Why did Jesus come to earth?

The title for this post is the question Tony Campolo asked some of his students and the kind of answers he got are as follows. To seek and to save the lost, to reveal God to us, to provide us with a model of how to be fully human and finally to defeat the demonic powers of the world. All good answers, but Campolo asks why does no one answer with the statement Jesus gives; to tell of the kingdom of God. He notes that this is the focus of a number of Jesus' parables and is one of his common phrases.

Campolo goes on to note that the kingdom of God as Jesus talks about it seems to contradict the focus of much of evangelical Christianity. There focus seems to be on surviving this unjust and corrupt world until you die so that you can then get to heaven. where as Jesus teaches us to pray, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

The Kingdom of God though is not just a NT thought but has its roots in the OT as well. Campolo notes that it is a new society as mentioned in Isaiah 65:17-25 as well as Revelation 21:3-5. He points us then to history and those that travelled to the new world in order to set up the kind of society's Isaiah spoke about in a place untouched by the western world. America was to be the home of a utopian society.

Campolo finally leaves us with stories of those seeking to bring God's kingdom to earth here and now through there actions in the world partnering with God to make earth a better place. McLaren has a harsh warning to add to what has gone before. He states that if we seek to convert people to our individual and eternal theologies (God wants to save me from this corrupt world) we allow them to bypass God's concern for the historic and global (God's will being done on earth as it is heaven). This means the more people we convert the worse the world will become as it will matter to less people. The question he is asking is, If we convert people to this version of the kingdom as otherworldly are we working against the will of God for the Kingdom on earth?

The kingdom of God. My first question is what is it about? and what does it mean? if it is Jesus' main thrust of teaching why do we hear and know so little about it?

First some facts and figures, The phrase kingdom of God is used around 52 times in the gospels add to this Matthews similar phrase the kingdom of heaven (used 32 times) and you see that the kingdom is mentioned by Jesus 84 times. Compare this to how many times Jesus talks about other more familiar words you see that maybe we have missed something. Church: 3 times, Salvation: 7 times, and Hell: 12 times. If we then look at Jesus' teaching in the parables of which there are around 30, 13 are linked to the Kingdom with the others covering a wide variety of issues from prayer to forgiveness.

From all this I would say that the Kingdom of God was the central theme of Jesus message. In light of that I feel I need to explore it a little more to find out what this is about? and what it means for people in the here and now?

When most people hear the word kingdom their mind probably thinks of a geographical area. We live in the United Kingdom which we know is the piece of land floating in the north sea plus the northern point of Ireland. But when Jesus talks about the kingdom of God is he talking about a physical place. The Greek word for kingdom is βασιλεία (basileia) which can mean kingdom, sovereignty or royal power. It comes from the word βασιλεύω (basileuó) which means to be king or reign. There has been much debate over how this word should be translated but most would affirm that the word kingdom is problematic as it links too closely to a physical entity. To avoid this problem the phrase could be translated the reign of God, the commonwealth of God, or loves rule. These translation may help us to begin to understand the message of Jesus as announcing the reign of God.

To try and explain, in the UK we live under the reign of Queen Elizabeth, if we travel abroad although we are outside of the physical United Kingdom we still travel under the authority of the Queen (if you don't believe check the front page of your passport. It is by her authority that you are allowed to travel freely).

This idea of the reign of God helps us follow the idea we find on Jesus' lips in the NT back into the OT. Here we have the story of a group of people who God has promised to be their God and king. This people entered the promised land and under the reign of David and Solomon this people were prosperous. After these kings passed away though things went from bad to worse, the nation split in two, then it was invaded by various other nations and many of God's people were taken into exile. After a surprising return to Jerusalem for the exiles during the time of Cyrus and a rebuilding programme that took place under Nehemiah and Ezra came another blow to this holy nations dreams. The Roman empire rose to power and Israel became an occupied land, something that hurt many Jews more than exile had in the past. It is into this story that the Jewish people began to hope for the time when God will become King of his people again. the Jews were waiting for the reign of God to come about and this is the message that Jesus brings.

What then does Jesus say about the kingdom? it is near, and advancing forcefully, it is like a mustard seed, or yeast, that it belonged to the poor and persecuted, that it was like a man who prepares a banquet or a hidden treasure or an expensive pearl. The list goes on but in all of Jesus teaching about the kingdom what should we hold onto and live by.


First, the kingdom is hear now, it is not just some future hope (though it does include that) but a present reality that we can live under right now. The reign of God is at hand and it is being made present in the world through the lives of those who live in relationship with God.

Second, it is for all people. Like a mustard seed that grows so that all the birds of the air can rest in it the reign of God is for all people. The religious people of the day were highly nationalistic and exclusive (the temple was a case in point). Jesus' words when he cleared out the temple was that it should be a house of prayer for all nations and so the kingdom is a place for all nations as well.

Third, the kingdom is different. It is not like the kingdoms we see on this earth, it is governed by different rules. the kingdom belongs to the poor in spirit, the persecuted and those in poverty. The first in it are actually last and the last in it are first. It is a kingdom that prostitutes and tax collectors (classed as big sinners in Jesus world) enter before Pharisees and Sadducees (the religious leaders).

Forth, the kingdom is shown by actions. When asked whether he is the Messiah Jesus answers by telling them that the blind are given sight, the lame walk, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the Good News is preached. The list of evidence that Jesus is the Messiah and that he is brining in the kingdom is filled with actions and only at the ends do we hear about his words.

I am sure there is much more you could say about the kingdom of God but these are my first thoughts. Please feel free to comment, agree or disagree.