The Heart of God: Introduction (6)

And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. Luke 24.27

Read and meditate on Matthew 5.17-19, Matthew 6.10-13, Matthew 8.10-13
Jesus fulfills all the promises of God. But He does so only within a particular framework, a framework introduced by the coming of the Spirit and bringing with it the promise of salvation. That framework is the Kingdom of God.

For reflection
1.  Jesus associated Abraham – with whom God first articulated His covenant – with the Kingdom He had come to embody, proclaim, and bring near. What does this suggest about God’s intentions when He first entered into His covenant with Abraham? Consider Genesis 17.1-6. Look at Genesis 49.8-11. Does it seem to you that Jacob was already looking forward to this promised Kingdom? Explain.

2.  So as the covenant advances throughout Scripture, we should expect God to be preparing His people to realize that covenant, and all its promises, within a Kingdom framework. How is such an outlook encouraged by such passages as Deuteronomy 17.14-20 and 2 Samuel 7.12-16? Is this consistent with what we see in the rest of the Old Testament? Explain.

3.  The Old Testament kingdom of Israel, being temporal and without the permanent presence and power of the Spirit widely received, was more a type of the promised Kingdom than the reality. What’s the difference between those two ideas? Does this mean that Israel’s Old Testament kingdom experience has nothing to teach us? Explain.

4.  Look at Isaiah 9.6, 7. The prophet pointed the people of His day forward to another Kingdom. What kind of Kingdom did he call them to envision? Jesus focused a great deal of His teaching on the Kingdom, beginning with Matthew 4.17. From what we saw in Acts 2, why was this necessary? What does it mean to seek the Kingdom of God (Matt. 6.33)?

5.  The Kingdom provides the framework within which the promises of God’s covenant are realized, by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. All the unifying threads of Scripture come together in Jesus, within the context of His Kingdom. As we seek the Kingdom, we enter more completely into God’s promises, and into the very heart of God in Scripture, our Lord Jesus Christ. How important is it, therefore, that we have a good understanding of the Kingdom of God, of what it means to enter and seek that Kingdom, and to make sure we’re living as citizens and ambassadors of that Kingdom as disciples of Jesus Christ?

Summary
Jesus brings the Kingdom to all who believe in Him. The Kingdom of God is the power of God, in His Spirit and salvation, whereby God brings His promises to fruition in and through His people, unto righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom. 14.17, 18). According to Philippians 2.13 and Ephesians 3.20, to what ends has God called us to His Kingdom and glory (1 Thess. 2.12); and how powerful is His Spirit in bringing that Kingdom and those promises to fruition in us? Is this your experience of being in the Kingdom of God, and flourishing within His covenant?

Closing Prayer
Praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD, O my soul!
While I live I will praise the LORD;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
Do not put your trust in princes,
Nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help.
His spirit departs, he returns to his earth;
In that very day his plans perish.
Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help,
Whose hope is in the LORD his God,
Who made heaven and earth,
The sea, and all that is in them;
Who keeps truth forever,
Who executes justice for the oppressed,
Who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD gives freedom to the prisoners.
The LORD opens the eyes of the blind;
The LORD raises those who are bowed down;
The LORD loves the righteous.
The LORD watches over the strangers;
He relieves the fatherless and widow;
But the way of the wicked He turns upside down.
The LORD shall reign forever—
Your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the LORD!

Psalm 146

Next steps – Enlarge your Mission Field: Download a copy of the PDF for this week’s study, and give it to a friend. Invite your friend to study The Heart of God with you. Plan to get together from time to time to share what you’re learning.

T. M. Moore

Two books can help you gain a fuller understanding of the terrain we will be covering in this series. Kingdom Documentsprovides a concise overview of the primary teaching of the Old and New Testaments, and shows, through early Church creeds, how our forebears understand the primary teachings of God’s Word. (click here to order). I Will Be Your Goddevelops more fully the idea of God’s covenant and leads us to consider the practical implications of our covenant relationship with God (click here).

Visit The Ailbe Seminary, where our course, Introduction to Biblical Theology, offers a parallel study of our theme in this series, using brief video presentations and the workbook God’s Covenant: An Introduction. All courses at The Ailbe Seminary are available without charge.

We are happy to be able to offer each week’s Scriptorium studies in a free weekly PDF, suitable for personal or group use. You can download all the studies in this series by clicking here. Please prayerfully consider sharing with The Fellowship of Ailbe through your giving. You can contribute to The Fellowship by clicking the Contribute button at the website or by sending your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.