"And His Kingdom Will Have No End"

God made Adam and Eve in his image and blessed them and commanded them to subdue the earth and have dominion. As the image of God, we are called to rule in a way that reflects God’s justice, holiness, mercy, and love; however, because we exchanged the truth of God for the serpent’s lie, our rule reflects the creature, rather than the Creator. Our rule is beastly. In Daniel 7, the prophet reports what he saw in visions by night: “four great beasts came up out of the sea” (Dan 7:3). The beasts represent kings and kingdoms, which characterize the beastly kingdoms of the earth through the ages. 

But that is not all Daniel sees:

I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. (Dan 7:13-14)

Daniel sees a vision of the Son of Man, a truly human king, who will conquer and judge the beastly kingdoms. His kingdom rule and reign are eternal and all peoples, nations, and languages will serve him. As God promised concerning this king through the prophet Isaiah: 

Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and for evermore. (Isaiah 9:7)

Jesus is the king Isaiah promised and Daniel saw in his night visions. The angel Gabriel announced to Mary: 

And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.

“And of his kingdom there will be no end.” We confess his eternal rule and reign every Sunday. What Daniel saw in his night vision came to pass when Jesus ascended on the clouds into heaven. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of Man who is now seated at the right hand of the Father and he is now subduing all his enemies (Ps 110:1; 1 Cor 15:27-28; Heb 1:10, 13). He is “the ruler of the kings on earth” (Rev 1:5) and “the King of kings” (Rev 19:16). The beastly kingdoms of this earth remain, but we know their days are numbered, for “he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.” 

And he has made us a kingdom and priests and we shall reign on the earth (Rev 5:10; 2 Tim 2:12). “Therefore,” the book of Hebrews exhorts, “let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe” (Heb 12:28).