It was time. Jesus had been crucified. Then, he rose from the dead. Then, spent 40 days visiting his various followers. And now they gathered together for the grand finale. Death couldn’t hold him down, and now he would announce that neither could the Roman Empire. Israel would finally be restored to the world power that it once was.

Except that the opposite happened. He told them they would be his witnesses to the world, and then he vanished into the sky.

What? That’s not what was supposed to happen. Jesus was supposed to be a sword-wielding conqueror that would send the Romans running with their tails between their legs. That’s what all the prophecies said. At least, that’s what they thought the prophecies said. It’s almost like the disciples forgot all of the lessons that Jesus had taught them.

”My kingdom is not of this world.”

”Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s.”

”The kingdom of heaven is like…”

”The kingdom of God is at hand.”

Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You have said so.”

While they were waiting for the glory of David and Solomon’s kingdom, they neglected to realize that they have been living in that kingdom the whole time. How could they not see that? It’s because they were looking in the wrong place. They were looking for an outward kingdom when the kingdom was inward. Let’s not forget that the only reason there was a King David and King Solomon was because the Israelites wanted to be like the other nations around them and have a king rule over them rather than God.

Jesus could have easily come to Earth as a conquering hero, flashing the sword of Truth and extinguishing evil for good. He could have sat on Caesar’s throne and declared the kingdom of God on earth. He could have been extremely political, but he didn’t. In fact, he did the opposite. He submitted himself to the government and was killed by it.

Why?

There are a lot of reasons why, but the one at the forefront of my mind here is to show that God doesn’t need a government to bring his kingdom to rule on Earth. He doesn’t need laws passed in his favor for his kingdom to reign. He doesn't need a government to pass policies in order to take care of the helpless. He doesn’t need a “Christian” nation for his blessings to pass on because governments are man-made and easily corrupted. All he needs is his people to live faithful lives in his service, doing what he calls them to do, regardless of what a government is doing.

Christianity thrived and spread all across the world in the midst of government that hunted them and killed them. A government that brutalized them and blamed them for the woes of society. And yet, God’s kingdom reigned in the hearts of his people. And it has done so in every other country since that has persecuted his people.

Maybe if we were as invested in studying the Scriptures as we are in studying laws, we might experience God’s kingdom inside us more. Maybe if we were as passionate about Jesus as we are about politics, we would see God’s kingdom around us more. Absolutely, you should vote and have an opinion. That’s a privilege we have in this country. But the minute that your politics supersede your faith, the minute you start questioning someone else’s faith because of how they cast their vote, the minute that a politician becomes your idea of what will save this country, the minute that you put off onto the government what the church should be doing, then you're venturing into idolatry.

God doesn’t need a government that will follow him; he just needs people who will follow him.