The Gospel of the Kingdom

Jesus said, the reason why I'm here is to proclaim the kingdom of God. And so, dear friends, if this is the reason why Jesus came, then certainly it is imperative that we have some understanding of what it is He's talking about when He talks about the kingdom of God. Welcome to the Lord's Day edition of Renewing Your Mind, and a sermon by Dr. R.C. Sproul from the Gospel of Luke.

If you have your Bible handy, he'll be teaching from chapter 4. When I was a college student and home for the Christmas holidays, the pastor of our church had a dessert inviting college students to come and visit, and on that occasion he turned to me privately and he said, R.C., tell me what is the kingdom of God? And I had absolutely no idea how to answer that question. And so, I ask you this morning if someone would approach you with the same question, what is the kingdom of God? How would you answer that question? Let me just get a little show of hands. How many of you would have a difficult time answering that question?

Let me see those hands, and the rest of you liars can keep your hands down. Well, if there is any theme that unites the Old Testament with the New Testament, any single thread that runs through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, it is this concept of the kingdom of God. Now, what I find particularly significant about the text that I just read to you was this, that there are a few occasions in the New Testament where Jesus tells people why he came to this planet. He tells them what his mission is that has been given to him by the Father, and he gives different concepts at different times, none of which are mutually exclusive with the rest.

But one occasion he says, I came that you might have life and have it more abundantly. Another occasion he said, I didn't come to be served but to serve and to give my life as a ransom for many. Still another occasion he said, I came to seek and to save those who were lost, and then when he was on trial before Pontius Pilate, you will recall, he said to Pilate, For this cause I came into the world to bear witness to the truth, and all who are of the truth hear my voice. You see, all of these things have a connection, one with each other, but here Jesus explains his mission this way.

When the crowds tried to persuade him to stay and not to depart from them, he said, I have to go. I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent. So here Jesus said, the reason why I'm here, the purpose for my coming is to preach or to proclaim the kingdom of God.

And so, dear friends, if this is the reason why Jesus came, then certainly it is imperative that we have some understanding of what it is he's talking about when he talks about the kingdom of God. When we look at the word gospel, with which we're all familiar, we see three distinct references of that word in New Testament categories. The first way in which we hear the word gospel used is to describe a particular genre of literature, namely the four books that give us biographical information about the person and work of Jesus.

We speak of the gospel of Matthew, the gospel of Mark, the gospel of Luke, and the gospel of John. And that word gospel, as you know, comes from the Greek euangelion, which means good news or good proclamation. The most frequent way in which the term gospel is used, however, in the New Testament, particularly in the apostolic writings, is when the word gospel is described as the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is that gospel that first comes to us from God, it is God's possession, but the content of that gospel has to do with the person and work of Jesus.

And secondly, how the benefits of Jesus' life and ministry are appropriated by us through faith and through faith alone. So normally when we talk about the gospel, we're talking about the gospel of Jesus Christ. But the first way in which the gospel is proclaimed in the New Testament is we hear of the gospel of the kingdom. Initially, the gospel of Jesus Christ was known as the gospel of the kingdom of God.

What is it? What's this good news that Jesus must preach to all these different cities? What does He mean when He said, if you see Me casting out demons by the finger of God, then you know that the kingdom of God has come upon you? What does He mean when He says the kingdom of God is not within you but among you, in your midst? I think what's puzzling by this is that throughout the Old Testament, the Old Testament speaks of the kingdom of God and makes it very clear that the Lord God omnipotent reigns. And God has reigned over His creation from the very moment that He made that creation.

His sovereignty is from everlasting to everlasting. And so God has been King from the beginning. So what's new about this kingdom that Jesus must preach to all of the cities of the land?

Well, to understand this, let me just spend a few minutes looking at that thread that goes from Genesis to Revelation. Let's look first for a moment, if you will, at Genesis chapter 49, in which chapter we have the record of the blessing of Jacob to his sons. And we expect, of course, that the great blessing would go to his firstborn, but it doesn't.

Instead, we read in verse 8 of chapter 49 these words, Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise. Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies. Your father's children shall bow down before you. Judah is a lion's whelp.

From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down. He lies down as a lion, and as a lion, who shall rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes. And to him shall be the obedience of the people. Binding his donkey to the vine and his donkey's colt to the choice vine, he washed his garments in wine and his clothes in the blood of grapes.

His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk. What is the scepter? The scepter is the rod of the king.

It signifies his royal authority. And so what Jacob is saying prophetically, announcing the Word of God to Judah, is that God's earthly King will be through the tribe of Judah, not through Zebulun, not through Reuben, not through Gad, Naphtali, Issachar, or anyone else, but through Judah. It's Judah who is the lion's whelp. And so God promises a king who will be known as the lion of Judah. And throughout the Old Testament in the ascension psalms, for example, He speaks of that one who will come to bring to manifestation on the earth the kingship of God. Now, a kingdom is the realm that is ruled by a king, and it is usually understood in terms of geography, geographical boundaries and borders, the realm over which the king presides. But in biblical terms, God's kingdom is not merely that area, that land, that geography, that realm over which he reigns and over which he rules. He reigns already over the whole world, over all things, but in biblical categories the kingdom of God doesn't just describe that place where God rules, but it also describes preeminently that place where God saves. The kingdom of God is the realm of the redeemed, the society of those who have experienced the salvation of the king because the promised Messiah will not only be a ruling body, a ruler of kingship, but he will be the king who is also a priest.

