Kingdom of Heaven – 1
1) foundation….
Last Week :
Mark – immediate
Today:
MATTHEW – Levi – Levitical priesthood
Kingdom of Heaven
Daniel 2:44
And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and thatkingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.
Jesus’ core message- what was it?
By word Cloud??? ( KJV)
“But the Romans – the obvious enemies of first-century Jews – wouldn’t have crucified someone whose main crime was telling Jews to love them and turn the other cheek! If anything, the Romans would have protected such a peacemaker. So, the rock solid fact of Jesus’ crucifixion suggests that the core of his message must have been more contentious, indeed, more scandalous, than a call to love.”
https://depree.org/jesus-and-the-kingdom-of-god-what-you-need-to-know/
Matthew – word usage
By count in gospels:
Love. – 66
Bread – 58
Heaven – 74
Kingdom – 121
Kingdom of Heaven, Kingdom of God
Kingdom: Two obvious options….
- Place –
- Authority –
Mark 1:15
15 “The time has come,”(A) he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe(B) the good news!”(C)
What were people hearing when they heard this announced?
What we hear, with the entire New Testament at hand …..,
Mark 1:15. Amplified Bible
15 and saying, “The [appointed period of] time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, regret past sins, live your life in a way that proves repentance; seek God’s purpose for your life] and believe [with a deep, abiding trust] in the good news [regarding salvation].”
GOD AS KING !
Gen 2 “you are free / you must not “
1 Samuel 8
6 But when they said, “Give us a king(M) to lead us,” this displeased(N) Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord told him: “Listen(O) to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected,(P) but they have rejected me as their king.(Q) 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking(R) me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know(S) what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.”
Zeph 3:14-20, emphasis added)
According to this prophecy, at the right time the LORD himself will be the “king of Israel.” In this role, he will give victory to his people, removing their oppressors, gathering their scattered exiles, and restoring their fortunes.
PROOF of Kingdom arrival
Healings
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy” (Isa 35:5-6). The fact that these things were happening in the ministry of Jesus proved the presence of the kingdom.
Exorcisms
But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you” (Matt 12:28). Whatever we might think of Jesus’ exorcisms, for him and his fellow first-century Jews they are a demonstration of the presence of God’s reign.
Power over Nature
O LORD God of hosts, who is as mighty as you, O LORD? Your faithfulness surrounds you. You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves rise, you still them” (Ps 89:8-9). So Jesus’ power over nature suggests that God’s promised kingdom has arrived and, indeed, that God himself is somehow truly present in the ministry of Jesus.
Mark 10
Different Idea – Better Example
You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as ransom for many.” (10:42-45)
The attitudes exhibited by James and John, and the rest of the disciples for that matter, are inconsistent with the way of Jesus, which leads to greatness but only through servanthood.
King of the Jews / My Kingdom
The “being king” problem…
33 Pilate then went back inside the palace,(AP) summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”(AQ)
34 “Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?”
35 “Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?”
36 Jesus said, “My kingdom(AR) is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders.(AS) But now my kingdom is from another place.”(AT)
37 “You are a king, then!” said Pilate.
Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth.(AU) Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”(AV)
What do you hear in Kingdom of Heaven?
Through His Blood
Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!
Lo, your king comes to you;
triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the war horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
and he shall command peace to the nations;
his dominion shall be from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. (Zech 9:9-11)