The Kingdom Is At Hand

The first message of the kingdom found in the gospels is an announcement that it was at hand. (Matthew 3:1,2) John communicated the imminent arrival of the kingdom of God.

After John was cast into prison, Jesus announced that the time was fulfilled. (Mark 1:14, 15) What time? It was that of which the prophets spoke for the coming of the kingdom in the last days.

The Days of Roman Kings

The prophecies of the kingdom indicated its arrival during the days of Rome, described apocalyptically as the fourth beast in Daniel's prophecy. (Daniel 7:7) The idea of postponement creates a kink in the kingdom's arrival requiring a revival of ancient Rome. This concept created a frenzy of millennial harbingers seeking to identify the European Union as Rome's resurrection. When this union failed to materialize the prophecy peddlers went off searching for a new theory.

Conversely, the message of John and Jesus fits nicely into the historical setting of ancient Rome. Keeping on track with the prophets, their chronological setting for the kingdom aligns perfectly with a fulfillment during the days of the Roman kings. See Daniel 2:44, 45 and Luke 3:1.

The Failure Theory

Ignoring the at hand message of the kingdom's arrival, some have allowed the simple kingdom message to get out of hand. Like ancient Israel, many today are looking for a kingdom set up on earth like all the nations. However, the idea of a temporal earthly kingdom is foreign to the divine message.

In fact, it was seen as a rejection of God's sovereignty by Israel. (1 Samuel 8:7,8). Pilate, convinced that Jesus' kingdom was no threat to his own, attempted to release him. Why? It is because of the statement, "My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews, but now is my kingdom not from here." (John 18:36)

The above statement sends the message that the kingdom is from the heavens, not of earthly origin. Therefore it is not subject to earthly means of defending itself.

Earthly Kingdom Refused

Knowing that an earthly kingdom was far inferior to the heavenly one he came to establish, Jesus shunned every attempt to make him an earthly king. Satan offered him all the kingdoms of the world for his allegiance. He refused. (Matthew 4:10, 11) The Jews sought to take him by force and make him a king in hopes that he would overthrow Caesar's Rome. Again, he would have no part of it. (John 6:15)

The Kingdom Arrived Within the First Century Generation

Often people get confused over the language concerning the kingdom. Whatever may be viewed as the future of the kingdom is never spoken of as extending beyond the first century. It is much easier to keep the kingdom in the first century than it is to rebuild Rome for a future fulfillment! Further, while it arrived within the first century, the kingdom is eternal and never ends. (Luke 1:32, 33, Hebrews 12:28) This means, we have no need to find a modern Rome for the fulfillment of that which is already fulfilled.

For example, Luke records Jesus prophecy of the coming of the Son of Man in glory. He says that when the disciples recognized the signs of the end, the kingdom of God would be near. Thus it was in their immediate future. Nevertheless, its arrival did not extend beyond their generation. "Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place."

Matthew is equally emphatic. He writes that some who stood in the presence of Christ would not die, until they had seen him coming in his kingdom. (Matthew 16:28) Unless we can believe those living in the first century generation are yet on earth, that kingdom arrived and is here.

In summary, John and Jesus announced the kingdom as at hand. It was a kingdom out of the heavens and not of earthly origin. That kingdom arrived in the days of ancient Rome as prophesied. Their was no postponement, but a timely, scheduled arrival within the fulfilled time. It was not postponed due to failure as modern theories proclaim.