He is a king who will redeem his subjects through his priestly ministry. Let's jump way forward now if we could to a familiar passage, one of my favorites in the book of the Revelation of St. John in chapter 5, where John is on the island of Patmos and God is drawing back the curtain of heaven and letting John peer into the inner chambers, the heavenly court, and he sees this spectacular scene where the books of judgment have been prepared. And we read in chapter 5 these words, And I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals, sealed up so tightly, bound so closely that it seemed an impossible task for anybody to open this and look into the contents of the books. Then John says, I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the scroll and loose its seals? So in the whole heavenly court, all the angels and the archangels are present, and one angel stands up and gives the announcement with the question, Who out there can come and open this book? Who shall ascend into the hill of our Lord was the way the psalmist stated it in the Old Testament, he who has clean hands and a pure heart.

But required to open this book is not strength but worth. Who is worthy to open this book? And then we read these sad words, No one, no one in heaven, no one on the earth, no one under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look at it. And John had been so excited when he heard the angel raise the question, and John peered through the veil into heaven and was waiting to see somebody move and come forward to open up the scroll.

But no one was found worthy. So the apostle was crushed with disappointment, and he writes, So I wept much. He began to sob like a baby because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll or even to look at it. But, he said, one of the elders said to me, Do not weep. Stop crying, John.

It's okay. For behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to lose its seven seals. The Lion of Judah is worthy and able to take these seals away and open up this scroll and to see every word that is contained within it.

So stop crying. The Lion of Judah has prevailed. And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures and the midst of the elders stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns, seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out all into the earth. And he came and took the scroll out of the right hand of him who sat on the throne.

John looked, and the elders said, Don't cry. The Lion of Judah has prevailed. And when he looked for the Lion, no Lion appeared, just a Lamb as he had been slain. Isn't that incredible that the Lion of Judah was also the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world? The King is also our High Priest who offers Himself for our salvation.

That's what's new. That's what Jacob can only dream of. That's what David could only hope for. Now had come to pass where this one from the tribe of Judah prevailed. And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. So this scene unfolds in heaven where all of those present fall on their knees, and instead of hanging their harps on the trees of Babylon, they're laying them down now in the kingdom of God in heaven, bringing the bowls of the prayers of their saints, the bowls of incense, precious to God, pouring them out before Him.

And the Lord gave them a new song. You are worthy to take the scroll to open its seals, for you were slain, and you have redeemed us to God by your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God, and we shall reign on the earth. And then I looked again, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures and the elders, and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing, and every creature that is in heaven and earth and under the earth and under the sea, and all that are in them, I heard them saying, Blessing and honor, glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever. Yesterday morning we had a memorial service for Esther Fortner, who for years was a member of our choir, and at the end of that memorial service yesterday, our choir stood as we all stood, and they sang the Hallelujah Chorus. For He shall reign forever and ever, Hallelujah.

This is the song that was given to the angels in heaven, blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever. Jesus was compelled to leave Capernaum, that He might preach the kingdom of God to all of the cities. He taught His disciples to pray in their prayers to say, Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Sadly, there are many Christians today who believe that the kingdom of God is something that's totally, completely, and utterly future.

Others believe that it has been totally realized and consummated already, a pox on both of those houses. To think of the kingdom of God as being totally and completely future is to miss one of the most important announcements of the New Testament, that our King has come. He has ascended into heaven. He has gone to His coronation. He has been crowned as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, and that the reign of our King is already real, as invisible as it may be. But He's not finished.

The Lion of Judah will return, and when He returns, every knee will bow, either willingly or He will break those knees until they bow in submission to Him. You know, this is an election year, and you read every day in the paper and watch on the television all the latest polls and all the latest discussion about the candidates that are running for office, for president, vice president, for senate, for the house, and all the rest. And we get all worked up about it because it is important who sits in the White House. In proximate terms, it's extremely important how the future of this country will work out.

But dear friends, I remind you that ultimately it's not who sits in the White House that matters. It's who sits over the White House. And when we talk about the elements in the life of Jesus, we talk about His birth, we talk about His ministry, His life, His transfiguration, His atoning death, His resurrection from the dead. We talk about His ascension to heaven, and we also speak of His session. What is the session of Jesus? The session of Jesus is when He takes His seat at the right hand of God, where from that seat, from that throne, He rules over this kingdom that His Father has given to Him. And all who put their faith in that King, all of His loyal subjects experience now and forever the fullness of the salvation that He has achieved for us. For behold, the Lion of Judah has prevailed, and the Lamb of God is worthy to receive glory, honor, dominion, and power now and forevermore. With a clear definition of the kingdom of God, that's Dr. R.C.

Sproul. And if you're a Christian, if you're a follower of Jesus, consider for a moment what a privilege it is to be part of that kingdom. We're glad you've joined us for Renewing Your Mind on this Sunday as we continue Dr. Sproul's series from the Gospel of Luke. Each week on the Lord's Day, we return to this series. And if you join us each week, you'll learn about every verse in this 24-chapter book. Let me recommend that you add our resource offer to your personal library to help you in your study.

It's R.C. 's commentary on Luke. Contact us today with a donation of any amount, and we'll be happy to provide a digital download of this nearly 600-page commentary. Our offices are closed on this Lord's Day, but you can give your gift and make your request online at renewingyourmind.org. And before we go today, I'd like to thank you for your financial support of this ministry. We have been a listener-supported program for 28 years, and countless lives have been touched during that time. So we are grateful for your participation in this ministry. Next week, we'll turn to Luke chapter 5, and we'll hear about a huge haul of fish and the shocked reaction of the disciples. That's next Sunday, here on Renewing Your Mind. Please join us. .