The Two Kingdoms: How God Rules the World

God rules His creation in two distinct but simultaneous ways.

The Right-Hand Kingdom — God’s Spiritual Rule

This is God’s rule through Word and Sacrament. Here, the Holy Spirit creates faith, forgives sins, and brings people into God’s eternal kingdom. This kingdom or realm of God’s rule is marked by grace, mercy, and the proclamation of Christ crucified.

The Left-Hand Kingdom — God’s Temporal Rule

This is God’s rule through earthly structures—family, work, community, and government. The purpose of this realm is to preserve order, restrain evil, and promote external righteousness. It is not concerned with salvation but with the ordering of society.

This is not a separation of church and state in the modern sense. It is not a division between sacred and secular. It is not permission to privatize our faith. Instead, it is a recognition that God is active in both realms and that Christians live fully in both.

Your daily vocations—parent, worker, citizen—are holy callings. They are places where God works through you for the good of your neighbor.

~This is an excerpt from Pr. Schultz’s Sermon from 1/25/2026