The Gospel of the Kingdom: Part 12

The most important parable Jesus ever spoke concerning the Kingdom of God is the parable of the sower, as recorded in Matthew 13, Mark 4, and Luke 8. Jesus said, concerning this parable, "...Don't you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable?" (Mark 4:13). I won't reiterate here the passages, or their immediate meaning. Jesus did a most excellent job of this. Preceding His explanation of the parable, He said to His disciples, "...The secret of the Kingdom of God has been given to you..." (Mark 4:11a).

What secret is revealed here? The Kingdom of God is here but not with irresistible power. It is not now destroying wickedness, but to the contrary it is like a man sowing seed. Seed does not force itself on the soil; neither does the Gospel (Good News) of the Kingdom force itself on the hearts of men. Jesus goes on to use the imagery of soil types to illustrate the various conditions of men's hearts to whom the Gospel is preached. Some never receive the message at all, allowing Satan to snatch it away immediately. Some receive it, but with no depth. Perhaps intellect or emotions have been stirred, but there is no real life. Consequently, when the inevitable trouble or persecution arise for the very reason that they received the message of the Kingdom, they wither and die because there is no life.

Others, like the thorny ground, appear to have received the word of the Kingdom, even evidencing a sort of life. However, they are not prepared to accept the humble form of the God's Kingdom, and the cares of the world, materialism, the desire for worldly riches and the pressures to conform choke the Word and it becomes unfruitful. So the mystery (revealed secret) of the Kingdom is that it has come among men and yet men can reject it. Please don't get me wrong - it's a wonderful thing when the Kingdom of God shows up with power. However, let us give pause for a moment: Jesus demonstrated the power of the Kingdom more than any other, yet He was despised and rejected by men (Acts 10:38 and Isaiah 53:3); the apostles whose words were confirmed by signs (Mark 16:20), according to tradition all died a martyrs death, except John.

Those who knew of the Kingdom of God only through Old Testament revelation believed the Kingdom of God would come with power. Who would be able to withstand God? Yet the mystery is precisely that the Kingdom has come yet men can reject it. There is a power at work now - power to witness and to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom, yet God will not compel (in this Age) men to bow before it. They must receive it in a willing heart of faith with a submissive will. Now we proclaim the Kingdom as emissaries of God, pleading, not demanding; persuading, not driving. Until harvest time, the weeds and the wheat must grow together, in the world (Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43). The ultimate triumph of the Kingdom of God over the kingdom of the evil one will be at the end of the Age. Until then the sons of the Kingdom - those who have received the Gospel of the Kingdom - and the sons of the evil one will live together in the world.

Until then, as long as one is drawing a breath, reconciliation unto God is possible by exercising faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. After death, and certainly after the final harvest, reconciliation is no longer possible. So much for those who preach the heretical message of universal or ultimate reconciliation. As the Scriptures declare: "Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin but to bring salvation [meaning the fullness of our salvation, even the redemption of our bodies c.f Romans 8:23] to those who are waiting for Him" (Hebrews 9:27-28). Don't put off receiving the Gospel of the Kingdom. By the time the Kingdom manifests itself in irresistible power, it will be too late.

Be encouraged while it is yet today. As one of God's fellow workers, I urge you to not receive God's grace in vain. "...I tell you, now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:1-2).

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The Gospel of the Kingdom: Part 11

Because the last installment of this series was written seven weeks ago, a review is advisable. It is so important to realize that the Kingdom of God means the divine conquest over His enemies, a conquest which is to be accomplished in three stages. While the world appears little changed (other than to perhaps get worse), the Kingdom of God has already come among men and those who receive it will be prepared to enter the kingdom of Glory when Christ comes to finish the good work He has already begun. This is the Gospel of the Kingdom.

The three stages of the Kingdom, as summarized by Scripture are:

Stage 1 - "For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins" (Colossians 1:13-13).
Stage 2 - "Dear friends, now we are the children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him. For we shall see Him as He is" (1 John 3:2).
Stage 3 - "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away'" (Revelation 21:3-4).

The fourth chapter of Mark and the thirteenth chapter of Matthew contain a group of parables which set forth the "mystery of the kingdom of God" (Mark 4:11). This is the central truth illustrated in all these parables. However, we must first establish that in the Bible, the term "mystery" does not mean something deep, dark, profound or difficult. The biblical idea of "mystery" is often a technical concept whose meaning is set forth in Romans 16:25-26. Here we find that biblically a mystery is something that has been kept secret throughout time, but is now revealed. In other words, a mystery is a divine purpose, hidden in the counsels of God for long ages, but finally disclosed in a new revelation of God's redemptive work.

The Mark 4 and Matthew 13 parables set forth new truth about the Kingdom of God which was not revealed in the Old Testament. And what is that mystery? A look at a familiar Old Testament prophecy will help. In Daniel 2:31-35 we get to see Nebuchadnezzar's dream, a
and in verses 44 and 45, the interpretation is given. After a series if nations successively dominate the course of world history, we are told that the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall its sovereignty be left to another people. From an Old Testament perspective, there is coming a day when God will set up His reign (Kingdom) on the earth, displacing all other kingdoms and authorities. The coming of God's Kingdom, from this perspective, is viewed as a single great event.

When John the Baptist announced (Matthew 3:2) the coming of the Kingdom of God, he understood it to be as foretold in the Old Testament. John understood that the Messiah who would usher in the Kingdom would bring a twofold baptism: with the Holy Spirit for those who would experience salvation and with the fire of judgment for all others (Matthew 3:11-12). John's later doubt from prison was no doubt caused by the fact that Jesus was not acting like the Messiah whom he had announced. Where was the baptism of the Spirit? Where was the judgment of the wicked by fire? How could Jesus be the bearer of the Kingdom while sin and sinful institutions remained unpunished? Troubling questions then - and now.

Jesus said, "Blessed is he who takes no offence at me" (Matthew 11:6). The Kingdom of God had arrived, but here is the mystery - the new revelation - instead of destroying human sovereignty, it had attacked the sovereignty of Satan; instead of making changes in the external, political order of things, it was making changes in the spiritual order and in the hearts of men and women. The Kingdom is yet to come in the form prophesied by Daniel. The world has yet to behold the coming of God's Kingdom with power and glory. The Kingdom is now here with persuasion, quietly working in among men in ways often not seen by the crowds. Yes, there are some exceptions, but for the most part, it is as Jesus said, "....the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:21).

Each of the parables in Matthew 13 illustrates this mystery of the Kingdom, which is yet to come in power and great glory, but is actually present among men in an unexpected form to bring to men in the present evil Age the blessings of the Age to Come. Next time we will look at some of the the specific revelations of the Kingdom. Until then, God bless and keep looking up!

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