Category: Gospel of the Kingdom

Note the Horizon! #7

Monday, October 14, 2024

“Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,…” (Romans 1:1 KJV).

Friend, do you see the horizon here? How can it facilitate your understanding and enjoyment of the Bible?

Going all the way back to when God placed man on the Earth, Adam’s creation, He has always had some Gospel (good news) to share with man (Genesis 1:28; Genesis 2:16,17; Genesis 3:15; and so on). Father God has spoken about His Son Jesus Christ in some capacity, as Peter preached in Acts 3:20,21: “…Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.”

Christ would reign in an earthly kingdom—the very earthly kingdom Adam and Eve would have enjoyed but lost because of sin in Genesis chapter 3 (Matthew 25:34, “the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world”). This was the same earthly kingdom that was passed on to Israel, the one at the heart of the Gospel of the Kingdom preached during Matthew to John and early Acts (see Matthew 3:1,2; Matthew 4:17,23,24; Matthew 9:35; Matthew 10:5-7; Mark 1:14,15; Luke 10:9; Acts 2:29,30; Acts 3:21; Acts 5:31).

The above earthly kingdom, however, was contingent upon Israel’s rise to kingdom glory in accepting the King, Messiah Jesus—whom they refused and crucified in unbelief because they were too self-righteous to admit their sin problem (see Romans 9:30–10:4). After prolonged national unbelief in early Acts, resulting in Stephen’s murder, Israel loses her special status before God and Paul’s apostleship now begins. “I say then, Have they [Israel] stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy. Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness? For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:…” (Romans 11:11-13).

With Israel’s fall comes a new Gospel, the Gospel of Grace….

Note the Horizon! #5

Saturday, October 12, 2024

“Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,…” (Romans 1:1 KJV).

Friend, do you see the horizon here? How can it facilitate your understanding and enjoyment of the Bible?

“Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come” (Matthew 12:31,32). Though Israel spoke against the Son of Man (“We have no king but Caesar!;” John 19:15), Christ’s crucifixion was forgiven them (Luke 23:34) and Israel was given a renewed opportunity of repentance during early Acts.

Yet, Israel opposed the Holy Spirit’s ministry through the Little Flock, climaxing with the Prophet Stephen’s sermon (“ye do always resist the Holy Ghost;” Acts 7:51) and his death by stoning (verses 58-60). This blasphemy of the Holy Ghost could not be forgiven. “But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God” (verses 55,56). Christ, once seated, was now standing to return and make His enemies/foes His footstool (Psalm 110:1; Acts 2:32-36).

Present at Stephen’s murder is a young man, Saul of Tarsus, who also holds the clothes of Stephen’s killers (Acts 7:58). Saul consents to or approves Stephen’s death (Acts 8:1). Years later, now as the Apostle Paul, he recounts for us: “And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee: And when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him. And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles” (Acts 22:19-21).

With Israel in obstinate unbelief, God raised up a new Apostle, Saul of Tarsus (the leading self-righteous, Christ-rejecting Jew!)….

Note the Horizon! #4

Friday, October 11, 2024

“Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,…” (Romans 1:1 KJV).

Friend, do you see the horizon here? How can it facilitate your understanding and enjoyment of the Bible?

When we look out to the horizon, we see a clear boundary between earth (bottom) and sky (top). Primarily a gas, the sky suspends small solid particles and water droplets, plus ice crystals in its higher layers. It reflects blue light. Most of Earth’s surface is liquid (water); the rest is solid (rock, soil, and ice). Earth and its vegetation reflect green, yellow, and brown light. Blending sky and earth results in confusion or disorientation (knowing neither where you are nor where you are going). Put the horizon back where it belongs and all becomes clear.

The Greek word for “separated” in today’s Scripture in “aphoridzo,” derived from “apo” (“from, away, off”) and “horidzo” (“mark out, limit, specify”). “Horion” means “border, coast.” Such is the basis for the English “horizon.” As there is a physical horizon, so there is a spiritual horizon that we dare not overlook. It is Paul being “separated” from the other Apostles, isolated from the rest of mankind. The beginning of his ministry marks a clear boundary: it is a break in prophecy, a departure from God’s prior dealings with man.

In prophecy, Israel is first: God saves Israel nationally to use redeemed and converted Israel as His kingdom of priests, His channel of salvation and blessing to the world/Gentiles/nations. “Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities” (Acts 3:25,26). This is the Abrahamic Covenant (Genesis 12:1-3; Isaiah 60:1-3; Zechariah 8:20-23).

Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ and His 12 Apostles were sent to Israel first (Matthew 10:5-7; Matthew 15:24). Once all of Israel was converted via this Gospel of the Kingdom (Jesus is Christ), Israel would preach to the Gentiles (Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 24:47; Acts 1:8). Yet, as the Books of Matthew through John and the opening seven chapters of Acts show, all Jews did not believe….

An Inescapable Testimony #4

Monday, September 30, 2024

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12 KJV).

How can we have an inescapable testimony?

Turning to Christ commissioning His 12 Apostles, we read, “And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city” (Matthew 10:14,15). “And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city” (Mark 6:11).

As for commissioning His 70 Preachers, we learn, “And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you: And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say, Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city” (Luke 10:8-12).

What a frightening concept! As terrible as the Day of Judgment will be for the citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah when they are sentenced to the eternal Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:11-15), even their punishment will be light or easy when compared to the dreadful fate awaiting the residents of the cities of Israel whose streets the Son of God and His dozens of preachers trod as they proclaimed the Gospel of the Kingdom to willingly deaf ears….

No Wedding Garment! #5

Friday, July 26, 2024

“And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless” (Matthew 22:11,12 KJV).

Who is this who has no “wedding garment?”

When prophecy resumes one day, leading up to Christ’s return to reign on Earth, God will have messengers preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom. “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14). “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned” (Mark 16:15,16). “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come” (Matthew 10:22,23). The “two witnesses” of Revelation 11:3-13 and the 144,000 male Jewish preachers of Revelation 7:4-8 will have this ministry.

The above is the third and final call of The Parable of the Wedding Feast of Matthew 22:1-14. Re-read verses 8-10: “Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy. Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage. So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.” This is Daniel’s 70th Week, the seven-year Tribulation.

Here is today’s Scripture at last: “[11] And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: [12] And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.” Let us see how Father God the King responds….

No Wedding Garment! #4

Thursday, July 25, 2024

“And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless” (Matthew 22:11,12 KJV).

Who is this who has no “wedding garment?”

Thus far in The Parable of the Wedding Feast (Matthew 22:1-6), Father God the King has twice bidden national Israel to come to faith in His Son, Jesus, as Messiah/Christ. Alas, both during the Books of Matthew through John (first call) and the early part of the Book of Acts (second call), the response was unbelief. With Divine judgment on Israel looming during early Acts, God paused prophecy and inserted a secret or mystery program (our program). With our Dispensation of Grace ceased (Paul’s ministry concluded, and the Body of Christ translated into the heavenly places), the wrath meant for early Acts now comes to pass, and the remainder of The Parable of the Wedding Feast (Matthew 22:7-14) is fulfilled.

Read verse 7: “But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.” This is Daniel 9:26, Jerusalem’s destruction connected to the Antichrist, yet future from us: “And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself [Christ’s death on Calvary, just two days from the time He told the parable in Matthew chapter 22!]: and the people of the prince [the Antichrist] that shall come shall destroy the city [Jerusalem] and the sanctuary [Jerusalem Temple]; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.”

Continue Matthew chapter 22: “[8] Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy. [9] Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage. [10] So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.” During Daniel’s 70th Week (the seven-year Tribulation, the Antichrist’s reign), the third and last call goes out to Israel….

No Wedding Garment! #2

Tuesday, July 23, 2024

“And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless” (Matthew 22:11,12 KJV).

Who is this who has no “wedding garment?”

The Parable of the Wedding Feast (Matthew 22:1-14) is the third parable the Lord spoke to Israel’s unbelieving religious leaders during His final two days alive. See also Matthew 21:28-32 and Matthew 21:33-46. Let us expound this Parable of the Wedding Feast.

Verses 1-3: “And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.” The God of Heaven, Father God, the “king,” seeks to host a wedding and accompanying feast for His Son (Jesus Christ).

Father the King commissions His “servants”—John the Baptist of Matthew chapter 3, the Lord Jesus Himself, the 12 Apostles of Matthew chapter 10, and the 70 preachers of Luke chapter 10—to announce invitations to the Jewish people. Alas, the people summoned during Christ’s earthly ministry were overwhelmingly not interested in attending because of their unbelief. “And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him” (Luke 7:29,30). That is the first call to repentance.

