Jesus came to establish the Government of God

Jesus is king in the Kingdom of God. We miss the full implications of this wonderful statement, because we do not understand the role of a king. Real kingdoms no longer exist. Modern kings are wheeled out on special occasions, but they have no real authority in their kingdom. These rock star kings give a distorted view of kingship, because they are worshipped, but not obeyed.

In Jesus' time, a king wielded the same absolute authority as is exercised a modern government. To understand what Jesus meant by the word Kingdom, we should think about the authority of the modern state. There are no limits on what modern governments can do. They can legislate for every aspect of life and can levy taxes on any income or property. Modern governments have absolute authority. In Jesus time, the same absolute authority was held by kings and emperors.

In a world without kings, the Greek word translated as kingdom would be better translated as "government". Everyone in the modern world understands the concept of government. We would get a better understanding of what Jesus meant by the Kingdom of God by thinking of it as the Government of God.

If Jesus had come in our time, he would have announced that the Government of God is at hand. Using this expression sharpens his message.

The time has come. The government of God is at hand. Change your thinking and believe the good news (Mark 1:15).

I must proclaim the good news of the government of God to the other towns, (Luke 4:43).

He welcomed the crowds and spoke to them about the government of God (Luke 9:11).

Jesus travelled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the government of God (Luke 8:1).

In a world where most people are fed up with their government, an announcement of a new government is good news. The coming of a better government is extremely good news.