kingdom of God.

I am sitting here with an eighteen page study guide in front of me.  And all I can think about is how bad I want a lemon cupcake, how I'd like to please live in my boyfriend jeans forever, how I am so excited for this weekend to come, and how glad I am that big D is upstairs bathing little D.  And then I read this...

3.  What was the Jewish understanding of the concept of the "kingdom of God", and how did Jesus conceive of it as both a present reality and a future manifestation?

Two ideas about God's kingdom existed side by side in Judaism: 1) God's ever-present reign as king over all the earth. It has no boundaries. It is universal and eternal. It is not so much a realm as a reign. It is his sovereign dominion over all things. 2) Though God is now king, there will be a day when he will establish his kingdom on earth. The universal and future reigns of God are both present within the Jewish understanding.

Jesus' preaching acknowledged both senses of the kingdom of God. In the present, God is the sovereign Lord of the universe, who feeds the birds of the air and clothes the lilies of the field (Matt. 6:26-30). People are to "seek first his kingdom" by submitting to his sovereign authority (Matt. 6:33). Jesus prayed for God's kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven. Yet Jesus also taught that the kingdom of God was a future state believers would one day enter (Mk. 9:47; Matt. 7:21; 25:34). He referred to a time when his disciples would know that the kingdom was near. The coming of the kingdom would mean the judgment of the wicked, the establishment of a redeemed community founded on righteousness and justice, and perfect fellowship with God at the messianic banquet. God's instrument and establishment of the future kingdom is the Son of Man, who will return and gather God's chosen people from the ends of the earth. What was radically unique about Jesus' teaching was his claim that this end-times kingdom of God was even now arriving through his own words and actions-people receive it and enter it in the present-"the kingdom of God is at hand." The kingdom is both already and not yet. In the present, people are called to submit to God's authority and so "enter" his kingdom-they become heirs of the kingdom. Yet while Jesus inaugurated the kingdom at his first coming, he will consummate it at his return.

And I am as good as new.