Even so, come, Lord Jesus

Now let’s take a stroll through the book of Acts and see how this all plays out.

Act 3:1 Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.

By this verse we can see that Peter and John are Jews, not ‘Christians’. Jesus never commanded them to stop being Jewish. In Fact, He told them to continue to be good, law keeping Jews.

Mat 23:2 Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: 3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.

And for good reason:

Jhn 4:22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.

Jesus did not come to start a new religion. He came as the fulfillment of the Jewish prophecies.

Mat 15:24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Back to Acts:

Act 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; 20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:

Peter is trying to convince the Jews that it’s not to late. He was resurrected and is still the messiah. If they would repent and believe that Jesus is the Christ, He is ready to come back and establish His Kingdom in Jerusalem.

Acts 4:32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that aught of the things which he possessed was his own: but they had all things common.

What was the point of this? Why did these early Jewish believers in Jerusalem live in a commune? Because they thought that the Messiah would be coming back to Jerusalem any minute now and they weren’t going anywhere.

Acts 8:1 And Saul was consenting unto his death. And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem: and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.

It is becoming more and more evident that Israel, as a nation, is not going to accept Jesus as the Messiah. Israel’s opposition to Christ is becoming more vehement and the church at Jerusalem is forced to scatter. Notice that the apostles did not leave Jerusalem.

Acts 9:20 And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.

Acts 9:22 But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ.

Here is Saul shortly after His conversion on the road to Damascus preaching to Jews that Jesus is the Christ.

Acts 13:5 And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister.

Everywhere that Paul went he preached to Jews that Jesus was the Christ.

 Acts 13:14 But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and sat down.

Acts 13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

 From Antioch on, everywhere that Paul went he preached to the Jews of that place first, and when they invariably rejected Jesus as their Messiah, he went to the Gentiles. If he preached to Jews that Jesus is the Messiah, what did he preach to Gentiles?

 Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of god;

 Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

 I Cor 15:3 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:

 This is the Gentile version of the Gospel of the Kingdom; it is the Gospel of the Grace of God. To Gentiles, the crucifixion of Christ is an act of the love and mercy and grace of God. But to the Jews, the crucifixion was their own shameful rejection of the promised Messiah.

 If Jesus didn’t preach his own death, burial and resurrection, and Peter and the eleven didn’t preach Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, then where did Paul get it?

 Gal 1:11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. 12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

 Eph 3:1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, 2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: 3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery:… 5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; 6 That the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: 7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. 8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ:

 Jesus Christ revealed to Paul things that had been kept hidden from the foundation of the earth; things that nobody else ever heard or knew. The Old Testament Prophets didn’t know. There can be no doubt that Jesus Himself knew, but He did not teach them to His Apostles. Just as God revealed His law to Moses to give to the Jews, so He revealed to Paul the gospel of His grace to give to the Gentiles.

 When Christ was on earth He said; “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Mat 15:24) and to His Apostles He said “Go not into the way of the Gentiles” (Mat 10:5). But after He died, rose again and ascended into Heaven He said of Paul; “He is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles” (Acts 9:15). And to Paul He said; “I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” (Acts 22:21).

If Christ preached the Gospel of the Kingdom, what did His twelve apostles preach?

Mat 10:5 These twelve Jesus sent forth and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not. 6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Jesus expected the twelve to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom to Jews only. He specifically told them not to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom to Gentiles.

Mat 13:10 And the Disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

They were given by God insight into the kingdom of heaven that others were not.

Mat 16:15 But whom say ye that I am? 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

Simon Peter knew that Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah, the promised King of Israel. And Jesus was very happy with his answer. It was revealed to him by God.

Luke 18:31 Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. 32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on : 33 and they shall scourge him and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. 34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.

They had no idea that He was going to die for the sins of the world. The same God that revealed to them that He was the Christ, hid from them that he would save the world, even Gentiles, by his death, burial and resurrection.

Luke 24:9 And returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest.  Luke 24:11And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not.

Even after the crucifixion, they still had no idea what was going on.

Acts 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

This question was posed to Jesus after His resurrection. Still no mention of salvation by the Gospel of Grace. The eleven (the twelve minus Judas) are still looking for the Kingdom to come in.

Acts 2:22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: 23 Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: 24 Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.  Acts 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

Here is Simon Peter at Pentecost, now under the influence and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, doing exactly what Jesus told him to do: preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom to Jews.

When Jesus preached the Gospel, what exactly was He preaching?

Mat 4:23  And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and praching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

Mark 1:14  Now after that John was put in prison, jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”

Luke 4:43  And He said unto them, “I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent.”

John 3:3  “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

What is the ‘kingdom’ then? And why is it such good news?

Psalm 2:6  Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. 7  I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.

While God did set David as king on Zion (Jerusalem), David was not begotten by God. He was begotten by Jesse.

8  Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. 9  Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in peices like a potter’s vessel.

David did not inherit the heathen (gentiles), nor did he possess the uttermost parts of the earth. In fact, David’s kingdom never spanned all the land that God promised to the Jews in Num 34.

10  Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. 11 Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. 12  Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

David is admonishing the gentile rulers of the Earth to watch out, because the Earth will be ruled by the King of Isreal from Jerusalem.

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:

Isaiah refers to the same son as David in Psalm 2.

and the government shall be upon his shoulder: 

Isaiah refers to the same King as David.

and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Isaiah goes on to say that this ’son’ and ‘king’ will in fact be God Himself.

