The Reign of God

As part of the commentary thread in response to my post "A Warning of Impending Punishment OR An Announcement of Salvation Through Jesus Christ?" an anonymous commentator shared the following quotations:

Matt 3:2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (AV).

Matt 3:2 'Reform, for come nigh hath the reign of the heavens,' (YLT, 1st publ. 1862).

Matt 3:2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has arrived.” (R. T. France).

“While no statement would command universal assent, there is general agreement that, rather than denoting a specific time, place, or situation called “the kingdom” — a misleading abbreviation which is conspicuously absent from the Synoptic tradition as it is dominant in modern discussion — the phrase “the kingdom of God” in both Hebrew and Greek forms denotes the dynamic concept of “God ruling.” It represents, in other words, a sentence of which the subject is not “kingdom” but “God.” This dynamic sense is now better conveyed by an abstract noun such as “kingship” or “sovereignty rather than by “kingdom,” which has become in general usage a concrete noun” (R. T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, NICNT, p.102).

“Our traditional English phrase derives from the KJV (following William Tyndale), which was translated at a time when “kingdom” in English still carried this dynamic sense of “kingship,” a sense now rightly described by the OED as “obsolete.” The concrete sense of “kingdom” in current English (as a place or group of people under a common rule) now inevitably distorts the more dynamic connotations of he basileia ton ouranon [transliteration supplied instead of the Greek] when “the kingdom of God” continues to be used in Bible versions despite the changed meaning of the word. Translators have still to catch up with the scholarly preference for such phrases as “the rule of God”...” (R. T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, NICNT, p.102).

“Matthew’s summary of John’s (and Jesus’) declaration, “The kingdom of heaven has arrived,” might thus be paraphrased as “God’s promised reign is beginning” or “God is now taking control” (R. T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, NICNT, p.102).

“The kingdom of heaven is the rule of God and is both a present reality and a future hope” (NIVSB on Matt 3:2Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)).

“... the Kingdom of God is the redemptive reign of God dynamically active to establish his rule among men, and that this Kingdom, which will appear as an apocalyptic act at the end of the age, has already come into human history in the person and mission of Jesus to overcome evil, to deliver men from its power, and to bring them into the blessings of God's reign. The Kingdom of God involves two great moments: fulfilment within history, and consummation at the end of history” (George Eldon Ladd, The Presence of the Future, Rev. ed., p.218).

Now, while I believe that the above referenced statements by Bible scholars are consistent with the Christian canon, this concept of "kingdom" was NOT understood by Herbert Armstrong or most of those who follow his teachings! As I have noted in numerous posts here, both the Old and New Testaments draw a sharp distinction between God's notions about authority and rulership and those of humankind. In short, God's ways are NOT our ways. Indeed, Christ told his disciples that he didn't want them to imitate the way that humans had traditionally ruled over and dominated each other. Instead, he introduced the concept of "servant leadership" (the leader as the servant of all).

Moreover, as it turns out, this is consistent with the Greek word that was translated into English as "kingdom" (and the way that it would have been understood by English-speaking peoples in the time of Wycliffe's translation and the King James Version of the Bible. In the Blue Letter Bible entry for "basileia" we find the following outline of the word's usage in the New Testament: royal power, kingship, dominion, rule - not to be confused with an actual kingdom but rather the right or authority to rule over a kingdom - of the royal power of Jesus as the triumphant Messiah - of the royal power and dignity conferred on Christians in the Messiah's kingdom - a kingdom, the territory subject to the rule of a king - used in the N.T. to refer to the reign of the Messiah. In other words, the modern concept of a "kingdom" does NOT mesh with the concept suggested by the Greek of the New Testament!

In his The Kingdom of God in Eight Words, The Gospel Coalition's Jeremy Treat defined the concept in these terms: "The kingdom is God’s reign through God’s people over God’s place." He went on to note that: "The kingdom is first and foremost a statement about God. God is king, and he is coming as king to set right what our sin made wrong. The phrase 'kingdom of God' could just as easily be translated 'reign of God' or 'kingship of God.' The message of the kingdom is about God’s royal power directed by his self-giving love." Now that gives new meaning to that famous phrase from the Lord's Prayer: "May thy reign commence, May thy will be done here as it currently is in heaven." Kinda makes you want to take another look at some of Christ's Kingdom parables doesn't it?

Treat continued: "God is king, and he reigns over his creation. But in a world marred by sin, God’s kingship is resisted, and the peace of his kingdom has been shattered. After Adam and Eve’s rebellion, God’s reign is revealed as redemptive. He’s the king who is reclaiming his creation. His kingdom is not the culmination of human potential and effort, but the intervention of his royal grace into a sinful and broken world." This encompasses a much broader and more comprehensive notion than anything that Armstrong ever imagined!

Treat described it in these terms: "God’s reign is a saving reign. The kingdom of God provides a holistic understanding of salvation, including not only what we are saved from, but also what we are saved for: We are saved from death and for life. We are saved from shame and for glory. We are saved from slavery and for freedom. We are saved from sin and for following our Savior. We are saved from the kingdom of darkness and for the kingdom of light. To be saved into God’s kingdom is to embrace God’s comprehensive rule over every aspect of life. This is a far cry from merely 'asking Jesus into my heart.' It means a new life, a new identity, and a new kingdom." I would caution, however, that Scripture makes clear that God's reign begins in the hearts of Christ's disciples, and it involves embracing the Two Great Commandments (Wholehearted devotion to God, and love for each other).

Once again, when we allow a search engine and Artificial Intelligence to define the "Kingdom of God," we find: "The Kingdom of God is a spiritual realm over which God reigns as king, or the fulfillment on Earth of God’s will. The phrase occurs frequently in the New Testament, primarily used by Jesus Christ in the first three Gospels1. In this kingdom, God’s authority is recognized, and his will is obeyed. The concept of a Kingdom of God is not primarily one of space, territory, or politics, as in a national kingdom, but rather one of kingly rule, reign, and sovereign control." Gives new meaning to Christ's assertion before Pilate that his kingdom was NOT of this world - doesn't it?

The Kingdom of God has already begun for those who have accepted Christ and received the gift of the Holy Spirit. God and "his" love living and reigning within us! Sure, someday God's reign will extend over all peoples everywhere, but let us all rejoice in what has been made available to us in the here and now. Our citizenship truly resides in heaven and is NOT defined in human terms! Amen!