1. Irenaeus – Ca. 182 AD Against Heresies 1:1:2 “Error, indeed, is never set forth in its naked deformity, lest, being thus exposed, it should at once be detected. But it is craftily decked out in an attractive dress, so as, by its outward form, to make it appear to the inexperienced (ridiculous as the expression may seem) more true than the truth itself.”

2. 313 (AD) - 280 = 33 (AD)

3. Papias: ca. 110-125AD “John, therefore, did distinctly foresee the first “resurrection of the just,” (Luk_14:14) and the inheritance in the kingdom of the earth; and what the prophets have prophesied concerning it harmonize [with his vision].”

4. Justin Martyr 152-165 AD Dialogue with Trypho: Chapter 80: “But I and others, who are right-minded Christians on all points, are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead, and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built, adorned, and enlarged, [as] the prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah and others declare.” “if you have fallen in with some who are called Christians, but who do not admit this [truth], and venture to blaspheme the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; who say there is no resurrection of the dead, and that their souls, when they die, are taken to heaven; do not imagine that they are Christians,” Chapter 81: “there was a certain man with us, whose name was John, one of the apostles of Christ, who prophesied, by a revelation that was made to him, that those who believed in our Christ would dwell a thousand years in Jerusalem;”

5. Polycarp: 155-156AD As he was being burned at the stake “O Lord God Almighty, the Father of thy beloved and blessed Son Jesus Christ, by whom we have received the knowledge of Thee, the God of angels and powers, and of every creature, and of the whole race of the righteous who live before thee, I give Thee thanks that Thou hast counted me, worthy of this day and this hour, that I should have a part in the number of Thy martyrs, in the cup (Comp. Mat_20:22, Mat_26:39; Mar_10:38) of thy Christ, to the resurrection of eternal life, both of soul and body, through the incorruption [imparted] by the Holy Ghost.”

6. Irenaeus: ca. 182AD Against Heresies 5:28:3-4 “3. For in as many days as this world was made, in so many thousand years shall it be concluded. And for this reason the Scripture says: “Thus the heaven and the earth were finished, and all their adornment. And God brought to a conclusion upon the sixth day the works that He had made; and God rested upon the seventh day from all His works.” (Gen_2:2) This is an account of the things formerly created, as also it is a prophecy of what is to come. For the day of the Lord is as a thousand years; (2Pe_3:8) and in six days created things were completed: it is evident, therefore, that they will come to an end at the sixth thousand year.” 5:32:2 “If, then, God promised him the inheritance of the land, yet he did not receive it during all the time of his sojourn there, it must be, that together with his seed, that is, those who fear God and believe in Him, he shall receive it at the resurrection of the just. For his seed is the Church, which receives the adoption to God through the Lord, as John the Baptist said: “For God is able from the stones to raise up children to Abraham.”

7. Irenaeus: ca. 180AD 5:32:2 “Now God made promise of the earth to Abraham and his seed; yet neither Abraham nor his seed, that is, those who are justified by faith, do now receive any inheritance in it; but they shall receive it at the resurrection of the just. For God is true and faithful; and on this account He said, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” 5:36:3 “John, therefore, did distinctly foresee the first “resurrection of the just,” (Luk_14:14) and the inheritance in the kingdom of the earth; and what the prophets have prophesied concerning it harmonize [with his vision].”

8. Tertullian: 207-208 AD Against Marcion: 3:24 Titled “Christ’s Millennial and Heavenly Glory in Company with His Saints.” “But we do confess that a kingdom is promised to us upon the earth, although before heaven, only in another state of existence; inasmuch as it will be after the resurrection for a thousand years in the divinely-built city of Jerusalem,”

10. Origen 185-254 AD “On First Principles” 212-215AD 1:6:2 “And in keeping with this is the declaration of the same apostle, when he exhorts us, who even in the present life are placed in the Church, in which is the form of that kingdom which is to come, to this same similitude of unity:” Against Celsus 248AD 1:61 “For he saw not the sleepless guardian power that is around those who deserve to be protected and preserved for the salvation of men, of whom Jesus is the first, superior to all others in honour and excellence, who was to be a King indeed, but not in the sense that Herod supposed, but in that in which it became God to bestow a kingdom, - for the benefit, viz., of those who were to be under His sway, who was to confer no ordinary and unimportant blessings, so to speak, upon His subjects, but who was to train them and to subject them to laws that were truly from God. And Jesus, knowing this well, and denying that He was a king in the sense that the multitude expected, but declaring the superiority of His kingdom, says: “If My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is My kingdom not of this world.”

