In his fulfillment of the Old Testament Jesus Christ has set op the kingdom once and for all. The kingdom is now fully real but it bears a completely christological and not an eschatological character. All of God's rule in the present is Christ's rule. In the present the kingdom of God must be understood christologically. And all christology centers on the messiahship of Jesus. The messiahship is also the fulfillment of the Old Testament.1.42 The kingdom of God as kingdom of Christ is to be understood from the messiahship, from the saving work of Christ. We are saved because of what Christ has done. But we cannot separate the person and the work of Christ. In his person the salvation of God is a reality in the present. He himself is the kingdom of God in the present. This is to be understood in a cosmic sense because all reality is saved by his work (in his person). The kingdom of God is salvation in Christ.