of the Kingdom of God. We just happen to be called at this time and already know of this good news. What are we doing with that good news?

In the Kingdom of God, people will live a full life and be happy where they are, knowing that they and their family will directly benefit from what they do as God proactively responds to their needs. Around them, wild animals will also benefit from living in a land of plenty and will no longer have need to hunt each other. The Kingdom of God which we seek through faith will be a time of incredible peace.

Isaiah 65:17-25
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying. There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed. And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them. And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.

Isaiah also writes that barren deserts will be turned to lush forests, and when people see the transformation of the environment they will know that God did this for the poor and needy.

Isaiah 41:17-20
When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together: That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.

When the Kingdom of God has arrived, even nature will be happy and rejoice. We may not think of happy trees, and happy bushes, and happy flowers, but God does, and in the Kingdom of God, even plant life will be happy because the evil of today with the toxic environment will be no more. Imagine planting a garden, a bush, or a tree, and never having to worry about it thriving. Most people have had a plant die in the garden, and if you have ever had a tree removed, you know how hard it can be to remove its roots. In the Kingdom of God, even plant life will thrive and be happy.

1 Chronicles 16:31-36
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice: and let men say among the nations, The LORD reigneth. Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof: let the fields rejoice, and all that is therein. Then shall the trees of the wood sing out at the presence of the LORD, because he cometh to judge the earth. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever. And say ye, Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give thanks to thy holy name, and glory in thy praise. Blessed be the LORD God of Israel for ever and ever. And all the people said, Amen, and praised the LORD.

God uses imagery of plants in describing a future blessing on Israel, how the nation will grow as a lily grows. Lilies have stunning flowers of various colors that are hard to miss. God also describes Israel as having the roots of Lebanon. Lebanon was a place where tall cedars once grew, and typically the more mature the tree, the more complex the root structure, and the more complex the root structure, the harder it is to remove. In the Kingdom of God Israel will not be overlooked as it will be the center of attention, and God’s support of Israel during this future time will prevent any and all attempts to bring harm to Israel.

Hosea 14:4-7
I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him. I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as Lebanon. They that dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine: the scent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon.

Jesus used land analogies when teaching the disciples, showing that just as in the future the Kingdom of God will be a time of plenty for all, God expects those who are called today to grow a bounty of faith, to develop the fruit of the spirit at this time as we anticipate this future Kingdom of God, knowing that if we choose not to grow spiritually, we will not be part of the Kingdom of God.

Luke 13:6-9 6. He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. 7. Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? 8. And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: 9. And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.

We glorify the name of God not through the words we say but in the spiritual fruit that develops in our lives. The Kingdom of God will be a time of not only physical plenty, but spiritual plenty, and the spiritual plenty that we are to be developing now is not satisfied by doing something once, but by repeatedly manifesting the same fruit. If you had a tree that grew apples for a few years and then stopped developing the fruit, if your goal was to grow your own apples, the sensible thing to do would be to remove the tree and replace it with a tree that could grow apples. There are many fruits of the spirit each providing a different flavor of spiritual life for us, but lead us to a place of joy and happiness grounded in the laws of God that through Jesus Christ that establish the Kingdom of God. As we celebrate this feast and as we live our life day each and every day, we should be grounded in our quest to seek first the Kingdom of God and God’s righteousness, and this should be manifest through the joy and happiness we have in our life. That joy and happiness for a reserved person could be a quiet type of joy and happiness, and for the extrovert could be a more visible type of joy and happiness, but joy and happiness will bubble to the top as we seek first the Kingdom of God and God’s righteousness. Whenever we sense joy and happiness is missing in our life, we need to examine why that is, because that is inconsistent with our calling. John fifteen verse one.

John 15:1-8
I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

David wrote of the blessings of God in the psalms comparing God’s righteousness and the people of God who are righteous to trees. Righteousness can flourish at any time through the miracles of God, even during times of persecution. The Kingdom of God will be a time when righteousness will flourish wherever people may find themselves. David writes of the palm tree and cedar as examples of a righteous person. In the Kingdom of God it will not matter where you are, righteousness will be everywhere, and any who dares to bring evil will be brought to nothing.

Psalm 92:1-15
It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night, Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound. For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands. O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep. A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this. When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever: But thou, LORD, art most high for evermore. For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered. But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil. Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me. The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

Jeremiah compares those who trust in God as a tree planted near a source of water. Living in the desert southwest, I know how important water is to plant life and when the heat of the summer comes in the desert where I live, it often means several weeks with little to no rain. It can be easy to see the difference between a tree with a source of water and a tree with no water. In the Kingdom of God, there will never be a spiritual drought where there is an absence of God’s truth. In the Kingdom of God, the message of God will always be available, and will be available for all to understand. In the Kingdom of God there will never be a drought of spiritual growth. Today we must work to keep ourselves close to the source of living water, Jesus Christ so that we do not go through a spiritual drought.

Jeremiah 17:5-8
Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

It is when we walk in the ways God would expect of us that we are blessed, and when we walk in the ways of God, it is then we are like a tree planted by a source of water. We will always spiritually grow and will always spiritually thrive. All that we do will prosper. Imagine the Kingdom of God when this happens all of the time. Today we celebrate victories of faith, and in the Kingdom of God the celebration of the victory of faith will never stop. The Kingdom of God will be a time of incredible happiness and peace.

Psalm 1:1-3
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Looking forward to the Kingdom of God may give us pause to reflect on the fact that we are looking forward to the Kingdom of God and not presently living in the Kingdom of God. Paul wrote that in whatever sufferings we may have in the present time, it is inconsequential to the glory that will be revealed in us. Even though we may all have sufferings in the world today, within us in some degree should be joy and happiness as we live our life grounded in faith and looking forward to the Kingdom of God. All who have ever lived in their own way through their own hardships have looked for a better life that will bring them joy and happiness.

Romans 8:18-25
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

We have joy and happiness to some degree in our lives as we wait patiently for the Kingdom of God. In all that we do, we live our lives so that as other people live their lives and in desperation seek out a better life that we know as the Kingdom of God, we do all that we do for the glory of God, knowing that for us we seek first the Kingdom of God and God’s righteousness.

All verses are from the King James Version.
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