The Divine Trinity vs. The Kingdom of God

 

The Divine Trinity vs. The Kingdom of God

Acts 1:3 - To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God

Acts 1:4-5 - And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence

Acts 8:12 - But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women

 

Item	The Divine Trinity	The Kingdom of God
Meaning	• God exists as Triune: Father, Son, Spirit • The main attribute of the Godhead • Refers to God being triune, the revelation of God's essence • The unique God existing in three persons	• The realm of God's life and reign • Christ as life expanding into believers • The multiplication and enlargement of the resurrected Christ • Not a visible material realm, but a person (the Lord Jesus Christ)
Operation	• The Father exalts the Son, the Son ascends, the Spirit is poured out • Father, Son, Spirit are closely united in the pouring out of the Spirit • The Holy Spirit and the Spirit of Jesus are used interchangeably • The Triune God is fully contained in the Son's ascension and Spirit's outpouring • The processed Triune God becomes the ultimate consummation	• Christ as the kingdom seed being sown • In ascension, through the Spirit, by means of disciples, multiplying • Through the expansion of the churches on earth • Believers enter through regeneration with divine life • Operating in God's righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit
Distinction	• Focuses on God's essence and attributes • Reveals "what God is" • The eternal relationship of three persons • God's inner mystery • The structure and framework of the entire New Testament	• Focuses on God's reign and expansion • Manifests "what God does" • The outward expression of God's life • The central theme of apostolic preaching • Christ's multiplication and building on earth
Examples	• The Spirit of Jesus contains divine elements, human elements, and elements of human living and death • God purchased the church with His own blood (God becoming God-man) • Paul was constituted by the Holy Spirit and the Spirit of Jesus • The Triune God becomes believers' constitution and expression	• The churches are the manifestation of God's kingdom on earth • Believers' regeneration and growth • The apostles' preaching and establishing of churches • Believers entering God's kingdom through tribulations • Paul's proclamation of God's kingdom is teaching the things of Christ
Application	• Believers need to be governed by the revelation of the Triune God • Recognize that the Triune God is our constitution • Experience the operation of Father, Son, Spirit in life • Let the all-inclusive Spirit become our constitution • Become vessels containing the Triune God	• Repent and believe the gospel to enter God's kingdom • Experience God's kingdom in church life • Enter God's kingdom through many tribulations • Enjoy the righteousness, peace, and joy of God's kingdom • Participate in Christ's multiplication and kingdom expansion
Mutual Relationship	• As Source: The Divine Trinity is the divine source and power for the realization of God's kingdom • Providing Constitution: The Triune God becomes the life constitution of kingdom people • Operating Mechanism: The trinitarian operation of Father's exaltation, Son's ascension, Spirit's outpouring enables kingdom establishment • Inner Reality: The Divine Trinity is the inner reality and essence of God's kingdom • Eternal Foundation: God's triune nature is the foundation of the kingdom's eternality	• As Manifestation: The kingdom of God is the outward manifestation and reality of the Divine Trinity on earth • Expansion Goal: The kingdom of God is the expansion goal the Triune God wants to achieve • Practical Expression: Through churches and believers, God's kingdom becomes the practical expression of the Triune God • Completion Pathway: The kingdom of God is the pathway for the Triune God to complete His eternal plan • Ultimate Purpose: The kingdom of God realizes the ultimate purpose of the Triune God dwelling with man
Related Scriptures	Acts 1:1-2 - The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen Acts 2:32-36 - This Jesus hath God raised up...Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear...Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ Acts 16:6-7 - Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia, After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not Acts 20:28 - Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood Matthew 28:19 - Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost	Acts 14:22 - Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God Acts 19:8 - And he went into the synagogue, and spake boldly for the space of three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God Acts 20:25 - And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more Acts 28:23 - And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening Acts 28:31 - Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him Luke 17:20-21 - And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you

 

Summary Points

The Divine Trinity

• Essential: About who God is, God's inner essence
• Structural: The framework of the entire New Testament and Acts
• Constitutional: Becomes the constitution and expression of believers' life

The Kingdom of God

• Functional: About how God reigns and expands
• Thematic: The central theme of apostolic preaching
• Practical: Christ's multiplication and building on earth

Both are closely related:

The Divine Trinity is the divine source for the realization of God's kingdom, and the kingdom of God is the practical manifestation and expansion of the Divine Trinity.

 

*Please refer to April 2025 International Elders and Responsible Brothers Training General Topic: One Accord and Vital Aspects of Acts Chapter 8: The Holy Trinity and the Kingdom of God