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The Place of God’s Kingdom in Israel’s History

1. CONNECT

   10min
   It’s difficult to read much of the Bible and not notice that the land God promised to Israel is a prominent theme in both the Old and the New Testaments. In previous sessions, we saw how God ordained the Garden of Eden as the place of God’s kingdom on earth during the Primeval History. In this session, we’ll consider how — like the Garden of Eden — the land that God promised to Israel wasn’t an end in itself. Rather, God gave Israel the Promised Land as the place from which his kingdom would extend throughout the entire world.

2. Reflection

   It’s quite common for Christians to go to extremes when it comes to considering the Promised Land. Some followers of Christ believe that the land God promised to Israel is only significant for us today in that we must ensure that the nation of Israel possesses it. Other Christians believe that the land of Israel simply calls on us to focus on heaven as the place where we will enjoy the kingdom of God. But Scripture teaches that God chose the Promised Land as the starting point from which his kingdom would spread throughout the earth. For this reason, what God did with the land of Israel is central in the lives of everyone who follows Christ and seeks to serve the kingdom of God today.

3. Guiding Question

   What does God’s promise of a land to Israel mean for Christians today?

4. WATCH

   15min

5. DISCUSS

   15min
   1. God called Abram (later named Abraham) to go to the Promised Land in Genesis 12:1-3. What did God promise to do for Abram and the rest of the world if Abram served him in that special place?
   2. What connections do you see between God’s promises to Abraham and the original commission that God gave to humanity in the beginning (Genesis 1:28) and after the Flood of Noah’s day (Genesis 9:1)?
   3. How do the rivers that designate the Promised Land in Genesis 15:18 associate the Promised Land with the land of Eden in Genesis 2:10-14?
   4. Genesis 12:3 says that, in Abraham, “all the families of the earth shall be blessed,” and Romans 4:13 says that Abraham and his offspring “would be heir of the world.” These verses both indicate that God’s design was to expand his kingdom beyond Israel’s Promised Land. What parallels do you see between these verses and Jesus’ Great Commission to his disciples in Matthew 28:18-20?

6. APPLY

   15min
   1. How does the Bible’s association of the Promised Land with Eden help you understand why so many events in the Bible took place in the Promised Land?
   2. God designated the Promised Land as the starting point from which Israel would expand his kingdom to the ends of the earth. What does it look like for Christians to expand the impact of what God did in the Promised Land to the entire world?

7. CHALLENGE

   Take some time to answer the following question: How has what God did in the Promised Land during the time of the ancient Israelites impacted the world far beyond the borders of the Promised Land? Finish with a time of prayer.