The Kingdom of God Future And Present

The Kingdom of God is the central theme of the Gospels

Mk 1:14-15: “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, ¹⁵ and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’”
Mt 4:17: “From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”
Mt 4:23 / 9:35: “And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.”
The Parables of the Kingdom: “The kingdom is like …” (Mt 13 / Mk 4).

Statistics for basileia (kingdom)

Matthew 45x
1. “The kingdom of heaven” - 32x
2. “The kingdom of God” - 5x (see below)
3. “The kingdom” - 8x
  1. Mt 4:23; 9:35; 24:14: “the gospel of the kingdom.”
  2. Mt 8:12; 13:38: “the sons of the kingdom”
  3. Mt 13:19: “the word of the kingdom”
  4. Mt 25:34: “Come, you are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”
  5. Mt 13:43: “The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.”
Mark - “the kingdom of God” - 14x
Luke 44x
1. “The kingdom of God” - 32x
2. “Kingdom” - 9x
  1. Lk 1:33: “… of his kingdom there will be no end.”
  2. Lk 11:2 “… your kingdom come”
  3. Lk 12:31-32 (2x): “Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. ³² Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
  4. Lk 22:28-30 (2x): “You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, ²⁹ and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, ³⁰ that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”
  5. Lk 23:42: Thief on the cross: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
  6. Lk 19:12, 15 (2x): The Parable of the Ten Minas. The nobleman went away to “receive a kingship.”
3. Verb basileuō - “reign as king” - 3x
  1. Lk 1:33: “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
  2. Lk 19:14, 27 (2x): The Parable of the Ten Minas. Jesus told this parable, because they supposed the Kgdm was to appear immediately. The nobleman went away to receive a kingdom, but in his absence some of the citizens did not want the nobleman to reign over them.
John - “the kingdom of God” - 2x: Jn 3:3, 5: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God … unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”

Significance of Matthew’s “Kingdom of Heaven”

Reverential Avoidance theory
1. In the past, scholars (Gustaf Dalman) argued that Matthew reflects a Jewish reverential avoidance of the divine name.
2. Matt substituted “heaven” as a circumlocution for God.
3. This practice is seen in later rabbinic writings.
4. This fits Matthew’s Jewish orientation: he writes for an audience steeped in Torah, synagogue piety, and reverence for the divine name.
Transcendent Kingdom theory
1. The weakness of the previous theory is that Matthew has no anxiety about referring to “God” elsewhere, and even “the kingdom of God” (5x).
2. For this reason, some (e.g., Jonathan T. Pennington) argue that Matt speaks most frequently of “the kingdom of heaven” for a theological reason.
  1. https://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/handle/10023/13395
  2. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/review/heaven-and-earth-in-the-gospel-of-matthew/
3. “Kgdm of heaven” highlights the transcendent origin and nature of the kingdom.
4. The kingdom is not a worldly or political reign but is “heavenly.”
5. It also looks forward to its eschatological resolution, when God’s will is done on earth as it is in heaven (Mt 6:10).
But why isn’t Matthew consistent? He has “kingdom of God” 5x.
1. Usually for sharper rhetorical force, highlighting God’s personal action, judgment, or sovereignty.
2. Mt 6:33: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Highlights the moral dimension of God’s reign - seeking God himself.
3. Mt 12:28: “But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” Jesus argues that his exorcisms demonstrate the immediate in-breaking of God’s power over Satan.
4. Mt 21:31: “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you.” Jesus is confronting the failure of the Jewish leaders to recognize God’s authority.
5. Mt 21:43: “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.” This is the action of God himself.
6. Mt 19:24 (cp. Mk 10:25): “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” This is the hardest one to explain, but Matt may have had stylistic or rhetorical reasons for retaining Mark’s wording.

What is the Kingdom of God? Main views:

