Ptr. Jhonn Mojica
The atonement of Christ and the Kingdom of God are the most all-encompassing subjects of
the Bible because they are constituted by a multitude of motifs, including the covenants,
eschaton, apocalypse, reign, and realm, among others. A key insight will emerge from this
reflection: the redemption of Christ is pivotal to understanding, experiencing, and anticipating
the kingdom of God.
Understanding the kingdom. What the cross demonstrated is that the nature of God’s kingdom
is beyond the material realm. Because God’s reign is inaugurated through “death,” it stands in
contrast to what the world perceives as strength and wisdom (1 Cor 1:18–19). It is indeed not
of this world. This inversion — a kingdom inaugurated through the death of its King
— runs to the heart of what makes the gospel both scandalous and glorious. God does not
bypass the cross to establish his reign; he establishes his reign through the cross.
Experiencing the kingdom. The work of redemption paved the way for reconciliation with God
and for reclaiming His rightful place on the throne of people’s hearts (Col 1:13). Jesus invited
all to participate in kingdom life, in which God’s reign is experienced through divine forgiveness
and transformation. G. E. Ladd notes, “God, who would act at the end of history to transform
history, had invaded history in the person and mission of Jesus to bring reign and rule to men”
(Ladd, “The Kingdom of God,” 237). We experience the kingdom, then, not as spectators of a
distant reality but as participants in an ongoing reality. Where there is forgiveness,
reconciliation, and transformation in the name of Christ, the kingdom of God is present and
active.
Anticipating the kingdom. Jesus secured the completion of God’s restorative purposes through
the atonement. His death marks the death of death (1 Cor 15:55–58). That is why the
apocalyptic vision of the eschatological order is centered on the King who is marked by the
scars of his sacrifice. In relation to this, the “lion-lamb” image of Rev 5:5–6 captures the rule
that is to come — the Lamb who was slain is the Lion who reigns.