Bob Stark
Several weeks ago, Becky shared about us being in a time of transition - from Church Age to the Kingdom Age. Her message declared the transition, however most of her sharing reviewed the past church age. I was a bit confused and then realized we don’t really know what this future age will look like. So what do we do with that? How do we respond, and what is even the difference between the two?
I love questions, because questions lead to discovery….and discovery leads to intimacy In my observation (Big Picture) the Church Age was was mostly about “us” the Church. The overall focus was “inward.” Even our outreach, was focused to bring people “in” to the Church and getting people “in” to heaven.
But what does the Kingdom age look like? Where do we start?
Question:
What does “the Gospel” mean to you?
My take: Western, modern, Evangelical Church - predominant theme: Gospel of Salvation (Jesus died for our sins)
This viewpoint has shaped the world view of most of the church (maybe without us even realizing it). Almost everything is seen through or in relationship with that lens
Question: “What was Jesus really trying to communicate when He referred to “the Gospel?”
When Jesus walked the earth, He had a narrative that centered around “The Gospel of the Kingdom”
The writers of “The Gospels” were each telling a story, in their own way; each had their own unique “agenda” as they wrote their Gospels…they were never intended to be simply a historical account of Jesus’ time on the earth, …and their intentional use of the term “Gospel” had a very clear meaning based on the culture of their day.
The word for GOSPEL in the Greek is “Euangelion”. The meaning is "good news" but the context was governmental or Kingdom oriented. The “Gospel” was an imperial proclamation that announced a new king and a new kingdom had come on the scene. It is a term that was used in ancient Greece, (centuries before Jesus' time on the earth) and by the Romans after that. In fact, the use of the term “Gospel” by the Gospel writers was a very subversive statement against the well established culture of their day….
History Lesson:
Lets go back in history….Centuries before Jesus came to the earth, Alexander the Great, the Greek conqueror had a problem. He wanted to conquer the whole world for Greece, but he didn't have an army large enough to keep all of the people under his rule in submission and still have enough of an army left to conquer new territories (which was the same problem that others before him had). So Alexander utilized the Euangelion as part of his strategy. Now Alexander believed that the Greek way of life was superior to all of the other kingdoms in the earth, and so once his army conquered a particular kingdom or people group, if he could evangelize the new people to the Greek way of life, and show them that their lives were better under the Greek system than they were under their old system, then he had won the people and he wouldn't need large armies to keep them in subjugation. He used “the Gospel”. (The euangelion)
He spread the Gospel, or “Good News” that there was a new king and a new kingdom at hand, and proceeded to evangelize the benefits of the Greek Empire . The Greek worldview which became known as Hellenism) . Hellenism was anchored by four tenets:
- Healthcare
- Education
- Athletics
- Theater (entertainment)
And in order for this strategy to really work, this “gospel” had to be backed up with tangible action. In other words, the Greeks had to implement the 4 tenants of their ideology in each of the kingdoms or societies that they captured…So this gospel was also accompanied with tangible signs, which were seen to improve the lives of the local people. And he successfully used this strategy to literally conquer the known world for Greece.
As the Roman Empire grew in power, and eventually overthrew the Greek Empire, the Romans used this same successful strategy of the GOSPEL (euangelion) to evangelize that their new King and the new Kingdom of Rome had now come on the scene and was superior to the Greek way of life.
And each new Roman Emperor that came into power after that , would be proclaimed with this same gospel message.. So this idea and context of "THE GOSPEL" was very well known in Israel when Jesus came on the scene as the Jews were under Roman occupation at the time and were very familiar with this whole scenario.
The Point:
The gospel writers use of this term (GOSPEL (euangelion) was intentional, and would have given the people hearing it a clear understanding of the context in which Jesus was referring to (i.e. there is a new King, and a new Kingdom that has come which is far superior to the Roman kingdom you are under, or any earthly kingdom for that matter ...this did not imply a religious or spiritual message at all. This message is why many of His followers tried to crown Him King, and expected Him to free the Jewish people from their Roman Occupation by force.
However, this Kingdom was different. Jesus used this contextual understanding of Gospel as His starting point or baseline for the people's understanding…ie. That this was about a kingdom on the earth, however, from there, He then taught and modeled that the Kingdom He was talking about was very different from any kingdom they had witnessed on the earth…That the Kingdom He was referring to operated on a whole different set of principles than they were used to.
- Up was down
- Down was up
- If you want to be in authority, then be a servant
- Everything about the Kingdom of Heaven was different from the common observation and understanding of earthly kingdoms. Jesus not only taught these principles, he demonstrated them…He brought the reality of Heaven to the earthly realm….He taught it, He demonstrated it, He lived it.