Dispensational view
1. The kingdom is entirely future, the literal reign of Christ on earth, on the throne of David, during the millennium, featuring restored national Israel and temple.
2. Proponents: C. I. Scofield, Lewis Sperry Chafer, Charles Ryrie, Dwight Pentecost, et al
3. The offer theory: Jesus offered the millennial kingdom to the Jews but they rejected him and killed him.
4. Christ is not king now; he will be coronated as king at the beginning of the millennium.
5. Critique: Denies clear teaching of the NT that Jesus has begun to reign as king now through his resurrection and exaltation (e.g, Acts 2:29-36).
Entirely Future Eschatology view
1. The kingdom is primarily future, to be established at the end of history when God decisively acts in judgment and salvation.
2. Proponent: Albert Schweitzer (early 20th century) is the classic representative. He argued that Jesus expected the imminent arrival of the kingdom, a dramatic inbreaking of God’s rule that would end the present age.
3. Apocalyptic expectation, judgment, cosmic renewal.
4. Critique: Denies the clear teaching of Jesus that the kingdom is inaugurated and in some sense present in his ministry.
Entirely Realized Eschatology view
1. The kingdom is already present in Jesus’ ministry—seen in his miracles, exorcisms, and forgiveness of sins.
2. Proponent: C. H. Dodd (1930s) argued that “realized eschatology” means the kingdom is fully present in the now.
3. “If I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Luke 11:20).
4. Critique: Denies the clear teaching of Jesus that his kingdom has a future eschatological consummation.
5. Passages where Jesus speaks of the Kgdm in terms of future eschatology.
  1. Mt 7:21: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
  2. Mt 8:11: “I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.”
  3. Mt 13:43: “The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.”
  4. Mt 25:34: “Come, you are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”
Political or Social Gospel view
1. The kingdom is not just spiritual but involves social transformation, justice, and liberation.
2. Proponents: Liberation theologians (e.g., Gustavo Gutiérrez, Leonardo Boff), many mainline interpreters who teach the social gospel.
3. God’s reign brings justice for the poor, liberation for the oppressed, and a new social order marked by equity.
4. It is basically Marxism dressed up in the language of Jesus.
5. Critique:
  1. Jesus blesses the “poor in spirit” (Mt 5:3), not simply the materially poor.
  2. The bondage that Jesus proclaims liberty from is not the oppression of Rome but slavery to sin and Satan (Mt 12:29; Lk 4:18-21; Jn 8:34-36).
  3. Jesus’ gospel of the kingdom addresses humanity’s fundamental problem: alienation from God.
  4. By focusing on liberation from external social systems like capitalism, it minimizes the new birth (Jn 3:3-5) and spiritual reconciliation at the heart of Jesus’ message.
Existential or Ethical Interpretation
1. The kingdom is a personal, inner reality—God’s rule in the heart and life of the believer.
2. Proponent: Adolf von Harnack emphasized the kingdom as the rule of God in the soul, reducing its apocalyptic elements.
3. The kingdom is about personal piety, obedience, and ethical renewal rather than cosmic events.
4. The fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man (universalistic thrust).
5. Critique: Overemphasizes the moral dimension at the expense of the apocalyptic dimension.
Restoration of Israel view
1. The kingdom reflects Jewish hopes for national restoration, messianic deliverance, and cosmic renewal.
2. Proponents: N. T. Wright - continuing exile, Jesus as the fulfillment of Israel’s story.
3. Jesus redefined Israel’s hopes, pointing to himself as the locus of God’s reign.
4. Critique: There is a large amount of truth to this view, but it downplays Jesus’ critique of Jewish nationalism and plays into earthly restoration hopes. Needs to be explained and qualified in terms of Inaugurated Eschatology (below).
Inaugurated Eschatology (Already/Not Yet) view
1. The kingdom is both present and future. It was inaugurated by Jesus’ ministry, death, and resurrection, but awaits final consummation at his return.
2. Proponents: George Eldon Ladd, Donald Hagner, Herman Ridderbos, dominant view among contemporary evangelical scholars.
3. The tension between the “already” (present signs of the kingdom) and the “not yet” (final fulfillment).
4. This view can be combined with a modified version of the Restoration of Israel view.

Passages where Jesus speaks of the Kgdm as present (Kgdm inaugurated)

Mt 4:17 / Mk 1:15: “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Mt 4:23 (cp. 9:35): “And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.”
Mt 11:12: “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it” (NIV 1984).
Mt 12:28: “But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”
Mt 13: Kingdom like
1. Mustard seed – small to large tree
2. Leaven hidden in flour
3. Dragnet gathering every kind of fish
4. The hidden empire of the Son of Man.
Lk 17:20-21: “Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, ‘The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, ²¹ nor will they say, “Look, here it is!” or “There!” for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.’”
Mt 21:43: “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.”
Mt 28:18: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me,” fulfilling Dan 7:13-14.
Entering/having the Kgdm now by conversion, being reconciled with God:
1. Mt 18:3 / Mk 10:15 / Lk 18:17: “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
2. Mt 19:21-24 / Mk 10:23-25 / Lk 18:24-25: “Jesus said to him, ‘If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.’ When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again, I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.’”
3. Mt 23:13: “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.”
4. John 3:5: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”
Those who believe in Jesus possess the kingdom now:
1. Jn 3:36: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life” (eternal life = the kingdom).
2. Jn 5:24: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.”
3. Mt 5:10: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Reign or Realm?

