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The Kingdom that Turned the World Upside Down  /  Chapter 20, The Kingdom Can't Be Kept Quiet  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 3
The chapter ties evangelism to the new birth: “a person can’t even see the kingdom…unless he’s born again,” and then asks how anyone will know unless the born-again tell them; how does this connect God’s work in individual hearts to His intention for a public, expanding kingdom?
Another way to ask: If people can’t even see the kingdom unless they’re born again, why does God still depend on born-again people to tell others? How do changed hearts connect to a kingdom that grows in public?

Direct Answer Bercot connects the new birth to evangelism by saying only those who are born again can even “see” the kingdom, so God’s work in hearts is meant to create citizens who then publicly announce the kingdom to others. The kingdom expands through reborn people becoming messengers.

Support from Transcript:

  • He states the spiritual reality: “a person can’t even see the kingdom of God unless he’s born again.”
  • Then he asks the practical question: “So how is anyone even going to know about this kingdom unless we who are born again tell them?”
  • He emphasizes there’s no outside plan: “Jesus hasn’t hired an advertising agency.”
  • Instead the method is personal: “commissioned all of his citizens to be news spreaders.”
  • He shows this pattern in Jesus’ life: after the wilderness, Jesus “immediately began preaching” the kingdom.
  • He shows it in the church’s spread: scattered believers “preached the word everywhere they went.”
Discussion Follow-ups If new birth leads to seeing the kingdom, should it also lead to speaking about it? What might it say about our spiritual health if we claim to see but won’t tell?

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