“Take the kingdom by force”

Question

What does it mean to take the kingdom of God by force? People say that means we need to do big ministries and “storm the gates” of heaven. Is that true?

Answer

This is one of the many verses that is taken out of context from the book of Matthew, often in Pentecostal and other charismatic-type churches.

Several important points within the verse and the context help us understand what Jesus meant: ”From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force” (Matthew 11:12, NASB).

1. “From the days of John the Baptist until now” – At the beginning of the chapter, John (who was in prison) had sent messengers to Jesus to clarify whether Jesus was truly the Messiah. (Why John did that could be a whole different article.) So, the timeframe for taking the kingdom by force was about three years spanning John’s ministry and the first half of Jesus’ ministry. It does not last until today.
   
   
2. “The kingdom of heaven suffers violence” – Matthew is the only biblical writer to use the phrase “kingdom of heaven.” He knew his Jewish audience preferred not to say “God” any more than necessary, so when he referred to Messiah’s future earthly kingdom, he wrote “kingdom of heaven” instead of “kingdom of God.” (*See footnote below)
   
   When Jesus said, “suffers violence,” he did not mean that in a good way. As John and Jesus offered Messiah’s kingdom to Israel, they were met with hostility and rebellion. John had even been put in prison and was awaiting his execution. Instead of welcoming Messiah and his kingdom, Israel violently rejected him and his messenger (John).
   
   
3. “violent men take it by force” – This continues Jesus’ scolding of the Jewish nation, specifically their religious leaders. While they rejected the Messiah, they still wanted his kingdom. So, instead of accepting the kingdom the way Jesus and John presented it (“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” 3:2; 4:17), they tried to take it a different way, by killing the messengers. Obviously, that would not work, but this was what Jesus meant. Israel’s religious leaders were trying to overthrow the true king and take the kingdom by force.

So, to take the kingdom by force is a rebellious attempt to get into Jesus’ kingdom without Jesus. When Israel’s religious leaders did this, it was like a spiritual coup d’état, a seditious movement meant to overthrow the king and take over the kingdom themselves.

Any church or pastor who teaches that Christians are to “take the kingdom by force” is a false teacher. They may not be trying to overthrow Jesus like the ancient Pharisees tried to do, but they are using Jesus’ words to teach the exact opposite of what Jesus meant. They are not handling the word of truth accurately (2 Timothy 2:15), and they should be corrected (if they are humble to receive it) or avoided (if they are not open to correction).

*Footnote: Matthew did write “the kingdom of God” four times (12:28; 19:24; 21:31, 43) to make a stronger point about God’s rule in that context. However, whenever he used “the kingdom of heaven,” he meant the promised messianic kingdom (the Millennium) in the future. Matthew helps us better understand the other gospels, which do not make this distinction.