A Sojourner's Quest

5 6 / A S O J O U R N E R ’ S Q U E S T

Later, risen from the dead, Jesus spent six weeks teaching his disciples more about the Kingdom (Acts 1.3). He explained that his own suffering, death and resurrection were all part of the kingdom plan foretold by Old Testament prophets (Luke 24.44-47). Now, after the resurrection, his disciples ask, “Are you finally going to set up your Kingdom?” (paraphrasing Acts 1.6). How does Jesus respond? He says, in effect, “The time for the full flowering of the new order still remains a mystery to you; it’s in God’s hands. But . . . the Holy Spirit will give you the power to live the kingdom life now. So you are to be witnesses of the Kingdom and its power from here to the very ends of the earth” (Acts 1.7-8). And so it was, and so it has been. Today we are finally nearing the fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy that “this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations” (Matt. 24.14 [NIV]). This is no attempt to outguess God or pre-empt the sovereign mystery of the Kingdom. The Kingdom still and always remains in God’s hands. So this book is not about “times or dates” (Acts 1.7) – a tempting but disastrous detour – but about the plain kingdom teachings which run throughout Scripture. My point is simply this: The Bible is full of teach- ing on the Kingdom of God, and the Church has largely missed it. But in the providence of God we may now have reached a time when the good news of the Kingdom can be heard and understood as never before. This is due not to any one person, not to any human wisdom or insight, but to God’s own working in our day, bringing a new kingdom consciousness. And so, as never before, it is time to speak of God’s Kingdom now!

Thus the theme of this book: The Kingdom of God in Scripture and its meaning for us today.

The Kingdom of God is a key thread in Scripture, tying the whole Bible together. It is not the only unifying theme, nor should it replace other themes which are clearly biblical. Yet it is a critically important theme,