Let Israel be glad in his Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King! Psalm 149:2 ESV
Have you ever wondered at the content of the message Jesus preached and the one he told his disciples to preach? I have. I have wondered about it because it seems so simple and indeterminate: “The time promised by God has come at last. The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News” (Mark 1:15 NLT)! “Go and announce that the Kingdom of God is near” (Matt 10:7 NLT). Is that it? What “Good News”? Today we say that the Good News, the Gospel, is that Jesus has died for your sins. But clearly that had not happened yet when Jesus and the disciples were preaching. So what were he, and they, talking about? What were those people to believe?
I suggest the Good News they were to believe was that the kingdom promises were about to be fulfilled. And that belief should make them repent of the way they had been living and get ready for the rule of God – his kingdom – to break loose in their lives. What were the promises? What needed to happen for God to truly rule? What needs to happen in your life and mine for him to rule?
What needs to happen is the fulfillment of the promises of Ezekiel 36:24-27. God promises to deliver us from the consequences of our sins – our Hell. Then he promises to cleanse us from both the results and the practice of idolatry – trying to get this world to satisfy our needs; then he promises to smash our stubborn hearts and give us tender, pliable hearts. Finally, he promises that he will put his Spirit within us to make all that possible. I think Jesus, and the disciples, were saying that this whole package that the Jews had longed for was about to be unwrapped.
The Kingdom has come! God can rule in our lives without a rival and without a limit. Christ’s blood can cleanse the temple of our hearts and the Holy Spirit can come home. Are you experiencing God’s rule in your heart? Has he broken you of your idolatry? Is your heart tender to the slightest whisper of his will?
Repent of unbelief and believe the Good News! Jesus has done everything necessary for God to rule in your life. Is he?
Called To Be Transformed 