²⁰ Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them,“The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, ²¹ nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” (Luke 17:20-21, ESV)

An older version of the English Standard Version uses the word “signs” instead of “ways” in verse 20 above. Neither the word “signs” nor the word “ways” appears in the original Greek text. The King James Version gives us a more verbatim translation saying, “The kingdom of God cometh not with observation.” This verse means, and could have been interpreted as, “The kingdom of God does not come with visual evidence,” so the English Standard Version does accurately convey the meaning of the verse even though it adds the word “signs” or “ways” in its translation.

The Pharisees, just like men in every generation since, asked Jesus when they could expect to literally see the Kingdom of God. “When will the Kingdom come?” they asked. So do we ask the same question today, and today, I think, his answer remains the same, “The Kingdom of God does not come with visual evidence.” I believe he would also say, “Don’t expect to literally see me flying down to earth on a winged horse and fighting against the kingdoms of men. Do not expect me to set up my rule in Old Jerusalem by which I will maintain law and order in the earth. Do not expect a golden age to suddenly arise in the midst of your chaos.* It has never been so on this earth and it will never be so as long as you do not take my words to heart. Like all of my words, all that I taught you about the Kingdom of God was a parable, a story I used to convey spiritual truth.” You think I exaggerate or that I have suddenly lost all my senses?

We now live a full 2,000 years after Jesus’ natural life on earth. This is a longer period of time than from the founding of Israel under Moses until his birth about 1400 years later. In fact, 2,000 years is longer than the period of time from God’s first promises to Abraham until Christ’s birth. Almost four thousand years have passed and yet a golden age of God’s goodness has never come. Instead, the world witnessed countless wars, revolutions, famines, plagues, murders, and tyrannical empires. Nothing has changed since the beginning of recorded time. Man remains evil and continues to build an evil world upon his wicked foundations of greed, lust, and blood. Yes, man built the governmental beast which rules the world, and Babylon the Harlot, men’s established religions, continue to ride that beast! Nothing has changed and yet God gave us his Word so that we who believe in him at least might change! But we do not change because we do not take his words to heart. Instead we dream of the glories of a future golden age and relegate our change to a time which never comes. We have become like the Pharisees who demanded that Jesus show them signs of his imminent kingdom.

Jesus refused their demand, however, because their demand rested upon a false premise. Jesus did not come to reveal a future golden age of God’s glory ruling the earth, he came to teach men how to live within his kingdom now. Just before the religious elite demanded a sign Jesus taught them,

“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. 36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:33-37, ESV)

The people Jesus spoke to were the “trees” he speaks of here. Did you know you too are a tree? What kind of fruit do you bear? What is the nature of your fruit? Is your fruit good or evil? You don’t know? Don’t you understand that on the day of judgment you, yes you dear reader, will give account for every word that you have spoken? “But, I’m saved by grace!” you cry, and I reply in the words of James,

From where come wars and fightings among you? come they not from here, even of your lusts that war in your members? You lust, and have not: you kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: you fight and war, yet you have not, because you ask not. You ask, and receive not, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it upon your lusts. You adulterers and adulteresses, know you not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. Do you think that the scripture says in vain, The spirit that dwells in us lusts to envy? But he gives more grace. Therefore he says, God resists the proud, but gives grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. (James 4:1-10 KJ2000)

Today we still hear Jesus’ command to “make the tree good and its fruit good,” but we respond just like the Pharisees by always demanding a sign. We want to see the Kingdom of God manifest now because then it would be easy, we think. But, Jesus never intended to make it easy for us. He put the burden of making the tree either good or evil on each of us individually. Do you realize that you are in fact making yourself into something, something which ultimately will be either good or evil? What do you feed your tree? What do you watch? What do you listen to? Where do you work? How do you earn your money? What comes out of your tree? Examine your words and your actions. Out of the abundance of your heart (out of your tree’s sap, out of your soul) your mouth speaks and your hands do. What do you say and do? Examine your fruit for the day is coming, and is closer now than when you first believed, when you must give an account for every careless word you have spoken! How much more account shall you give for every careless and wicked act you have done in your flesh!

 ^{* I believe that most of our theology concerning a golden age on earth comes from our interpretation of Revelation 20:1-6 which speaks of a 1000 year reign with Christ.  Post-millennialists believe we already live in this period, which is actually longer than 1000 years, and that Christians will become better and better, exercise dominion over the earth according to God’s Law, and usher in the Kingdom of God. I do not believe this because all men have a sinful, carnal nature and cannot fully conquer it in this flesh. The only way that a golden age can ever come upon earth is if God “manifests” the Sons of God by supernaturally perfecting them and then setting them in authority over the earth. We simply do not know when, or even if, this will happen, at least according to our pre-conceived ideas.}