7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

So we have a son and a king, who is God Himself, reigning upon the throne of David ( a descendant of David) in Jerusalem, over Isreal. His kingdom will have no limits, encompassing the entire earth. And He will reign not with corrupt politics like we have now, but with truth and right justice.

Jeremiah 23:5  Behold, the days come, saith th Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a king shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

There are many promises like this sprinkled throughout the writings of the prophets. Promises that God will provide to the nation of Israel a descendant of David to sit on his throne and rule the world from Jerusalem with peace and justice. Good news indeed for Jewish people. When Jesus preached the Gospel of the Kingdom, that is what He was preaching. That He is the promised King, the Messiah, the Christ.

Mark 14:61 But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the son of the Blessed? 62  And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

When Jesus preached the Gospel of the Kingdom, there was no mention of His death, burial and resurrection. Not a word about redemption or justification. That comes later.

Genesis 2:8-9

 8 And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.

9 And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

 Genesis 2:16-17

 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:

17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

 Genesis 3:1-6

 1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:

3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

 The Lord God said “If you eat of the tree, you will die.” The serpent says, “If you eat of the tree, you will not die.” He is trying to convince the woman (not yet named) that God will not do what He says He is going to do. She can’t just believe God, she can’t just go by God’s word; God’s word is unreliable and cannot be taken literally.

 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

 If she wants to be smart, if she wants to be wise, than she cannot simply believe God’s word but must do what she thinks is right. And if she simply believes God’s word rather than what she thinks is right, she will not be wise.

 6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that is was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

 She bought it. She, and so many of her children after her, decided that wisdom was to be found in something other than the simple belief of God’s word. (All three points of temptation listed in I John 2:16 are present. It’s also interesting to note that whereas the woman was deceived by the serpent, Adam was not deceived. He knew what he was doing. But these are studies for another time.)

 Genesis 3:16-19

 16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;

19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

 These are the consequences of unbelief. It’s extremely unpleasant. The notion that God cannot be taken at His word caused the downfall of the human race and the earth. The notion that God’s word is unreliable and cannot be taken literally is the serpent’s lie. God addresses this issue in His law:

 Numbers 15:30-31

 30 But the soul that doeth aught presumptuously, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, the same reproacheth the Lord; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.

31 Because he hath despised the word of the Lord, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off: his iniquity shall be upon him.

 Pretty harsh; Christ Himself while on earth also addresses the issue:

 Mathew 18:2-4

 2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,

3 and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

 Trust God like a little child. Believe the word of God, even if it doesn’t make sense to you, for no other reason than because God said it. There is no record of God explaining to Adam and Eve why He didn’t want them to eat of the tree in the midst of the garden. He told them not to eat of it and, for this reason only; He expected them to not eat of it.

 Again Christ, while on earth, said to the Pharisees (Jewish leaders who operated under religious tradition rather than by the word of God):

 John 8:47

 47 He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

 Let this verse sound an alarm in the minds of those who cannot bring themselves to simply believe the word of God.

 God, through the prophet Samuel, made this poignant statement to King Saul, the first King of Israel:

I Samuel 15:23

 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.  

 Throughout Scripture there are instances of this. God rejects those who do not believe His word and justifies those who do.

 Hebrews 11:7-8

 7 By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

 God told Noah to build an ark and, because Noah believed God, He built the ark and was saved from the flood.

 8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

 God told Abraham to leave his home and go to a strange land and because Abraham believed God, he went, and became the father of the race of people through whom God would save mankind.

 Romans 4:3

 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.

 Faith = Believing God’s word

 It is of utmost importance that we not consider ourselves to be too ‘wise’ to believe a literal interpretation of God’s word.

 I Corinthians 4:18-19

 18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seeemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.

19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness.

 But if we rely on what we see to be right rather than on God’s literal word:

 Proverbs 16:25

 25 There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

Glory to God

Joe Gallagher

The second coming of Jesus the Christ is drawing nearer everyday. Are you ready?

Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

All have sinned. That means me, you, everybody at work, everybody at church; everybody. Do not deceive yourself by saying “I’m not as bad as Hitler. I’m not as bad as Bin Laden.” Can you honestly believe that as long as you’re not the worst person on earth you are OK in the eyes of God? Christ is the standard. Compare yourself to him and you will see that all have indeed sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Romans 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

Christ has redeemed us from our sin; He has earned salvation for us and offers it freely because of His love for us.

Romans 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

Jesus Christ suffered and died on our behalf; He took the punishment for sins that we deserve so that we wouldn’t have to. We are saved by the rightousness of Christ, not our own rightousness, and we receive that salvation by faith in His blood.

Romans 3:26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Almighty God has declared His rightousness; the only rightousness in the world. He is just and He will not overlook sin; sin must be punished. Because God loves us, He Himself came in the person of Jesus Christ to take that punishment for us. The Just One justifies all who believe in Jesus. Not all who repent and are baptized. Not all who join a church. Not all members of one particular denomination. Not all who recieve the sacraments. But all who believe; all who recieve the free gift of salvation by faith.

Romans 3:27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.

No one can boast of their own rightousness, because they have none. No one can say that God accepts them because they have made themselves good enough. Whether it be by giving or good works or keeping religious tradition, no one can make themselves righteous. The only righteousness is that of God, and justification comes from God only. And god justifies those who believe.

Romans 3:28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

Ephesians 2
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.