Category: Jesus

The Centrality of The Resurrection Part III

Posted on by Lyle Duell in Biblical doctrines, Jesus, The Resurrection

The Centrality of The Resurrection

Part III

 In part two of our series on the centrality of the Resurrection we saw how the apostle Peter used the Resurrection as the centrality of his argument for the Lordship of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:1-38).  As we move on in the book of Acts to the third chapter, we find the apostle Peter and John speaking the message of Christ to a multitude of people.

However, before looking at that sermon we need to talk a little bit about the miraculous.  It seems that modern man has a hard time believing in the miraculous.  The question is, why?  I think one of the reasons is because that modern men compare modern-day miracles with those in the Bible, thinking that they are the same.  The reason for this is their lack of scriptural knowledge and the assumption that the word miracle is used today as it was in biblical times.  When you begin to study the subject of miracles in the Bible, especially in the New Testament, you begin to see a clear distinction between modern-day miracles and the miracles of the Bible. The clearest distinctions are is that in the New Testament the miracles which were attributed to Jesus were never questioned as to their authenticity, as miracles are today.  The closest thing to challenging the miracles of Jesus was when the religious leaders made the charge that he performed miracles through the power of the devil and not God. However their accusations, in this there was no denial that he was not performing miracles.  Another difference was that the miracles done by Jesus and the apostles were complete. There were no partial healings and the majority of the miracles were done in public. I mean that they were wonders that were accomplished right before your eyes.  They were not vague demonstrations of the miraculous like curing an unseen cancer or tumor, nor could they be explained by the natural healing processes.

Let me summarize the difference by pointing out that in the first century Jesus and the apostles proved their words by their miracles.  Today, men try to prove their miracles by their words.  Because of this, their words seemed to be somewhat hollow and lacking a ring of truth. Why the difference?  The difference is seen in their purpose.  Modern day miracles, if that is the right word to refer to them by, seem to be for the purpose of comforting the afflicted.  Now there’s nothing wrong with comforting the sick and afflicted.  However, I do not believe that comforting the afflicted was the main purpose of the miracles of Jesus and the apostles.  Their miracles were performed to confirm their authority and the authority of their message.  The writer of the book of Hebrews infers this when he says, “This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” (Heb 2:3-4).  Here the writer says that the apostles confirmed their witness of the Lordship of Jesus to the early church and the world by their miracles.

In the gospel of Mark chapter, two we find the story of Jesus healing a paralyzed man who could not walk.  However, when the man was brought to Jesus for healing, Jesus told him that his sins were forgiven.  The story tells us that some of the lawyers of the law who were sitting there heard statement and challenged his authority to forgive sins.  In response to their challenge Jesus said to them “but that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins… he said to the paralytic.  I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” When the onlookers saw the man get up and walk the Bible says that they were all amazed, and they praised God, saying, we have never seen anything like this!  Here again, we see the same pattern.  The miracles were done to establish the authority of the speaker; in this case it was Christ.

Why do we not have miracle workers today like Jesus and the apostles?  Well, it’s quite obvious; Jesus went back to heaven and the apostles and those that were given  the gift of working affirmation miracles died out.  The early fathers of the Church in the second century seem to indicate that in their lifetime, there were fewer and fewer authoritative and verification miracles.  This seems to indicate that these kinds of miracles were limited to the first century and the early part of the second century.  This is in keeping with the fact that God, throughout history, has been a God that hides himself and only reveals himself miraculously in certain periods of time, and to special people (Isa 45:15).  When the kingdom draws close, and is present in certain people, then the miraculous becomes more frequent.  Jesus said the kingdom of God is near, and he also said that the kingdom was present in him. The word ‘kingdom’ is a symbol that stands for the authority and rule of God. So Jesus was saying that the rule and authority of God were present in Him, and his authority and power were being confirmed by the miracles that he performed.

