Old Wine

Treasures New and Old

We have seen in a previous post how the primary message of Jesus during the time of his teaching on earth was the topic of the prophesied kingdom of God, referred to in Matthew as the kingdom of heaven. The Jews were expecting this kingdom, and Jesus’ message was that the kingdom was being offered, and he was the anointed king (Messiah) to reign over it. The idea of the Kingdom was not new; the prophets talked about it extensively. But the revelation of Jesus as the king was new.

In Matthew 13 Jesus gives a lot of parables, similes, about the kingdom of heaven. Near the end of the long chapter, he says this: “Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old” (Matt. 13:52). New treasures as well as old. Both the old and the new are considered treasures. The new treasure is the teaching about the kingdom, specifically the identity of the king. The old treasure seems to be something that was already in the possession of the teachers of the law, namely Judaism and the law itself.

We saw in our inaugural post how Jesus denied that his message was mostly new. He pointed out that you don’t fix an old coat with a new patch because that would tear the coat. He also used the metaphor of wineskins and wine, something that was universally acknowledged as being better when it’s old. (Luke 5:36-39)

Jesus’ teaching was Judaism, according to the Hebrew scriptures. But a part of his message was new, the fact that he was the culmination of the prophecies and hopes of Israel.

It’s a shame that most of the self-identified believers in Jesus in our day have discarded the old treasures that he was talking about, the Law of God. A read-through of Psalm 1, 19, or 119 will show how much of a treasure the psalmist considered God’s law to be. The church today, like the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2:4, has forsaken its first love, God’s law. When we regain that love and also understand the teaching about the end-time kingdom of God, ruled by Jesus, we will again be the church that God intended, with both new and old treasures in our possession.

Colossians 2

In the second chapter of his epistle to the Colossians Paul writes some things that have been drastically misunderstood by many interpreters in the history of the church since its drift in the second century. These people think that Paul is speaking against the law of God and claiming that it came to an end at the cross. Nothing could be further from the truth. Let’s take a look and see what Paul was actually talking about.

First, he warns his readers against “the rudiments” or basic principles (stoicheia) of the world. (2:8) It’s not entirely clear what he’s referring to, but he uses the same phrase again in 2:20 and in Galatians 4:3. The phrase is thought by some to refer to the law, since it’s used in Galatians in a way that could be seen as parallel to his discussion of the law. We’ll take up that passage in a later post. But in Colossians 2 he gives enough description that it’s clear he isn’t talking about the law.

When he first mentions it in 2:8, he describes it as “hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition.” There is no way that Paul would talk about the law in these terms. The law was clearly from God, not from men. Again in 2:22 he describes them as “based on human commands and teachings”, which is clearly not true of the law. It seems instead that what he is referring to is something like the Greek philosophy of asceticism, which favors denying yourself physical pleasures. Paul clearly denounces this philosophy.

In the bulk of the passage, Paul has two issues in mind, two obstacles that the Colossians face that have both been overcome by Christ’s work on the cross. They are both enumerated in verse 13. The first is the fact that these Colossians are Gentiles, not members of God’s people, Israel. “And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh…” (KJV) He mentions two ways in which they were dead, and one was their uncircumcision.

Throughout the New Testament the idea of circumcision is used as a kind of shorthand for being Jewish (or for conversion to Judaism). Throughout the Old Testament Gentiles are referred to as uncircumcised, and that’s the sense that is used here. “Flesh” here means the actual skin, physical circumcision, not some supposed reference to a sin nature.

But though these people in Colossae have the disadvantage of being Gentiles, Paul explains the solution through Christ. “In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ” (2:11 KJV). Here Paul is talking about a spiritual “circumcision”, accomplished through faith in Christ, that makes these Gentile believers one with the covenant people of Israel.

Paul uses other metaphors for this process in other epistles. In Romans 11 he compares it to wild olive branches being grafted onto a cultivated olive tree. In Ephesians 2 he alludes to the same metaphor of circumcision, but describes them as once being far away (from Israel and the covenants) but being brought near (Eph. 2:11-13). In Eph. 2:16-21 he uses the metaphor of a building, made of Jews and Gentiles, and in Eph. 3:6 he says that “through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body and sharers together in the promise of Christ Jesus.” The metaphors are many, but the underlying truth is that Gentile believers become identified with the covenant people of Israel through their faith.

