Kingdoms are founded on blood

Earthly kingdoms are founded on the blood of their enemies. Jesus' kingdom is founded on the blood of Himself. His kingdom is not of this world. The way the nations conquer is by violence but Jesus conquers by self-giving love and sacrifice. The cross, crown of thorns, robe, mockery and king of the Jews sign nailed above His head was His coronation and coming to rule. It is completely contrary to the ways of this world. This looks foolish to us but the foolishness of God is in fact wisdom and it's a wisdom much wiser than ours. 

The advancement of Jesus' kingdom then, today and always is through the same love that He displayed in the gospels. There are no plan B's and there is no need to be. Love remains, endures all things and never fails. The way He conquered then, is the way He will ultimately triumph in the end. In Revelations, we see this continue to be so. The saints conquer by the blood of the lamb and the word of their testimony. We also see Jesus doing the same! He is not a hypocrite. He enters into battle with His robes already dipped in blood, His own blood. He conquers His enemies by a message, the sword coming out of His mouth. He is victorious by declaring the gospel of peace and of having already laid His life down for His enemies. His words pierce to the core but ultimately heals. What takes place, is a subversion of what we find in the Old Testament such as Psalms 63.

Even in Christ's first coming, there are prophecies that appear as if God would be coming in violence and will destroy humanity. The elite scholars/Pharisees anticipated this eagerly believing the messiah would be killing their enemies. But we know how it went down and the Pharisees were sorely disappointed. The messiah, Jesus, did nothing like they had anticipated Him to! Where it came to violence and humanity dying, it was actually Christ Himself enduring our violence and dying our death/destroying the old man.  Because One died for all, all died with Him. The death of humanity was Christ dying it! Then Him rising, was that same humanity rising with Him. In this we see violent prophecies concerning humanity's death, actually becoming a remarkably beautiful thing! It was something which Jesus accomplished not by physically destroying mankind as the text seemed to suggest but through His self-giving love at the cross.

Unfortunately, we all too often read of the second coming, that carries these same "violent" terminologies as the first and we automatically jump on the same bandwagon the Pharisees did. We've expected a different Jesus to come who will eventually say "okay, loves not working" and will go haywire revenging and violently murdering our enemies. I have seen some Christians speak of this and smile about the thought of their enemies one day getting slaughtered. I'm sorry, but that is disturbing. I would not wish this upon my worst enemy. That retributive Jesus who is contrary to the one revealed in the gospels does not exist and like the Pharisees, I fear many of us will be disappointed at His return. Jesus conquered by self-giving love then and He will ultimately triumph by self-giving love in the end. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He does not change. His mercy endures forever.

I used to say the Jesus who came in the gospels came as a little lamb, but when He returns again He is coming as a fierce lion! I am sorry for having said that. Over 28 times in the book of Revelation, Jesus is actually called "a little lamb." Only one time is He called "a lion." The one time that He is called a lion, it is only to subvert it (as well as Genesis 49 where this is also found). For when John hears "behold the lion of the tribe of Judah," John turns expecting to see this vicious lion that kills but what does He see instead? He sees "a little lamb as though it had been slain!" This is radical. This Jesus is not somehow a different Jesus, but the same one He's always been and conquering the same way He always has! 

God is good to His enemies. He treats them with loving kindness. He brings about true repentance and restorative justice. When we do good to our enemies, we are acting as children of our heavenly Father. We are to pray for our enemies and always to bless them. As God has already forgiven us before we ever repented, we are to forgive others all the same. We love cause He first loved us. It's not the eye-for-an-eye payback the world likes to see. It's turn the other cheek. This is the way of the kingdom of God. This is the way God operates. Oh the world and religious systems hate this. It exposes their violent structures of corruption, perverted power and injustice to be utterly sinful and in fact powerless. It may be perceived as burning coals on the head of the ones who try to resist this fiery love, but for those who will embrace it, it is heaven and life-giving! Everything mankind was created to function in and look like is found in the incarnation.

Self-giving love is how the martyrs laid down their lives and won nations, forgiving and blessing their haters even to the point of death/no threats. How missionaries conquered entire regions and villages. The kingdom is advancing and it is not achieved through retribution or violence but by the good news that produces self-giving love and sacrifice. The gates of Hades (of not seeing) will not prevail and there will be no end to this kingdom of peace that Jesus is Lord of. The evils and violence He spoke against in the gospels, He will not revert to in order to bring about a desired end. He is the same as He has always been. He is faithful and true to Himself. He is love. He is into restorative justice. He is the wisdom, the beginning and the end. He will continue to triumph and His love will not fail!