How does your belief in the God’s coming kingdom affect your life now? Now that we’ve looked at the kingdom as hope (what we look forward to) and gospel (what we preach to others), we’ll examine how God calls us to embody the kingdom now. Taking our cue from Jesus’ kingdom-saturated ministry, we’ll see how he enacted the future in the present as a testimony and a taste of what’s to come.
This is lecture 8 of the Kingdom of God class, originally taught at the Atlanta Bible College. To take this class for credit, please contact ABC so you can do the work necessary for a grade.
Notes:
three dimensions of the kingdom
- kingdom hope (including, judgment and restoration)
- kingdom gospel (message preached)
- kingdom way (lifestyle, motivation, allegiance)
Jesus was obsessed w/ the kingdom
- we’ve already established that Jesus was a kingdom preacher
- that Jesus believed he was messiah—God’s anointed king of the kingdom
- that Jesus chose 12 disciples and promised them 12 thrones in the kingdom
- his parables were all about the kingdom
- parable of the sower: responding to the “word of the kingdom” seed
- parable of the tares & wheat: righteous and wicked grow together until the kingdom age when judgment occurs
- parable of the minas: teaches how to steward what God has given you so as to be rewarded in the kingdom
- parable of the sheep and the goats: treat those in need well so when the son of man sits upon his throne he will grant you entrance to kingdom
- you wanna tell me you can understand Jesus w/o understanding the kingdom?
- he was obsessed with it
- it was his hope, his destiny, his dream, his sermon,
- he gave his life for it (Rev 5.9-10)
- he called the kingdom a treasure in a field and a pearl of great price (Mt 13.44-46)—something worth selling everything to get
- as for priorities, Jesus said, “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Mt 6.31-33) (on quiz: in what verse does Jesus tell his disciples to seek first his kingdom?)
- but, he doesn’t stop here
- his whole ministry, including preaching, healing, exorcisms, dinner parties all enacted the kingdom
- I want to look at three incidents
- his inaugural sermon
- his answer to John’s delegation
- an exorcism
- inaugural sermon
- Luke 4.16-21
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. 17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” 20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” - Isaiah 61.1-11
1 The Spirit of the Lord G