We need to keep this context in mind when we analyze Paul’s instructions in verse 16 and following. When these Gentiles who are newly identified as part of Israel begin living according to God’s instructions, they will be criticized by surrounding pagan Gentiles for “living like Jews”. But Paul tells them not to pay any attention to these criticisms. The things he mentions: eating and drinking, festivals, new moons, and Sabbaths, are all part of God’s instructions to his people for how to live. And Paul points out that they are foreshadowings of the future kingdom of God when the law will be the rule of life (Isaiah 2:3) and Jesus himself will be the enforcer.

The other obstacle that Paul mentions in verse 13 is their actual sins, which Paul mentions at the end of the verse with the word for transgressions or trespasses. Throughout the New Testament sin is defined as a transgression of the law. (I John 3:4; Romans 7:7) All, including the Colossians, are transgressors of God’s law, and therefore sinners. It is that sin and the guilt for it that was nailed to the cross. Some translations obscure this dynamic, but the KJV says, “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross.” (2:14)

It’s ridiculous to think that the law was done away and nailed to the cross. Besides both Jesus (Matt. 5:17) and Paul (Rom. 3:31) affirming the continuity of the law in the strongest possible terms, the termination of the law would mean that nobody since Christ would have any guilt for sin. That is certainly contrary to the intent of all scripture. It’s clear that what was nailed to the cross was the guilty verdict against us, occasioned by the law, of course, because the law defines sin.

If we understand Paul, clearly described in Acts, as a Torah-observant Jew, we won’t be tempted to misread isolated instances in his epistles as opposition to the law or claims that it was done away. That’s not what Jesus taught, and it’s not really what Paul taught either.

The Golden Calf

In Exodus 32 we have the story of the people of Israel making and worshiping a calf made of gold. Several days previously, in Exodus 20, God had spoken to them from Mt. Sinai, giving them the ten “Words”, one of which was, “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below…” (20:4)

After that God called Moses, along with Joshua, to come up on the mountain to him. Moses was on the mountain for a week before God summoned him, then for another forty days while God gave him further instructions.

The people didn’t know how long Moses was going to be away, but evidently they expected him back a lot sooner. In chapter 32 “the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain” (32:1). So they came to Aaron and said, “Make us ‘Elohim'” (a word for God, but it can also mean “gods”). So Aaron asks for their gold rings, and fashions them into a calf. Then the people said, “This is Elohim who brought you up out of Egypt.” Then Aaron declared that the next day would be a festival to the LORD. The next day the people offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings and had a celebration.

As you probably know, God and Moses were angry at this and many of the people were killed by the sword and by a plague as a consequence. It was clearly an evil, sinful thing that they did. But the text implies that they thought they were honoring God in so doing. They asked for a representation of the God who brought them out of Egypt, and Aaron called a festival to YHWH. Their sin was in not understanding or taking seriously God’s instruction from the mountain to not make such images.

It seems to me that one of the things this passage teaches is how easy it is for the whole congregation (“church” if you will) to fall into sin and not realize it. Is that what has happened to the church today? It seems to me that there are many parallels between Israel in this passage and Christianity today.

First of all, Israel expected Moses to return sooner, and when he didn’t, they started to lose hope. We who await the promised return of Jesus have been waiting for millenia. The impression was that it would be a lot sooner than this. Moses, like Jesus, expected the people to wait for his return, and remain faithful to God’s instructions for as long as it took.

On the mountain where God told Israel to not make any idols, he also told them to remember the Sabbath day (the seventh day) and keep it holy. The bulk of the Christian church has abandoned that command and established a different day, Sunday, that they honor and think of as the Lord’s day. They also ignore biblical festivals that God established and substitute their own calendar. Just as Israel thought they were worshiping God correctly, but were disregarding his clear commands, so the church today is not worshiping in the way that God commanded.

Israel had the voice of God speak to them from the mountain, and they vowed to obey him, but they either didn’t understand or disregarded his commands. In the same way the church has the scriptures of the Old and New Testament and the clear words of Jesus and others affirming God’s law and its importance in our lives. If we don’t understand it or choose to disregard it, we are as much at fault as the Israelites were in Moses’ day.

