One of the most noteworthy references to kingdom can be found in context at Matthew 5:19: 17 \u201cDo not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.<\/em>. One of the most noteworthy references to kingdom can be found in context at Matthew 5:19: 17 \u201cDo not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":197,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1743],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kingdom-of-god"],"yoast_head":"\n
\n1. Jesus is being accused of breaking the Torah; Jesus says that, actually if truth be told, he is not breaking but fulfilling the Torah \u2014 bringing it to its divinely-intended goal. (He sees the Torah as the preliminary glimpse of God\u2019s will and he is the fullness of it.) Notice again how central Jesus is.
\n2. Those who follow and teach Jesus\u2019 teachings will be great in the kingdom; those who don\u2019t will be \u201cleast\u201d (which is a gentle way of saying \u201cnot at all\u201d).
\n3. Kingdom is future; kingdom is entered in that future by following Jesus in the now.
\n4. To enter that kingdom one must not follow the Pharisees and scribes, or at least not behave as they behave.
\nWhat is kingdom here? Evidently, God\u2019s society: king, king\u2019s will as taught by Jesus, king\u2019s people who follow Jesus, future society where it will all be right.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"