Why did Jesus teach on The Kingdom for forty days?
After His resurrection, Jesus was not finished with the disciples’ preparation even though they had spent 3 ½ years with Him.
Luke recorded by The Holy Spirit in Acts chapter 1:
1 The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,
2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen,
3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.
4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me;
5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the Kingdom to Israel?”
7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.
8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Jesus came to restore The Kingdom of GOD on earth as it is in Heaven. Adam walked with GOD until he gave authority to the adversary. At that point, the Kingdom of GOD was no longer available on earth. Jesus came to restore the Kingdom of GOD on the earth, first as a Lamb, and then as a Lion. Jesus spent forty days preparing the disciples to spread the Gospel concerning the Kingdom of GOD, to exist both on earth and in Heaven.
Jesus spoke in Matthew chapter 6:
33 But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
As a young believer, my priorities were on receiving, not seeking. I believe that is true for most believers when they read this verse. However, the focus should be on “seeking”, not receiving. Are we meant to seek the Kingdom in Heaven? We would need to leave the earth to accomplish that. We are to come into the Presence of GOD here on earth. Heaven is where HE is at, HIS Dominion. As we walk in the Fear of THE LORD, we can expect HIS Presence.
Paul wrote by The Holy Spirit in 1st Thessalonians chapter 2:
10 With God as our Witness you saw how we lived among you—in Holiness, in Godly relationships, and without fault.
11 And you know how affectionately we treated each one of you, like a Loving father cares for his own children.
12 We comforted and encouraged you and challenged you to adopt a lifestyle worthy of God, Who invites you into His Kingdom and glory.
We are meant to reside in HIS Kingdom on earth thus we are charged in doing our part in bringing forth HIS Manifested Presence here on earth. This is “seeking” the Kingdom on earth.
Jesus spoke in Mark chapter 1:
15 Jesus’ message was this: “At last the fulfillment of the age has come! It is time for God’s Kingdom to be experienced in its fullness! Turn your lives back to God and put your trust in the hope-filled Gospel!”
Jesus was not suggesting that everyone die. He declared that it is time to experience GOD’S Kingdom in Its fullness here on earth. Mature saints will not only experience this Truth but will declare and testify of this Reality to the world until HIS Kingdom spreads throughout the earth.