When Moses finally returned, he was very angry at the people, and they had to pay dire consequences. When Jesus returns, will he be angry at the way that the church has disregarded God’s commands? I pray that we may repent and return to God’s ways before that day comes.

The Great Commission

Jesus’ last words to his disciples before he ascended are recorded in each of the four gospels and Acts. There are some differences in wording, but the general idea is that he wants them to go throughout the earth and tell people about him. This is known as the Great Commission.

We will look specifically at the Great Commission as recorded in Matthew 28:19-20. In many English translations the primary command given is “Go”. In the original Greek this is not quite the case. The word for “go” is actually a participle, “going”. A literal translation would be something like, “In going, make disciples” or “As you go, make disciples.” The imperative in the verse is to make disciples; the going is assumed.

This making disciples is condensed into two discrete actions, baptizing, and teaching to obey Jesus’ commands. This raises some questions. What are Jesus’ commands? He didn’t typically go around giving commands. We would be hard-pressed to find many commands of Jesus, much less a whole systematized way of living. He did identify a “new” commandment that he was giving, to love one another (John 13:34; 15:12). But this is very similar to what he identified as the second greatest commandment in God’s law, loving your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:39 cp. Leviticus 19:18). Jesus is repurposing one of the commandments recorded by Moses in Leviticus for his followers.

This should not be surprising. Jesus emphatically affirmed the law that God gave through Moses on many occasions. One of these is at the beginning of his ministry in Matthew 5. “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (5:17-19)

Is it legitimate to think of God’s commands through Moses as the commands of Jesus? Here is another way of thinking about it that might clear up this question. In the beginning of the books of John and Hebrews, Jesus is portrayed as being actively present at creation. “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made… He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.” (John 1:3, 10) “But in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.” (Hebrews 1:2)

Given that Jesus is portrayed as participating with God in creation, it shouldn’t be a stretch to consider Jesus as participating with God in the event at Mt. Sinai recorded in Exodus 20, as well as the continuing revelations of his law to Moses throughout the Pentateuch. If we realize that Jesus was acting with God as the lawgiver to Israel, it’s not so hard to understand what Jesus’ commands are, the entire law of God.

The writer of I John defines loving God as obeying his commands. “This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome” (I John 5:2-3). Earlier in the book he wrote, “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness” (3:4). Still earlier he uses this same language referring to Jesus. “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, ‘I know him,’ but does not do what he commands is a liar and the truth is not in him” (2:2-4).

God’s commands are Jesus’ commands and Jesus’ commands are God’s commands. What Jesus is telling his disciples on the mountain in Galilee is: After initiating new believers by baptism, make them into disciples of mine by teaching them to follow God’s law as I did.

We need to adjust our concept of discipleship by teaching people as Jesus taught, to follow God’s law. Then and only then will we truly be disciples of Jesus.

Jesus Today

When Jesus was on earth in the first century, he criticized the religious leaders of Judaism. When we look closely at the New Testament accounts of this, we can see that his criticism was usually because they put their traditions in place of scripture. An example of this is in Mark 7. The Pharisees were advocating ceremonial washing (7:1-7), which had no place in scripture, but were shirking the commandment to honor their parents by how they were using their money. (7:8-13)

This is not the only passage where Jesus makes this point. In Matthew 23 he commends the Pharisees for tithing their spices according to the law (23:23), but criticizes them for neglecting the more important matters of the law. We often think that Jesus’ criticism of the Pharisees was for keeping the law too rigorously. But actually his criticism was for not keeping it enough, and for elevating their traditions above God’s law.

If Jesus were physically present on earth today, I suspect that he would treat Christian leaders in the same way that he treated the Pharisees of old. Everywhere you look, Christianity has practices that are based on traditions rather than on scripture. God was pretty specific as to which day he designated as the Sabbath. But the vast majority of Christians revere Sunday as their holy day, without any hint in the New Testament that they should do so. Rare is the Christian that observes Passover or the Feast of Tabernacles. They do tend to celebrate the festival of Weeks (Pentecost), but only because of events in Acts 2 that happened on that day.

If we truly want to be followers of Jesus in our day, we need to take seriously his teaching of scripture over tradition and his criticism of the religious leaders of his day for this very reason. “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” (I John 2:6) May we be followers who take scripture seriously, and weigh it against all our traditions.

