is at hand

From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Matthew 4:17

Repent. Turn around, change, go the other way from what you are doing now and enter instead into the Kingdom of Heaven. These words are as true now as they were then. But what is the kingdom of Heaven for us on earth?

When does that kingdom come?

Jesus said the Kingdom was at hand but most Churches tell us that it is only coming. That we should look for its coming. So, was it at hand? Was Jesus kidding? Was he wrong? Was he misleading the people who believed the kingdom was at hand?

If kings of the earth knew when Jesus was born that he was King;

Matthew 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

If when he began his ministry calling the people to turn around because his Kingdom was at hand;

From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Matthew 4:17

If he told the people to seek his kingdom first because all things would be added;

Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

If the people proclaimed Him as king;

John 12:13 Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed [is] the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.

If Jesus fired the porters and trustees working in the temple for the kingdom;

Mark 11:15 And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves;

If Jesus said he was the King;

John 18:37 Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.

If Pilate agreed;

Matthew 27:11 And Jesus stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest.

If Pilate defended Jesus as king;

Mark 15:12 And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do [unto him] whom ye call the King of the Jews?

If Rome officially proclaimed him King of the Jews;

Luke 23:38 And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

If Jesus appointed a kingdom to his followers to take care of and serve;

Luke 22:29... And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me; But ye [shall] not [be] so:

If Jesus explained to them how not to operate that kingdom;

Luke 22:25 And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors.

And if Jesus told them how to operate the kingdom;

Luke 22:26-27 But ye [shall] not [be] so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve.For whether [is] greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? [is] not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth.

If his followers began to preach the kingdom;

Luke 9:2 And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick.

If they began to work daily on matters concerning the kingdom;

Acts 2:46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,

If they set up administrative trusts to handle the business of administering to the kingdom;

Acts 6:3 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.

If there is a record of the kingdom of God having many workers.

Colossians 4:11 And Jesus, which is called Justus, who are of the circumcision. These only [are my] fellowworkers unto the kingdom of God, which have been a comfort unto me.

If it was proclaimed by those workers that we have received a kingdom:

Hebrews 12:28 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

Then,

Yeshua known as Jesus did not come preaching the Religion of Heaven on earth.

Then he was a king of a pre-existing kingdom that he reorganized away from its existing corrupted state. He did not by force remove those who had corrupted the kingdom's government but allowed them to continue to deal with the beast of Rome until it turned on them destroying the temple and their government system in apostasy.

Historians like Edward Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, praised "the union and discipline of the Christian republic." He also pointed out that "it [Christianity] gradually formed an independent and increasing state in the heart of the Roman Empire."¹The early Christian ekklesia was a republic as was early Israel before the Kngs. That Monarchical Republic under King Jesus the Christ had been recognized by Rome through the proclamation nailed to the cross by order of the Proconsul of Rome, Pontius Pilate.

The good news they the ministers of Jesus were told to preach was that the kingdom of Heaven was at hand and that the kings ministers were not to exercise authority over you but to serve you with faith, hope, love and charity. This is the Gospel of the early Church. And for preaching this Gospel the people railed against them then as they do now.

Acts 17:7 Whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, [one] Jesus.

There is another King and government other than the presidents, prime ministers and potentates of the world order today. There is King Jesus and His separate ministers of the Kingdom of heaven on earth who seek to serve those who seek to serve God the Father.

Philippians 1:27 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;

The Greek word for conversation in this text is not anastrophe or tropos but politeuomai which actually means "to be a citizen. to administer civil affairs, manage the state. to make or create a citizen." The author actually said that your citizenship was to be as becometh the gospel of Christ. And what is the Gospel of Christ?

Mark 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Not only did Jesus become King, but other Kings were barred from the position. Herod Antipas never sat on the throne. He left Judea and died years later. Another Herod assumed he could become the New King and sought the office.

And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them. And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost. But the word of God grew and multiplied.Acts 12:21-24

The word of God was the way of God and that was the kingdom of God and its perfect law of liberty.

Philippians 3:20 For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:

Here in Philippians 3:20 the word conversation is from the Greek word politeuma. It appears only once in the bible and actually is defined as, "the administration of civil affairs or of a commonwealth. the constitution of a commonwealth, form of government and the laws by which it is administered. a state, commonwealth." Here again these are very political statements. They are not general or religious yet such terms could have been chosen.

Acts 21:39 But Paul said, I am a man [which am] a Jew of Tarsus, [a city] in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city: and, I beseech thee, suffer me to speak unto the people.

Some would say that Paul did not claim citizenship in Heaven for himself.

