The expression the "kingdom of Heaven" is only found in St. Matthew; and when the Spirit of God would speak of what was already come to pass when Christ was on earth, He always changes the expression, and says "Kingdom of God;" thus in 12:28. Never, on the other hand, do we find such an expression, as "for the Kingdom of Heaven is not meat and drink;" because although the Kingdom of Heaven is necessarily the Kingdom of God, the expression, the Kingdom of Heaven refers to an order of things in the dispensations of God, and contains an allusion, I doubt not, to Dan. 7. It is on this account that this expression occurs in St. Matthew, a gospel which constantly looks at things in a Jewish aspect, and which is peculiarly occupied in showing the accomplishment of the prophecies and promises made to the Jews. Hence it is always said, "the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand." Jesus himself thus speaks, whilst it is said, "the Kingdom of God is among you "-for the King was there; but it was not the Kingdom of Heaven, so long as the King was upon earth. From the time of the exaltation of Jesus, this Kingdom of Heaven has taken a special character, by reason of the temporary rejection of the Jews; and it is this which is explained in the 13th chap. of St. Matthew, this rejection of the people having been stated at the end of the 12th chapter.
The rejection of Peter's testimony, Acts 3, by the Jews postponed the times of refreshing, according to the counsels of God; but Peter's word was, " Repent in order that the times of refreshing may come."
It is not exact to speak of the Church as the Spiritual Kingdom. The saints are in subjection it is true: _ but Christ is never called the King of the Church; we come to the throne of the grace of God. There is one passage in the Revelation which might be cited, 15:4, "King of Saints," but this passage is so uncertain that nothing can be founded thereon. That Christ exercises royal authority over the Church, is what can be sustained by not one passage of Scripture; and the instruction of Matt. 13 makes this distinction important. The Church has no reference, no identity whatsoever with the kingdom, except that here below it exists in the field over which the authority of the kingdom is exercised. Hereafter she will reign with the Lord over the same field.
We often hear of corrupting the kingdom, of a pure kingdom—the kingdom become Babylon,-from those whose thoughts and phraseology are not subject to Scripture.
It is an evil to speak thus of the kingdom, as if it was a certain number of persons in such or such a state. The kingdom of heaven is a government, a reign; the King is there; His authority is there. He bears, for a long while, abuses in His kingdom; but His kingdom, His reign, cannot possibly be Babylon. Who would think of Christ being King in Babylon? True is it that the enemy acts in the kingdom whilst men sleep, because they are left there under responsibility; and this it is which makes so suitable the well-understood word dispensation, because the question is then only about man and his position, where God has placed him under responsibility: while the words kingdom and reign embrace also the government of the King, the sovereignty of God Himself. The kingdom was in the midst of the Pharisees, because-Christ was there; the kingdom was at hand when the Apostles went forth in testimony in Israel (Matt. chap. x. '7.) The Church is never the Kingdom. The kingdom includes the King;"and it is inaccurate to speak of the corruption of the kingdom. There are according to the sovereign counsels of God, certain scandals permitted in the kingdom; abuses which the King will remove at a later period, when He will take His great power and act as King. It is because, in truth, the principles of the kingdom are always the principles of God, that the Apostle can say, that the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost; and one can, for the same reason, preach the kingdom of God, although Satan may sow in the field, over which the kingdom extended. The Church, here below, can corrupt itself, because the flesh is found in those who compose it, although the chastenings and faithful grace of God may preserve it for the glory, into which neither flesh nor blood shall enter.
If, now, we turn to the church, it is indeed the body of Christ; but the word of God speaks of the church here below, and calls the assembly of believers here below the church, the house of God, in the which we have need of instruction how to behave, and wherein there is an energy of ministry by the which the body increases. I cannot give up this Scriptural application of the word because I see, on the other hand, that in the end the whole church will be gathered together on high by the faithful love of God. I consider it an evil thing to destroy the idea of an assembly here below, and of the responsibility of that assembly. If it be said, " But the body of Christ upon earth never has been really assembled here below; therefore there never has been a church upon earth, and there has never anywhere been seen upon earth an assembly which could be called, in the full and absolute sense of the term, the church or assembly of God"-I have nothing to say as to what man may call the full and absolute sense of the term; but for the Scriptural sense, which is much more important, there can be no doubt. For the Lord added to the church (not to a church) such as should be saved; and Timothy learned how to conduct himself in the church of the Living God. For myself I am quite content with that which I find in the word. I would only remark, further, that it behooves us to be careful when speaking of such subjects as the kingdom or the church because of the place which Christ holds in relation to such.
Let us now speak of the term " the dispensation or economy" in which some find a difficulty. The word is simple enough, and signifies, in the original, the administration of a house; by extension, it designates the entire order Of anything arranged by God, as when we say " animal economy," "vegetable economy." The two words of which it is compounded are οἰκος house, and νεμω to distribute, feed, etc.; and thus, in a house, there was an economos (steward) and an economy; a man who arranged, distributed, fed the family; and the order, as a whole thence resulting, was the economy, the administration of the house. Thus, when God has established a certain order of things on the earth, one is wont to call it, accurately enough as it seems to me, an economy. In Eph. 1, the Spirit Himself uses it. It is possible that there is a slight shade between the Scripture and the conventional uses of this word; in general, the use of the word in Scripture is more closely connected with its original sense, and contains more the idea of an active administration. The word dispensation is often enough used in this sense, and has the same etymological signification; God dispenses His gifts.