Christianity or Judaism

From my study of the scriptures, especially of the New Testament, I have come to the conclusion that God wants Gentiles who turn to him in our era to embrace four things: the God of Israel, the people of Israel, the faith of Israel, and the Messiah (king) of Israel.

Ruth is an example of this. Although a Moabite, she promised Naomi that “your people will be my people and your God my God” (Ruth 1:16). She truly embraced the people of Israel as well as their faith. She also turned out to be an ancestor of David, from whom Jesus the Messiah was to come.

Judaism has done well at preserving the first three items on the list. But, as Paul points out in Romans 11, they have been temproarily blinded regarding the identity of the Messiah. But at some time in the future they will turn to him as a nation (Romans 11:25-26). Then they will have embraced all four.

The followers of Jesus in the first century started out with all four. Paul explained how believers in Jesus became one with the people of Israel. “Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called ‘uncircumcised’ by those who call themselves ‘the circumcision’ (that done in the body by the hands of men)– remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.” (Ephesians 2:11-13) “This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.” (Eph. 3:6) “If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, do not boast over those branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you.” (Romans 11:17-18)

Jesus and his followers practiced biblical Judaism, keeping the law, worshiping in the temple and synagogue, and keeping the biblical festivals. There was no intention of starting a new religion; Jesus presented himself as the fulfillment of the promises of scripture. When Paul commended Timothy for continuing the faith of his mother and grandmother (2 Timothy 1:5), the timeframe doesn’t allow this faith to be anything but Judaism.

In the early second century Gentile believers in Jesus, realizing that they weren’t Jews, didn’t see any reason to pay the heavy taxes that were being levied on Jews. So they positioned their faith as different from and in contrast to Judaism. They established a different holy day, different festival days, and abandoned the biblical law and festivals, essentially deserting the faith of Israel.

It’s well-known that much of the anti-semitism of history has come from Christians. Many of them didn’t consider the Jews as their brothers and co-religionists but their opponents. As a result, in areas where some form of Christianity became the official religion, Judaism was outlawed and Jews were persecuted and killed.

In more recent times many Christians have turned to look more favorably upon Jews and Israel. That’s a good thing. But most of Christianity continues to reject the faith of Israel, including the law of God.

A faith that reflects the teaching of the New Testament, as I understand it, would be Judaism plus Jesus. Or it could be considered to be a Christianity that embraced Israel and its faith. In either case, I think that scripture indicates that both groups will make progress in this direction as time passes, and be ultimately joined in the last days.

Psalms 1 & 2

The first two Psalms in our scriptures are beloved and well-known among Christians. But, interestingly, they deal with themes that seem to be minimized or ignored in Christianity as a whole.

The first Psalm is a paean to God’s law and the person who lovingly embraces it. “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” (Psalm 1)

This Psalm contrasts two men, or actually an individual and a group. The man who delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on it is contrasted with the wicked and those who walk in their counsel. At the end of the Psalm it calls him righteous, and says that the Lord watches over his way.

There are several Psalms that extol the virtues of God’s law, including Psalm 19 that calls it perfect (19:7) and parallels it with “The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever” (19:9). Probably the most well-known Psalm on this theme is Psalm 119, by far the longest Psalm, where a synonym of the law occurs in each of 176 verses. It says things like “I will always obey your law, for ever and ever” (119:44), “Long ago I learned from your statutes that you established them to last forever” (119:152), and “All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal” (119:160).

Despite testimonies like these, most Christians are under the impression that the law has been abolished. Jesus states unequivocally (Matthew 5:17-19) that this idea is wrong, and Paul echoes it (Romans 3:31). But second-century Christianity was so desparate to distance itself from Judaism that it abandoned God’s law. The results of that misstep remain today.

The second Psalm, although it might refer at some level to David and the ancient kings of Israel, clearly refers mostly to the future kingdom of God and its messianic king. “Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. ‘Let us break their chains,’ they say, ‘and throw off their fetters.’ The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, ‘I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill.’ I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: He said to me, ‘You are my Son; today I have become your Father. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.’ Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.” (Psalm 2)

In this Psalm the nations are opposing God’s anointed (messiah) king of Israel, but he rules them with a rod of iron and dashes them to pieces like pottery.

