Jesus uses parables to bring into existence the Empire [Kingdom] of God. This new Empire was not about morality. The commandments, though not rejected, are not the heart of the matter either. The Empire of God is about re-imagining life on new terms. In his parables, Jesus forces one to look at the world squarely, without illusion, and to see it for what it really is. It is our world, not God's. It works for some people some of the time. But ultimately it does not work, because it cannot reflect an ultimate reality whose nature is love. Jesus challenged those around him to re-create the world, to reconstruct human life and relationships in a way that would reflect and embody that ultimate reality. That is what the Empire of God is, or would be, if one were to choose to risk it.

Stephen J. Patterson, The God of Jesus: The Historical Jesus & the Search for Meaning

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