The parodic Babylon Bee recently published an article about the 2016 US presidential election. By 11 PM on election day, according to this “report,” voting results compelled CNN reporter Wolf Blitzer to call the election, which was never in serious doubt, for Jesus Christ. The results ensured Jesus would continue his rule as King, unfettered by any thought of term limits.
The reality behind the parody affected the apostles profoundly. The announcement of Christ’s enthronement and reign formed the heart of the apostle Paul’s ministry. Here is an example of how he stated it: “For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death” (1 Corinthians 15:25–26). This reality helped define Paul’s gospel (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:1).
It must also form an integral part of the framework we wish to develop for understanding biblical prophecy. We will do well to include at least three elements found in this statement.
The Presence of Christ’s Reign
The reign of Christ was a present reality in Paul’s day. The prophets had described how Christ’s reign would begin. Daniel, more than 500 years before Christ was born, saw a clear vision of the future Messiah: “one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed” (Daniel 7:13–14). The Messianic reign would begin after Jesus ascended in clouds to heaven.
Luke described the fulfillment of this vision. After his death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus appeared to his disciples for forty days. After speaking to them on the Mount of Olives, “while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight” (Acts 1:9). He ascended to his Father and received his kingdom, just as Daniel and other prophets had foretold.
Thus Paul and the other apostles spoke of Christ’s kingdom as a reality in their day. Peter spoke of the fulfillment of God’s thousand-year-old promise to David: God “would raise up Christ to sit on his throne.” God had fulfilled that promise in the resurrection of Christ (Acts 2:30–31).
The establishment of Christ’s reign through his death, burial, resurrection, and ascension is a fundamental and necessary element in the gospel of the kingdom. It must also be included in our prophetic model. The complete gospel message does not, however, end at this point.
The Purpose of Christ’s Reign
If we wish to preach (and believe) a full gospel, we must include the purpose of Christ’s reign. Christ is reigning in order to “put all enemies under his feet.” Christ and his kingdom are, in our day, at (spiritual) war with the gods of this world. The gospel declares that the kingdom will successfully overcome them all—with an important caveat—during the Messianic age.
The prophets foretold this aspect of the Messianic kingdom as well. God gave Daniel a vision in which the future kingdom was pictured as a stone quarried from a mountain without hands. The stone crushed the image in the king of Babylon had seen in his dream. Daniel saw the stone smite the king’s image. It then “became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth” (Daniel 2:35). He went on to explain the meaning. In the days of a future empire (i.e., the Roman), the God of heaven would “set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever” (Daniel 2:44).
Notice the progressive nature of the kingdom’s conquest. The kingdom would not overcome its enemies all at once through some catastrophic event. The New Testament also teaches, as we would expect, this gradual increase of kingdom power and influence. The small kingdom mustard seed grows over time to become a large tree (Matthew 13:31–32). Kingdom leaven progressively exerts its influence until the whole lump is leavened (Matthew 13:33). Now that it is established, Christ’s kingdom will grow, fill the earth, and overcome its enemies in the process.
The gospel paints an inspiring vision for kingdom citizens. Their mission is to confront the gods that presently hold power over the nations and declare to their captives what God’s kingdom is destined to accomplish. With God’s blessing, their preaching of the kingdom will result in the fulfillment of the prophecies about its victory.
Our message is that the kingdom is God’s answer to all mankind’s problems. This is true for problems faced by individuals, families, nations, and, indeed, the entire world. We preach that Christ will reign until his kingdom has overcome all his enemies. Except one.
The End of Christ’s Reign
Finally, our gospel must clearly describe the conclusion of Christ’s reign. A distinct series of historical events (described above) inaugurated his reign. Another series of historical events—those surrounding the destruction of the Temple in AD 70—marked the official end of the Mosaic age to the beginning of the kingdom age. In like manner, a specific historical event—the bodily resurrection—will terminate Christ’s reign. With that event comes the defeat of physical death, the final enemy of mankind.
N. T. Wright is fond of saying the gospel is not about life after death; it is about life after life after death. In other words, the gospel message is not primarily about how we can escape this wicked world and go to live with Jesus, as precious as that truth is. Rather, it is about how God will progressively heal his good creation from the ravages of sin during the reign of Christ and finally remove death itself, the ultimate enemy. The eternal state will then come. Those redeemed by Christ will dwell in their resurrection bodies in God’s creation, now entirely free of sin, forever.
The reign of Christ ultimately results in the restoration of all that was lost in Eden. Yes, and the restoration will be even more glorious than the original garden. The gospel of the kingdom is not complete until it assures its hearers of this glorious result.
Conclusion
Our understanding of prophecy must highlight each of these elements. Christ’s reign was established in the first century of the Christian era. It presently continues as Christ progressively overcomes his enemies. The result of our kingdom activity under Christ’s kingship is assured: our enemies will be completely defeated in history as the Messianic age unfolds. Once this is achieved, Christ’s kingdom reign will prove to be completely successful. In it, at the very end, he will destroy death, the final enemy, in the bodily resurrection. This is the gospel of the kingdom.
We can depict the reign of Christ as Paul described it in 1 Corinthians 15 in the following diagram. The timeline is not to scale.
