Wednesday, January 23, 2008

The Gospel of the Kingdom of God

In my reading of Psalms, I discover that David 'preached' the Kingdom of God in many of the Psalms he penned almost 3,000 years ago. Take Psalm 22:28 for example, 'For the kingdom is the Lord's, and He rules over the nations'. David understood full well that he will be king one day after his resurrection, 'You have made me the head of the nations; A people I have not known shall serve me.' (Psalm 18:43a-b). So is the famous Psalm 2:8, where it states - 'Ask of Me (God the Father), and I will give You ( God the Son) the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession. Millions have quoted this verse without understanding what it means!

Interestingly, in Psalm 37, David refers to the term, 'inherit the earth' or 'inherit the land' FIVE times (Ps 37: 9, 11, 22, 29, 34). Such is his faith and trust in the Lord - knowing his destiny and the rewards to come when the Lord will set up His Kingdom on earth after His Second Coming. He understood that that is the reward of the righteous and they shall dwell in the land on earth forever!

Let's now take a look at he New Testament, it records for us that the early Apostles preached the gospel of the Kingdom of God. In 2 Peter 1, Peter enumerates the virtues to emulate so that 'an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ' (verse 11).

The Apostle James wrote, 'Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?' (James 2:5).

The Gospel of Matthew records for us the work of Jesus. Matthew 4:23 and again in 9:35, 'Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people'. It looks like healing accompanies the preaching of the Kingdom of God! In the Matthew Gospel alone, over fifty references were made of the Kingdom of God, and most of them through the use of parables taught by Jesus.

In the Gospel of Luke, it was recorded that the Lord Jesus commanded His disciples to preach the Kingdom of God. 'Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick (Luke 9:1-2). Similarly, in Luke 10:1-9, Jesus appointed seventy others to do likewise - preaching the gospel of the Kingdom of God and heal the sick. Can anything be more clear than these specific commandments of our Lord?

In John 18:36, Jesus stood before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate and uttered these words: 'My kingdom is not of this world' - meaning that God's Government is not found in this present system of human government. In the next verse, Jesus answered Pilate that He was born into this world to be King (Revelation 19:16) and for this purpose He had come - meaning that He came in His first advent to proclaim the message of the Kingdom of God - first to the Jews and when they rejected His message, it was later proclaim to the church (Matthew 21:43).

One of Jesus' disciples - Philip - preached the things concerning the Kingdom of God AND the name of Jesus Christ (clearly showing that they are two separate subjects). Subsequently, both men and women were baptized (Acts 8:12).

I shall now turn to the works of Apostle Paul. This faithful Apostle preached the Kingdom of God to the Gentiles. 'And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God' (Acts 19:8). Also, in Acts 20:25 '...I have gone preaching the kingdom of God' and this was preached alongside the gospel of the grace of God (verse 24). Take note that in Acts 28:30-31, 'Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house, and received all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God AND teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him'.

From all the above evidences found in Scriptures, it is clear that the Kingdom of God is separate from the gospel of grace or gospel of salvation which is equally important to comprehend. It is not one or the other but one with the other!

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Escape All These Things

The main purpose of bible prophecy is twofold- to impress upon humankind that the Government of God is in control and not the powers and wisdom of man; secondly, it serves to warn His people of future crises that will inevitably happen according to His prophetic Word.

The Lord Jesus, in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21, spoke to His disciples about the signs and events of end times which will unfold just before His return. Some of these are earthquakes, famines and pestilences. But some very serious warnings were also spoken of by the Lord - false prophets (and prophecies) will arise to deceive His people, even His elect! As he sat on the Mount of Olives, he issued out this warning THREE TIMES (Matt 24:2-4, 11, 24). So be sure you know what you are believing! There will be betrayal, defection, martyrdom and many will grow cold in the things of God. So when you see these things, know that the Kingdom of God (His Government on earth) is drawing near (Luke 21:31).

Man by his sinful nature is rebellious. He does not want to be ruled by any governmental authority, not least from the throne of God. That is why crime is a big problem in almost every society on planet earth. Can you imagine what will happen if there is no law and order? - there will be mayhem for sure! Similarly, Satan as the father of all evil and deceptions does not want to be ruled under God's authority. So, all those who are his followers will not want to have God's Kingdom come upon earth as that would mean the end of satanic rule and influence. Such forces are coming to steal (take away the truth from you and substitute with heresy, half-truth and falsehood), kill and destroy (cause persecutions, confusion and division like church split etc.) (John 10:10). Can you see why the forces of darkness are working overtime to prevent you from knowing the truth, especially the truth about the coming Kingdom of God?

The present church era is one of Laodicean - mostly lukewarm (Rev 3: 15-16), ignorant (Hosea 4:6) and in love with the world but seemingly unaware that they need to anoint their eyes with eye salve in order to see the truth of reality(Rev 3:17-18). Most Laodicean Christians think they are all right (rich and wealthy -Rev 3:17), and probably never realised that the greatest goal of being a disciple of Jesus Christ is to develop characters that will ultimately receive God's approval so that they can inherit the Kingdom of God. What tremendous riches, glory and honour await those faithful servants of God that all the wealth, power and status one can accumulate in this life are nothing but trinkets by comparison!

Note that Rev 3:18 warns the Laodiceans to clothe themselves with white garments to avoid exposing their loins of nakedness (see also Eph 6:14 -KJV).
What this means is that a disciple should study the Word of God (2 Tim 2:15), so that he will be approved of God and not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth, so that the Spirit of truth will guide him into right thinking, right understanding which leads to right living. And right living will lead to righteous works approved of God at the Judgment Seat of Christ (1 Cor 3:12-13). Only with the real truth will we have purity of heart- gold refined in fire, without mixture - for they are the blessed ones who will see God (Matt 5:8). It is now obvious that Christ is offering this rebuke to Laodiceans seeking for their repentance and correction while there is still time (Rev 3: 19-20).

