The Coming of the Kingdom of God - Part 1
Notes
Transcript
Opening Illustration
Opening Illustration
A man named Phillip Keller was born in Kenya and then moved to the United States.
To describe this principle he tells the story of the growing up there.
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The majority of people did not really think of themselves as subjects of the King of England.
After all they lived on the coast of Africa and were mostly black.
The King was white and lived across the sea.
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But then one day it was announced that the King was sending his son the Prince of Wales to visit the country and to bring a piece of England with Him.
In his city they arranged to welcome the Prince.
When he arrived there was a large ceremony to welcome him.
The Prince stopped and shook hands with and greeted as many people as possible.
The Mayor presented the Prince with the keys to the city.
It symbolically represented that they had turned not just authority but everything in the city over to the Prince.
Why because when the Prince came, they felt that England came with him.
They now felt and connection to England and the King because the Prince had come.
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Do you see it? That’s exactly what God did.
We were distant from God.
We were cut off by the ocean of our own sins.
His holy nature was different from ours.
But then He sent His only Son to visit us.
When He did, the kingdom of Heaven was not just the distant place where God sits on His throne, it is right here where we live.
But the great thing about the King of Kings is that His Kingdom is also within each of us.
The Prince of Wales eventually went home, but even though Jesus returned to Heaven, the Spirit of God still dwells in the hearts of believers.
God is with us and within us every day.
His desire is to transform us so that we are more and more like Him.
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So, please turn your Bibles to the Gospel of Luke.
We will conduct our study in Chapter 17 and focus on verses 20 and 21.
Our message this morning is titled “The Coming of the Kingdom of God - Part 1.”
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As you are turning to our passage today, please keep in mind this fact:
Over the course of this Sunday and the next...
We will study the Kingdom of God...
And we will look at “already now” and “still to come” aspects of our Lord’s Kingdom.
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So, this morning we will cover three main points:
1) The Question
2) The Answer
And...
3) The Reason
Opening Prayer
Opening Prayer
Before we consider our text, please join me in prayer...
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Heavenly Father...
You are the very definition of perfect truth and perfect love...
You are the very definition of perfect mercy and perfect justice...
You are the very definition of perfect holiness and perfect grace...
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We owe You our everything!
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Help us to better understand the commands You have given us...
Help us to obey them without hesitation and to better trust in Your ways...
Help us to use Your holy text to share about Your Kingdom with the hostile world...
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We are totally lost without You!
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And it is in Jesus’ name we pray all these things...
Amen.
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Let’s turn to our text for today:
Reading of the Text
Reading of the Text
20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed,
21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”
So, let’s look at our first point...
1) The Question
1) The Question
Verse 20(a): Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come,
Beloved, as usual, let’s remind ourselves where we last left off in our study of the Gospel of Luke...
And that takes us to Luke 17:11–19, which we covered in great lengths last Sunday...
That passage says this:
11 On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee.
12 And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance
13 and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”
14 When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed.
15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice;
16 and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan.
17 Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine?
18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?”
19 And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”
Now, the link that Luke is bringing together from our passage today to Luke 17:11–19...
Which we just read...
Is that the religious leaders must not miss what is happening before their eyes...
Just like the nine healed lepers’ missed out on saving faith when they focused more on physical healing as opposed to spiritual healing...
The Pharisees are at risk to miss the true Messiah for their idea of the Messiah...
In other words, the Pharisees are at risk to miss the true Kingdom of God for their idea of the Kingdom of God!
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So, Luke records that the religious elite ask Jesus “when the kingdom of God would come.”
Now, either the Pharisees desire to know the cosmic signs preceding the coming of the Kingdom of God so that they can be sure not to miss it...
Or they may have asked their question mockingly, having already concluded that Jesus was not the true Messiah.
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Our text does not explicitly mention the Pharisee’s intentions but based on their past actions and what we have already witnessed in Scripture, we can make a pretty good educated guess...
So, the reason that I and many other pastors and scholars hold to the latter position that the Pharisees intended to mock and challenge Jesus is due to the fact that the very raising of such a question in most pericopes in the Gospel accounts is a sign of impending controversy...
The view, that some bring up, that there is no hint here of contempt or testing in the question understates the situation...
At the narrative level, controversy is suggested by this pattern of questioning by the religious elite...
In fact, we know that the Pharisees are consistently trying to trap or discredit Jesus...
It makes the most sense that they are going the same thing here...
Either way, an overview from Scripture of passages that prophecy of the coming of the Kingdom of God is necessary to look at.
