The Most Important Theme You May Not Fully Understand

"The kingdom of God is at hand." It is one of the first things Jesus says in the Gospel of Mark. It appears across all four Gospels, throughout Paul's letters, and from the first chapter of Genesis to the final chapter of Revelation. And yet for many Christians — even those who have read the Bible for years — the kingdom of God remains one of the most elusive concepts in Scripture.

What exactly is it? How is it related to the cross? Why does Jesus preach it but also point to the cross? And why does it matter for how we understand the whole story of the Bible?

The Kingdom of God and the Glory of the Cross is Patrick Schreiner's answer — clear, accessible, and grounded in every part of Scripture from beginning to end.

About This Book

The Kingdom of God and the Glory of the Cross is part of the Short Studies in Biblical Theology series published by Crossway and edited by Dane C. Ortlund and Miles V. Van Pelt — a series designed to trace significant biblical themes through the whole of Scripture and connect academic biblical theology with everyday believers.

In this volume, Patrick Schreiner — associate professor of New Testament and biblical theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary — traces the theme of the kingdom of God across the entire biblical storyline. He begins with a definition that is as simple as it is illuminating: the kingdom is the King's power over the King's people in the King's place. With that framework in hand, he moves through the key events, prophecies, and passages of the Old and New Testaments that develop this theme — showing how the kingdom of God is not a marginal concept but the organising framework of the whole Bible.

Crucially, Schreiner keeps the cross at the centre. The kingdom and the cross are not competing ideas — they are inseparable. The King who comes to establish his kingdom does so through the glory of the cross. That connection, made clear and compelling throughout the book, is what makes this volume particularly valuable for Christians wanting to understand how the gospel and the kingdom fit together.

One endorser captured the value precisely: "To say that the story of the Bible is the story of the King and his kingdom is one thing; to see it clearly and concisely demonstrated from every part of the Bible is another."

What the Book Covers — The Kingdom Across the Biblical Storyline

The King's Power Over the King's People in the King's Place Schreiner opens with his threefold definition of the kingdom — power, people, place — and shows how this framework illuminates every subsequent development of the theme. The kingdom is not a programme or a movement but a dynamic relationship between a king and his people, expressed in and through a particular place.

The Kingdom in Creation — Eden and the First King The kingdom motif appears in the very beginning — in the Garden of Eden, in Adam's calling to exercise dominion, and in God's own kingship over all creation. Schreiner traces these foundations carefully, showing how the kingdom is a creation reality before it becomes a redemptive promise.

The Kingdom in the Patriarchs and the Exodus From Abraham's call to the promises of land and people, through Israel's deliverance from Egypt and the giving of the law at Sinai, Schreiner shows how the Old Testament narrative progressively develops the kingdom theme — with a people gathered around their King, given a land, and called to live under his rule.

The Kingdom in the Psalms and the Wisdom Literature One of the book's distinctive contributions is its attention to the Psalms and Wisdom Literature as contributions to kingdom theology. The kingship psalms, the royal theology of the Psalms, and the wisdom tradition's vision of ordered life under God — all are shown to be part of the developing portrait of the kingdom.

The Kingdom in the Prophets The prophets look forward to a future, eschatological fulfilment of the kingdom — a day when the King will come to judge and save, to gather his scattered people, and to establish his reign forever. Schreiner traces this prophetic hope as the bridge between the Old Testament's partial and threatened kingdom and the New Testament's announcement of its arrival.

The Kingdom in the Gospels — The King Has Come The arrival of Jesus is the arrival of the kingdom. Schreiner examines Jesus' proclamation of the kingdom, his miracles as signs of its presence, his parables as portrayals of its character, and — above all — his death and resurrection as the means by which the kingdom is established. The cross is not a detour from the kingdom; it is its glory.

The Kingdom in Paul and the New Testament Letters Paul and the other New Testament writers continue to develop kingdom theology — showing how the church lives as a community of the kingdom, how believers are transferred from darkness into the kingdom of God's beloved Son, and how the mission of the church is a kingdom mission.

