The kingdom of God is, in essence,
God's redemptive reign. Yet it can be easy to overlook this prominent
theme in the life of Jesus, and tempting to assume rather than
investigate the importance of the kingdom for Jesus. When we miss
the significance of the kingdom to Jesus, however, we can miss the
significance of the kingdom for biblical theology and ethics.
So
how important was the kingdom of God to Jesus? What was his
relationship to the in-breaking of the eschatological kingdom? Let's
examine ten ways Jesus related to the kingdom.
1. Jesus inaugurates the kingdom. With the coming of
Christ, the kingdom begins not in the coronation of a mighty king but
in the birth of a crying baby. Yet as Jesus' ministry begins in Mark, he
announces, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand;
repent and believe in the gospel" (Mark 1:15). What Israel had long awaited, Christ had now inaugurated. Continue at Phillip Bethancourt
No comments:
Post a Comment