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So, let’s start ant take a look at what is recorded in Daniel 2:44, which says:
44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever,
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Likewise, take a look at Daniel 7:18, which says:
18 But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, forever and ever.’
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So, the Jews of the 1st century where desperately waiting for the arrival of the Kingdom of God...
They wanted to see Rome broken into pieces...
They wanted to see the reign of all other nations come to an end...
They wanted to see Israel rise up again and reign forever...
And they wanted to experience this instantly and without delay!
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So, all this was expected to take place immediately with the arrival of the Messiah...
But we must pay attention to what Scripture says and to what people want...
Yes, when the Kingdom of God comes into it’s fullness it will reign over all other nations...
However, it was the people, and not the Word of God, who believed that the Kingdom of God would come into its fullness in one shot...
God never said that it was going to be like that.
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This was not just a misconception for the Jews...
Even early Christian believers thought that Jesus, after His ascension, was going to come back immediately to bring about the fullness of the Kingdom of God.
In fact, by the time Luke was writing his Gospel account, rumors were abroad that the day of the Lord had already come and went as it says in 2 Thessalonians 2:1–2:
1 Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers,
2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.
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So, some thought Jesus already came back...
And then others would question whether the Lord would return at all as it says in 2 Peter 3:3–4:
3 knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.
4 They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.”
We see this issue today, too.
So many false teachers claiming that they know when the end will come...
Just in the last 15 years we have been told the end of the world or the rapture would come on:
May 21, 2011
September 29, 2011
October 21, 2011
May 27, 2012
June 30, 2012
December 21, 2012
August 23, 2013
April 23, 2018
And the must recent failed prophecy was that the rapture would come on September 23-24, 2025...
But don’t worry the false teacher who made that last claim used the wrong calendar and is now saying the rapture will be on October 7-8, 2025.
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Back to the Jews and religious elite of Jesus’ day...
They wanted to know when the Messiah and the Kingdom of God would come...
And the MacArthur New Testament Commentary on Luke has this helpful note for us to consider:
“The kingdom the Jewish people expected Messiah to establish encompassed everything promised in the Abrahamic, Davidic, and New covenants.
According to the prophets, it will be marked by a time of unprecedented peace in nature, when predators will no longer harm their prey and children will play in safety near venomous snakes.
The topography of the planet will be drastically changed; for example, the Mount of Olives will be split in two.
Messiah’s kingdom will be marked by peace, joy, comfort, prosperity, health, holiness, truth and Messiah’s personal rule.
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The nineteenth-century historian Emil Schürer summarized the Jewish people’s expectations regarding the coming of Messiah and the establishing of His kingdom as follows:
First, the coming of Messiah would be preceded by a time of tribulation.
Second, in the midst of the turmoil an Elijah-like prophet would appear heralding Messiah’s coming.
Third, Messiah would establish His glorious kingdom, and vindicate His people.
Fourth, the nations would ally themselves together to fight Messiah.
Fifth, Messiah would destroy all those opposing nations.
Sixth, Jerusalem would be restored, and made new and glorious.
Seventh, the dispersed Jews scattered all over the world would return to Israel.
Eighth, Israel would become the center of the world and all the nations would be subjugated to the Messiah.
Finally, the Messiah would establish His kingdom, which would be a time of eternal peace, righteousness, and glory.
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Those expectations were drawn from the Old Testament and embellished in the extrabiblical writings.
They reveal that the Jews did not see two comings of Messiah.
They were not looking for the spiritual kingdom;
They were not looking for a Savior who would be the sacrifice for sins, because they regarded themselves as righteous.
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What the people of Israel were eagerly anticipating was the establishment of the earthly kingdom.”
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So, now that we have looked at the attitude of the Jews of Jesus’ day...
And we have explored some of the motivation for the Pharisees to ask their question...
We need to look at Jesus’ reply...
And that takes us to our next point.
2) The Answer
2) The Answer
Verses 20(b)-21(a): he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’
Beloved, with this reply, Jesus is saying that the arrival of the Kingdom of God will not be accompanied by spectacular signs in the heavens or cosmos....
Rather the Kingdom of God will come much more quietly...
For it will be evident only in the change in people’s lives due to trusting and believing in the true Messiah.
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In other words, it means that the messianic age will not be preceded by signs that will enable one to predict beforehand its arrival.
As Acts 1:7 says:
7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.
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So, as the New International Commentary on Luke says:
“Thus, Jesus reprimands the Pharisees in their kingdom-seeking for looking for the wrong thing and in the wrong way, and asserts that the kingdom is already operative, if only they would open their eyes to it.
The kingdom of God is closely related to the person and activity of Jesus; failing to understand this, the Pharisees do not recognize (and cannot respond to) God’s new world order.”