11. Origen 185-254 AD Commentary on Matthew 10:14 “And according as each thought is attained, and grasped abstractly and proved by example and absolute demonstration, can one understand the kingdom of heaven, so that he who abounds in knowledge free from error is in the kingdom of the multitude of what are here represented as “heavens.” So, too, you will allegorise the word, “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens is at hand,” (Mat_3:2) as meaning that the scribes - that is, those who rest satisfied in the bare letter - may repent of this method of interpretation and be instructed in the spiritual teaching which is called the kingdom of the heavens through Jesus Christ the living Word. Wherefore, also, so far as Jesus Christ, “who was in the beginning with God, God the word,” (Joh_1:1, Joh_1:2) has not His home in a soul, the kingdom of heaven is not in it, but when any one becomes nigh to admission of the Word, to him the kingdom of heaven is nigh. But if the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God are the same thing in reality, if not in idea, manifestly to those to whom it is said, “The kingdom of God is within you,” (Luk_17:21) to them also it might be said, “The kingdom of heaven is within you;” and most of all because of the repentance from the letter unto the spirit;”

12. Origen 185-254 AD Commentary on Matthew 12:14 “And perhaps, also, each virtue is a kingdom of heaven, and all together are a kingdom of the heavens; so that according to this he is already in the kingdom of the heavens who lives according to the virtues, so that according to this the saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand,” (Mat_3:2; Mat_4:7) is to be referred, not to the time, but to deeds and dispositions; for Christ, who is all virtue, has come, and speaks, and on account of this the kingdom of God is within His disciples, and not here or there.” 12:30 “Christ’s return signifies His disclosure of Himself and His deity to all humanity in such a way that all might partake of His glory to the degree that each individual’s actions warrant.”

13. Mosheim Ecclesiastical History - 1726 Among the controversies which divided Christians in this century, the most considerable were concerning the millennium, the baptism of heretics, and Origen. That the Savior is to reign a thousand years among men before the end of the world, had been believed by many in the preceding century without offence to any; all, however, had not explained the doctrine in the same manner, nor indulged hopes of the same kind of pleasures during that reign. In this century the millenarian doctrine fell into disrepute, through the influence especially of Origen, who opposed it because it contravened some of his opinions.

15. Eusebius 326 AD The event surpassed all words. Soldiers with naked swords kept watch round the palace-gate. But the men of God passed through the midst of them without fear, and entered the heart of the palace. And they sat down, some at the emperor's table, the rest at tables on either side of his. It looked like the very image of the kingdom of Christ; and was altogether more like a dream than a reality. And on the occasion of opening a new catholic temple at Tyre, he said to the multitude assembled, 'What so many of the Lord's saints and confessors before our time desired to see and saw not, and to hear and heard not, that behold now before our eyes! It was of us the prophet spake when he told how the wilderness and the solitary place should be glad, and the desert rejoice and blossom as the lily. Whereas the church was widowed and desolate, her children have now to exclaim to her, Make room, enlarge thy borders: the place is too strait for us. The promise is fulfilling to her, In righteousness shalt thou be established: all thy children shall be taught of God: and great shall be the peace of thy children'."

16. Bro. Thomas Eureka Vol. 4 Pgs. 113-114 “This opinion of Eusebius and his coreligionists, that the church is the kingdom of God, took deep hold of the catholic mind of his generation; and in the nineteenth century is a characteristic of those who know not the truth. Catholics, papists and protestants all believe that what they call church is the kingdom of God, or the kingdom of heaven. Of course, Millenarians may claim exception from this rule. Still, few of them are free from the tradition; for while they expect the reign of Christ upon earth, they hold the church to be the kingdom in some sense;”

18. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints considers the church itself as the Kingdom of God on the earth. However, this is limited to a spiritual or ecclesiastical kingdom until the Millennium when Christ will also establish a political Kingdom of God. This will have worldwide political jurisdiction when the Lord has made "a full end of all nations" (Doctrine & Covenants 87: 6).

19. Catholic Encyclopedia In reference to the Kingdom of God, many of the critics hold that the current Jewish conception was wholly eschatological, and that Christ's references to it must one and all be thus interpreted. This view renders inexplicable the numerous passages in which Christ speaks of the kingdom as present, and further involves a misconception as to the nature of Jewish expectations, which, as has been seen, together with eschatological traits, contained others of a different character. Harnack (What is Christianity? p. 62) holds that in its inner meaning the kingdom as conceived by Christ is "a purely religious blessing, the inner link of the soul with the living God". Such an interpretation can in no possible way be reconciled with Christ's utterances on the subject. The whole tenor of his expressions is to lay stress on the concept of a theocratic society.”

20. Shofar Magazine With Bro. Tucker’s above expressions about the FUTURE kingdom firmly in mind, he tackles some difficult passages that say that the kingdom was ‘near,’ ‘at hand’ or even ‘in your midst’ at the time of Christ. Rather than trying to explain away this terminology, Bro. Tucker suggests in his book that these passages refer to a believer’s position in Christ and relationship to the Kingdom of God, as opposed to the Kingdom of Men. He writes: ‘The most natural and obvious explanation (of these passages) is that in some way, shape or form, the kingdom of God does exist now, without detracting from the future application of the kingdom of God.

21. Catholic Encyclopedia “The kingdom of god means, then, the ruling of God in our hearts; it means those principles which separate us off from the kingdom of the world and the devil; it means the benign sway of grace; it means the Church as that Divine institution whereby we may make sure of attaining the spirit of Christ and so win that ultimate kingdom of God Where He reigns without end in "the holy city, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God" (Revelation 21:2).”

