Examine the complex events surrounding the Crusaders' siege of Jerusalem. Discover the motivations, struggles, and consequences faced by both sides in this pivotal moment.
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This free audiobook course follows David Bercot’s The Kingdom That Turned the World Upside Down, a study of the kingdom of God as taught by Jesus and understood in early Christian history. It opens with the Crusaders’ siege of Jerusalem as a stark contrast to Jesus’ kingdom of love, enemy-love, and nonresistance.
From there, the chapters compare ancient Israel’s earthly kingdom with the present reality of Christ’s kingdom, then examine practical kingdom commitments involving wealth, honesty, marriage, divorce, enemies, government, and separation from the world.
The course also traces how Bercot believes the church’s witness changed after Constantine, how theology and church-state power reshaped Christian practice, and how later movements such as the Waldensians, Lollards, Anabaptists, and others carried forward kingdom themes. The lessons fit together as a historical and biblical argument that Jesus’ teachings are not optional ideals but the pattern for citizens of his kingdom.
The opening chapter recounts the Crusaders’ siege of Jerusalem and the massacre that followed. Bercot uses that scene to ask whether such violence fits the kingdom of love and enemy-love that Jesus planted.
This chapter describes ancient Israel as an earthly kingdom with territory, national identity, law, material blessings, and armed defense. Bercot presents it as a tutor pointing toward a greater kingdom not of this world.
Bercot explains John the Baptist’s announcement, Jesus’ preaching of the kingdom, and the four elements of a kingdom: ruler, subjects, domain, and laws. He emphasizes that Christ’s kingdom is already present, without earthly borders or military force.
Using the example of citizenship and allegiance, this chapter argues that Jesus requires undivided loyalty from kingdom citizens. Bercot introduces the Sermon on the Mount as the starting point for the kingdom’s values and laws.
This lesson examines Jesus’ commands about treasure, mammon, contentment, and poverty of spirit. Bercot argues that kingdom citizens must let material things become servants rather than masters.
Bercot discusses Jesus’ command not to swear oaths and connects it to a kingdom standard of simple truthfulness. The chapter also criticizes dishonest religious claims and argues that deception is incompatible with Christ.
This lesson presents Bercot’s reading of Jesus’ teachings on divorce and remarriage. He argues that Jesus narrowed what had been permitted and calls readers to investigate the relevant passages honestly.
Beginning a section on nonresistance, Bercot explores Jesus’ commands to turn the other cheek, go the second mile, and love enemies. He argues that these teachings touch everyday conflicts as well as war.
This chapter addresses common objections to nonresistance, including self-defense, family protection, and military service. Bercot also appeals to early Christian writers who answered similar criticisms from pagan society.
Bercot considers Scripture passages sometimes used to challenge nonresistance, including Jesus’ words about a sword, the centurion, Cornelius, and apostolic examples. He argues that these texts do not overturn Jesus’ kingdom commands.
This lesson surveys what Bercot says Scripture reveals about earthly governments. He emphasizes God’s ultimate authority, the temporary nature of worldly kingdoms, and Satan’s involvement in the kingdoms of men.
Bercot explains the tension of living as citizens of God’s kingdom while also under earthly governments. He argues for respect and ordinary obedience to civil authorities, while reserving ultimate allegiance for Christ when commands conflict.
This chapter reflects on Jesus’ statement that his kingdom is not of this world and applies it to his subjects. Bercot critiques churches that follow worldly values, whether ancient, medieval, or modern political patterns.
Bercot distinguishes kingdom Christianity from both right-wing God-and-country activism and left-wing peace-and-justice activism. He argues that Jesus came to transform individuals and call them into his kingdom, not to Christianize worldly governments.
This lesson presents Jesus himself as the pattern of kingdom living in first-century Judea under Roman rule. Bercot also describes early Jewish Christians who did not join the Jewish war but fled from Jerusalem.
Bercot argues that nonresistance and separation from the world were the historic practices of pre-Constantinian Christianity. He supports this by citing early Christian writers such as Clement, Tertullian, Origen, Cyprian, and Lactantius.
Beginning a section on the gospel of the kingdom, Bercot contrasts the “Jesus road” with what he calls easy believism. He emphasizes faith, commitment, obedience, and a Spirit-lived relationship with Christ.
This lesson discusses entering the kingdom through freedom from sin, faith, repentance, baptism, and the new birth, drawing heavily on Acts and other New Testament passages. Bercot also stresses the present and future aspects of salvation.
After strong calls to commitment, Bercot warns against judgmental and self-righteous attitudes. He urges readers to examine themselves by Jesus’ teachings, especially in the Sermon on the Mount.
Bercot argues that kingdom citizens are commissioned to proclaim the kingdom openly. He traces this from Jesus’ preaching to the apostles’ refusal to stop speaking and the spread of the kingdom message under persecution.
This chapter begins Bercot’s account of how the church changed after a period of peace and the rise of Constantine. He describes church leaders gaining favor, state involvement in church affairs, and the weakening of earlier kingdom separation.
