The Kingdom of God: A Different Kind of Authority

In his booklet Just What Do You Mean - Kingdom of God? Herbert Armstrong wrote about a prophecy delivered to the King of Babylon in the book of Daniel:

"Notice! This is speaking of KINGDOMS. It is referring to kingdoms that bear rule over the people on earth. It is speaking of GOVERNMENTS! It is not speaking of ethereal sentiments 'set up in the hearts of men.' It is not speaking of churches. It is speaking of the kind of GOVERNMENTS that bear RULE and AUTHORITY over nations of PEOPLE here on earth. It is literal. It is specific. There is no misunderstanding, here, as to what is meant by the word: KINGDOM.'"

Mr. Armstrong then proceeded to explain that the prophecy outlined "a succession of world-ruling governments." After the final government, Mr. Armstrong believed the God would set up his own government. He wrote:

"This is THE KINGDOM OF GOD. It is the END of present governments - the governments that rule Russia, China, Japan, Italy, Germany - yes, and even the United States and the British nations. They then shall become the kingdoms - the GOVERNMENTS of the Lord JESUS CHRIST, then KING of kings over the entire earth. This makes completely PLAIN the fact that the KINGDOM OF GOD is a literal GOVERNMENT. Even as the Chaldean Empire was a KINGDOM - even as the Roman Empire was a KINGDOM - so the KINGDOM OF GOD is a government. It is to take over the GOVERNMENT of the NATIONS of the world.

Jesus Christ was BORN to be a KING - a RULER!" - Just What Do You Mean - Kingdom of God?

This is where Armstrong and Jehovah's Witnesses made a critical mistake in their understanding of the Gospel. They wrongly assumed that God intended to replace all of the human kingdoms/governments of the world with his own version of THEIR kingdoms/governments. In Armstrong's interpretation, God would replace the AUTHORITY of humans by assuming the authority to rule himself! In other words, for Armstrong and his followers, the important difference was that man would be replaced at the top of the AUTHORITY pyramid by God! What they failed to understand was the fact that God's notion of authority and government was fundamentally DIFFERENT from man's conception of them!

In short, the Kingdom of God is about so much more than replacing a bunch of bad rulers with a good one! When the Jews handed Jesus over to Pilate, the Roman governor asked him if he was a king. Christ responded: "My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world." (John 18:36, NLT) This was apparently hard for this human ruler to understand. The Governor asked, "So, you are a king?" (John 18:37) Continuing, we read: "Jesus responded, “You say I am a king. Actually, I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth. All who love the truth recognize that what I say is true." (John 18:37, NLT) And, considering my audience, we need to make very plain that the truth which Christ was referencing was NOT the little package of doctrines which Armstrong identified as "THE TRUTH."

No, THE TRUTH which Christ spoke about concerned the real nature of HIS KINGDOM, the one which he spoke about in his parables! The one which eschewed the lust for material wealth, power, and conquest. THE KINGDOM which focuses on THE LAW of love, forgiveness, reconciliation, mercy, peace, healing, and service to others. THE KINGDOM which focuses on training the world to follow God's way by setting a good example for others to follow, NOT the human way of standing in front of a classroom and lecturing students. THE KINGDOM which has a completely different conception of AUTHORITY and its uses, NOT the human way of imposing one's will and agenda on others. THE KINGDOM which seeks the glorification of others, NOT the glorification of the ruler. THE KINGDOM without borders and without any lust for the territory or resources of others. THE KINGDOM which is focused on what's in the hearts of its subjects, NOT in the duties which they owe to the state!

What Herbert Armstrong failed to understand is that the books of Daniel and Revelation are focused on the CONTRAST between human notions about authority and governance and Divine notions of those things! Whether human governance was manifested by Egypt, Babylon, Persia, Greece, or Rome, there was a certain formula which all of them are portrayed as following. Indeed, they are all characterized by authoritarianism, selfishness, cruelty, demanding worship of the state, and militant belligerence. Moreover, they are all portrayed as being motivated by the lust for more territory, wealth, and power. For all of these human governments, their subjects were regarded as owing their complete allegiance to the state and its objectives, while the state really didn't owe them anything! The subjects were there to serve the state and its interests. In short, the exact OPPOSITE of the Divine model!

When two of Christ's disciples expressed their desire to be given the highest positions of authority in his kingdom, Jesus replied: "You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Matthew 20:25-28, NLT) Now, this model of "servant leadership" was obviously very foreign to even his disciples' notions about leadership. Indeed, it is apparent that they thought that they would be lording it over people in Christ's kingdom! Nevertheless, Jesus made it clear here and in many other passages that he was a different kind of king.

In the New Testament, the Greek word "basileia" is translated into English as "kingdom." In the Blue Letter Bible entry for this word (click on the Greek word), the term is defined as: royal power, kingship, dominion, rule: 1. not to be confused with an actual kingdom but rather the right or authority to rule over a kingdom, 2. of the royal power of Jesus as the triumphant Messiah, 3. of the royal power and dignity conferred on Christians in the Messiah's kingdom." In light of this definition, it is interesting to note that the Greek word "exousia" appears over and over again in the New Testament canon. Once again, Blue Letter Bible informs us that this word is translated into English as "power, authority, right." As in Christ's statement that "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth," or as the NLT renders it "I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth." (Matthew 28:18) Likewise, we know that Jesus taught in a manner that suggested he had the "authority" to do so (Matthew 7:29, Mark 1:22). We are also informed that Christ gave his disciples the power/authority to heal and to cast out demons (Mark 3:15). We are also told that Christ had the authority/power to execute judgment and to give eternal life (John 5:27 and 17:2). Perhaps, most importantly, Christ had the power/authority to lay down his life and take it up again (John 10:18).

In short, we can see that our human notions about governance and authority are the ANTITHESIS of God's Kingdom! In other words, it isn't a matter of replacing one dictator with another - albeit a superior and more benevolent one! NO, the Kingdom of God represents an entirely different way of exercising power/authority. It is also NOT based on the aggrandizement of a person or the state. Instead, the Kingdom of God is concerned with the welfare and salvation of its subjects - of serving the people under its authority/power.