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Again, the Pharisees believed that the Messiah’s triumph would be immediate.
In fact, with much of Judaism, the Pharisees believed that the coming of the glorious Kingdom of God would be so clear and powerful that great heavenly signs would signal its arrival.
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So, they were looking for a warrior Messiah who was coming with a grand arrival...
They we looking for grand signs that would announce the arrival of the royal warrior King...
They expected the arrival would be marked by the overthrow of Rome, and set up the millennial Kingdom instantly.
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However, Christ’s earthly ministry was altogether different.
Instead of arriving in grand royalty that would be announced to the whole world with epic signs and wonders...
The true Messiah came in the humblest of fashions...
The true Messiah was born in a manger among animals in a stable...
The true Messiah was raised by a poor family in ghetto in Israel...
The true Messiah made a living as a carpenter or more accurately a handyman...
The true Messiah was despised and had no place to lay His head...
The true Messiah was a man of sorrows who was nothing special to look at...
The true Messiah came to bring spiritual healing but was rejected by His people...
The true Messiah did not come to be served but to serve...
And the true Messiah served us by voluntarily laying down His life for His sheep.
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Beloved, the true Messiah, Jesus Christ, was truly inaugurating an era in which the Kingdom of God would be manifest in the rule of God in men’s hearts through faith in the Him who was is our Lord and Savior...
As Romans 14:17 says:
17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
That kingdom...
The Kingdom that Jesus brought about with His first coming...
It was neither confined to a particular geographical location nor visible to human eyes.
It would come quietly, invisibly, and without the normal pomp and splendor associated with the arrival of a royal and splendid king.
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Now, to be clear, Jesus did not suggest that the Old Testament promises of an earthly kingdom were hereby nullified.
Rather, that earthly kingdom...
The visible manifestation of the Kingdom of God in its fullness is yet to come...
As Revelation 20:1–6 says:
1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain.
2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,
3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection.
6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
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So, the Kingdom of God is both here right now...
And it is still to come in full consummation in the future.
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Beloved, consider the following passages that relate to the Kingdom of God being present right now...
And look with me at Matthew 3:1–2, which says:
1 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,
2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Likewise, take a look at Matthew 4:17, which says:
17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
In fact, Jesus made it clear that announcing the arrival of the Kingdom of God was part of His earthly ministry as found in passages like Luke 4:43, which says:
43 but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.”
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The Reformation Study Bible has this great short article on the Kingdom of God that I would like to share with you all:
“World history has witnessed a multitude of divergent forms of government.
The most common types have been dictatorships ruled by military strength, republics ruled by law, democracies ruled by majority vote, and two types of monarchies—constitutional monarchies (in which the monarch’s powers are limited) and absolute monarchies (in which the monarch’s word is law).
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The kingdom of God is an absolute monarchy.
God has no external constitution to bind Him.
He needs no consent from the governed to rule over them.
He is not limited by referenda or by majority vote.
His word is law; His rule is absolutely sovereign.
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In any monarchy, the virtues of honor and loyalty to the throne are exceedingly important.
There is no monarchy where these elements are more vital than in God’s kingdom.
Yet the fundamental sin of the human race is grounded in our refusal to honor God as God and in our disloyalty to the King of Kings.
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The theme of the kingdom of God is a central motif that runs as a thread through both Old and New Testaments.
The theme accents God’s reign over His people.
The coming Messiah is announced as God’s anointed King who will be enthroned in heaven as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
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The Old Testament points to the kingdom as coming in the future.
The New Testament opens with the announcement of John the Baptist that ‘the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
The historical situation is described in images such as ‘the ax is laid to the root of the trees’ and ‘His winnowing fork is in his hand,’ both indicating radical nearness.
It was the breakthrough into history of God’s kingdom that heralded the New Testament gospel.
John’s message that ‘the King is coming’ signaled the urgency of the times.
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The accent of Jesus’ own preaching also falls on the announcement of the gospel of the kingdom.
He declares that the kingdom has come with power and is in the midst of His people.
At His ascension, Jesus commanded His disciples to be His witnesses in the world.
They are to witness to the reign of Jesus as King of Kings.
Jesus’ current status as cosmic King is invisible.
The world is either ignorant of His sovereignty or denies it.
It is the task of the church to give visible witness to the invisible kingdom.
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Jesus inaugurated the kingdom of God.
He has already been enthroned in heaven.
But it is as though He is a King in exile with few loyal subjects.
At His return He will fully consummate His reign.
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The New Testament indicates that the kingdom of God is both present and future.
There is an ‘already’ and a ‘not yet’ to the kingdom.
Both aspects must be understood and embraced by Christians.