22. Shofar Magazine Bro. Tucker goes on to suggest that from God’s perspective there are only two kingdoms—the Kingdom of Men and the Kingdom of God, and that we need to come out of the former and into the latter through Christ. ‘If we are not citizens of the kingdom of God now through the covenants of promise, we will not be citizens of the kingdom of God in the future....We change citizenship from the kingdom of men to ‘the commonwealth of Israel.’ This change of citizenship is not something future, but something that happens when we believe and are baptized.” ‘We are in ‘heavenly places’ now so that we might be in the kingdom of God on earth in the future. Thus our citizenship now determines our citizenship in the future...Being ‘in Christ’ is this exalted position. This is synonymous with the spiritual sense of being in the Kingdom of God now.’” In what sense might Bro. Tucker suggest that the kingdom exists now? The same sense that a believer has a present federal position ‘in Christ’ as historically taught by Christadelphians. In this sense, and this sense only, believers ‘sit in heavenly places,’ have ‘our citizenship in heaven’ and become associated with the Kingdom of God as opposed to the Kingdom of Men.

23. Catechism of the Catholic Church The Kingdom of God began with Christ's death and Resurrection and must be further extended by Christians until it has been brought into perfection by Christ at the end of time (CCC 782, 2816). The coming Reign of God will be a kingdom of love, peace, and justice (CCC 2046). The ultimate triumph of Christ's Kingdom will not come about until Christ's return to earth at the end of time (CCC 671). During Christ's second coming, he will judge the living and the dead. Only those who are judged to be righteous and just will reign with Christ forever (CCC 1042, 1060)

24. The Judaizers: Another Gospel Some have suggested that the Kingdom came into existence at Pentecost. It seems to me that the resurrection of Jesus is a more likely beginning. If I had a second choice for when the Kingdom of God began in a spiritual sense, it would be at Christ’s anointing with the Holy Spirit at his baptism. The foregoing passages definitely show that the Kingdom of God is used in a non-future sense. The most natural and obvious explanation (of these passages) is that in some way, shape or form, the kingdom of God does exist now, without detracting from the future application of the kingdom of God.

25. George Eldon Ladd-1974 A Theology of the New Testament Pg 89-90: “The redemptive reign of God dynamically active to establish his rule among human beings, and that this Kingdom, which will appear as an apocalyptic act at the end of the age, has already come into human history in the person and mission of Jesus to overcome evil, to deliver people from its power, and to bring them into the blessings of God’s reign. The Kingdom of God involves two great moments: fulfillment within history, and consummation at the end of history.” Pg 95: “The Kingdom has come into history but in such a way that society is not disrupted. The children of the Kingdom have received God’s reign and entered into its blessings. Yet they must continue to live in this age, intermingled with the wicked in a mixed society. Only at the eschatological coming of the Kingdom will the separation take place. Here is indeed the revelation of a new truth: that the Kingdom of God can actually come into the world, creating children who enjoy its blessings without effecting the eschatological judgment. However, this separation is sure to come. The Kingdom that is present but hidden in the world will yet be manifested in glory. Then there will be an end of the mixed society. The wicked will be gathered out and the righteous will shine like the sun in the eschatological Kingdom”

26. Catechism of the Catholic Church 769 The Church... will receive its perfection only in the glory of heaven,” at the time of Christ's glorious return. Until that day, "the Church progresses on her pilgrimage amidst this world's persecutions and God's consolations." Here below she knows that she is in exile far from the Lord, and longs for the full coming of the Kingdom, when she will "be united in glory with her king.“ 669 The kingdom of Christ [is] already present in mystery", "on earth, the seed and the beginning of the kingdom". 865 The Church is ultimately one, holy, catholic, and apostolic in her deepest and ultimate identity, because it is in her that "the Kingdom of heaven," the "Reign of God," already exists and will be fulfilled at the end of time. The kingdom has come in the person of Christ and grows mysteriously in the hearts of those incorporated into him, until its full eschatological manifestation

27. Pope Pius XI-1925 Encyclical on the Feast of Christ the King 24 If We ordain that the whole Catholic world shall revere Christ as King, We shall minister to the need of the present day, and at the same time provide an excellent remedy for the plague which now infects society. We refer to the plague of anti-clericalism, its errors and impious activities.” 25 Moreover, the annual and universal celebration of the feast of the Kingship of Christ will draw attention to the evils which anticlericalism has brought upon society in drawing men away from Christ, and will also do much to remedy them

28. Thought for the Week 8-6-07 In both cases, King Jesus, is seated on a throne. Whether or not this is the promised “throne of his father David” in Luke 1:32, I cannot say dogmatically. That he will sit on an earthly throne in Jerusalem sometime in the future (hopefully very soon) is something that we would both agree on. That this future earthly throne is the promised throne of David is firmly established. Whether it is an extension of the former heavenly throne, I don’t know

30. The Judaizers In emphasizing the current location in heaven and source of power for the Kingdom of God to his Jewish audience, Matthew was preparing them for the impending destruction of both their nation and their focus of worship—the temple in Jerusalem. In other words, this special message to Jewish believers reassured them that the Kingdom of God was not going to be destroyed, but was secure in heaven with Christ the King until such a time as it would be revealed in power on earth.