Psalm 51 depicts David's repentance and seeking for God's mercy after his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of her husband Uriah. The Spirit of God was waning in his life and he asked the Lord not to take the Holy Spirit away from him (verse 11). David asked the Lord to wash and cleanse him from his sins (verse 2). Similarly, we can ask the Lord to do so through His Word (John 15:3; John 17:17; Eph 5: 25-26). Only Jesus Christ can do this supernatural act of spiritual surgery of purifying the soul, if only we allow Him.

Remember, that in the coming Great Tribulation, only faithful and overcoming disciples of Jesus Christ will escape the cataclysm that will surely befall upon the earth. Will you stand up and be counted as among the faithful and obedient disciples who will escape all these things (Luke 21:36c)? If you make the right choices now, when all is over and the chips are cast with the books open, you will sit down with the Lord in His Kingdom ruling and reigning with Him (Rev 3:21; 2 Tim 2:12a). What a wonderful world awaits your destiny!

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

The Ezekiel Warning

The Lord Jesus in the Olivet prophecy told His disciples: 'And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to ALL THE NATIONS, and then the end will come.' (Matthew 24:14). Similarly, Jesus commanded His disciples to make 'disciples of ALL THE NATIONS' in the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19. Therein lies the link between the good news of the Kingdom of God and making disciples OF ALL NATIONS in these last days.

Following from my previous blog regarding the Work of God in these last days, I mention about the Ezekiel Warning from Ezekiel 33:1-9 and Ezekiel 3:17 about a watchman's warning to the House of Israel just before the coming Great Tribulation that will come upon planet earth with destruction like never before. The House of Israel consists of the Jews (from the Southern Kingdom of Judah) and the descendants of the 'ten lost tribes' (from the Northern Kingdom of Israel). While the former are mainly in the land of Israel, the latter are primarily the Anglo-Saxon people scattered throughout Europe, America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand today. Many in the House of Israel have no idea of their identity, let alone what lies ahead for their destiny. The Ezekiel Warning is meant primarily for these people and the church has a vital role to play!

The vast majority of the House of Israel have never been warned of what prophecy lies ahead for the descendants of the twelve tribes of Israel. These sons of Abraham, probably numbered in the hundreds of millions worldwide, have no clue of what is coming upon their land and on their peoples. This generation alive today is probably the most rebellious and idolatrous likened to the days of Noah, Sodom and Gomorrah (Luke 17:26-30). The Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:6-12 warns in typology of similar past events recorded for our learning.

The Apostle Paul in Romans 9:27-28 quoted from Isaiah 10:20-23 about the remnant of Israel who will return to the Lord and to the land of their fathers. After shaking off the enslavement from the Assyrians and the Babylonians, the House of Israel is under a different kind of bondage - the systems of the world under the control of Satan who is the god of this world (2 Cor 4:4) which has blinded them from the truth of their identity and destiny for over two-and-half millennia!

But a time will come (in the Millennial Age after Christ' Return) when they will be freed from all these enslavements as Isaiah prophesied in chapter 52:2, 'Shake yourself from the dust, arise; Sit down, O Jerusalem! Loose yourself from the bonds of your neck, O captive daughter of Zion!'

During World War II, the Jews from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin were enslaved by the Germans (of the Aryan race who are primarily the modern descendants of Assyria). Some six million Jews were massacred in death camps throughout Germany and Poland such as Auschwitz, Dachau, Treblinka, Sobibor, Bergen-Belsen and Buchenwald. My wife and I visited the Holocaust Histroy Museum at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem just last December. It was really touching as I view the photographs and film clips and hear the testimonies of some of the survivors. A word of comfort brought to mind from the prophecy of Jeremiah in Jeremiah 23:3 that the Lord 'will gather His flock out of all countries where He have driven them, and bring them back to their folds, and they shall be fruitful and increase'. Such is their future and hope.

Following in verses 5 and 6 of the same chapter in Jeremiah, the Lord says, 'Behold, the days are coming, That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King (Jesus Christ) shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In His days (the Millennial Kingdom of God) Judah (Jews) will be saved, And Israel (Israelites -the lost ten tribes) will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS'. Their (House of Israel) hope and future is the soon coming Government of God to be established on planet earth where there will be peace and righteousness with the Prince of Peace on the throne. The prophecy of Jeremiah 29:11 ('to give you a future and a hope') will be twice fulfilled (duality of prophecy), the first upon the return of the Jews (fulfilled) and next the return of the House of Israel to their motherland!

God's warning to the House of Israel is repeated in Ezekiel 6:6-8 about the coming punishment of their rebellious and idolatrous ways. Only a remnant (one-third - Ezekiel 5:12) will be saved during the coming Great Tribulation. Again in Ezekiel 20, God's warning to His people of the coming punishment for those who refused to repent of their sins. In fact, the warning is so severe that in Amos 8:11 it states, 'Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord God, That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the word of the Lord'!

Some people from within the church will be called of the Lord to warn the House of Israel that are presently scattered in various lands. The Day of the Lord is coming to strike the earth in the last year of the Great Tribulation (the wrath of God). Will all those who hear the Word of God take heed and take action to repent while there is still time? Only the overcomers and the faithful will be counted worthy to escape all these things (Luke 21:36c).