Recently, I've been thinking a lot about discipleship. What it means to be a Christian. How Christ Jesus continues to teach us. What is involved in following his example. In the process of exploring this fairly broad topic, I noticed something interesting. When Jesus commissioned the 12 disciples, See Matt. 10:1-7 . and when he commissioned the 70, See Luke 10:1-9 . he gave them the same simple message to deliver: The kingdom is at hand.
Throughout his ministry, Christ Jesus had a lot to say about the kingdom. He connected it with healing, See Luke 11:20 . and made the kingdom the central theme of many of his parables. In the Sermon on the Mount, he said the kingdom belonged to the "poor in spirit" and to those "persecuted for righteousness' sake." Matt. 5:3, 10. And he said this to people who were used to living under tyrannical governments, where daily experience rarely resonated with the tones of justice. The idea of the "kingdom of God" or, alternatively, the "kingdom of heaven," embodied aspiration, hope for the future, and a longing for a world in which everyone, and not just a few, benefited.
For some people on the fringes of society today, not much has changed. For others, democracy has replaced totalitarianism and, though not without problems of its own, has provided them at least the possibility of fairness and equality under the law. For these individuals, as for the ancients who heard Jesus' words firsthand, the proclamation of the kingdom of God has obvious implications for the social order.
