Even a brief look at the gospels reveals that a constant theme in the teaching of Jesus was the Kingdom of God. Jesus made it clear that he had come to establish the Kingdom of God in the world. His mission was to practice and preach the Kingdom. The ministry of Jesus was to bring about the reign of God in our lives.
For Jesus, the Kingdom of God is not a place or a territory. It has nothing to do with geography or nationalism or indeed political power. It is clear from the example and teaching of Jesus that the Kingdom of God is a way of life; it is about the values we chose to live by. In particular, it is about the way we relate to each other. In a word, it is about love.
Who then belongs to the Kingdom of God? It would seem those who are sincerely trying to live what is known as the beatitudes in their daily lives. These are the peacemakers, the gentle, the humble, the merciful, those who work for justice, those who are persecuted in the cause of right, those who have mellow and grateful hearts. Jesus preaches a religion of the heart and his religion is about developing attitudes that create a right relationship with ourselves, other people, the environment and of course God.
It is important for us to realise that those who belong to the Kingdom of God may be members of the Church, but they may not. We cannot limit the Kingdom of God to the Church. To do so would be exclusive and misleading. Obviously the Church is a community where we are meant to experience the Kingdom of God, but there are many people who belong to the Kingdom of God who do not belong to the Church. Indeed, there might be people who belong to the Kingdom of God and who do not have a conscious awareness of God in their lives. We call these ‘anonymous Christians.’ Kingdom people are sincere people who show kindness and seek to do good. They try to make the world a better place, often working quietly in the background. Kingdom people are a leaven in society. They may not have a public profile but their positive influence is significant, reaching well beyond themselves and beyond even what they dare to imagine.
Towards the end of St Matthew’s Gospel (chapter 25) Jesus makes it clear that we will be judged by the way we treat our neighbours, especially those who are struggling and suffering. Surely this is the same yardstick for deciding who belongs to the Kingdom of God.