Some may be asking why are verification miracles not happening today?  Let me give you a number of answers which may explain why we don’t see these kinds of miracles today. Any one of the explanations is sufficient to answer the question. It could be that a lack of true faith mighty be a hindrance to God working miracles today, just as it was sometimes in the first century.  Jesus said a “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But, none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah”.  Many have misunderstood the words of Jesus in this passage believing that Jesus was talking about the actual resurrection.  However, if that was the case he would be contradicting himself, because the resurrection was the miracle of miracles.  What he was talking about was that the only thing which the people of that faithless generation would see is the presence of the son of God.  In other words, you cannot kill the truth, for God will resurrect it.  Even as he rescued Jonah from the ocean, He rescued his son from the grave.  Today we have a similar situation; we live in an adulterous unbelieving generation.  The only sign unbelievers will receive is the presence of the Son of Man, in his Body, called the Church.

It is also self-evident to those that know the overall context of the Scriptures and the history of God’s people that God never intended for his people to live on a mike and toast diet of miracles.  The Scriptures are clear that we live by faith not by sight.  Those who are constantly looking for miracles are immature and carnal, they need to grow up and learn how to live by faith.  The history of God’s people demonstrates that there had always been long periods of time where there were no miracles (Judges 6:13).  In fact, if miracles were commonplace and frequent they would no longer be miracles.  The word miracle itself means something that is out of the ordinary and supernatural. When you make miracles normal or daily you destroy the meaning of the word.

We also need to remember that miracles were signs to the unbelieving people of God, not to unbelievers in general. Signs and miracles were to confirm the word not to people in general, but mainly to the Jewish nation (I Cor. 14:18-25).  The apostles and the prophets of the first-century church confirmed the word to the nation of Israel by signs and wonders and miracles.  If this is true, then their purpose has been fulfilled, and in being fulfilled they are no longer needed for that purpose.

¶When the apostle Paul spoke to the Greek philosophers in Athens he did not work any miracles to confirm his word, but rather, he reasoned with them from their own authors and personally bore witness to his experience with Jesus (Acts 19:23-41).  I believe this is evidence that the confirmation miracles were mainly for believers (mainly Jews) and not for Gentiles.  However, there are exceptions for example; the story of Cornelius in the book of Acts in the 10th and 11th chapters.  But even there Cornelius was a Gentile convert to Judaism and was a believer before he heard the gospel. Then there is a man who was crippled from birth listening to Paul preach at Lystra in the Book of Acts.  Even there it says that the crippled man  had faith; he was not an unbeliever (Acts 14:9).  In that chapter of Acts, we may see the reason for God limiting signs to believers.  It is clear from this particular chapter that pagans were prone to worship those who were performing the miracles.  So working miracles for unbelievers would’ve been confusing for them and counterproductive in the preaching of the Gospel (Acts 14:11-18).  In contrast, the Jewish people understood the purpose of miracles, that purpose was to confirm God’s word (Deut. 18:21, 22). In fact, the Jews expected anyone claiming to be speaking for God to prove their words by miracles. Paul said that “Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified:” (1 Cor. 1:22). Paul understood that the power of God is not in the miraculous or human reason but rather in the gospel of Jesus Christ. A  lesson that sign seeking Christians need to learn.

This raises the question; does God need to confirm his word to every person in every generation to create faith?  No.  The main purpose of the signs, wonders and miracles were to confirm and establish a body of knowledge that God’s people would look to as authoritative. That body of knowledge was formed by God through his providence by creating the New Testament Scriptures through the work of Christ, his apostles and the Holy Spirit.  The Scriptures have forever been confirmed to the believer and are sufficient to create faith in those that are truly seeking God (John 20:30, 31).  The reason for this is because Jesus put his Spirit in his word and when one believes the word, the Spirit is imparted to them by the word of God.  The spirit that is born by the word creates the life of God. Jesus said, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life” (John 6:63 also note 1Tim 3:16).

