This is one of the most prevalent ideas in the Scriptures, and, more specifically, in Jesus’ own teaching. Jesus continually urged people to “repent,” to turn around, for the Kingdom of God was breaking into the present. But, what did that really mean? And, why should it matter?

I think we need to give a short background before addressing Jesus’ own words regarding the Kingdom. Israel, before the monarchy, consistently claimed that God was their King. The idea of kingship came into Israel in response to their request of God to anoint a king. The kings thus appointed were both installed by God (as all kings are) and were judged by God. They weren’t simply put into power with absolute freedom, but that they were to live exemplary lives through the Torah. As time went on, more frequent prophetic voices rang for a new true King, a King who would in one sense defeat all of Israel’s enemies and in another sense bring together both Jew and Gentile under that same King. Several texts within the Old Testament name this figure as the Messiah. The Jewish people anticipated the coming Anointed One for centuries.
John the Baptist is an introduction to Jesus’ ministry. He begins with the challenge of the Kingdom of God. But, he tells them that he is not the One, but that he is pointing to the One. He is simply a messenger. Then, he baptizes Jesus as both the initiation of His ministry, and as a symbol of Jesus’ substitutionary life, death and resurrection. But, the anticipated One did not come as many were expecting. The prophetic voices were not so “literal” as many people today want them to be. They were more promise than prediction; reminding the people of what God had done and promising what God would continue to do. These promises were fulfilled in this Jesus. The Messiah did not come onto the scene ruling in the way they had expected. He came not to be served, but to serve. He was not only the King, but also the Servant. Not only the Lion, but the Lamb.

So, in one sense this Kingdom had already come. God obviously had been the Lord from the creation of the earth. God put rulers in power and removed them – they were all relativized, and subject to Him. God had been the only true, sovereign King. Jesus was not the reversal of God’s rule, but rather the fulfillment and embodiment of it. He lived His life in the Kingdom like no other had, because no other could. But, in another sense, the Kingdom had not been fully realized. The expectation of God literally obliterating Israel’s enemies was misunderstood. The Messiah had arrived in the flesh, but it took understanding His life, death, and resurrection to fully grasp in what sense that arrival changed things.

From Adam to Abraham to Jesus, the way to “live the Kingdom” was the same – to walk with God in fidelity, in obedience, to love righteousness and act justly. Jesus shows us how that should look as humanity, He suffers in our place for it, and He rises from death to vindicate His rule over all (including death itself). He shows us that living this Kingdom means complete submission to His reign, which includes the risk of suffering for His sake. The sin that shattered shalom, which God desires for His Kingdom, was dealt with through His death. And, that death led the way to new life, new humanity, securing the promise that we too look forward to a redeemed earth, where the Kingdom is fully and finally realized and experienced.

So, there are basically two errors that we can fall into regarding the Kingdom. We can either think the Kingdom has already fully arrived, or we can think that the Kingdom has not come at all. If we are aware of the presence of evil in the world, the latter seems to be much easier to fall into. But, if we are more optimistic, we may assume that God’s Kingdom is already here. This is subtly aligning with the modern idea of progress – that humanity is getting better through our own power. The error of pessimism, though, leads to a lack of love and action in the present. The error of optimism undercuts the power of sin still fighting against the Kingdom.

A biblically informed understanding will lead to neither optimism nor pessimism, but rather seeing the Kingdom as inaugurated in Jesus, and thus anticipating the final realization of the Kingdom through our lives. Experiencing the Kingdom in this way will not allow us to ignore the present power of sin, which affects not only our individual lives but the whole world in which we live, including addiction, poverty and affluence. It will also not allow us to think that our own efforts are the cause of God’s inbreaking Kingdom, but rather that God is always at work, and our response is simply reflecting His work into the world.

This is not in any way a full treatment of this subject, but hopefully it can help us think through who the King is and what the Kingdom means.