So God has a plan, and he is going to fulfill that plan with Israel, their promises are literal. God has a great plan and a great purpose in mind for Israel in time future, after his program for the restoration of his rightful headship in the heavenly realm comes to completion.
So, why all the different gospel designations in the Bible, why not just one title? Each of these gospels has its own set of issues, its own purpose and its own place when it comes to the surrounding good news messages. Each speaks of its own unique circumstances as far as the information that God wanted to impart to people is concerned.
Not every good news message is the same good news message that God wanted people to hear. One good news message may add to, or enhance another message sitting around it. Then again, an additional good news message my alter completely what God’s doing, which we see in Scripture.
The kingdom of heaven is NOT referring to a kingdom IN heaven, it is not a kingdom located in heaven. It is referring to a kingdom to be set up here on this planet with the son of God ruling and reigning as King. As the kingdom of heaven was being proclaimed, the nation Israel as a whole knew nothing at all about the identity of the king who would be reigning in that kingdom.
The gospel of the kingdom was simply the good news that God’s rightful reign upon the earth was at hand. The gospel of God was an enhancement to, an addition to the gospel of the kingdom. The gospel of God pertained to Jesus from Nazareth, as to his identity of the rightful king over that earthly kingdom.
God is not through with his earthly nation or his earthly program. God’s program concerning the restoration of his rightful headship in the earthly realm in time past, as it pertains to his restoration of that realm in time future, centered in a nation, the nation Israel, and a kingdom promised to that nation, and a king who would rule in that kingdom.
It is a very simple thing, simple enough for a little child to understand it: Jesus Christ died for your sins! That is a whole lot better to say to a child, rather than “Ask him into your heart” or “Pray that he will save you” or “Repeat this prayer” or “Come down front.” All those things have been added by religion.
Remember, we were given our righteous standing as a free gift, It is a grace gift given by God, and we receive it the instant we place our faith in Christ having resolved God’s justice for our sins, when he died for those sins.
This gift decree of righteousness comes totally apart from any and all human promise, any or all human performance or any or all human production, no human merit of people whatsoever for this free gift. God will never consider people’s works as a payment for God’s justifying declaration.
To say “your works” have anything at all to do with God’s gift declaration of righteousness is to slap the giver in the face. The only way a person can be counted righteous, (justified) when unrighteousness is the reality given the sin nature we have inherited from Adam, is for that person to be joined to God’s son.
The only thing God is asking you to believe to be placed into his son, is to take God at his word, concerning what his son did where your sins are concerned. If you are asking God to forgive you for your sins, what are you saying you believe about what Jesus Christ accomplished where those sins are concerned?
When Israel’s New Covenant comes in to play, they will be caused to know him, because salvation for the Israelite meant an entrance into the promised earthly Kingdom. What a glorious day that will be for the earth and for the earth’s inhabitants, when Jesus Christ is ruling and reigning as King over the earthly realm.
The apostle Paul was striving to know Christ and know him intimately, not as simply a prophet, not as Israel’s messiah, not as simply another great teacher, but to know him in the power of his resurrection and in the fellowship of his suffering. Paul wanted Christ’s life to be manifest in his own life.
Religion is fill with lots of people who would rather beg God to fix their suffering circumstances, rather than to thank God for his enabling grace that is sufficient for every suffering saint, that energizing power from on high. Most of Paul’s pain and suffering came from making the right decisions.
Knowing Christ would mean exchanging human viewpoint for divine viewpoint, Human viewpoint is always self interest orientated. You must take part in the ingestion and absorption of God’s word, transformation, God’s responsibility, the ingestion and absorption of divine viewpoint, the believer’s responsibility.
Relinquishing human viewpoint for divine viewpoint comes as we take in and meditate and focus on knowing Christ according to divine viewpoint. Do not confuse standing with state. Your standing comes from all God accomplished for you, that you could become identified with all that is Christ’s.
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