In the Gospel of Luke we have a further confirmation of what I have been articulating. In the story of the rich man and Lazarus, you have the rich man asking father Abraham to send Lazarus back to his five brother’s  that they might become believers. He seemed to think that a miracle of someone coming back from the dead would persuade them to believe.  Abraham responded by saying to him that “they have Moses and the prophets” in other words, the Scriptures.  However, the rich man continued to insist that they would believe if a dead man appeared to them.  In response, Abraham tells the rich man, “if they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead” (Luke 16:27-31).  This appears to confirm what I’ve been saying; that miracles in themselves do not create faith and  their purpose never has been to create faith.  Their purpose was to confirm the word of God’s and create a body of knowledge for future generations to believe through all time.

It is interesting to note that all miracles spoken about happening after the death of the apostles and prophets of the first-century church are worked by the antichrist and the false prophet spoken about in the books of First Thessalonians and the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ (2 Thess. 2:9-11, Rev 16:13-14).  This alone should cause people to be skeptical about modern-day miracles and the men who claim to perform them.

All this has been said about miracles, to demonstrate the fact that an intelligent person can question and not believe in the so-called signs and miracles of modern-day religion, and still believe in the miracle of the Resurrection and other New Testament miracles. It is also important to know that the author believes that God is still actively working in his creation, healing the sick and comforting the afflicted. However, His work today is hidden and can only be seen with the eyes of faith. In this way, God confirms his existence and faithfulness to the faithful and hides himself from the unbelievers. Our ancestors called this the providence of God and believed that God was absolutely in control, but worked behind the veil to accomplish his will. 

To be continued

Heb 2:1-4

 We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.  For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him.  God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Centrality of The Resurrection Part II

Posted on by Lyle Duell in Biblical doctrines, Jesus, The Resurrection

The Centrality of The Resurrection

Part II

In part one of our series on the centrality of the resurrection we pointed out that in the earliest proclamation of the Gospel there was a heavy emphasis placed on the resurrection of Christ and his corresponding lordship.  We saw that in the book of Romans the apostle Paul spent equal or more time on the subject of the resurrection than he did on the death of Christ for our sins.  In fact, he contributes justification and salvation to the resurrection (Rom. 4:25, 5:9-12).  He also points out that the resurrection is the proof God has given to all mankind that Jesus is His one and only unique son (Rom. 1:4).

In speaking about the centrality of the resurrection, we are not inferring that Christ crucified or dying for our sins is not central to the Christian gospel.  Both the death of Christ and his resurrection are central to the New Testament witness.  They are actually two sides of the same event.  We can call this event the Christ event.  The apostle Paul in speaking about the Christ event says that the death and resurrection are the central elements of the gospel of Jesus Christ and spoke about them as one happening or event (I Cor. 15:1-4).  In one aspect we could say that his death was the beginning of the resurrection for it marked the beginning of his exodus from this world into glory (Luke 19:31).  He has promised that all those that will put their faith in him will join him in that great exodus on the final day.  His resurrection is a guarantee that they will be fellow sojourners with him into the heavenly places.

In part two of our series I would like to look at a few of the sermons of the early disciples found in the book of Acts in the New Testament.  The first one is found in Acts chapter 2:22-36.  The speaker is the apostle Peter and he is speaking for himself and the other apostles who were all witnesses of the resurrection.  The following is his message to the very Jews, who crucified  Christ.

22 “Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25 David said about him:

“‘I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, 27 because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. 28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.’ 

