The Kingdom

The Kingdom

According to the Synoptic Gospels, proclamation of The Kingdom of God, in word and deed, was central to Jesus’ teaching. As evident in the Gospels, the kingdom originates with God, it draws its character from God, and it precedes any human response to it, even though its presence invites (or demands) a response. In the time of Jesus, it was difficult for the Jewish people to understand how God’s kingdom could be present while they were living under foreign rule, yet the Hebrew Bible attests to the understanding of God’s rule as everlasting and real even when it was not self-evident. Jesus built on this understanding found in Jewish Scripture: God’s kingdom is God’s activity - creating, providing, leading, sending, calling, liberating, caring; God’s kingdom is God’s domain - inclusive of the whole cosmos; God’s kingdom evokes a response from its subjects; and God’s kingdom is already-present and will be revealed in its completeness in the future. God’s rule is revealed through Jesus Christ, and the nature of God’s kingdom is exhibited through Jesus’ engagement and interactions with people and His teachings.