You Can Know You Have Eternal Life
#704
The Divine Mystery Revealed (11)
by Jim Mettenbrink
[review previous article]
[advance to next article]
Since the return of the Jews to
their homeland in 536 BC, they had been looking forward to the
restoration of their kingdom. They expected a kingdom like
in the days of King David and which King Solomon inherited. It
was a glorious kingdom which David had expanded to the Euphrates
river and the border of Egypt (1 Kings 4:21). Now
for over 500 years the Jews waited for the promised messiah (anointed
king) (cf Mark 15:43).
Although there are hundreds of
Old Testament (OT) prophecies about Jesus, He was not the Messiah
the Jews anticipated. They expected an earthly king to
expel Roman rule from their Judea. Even from the first
days of Jesus ministry, Simon Peter saw Jesus as the messiah,
however, in his eyes, even until moments before He ascended into
heaven, he expected an earthly kingdom (John 1:41; Acts 1:6).
The mother of James and John appealed to Jesus to make
her sons the top officials in His kingdom (Matthew 20:20,
21; Mark 10:35-37). Just hours before His arrest, Jesus
announced to His disciples at the Passover meal,
I bestow upon
you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you
may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones
judging the twelve tribes of Israel
(Luke 22:29,30). Thus the disciples misperception
of Jesus kingdom is understandable.
That Jesus kingdom was a
complete secret mystery is noted by the silence of the OT - it
did not call Gods kingdom a mystery. As Jesus began
His three-years ministry, announcing His messiahship, He spoke
of the kingdom of heaven and He said to His disciples, To you it has been given
to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are
outside, all things come in parables
(Mark 4:11). Even at the beginning of His ministry,
He hinted His kingdom was shrouded in mystery.
While Jesus was on trial before
Roman governor Pilate, prompted by the Jewish leadership accusing
Him of insurrection (Matthew 27:11-13; Mark 15:1-3), Jesus
revealed a smidgeon of the mystery of His kingdom. Upon
questioning, Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world. If
My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that
I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is
not from here (John
18:36). Jesus kingdom would not be an earthly kingdom!
There is more of the mystery to be revealed.
[review previous article]
[advance to next article] |