The Nature of the Kingdom

The Pharisees and the disciples help the belief that Messiah/Christ would bring the kingdom of God back to Israel through military force. Thus, as Jesus neared the end of His public ministry, the Pharisees asked, with distain and derision, when He was going to act and set up the kingdom. Jesus replied to them that His kingdom was not visible but spiritual. This encounter, then, provided Him with the opportunity to address the disciples as to the nature of the kingdom. In this, He warned them that the days coming after His ascension would be difficult. Nevertheless, they were to persist in His will until the day He would return to judge the world.