To view the kingdom either as already totally realized or as totally futuristic is to do violence to the message of the New Testament.
We serve a King who has already been enthroned.
Yet we await His triumphal return in glory when every knee will bow before Him.”
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So, although the Kingdom of God arrived with the arrival of Jesus as the Messiah...
The Kingdom of God has not come in its fullness...
That consummation of the Kingdom of God is still to come...
And we see that is passages like Acts 1:6–8 that says:
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Likewise, take a look at the truth recorded in Matthew 25:34, which says:
34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
Finally, consider what is found in the Word of God in passages like Revelation 11:15, which says:
15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”
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I know that was a bit of rapid fire...
And their are plenty of texts in the Scriptures about the Kingdom of God...
But as we have seen...
Some focus on the right now...
And others on the still to come...
And they are both accurate.
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The second half of Jesus’ answer makes it clear why the Kingdom of God has arrived...
And the Kingdom of God that the Pharisees are look for is actually standing right in front of them...
And that takes us to our third and final point.
3) The Reason
3) The Reason
Verse 21(b): for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”
Beloved, before we get to the content of this verse...
We need to clarify the incorrect translations that some Bibles have for this verse.
So, some Bible translations say that the Kingdom of God is “within you” instead the Kingdom of God is “in the midst of you.”
However, the rendering of the Kingdom of God is “within you” is not accurate and is very misleading.
So, please consider this note by the New American Commentary on Luke, which says:
“The expression ‘within you’ can mean ‘in your hearts,’ ‘in your midst,’ or ‘in your reach.’
The first interpretation (‘within you’) was much in favor in theological liberalism, which saw God’s kingdom as God’s rule in the human heart.
But nowhere else in the Scriptures is God’s kingdom portrayed as an inner condition of the human heart or life.
Furthermore the saying is addressed to the Pharisees, who were most unlikely candidates for Jesus’ saying that God rules within their hearts.
Even if one makes ‘you’ indefinite and not limited to the Pharisees, the first argument is conclusive:
‘Jesus speaks of men entering the kingdom, not the kingdom entering men.’
Since Jesus the ‘king’ was present, God’s reign had already begun.
Thus the text should be translated ‘in your midst’ or ‘in the midst of you,’ as in the RSV [or ESV translations] and not as in the [older 1978 edition of the] NIV [or KJV translations].”
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So, now that we have clarified the proper rendering of our verse...
Let’s start to break it down.
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Our Lord and Savior’s response to the Pharisees is that the Kingdom of God is in the midst of you...
And that Jesus unapologetically means is that in the person of Himself one will find the Kingdom of God...
In Him and Him alone do we find the reign of God manifested in those who are already following Jesus.
So, Jesus is the very Kingdom of God...
And the followers of Him also represent the Kingdom of God.
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So, the Pharisees do not need to search for the Kingdom of God...
The very One who brings the Kingdom of God to our world is right before them.
They need only to respond to Him with true surrender and genuine faith to find its presence and benefits.
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The Pharisees need to learn the lesson of the Samaritan leper who was healed...
They need to learn the lesson that the way to God’s Kingdom is through Jesus Christ, the true long-promised Messiah.
For Christ and Christ alone controls the Kingdom’s benefits and represents its power and presence.
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Beloved, since the Old Covenant, Jesus was prophesied to bring with Him the inauguration of the Kingdom of God as Isaiah 9:6–7 says:
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Likewise, Jesus’ earthly ministry was proof that the Kingdom of God had truly arrived as Luke 11:20 says:
20 But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
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So, Beloved, I would ask you to consider the truth found in this note by the Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament on Luke, which says:
“One need not search high and low for the kingdom or look for a sign in the sky about it, for its presence is here now.
It is present in the person of Jesus and his offer of forgiveness and in the community of faith that he spawns and rules.”
Closing Illustration
Closing Illustration
So, as this message comes to a close...
I would like you to consider this:
There are two popular traditions in Africa:
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Drinking tea and playing soccer.
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However, these traditions are not unique to Africa, but were brought to the continent by the British.
Even when it is very hot, each afternoon in many parts of Africa they pause to drink hot tea.
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Why?
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Because the British who colonized Africa brought those traditions with them.
Even though a person may have never visited the United Kingdom, they can get a glimpse of the UK by watching a soccer match and tea time.
They are doing in Africa as it is done in England.
Similarly, people should get a glimpse of heaven by viewing the lifestyles of Christians as we allow God’s will to be done “on earth as it is in heaven.”
We are ambassadors of Christ, pointing to the Kingdom of God.
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So, for those who are right now in the Kingdom of God...
We need to point the lost to Christ...
