For the Nation

The nature of the kingdom Jesus proclaims in the Gospels has long been a subject of intense theological debate. More recently the lines of this debate have dramatically shifted as several leading historical Jesus scholars and Christian social ethicists have argued that Jesus' kingdom proclamation most likely expresses a first century Jewish hope for Israel's restoration. Yet while several are now sanguine that Jesus' kingdom vision constitutes nothing less than a full-throated restoration of Israel's nationality, they are just as certain it rejects a restoration of Israel's land. As such it has become increasingly fashionable to say that an authentic practice of the "kingdom" ethic that Jesus enunciates must necessarily be a-territorial. The purpose of this work is to respond to these arguments and show why this can and indeed should not be the case. Through a careful and detailed process of historical investigation, biblical exegesis, theological exploration, and ethical analysis we will come to see that not only is the kingdom that Jesus proclaims inextricably landed, but also why such a kingdom is integral to articulating a Christian ethic of territorial governance.

Nicholas R. Brown received a BA in Political Science from Northwestern College (IA) and a joint MA in International Peace Conflict Resolution and Theological Studies from American University and Wesley Theological Seminary respectively. In 2015 he received his doctorate in Christian Ethics from the Center of Advanced Theological Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. His dissertation examines how Jesus' proclamations of the kingdom of God draw upon the tropes of Israel's territorial restoration in Second Temple Jewish eschatology and thus provide a normative basis for articulating a biblical and theological ethic of territorial governance. He has taught as both a full-time visiting and a part-time faculty in LMU's Theological Studies department for the past six years and this year begins an appointment as a full-time visiting faculty in LMU's Bioethics Institute. He also serves as a part-time faculty at Fuller Theological Seminary.