Unfortunately, when we look at the modern day church, we don't often see the kingdom principles that Jesus taught and demonstrated in actual practice….most of what we see is a top down approach, with many church leaders demonstrating more dominion, than servant leadership. And much of what is done, is done to support the structure of the organization, not the broader Kingdom of God….this isn’t ok.
In Matthew 3, John the Baptist's message in the wilderness was “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
Then when Jesus started His public ministry, He continued the same message. We find in Matthew 4:17 Jesus speaking: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”
Question: What does this mean to you?
My opinion: In the modern evangelical church, we have framed this in light of the Salvation message - many would interpret this as “Stop sinning, do an about face from sin, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand…i.e. We need to stop sinning in order to “get into” the Kingdom of Heaven
The original greek word for Repent is “Metanoeo” which literally means “to change ones mind, to think differently, to do an about face in ones thinking”.
What I believe Jesus was really saying and what the Gospel writers were trying to communicate was: Repent (change your way of thinking) because the Kingdom of Heaven (which has a very different way of operating or doing things) is now here…and to fully access it, it takes a complete change in the way you think.
In order for us to truly access and benefit from the Kingdom of Heaven being “at hand” we have to change our way of thinking and change our perceived understanding in order to align with the higher way of thinking and Higher purposes of the kingdom of heaven.
This was not a religious statement….it was a practical one. Jesus came to earth in an environment where the prevailing thinking of his day was Greek thinking (left brain), and even the Jews of his day had succumbed to that way of thinking. Remember, the Jews were under Roman rule, and most had bought into the GrecoRoman way of thinking and were living more Greek than Eastern at that time. Greek thinking is left brain (analytical, logical, linear, facts, logic). And Eastern thinking is right brain (creative, imagination, intuition, rhythm, artistic).
In addition, the way the Roman Empire worked (and Empires before that), was to try to assimilate the people to the Roman way of life, but those who rebelled, would be crushed…ie ultimately, it was dominion by domination. Yet Jesus modeled that the kingdom of Heaven operated the opposite of that. To lead, you must serve,. To go up, you must go down. Everything operated differently.
Our whole way of thinking must change, for us to enter (now) and fully participate in and with the Kingdom of heaven. The Kingdom message, the one that Jesus brought, is much larger, over arching and consistent with the totality of scripture, way back to God’s original intention for the earth. The message of Salvation is extremely important, but should be interpreted through the lens of the Kingdom, not the other way around.
In Luke 19 Jesus said “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” We sometimes limit this in our thinking to lost souls, but the full meaning here is that Jesus (as the Son of Man) has come to seek and to save all that was lost by Adam’s sin in the garden. This verse, Luke 19:11, is sandwiched between a story of Salvation (Zaccheus) and a Kingdom teaching about righteousness in finances leading to being put in authority over Cities. These two messages (Salvation and Kingdom) are connected, we just need to get them in the proper order or perspective.
Jesus himself said in Matthew 24:14 “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”
We find in Matthew 11:12 (Jesus speaking), “And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.”
The kingdom of Heaven is now accessible here on the earth (in the natural realm), but there are significant forces resisting it, and therefore those that contend for it, must do so with violent resolve. in other words you will not fully access the kingdom of heaven in this earth in a passive way, it takes spiritual violence to overcome the forces of evil that are trying to prevent it from coming to earth in fullness. It also takes physical risk and effort as this is a spiritual battle that is contending for the natural earth, which includes, but is not limited to the souls of the people.
The coming of Jesus ushered the kingdom of Heaven to the earth and empowered us (by the shedding of His blood and the gift of the Holy Spirit) to lay hold of it. But we have to fight and contend for it to fully come to earth and over take the current systems that are currently controlling the earth.
This is a spiritual battle, that is contending for the natural earth.
It starts with each of us with a change in how we think and our understanding of God our Father, and an understanding of our individual gifts and purpose on the earth.
The End Goal:
Habakkuk 2:14
The earth will be filled with the knowledge (Yada) of the glory of God, as the waters cover the sea.
Yada = intimacy.
Bob Stark
Bob and his wife Anita are Ordained ministers and Elders in The Covenant Center. Bob dives into God’s word bringing wisdom, insight and truth to his messages and teachings. He has a heart for the hurting and wounded and a desire to see people prosper. Bob encourages others to develop a relationship with God which brings intimacy and guidance from the Father. He and Anita enjoy spending time with their family and grandchildren. An avid fisherman, Bob enjoys the open water and the discussion of lively fishing tales..
Contact: info@thecovenantcenter.com