Near

The kingdom of heaven is near, but it is not here. The will of God is not always done on earth; this is seen in the Lord's Prayer.

"Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven."
Matthew 6:10

In heaven, the will of God is done; heaven is part of His kingdom. But earth was given to man to rule.

"Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that crawls on the earth.'" Genesis 1:26

Man has been given rule over the earth; what God gave He has not taken back. He has not gone back on His word.

But the ruler of the earth has become a slave. God spoke to Cain concerning what was in his heart.

"Then the Lord said to Cain, 'Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.'" Genesis 4:6-7

Sin has crouched at the door of mankind, like a lion waiting for an opportunity to devour its prey. Like Cain, we have not mastered the lion.

"Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary the devil prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." I Peter 5:8

In a continuous process of lies and deception the devil builds his kingdom in this world. His kingdom is built by means of darkness; his agents work continuously to secure his hold on mankind.

"Put on the full armour of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places." Ephesians 6:11-12

The devil has constructed fortifications against the light, to keep his possessions safe. The light destroys the works of the devil.

"...The Son of God has appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil." I John 3:8

This is the struggle between the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light. The kingdom of darkness has fortified itself heavily against any inroad by the light. Just as Hitler fortified the continent against Allied armies, the kingdom of darkness has prepared itself to resist the light.

The kingdom of God can only draw near where there is an opening in the darkness. Someone must create a beachhead.