29 “Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,

“‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand 35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” ‘ 

36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

In the above section of the book of Acts, we find the apostle Peter making a series of arguments for Jesus being the Christ.  In making his arguments he calls upon five witnesses to the lordship of Jesus Christ.  In verse 22, he points people to the witness of the life of Christ and the miracle’s God did through Christ.  If nothing else the miracles were a witness to the fact that this man was approved by God.  In verse 23, he points out to the people that even though God demonstrated his approval of Jesus through working signs and wonders and miracles through him, still the people put him to death.  Then in verse 24 he again says that God bore witness to Jesus again by raising him from the dead.  In verse 25 Peter points to the witness of Old Testament scriptures, pointing out that the resurrection was the fulfillment of the prophecy made by David in the Old Testament.  In verses 29 through 31 Peter explains exactly how this prophecy was fulfilled by the resurrection.  Then in verse 32 he points out the witness of the twelve apostles who all personally witnessed Jesus raised from the dead.  Finally, in verse 33 he points out that the Holy Spirit was bearing witness to Christ and the resurrection by fulfilling an Old Testament prophecy, which predicted God would pour out his Spirit on his people in the last days, which was the very experience that Peter’s listeners had themselves witnessed (Acts 2:14-21).  How could they deny what they were seeing and hearing?  So we have the witness of the life of Christ, the witness of the resurrection, the witness of scripture, the witness of the apostles and the witness of the Holy Spirit all pointing to fact that Jesus is the Christ the Lord.

Some might object because they do not believe in the miraculous, but let me submit  that the conversion of these 3000 people in itself is an evidence to the miraculous.  In verse, 23 Peter said he was speaking to the very people who had crucified Jesus.  His audience accepted his remarks about the miraculous signs and wonders that Jesus worked and his miraculous resurrection.  If there ever was a group of people that could have disputed the miracles of Jesus and his resurrection, this was the group, but they did not.  This also would have been an excellent time for the enemies of the Jesus movement to produce a body or for someone to have disputed the life and miracles of Jesus.  However, there were no counter-witnesses to anything that the apostle Peter said.

I think it’s quite evident that we do not have the complete sermon that the apostle Peter preached in Acts chapter 2. What we have is an abbreviated version of the sermon.  It is evident from verse 38 in the chapter that Peter also spoke to the multitude about the forgiveness of sins.  In verse 40, it clearly stated that he spoke many other words to the audience.  However, one thing we do know is that the Holy Spirit saw fit to record in Scripture this emphasis on the resurrection and lordship of Jesus. Which we will see is a pattern throughout the Book of Acts.

 

To be continued

Rom 10:8-10

That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

 

The Centrality of the Resurrection Part I

Posted on by Lyle Duell in Biblical doctrines, Jesus, The Resurrection

The Centrality of the Resurrection

Part I

The resurrection of Jesus Christ has been so neglected by followers of Jesus that we might wonder whether they are really the followers of the same Jesus Christ of the first disciples.  From a casual reading of the New Testament, but especially the Book of Acts, the early disciples not only believed in the resurrected Christ but also made the message of the resurrection along with the death of Christ the centrality of their preaching.

It is the church’s faith in the resurrection of her Lord that makes the Christian faith different from all other faiths.  Without the resurrection, the Christian faith is nothing more than a lifeless religion.  Everyone who professes to be a Christian must ask himself whether he really believes in the resurrection or is it simply a doctrine that one believes because of tradition.  The answer to this question can be found by reflecting on what impact it has had on your life.  Do you think and life as though Jesus is alive and coming back to judge the living and the dead?

Let’s take a look at early preaching of the first century church.  We can begin in the book of Romans.  The apostle Paul in Romans 10:9-11 said that belief in the resurrection is one of two of the foundational beliefs that makes one a Christian and is required for salvation.  “That if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”  As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame” (Rom. 10:9-11).

In his opening remarks in the book of Romans, Paul said that the resurrection of Jesus established His Lordship and His authority for the believer “who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 1:4).  Without the resurrection, Jesus would not be the Christ.  For how could a dead man be the Christ and how could a man who was convicted as a common criminal and executed be the Lord and Savior of the world?  We will see that it was the resurrection that justified Jesus and all those who believe in Him as their Lord.

During the ministry of Jesus, the disciples felt privileged that they were chosen to be the disciples of the master.  However, after his arrest, trial, and crucifixion they were not so proud.  In fact, some were ashamed, believing that maybe they had made a great mistake.  To them it looked like the political and religious powers had demonstrated that this Jesus they followed was a common criminal, a liar, and a false prophet.  They were disillusioned and ashamed of their faith and their commitment to this man.  They were perplexed at how they could have been so deceived and so wrong about the one that they had put their hope and trust in.

