God's Big Picture: The Proclaimed Kingdom

Anticipation

When you buy a house in most cases there is a delay between making an offer, having the offer received and then finally getting to settlement day.

It can be a funny time. Maybe a month or more, knowing you sort of own this place, but yet knowing it’s not yet yours.

And in that time you probably spend ages driving past your knew place, imaging what life will be like there. You picture your furniture in the new place. It’s a time of great anticipation.

As we come to the part of the story of Scripture today, post the coming of Christ. Post his Ascension into heaven. The time we live in today. There’s a sense of anticipation. Of what’s next. But like with a house settlement, we also know something about what the future will be like.

Jesus brings fulfilment

Bit of a recap:

Big story - God’s Kingdom

God’s people, in God’s place, under God’s rule and blessing.

The big story of the Bible, seen in the garden of Eden and promised to Abraham is the story of the Kingdom of God.

The story of Israel and Judah in the OT is one of partial fulfilment of those promises.

And in the gospels we have the coming of Jesus who fulfils all the promises of God.

He is the one to whom the whole OT points.

He is the one who brings God’s kingdom to bear. He is God’s people, in God’s place, under God’s rule and blessing.

Last week we saw how Jesus is the fulfilment of these promises.

Jesus is God’s person

True Adam, True Israel… without sin!

Jesus is God’s place

Tabernacle. God’s presence with us

Jesus brings God’s rule and blessing

New Covenant and Holy Spirit.

don’t mention the title there for printing only

Proclaiming the Kingdom

Why are we still here then?

Why is there more to the story?

Peter tells us we are still here because of God’s grace.

2 Peter 3:8–9 NIV

8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

We are still here because God has called us to proclaim the good news and he hasn’t come back because God wants as many people as possible to hear the good news and repent and believe the gospel.

That’s our job.

Jesus described his job in Luke 19:10

Luke 19:10 NIV

10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

And he commissions his disciples with the same job

Matthew 28:18–19 NIV

18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Why are we here? Living in the world post the coming of the kingdom in Jesus?

To seek and save the lost. To make disciples. To see God’s kingdom spread as far and as wide as possible.

That’s our job.

Sound exciting? Maybe.

Actually it’s rather daunting! Especially when we see the cost some people pay for being willing to talk about their faith.

That’s why God doesn’t leave us on our own.

The sending of the Spirit

The Spirit comes at Pentecost with the gift of tongues or languages in Acts 2.

This is a sign of the purpose of the Spirit.

It comes to empower God’s people for their missionary task of proclaiming the kingdom and inviting people to enter it.

Some in fact call the period of time we live in now the ‘age of the Spirit’. Because the Spirit now dwells in not just Kings or Prophets or Priests, as He did in the OT, but in all believers.

The work of the Spirit

Brings new birth

John 3:3 NIV

3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”

If you think Jesus is who the Bible says he is that’s the Holy Spirit.

Doesn’t stop there.

Makes us more like Jesus

John 16:7-11 - Jesus tells us that the work of the Holy Spirit is to convict us of sin. And in doing so to lead us into repentance.

When the Holy Spirit comes, Paul says:

1 Thessalonians 1:4–5 NIV

4 For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.

The Holy Spirit comes powerful convicting us of sin and making us more like Jesus.

One of the ways The Spirit does this is He cause us to bear fruit:

Galatians 5:22–23 NIV

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Equips us to serve

Take Peter for example

Acts 4:8 NIV

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people!

The Spirit makes him bold to speak about Jesus when things were looking dicey!

Likewise as we saw in our reading today from 2 Cor 4, we are like weak jars of clay, but the Spirit empowers the Christian to do the work of Christ.

How does this all fit in the unfolding story of the Bible?

The Last Days

2 Timothy 3:1 NIV

1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.

James 5:3 NIV

3 Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days.

We can both enter the Kingdom of God now through faith in Jesus, but we also must wait for it. For Jesus’ return.

Matthew 25:34 NIV

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.

We live in a fallen world which bears the marks of sin and of God’s judgment against it. Yet we know the blessings of the kingdom in the new creation that are to come.

In these last days. In this now but not yet time:

God’s people is the church.

1 Peter 2:9 NIV

9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

God’s place is the believer indwelt by the Holy Spirit

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 NIV

19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

God’s rule and blessing comes with the Spirit helping us to live up to God’s standards and enjoy his blessing.

Awaiting the Perfected Kingdom of God

How to best describe the age we now live in?

Like when you’re cooking a delicious dinner.

The house fills with the aroma. You taste some of the sauce you’ve got your slow cooked meat simmering in and it’s just devine.

But you can’t enjoy the full joy of the entire meal until all the guests arrive.

So in the meantime as guests arrive, or as you run into people you tell them in your great excitement about how good dinner smells and tastes. You share your joy and invite them to come smell, taste and see and be with you at the end. When dinner finally arrives.

We’re waiting for dinner.

But gee whizz it smells good!

Let’s get on with the job of inviting others to dinner!