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  • The Gospel of the Kingdom – 2

    The Gospel of the Kingdom – 2

    Matthew 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

    • “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. – Matthew 5:3
    • “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. – Matthew 5:10

    Your kingdom come,
    your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.

    Matthew 6:12

    • “… But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. – Matthew 6:33
    • “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. – Matthew 7:21

    Returning to the witness of the Gospel by Stephen, for a moment, and a thread of Scripture between Moses and Jesus:

    Acts 7:

    35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’

    38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. 39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’

    Was not Christ Jesus, Redeemer of the world from our sins, rejected in this same way?

    Then for our sin, He became the Very Sacrifice before God the Father for our sins!

    Jesus proclaimed the Good News for sinner at the beginning of these last days. Jesus will proclaim the Day of the sound of the Trumpet at the final hour of these last days.

    His Kingdom come.

    His will be done

    On earth as it is in Heaven.

    “I and the Father are One.” – John 10:30

    “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. – John 14:9b

    Matthew 24:

    3 As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

    4 And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray.

    5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are but the beginning of the birth pains…

    27 For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

    The Coming of the Son of Man

    29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

    30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man,

    and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn,

    and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

    31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call,

    and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other…

    “Even so, come Lord Jesus.

    The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

    Revelation 22:20b-21 KJV

     

     

  • The Gospel of the Kingdom

    The Gospel of the Kingdom

    Matthew 9:35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.

    What is the gospel?

    More specifically, what is the gospel of the kingdom which Jesus proclaimed?

    To begin, look back to the centuries and millennia at the role of kings in general.

    Kings do not rule a republic. Kings do not rule a democracy. The power of a king is absolute and those who rule in the king’s domain (territory, dominion, lands) tell the king’s people (subjects) what to do and because they are subjects of the king the people must do what their king demands.

    The message is NOT one from a common subject to other subjects of the king. No, a proclamation is written and spoken by the authority of the king and ruler of his subjects. This is true of the Kingship of God, as well as that of a mortal king.

    The ‘proclamation, qara‘ is spoken to the subjects of the king with the expectation of obedience by the king’s subjects. Someone (in the Bible, sometimes an angel or a Prophet) has met with the king (or with God our Heavenly King), heard the message or news to be heralded or proclaimed and by authority of the king, he tells everyone.

    Most are familiar with the first announcements of the gospel of the Kingdom of God.

    Luke 2:10-11 KJV  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

    The announcement by an angel from God is that the King has been born, a King of the Jews, as Jesus will come to be known as He becomes the sacrifice for our sins on a Cross.

    God is NOT like any other mortal king and God has proclaimed Himself through Scripture.

    Exodus 19:7 So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him.

    Moses is proclaiming the gospel of God. Moses has met with the King of Creation and proclaims the good news to the captives of Pharaoh.

    8 All the people answered together and said,

    “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.”

    The Hebrew slaves of Pharaoh might as well have said, “We accept the LORD as our King in the place of Pharaoh our king.”

    And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord.

    9 And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.”

    Again, God! our King and Leader and Ruler and Sovereign, and Creator of all things, judge of all souls!

    Christ Jesus IS God incarnate; that is: Jesus Christ is GOD in the flesh!  He has set the captives of this world free from sin and the ruler of this world.

    What had happened earlier, when God our Heavenly King challenged the king of Egypt (Pharaoh) with plagues and curses on the lands Pharaoh ruled, a land where the Hebrew people had been subjects of the lowest caste as slaves below every man and woman of Egypt?

    Why had God chosen to take His own subjects, chosen by His covenant through Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph?

    (Here is God’s proclamation to Pharaoh, a mere mortal king of men, through Moses.)

    Exodus 9: ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews,

    “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 14 For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth.

    16 But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.

    And from the days of Moses until this day the Name and Power of God is proclaimed in all the earth and the miracles the LORD did for His people of Israel in the desert at Sinai, as they were led from the slavery of Pharaoh to God’s promised land.

     Set Me Free – Castings Crows

    To be continued…

     

     

     

  • In these last days…

    In these last days…

    Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. – Hebrews 1 ESV

    An astounding claim! The Person of God spoke through the Prophets. (The books of the Prophets speak to this.) The Prophets speak what God wants to tell man.

    HOWEVER; in these last days (as opposed to the thousands of years of creation and of man, even since Abraham and the books of Moses) GOD, THE LORD, has spoken to man by HIS SON, CHRIST JESUS.

    Jesus Christ is the Very Glory of God! GOD speaks though the WORD directly. This is the Living Gospel;the Good News of our salvation!

    Continuing in our theme of God speaking through the Prophets, let’s again examine the question from a New Testament perspective.

    • What does a Prophet see?
    • Who does God make a Prophet?
    • What is the message of the Seer?
    • Is it the message from God Almighty?

    A Prophet will see the things of God that no other man can see.

    John 4:29 “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?”

    John 7  14 About the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and began teaching. 15 The Jews therefore marveled, saying, “How is it that this man has learning, when he has never studied?”

    16 So Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. 17 If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority. 18 The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood.

     “… but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.”

    John 1: 

    In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

    6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

    God the Father IS the Very Word of God Existing in the Person of the Son, Christ Jesus!

    Jesus Christ IS the Very Word of God spoken in His Holy, crucified and risen flesh!

    What is the message of the seer – the Prophet of God?

    Matthew 11:

    7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses.

    9 What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.

    10 This is he of whom it is written,

    “‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
    who will prepare your way before you.’
    11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

    20 Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent.

    Is it the message from God Almighty?

    Mark 1:

    9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

    12 The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 13 And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.

    14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying,

    “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

     Luke 24:

    And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,

    20 and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. 22 Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, 23 and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.”

    25 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!

    26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

     

    It would be yet another lesson to study all that Jesus had spoken of how He IS the fulfillment of many of the prophesies of Scripture, spoken by the Prophets.

    Do you believe in Jesus Christ? He IS the Person and Word and Prophet of GOD! Jesus Christ IS and will be greater than any prophet. Christ Jesus IS fulfillment of scripture and prophesy. He IS the beginning and the end. God has not and will not use ANY other sinful man (and we are all sinful men and sinful women) to speak or interpret any word of prophesy that opposes Jesus: He IS God the Son.

    Can God yet appear to other men (after the resurrection of the Son to the Throne of Heaven?

    Yes. Scripture also speaks more of these prophesies, of true prophets and of false prophets. Yet Christ Jesus IS the Word of God. He has sent us the Holy Spirit, the third Person of God. Again, this would be another study for another day.

    Jesus is Lord.

    NO man and NO Prophet stands above Him.

    Jesus IS God!

    Jesus said, to His Disciple Phillip:

    Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.