God's Subversive Kingdom - New Evangelizers

Jesus came and preached the Kingdom of God.

I don’t think that we truly appreciate how utterly radical this Kingdom is.

The word that is used in the Gospels for Kingdom is “Basileia.” The “Basileia” of God was very different from the “basileia” of Rome.

“Basileia” means “rule,” “reign,” or “Empire.” The Roman “basileia” was a system of rule that held onto authority and the brutality of its strong military. Those who opposed Rome were crucified or killed for entertainment. This “basileia” was built upon slavery, where the Romans would conquer nations and take from the conquered those who could be put to labor. The Romans were utterly and casually cruel. There is no sense of human rights that are universal to the person. To them, some people were naturally slaves and some were naturally masters. The only thing that held this empire together was the iron fist of a violent leadership. Step out of line and you will be dealt with savagely.

Jesus’ “Basileia” of God was a complete inversion of this. It is a “Basilea” that transforms peoples’ lives through loving service. It would not be imposed by military conquest. Jesus said that we should love our enemies and turn the other cheek. Jesus’ Kingdom would come about through invitation, not imposition. Non-violent resistance is a method that changes the hearts of people.

A second difference is that Roman “basileia” was one built on the consumption of others. Rome enslaved nearly 75% of the Mediterranean people. In this order, the people who were not as strong as the Romans were consumed by them, bleeding them dry of people and resources so that all wealth and power was concentrated in Rome. Human lives were commodities. The conquered people were a means to an end. They were used like cattle to fuel the lifestyle of the Romans. The poor and the slaves were resources that were squeezed dry and then discarded like trash.

In Jesus’ “Basileia”, the ones who are great are the servants, not the masters. Service is where its power lies. All people are called to experience life to the full in His “Basileia,” but special focus was given to the poor, the sick, and children. We are called to help the poor and the helpless, not exploit them as the Romans did. Instead of consuming their wealth and labor, we are called to give generously of our wealth and labor to those in need. It boggles my mind this obvious observation: no one built hospitals until the Christians. It did not occur to anyone that we should build a society in which the poor were taken care of simply because they are God’s children. Jesus gave us a whole new way to think about those who are regarded lowest in a society.

A third difference is in the vision of the household. In Roman times, local households were arranged in this tyrannical style. The father modeled himself after Zeus, who was a father-figure that inspired fear, not love. The Roman father had absolute control over his house. He could beat or kill his slaves or children. He could even sell his children into slavery. Unwanted babies were discarded like garbage. In short, this “basileia” dominates, dehumanizes, consumes, and exploits.

But for Jesus, the image of the Father is radically different. In the Prodigal Son story, the Father is not a tyrant who punishes his wayward son. Instead, the Father does the (at the time) unthinkable, and runs to his son and forgives him. In Jesus’ “Basileia”, anyone who does the will of the Father is mother, brother, and sister to Jesus. In Jesus’ day, the people were watiing for the Messiah. They envisioned the Messiah as a conquering hero like David, but one who would be more powerful than Caesar. The Jewish people wanted a Jewish “basileia” similar to Rome, where God’s chosen people would be the ones ruling over a glorious kingdom of conquered people.

Jesus subverts their expectations. In His “Basileia,” his deeds of power (“dynamis”) were feeding the hungry and healing. In short, this “Basileia” serves, gives dignity, is generous, and raises up others. In His “Basileia,” He conquers by being crucified. He radically aligns Himself with the suffering, the poor, the enslaved, and the exploited. By emptying Himself, He raises up the lowly.

Jesus’ Kingdom stands in direct opposition to the world He entered. And when our current world seeks to use and exploit those who are powerless, Jesus’ Kingdom continues to set these captives free.

Copyright 2025, WL Grayson

W.L. Grayson

I am a devoutly Catholic theology teacher who loves a popular culture that often, quite frankly, hates me. I grew up absorbing every movie, TV show, comic book, science fiction novel, etc. I could find. As of today I’ve watched over 2100 movies and tv shows. They take up a huge part of my life. I don’t know that this is a good thing, but it has given me a common vocabulary to draw from in order to illustrate whatever theological point I make in class. I’ve used American Pie the song to explain the Book of Revelation (I’ll post on this some time later) and American Pie the movie to help explain Eucharist (don’t ask). The point is that the popular culture is popular for a reason. It is woven into the fabric of our lives and imaginations, for good or ill. In this blog I will attempt to bring together the things of heaven with the things of earth. Of course this goal may be too lofty for someone like me.