Prof. Goheen remarks: “The sad thing, I suppose, in all of this, is that so seldom does this kingdom become the central message of the evangelical church today. The coming of the kingdom of God is what dominated Jesus. It is what dominated the apostles, and yet, it’s often been sidelined in much theology today” (Segment 44). This is a powerful indictment of the present church in the developed world and one that merits careful consideration. Prof. Goheen specifically refers to a “sidelining” of the kingdom in theology and this might be true, but more determinative in the church’s loss of a kingdom perspective is the “sidelining” of the kingdom in pastoral ministry. Prof. Goheen’s review of the development of the kingdom perspective in Jesus’ ministry made me reflect on what a kingdom vision in pastoral ministry might look like. Following Ridderbos’ assertion that “the central theme of Jesus’ message … is the coming of the kingdom of God”, I wonder what would happen if the central theme of pastoral ministry followed suit. Pastoral ministry is often bogged down with mostly trivial but oftentimes tragic preoccupations. I think Jesus’ ministry, as outlined by Goheen in his “worldview story”, provides a unique template to recover a kingdom vision in pastoral ministry. Pastoral ministry, at its best, embodies the new way for the coming of kingdom that Jesus offered. Following Kung: it is “a way of love of enemies instead of their destruction, a way of unconditional forgiveness instead of retaliation, a way of readiness to suffer instead of using force, a way of blessing for peacemakers instead of hymns of hate and revenge.” I see three major threads of Jesus’ ministry that can be applied to pastoral ministry: kingdom proclamation, kingdom realism and kingdom power. I think that each of these threads can be applied in pastoral ministry to strengthen the centrality of the kingdom in the life of the church and to recover the central message of the gospel for today’s world. First, pastoral ministry must commit itself to the faithful proclamation of God’s word. Oftentimes, I think the central message of the evangelical church is crowded out by social, political and cultural concerns. The only antidote to this dilution of the message is to faithfully proclaim the Word of God. Expository sequential preaching should be the regular diet of the church. While it is true that pastoral ministry cannot be solely pulpit ministry, I think the church puts itself at great risk when pulpit ministry is not properly attended to. Second, pastoral ministry must adopt a kingdom realism that emphasizes the already-not-yet nature of the kingdom. One of the greatest dangers in pastoral ministry is to emphasize one side of the formulation to the detriment of the other. A pastoral approach that emphasizes the already but does not give adequate attention to the not yet runs the risk of devolving into a kind of health and wealth, prosperity gospel that promises present blessings and often leaves people feeling empty. A pastoral approach that emphasizes the not yet and puts aside the already devolves into a kind of insurance mindset where everyone is waiting on heaven and losing sight of the blessings of kingdom living now. Kingdom realism threads the needle between the already and the not-yet in a way that allows people to see the rich blessings of the Lord today while at the same waiting expectantly and confidently on the return of the Lord and the establishment of a new heaven and new earth; a restoration of what God intended our lives to be in the first place. Finally, pastoral ministry must draw on the same kingdom power that Jesus drew on to sustain and advance the mission of God. I was struck by Prof. Goheen’s identification of the power of Jesus in his unique life of prayer. Prayer is the single most important aspect of pastoral ministry. It is through prayer that our sermons, our counseling, our witness, our comforting become effective and powerful in the lives of the people. I think it is easy for prayer to become simply one of those routine tasks that we do in the course of ministry. Sometimes our prayers begin to sound the same. Cultivating a deep personal prayer life, praying constantly for and with our people, praying with fervor and confidence, I think, are essential facets of pastoral ministry that crystalize in a kingdom vision both in our own work as pastors but more importantly in the life of the church.