Jesus throughout the Scriptures: Synoptic Gospels 1: Messenger of the Covenant (3)
|Pray Psalm 119.57-59.
You are my portion, O LORD;
I have said that I would keep Your words.
I entreated Your favor with my whole heart;
Be merciful to me according to Your word.
I thought about my ways,
And turned my feet to Your testimonies.
Sing Psalm 119.57-59
(Leoni: The God of Abraham Praise)
I vow to keep Your Word; You are my portion, LORD.
Let favor fill my heart; have mercy by Your Word!
When I think on my way, I turn my feet to You,
to Your path I shall not delay, Your Word to do.
Read Matthew 4.17; Mark 6.10-12; Luke 13.1-5; meditate on Matthew 4.17.
Preparation
1. What message did the Messenger proclaim?
2. What did His followers proclaim?
Meditation
Matthew records the first words of public ministry spoken by our Lord Jesus Christ. His was a message of repentance and Good News: The Gospel of the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God had come to earth in the Person of our Lord Jesus Christ. To begin, that was a strictly local presence; wherever Jesus was, the Kingdom was, because Jesus is its King. But that would all change, and Jesus, by His life and teaching, was preparing His followers to receive, not just eternal life, but the Kingdom of God.
Jesus will begin to show us now what the Kingdom is like, and why it is such great Good News that, following His example, we must seek every opportunity to proclaim it. Matthew summarizes the content of Jesus’ message, which reminds us very much of what John the Baptist preached. The Kingdom has come near, and repentance is the key to entering it. Those who were attracted by what Jesus preached and did, and who wanted to enter His Kingdom, must repent of all known sins, and maintain the discipline of repentance for as often as sin returns in their lives.
For this is the Kingdom of heaven—literally, the Kingdom which has its origins in heaven, manifests the pure and holy character of heaven, and extends as far as the heavens extend above and throughout the vast cosmos. The Gospel Jesus preached was not merely one of forgiveness and eternal life. It was that, but it was much, much more. The Gospel of the Kingdom comes with the intent of setting things right with God, of restoring the brokenness, corruption, ruin, and desolation of the sin-filled world, and of making all things new by the power of grace and truth. We are not preaching the same Gospel as Jesus unless we preach it as He did, requiring repentance as the entrance requirement and badge of citizenship, then looking for the healing of souls and all creation and culture.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
When Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, He was also telling them how to live in His Kingdom here on earth.
“In this manner, therefore, pray [and live]:
‘Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your Name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive our debts,
[But only] as we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the Kingdom
And the power
And the glory
Forever. Amen.’” (Matt. 6.9-13).
This passage is set up in the same pattern/outline as was used for the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20.1-17).
First and foremost, our relationship with God is set in place and established.
Then our relationships with others; and our war against spiritual forces.
“Blessed are You, LORD God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever.
Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power and the glory, the victory and the majesty;
for all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours; Yours is the Kingdom, O LORD,
and You are exalted as head over all.
Both riches and honor come from You,
and You reign over all.
In Your hand is power and might;
in Your hand it is to make great
and to give strength to all.
Now therefore, our God, we thank You
and praise Your glorious Name” (1 Chron. 29.10-13).
“With my whole heart I have sought You; oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!
Your Word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against You” (Ps. 119.10, 11).
The more we follow Jesus’ teaching on prayer and Kingdom living, the more we will be infused with His mind and His thoughts. As Paul encouraged: “…we have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2.16).
Our goal—our highest calling, our joy, our Kingdom work—is to inhabit the Kingdom, and bring others in.
For it is indeed true, “wherever Jesus was, the Kingdom was, because Jesus is its King”; so, wherever we are, serving King Jesus, our diligent Kingdom work should be “setting things right with God, restoring the brokenness…of the sin-filled world, and making all things new by the power of grace and truth.”
Rejoicing in Kingdom living in the here and now; looking forward to Kingdom living there and then.
Preparing the way, as John the Baptist did, for Jesus’ imminent return, when He will “make all things new” (Rev. 21.5).
Reflection
1. Summarize your understanding of the Gospel of the Kingdom. Why is this such Good News?
2. The Gospel of the Kingdom includes salvation, but much more besides. Such as?
3. We have been called to the Kingdom (1 Thess. 2.12), transferred into the Kingdom (Col. 1.13), and commanded to seek the Kingdom as our defining priority (Matt. 6.33). How should this affect the way we plan our time?
The doctrine of repentance is right gospel doctrine. Not only the austere John the Baptist, but the gracious Jesus, preached repentance. There is still the same reason to do so. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Matthew 4.17
Pray Psalm 119.60-64.
Listen in silence for the Lord to convict you of any sins. Confess and repent as He leads. Pray that He will use you to encourage other believers today.
Sing Psalm 119.60-64.
(Leoni: The God of Abraham Praise)
Though wicked ways constrain and bind my hands in sin,
yet I recall Your Word and turn to You again.
By night I thank You, LORD; my voice to You I raise;
for all Your righteous, holy Word I give You praise.
All those who fear You, LORD, go with me on my way,
all those who keep Your holy Word from day to day.
Around us all the earth declares Your mercy, LORD.
That I might know Your glorious worth, teach me Your Word.
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest this week: Our Read Moore podcast is concentrating on praying the psalms to seek revival—why we should and what we might expect. Do you ever wonder about what God’s will for you is? Patrick—echoing Paul—makes it clear, as you can see in last week’s Crosfigell. Our current ReVision series, “Pray for Your Church”, teaches us how to pray for the ministries of our church, beginning with worship. And new in our bookstore, our book, The Ongoing Work of Christ shows us how the book of Acts provides a template and footprint for all who take up the work of building Jesus’ Church.
And please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe with your prayers and gifts. You can contribute online, via PayPal or Anedot, or by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