This theme of God’s ultimate kingdom under a human king is alluded to in other Psalms. Psalm 72 talks about the king enduring “as long as the sun, as long as the moon, through all generations” (72:5) and ruling “from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth” (72:8).

Another Psalm that deals with God’s coming kingdom is one which Jesus mentions to the Pharisees (Matthew 22:44) to show that the “son of David” is greater than David, Psalm 110. God, in speaking to his Messiah, says, “The Lord will extend your mighty scepter from Zion; you will rule in the midst of your enemies.” (110:2) This king is also a priest. “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: ‘You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek'” (110:4).

Many Christian deny that there is a future literal reign of God’s Messiah on the earth and think that the kingdom that Jesus talked so much about is only a spiritual kingdom in the hearts of believers.

We would do well to turn back to these first two Psalms for guidance in the things that matter to God, both then and now. God’s law was given to last until heaven and earth pass away (Matthew 5:18) and to be the standard of God’s righteousness in his physical kingdom which will be established in Jerusalem in the last days (Isaiah 2:3). Let us never forget either of these truths.

Jesus and the Kingdom

In light of the extensive and detailed predictions by the biblical prophets of an end-time Kingdom of God, with a descendant of David as the king, the Jews of Jesus’ time were looking for the arrival of such a kingdom at anytime.

It’s significant that, from the announcement of his birth, Jesus is identified as this king. The angel speaking to Mary said, “You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:31-33) When the Magi came seeking him, their question was, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?” (Matthew 2:2) The teachers, who were familiar with the prophetic claims, answered, “In Bethlehem in Judea, for this is what the prophet has written: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'” (Matthew 2:5-6) However the Magi had learned about this birth, they, as well as the Jews, were expecting the Son of David who would be king of Israel.

There are several titles by which Jesus went, which we tend to take for granted without thinking much about their meaning. The most common one is probably “Christ”, which was used by Herod in inquiring for the Magi. “Christ” is a Greek rendering of the Hebrew term which means “anointed”. It is used almost exclusively to refer to a king. The kings of Israel were anointed by the priest in preparation for their role. Whether we realize it or not, when we call Jesus “Christ”, we’re referring to him as the king over the kingdom of Israel.

Another term that was used commonly of Jesus is “Son of David.” This term also refers to the king of the kingdom that the prophets announced. The people’s use of this term and Jesus’ acceptance of it shows that their expectations of him were similar.

A term that Jesus often applied to himself was “Son of Man”. By itself, this is a Hebrew idiom meaning a human one. God addresses Ezekiel with this term many times with this meaning. But when Jesus uses it of himself, he’s alluding to the vision in the book of Daniel. In chapter seven Daniel sees the “Ancient of Days” on a fiery throne. Four beasts, representing human kingdoms, are destroyed. And then he saw “one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:13-14) Jesus is clearly identifying with this eternal king over the entire world when he refers to himself as the “Son of Man”, which he does often.

The bulk of Jesus’ preaching is related to this kingdom. Before he even appeared in public, his cousin John announced him by saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” (Matthew 3:2) This might be referring to a kingdom from heaven, or Matthew might have been using “heaven” as an evasive synonym to keep from naming God. Luke seems to use the phrase “kingdom of God” where Matthew uses “kingdom of heaven”, but they both refer to the predicted righteous kingdom of Israel and its Davidic king.

Much of Jesus’ preaching is about the good news (gospel) of the kingdom. In fact, when he uses the term “gospel”, he is referring to the coming of the kingdom in the person of himself. One of the prophetic signs of the presence of the kingdom was to be miraculous healings, and Jesus uses this to testify to his filling of that role. (cp. Luke 4:16-21) Many of his parables were to explain about the kingdom that he was offering.

Many interpreters are tripped up by Jesus’ statement in Luke 17:21 where some translations say, “the kingdom of God is within you”. They believe that this kingdom is an internal thing, despite the words of the prophets. The Greek preposition is ambiguous, and is probably better understood as “among you”. The Kingdom, represented by Jesus, was in their midst.

This Kingdom of God, that Jesus was offering, was accepted by many, as illustrated by its climax at the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. But it was rejected by the leaders of the Jewish people, which was God’s plan all along. From that point on, Jesus’ message turned to his death and resurrection and the salvation that would bring.

