Dave started our new series looking at the Kingdom of God.
To see Dave's presentation (in PDF format), click here.
We looked at the historical background to Jesus' declaration in Mark 1:15 that 'the time has come, the kingdom of God is here, repent and believe the good news'.
The two historical themes were the promise that King David would have a descendant who would rule forever (Jesus), the other was in Daniel where the kingdoms of this world are broken to pieces by the kingdom of God which starts as a small stone and grows to fill the whole world.
There were some applications. First to understand that to repent actually means not only to turn away from personal sin but is something much broader - to change our minds and hearts so we see everything as God sees it. It requires a change in world view.
The other was to realise that there is a clash of kingdoms, the kingdom of God clashes with the kingdoms of this world and with Satan who rules through these kingdoms as the prince of this world. And we are in the midst of this, we have been called to war, to be soldiers of Jesus Christ so if we think we are boarding a luxury liner for a cruise we need to repent and rethink - we have been enlisted to join a warship! Our confidence comes from these OT promises that the kingdom of our God triumphs and has been given to us. And we know the end of the story , wonderfully summarised in 1 Corinthians 15:24-25.
Questions
Mark 1:15 - Jesus declared 'the kingdom of God was here, repent and believe the good news'. How does repentance affect our worldview? Why is it more than turning from personal sin?
Read the passage in Daniel 2:31-45
Someone tell the story in their own words What does it tell us about God?
What does it tell us about the people in the story?
Is there a command to obey or an example to follow in this story?
