The Kingdom: Authority Before Territory (1)
- KenbrianPhos
- Jan 26
- 3 min read
Understanding that the kingdom is authority breaking in before territory is claimed or recognized, it is the first power before possession.
“And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore shall they be your judges. But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.” Luke 11:19–20
What is a kingdom?
This question has walked freely up and down the corridors of my mind, seeking an answer, wanting to be understood, and seeking elaboration.
Folklore, movies, and ancient history have given the word different colouration throughout the ages of mankind, until its meaning has become largely watered down in present times.
Yet a definition has stood out, one that seems applicable in every sense:
In folklore
Ancient history
The physical world
The spiritual realm
The world to come
The irony is that I cannot now recall exactly where I first learned it, but it has stayed with me nonetheless.
The Bible declares: “Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?” Ecclesiastes 8:4
The word of a king is power. It is powerful because it is backed by supreme authority. Anyone carrying the word of the king is, by extension, carrying power. This is why, in ancient times, a common phrase was spoken and understood: “In the name of the king!”
This brings us to the definition that has endured: A kingdom is any place the authority of a king reaches.
A kingdom is the first authority, before it is ever translated into territory.
This is precisely the message Jesus was delivering to His accusers, those who claimed the unthinkable: that He, the Son of God, was casting out demons by Beelzebub. What an insult.
His response was sharp and decisive:
“But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.” Luke 11:20
In that moment, Jesus exposed both their blindness and their judgment. Though they were the “gatekeepers of revelation”, the stewards of the Law and the Prophets, they failed to recognize the King when He stood before them. The Kingdom had arrived. Not as an announcement, not as a warning, but as a reality, and they knew it not.
Jesus was, in effect, saying:
The Kingdom was not just near
Not merely approaching
But actively breaking in
Right there, in their midst
And they were witnessing it
It was a real-time takeover, and the miracles were evidence of that authority at work. Yet His audience, His chosen people, failed to discern what was happening before their very eyes.
My thoughts are drawn inevitably back to our own time:
Do the present children of the Kingdom understand it?
Are they walking in it?
Are they enforcing the Word of the one true King?
Do they recognize who and what they are?
Are they carrying His Word and wielding it “in the name of the King”?
For we must always remember: all Scripture is written for our admonition. These things are “ensamples.” Patterns meant to instruct and awaken us.
If you are here, do you bring His Kingdom to bear?
For the Kingdom is wherever the authority of a King reaches. Give Him the reach; give Him His due.
The Kingdom is the first authority before territory. Wield that authority, it was given to you for that very purpose.
Bringing the Light
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