From the very beginning of His ministry, Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God in both word and deed as a present reality—not something reserved for the future, but something already among us and within us (Luke 17:21). He even spoke of a Kingdom that has existed since the foundation of the world (Matthew 25:34).
If that is truly the case, then what did the cross and resurrection actually add to the existence of this Kingdom?
Jesus said:
“I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.” (Matthew 13:35)
The Question Behind the Cross and Resurrection
Many Christians focus on explaining what Jesus supposedly accomplished through His death and resurrection, as though it would be unthinkable for Him to have died “for nothing.”
But what if the purpose of the cross and resurrection was not to produce a change outside of us, but to open our eyes? What if, through this path, Jesus revealed what had always been true: the Kingdom of God here and now, and Christ in us? What if Jesus accomplished nothing on our behalf that we ourselves were inherently incapable of participating in?
The focus then shifts. No longer do we search for explanations of what the cross and resurrection supposedly achieved; instead, we begin to see what they reveal. The cross is no longer the solution to a problem within the old world, but the breakthrough of the new world into our consciousness—in the very midst of darkness.
Not Substitution, but Revelation
If Jesus did not “repair” something in our place, then the idea that He was essentially different from us also disappears. Space is created to recognize what He truly revealed: that every human being, just like Him, carries the divine Christ-life.
Every human being is an expression of the Eternal.
Every human being carries Christ in the same way.
Every human being is a son or daughter of God.
When this realization dawns within our consciousness, we begin to see what creation has been eagerly longing for: that we become revealed as sons and daughters of God—not merely in theory, but in lived reality.
The Word as the Pattern of Life
“In the beginning was the Word (Logos = pattern), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were made through this same pattern, and apart from this pattern nothing came into being that has been made. In everything that has been made was Life, and the Life was the Light of humanity… This was the true Light that enlightens every person coming into the world.” (John 1:1–4, 9)
This Word—this divine pattern—lives in everything and everyone. The Light that proceeds from it enlightens every human being. Not a select few, not exclusively, but universally.
The Kingdom of God becomes visible wherever this Light breaks through into our consciousness.
One Reality, No Separation
If we truly believe that God is all in all, here and now, then this calls for a fundamental shift in our consciousness. It requires us to recognize who we have always been.
Christ in us is not the exception; it is the truth of every human being.
God desires to know Himself—in and as us.
Creation, in its deepest essence, is incarnation: the Divine expressing itself in the visible.
All creation is incarnation!
The Light enlightens every human being.
What our darkened consciousness has come to perceive as two—God and humanity—has, in reality, always been one.
There has never been an actual separation. Therefore, no separation between God and humanity ever needed to be repaired. What was needed was the unveiling of what had become hidden through the darkening of consciousness.
The Cross and Resurrection in a New Light
To see this, we must learn to look differently at the cross and resurrection. As long as we view these events as supernatural interventions that brought about a cosmic change, Jesus remains at a distance—as someone belonging to an entirely different order of being.
That distance prevents us from recognizing who we ourselves truly are.
But when the cross and resurrection are understood as revelation—as the unveiling of what has always been true—those dividing lines disappear. Then it becomes clear that what became visible in Jesus also longs to become visible in us.
“God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself” (present continuous tense!) (2 Corinthians 5:19)
This is not a completed event in the distant past, but an ongoing process: the awakening of consciousness in which it becomes visible that God and humanity have never been separated.
It is the process by which what was hidden becomes revealed.
It is the discovery that every human being is, in essence, a Christ-person—anointed with the Spirit of God.
You and I are, here and now, in this world just as Jesus was (1 John 4:17). Just as Jesus lived from His unity with the Father, we too are invited to discover and embody that same unity.
Seeing with Open Eyes
When the cross and resurrection are understood as the revelation of an eternal reality, our perspective on death and Life also changes. They open the possibility of seeing with different eyes—eyes no longer bound to the old world of mortality, but enlightened by the Kingdom of God, the new world of incorruptibility and immortality.
What becomes visible is not a new reality, but the reality that has always been present.
It requires only one thing:
that our eyes are opened.
“I have come to open blind eyes.” (Luke 4:19)
Reflection Questions
- Do you see the cross and resurrection as events outside yourself, or as a revelation within your own consciousness?
- Where do you still experience distance between Jesus and yourself, and what does that reveal about your understanding of Christ in us?
- Do you dare to acknowledge that the Light of Christ is fully present within you as well?
- What changes in your life when you begin from unity rather than separation?
- How can you live today from the awareness that the Kingdom of God is a present reality here and now?
Would you like to explore this theme further?
Then read the related article:
Looking at death and resurrection of the Christ with open eyes
Would you like to continue talking about the content of this article?
Please do not hesitate to contact us.
Click here if you want to subscribe to our Blog / Infomail.
If you enjoyed reading this article, please consider a small financial contribution. This can be done via PayPal. My e-mailadress is: peter77overduin@gmail.com.