But the promised kingdom was not cancelled, only delayed. Before his ascension, when the disciples asked if he was now going to restore the kingdom to Israel, he basically told them, “Later”. (Acts 1:6-7) After he was taken up, angels told them that he would return.

Though the promised kingdom did not come immediately, Jesus intended that his followers desire and pray for its coming. The prayer that he taught his disciples begins with a request for the kingdom to come so that God’s will is done on earth. Some manuscripts have the prayer end with “for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” (Matt. 6:9-13)

The last few words of the New Testament at the end of the book of Revelation are a plea for Jesus to come back to earth. This future messianic kingdom has been a focus for Jews through the ages because they know the prophetic scriptures. But Christians tend to ignore these promises, even though their name implies that Jesus is the messianic king of that kingdom. May we continually pray the prayer that Jesus gave: “May your kingdom come”, and may we eagerly anticipate it.

The Kingdom of God

The prophets of the Hebrew scriptures wrote at quite some length about a reconstituted kingdom of Israel in the future. Virtually every prophet, except possibly Jonah, mentions it, some quite extensively.

Some of the things written are quite clear. This kingdom will be preceded by a period of God’s judgment on the nations. “In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will enter into judgment against them concerning my inheritance, my people Israel, for they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land.” (Joel 3:1-2) The nation of Israel will be established forever with Jerusalem as its capital. “Look upon Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken.” (Isaiah 33:20)

God will reign through the person of a king who is a descendant of David. “‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord (is) our righteousness.'” (Jeremiah 23:5-6) “I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the Lord have spoken.” (Ezekiel 34:23-24)

From the lengthy descriptions of this coming kingdom, it is clear that there will be universal peace, prosperity, health and righteousness. War between nations will cease. “He will judge between many peoples and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.” (Micah 4:3) “The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.” (Isaiah 32:17-18)

Animal predation will also cease. “The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:6-9)

Prosperity will be widespread. “‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when the reaper will be overtaken by the plowman and the planter by the one treading grapes. New wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills. I will bring back my exiled people Israel; they will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them,’ says the Lord your God.” (Amos 9:13-15) “Every man will sit under his own vine and under his own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid, for the Lord Almighty has spoken.” (Micah 4:4) “For the Lord will ransom Jacob and redeem them from the hand of those stronger than they. They will come and shout for joy on the heghts of Zion; they will rejoice in the bounty of the Lord– the grain, the new wine and the oil, the young of the flocks and herds. They will be like a well-watered garden, and they will sorrow no more.”

Healing and good health will be rampant. “But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.” (Malachi 4:2) “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Once again men and women of ripe old age will sit in the streets of Jerusalem, each with cane in hand because of his age. The city streets will be filled with boys and girls playing there.'” (Zechariah 8:4-5) “I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more. Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his years; he who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere youth; he who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed.” (Isaiah 65:19-20)

And universal righteousness will be the order of the day. “For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. You will live in the land I gave your forefathers; you will be my people, and I will be your God.” (Ezekiel 36:24-28) “The remnant of Israel will do no wrong; they will speak no lies, nor will deceit be found in their mouths. They will eat and lie down and no one will make them afraid.” (Zephaniah 3:13) “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:14)

The Law of God will be the standard of behavior. “Many peoples will come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.’ The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Isaiah 2:3) “I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.” (Ezekiel 11:19-20) “My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd. They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees.” (Ezekiel 37:24)

This kingdom, though it be of Israel, will extend its dominion throughout the earth. “He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.” (Zechariah 9:10b) “Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, they will have no rain.” (Zechariah 14:16-17) “In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious.” (Isaiah 11:10) “At that time they will call Jerusalem The Throne of the Lord, and all nations will gather in Jerusalem to honor the name of the Lord. No longer will they follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts.” (Jeremiah 3:17)