In the conventional sense economy (or dispensation) is an order of things established by God: the Jewish economy, the existing economy, etc. But, up to the time of Christ's coming, these economies or dispensations are, as to their course, left to man and his responsibility, although God acts secretly to overrule all. See, for instance, how the Lord speaks of this dispensation; "the kingdom of God is as if a man should cast seed into the ground, and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up he knew not how; for the earth bringeth forth of itself; first the blade, then the ear, and then the full corn in the ear; but when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come." As to all that appears to the eye, everything goes on without the intervention of Christ, from the seed-time to the harvest.
Well, the time which intervenes between seed-time and harvest, is what is ordinarily called the present economy. It may be called the economy of the Church, because it is the time during which the Church is called and subsists here below, in contrast with the Jews and the discipline of the law; and we see that although in truth God causes the wheat to ripen, in appearance He leaves everything to its own course. Thus Satan could act in the midst of all this; man might sleep, and this state of things might become corrupted; and, in fact, it is corrupted, even as Israel also was corrupted; so also this economy, this order of things is in a fallen state.
According to 1 Tim. 4, and other Scriptures, the apostasy of this state of things has been partly spoken of I do not press the use of the expression; but I would notice that in this connection there is not the same objection to be made, as when the word apostasy is applied to the kingdom. The kingdom includes the government itself, and the King and the harvest; while in ordinary parlance, the word economy does not present the same difficulty; the King puts an end to the existing dispensations, when he begins to reap in his kingdom.
We find the word in its primitive sense used by Paul of the ministry entrusted to him (Eph. 3:22If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: (Ephesians 3:2)), "If ye have heard of the dispensation (οἰκονομια) of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward." Here we have the primitive sense of the word; it is used of a person to whom one has entrusted the administration of his house.
In the 1 Cor. 9:1616For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel! (1 Corinthians 9:16) and 17, the office of evangelist is the administration (οἰκονομια) dispensation committed to him. Clearly, here, as in the preceding, passage (in Eph. 3:22If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: (Ephesians 3:2).) we have an idea quite distinct in its extent from that in which the word is commonly understood when used of the existing dispensation-that certainly was not committed to Paul's keeping. The Apostle used the word again in 1 Cor. 4 in a similar sense, applying it to his ministry.
The word says three things as to the existing economy.
First. By the existence and principles of this economy the world is placed in a new relationship toward God.
The Gentiles are no longer "dogs under the table" in contrast with "the children." It is the time of salvation for the Jew first, and after that for the Greek. Salvation is vouchsafed to the Gentiles: the fall of the Jews has been the reconciliation of the world. If the Church has not been faithful in acting according to that grace, in making it of avail to the poor world, so much the worse for her.-
Secondly. Those who are called, but not elect, all the baptized, are placed in direct relationship with the Lord, and are responsible in general (I say in general, because the circumstances are various), for the privileges of Christianity. If those who really enjoyed these privileges have left to Satan the occasion of corrupting; or, if others have been able to enter by reason of the corruption which was already introduced, so much the worse for them and for the assembly. This is Christendom.
Thirdly. There is the body of Christ; those who are united to Him, who participate in His life, who will be saved in spite of all the difficulties they may encounter by the way.
The Gentiles have not, as a body, been grafted in. Those who believed stood by faith. Those who came in without real faith will be judged according to the privileges which they have abused; and, before the end, God will send the gospel of the kingdom, in order that the judgment may not take effect upon all, without a testimony having been rendered to that judgment.
I would remark, that the ways of God towards Israel, and towards the world, and the salvation of individuals, must be kept distinct. The three points above noticed, as connected with the dispensation, bring out that responsibility of the Church in which she has completely failed. She ought to have been one, in order that the world might believe: such she has not been. She ought to have been a testimony to all the nations: such a testimony she has not- given. And, instead of being the source of blessing to the world, as she ought to have been, the world has been a source of evil to her; for here for the Church, properly speaking, for true Christians, Instead of being the light of the world, the Church has become, upon her own confession, the invisible Church.
On this account, alas! one can speak, correctly enough, of Christendom, and of the Gentiles" grafted into the place of the Jews; because that which God had grafted into the place of Jewish branches, is become a worldly system; has failed in faithfulness; and is become, in the modern sense, Christendom; the little seed become a great tree, where the birds of the air make their nests.
Christians, at the commencement, were not faithful; the consequence has been that the testimony and Christian profession, as a whole, have been spoiled. If it were a question about the taste of wine, one bottle of the best wine put into a ton of water might, indeed, give occasion to many reasonings, as to whether or not there was there what we could call good wine. Those who love to drink such would not hesitate long in settling the question.
Some may separate from evil, and refuse to share the responsibility of the state of things which surrounds them; as for me, I bear the burden: yes, the burden of the responsibility of the Church here below; I speak not of unbelievers, nor of the members of the body of Christ; I speak of the state of the Church, nor do I speak merely of the unfaithfulness of the true members. The glory of Christ is not manifested. The Church does not shine before the world. The glory of Christ, is, as it were, concealed, trailed in the dust; the enemies triumph. The power of the enemy has been morally successful in the greater number of cases, as the enemies of Israel were successful when Israel was unfaithful; and there are not only individual unfaithfulnesses to deplore, but a state of things which dishonors God in the world. The question which lies at the bottom of the whole matter is the manifestation of the glory of Christ upon the earth by the Church. Was the Church responsible to manifest Christ's glory? Ought one to be ashamed if she has not done so? If No is the answer, I am myself deceived; but if YES be the answer, the opposite system is profound iniquity, iniquity of which they that are in it are not conscious, I am persuaded; but which nevertheless is not the less iniquity, one which leaves the Church without a hope on the part of those who hold it.