However, the story was not over yet for God raised Him from the dead.  In raising Him from the dead, God renewed the hope and trust of the disciples in their Messiah.  Years after the resurrection, the apostle Peter speaks about the renewal of their hope through the resurrection when he said, “In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3- 4).  Note that the apostle speaks of living Hope, a Hope that can never again be diminished by the death of its author.  But God did more than that, for in the resurrection God spoke to them confirming everything that Jesus had told them and even more.  He revealed numerous new truths through the resurrection event.

One of those truths is that the disciples of Jesus will never be put to shame again.  “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame (Rom. 10:9-11).  On the Judgment Day many people will be ashamed of what they have said and done.  But the resurrection is the believer’s assurance that his sins have been forgiven and that he will never be ashamed before the living God.  The apostle Paul said, “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification” (Rom 4:25).  “Who is he that condemns?  He is Christ Jesus, who died and more than that was raised to life where he is now at the right hand of God interceding for us” (Rom 8:34-35).  For the apostle Paul, the resurrection is the evidence that the believers’ sins are forgiven and that they stand justified before God.  Without the witness of the resurrection we are still dead in our sins.  “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins” (1 Cor. 15:17-19).

Moreover, it is the resurrection of Jesus Christ that sets Him above all earthly authorities.  It was the religious and political powers that condemned Jesus to death.  They said He was guilty of blaspheming and rebellion against Rome.  The religious leaders said that His crucifixion would be a witness to the fact that He was accused by God.  “Cursed is everyone that hangs on a tree.”  They said that according to law of God, He must die.  But in the resurrection, God reversed their decision and said that the accursed one is the justified one.  In this, He set Jesus up over the Old Testament Torah (Law).  In this, God demonstrates through the resurrection that Jesus is greater than Moses and the Old Testament law.  The Romans sealed His tomb with the seal of Caesar which was the symbol of absolute authority.  The seal said, “This man will stay in the tomb.”  But over and against all of this, God raised Him from the dead, showing that the authority of Jesus is greater than the authority of Rome or any earthly authority.  In fact, His authority is even greater than natural law that says that death is permanent.  It was after the resurrection that Jesus said to His disciples, “All authority in heaven and earth has been given unto me.”  Therefore, for the believer there is no authority or power in heaven or on earth that is greater than the authority and power of Jesus.  The resurrection is the witness of His authority and power “who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 1:4).

One reason why we pray through Jesus Christ to the Father is that we believe that He has special authority in heaven and earth.  He himself said after the resurrection, “All power has been given to me in heaven and earth” (Matt 28:18-19).  The reason we can believe that He has all power in heaven and earth is because He demonstrated it by raising Himself up above and conquering every power in the universe.  The greatest of those powers which stands against God and man was death.  In the resurrection Jesus the Christ destroyed death for all those who believe in Him.  It is also the resurrection that gives us the assurance that death has been defeated and that life now reigns in the person of God’s son.

It is through the resurrection that we can have the assurance that our sins are forgiven and that we have eternal life.  The apostle John says, ” I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life (I John 5:13-14).  John says we can have the assurance of eternal life through faith in Christ.  This assurance comes to all who have placed their faith in the resurrection of Christ.  This assurance has nothing to do with one’s goodness.  If it did, no one could have assurance for no one could be good enough.  How would you know when you completely satisfied the demands of God?  The believer’s assurance of the forgiveness of sins and eternal life is based on the authority of Jesus.