There has never been a time in history when these things have been even remotely true. And reading the prophets makes it clear that these conditions will occur in the future, in the last days. This coming kingdom of God is mentioned in several Psalms (e.g. 2, 72, 89, 110). But it’s discussed at great length in the prophets in the following passages: Isaiah 2:2-5; 9:6-7; 11; 12; 14:1-2; 16:5; 25; 26; 27; 29:17-24; 30:18-24; 32:1-4, 15-20; 33:17-24; 35; 45:17-25; 49:5-26; 51:1-16; 52:1-12; 54; 55; 59:19-21; 60; 61; 62; 65:17-25; 66:18-24; Jeremiah 3:14-18; 23:5-8; 30:8-22; 31:1-14, 27-40; 32:36-44; 33:6-26; Ezekiel 11:16-20; 34:23-31; 36; 37; 39:25-29; Daniel 2:44-45; 7:13-14, 18, 27; Hosea 1:11; 2:16-23; 3:5; Joel 3:17-21; Amos 9:11-15; Obadiah 17-21; Micah 2:12-13; 4; 5:2-5; 7:11-20; Nahum 1:15; Habakkuk 2:14; Zephaniah 3:9-20; Haggai 2:6-9; Zechariah 8; 9:9-10:12; 14:8-21; Malachi 4:2-4.

It’s unthinkable that these passages could be referring to the church. Any reader who takes the prophets seriously would have to agree; this kingdom is yet to come.

What is The Church?

Many people have the understanding that the church is a brand new entity, started from scratch after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus, specifically at the event recorded in Acts 2 on the Jewish festival of Pentecost. Is that the position that is supported by scripture? Let’s take a look and find out.

The New Testament doesn’t describe a beginning for the group it calls the “church”. We are left to infer such things on our own. Probably one of the bases for thinking that it was started from scratch in the first century is Jesus’ statement to Peter, recorded in Matthew 16:18 (and only there) that “I will build my church.” The assumption is that he is speaking about creating this “church” from a state of non-existence.

The Greek word for “build” in this passage can refer to erecting something new. But it can also refer to continuing construction of something that already exists. An example of this is Romans 15:20 where Paul speaks of building on another man’s foundation.

There are also a couple of mentions of the word “church” in the New Testament that imply its previous existence. In Matthew 18:17 Jesus is talking to his disciples about how to deal with a brother who sins against you. He says to confront the brother alone, then with two or three others. If that doesn’t work, “tell it to the church”. That implies the existence of a church at this time.

Another passage that implies a far older origin for the church is Stephen’s speech in Acts 7:38 where he talks about Moses being with “the church in the wilderness”. (KJV) Some modern translations render this “assembly” because of their preconception of what the “church” is. But it’s the same Greek word, “ekklesia”, that is usually rendered “church”.

The Greek word is derived from a verb meaning “to call out”. So the church is “the called out ones.” It is used of both local gatherings, congregations, and also the worldwide collection of followers of God through Jesus. Incidentally, local gatherings are also referenced with the word “synagogue” as in James 2:2, also usually translated otherwise because of the translator’s presuppositions.

In the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the word “ekklesia” occurs many dozens of times, usually to translate the Hebrew word “Qahal” referring to the congregation of Israel. One example of this is in Deuteronomy 9:10 referring to the assembly at Mt. Sinai for the giving of the Torah. It is also used in this sense in Deut. 18:16.

The gathering of Israel at Mt. Sinai was actually the first Pentecost. “Pentecost” is the Greek term for “Shavuot”, the biblical feast of weeks or sevens, based on counting seven weeks after first-fruits, which occurred around Passover. This feast is treated in the Bible as a harvest festival and is never specifically equated to the Sinai experience, but the chronology given in Exodus 19 seems to line up pretty closely. Additionally, the parallels with the Sinai experience lead me to think of the Acts 2 celebration of Pentecost as the Sinai of the New Covenant.

Most of the time, “ekklesia” was used in the Septuagint of the assembly of Israel, gathered as a nation. One example among many of this use is in I Kings 8:14 when Solomon is dedicating the temple. The word is used this way frequently in the historical books and the Psalms (e.g. 22:22).

Since Paul explains in his New Testament epistles that Gentile believers in Jesus are added to the covenant community of Israel (Rom. 11:17; Eph. 2:11, 13, 19; 3:6), it might be better to think of the “church” as the covenant community of Israel, to which Gentile believers in Jesus are added. The Gentile believers in the early second century made the mistake of ceasing to think of themselves as identified with Israel. It’s time we got back to the New Testament teaching of our identity in Jesus being connected with God’s covenant people, Israel.