Kingdom as Reign
1. The kingdom is God’s active ruling, his sovereign power breaking into history.
2. Advocates: C. H. Dodd, George Eldon Ladd, many modern interpreters.
3. The Greek term basileia means not so much a territory but the exercise of royal authority and kingship.
4. Lk 11:20: “If I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (focus is on God’s power at work in Jesus).
5. Mk 1:15: “The kingdom of God has come near” (nearness implies God’s saving action, not geography),
6. The kingdom is dynamic - it is about what God is doing, not where.
Kingdom as Realm
1. The kingdom is the sphere or domain where God’s rule is acknowledged.
2. Advocates: More common in older theological tradition (esp. Augustine, medieval thought).
3. The kingdom has a “territorial” sense: the church, or the renewed creation.
4. Mt 8:11: “Many will come from east and west and recline at table… in the kingdom of heaven” (suggests a location/realm).
5. Col 1:13: believers are transferred into the “kingdom of his beloved Son” (realm imagery).
6. The kingdom is static - the sphere “where” God rules, not only the act of ruling.
Both Reign and Realm
1. Most contemporary scholars argue that reign and realm cannot be separated:
2. The reign (God’s ruling activity) creates the realm (the community and renewed creation where his rule is manifest).
3. George Eldon Ladd: “The kingdom of God is primarily the rule of God, and secondarily the realm of God’s rule.”
4. N. T. Wright: Jesus’ kingdom proclamation is about God becoming king—his reign breaking in through Jesus—which results in a renewed people (realm).
Theological Implications
1. Kgdm-as-Reign emphasizes the inaugurated dimension: God’s dynamic action in Christ’s death and resurrection, and the Spirit-empowered mission of the church in the present age.
2. Kgdm-as-Realm emphasizes the consummated dimension: the ultimate fulfillment of the kingdom in the new heavens and new earth.
3. Both must be affirmed:
  1. Christ reigns now from heaven as the elect are effectually called and made members of his kingdom by the Spirit (Col 1:13).
  2. At his parousia there will be a realm where his reign is acknowledged and manifested over all creation (1 Cor 15:25-28; Phil 2:9-11; 3:20-21).
4. The reign of Christ is focused in the present age on the preaching of the gospel and the calling and gathering of a people who will dwell in the renewed creation.

In the Kingdom, who is the King? God or the Messiah?

Arguments for taking God as King
1. In the Old Testament, YHWH is repeatedly called King (e.g., Ps 47:2, Ps 93:1, Isa 52:7).
2. Jewish expectation was that the “kingdom of God” meant God himself would rule decisively over his people and the nations.
3. Jesus speaks of the “kingdom of God,” not of himself.
4. The parables often begin with “The kingdom of God is like…,” highlighting God’s reign breaking in.
Arguments for seeing Christ as King now
1. Jesus was hailed as “Son of David” and “King of the Jews” (Matt 21:5; 27:11).
2. His resurrection and exaltation are described as enthronement:
  1. Acts 2:36: “God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
  2. 1 Cor 15:25: “He must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.”
  3. Matt 28:18: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”
  4. Phil 2:9-11: God exalted him, giving him “the name above every name.”
Solution: Mediated Kingship
1. The kingdom belongs to God, but Jesus claims unique authority within it (e.g., forgiving sins, redefining Sabbath, speaking as Son of Man).
2. 1 Cor 15:24-28: Christ reigns now, putting all enemies under his feet. At the end, he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, so that God may be all in all.
3. This shows Christ’s reign is a mediatorial kingship, delegated by the Father, fulfilled in the eschaton.
Support
1. Augustine distinguished the eternal reign of God from Christ’s redemptive kingship.
2. Calvin emphasized Christ’s “kingly office” in his threefold office (prophet, priest, king). Christ reigns as the one through whom God’s kingdom comes.
3. George Eldon Ladd: God is King, but Christ as the Messiah brings and embodies the reign of God.
4. Jesus preached that God is now establishing his kingdom through himself as the mediator of God’s reign.
God reigns through his vassal-king
1. It was always this way: Adam, David, etc.
2. Dominion mandate (Gen 1:28; Ps 8:6)
3. Delegated authority - viceregent
4. Kgdm through Covenant - Lk 22:29

