When I think of a domain, I think of anything an owner owns and is responsible for. Dominion, on the other hand, is anything that serves its owners' purposes within his domain. If the purpose of a field is to grow corn, then although the owner has domain over every acre, his dominion only exists over the acres that cooperate. The rocky, thorny, compacted parts don't yield to the owners' purpose. Until such time as he clears and tills his domain, his dominion is frustrated.
Similarly, in a king's domain, he only has dominion over those who either willingly serve his purposes or are forced to do so. Depending on how he leads and what his purposes accomplish, his dominion will fill his domain, or he will be overthrown. He may create his dominion by force, or by shrewd leadership and manipulation. He may demand it without delay, or be patient and give options. He may demand honour without lifting a finger, or stoop to serve his people. Ultimately, the end result of his power is his dominion over all his domain, or the loss of his domain to another dominion.
In this way, all kingdoms are both now and not yet. They may be "now" in the sense of ownership, but they are "not yet" in the sense of total submission. There is always at best rebellion, at worst an attempted coup.
If Creator, God's ownership of the earth and all that is in it is without question. His dominion, as it relates to willing subjects or forced devotion is frustrated at best. According to the Scriptures, God has not forced complete submission (mercy), but has served his creation (grace), waiting patiently for it to willingly serve his purposes and experience life again. Wherever his purpose (love) is being fulfilled, life and his kingdom exist.
Because the kingdom of God is based not on fear and destruction, but on love and life, we live in the "now but not yet". Instead of forcing every knee to bow, love waits for submission. God's mercy creates quite a mess for a stubborn world. Having allowed another to have control for a time, his domain and dominion are not yet equal. Once they are, heaven and earth will be one...
In his kingdom, selflessness rules. The least are the greatest and the last are the first... This is the good news of the kingdom....
~~~~
Tim Bailey
4 comments:
Hey Tim,
I really like this explanation of the whole now/not yet verbiage about the KoG. Would you mind me using it at any time in the possible future?
Of course, sourcing is a given.
Anytime Mr. Kinchlea.
We need to get together sometime. Now that you are a bigshot president, I want to be your friend, ok?
thanks tim. reading this i realized that the whole "already but not yet" thing was one of those ideas i THOUGHT i understood. turns out, now i ACTUALLY do!
Sounds good, Tim.
This summer, I'm working like crazy in Toronto during the week, and on weekends I'm usually getting ready for the big wedding in Grimsby with the (future) wife.
If you are ever up in Toronto area for some reason, I'd love to get lunch or dinner or whatever.
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