Jesus came proclaiming the Kingdom of God. But unlike John the Baptist, or many others of his day, he did not envision the Kingdom of God descending miraculously from Heaven. The arrival of the Kingdom would not mean the end of the world or the destruction of Israel's enemies. Instead, he said, "The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed; nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or 'There it is!' For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among you." (Luke 17:20,21) .
The historical opponents of Jesus, such as the Pharisees, found Jesus' teachings on the Kingdom of God as a worthy cause for labeling and treating him as a criminal. According to Cory & Landry, "[the gospel] presupposes a situation in which, by the power of God, good has triumphed over evil." (p. 85) Thus, anyone who did not believe would not be freed. In the beginning Christians had to control its community activities and develop its institution because of the way the Romans acted toward religious cults. When Christianity began it was seen as a Jewish sect. The Romans could not see the difference between the church and the synagogue. The book of Luke focuses on social relationships. Social relationships were a concern for the poor, which addressed finance. Jesus showed more sympathy to the poor because they were more open to his word and true believers.
The Kingdom had already arrived, and it was a spiritual community consisting of Jesus and all those who centered themselves in God. Yet, there are many contradictory passages in the Gospels in which Jesus was said to have predicted an apocalyptic arrival of the Kingdom. "For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day." (Luke 17:24) It is also reported that Jesus predicted to his disciples, "But truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.
