THE LORD, THE LAW, THE KINGDOM, AND THE PRESSING SOUL
“The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presses into it.” — Luke 16:16
There are some verses in the Bible that serve as a border crossing between two worlds. Luke 16:16 is one of them. In one breath, Jesus speaks of the Law and the Prophets—God’s word to Israel for centuries past—and in the next, He declares the beginning of something entirely new: the kingdom of God.
This is a dividing line in redemptive history. Jesus Himself draws the line. “The Law and the Prophets were until John.” That word “until” marks a termination. It is the divine full stop to the Old Covenant’s supremacy. The ministry of John the Baptizer was the final thunderclap before the dawning of the Sun of Righteousness (Mal. 4:2). John stood at the boundary between the shadow and the substance, between the promise and the fulfillment. His was a transitional voice — not proclaiming Moses, but preparing the way for the Messiah.
When Jesus says the Law and the Prophets were “until John,” He does not merely mean they were quoted up to his time — He means they governed the religious life of God’s people up to that point, and no further. With John’s voice crying in the wilderness, God signaled that a new age had come — the age of the gospel, the age of the kingdom.
Now, since that time, the kingdom of God is preached. What kingdom? Not some future political regime in earthly Jerusalem. Not a thousand-year throne awaiting installation. No — the kingdom now, the rule of heaven in the hearts of men, made possible by the blood of Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Christ did not come to offer Israel a political deliverance; He came to reign in hearts, to cleanse consciences, to reconcile rebels to God. The King has come. The throne has been set. And the kingdom is not postponed — it is preached (Col. 1:13; Heb. 12:28).
And now hear this with trembling heart: “Every man presses into it.” The kingdom is not entered passively. Jesus is telling us that the door to His reign must be pressed into. This is no casual wandering in. The verb suggests effort, intensity, even violence — as Matthew records it, “the violent take it by force” (Matt. 11:12). What does this mean?
Here is where devotion meets doctrine. To press into the kingdom is not to earn it, but to long for it with holy desperation. It is to see the glory of the King, the worth of His reign, and to cast off every weight to enter in. It is to say, like Paul, “I count all things loss for the excellency of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Phil. 3:8). This pressing is the soul’s thirst for righteousness, the heart’s cry for deliverance from sin, the mind’s hunger for truth.
This pressing isn’t just human effort or religious ambition — it is the quiet, powerful work of the Holy Spirit pulling the soul toward full surrender. It is God Himself stirring up a deep hunger, so that He might be the one to satisfy it. As Jesus said, “Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled” (Matt. 5:6). The one who truly enters the kingdom is the one whose heart longs for nothing more than Christ Himself. What a breathtaking truth — the King of glory is reigning even now, and He invites us to come under His rule today.
But dear soul, do you see how tragic it is that many have settled for a future kingdom when Jesus offers His presence today? Premillennialism, in its earthly focus, robs believers of their inheritance. It teaches them to look forward to what Scripture says is already theirs. It places the crown of Christ on a shelf to be dusted off later — while the apostles declared Him already crowned, reigning, and exalted (Acts 2:36; Heb. 1:3).
Let it be said plainly: if the kingdom is yet future, then Luke 16:16 is a riddle. But if the kingdom is now, if it is entered by faith and repentance, if the gospel is the call to enter the reign of grace — then we must preach it, press into it, and live under it.
Let your heart be stirred by this, not just your mind instructed.
Are you pressing in? The gospel is not an invitation to drift. It is a call to pursue, to press, to lay hold of eternal life (1 Tim. 6:12). The Spirit is calling you to come boldly to the throne of grace (Heb. 4:16). Will you answer?
Is Christ reigning in you? To enter the kingdom is to submit to the King. He does not reign where He is not obeyed. Examine your heart. Are there areas of resistance? Yield. Surrender. Let the King rule fully in every chamber of your soul.
Do you hunger for His rule? The joy of the kingdom is not in escape from the world, but in communion with the King. The law pointed to Him. The prophets longed for Him. Now He is yours. Do you cherish His nearness? Meditate on Psalm 45 — the King in His beauty.
Are you proclaiming His kingdom? If the kingdom is now, and the gospel is the announcement of its arrival, then evangelism is kingdom work. Don’t wait for a new age — we are in it. We preach the good news that Jesus reigns now, and sinners may be saved now.
In conclusion, Luke 16:16 stands as a blast of transition, a divine pivot in the history of redemption. The law and the prophets fulfilled their role. John marked the turning. Christ brought the kingdom. And now the door stands open. Every man must press into it — with faith, with repentance, with holy desire.
Let no man wait for another kingdom to come. It has come. Let no believer sit idle awaiting some earthly throne. The throne is in heaven. Let no preacher delay the gospel call. The kingdom is preached — now. Let us press in, and help others do the same.
Bryan Dewayne Dunaway