Politeuomai and politeuma are political terms from the Greek word polites. Polites means a citizen. There are other terms that the author could use but he chooses to use terms that are particularly political. In Acts 21:39 we see an unusual word "asemos", appearing once in the bible and translated into the word mean. Asemos actually is defind, "unmarked or unstamped."

The city or civil government Paul was from was unmarked by the world of Rome. At that time it was a free city. Rome was once a free city too. It was originally a Republic. Each man was free to decide what law ruling body he would go under. Everyone understood that stealing, murdering and injuring or depriving your fellow man was wrong. No one needs to pass a law against it. In A republic you can choose a system of Law, democracy, communism, socialism etc.

Acts 22:25 And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned?

There were still men in Rome who were free of any Roman imperial entanglements at the time of Christ. Some of them were free by birth and some by postliminy. At that time those who enjoyed such freedom and liberty as citizens of the Republic as opposed to citizens of the Empire were few and far between. Some actually had to pay a large sum to gain that free status in the Republic. A citizen of the Republic was "Free from things public", Libera Res Publica, though subject to basic laws of mankind. Those who were citizens of the Roman Empire were subject to the administration of Roman legal system.

Acts 22:28 And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was [free] born.

This could be comparable between citizenship before the '14 Amendment and other subsequent acts' and that US subject citizenship available after. Even that citizenship has changed to the point that every citizen by virtue of the Section 877 of the IRS codes is literally by a construction of law also a citizen of the UN.

If you have not read it this could be good a good time to study Citizen vs. Citizen.

http://www.hisholychurch.info/study/gods/cvc.htm

Most people do not understand citizenship or polites with in a statutory power nor do they know the true nature of a republic. They have it confused with an indirect democracy.

If you have not read it already I would suggest you read Republic vs. Democracy
http://www.hisholychurch.info/study/gods/rvd.htm

Not only Pilate but other governors, who were experts, in the laws of the Kingdom of Judea accepted that Jesus was King and His apostles and ministers were a legitimate government with its own Jurisdiction.

Acts 26:3 Especially [because I know] thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews: wherefore I beseech thee to hear me patiently.

The word custom is from the word ethos which does mean "custom" but only in the sense of "usage prescribed by law, institute, prescription, rite". It was not a term of religion but of law and government and the courts. The word translated into question is zetema and only appears twice in the Bible. It is one of numerous words that are translated into the word question and does mean question but is specifically defined as a "a question, debate. about the law." Of course it is also clear by the text that it was not the Roman Law which had been settled by the proconsuls decision but the Law of Judea that concerned Agrippa.

Paul did not plead freedom of religion but faith in the King and His appointed ministers. He had been an attorney and minister of crimes against the state of Judea. The Sanhedrin were not just a religious body they were part of the government. The Sadducees and Pharisees as well as the Essenes all had religious perception and beliefs but those religious beliefs made them as different as the most converse religious communities could be today.

Although Paul recognized by his legal knowledge that if you were under an authority by lawful means then you were subject and should obey all lawful commands. We see this by his statement in Romans 13.

ROMANS 13 verse 1
http://www.hisholychurch.info/sermon/Romans13.html

Paul was simply agreeing with what Jesus stated in Matthew 22:21, Mark 12:17 and Luke 20:25 when, "... he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar's, and unto God the things which be God's." Jesus also warned that we should not swear oaths because such activity cometh of evil [Matthew 5:34-37]. Jesus knew this was one way in which governments expand their authority, turning what should be God's into the jurisdiction of men. In James 5:12 we are warned again, "above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and [your] nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation."

In is an easy presumption that as an attorney Paul comprehended the dangers and binding legal significance of oaths and contracts, covenants and compacts. In 1 Corinthians 6:12 the Bible clearly states that Paul does not recommend that you go under these authorities.

All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power²of any. (1 Cor. 6:12)

He repeats this idea again in 1 Corinthians 7:21 with the statement Art thou called [being] a servant? care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use [it] rather.

Mark 11:10 Blessed [be] the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.

This is what they said when they saw Jesus entering Jerusalem. They saw the kingdom cometh, They saw the Messiah, the King.

Mark 11:9 And they that went before, and they that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna; Blessed [is] he that cometh in the name of the Lord:

² Strong's No. 1850 exousiazo {ex-oo-see-ad'-zo} from 1849; vb AV - have power of (2) - exercise authority upon (1) - bring under power (1) [4] 1) to have power or authority, use power: to be master of any one, exercise authority over one, to be master of the body i.e. to have full and entire authority over the body, to hold the body subject to one's will; to be brought under the power of anyone