What truly is the kingdom?

One other problem contributing to the confusion that surrounds the kingdom of God is the absence of a scriptural definition. Fact is, neither Jesus nor any biblical writer ever defined the kingdom of God. As perplexing and ironic as this omission may seem, a definition by at least one of them would surely have alleviated much of our modern-day confusion. Nor did any one back then ask for a definition, as far as we know.

But another fact is Jesus’ presentations of the kingdom departed radically from the Jewish expectations. In the 1st century many Jews (and Christians yet today) were and are still looking for their Messiah to bring a visible and political kingdom which would overthrow the Roman governmental authorities and elevate Israel to supremacy over all the nations (Acts 1:6). Problem is, Jesus never taught, promised, nor delivered that kind of a kingdom.

Theologian George Eldon Ladd is somewhat helpful in his book, A Theology of the New Testament, as he contrasts the kingdom from the all-to-common tendency of identifying it with the Church. He writes:

The Kingdom is primarily the dynamic reign or kingly rule of God, and derivatively, the sphere in which the rule is experienced. In biblical idiom, the Kingdom is not identified with its subjects. They are the people of God’s rule who enter it, live under it, and are governed by it. The church is the community of the Kingdom but never the Kingdom itself. Jesus’ disciples belong to the Kingdom as the Kingdom belongs to them; but they are not the Kingdom. The Kingdom is the rule of God; the church is a society of women and men.
(George Eldon Ladd, A Theology of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI.: Eerdmans, 1974, 2000), 109.)

Christian Overman deals with the kingdom in its “broadest sense.” Hence, he defines it thusly:

In the broadest sense of the word, God’s kingdom is that domain over which He is King. Taken in this context, then the kingdom of God is as broad as creation is wide, for there is no realm which exists independently of God’s sovereign rule and authority, either in heaven or on earth.

In support of his definition, Overman cites these two Psalms:

“The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all” (Psa. 103:19).
“The earth is the Lord’s and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it” (Psa. 24:1).

He does, however, recognize that “even though it all belongs to God, ever since the first temptation of man, the earth and all it contains have been contested ground. There is an enemy who lays claim to that which is God’s. . . a rebel kingdom of his own inside the true King’s territory” (Overman, Assumptions That Affect Our Lives, 117-118).

Throughout Church history, there have been a variety of attempts to define the kingdom, again because neither Jesus nor any biblical writer ever did. But here is my working definition of what is meant by the kingdom of God. First, it is not a political administration, a geographic territory, or an abstract notion. However, it is a rule, it does have a realm, and it is a pragmatic and dynamic reality. Simply defined, the kingdom of God is:

The sphere of God’s will, reign and rule.
It is located throughout heaven and the cosmos, and wherever on earth the manifestation of his sovereignty, holiness, power, and kingly authority is acknowledged and obeyed. That means it is realized both internally and externally, within and among, to draw human hearts to Him, to bless and discipline his people, and to defeat his enemies. It is to be entered, exercised, and advanced by every Christian who follows Jesus, and experienced in every aspect of society. However, it is not universally recognized, is contested, opposed, and persecuted, and is greatly under-realized.

For more: listen to podcast on this website for the “Kingdom Christianity” series.

Sources:

1 A Once-Mighty Faith (future book – est. 2014-2015) by John Noe

2 A Theology of the New Testament by George Eldon Ladd