Verses 4-6: “Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage. But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.” This is the second call to repentance. In early Acts, the 12 Apostles and the rest of the Little Flock preach as the Holy Spirit empowers them. However, apostate Israel still refuses to believe and continues persecuting these Jewish saints, climaxing in Stephen’s murder in Acts chapter 7….

Spiritual Calligraphy #7

Monday, May 13, 2024

“And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising” (Isaiah 60:3 KJV).

What can today’s Scripture teach us about spiritual calligraphy?

Although the prophetic program anticipated the salvation of Gentiles or the nations through Israel’s rise to kingdom glory (today’s Scripture), God was withholding a secret that He did not reveal until the Apostle Paul’s ministry (beginning in Acts chapter 9).

Read Romans chapter 11: “[11] I say then, Have they [Israel] stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy. [12] Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness? [13] For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office: [14] If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them. [15] For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?”

Whereas Israel in prophecy was to be a light to the unbelieving Gentiles, now Gentiles in mystery are to be a light to unbelieving Israel. This was especially true during the Acts transitional period, when Paul’s Gentile converts were advised not to use their liberty under grace in ways that would offend unbelieving Israel. Acts chapter 15: “[19] Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: [20] But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood. [21] For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day…. [28] For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; [29] That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.”

Alas, as with unbelieving Israel in time past, so Gentiles in the but now engaged in spiritual cacography….

Spiritual Calligraphy #6

Saturday, May 11, 2024

“And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising” (Isaiah 60:3 KJV).

What can today’s Scripture teach us about spiritual calligraphy?

Though Israel in time past enjoyed many Divine blessings (Romans 9:4,5; cf. Romans 2:17-20 below), the nation as a whole did not take seriously God’s purpose and program for them.

Observe Romans 2:17-24: “[17] Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, [18] And knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law; [19] And art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, [20] An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law. [21] Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal? [22] Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege [steal idols from temples]? [23] Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonourest thou God? [24] For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written.”

Verses 21-24 show how the Jewish people were hypocrites. They bragged to the nations about their (Israeli) status of being God’s people, and how they had the Hebrew Bible… yet they were unwilling to see their own sinful nature as taught in their Hebrew Bible. Israel’s boast was, “We are better than the Gentiles!” Instead of spiritual calligraphy (God’s beautiful words believed by Israel and thus working in Israel to teach the Gentiles), it was spiritual cacography (Greek, “kakos,” as in “evil/sick/diseased;” “grapho,” or “I write”). God’s Hebrew Bible and His Jewish nation entrusted with it were ugly or repulsive to the Gentiles. Verse 24 reveals how Israel in time past repeatedly afforded Gentiles the opportunity to “blaspheme” (speak against) the LORD God. Sadly, watching the Jewish people live in sin, the nations replied: “If that is what it means to be a worshipper of JEHOVAH God, we would rather die in our pagan religions!”

To bring you a special study tomorrow, we will temporarily break away from this devotionals arc….

Spiritual Calligraphy #5

Friday, May 10, 2024

“And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising” (Isaiah 60:3 KJV).

What can today’s Scripture teach us about spiritual calligraphy?

God’s purpose in giving Israel covenants was to bless Gentiles too, as the Apostle Paul argued when citing several Old Testament verses in Romans 15:8-12: “Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers: And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written [Psalm 18:49], For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name. And again he saith [Deuteronomy 32:43], Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people. And again [Psalm 117:1], Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles; and laud him, all ye people. And again, Esaias saith [Isaiah 11:10], There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust.”

The Holy Spirit, through the Apostle Peter, reminded Israel of the covenant God made with their forefathers: “Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days. Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities” (Acts 3:24-26).

As per this “the gospel of the circumcision” (Galatians 2:7—Peter’s Gospel), Israel was to believe the Gospel of the Kingdom (Jesus is Christ/Messiah). In Christ’s kingdom, they would teach the Gentiles (today’s Scripture). Alas, the Jewish people overwhelmingly refused to receive Jesus as Christ, whether during Matthew to John or early Acts. God could not reach the Gentiles because His chief nation, Israel, was unbelieving, thus failing to become His earthly people whom He could utilize.

Moreover, Israel had become utterly disgusting in the eyes of the Gentiles. In spite of God’s plan, the nations saw the Jewish people as a hypocritical group no better than the rest of the world….