Shalom, guysmith.
guysmith said:
“THIS” gospel of the kingdom
Romans 10:9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
To me, this verse sums up the gospel according to Paul. However, when Christ spoke these words….
Matthew 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
….Christ had not been crucified and raised from the dead, so His message (this gospel) wasn’t talking about the plan of salvation according to Paul. Any ideas what “THIS’’ gospel might be that Christ was talking about?
Good! I'm glad you noticed this! The "gospel of the kingdom" is simply the "good news about the Kingdom!" What good news?
Isaiah 52:7
7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
KJV
Both Yochanan the Immerser (John the Baptist) and Yeshua` (Jesus) were heralding (Greek:
keerussoon = "to herald as a town crier" translated as "preach") this gospel at the very beginning of Yeshua`s official offer of that Kingdom (His "ministry")!
NT:2784 keerussoo (kay-roos'-so); of uncertain affinity; to herald (as a public crier), especially divine truth (the gospel):
KJV - preacher (-er), proclaim, publish.
(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)
Matthew 4:23-25
23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.
24 And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.
25 And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan.
KJV
Matthew 9:35-36
35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
KJV
Mark 1:14-15
14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
KJV
This is NOT the "gospel" that is taught and believed today! Most think the definition of the "gospel" is 1 Corinthians 15:1-4:
1 Corinthians 15:1-4
15 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
KJV
That's an error, because this passage is NOT a definition! Verses 3 and 4 are EXTENSIONS to the gospel! The key is in the title "Christ," the Anglicized form of the Greek "
Christos," which in turn is the translation of the Hebrew title "
Mashiach" or as it has been transliterated into English through Greek and Latin, "Messiah." This is a Hebrew word meaning "Anointed One," but it refers specifically in prophetic passages to the ONE who was anointed to be KING as God's Representative!
It's most interesting that in the account of Mark 1:14-15, Yeshua` gives NO explanation for what He was talking about! It was NOT about His "death, burial, and resurrection," because few at that time knew Him to be the Messiah let alone believed that the Messiah was supposed to die, and they didn't even SUSPECT that He would come back to life! Consider Kefa's (Peter's) words much LATER:
Matthew 16:20-22
20 Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.
21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.
22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
KJV
And Kefa was just voicing the way ALL the disciples felt! Remember after the transfiguration?
Mark 9:9-10
9 And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead.
10 And they kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another what the "rising from the dead" should mean.
KJV
As I've said many times before in other threads, "salvation" doesn't mean what most people think it means, especially in prophetic passages! It's not a word that is talking about gaining personal acceptance from God! It's about RESCUE! And, in particular, this is talking about the rescue of the Hebrew people when they are threatened by their neighboring nations!
Many will use Romans 10:13 as part of the "Romans Road to Salvation":
Romans 10:13
13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
KJV
But, look at the surrounding context and look at the context from whence it was quoted!
Romans 10:13-15
13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!
KJV
Verse 15 is a quote from Isaiah 52:7 above, and verse 13 is a quote from Joel 2:32:
Joel 2:23-3:2
23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.
24 And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil.
25 And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.
26 And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed.
27 And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.
28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come.
32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
3 For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.
KJV
So, "salvation" is God's DELIVERANCE of His people Isra'el, particularly Judah and Jerusalem! It is their RESCUE that Yeshua` will perform when He comes again in the Second Coming or the Second Advent!
This is something that many Christians don't understand and thus they misinterpret Yochanan's (John's) words when he sent some of his disciples to Yeshua` to ask Him,
Matthew 11:2-3
2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples,
3 And said unto him, "Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?"
KJV
Yochanan was not "losing faith" or "doubting" in any way! See, the rabbis had long discussed the Messianic prophecies even before Yeshua` came the first time. All the prophecies about the Messiah seem to fit into two very different camps, a suffering and dying Messiah (that they called "
haMashiach ben Yosef" or "the Messiah son of Joseph") and a conquering and reigning Messiah (that they called "
haMashiach ben Daviyd" or "the Messiah son of David). "The Messiah son of Joseph" does not refer to Mary's "Joseph," but to the "Joseph" who suffered at the hands of his brothers, was sold into slavery, and wound up in a prison in Egypt. He was the "son of Joseph" as in FOLLOWING THE PATTERN of Joseph. Some rabbis actually believed that there would be TWO Messiahs, each one fulfilling his respective set of prophecies.
So, because the Jews had rejected the herald (Yochanan) and was in the process of rejecting the Messiah Yeshua`, Yochanan (John) was saying to Him, "I can see that you are Messiah the Son of Joseph. Are you also the Messiah that should come, i.e., Messiah the Son of David, or should we look for another Messiah?"
Yeshua` answered him by performing the miracles that the Messiah Son of David was to perform. And, that settled the matter for both Yochanan and his disciples. Yeshua` showed him that He was ONE Messiah with TWO comings! There was no doubt in Yochanan's question; he was simply seeking clarification!
So, back to the gospel of the Kingdom: Yeshua` didn't HAVE to explain what that "gospel of the Kingdom" was! They READ ABOUT IT EVERY YEAR! Every year the Jews would read through the Torah (the first five books of the Bible - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy - that they called "Beresheet," "Shmowt," "Vayikraa," "Bmidbar," and "Dvariym"). In the additional readings (the Haftarah) from other books of the Tanakh (the Old Testament), every 4 Elul (this last year that occurred on August 10) they would read Isaiah 51:12-52:12! They would read and study and discuss this portion of the Scriptures for a week! So, all Yeshua` had to do was say, "The time has come, God's Kingdom is within your grasp, repent (turn around 180 degrees) and believe the good news!"
Just as J. R. R. Tolkien wrote,...
And some things that should not have been forgotten were lost. History became legend. Legend became myth. And for two and a half thousand years, the Ring passed out of all knowledge.
— Lady Galadriel, Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
... in the same way, the Jews had become calloused to the prophecies! They had NEGLECTED and FORGOTTEN the REALITY behind them! Thus, they were NOT READY when Yeshua` came on the scene! Therefore, they had to be washed in the
mikvah of the Yarden River (baptism was originally a JEWISH cleansing ritual) and REMINDED through the teachings of Yochanan and Yeshua`.
This has been a lot of information, but hopefully it won't be too overwhelming.
P.S. - I should have mentioned that it is THIS "gospel of the Kingdom" to which Yeshua` was referring in Matthew 24:14. Therefore, it has barely BEGUN to be heralded! And, if this is what we must see come to pass before "the end can come," then we've got some work to do!