Bercot discusses the Council of Nicaea, Arian controversy, and the effects of making theological definitions central to orthodoxy. He argues that persecution and extra-biblical tests of orthodoxy helped make the Bible seem unsafe for ordinary believers.
This lesson asks whether the fourth-century changes were God’s blessing or a test. Bercot argues that Jesus’ teachings do not change and uses John the Baptist, the rich young ruler, and warning signs about worldly approval to make the point.
Bercot describes the Constantinian hybrid as a move back toward Old Testament patterns while keeping New Testament theology and ordinances. He explains how this affected wealth, oaths, nonresistance, divorce, and the church’s relationship to worldly power.
This chapter acknowledges benefits associated with Constantine’s reforms, then argues that the promised Christian golden age did not materialize. Bercot points to civil wars, imperial collapse, and ongoing medieval patterns as evidence against the hybrid.
Bercot presents Augustine as a major defender of the Constantinian hybrid and criticizes his approaches to just war, predestination, persecution, and interpretation. The chapter contrasts Augustine’s system with a direct reading of Jesus’ kingdom teachings.
This lesson describes the growth of papal political power, the forged Donation of Constantine, corrupt papal rule, and medieval persecution. Bercot argues that changing societal norms cannot excuse practices that violate Jesus’ permanent commands.
Beginning the final section, Bercot looks at how kingdom Christianity continued outside the dominant institutional church. He discusses Donatists, reform-minded preachers such as Arnold of Brescia and Henry of Lausanne, and the poor and uneducated who took Jesus’ teachings literally.
Bercot presents the Waldensians as a major medieval kingdom movement beginning with Waldisius of Lyon. The chapter follows their poverty, public preaching, conflict with church authorities, and severe persecution.
This chapter contrasts kingdom movements with Augustinian reform movements. Bercot discusses Wycliffe and the Lollards, noting both Augustinian features and later Lollard traits that resembled medieval kingdom movements.
Bercot recounts the Waldensians’ contact with Swiss Reformers and the decisions at Chanforon. He argues that the Waldensians surrendered key kingdom practices, including itinerant preaching, voluntary poverty, and nonresistance.
This lesson describes Calvin’s Geneva as an attempt to build a state modeled more like Old Testament Israel than Jesus’ kingdom. Bercot focuses on the Consistory, discipline, the execution of Servetus, and Calvin’s defense of the magistrate’s sword.
Bercot describes the rise of new kingdom movements during and after the Reformation, especially Anabaptists and later groups that emphasized nonresistance, simple theology, obedience, and rejection of oaths and materialism. He notes that these groups did not share every detail of theology but held to the Apostles’ Creed and kingdom lifestyle teachings.
The closing chapter urges readers to weigh Bercot’s argument against the totality of Jesus’ teachings. He emphasizes Christianity as a relationship with Christ the King and calls readers to embrace the gospel of the kingdom if they find it faithful to Jesus’ words.
Recovering Jesus' core message about His kingdom
If someone were to ask you the theme of Jesus' preaching, what would you say? Man's need for salvation? The character of God? Heaven? Love? All are wonderful Biblical truths — but none of them were the theme of His teaching. The theme of Jesus' message was the kingdom of God. Wherever He went, Jesus preached about the kingdom.
Yet today, the kingdom is rarely discussed — and when it is, it has been so spiritualized and reduced that it bears little resemblance to what Jesus actually taught. We hear about the kingdom as a future hope, a heavenly destination, a poetic image. But in The Kingdom That Turned the World Upside Down, David Bercot takes the reader back to Jesus' actual teachings — teachings that have too often been forgotten or watered down.
Bercot describes the radically new laws of the kingdom and its upside-down values: Love your enemies. Don't swear oaths. Don't store up treasures. Be willing to lose your life. There's no room in Christ's kingdom for superficial Christianity, for this is a kingdom that has historically turned the world upside down. Polished throughout with captivating illustrations, personal testimonies, and historical evidence, this book will challenge you to the core in your Christian walk.
What readers and reviewers have said about The Kingdom That Turned the World Upside Down. These are short, attributed quotes from public reviews on Goodreads, Amazon, the publisher's site, and independent book reviewers.
I will say I found this book to be one of the most challenging and thought-provoking books I have ever read.
— Dean Taylor, Heartbeat of the Remnant magazine
An absolutely life-changing book. As a young Christian raised in the mainstream Evangelical Church, this book turned my world upside down. At first I hated the message — but I could not escape it.
— Jessica Greening, Scroll Publishing customer review
The best exposition of the doctrine of the kingdom I have ever read! I have already put together two sermons modeled after his arguments. And I must say, it was a tremendous success in my congregation.
— A Christian Pilgrim (Toronto), Scroll Publishing customer review
It's a book that helped me probe into where my own allegiance REALLY lies. Clarity comes through honesty, and this book is that.
— Rachelle Martin, Goodreads review
This book has made a lasting impact on my life. It was simple yet powerful. One of the most logical, simple, and honest works I have read.
— Laura H., Scroll Publishing customer review
Solid, Biblical thought, clearly expressed and presented with the exciting premise that 'we can DO this!'
— Steve Coerper, Scroll Publishing customer review
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