We need to point out to the lost that Jesus is truly King of Kings...
We need to point out to the lost that Jesus is truly Lord of Lords...
And We need to point out to the lost that Jesus is truly our Savior...
For one cannot enter the Kingdom of God without first trusting in the work of Christ on the cross...
When Jesus took our spot and sacrificed Himself as the spotless lamb...
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And it is now about Christ’s sacrifice that we bring our attention to.
Communion
Communion
As we begin our communion service, I want to invite every genuinely born-again believer in the room to partake in this act together.
If you do not yet know the Lord and do not have a relationship with Him...
Or if you are under church discipline from this church or another church...
Then I will ask that you wait until you have resolved your issue before participating.
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As you came in, you should have picked up a communion packet if you are joining us.
This has both the bread and the juice in a convenient package.
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If you have not received one of these, please raise your hand, and someone will get you one.
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Before we join in communion together, I would like us to consider Hebrews 9:28, which says:
28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
As pastor John Piper says:
“The first time he came to deal with sin.
The second time he is coming, not to deal with sin, but to save us from the wrath of God’s judgment.
The first time he came to purchase our salvation by bearing our sins.
The second time he comes to apply our salvation by shielding us from the wrath of God.
Hebrews 10:27 describes the ‘judgment’ the writer has in mind, namely, ‘a certain terrifying expectation of judgment, and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.’
This is what Christ is coming the second time to save us from.
Christ bought the first time what he gives the second time—safety in the judgment.
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Now the question before us all is:
Are we included in the ‘many’ whose sins he bore?
And will we be saved by his coming ‘for salvation?’
The answer of Hebrews 9:28 is, ‘Yes,’ if we are ‘eagerly awaiting him.’
We can know that our sins are taken away and that we will be safe in the judgment if we trust Christ in such a way that it makes us eager for his coming.
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There is a phony faith that claims to believe in Christ, but is only a fire insurance policy.
Phony faith ‘believes’ only to escape hell.
It has no real desire for Christ.
In fact, it would prefer if he not come, so that we can have as much of this world’s pleasures as possible.
This shows that a heart is not with Christ, but with the world.
That is not saving faith.
‘He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.”
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So the issue for us is:
Do we eagerly long for the coming of Christ?
Do we want to see his kingdom established and do we want to be reunited to him in closer personal fellowship?
Or do we want him to wait while our love affair with the world runs its course?
That is the question that tests the authenticity of faith.
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So let us be like the Corinthians who were ‘awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,’ and like the Philippians whose ‘citizenship was in heaven, from which also [they] eagerly waited for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.’
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And let us remember the words of Paul in 2 Timothy 4:8 that ‘there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing.’
That’s the issue for us.
Do we love his appearing?
Or do we love the world and hope that his appearing will not interrupt our worldly plans?
Eternity hangs on this question.”
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So, Beloved, do you look forward to and love His appearing?
Have you trusted in the complete and perfect work of Christ on the cross?
Is Jesus truly your Lord?
Is Jesus truly your Savior?
If so, then join us for communion...
Remember what Christ did for you when He stretched out His arms and died at Calvary...
Remember how Jesus live a perfect and sinless life so He could exchange His righteousness for our filthy rags...
Remember the twisted ways Jesus was tortured and murdered for speaking the truth for our sake...
Remember when Jesus cried our to His Father...
When He said, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?”...
Remember when God the Father crushed God the Son for the benefit of you and me...
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Remember these things as we prepare ourselves to have communion together.
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So, Beloved...
Let’s all take a moment right now in silent prayer to thank the Lord for all He did for us...
(MOMENT OF SILENCE)
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Tom, will you pray before we partake in the bread:
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The Word of God says in Luke 22:19:
19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
(TAKE THE BREAD)
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Adrian, will you pray before we partake in the cup:
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The Word of God says in Luke 22:20:
20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
(TAKE THE CUP)
.......
With that, we conclude the communion portion of our service.
Closing Prayer
Closing Prayer
Let’s pray...
.......
Heavenly Father...
If anyone hearing this message right now does not know You in a saving way:
Then wake them up from their deep slumber...
For they currently have no idea the danger they are in...
For their failure to humble themselves and surrender to You will lead to an eternity of Hellfire.
.......
I appeal to Your Name’s sake!
.......
For those hearing this message who already know You:
I implore You to equip Your saints with the boldness, courage, and wisdom to reach the lost...
Send the lost in our direction...
And send us to go directly to the lost if they won’t come to us...
Use us as tools in Your hands.
.......
Again, I appeal to Your Name’s sake!
.......
It is in Jesus’ name we pray all these things...
To God be all the glory.
Amen.
