The Saints Are a Kingdom

To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father-to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
-- Rev 1:5-6 NIV

As mentioned yesterday, the kingdom is a theme that permeates Revelation from beginning to end. It is important to understand that John and the saints in the seven churches have been made a kingdom. The kingdom of which the saints are a part is not a political kingdom. Instead, it is a not-of-this-world kingdom. It is a spiritual kingdom. Christ does not sit on an earthly throne, but he sits at the right hand of God on his throne in the heavens (Revelation 3:21). He does not defeat the nations and slay the wicked with "the edge of the sword" (literally in the Hebrew Scriptures "the mouth of the sword"), but with "the sword of his mouth" (Revelation 2:16; 19:15). Christ's dominion and victory are real, not imaginary. The saints also use spiritual weapons. The weapons of their warfare are not of the flesh, but they do have divine power to destroy Satan's strongholds (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). The saints have taken hold of the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17). When they have stood firm against Satan, then it will be granted to them to sit with Christ on his throne and rule the nations with him (Revelation 2:26-27; 3:21). Their victory and dominion are also real, not imaginary.