영산의 설교 가운데 나타난 하나님 나라 = The Presence of the Kingdom of God during Youngsan’s Preaching

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

The purpose of this article is to find out which writer of the New Testament had the most relevance to Youngsan’s teachings in regards to God’s Kingdom. The writer in this article will first find out how the writer’s of the New Testament interpreted and understood God’s Kingdom. This will be compared with how God’s Kingdom was understood and interpreted by Youngsan’s teachings, and determine which writer had the most relevance.
The writers of the Gospel wrote that the God’s Kingdom that Jesus prophesied was one of “already but not yet”. The days of the prophets and rules had already finished with John the Baptist. Jesus himself with God’s power was able to oust the symbolic ghosts of Satan and with this signaled the arrival of God’s Kingdom that arrival was displayed through Jesus.
This did not mean that the arrival of God’s Kingdom was completed. This is shown in the response that Jesus gave his disciples when they requested that they were given a prayer just as John the Baptist provided to his disciples. Not only did God create the heavens, but also the land. Thus, God must reign over not just the heavens but also the lands. But the sin of Man not only usurps God’s plans but leads to Satan’s taking the throne from God. For this reason, God’s Kingdom has not been completed. What this has lead to is God’s Kingdom that the Gospel is delivering is expanding through the teachings of Jesus.
The God’s Kingdom that Paul had understood is also based on the foundation of how the Gospel interprets it. However, Paul’s letter makes a differentiation between God’s Kingdom and the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. This isn’t due to the fact that they are two separate entities, but an interpretation that after the crucifixion this leads to Jesus reigning over us, and how this eventually ends up being offered to God.
Acts also interprets the Kingdom of God as one which explains what has been accomplished so far, and what must be accomplished in the future. The plans of the Kingdom of God include Jesus, and that the apostles and the church through the authority of the Holy Spirit are currently in the progress of creating the Kingdom of God. The later point is strongly emphasized which differentiates Acts with the other Gospels.
Hebrews also follows the proclamation of the Kingdom of God made by Jesus as “already, but not yet”. However, the emphasis it puts on Jesus’ sitting beside God to do his deed is interesting. In Psalm 110, it prophesies about Jesus’ rising next to God, and Moses also stated “But Christ is faithful as a son over God’s house” (Heb 3:5). These elements in Hebrews point out the fact that Jesus Christ was the Messiah and was carrying out God’s work.
Revelations also sees the foundation of the Kingdom of God as something which is “already, but not yet”. The point made throughout the Gospel about the Kingdom of God is still in motion also ties in with the message in Revelations. Revelations is unique in its description of the Kingdom of God in the heavens. John explains the completion of the Kingdom of God as “a new heaven and a new earth” (Rev 21:1) and “showed me the holy city, Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God” (Rev 21:10) which describes a new creation through the passage (Rev 21:1-22:5).
Youngsan’s understanding of the Kingdom of God is the same as how it is described in the Gospel. Youngsan, however, explains in detail about entering the Kingdom of God through an interesting comparison in the life of the Church. He makes a clear point in order to enter the Kingdom of God: “You must rid your life of lust and a dissipated life, curse, drunkenness, despair, complaints and fear”. These elements are also the work of the devil, and people become prisoners to these factors and the Kingdom of God is a way of providing freedom to the prisoners of these elements.
In summary, Youngsan’s teachings on the Kingdom of God are based on the teachings of the Gospel in the New Testament. It also seems it puts more strong emphasis on the later books of the New Testament rather the earlier writings especially a strong correlation to the book of Revelations. Hence, Youngsan’s understanding of the Kingdom of God was strongly influenced by the Book of Revelations.