The Kingdom Consummated — New Heaven and New Earth The book closes with eschatology — the coming consummation of the kingdom in the new heaven and the new earth, where the King reigns with his people in his place, fully, finally, and forever.

What Readers Will Learn

A clear, memorable definition of the kingdom of God that illuminates every occurrence of the theme in Scripture
How the kingdom of God is the organising theme of the whole Bible, from Genesis to Revelation
Why the cross is not separate from the kingdom but its greatest expression — the glory of the King's self-giving rule
How the kingdom theme moves through the patriarchs, the exodus, the monarchy, the psalms, the prophets, and the Gospels
What Jesus meant when he said the kingdom of God is at hand — and why it still matters today
How the church lives as a community of the kingdom and how its mission flows from the kingdom's arrival
What the consummation of the kingdom means — and how that hope shapes Christian life now

Who Should Read This Book

Christians who have heard the phrase "kingdom of God" for years but have never been sure what it means — this book will give them the clearest, most biblically grounded answer available at this accessible level.

Pastors and preachers who want to preach the Gospels with a richer sense of what the kingdom language means — and who want to show their congregations how the cross and the kingdom belong together.

Small groups and Bible study groups wanting a focused study on one of the Bible's most central and most neglected themes, in a format that is concise enough to complete and substantive enough to reward.

Theological students and seminary graduates wanting a well-organised primer on kingdom theology grounded in whole-Bible biblical theology.

Anyone who has read Work and Our Labor in the Lord or other titles in the Short Studies in Biblical Theology series and wants to continue tracing major biblical themes through the whole of Scripture.

About the Author — Dr Patrick Schreiner

Patrick Schreiner (PhD, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is associate professor of New Testament and biblical theology and endowed chair at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri. He earned his BA from Western Kentucky University in Journalism and his PhD from Southern Seminary in New Testament studies. He is the author of numerous books including The Mission of the Triune God, The Transfiguration of Christ, The Ascension of Christ, and The Visual Word. He lives in Kansas City with his wife and four children.

Schreiner is known for making the themes of biblical theology vivid and accessible without losing theological precision — exactly what this series demands. His treatment of the kingdom of God is consistently praised as both scholarly and immediately practical for everyday Christians and preachers.

Series Information — Short Studies in Biblical Theology

The Kingdom of God and the Glory of the Cross is part of the Short Studies in Biblical Theology series from Crossway, edited by Dane C. Ortlund and Miles V. Van Pelt. Each volume traces a major biblical theme through all of Scripture, helping readers see the Bible as a unified story culminating in Jesus. The series is concise, accessible, and practically applied.

Work and Our Labor in the Lord by James M. Hamilton Jr. — also part of this series — is available at forthetruth.in, along with other titles in the Short Studies in Biblical Theology collection.

What Others Have Said

"The threads of his kingdom can be seen from Adam to Abraham, through Psalms and Isaiah, to Jesus and his church, and finally to the new heaven and the new earth, where Christ will reign with his people in his place. Schreiner skillfully shows us the inseparability of God's kingdom, the cross of Jesus, and the gospel message. I highly recommend this interesting and encouraging book." — Randy Alcorn, Founder and Director, Eternal Perspective Ministries; author, Heaven

"To say that the story of the Bible is the story of the King and his kingdom is one thing; to see it clearly and concisely demonstrated from every part of the Bible is another. I look forward to recommending this book to those who love and appreciate biblical theology as well as those who haven't yet understood how to see King Jesus throughout its entire story." — Nancy Guthrie, author and Bible teacher

"The kingdom of God is central to the biblical storyline and should become central in our theology. A clear, faithful, and solid portrayal of the kingdom, this volume helps us both understand the biblical teaching on the kingdom and view the Bible through the vantage point of the kingdom of God." — Christopher W. Morgan, Dean of the School of Christian Ministries and Professor of Theology, California Baptist University

Opening Shelf & Fetching Catalog...

Covenant and God's Purpose for the World

The Royal Priesthood and the Glory of God

The Kingdom of God and the Glory of the Cross

Work and Our Labor in the Lord

The Church: An Introduction

Biblical Theology