The Kingdom of God and the Church

The church = the people of the Messiah
Only Matthew explicitly refers to “the church”
1. Both times, he speaks of it in relation to the Kgdm of Christ.
2. Mt 16:16-19: Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” ¹⁷ And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. ¹⁸ And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. ¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
3. The keys of the Kgdm govern who is in and who is out.
4. Mt 18:15-20: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. ¹⁶ But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. ¹⁷ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. ¹⁸ Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven [alluding to the keys of the kgdm in Mt 16:19]. ¹⁹ Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
5. Mt 21:43: “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits” (the people of the Messiah, composed of both Jews and Gentiles who believe in Jesus and submit to his reign).
The “people of the Messiah” (i.e., church concept) in the other Gospels, even though they do not use the word “church”:
1. The 12 disciples as the nucleus of the new Israel
2. Mk 3:31-35 / Lk 8:19-21 / Mt 12:46-50: And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. ³² And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.” ³³ And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” ³⁴ And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! ³⁵ For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”
3. Mk 10:29-30: Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, ³⁰ who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.”

Relationship between the Kgdm and the Church

The Identity View (Church = Kingdom)
1. The church is the kingdom of God on earth.
2. Historical Roots: Medieval Catholic thought often equated the institutional church with the kingdom.
  1. Cyprian: “Outside the church there is no salvation.”
  2. Augustine identified “the city of God” largely with the visible church.
3. To belong to the church is to belong to the kingdom.
4. Critique: Seen as too narrow; collapses the dynamic, eschatological kingdom into the institutional church.
The Separation View (Church ≠ Kingdom)
1. The kingdom and the church are distinct realities. The kingdom is God’s broader rule, while the church is only one part of it.
2. Advocates: Liberal Protestants (e.g., Ritschl, Harnack), contemporary “Missio Dei” (Mission of God) theologians.
3. The kingdom is ethical (love, brotherhood, justice).
4. The church is an imperfect institution that points toward, but is not identical with, the kingdom.
5. Critique: Tends to downplay the role of the church and emphasizes cultural engagement and political activism.
The Instrumental View (Church Serves the Kingdom)
1. The church is not itself the kingdom, but it is the instrument or agent by which the kingdom is proclaimed and advanced.
2. Advocates: Roman Catholic view after Vatican II
3. The kingdom is God’s rule over all creation. The church is the community that bears witness to that rule and lives under it, serving as sign, instrument, and foretaste.
4. The church is the sacrament and instrument of the kingdom, but the kingdom is broader, including work of grace outside visible church structures
5. Critique: Some fear this risks making the church secondary or optional.
The Manifestation View
1. In the present age, the church bears witness to, exhibits and manifests the reality of the kingdom.
2. Advocates: George Eldon Ladd, Herman Ridderbos, many evangelical and Reformed scholars.
3. The kingdom is God’s reign—already present (in the church and its gospel witness) but not yet consummated.
4. The church is the community of those who submit to Christ’s kingship and bear witness to his reign.
  1. Thus the church is the people of the kingdom, but the kingdom awaits eschatological fulfillment.
  2. The church is provisional and pilgrim-like in this age.
  3. At Christ’s return, the church perfected will be glorified to live in the new creation as the final consummation of the kingdom.
  4. This places the emphasis where it properly belongs: on the church. The church is at the center of God’s purposes in this world in the present age.
5. However, that does not mean the kingdom is only expressed when the church is gathered in public worship on the Lord’s Day.
  1. Belgic Confession 27: “This church has existed from the beginning of the world and will last until the end, as appears from the fact that Christ is eternal King who cannot be without subjects.”
  2. Christians are subjects of Christ’s kingdom 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and we must live like it.
  3. 1 Cor 10:31: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
  4. Rom 12:1: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”
  5. All that we as believers do in every area of life outside of public worship (our worldly callings/vocations, recreation, education, etc.) is rendered as a priestly service to God and in subjection to the Lordship of Christ.
  6. We are to engage in these activities outside of worship in a way that bears witness to unbelievers.
  7. 1 Pet 3:15: “In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.”

The Kingdom of God as already and not-yet

This age and the age to come
1. Mt 12:32: “And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”
2. Mk 10:30 / Lk 18:30: “… receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.”
3. Lk 20:34-36: “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, ³⁵ but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, ³⁶ for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.”
The suffering first, then the glory
1. The passion predictions come right after Peter confesses Jesus is the Messiah
2. He is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53