The resurrection also defines which God the Christian believes in.  In the first century there were a multitude of gods to choose from.  There were the Greek gods and the Eastern gods.  There were the gods of the heavens and there were gods of the underworld.  However, for the Christians there was but one God.  That one God was defined as “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ” and “the God who raises the dead” (Rom. 4:24).  Not only does the resurrection define God, it also places Him above all the powers of the universe.  For He is the God of life who stands above the deadness of the universe.  He is the God of life and resurrection.  You see, the most powerful force in the creation before the coming of Christ into the world was death, but in the resurrection God raises Jesus above the forces and power of death.  Think about it.  Doesn’t science teach the second law of thermodynamics which says that everything is dying?  When God raised up Jesus, He set a new law in motion.  The apostle Paul calls it the “law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:2).  If you believe in Jesus, you will receive His Spirit and will live, even in the face of death.

 

(To be continued)

Rom 11:33-36

 ” Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!

How unsearchable his judgments,

and his paths beyond tracing out!

   “Who has known the mind of the Lord?

Or who has been his counselor?

 “Who has ever given to God,

that God should repay him?”

 For from him and through him and to him are all things.

To him be the glory forever! Amen.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other Worlds

Posted on by Lyle Duell in Biblical doctrines, Jesus

Other Worlds

 

“He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” John 1:10-13

There are many worlds—the ones created by God and the ones created by the imagination of man. God has often accommodated us in our worlds the way a parent would accommodate a young child who was playing in a make-believe world. He even talked baby talk to us at times. You know, He really wanted us to grow up. He spent a lot of time and energy maturing us, getting humanity ready for the coming of the Teacher who would give us the truth about God and ourselves. He spent a lot of time telling us the most amazing and imaginative “bedtime stories” that point toward the Teacher. Now they are called “myths” by many. He used the nation of Israel to reveal a moral code to the world and her prophets predict His coming. He used the Greeks to mature our thinking and He used the Romans to connect the world with a universal road system and language. When things were just right, He placed The One among us and thus began the greatest story ever told.

You see, now and then the real world of God breaks into our world through different people and events. The events we call miracles. The people we call prophets. They usually come into our world to tell us that our world is a mess and that we need to put things in order. We usually respond in less than a cordial way. We often angrily reject the prophets and ignore the events.  Afterward, to justify ourselves, we made some saints or heroes make us feel good about how we and our ancestors have behaved. We then enshrine them in a mausoleum that we call religion, and there they rest as mummies of the past, safely hidden from the real world of us mortals.

When the Teacher came into this world He told us that God’s patience was wearing thin and everyone needed to grow up and open his eyes to the new world which God was about to create.   It would be completed in and through the coming of The One.  He warned people and told them to “wake up for the Kingdom of God is near”.  However, the Teacher also pointed out that He would be our last wake-up call.  No one else would be coming to wake us up. The One was delivering the final warning.

It was predicted that The One would speak and talk to us in a unique way.  He would speak in parables and hard sayings.  It was said that only the elect, those with an undivided heart who were prepared for His coming, would be able to understand His message. They had been watching God’s activity in the world and knew that everything was just right for the coming of The One. When they heard the Teacher proclaim that the Kingdom of God was at hand they understood immediately, that God was about to create a new world order. When the Teacher spoke, He always spoke of the kingdom (the new order) and was continuously inviting people to join Him in building the new Kingdom of God.  He is still inviting people.  Those who have ears to hear and eyes to see will continue to enter and experience the new world of God or what the Teacher called the Kingdom of God.

Before leaving this world The One told those who were of the elect that He was leaving this world to prepare an eternal home for them, another world that was much different than this one. He explained He had to do it that way because the old order was so broken, it could not be fixed. He told His friends to wait patiently for His return. He instructed the elect ones that their mission until He came back, was to tell others about Him and His coming return. They were to shed His light into the darkness that filled this world. He even gave them a list of peculiar happenings to watch out for while they were waiting and working. He also cautioned them to watch out for the trappings of religion they would find all around them. They were not to spend so much of their time collecting the things of this world since this pursuit would distract them from their mission of spreading the good news of the new world that was coming.

Have you heard the voice of The One who said, “Come follow me”?

 

I